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Universe Today
9 Jun 2010, 21:12 UTC
Space based solar power? How about a Moon-based solar collector that would beam energy back to Earth. This is just one idea proposed by a 200-year-old Japanese construction company, Shimizu that prides itself in forward-thinking technology and structure development. For this "Luna Ring," an array of solar cells would extend like a belt [...] The Luna Ring, a belt of solar collecting panels along the Moon's equator. Credit: ShimizuSpace based solar power? How about a Moon-based solar collector that would beam energy back to Earth. This is just one idea proposed by a 200-year-old Japanese construction company, Shimizu that prides itself in forward-thinking technology and structure development. For this "Luna Ring," an array of solar cells would extend like a belt along the entire 11,000 km lunar equator, and laser power transmission facilities would beam a high-energy-density laser towards receiving stations on Earth.See more on the Luna Ring, plus plans for orbiting hotels, Moon bases, mega-pyramid cities, and more, below. (...)Read the rest of Japanese Firm Designing Futuristic Space Mega-Projects (493 words)© nancy for Universe Today, 2010. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: mega engineering, Technology Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh
Japanese Firm Designing Futuristic Space Mega-Projects
9 Jun 2010, 21:12 UTC
Space based solar power? How about a Moon-based solar collector that would beam energy back to Earth. This is just one idea proposed by a 200-year-old Japanese construction company, Shimizu that prides itself in forward-thinking technology and structure development. For this "Luna Ring," an array of solar cells would extend like a belt [...] The Luna Ring, a belt of solar collecting panels along the Moon's equator. Credit: ShimizuSpace based solar power? How about a Moon-based solar collector that would beam energy back to Earth. This is just one idea proposed by a 200-year-old Japanese construction company, Shimizu that prides itself in forward-thinking technology and structure development. For this "Luna Ring," an array of solar cells would extend like a belt along the entire 11,000 km lunar equator, and laser power transmission facilities would beam a high-energy-density laser towards receiving stations on Earth.See more on the Luna Ring, plus plans for orbiting hotels, Moon bases, mega-pyramid cities, and more, below. (...)Read the rest of Japanese Firm Designing Futuristic Space Mega-Projects (493 words)© nancy for Universe Today, 2010. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: mega engineering, Technology Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh
Astroblog
9 Jun 2010, 20:30 UTC
The morning sky facing north-east in Australia on Friday June 11 at 6:30 am local time showing the Moon and Mercury. the Moon is covering some of the beautiful Pleiades Cluster.On the morning of Friday June 11 the thin crescent Moon is close to Mercury. At this time the Moon also occults the Pleiades Cluster. This will be difficult to see if you don't have a fairly level, clear eastern horizon.You will need a pair of binoculars to see this event at its best (telescopes might be a bit hard to bring to bear as the event is close to the horizon).Times of prominent star disappearances and appearances for major cities are listed here.However, if you start looking from around 6:00 am local time you should see the crescent Moon starkly outlined against the bulk of the Pleiades and various faint and bright stars passing behind the Moon then being revealed.
Occultation of the Pleiades, Friday June 11, 2010
9 Jun 2010, 20:30 UTC
The morning sky facing north-east in Australia on Friday June 11 at 6:30 am local time showing the Moon and Mercury. the Moon is covering some of the beautiful Pleiades Cluster.On the morning of Friday June 11 the thin crescent Moon is close to Mercury. At this time the Moon also occults the Pleiades Cluster. This will be difficult to see if you don't have a fairly level, clear eastern horizon.You will need a pair of binoculars to see this event at its best (telescopes might be a bit hard to bring to bear as the event is close to the horizon).Times of prominent star disappearances and appearances for major cities are listed here.However, if you start looking from around 6:00 am local time you should see the crescent Moon starkly outlined against the bulk of the Pleiades and various faint and bright stars passing behind the Moon then being revealed.
NASA Astrobiology
9 Jun 2010, 19:08 UTC
A study of how climate conditions have affected the origin and evolution of life on Earth could provide clues to understanding how climates on alien planets might affect their potential for life. The Sun used to shine less brightly when the Earth was young, so the early Earth should have been cooler than it is today. Greenhouse gases may have played an important role in warming the planet to a point where it was habitable for life. The study was recently published in the journal Astrobiology.
Alien Climates Play Key Role in Possibility of Life
9 Jun 2010, 19:08 UTC
A study of how climate conditions have affected the origin and evolution of life on Earth could provide clues to understanding how climates on alien planets might affect their potential for life. The Sun used to shine less brightly when the Earth was young, so the early Earth should have been cooler than it is today. Greenhouse gases may have played an important role in warming the planet to a point where it was habitable for life. The study was recently published in the journal Astrobiology.
HobbySpace RLV Space & Transport News
9 Jun 2010, 17:59 UTC
The deployment of the IKAROS solar sail is getting close: /-- Progress -- with pictures! -- on IKAROS' sail deployment - The Planetary Society Blog /-- IKAROS Sail Deployment in Progress - Centauri Dreams
IKAROS solar sail update
9 Jun 2010, 17:59 UTC
The deployment of the IKAROS solar sail is getting close: /-- Progress -- with pictures! -- on IKAROS' sail deployment - The Planetary Society Blog /-- IKAROS Sail Deployment in Progress - Centauri Dreams
Weirdwarp
9 Jun 2010, 17:22 UTC
Ever wondered what happened after a space shuttle landing? NASA have released a video (below) which shows the winding down of the shuttle and the tow back to its hangar. After landing it takes 150 workers to pull the crew out and to carry out the necessary checks and procedures. Shuttle Atlantis will be ready for [...]
Take a Peek inside the Space Shuttle after Landing
9 Jun 2010, 17:22 UTC
Ever wondered what happened after a space shuttle landing? NASA have released a video (below) which shows the winding down of the shuttle and the tow back to its hangar. After landing it takes 150 workers to pull the crew out and to carry out the necessary checks and procedures. Shuttle Atlantis will be ready for [...]
NASA Astrobiology
9 Jun 2010, 17:19 UTC
A tankful of tiny Sea Monkeys were the stars of the show at an Astronomy Day event held in Bozeman, Montana on April 24. The centimeter-long creatures, long the staple of old-school comic book ads, twirled and whirled underwater as kids and adults alike kneeled down for a look. The Sea Monkeys were part of an astrobiology exhibit hosted by Montana State University’s Astrobiology Biogeocatalysis Research Center (ABRC), and the creatures helped spark the conversation about “alien” life. “If we find alien life on another planet, they probably won’t look like the little green men in movies. They’re much more likely to look like this!” said MSU Outreach Specialist Jamie Cornish, as she pointed out the Sea Monkeys’ long tails and three eyes. Sea Monkeys (which are actually a species of brine shrimp) are hardy creatures that have a long track record in space. Cornish said they have flown on the Space Shuttle Discovery, Space Shuttle Endeavour, the USML-1 Columbia, the Space Shuttle Atlantis and the Mir Space Station. Their eggs were placed outside a space vehicle and exposed to the full radiation of the Sun. Upon returning to earth, the eggs still hatched. Cornish told Astronomy Day visitors that ...
Sea Monkeys Steal the Show at Astronomy Day in Bozeman
9 Jun 2010, 17:19 UTC
A tankful of tiny Sea Monkeys were the stars of the show at an Astronomy Day event held in Bozeman, Montana on April 24. The centimeter-long creatures, long the staple of old-school comic book ads, twirled and whirled underwater as kids and adults alike kneeled down for a look. The Sea Monkeys were part of an astrobiology exhibit hosted by Montana State University’s Astrobiology Biogeocatalysis Research Center (ABRC), and the creatures helped spark the conversation about “alien” life. “If we find alien life on another planet, they probably won’t look like the little green men in movies. They’re much more likely to look like this!” said MSU Outreach Specialist Jamie Cornish, as she pointed out the Sea Monkeys’ long tails and three eyes. Sea Monkeys (which are actually a species of brine shrimp) are hardy creatures that have a long track record in space. Cornish said they have flown on the Space Shuttle Discovery, Space Shuttle Endeavour, the USML-1 Columbia, the Space Shuttle Atlantis and the Mir Space Station. Their eggs were placed outside a space vehicle and exposed to the full radiation of the Sun. Upon returning to earth, the eggs still hatched. Cornish told Astronomy Day visitors that ...
AmericaSpace
9 Jun 2010, 17:01 UTC
AmericaSpace Note: We received the following letter by Rep. Pete Olson from a friend this morning and thought we would share it with you. Mr. Roger Tetrault, a former member of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB), wrote to Rep. Olson of his concerns about the path that the Obama Administration and its affects on [...]
Safety Should Be Paramount In Space Debate
9 Jun 2010, 17:01 UTC
AmericaSpace Note: We received the following letter by Rep. Pete Olson from a friend this morning and thought we would share it with you. Mr. Roger Tetrault, a former member of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB), wrote to Rep. Olson of his concerns about the path that the Obama Administration and its affects on [...]
Bad Astronomy
9 Jun 2010, 16:00 UTC
Yesterday, I wrote about the comet 2009 R1 McNaught which is currently in the extreme northern sky in the early morning. By coincidence, just hours after posting it, I got an email from the amateur astronomer Anthony Ayiomamitis (the same guy who took the very cool picture of the ISS and Jupiter in the daytime), who sent me this picture of the comet he took in Greece at just around the same time that post went live: Wow, very pretty! The solid part of the comet, called the nucleus, is far smaller than a single pixel in this image, since the comet was more than 175 million km (110 million miles) away when he took this shot. The nucleus of even a huge comet is only a few dozen km across, so at that great distance is just a tiny dot. Anthony has details on his observations on his McNaught page. The comet looks huge — and the fuzzy part can be bigger than planets! — because what you’re seeing is gas expanding away from the nucleus. Far from the Sun that gas is frozen, and the comet is solid. But heat it up, and that ice turns into a ...
Actually, if you’re a comet, it *is* easy being green
9 Jun 2010, 16:00 UTC
Yesterday, I wrote about the comet 2009 R1 McNaught which is currently in the extreme northern sky in the early morning. By coincidence, just hours after posting it, I got an email from the amateur astronomer Anthony Ayiomamitis (the same guy who took the very cool picture of the ISS and Jupiter in the daytime), who sent me this picture of the comet he took in Greece at just around the same time that post went live: Wow, very pretty! The solid part of the comet, called the nucleus, is far smaller than a single pixel in this image, since the comet was more than 175 million km (110 million miles) away when he took this shot. The nucleus of even a huge comet is only a few dozen km across, so at that great distance is just a tiny dot. Anthony has details on his observations on his McNaught page. The comet looks huge — and the fuzzy part can be bigger than planets! — because what you’re seeing is gas expanding away from the nucleus. Far from the Sun that gas is frozen, and the comet is solid. But heat it up, and that ice turns into a ...
Universe Today
9 Jun 2010, 15:49 UTC
New results published in the journal Icarus suggest that caves on Mars may provide future astronauts with more than just shelter. In many locations, even far from the poles, the caves may actually trap water ice. Ice caves are made of rock, but they contain ice year-round. (Not to be confused with glacier caves, which are [...] New results suggest that ice could accumulate in martian caves like the ones shown in this 2007 figure. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/USGSNew results published in the journal Icarus suggest that caves on Mars may provide future astronauts with more than just shelter. In many locations, even far from the poles, the caves may actually trap water ice.Ice caves are made of rock, but they contain ice year-round. (Not to be confused with glacier caves, which are caves made of ice!) Ice caves can be found on the Earth even where surface temperatures are above freezing for months at a time. This happens because cold winter air sinks into the cave and is trapped, but during the summer, the circulation in the cave shuts off: it is full of dense cold air so the warm air outside can’t get in.Now, in a study led by ...
Ice Caves Possible on Mars
9 Jun 2010, 15:49 UTC
New results published in the journal Icarus suggest that caves on Mars may provide future astronauts with more than just shelter. In many locations, even far from the poles, the caves may actually trap water ice. Ice caves are made of rock, but they contain ice year-round. (Not to be confused with glacier caves, which are [...] New results suggest that ice could accumulate in martian caves like the ones shown in this 2007 figure. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/USGSNew results published in the journal Icarus suggest that caves on Mars may provide future astronauts with more than just shelter. In many locations, even far from the poles, the caves may actually trap water ice.Ice caves are made of rock, but they contain ice year-round. (Not to be confused with glacier caves, which are caves made of ice!) Ice caves can be found on the Earth even where surface temperatures are above freezing for months at a time. This happens because cold winter air sinks into the cave and is trapped, but during the summer, the circulation in the cave shuts off: it is full of dense cold air so the warm air outside can’t get in.Now, in a study led by ...
Alien Life
9 Jun 2010, 15:00 UTC
Welcome! "Alien Life" tracks the latest discoveries and thoughts in the various elements of the famous Drake Equation. Here's today's news:g Stars - With a mass of more than 10,000 suns packed into a volume with a diameter of a mere three light-years, the massive young star cluster in the nebula NGC 3603 is one of the most compact stellar clusters in the Milky Way and an ideal place to test theories for their formation. See article.g Abodes - New analysis of complex chemical activity on Titan is raising questions about the potential for primitive, exotic life on the Saturnian moon. According to one theory, the chemical signatures fulfill two important conditions necessary for a hypothesized “methane-based life.” See article.g Life - Scientists have discovered methane-eating bacteria that survive in a highly unique spring located on a remote Island in northern Canada. In some ways, the spring could be similar to environments on past or present Mars. See article.g Message - Would anyone deliberately beam high-powered signals into space? Can we assume that extraterrestrial societies would broadcast in ways that would mark their location as plainly as a flag on a golf green? See article. Note: This article is from ...
