Featured Posts
e! Science News
24 May 2013, 15:34 UTC
How much light has been emitted by all galaxies since the cosmos began? After all, almost every photon (particle of light) from ultraviolet to far infrared wavelengths ever radiated by all galaxies that ever existed throughout cosmic history is still speeding through the Universe today. If we could carefully measure the number and energy (wavelength) of all those photons -- not only at the present time, but also back in time -- we might learn important secrets about the nature and evolution of the Universe, including how similar or different ancient galaxies were compared to the galaxies we see today. read more
Detection of the cosmic gamma ray horizon: Measures all the light in the universe since the Big Bang
24 May 2013, 15:34 UTC
How much light has been emitted by all galaxies since the cosmos began? After all, almost every photon (particle of light) from ultraviolet to far infrared wavelengths ever radiated by all galaxies that ever existed throughout cosmic history is still speeding through the Universe today. If we could carefully measure the number and energy (wavelength) of all those photons -- not only at the present time, but also back in time -- we might learn important secrets about the nature and evolution of the Universe, including how similar or different ancient galaxies were compared to the galaxies we see today. read more
The Planetary Society Blog
24 May 2013, 13:53 UTC
A girl named Hope Johnson performing an homage to Tom Lehrer's "The Elements" in song and ukelele, except instead of the elements, she's singing the names of all the named moons in the solar system. Check it out!
Friday fun: Every moon in the solar system in an homage to Tom Lehrer
24 May 2013, 13:53 UTC
A girl named Hope Johnson performing an homage to Tom Lehrer's "The Elements" in song and ukelele, except instead of the elements, she's singing the names of all the named moons in the solar system. Check it out!
Bad Astronomy
24 May 2013, 13:33 UTC
A lot of news has bubbled up about global warming over the past few days, and devoting a post to each one would be a) carpal tunnel syndrome-inducing, and 2) depressing as hell. So in the manner of ripping off a Band-aid quickly, here is a torrent of global warming info, and as usual it’s about reality and the foes thereof. 1) Consensus First up: A clarification. I recently posted that 97% of global warming papers that take a stance on its cause say it’s human-induced. This has generated the usual amount of hot air (ha! haha!) from the deniers, including the gem that consensus doesn’t equal reality. “Scientists once thought the Earth was flat!” they cry. That’s actually not quite true; ancient Greek scientists knew the Earth was round, and even how big it was. And who do you think replaces older, less accurate information with better understanding? Scientists! Anyway, we on the side of reality know that consensus is not proof of global warming—the scientific evidence of global warming is overwhelming and obvious, as well as very easy to find. The actual point of discussing the consensus is that due to the relentless effort of deniers, the public ...
Global Warming Firehose
24 May 2013, 13:33 UTC
A lot of news has bubbled up about global warming over the past few days, and devoting a post to each one would be a) carpal tunnel syndrome-inducing, and 2) depressing as hell. So in the manner of ripping off a Band-aid quickly, here is a torrent of global warming info, and as usual it’s about reality and the foes thereof. 1) Consensus First up: A clarification. I recently posted that 97% of global warming papers that take a stance on its cause say it’s human-induced. This has generated the usual amount of hot air (ha! haha!) from the deniers, including the gem that consensus doesn’t equal reality. “Scientists once thought the Earth was flat!” they cry. That’s actually not quite true; ancient Greek scientists knew the Earth was round, and even how big it was. And who do you think replaces older, less accurate information with better understanding? Scientists! Anyway, we on the side of reality know that consensus is not proof of global warming—the scientific evidence of global warming is overwhelming and obvious, as well as very easy to find. The actual point of discussing the consensus is that due to the relentless effort of deniers, the public ...
Space Exploration News
24 May 2013, 12:00 UTC
Scientists will use the Cassini probe to look for evidence of higher winds on Titan, a moon of Saturn. Summer in the northern hemisphere is expected to increase wind speeds enough to be noticeable in lakes -- and perhaps in the form of cyclones. Artist's concept of hydrocarbon pools on Titan. Credit: Steven Hobbs/NASA(Sen) - The best of Titan's weather is yet to come according to new models studying the changing seasons on Saturn's largest moon. The Cassini spacecraft has spent nearly a decade periodically flying by the hydrocarbon-filled moon -- once even shooting a probe, Huygens, to the surface -- but it was during a time when Titan's northern hemisphere was shrouded from the sun. Now, summer is coming to the northern hemisphere, and scientists are looking forward to the weather changing as solar heat gets a little stronger on that portion of the orange moon. It's expected to reach its peak in 2017, the end of the current mission lifetime for Cassini. "We know there are weather processes similar to Earth's at work on this strange world, but differences arise due to the presence of unfamiliar liquids like methane," stated Scott Edgington, Cassini's deputy project scientist at NASA's ...
Wild weather forecast as seasons change on Titan
24 May 2013, 12:00 UTC
Scientists will use the Cassini probe to look for evidence of higher winds on Titan, a moon of Saturn. Summer in the northern hemisphere is expected to increase wind speeds enough to be noticeable in lakes -- and perhaps in the form of cyclones. Artist's concept of hydrocarbon pools on Titan. Credit: Steven Hobbs/NASA(Sen) - The best of Titan's weather is yet to come according to new models studying the changing seasons on Saturn's largest moon. The Cassini spacecraft has spent nearly a decade periodically flying by the hydrocarbon-filled moon -- once even shooting a probe, Huygens, to the surface -- but it was during a time when Titan's northern hemisphere was shrouded from the sun. Now, summer is coming to the northern hemisphere, and scientists are looking forward to the weather changing as solar heat gets a little stronger on that portion of the orange moon. It's expected to reach its peak in 2017, the end of the current mission lifetime for Cassini. "We know there are weather processes similar to Earth's at work on this strange world, but differences arise due to the presence of unfamiliar liquids like methane," stated Scott Edgington, Cassini's deputy project scientist at NASA's ...
All About Space
24 May 2013, 11:55 UTC
Would any of the proposed plans to capture asteroids affect the Earth's orbit? Asked by Kyle McDonald You have probably read about NASA’s plans to capture an asteroid with the intention of dragging it into orbit around our Moon. It is intended that the near-Earth asteroid, which would be towed by a robotic spacecraft, would be around 500 to 1,000 tons in mass. The idea, which is hoped to be carried out by 2025, will allow us to study asteroids in detail and mine material from them. The main thing to remember is that the mass of the Moon is much greater than that of any asteroid NASA can pull into its orbit. More mass means more of a gravitational attraction and so, in this respect, the force between our Moon and the Earth is much greater than the gravitational attraction between our planet and an asteroid. There is such a relatively smaller Earth-asteroid force that the Earth-Moon relationship overcomes it and remains unhindered. In order to ensure that the asteroid does not smash into the Earth, yet maintains a position that allows astronauts to visit, it is intended that the asteroid is placed into a high lunar orbit, preferably ...
Would an asteroid in lunar orbit affect the Earth-Moon relationship?
24 May 2013, 11:55 UTC
Would any of the proposed plans to capture asteroids affect the Earth's orbit? Asked by Kyle McDonald You have probably read about NASA’s plans to capture an asteroid with the intention of dragging it into orbit around our Moon. It is intended that the near-Earth asteroid, which would be towed by a robotic spacecraft, would be around 500 to 1,000 tons in mass. The idea, which is hoped to be carried out by 2025, will allow us to study asteroids in detail and mine material from them. The main thing to remember is that the mass of the Moon is much greater than that of any asteroid NASA can pull into its orbit. More mass means more of a gravitational attraction and so, in this respect, the force between our Moon and the Earth is much greater than the gravitational attraction between our planet and an asteroid. There is such a relatively smaller Earth-asteroid force that the Earth-Moon relationship overcomes it and remains unhindered. In order to ensure that the asteroid does not smash into the Earth, yet maintains a position that allows astronauts to visit, it is intended that the asteroid is placed into a high lunar orbit, preferably ...
ESO Announcements
24 May 2013, 10:00 UTC
Our new ESOcast celebrates the 15th anniversary of ESO’s flagship facility, the Very Large Telescope, with a spectacular visual review of some of the most impressive images from its years of operation. This anniversary marks an important milestone for the Very Large Telescope — the first light of the first of its four Unit Telescopes, on 25 May 1998. Since then the four original giant telescopes have been joined by the four small Auxiliary Telescopes that form part of the VLT Interferometer (VLTI). The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument and one of the most powerful and productive ground-based astronomical facilities. More than 600 refereed science papers based in VLT or VLTI data were published in 2012 alone, and it keeps producing discoveries at an impressive pace. To watch this review of the images of the VLT, follow the link to ESOcast 57. More Information The ESOcast is a video podcast series dedicated to bringing you the latest news and research from ESO — the European Southern Observatory. Subscribe to our video podcast now to keep up with the latest news from ESO: the ESOcast is available via iTunes in HD and SD. It’s also available on YouTube, ...
ESOcast 57: ESO’s VLT Celebrates 15 Years of Success
24 May 2013, 10:00 UTC
Our new ESOcast celebrates the 15th anniversary of ESO’s flagship facility, the Very Large Telescope, with a spectacular visual review of some of the most impressive images from its years of operation. This anniversary marks an important milestone for the Very Large Telescope — the first light of the first of its four Unit Telescopes, on 25 May 1998. Since then the four original giant telescopes have been joined by the four small Auxiliary Telescopes that form part of the VLT Interferometer (VLTI). The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument and one of the most powerful and productive ground-based astronomical facilities. More than 600 refereed science papers based in VLT or VLTI data were published in 2012 alone, and it keeps producing discoveries at an impressive pace. To watch this review of the images of the VLT, follow the link to ESOcast 57. More Information The ESOcast is a video podcast series dedicated to bringing you the latest news and research from ESO — the European Southern Observatory. Subscribe to our video podcast now to keep up with the latest news from ESO: the ESOcast is available via iTunes in HD and SD. It’s also available on YouTube, ...
collectSPACE.com: Today In Space History
24 May 2013, 06:45 UTC
Nicholas de Monchaux's book "Spacesuit: Fashioning Apollo" (MIT Press, 2011) tells the real story of how International Latex Corporation (ILC), better known by its consumer brand for bras and girdles "Playtex," came to produce the spacesuit worn by the Apollo astronauts on the moon. De Monchaux's tale of the bra makers' lunar legacy is now being adapted into a movie for Warner Bros. by screenwriter Richard Cordiner.
'Fashioning Apollo' into a movie
24 May 2013, 06:45 UTC
Nicholas de Monchaux's book "Spacesuit: Fashioning Apollo" (MIT Press, 2011) tells the real story of how International Latex Corporation (ILC), better known by its consumer brand for bras and girdles "Playtex," came to produce the spacesuit worn by the Apollo astronauts on the moon. De Monchaux's tale of the bra makers' lunar legacy is now being adapted into a movie for Warner Bros. by screenwriter Richard Cordiner.
NASA: Earth Observatory News
24 May 2013, 04:00 UTC
One of LDCM’'s sensors can detect faint cirrus clouds that can slightly alter a scene.
