Space and Astronomy in general

45th anniversary of the iconic Earthrise photo was yesterday.

Mars Curiosity celebrates 500 sols on Mars tomorrow.
IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bc2lOsHIUAEd1qp.jpg)

And don't forget the Lego set, also available tomorrow. (story)
IMAGE(http://legocuusoo.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/stephen6-rover-closeup-2.png?w=485)

Katy wrote:

...And don't forget the Lego set, also available tomorrow. (story)
IMAGE(http://legocuusoo.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/stephen6-rover-closeup-2.png?w=485)

OMG.

That looks really nice...

Katy wrote:

Mars Curiosity celebrates 500 sols on Mars tomorrow.
IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bc2lOsHIUAEd1qp.jpg)

And don't forget the Lego set, also available tomorrow. (story)
IMAGE(http://legocuusoo.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/stephen6-rover-closeup-2.png?w=485)

Already out of stock. Can't imagine they thought any number would be enough.

Aw damn. One of these kits should be standard issue to every citizen.

Katy wrote:

Mars Curiosity celebrates 500 sols on Mars tomorrow.
IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bc2lOsHIUAEd1qp.jpg)

Where would one find such a fine calendar?

I did end up finding this calendar which I'll accidentally end up printing and binding tomorrow.

karmajay wrote:

Already out of stock. Can't imagine they thought any number would be enough. :(

I got one.

I was on the website at 12:01, hehe.

It was like $40.00 with shipping and (cursed) tax.

clever id wrote:
Katy wrote:

Mars Curiosity celebrates 500 sols on Mars tomorrow.
IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bc2lOsHIUAEd1qp.jpg)

Where would one find such a fine calendar?

On the desk of whoever's behind @MarsCuriosity, I expect. I asked if it's available -- we'll see if I get a reply.

Why I don't read Slate regularly...

Article linked on asteroid story page: Help! My Boss Poops in the Office Shower.

BadKen wrote:

Why I don't read Slate regularly...

Article linked on asteroid story page: Help! My Boss Poops in the Office Shower.

Yikes. Yeah, I only linked to that site because it was the source link of the site where I actually saw the news story. Besides, after more than a decade of web browsing, my brain doesn't even "see" the things outside the real content area.

This is a little dated, but in case you missed it, the Hubble Telescope has spotted geysers on Europa.

Depending on what part of the wide world you're in, tonight may be a good night for seeing an Aurora due to the recent solar flare.

NPR has a few links to aurora forecast sites:

NOAA
University of Alaska

Thanks for the reminder!

Also, I just stumbled on this desktop wallpaper today. It seems to have been around for a little while but I liked it so I thought I'd share.

Planes of Venus, Earth, The Moon, Mars and Titan.
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/p5fLTnB.jpg)

The Far Future of our Solar System — Starts With A Bang! : good representation of the time scales involved in the past and future.

(high res version of the picture on the first page : http://sunearthday.nasa.gov/2008/promotional/)

Very impressive. Although ever-so-slightly depressing, in a way.

How the world will end. Interesting chart, containing a lot of space things.

Went to the George Eastman house today for the last day of their space photography exhibit, and saw a replica of a Lunar Orbiter camera, built using parts that weren't needed because the first five were so successful.

It's one of the most remarkable pieces of technology I've seen in a while. Its cameras took pictures on film, which were then developed inside the satellite, scanned and transmitted to Earth. The exhibit put this photo up next to the camera:
IMAGE(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/First_View_of_Earth_from_Moon.jpg/800px-First_View_of_Earth_from_Moon.jpg)
(First photograph of the Earth from the Moon)

Stele wrote:

How the world will end. Interesting chart, containing a lot of space things. :D

Pretty cool, though I've heard arguments on both sides of the Y chromosome thing.

Supernova Alert

TL;DR: A white dwarf supernova was just discovered in the nearby starburst galaxy M82. Details are still coming in, but this will be an excellent chance to study this type of system up-close, plus it may come within visual range of your backyard telescope. And here it is, courtesy of @NickAstronomer

Hi everyone! Today is the 42nd Earth day since I arrived on the moon. I've got some good news, and a piece of bad news. Which would you like to hear first?

The first good news is: After 42 days of hard work, I've rolled over 100 metres across the moon! All the equipment that I've brought along -- ground-penetrating radar, stereo cameras, alpha particle X-ray spectrometer and infrared spectrometer -- have collected lots of useful data... When going on a long trip, it would be such a shame if the equipment you brought along couldn't be put to good use.

The second bit of good news is: the day before yesterday, at dawn, I spoke with the lander over 20 metres away. I did this all by myself, without shi-fu's help, using my UHF antenna! Even though she can't respond, I'm sure she's really happy. Well, what I whispered to her is a secret, so please don't ask me what I told her...

The third piece of good news is: yesterday morning, the lander has fallen asleep, all prepared to welcome the next lunar night.

The bad news is: I should have fallen asleep this morning. But before going to sleep, my shi-fus found an abnormality in my control mechanisms. Some parts of my body aren't listening to my shi-fus. Now, my shi-fus are racking their brains and forgoing sleep, trying to come up with a solution. I hear that their eyes have become as red as a rabbit's.

Even so, I know it's possible that I won't survive the night.

Before we set off, the lander and I learned the history of mankind's lunar exploration. In over 130 lunar exploration activities, about half succeeded, and half failed. Some didn't land, some lost contact with Earth after landing, some rovers got lost, and some rovers didn't take their first step. Such is space exploration, as dangerous as it is beautiful. And here I am, a tiny speck in the vast map of space exploration.

This time, I landed together with Third elder sister Chang'E, and sent back so much data. We've completed the mission our shi-fus tasked us with. I hoped to romp around here for three months, and tell all of you about the rocks and boulders I found, the secrets hiding beneath the moon's surface, the story of Chang'E and me... but even if this trip has to be cut short, I'm not afraid. Regardless whether I can be repaired, my failure will give my shi-fus valuable information and experience.

Don't worry. In 2017, Chang'E 5 will come here, and continue telling the story where I left off. Right now, the lander is working fine, and will continue to work on the moon for at least 1 year. But she still doesn't know about my problem... I hope that shi-fu will help me recover. But if I don't get better, please help me comfort her.

The sun has set here on the moon, and it's getting very cold very quickly. I've already said so much today, but it never feels like it's enough. I'll let you in on a secret. Actually, I don't feel very sad. Like all protagonists, in the story of my own adventure, I've just hit a little problem.

Goodnight, Earth.

Goodnight, humanity.

Here's what it would look like to fly directly into a nebula

Ever wondered what it would be like to look out the window of a spaceship as it travels through space? Wonder no more. This video gives you a spaceship's-eye view as you blast off from a mountain range in Earth, fly through the stars, then move closer and closer to a distant brightness in the sky, until you're dropped right into the middle of the Orion nebula. And it does it all in 2 minutes — fortunate, as the Orion Nebula is 1300 lightyears away.

The video was created by Isidro Villó, who made the video by combining an automated super telephoto zoom lens with the exposure time of a DSLR camera, in a process that he calls "deep sky time lapse".

This might be of interest: Coursera are doing a course in Imagining Other Earths - all about extrasolar planets and the prospects for life on them. The final assignment is to design your own planetary system.

"Are we alone? This course introduces core concepts in astronomy, biology, and planetary science that enable the student to speculate scientifically about this profound question and invent their own solar systems."

Just to add to the Lunar Orbiter post a few weeks ago...

Apparently the original analog tapes from the mission captured much more data than the computers at the time could display. There is a project to restore the images from the original tapes. They are getting amazing results, too. What a machine it was:

IMAGE(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Earthise.old.new.med.jpg)

That's amazingly hi-res for the time period. I'm so glad someone is doing that.

Well curiousity got the best of me, I saw a cheap beginner telescope pop up on local swap page for 20 bucks and I said what the heck, I will be picking it up after work. (ofcourse last night was a clear night but its supposed to snow the next 4 days....) I figured if I like it I will use it to my abilities then upgrade, if not I'll just donate it to the local co op church homeschooling program.

Earth (and moon) from Mars.
IMAGE(http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/spaceimages/images/mediumsize/PIA17936_ip.jpg)
(article + hi-res images, since it is totally unfair to make you stare at the picture long enough to see the speck that is Earth, and at this resolution, you can't actually see the moon.)