Sunday, February 10, 2008
Friday, December 21, 2007
Dirty Martians
1893 ad from a Chicago newspaper for "Kirk's Soap". The ad plays on the opening that year of the Yerkes Observatory's1-meter (40-inch) refracting telescope (the largest of its type in the world), and the idea that Mars was populated with intelligent life. It only makes sense that they would need soap...those dirty martians!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Scientists Find New Unfamiliar Terrain on Mars
Using the HiRISE camera scientists obsereved terrains on Mars that don't appear like anything on Earth. One scientist went on to say "A lot of Mars looks like Utah, but this is an area tht looks nothing like Planet Earth." The American Geophysical Union held its fall meeting and many presentations were done by planetary scientists tryin to explain the findings.
Mars Clouds Drier Than Thought
Recent studies suggest that Mars clouds contain less water than previously estimated. In analyzing in further detail, scientists determine that these clouds are somewhat similar to earth's clouds. "The clouds under study are made of water ice, like some clouds on Earth. However, they are forming at very cold temperatures, often below minus 100 degrees Celsius (minus 148 degrees Fahrenheit," said Tony Colaprete of NASA's Ames Research Center. This analysis is important to scientists because in planning for a man to visit the moon, we must understand Mars and its climate. We must understand all the aspects of it in order to make preparations for it.
Galileo Funding Solution Remains Elusive
European government and industry officials have begun to doubt whether a political consensus exists in Europe to complete the Galileo satellite navigation system. In public and private comments here Sept. 11, officials said the main government backers - Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain - appear far apart on how best to finance the 30 satelite constellation and the remaining portion of the associated ground network.
Decisions at the European Union's executive commission and among EU governments in the coming weeks will determine whether any kind of Galileo network - with or without the special features that had set it apart from GPS - will be built.
Attending a meeting here organized by the French IFRI foreign-affairs institute, officials noted that Galileo's expected in-service date has been pushed back by one year every year since the program was approved in 2001. Originally foreseen as operational in 2008, Galileo will not be completed until 2013 at the earliest, officials said - and only then if decisions on its financing are made in the coming months.
Decisions at the European Union's executive commission and among EU governments in the coming weeks will determine whether any kind of Galileo network - with or without the special features that had set it apart from GPS - will be built.
Attending a meeting here organized by the French IFRI foreign-affairs institute, officials noted that Galileo's expected in-service date has been pushed back by one year every year since the program was approved in 2001. Originally foreseen as operational in 2008, Galileo will not be completed until 2013 at the earliest, officials said - and only then if decisions on its financing are made in the coming months.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Star Of Eve is Mars
On Dec. 24, Mars reaches opposition. This means that it will appear as a bright orange star in the east soon after sunset. The Planet Watch feature on the daily Seattle Times Weather Page can help you determine its location.
The Geminid meteor shower peaks this Thursday-Friday, so if we have clear skies and you can get away from the city lights you should be treated to one of the best meteor displays of the year. Bundle up, get comfortable and face east as soon as the moon sets. Our other December target is the open cluster of stars called the Pleiades. They are among the most noted stars of history, poetry and mythology. Native American legend described them as seven lost children/
Christmas Eve Star will be Mars
On Dec. 24, Mars reaches opposition. This means that it will appear as a bright orange star in the east soon after sunset. The Planet Watch feature on the daily Seattle Times Weather Page can help you determine its location.
The Geminid meteor shower peaks this Thursday-Friday, so if we have clear skies and you can get away from the city lights you should be treated to one of the best meteor displays of the year. Bundle up, get comfortable and face east as soon as the moon sets.
Our other December target is the open cluster of stars called the Pleiades. They are among the most noted stars of history, poetry and mythology. Native American legend described them as seven lost children. They are mentioned in the Bible, and included in ancient cave paintings in France. As soon as the sun sets, find them high in the eastern sky. By about midnight they will be high in the southern sky. To the naked eye they appear to be five to seven tightly packed blue stars. The group is made up of more than 1,000 individual stars that were born about 100 million years ago and are drifting through space. The bright blue stars are young hot stars that will burn out over the next few million years.
The Geminid meteor shower peaks this Thursday-Friday, so if we have clear skies and you can get away from the city lights you should be treated to one of the best meteor displays of the year. Bundle up, get comfortable and face east as soon as the moon sets.
Our other December target is the open cluster of stars called the Pleiades. They are among the most noted stars of history, poetry and mythology. Native American legend described them as seven lost children. They are mentioned in the Bible, and included in ancient cave paintings in France. As soon as the sun sets, find them high in the eastern sky. By about midnight they will be high in the southern sky. To the naked eye they appear to be five to seven tightly packed blue stars. The group is made up of more than 1,000 individual stars that were born about 100 million years ago and are drifting through space. The bright blue stars are young hot stars that will burn out over the next few million years.
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