It’s not just Jupiter that’s sporting a new look, Venus has a new feature too. A bright spot this time. First observed by another amateur, US astronomer Frank Melillo, on the 19th July, and then confirmed by ESA’s Venus Express in orbit around the planet, the spot appeared at least 4 days earlier. You can see it to the lower right of the image from ESA. It’s not thought to be evidence of an impact but, as the New Scientist …
The Guardian’s James Randerson has a satisfyingly link-full update on the research into the Antikythera Mechanism – as previously noted here and also here. Apparently it’s older than previously thought. Possibly from around the time of Archimedes.. And here’s part 1 of a fascinating Nature video on the 2000-year-old “box of intricate gearwork”. Part 2 below the fold along with a stunning animation of the mechanism by Massimo Mogi Vicentini of the Civico Planetario di Milano. Part 2 of the …
Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory [JPL] has launched a new website, “a centralized resource for information on near-Earth objects” – Asteroid Watch. One of the topics there is the new Great Black Spot [of Jupiter] and senior research scientist at JPL, Glenn Orton, has the lowdown on observing Jupiter’s black eye after it was first spotted by amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley. Pete Baker
Both Space Weather and, via the Professor, Wired.com point to the latest images from French astro-photographer Thierry Legault – whose photographs of the Space Shuttle Atlantis and Hubble transiting Sol were noted previously. This time it’s images of the 0.8 second long transit of the recently launched Space Shuttle Endeavour and the International Space Station. From Space Weather Legault has taken many pictures of spaceships passing in front of the sun. When he stands beside the telescope at the moment …
In the comments zone of a previous post on the topic, Malachi blasphemously suggested that the Great Black Spot [of Jupiter] was proof of an intelligent designer. [Should I get the beards ready? – Ed] In the New York Times, a report points out that the gas giant’s influence is not always so benign. Take, for example, Comet Lexell, named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Lexell. In 1770 it whizzed only a million miles from the Earth, missing us by …
In yesterday’s telescopic post I neglected to mention the 19-year-old Hubble Space Telescope. Well, they’ve taken time out from calibrating the recently refurbished Hubble to look at that impact scar on Jupiter with the newly installed Wide Field Camera 3. Hubble press release here. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and H. Hammel (Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colo.), and the Jupiter Impact Team. Meanwhile a Guardian editorial, “In praise of.. astronomers”, points to a wondrous exhibition at the London Science Museum – …
With all due respect to Mick [*ahem* – Ed]. The week may have started with the amateurs setting the pace, but there’s still time for some [space] telescopic news from the professionals. The Europeans are still fine-tuning Herschel after it’s first view and Planck’s twittering from Lagrange 2 and in Calibration and Performance Verification (CPV) Phase. Meanwhile, Nasa’s Spitzer Infrared Telescope is now warming up. But they’ve released this wondrous colour-coded image of spiral galaxy NGC 1097 [Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech …
If you’re an insomniac, or just in another time-zone, you can join the other half of the world witnessing the longest total solar eclipse we’re likely to see for the next few hundred years – approximately six minutes and 40 seconds at its maximum point. Nasa’s Solar Eclipse website has all the details you never knew you wanted, as well as a Google Map of the eclipse path. And the all important live webcast links. University of Dakota from China …
The answer to the question I asked yesterday, “Impact on Jupiter?”, appears to be Yes. Nasa’s Infrared Telescope Facility in Hawaii has identified further evidence indicating an impact. Via the Sky & Telescope report, Leigh Fletcher, a NASA postdoctoral fellow at JPL who worked on the new images, was twittering throughout. New Scientist has more details of the impact scar “about the size of the Earth.” And the Guardian adds some details of the initial observation from the amateur astronomer …
I mentioned on Thursday the 40th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 11. Four days later, on 20th July 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the Moon. As the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter discovered the evidence is still there. Nasa has a dedicated website marking the mission. But, below the fold, here are a couple of clips from In the Shadow of the Moon – The descent and landing of the Eagle and Armstrong and Aldrin step onto the …
A Space Weather alert last night carried the story of a possible impact on Jupiter spotted by a well-equipped amateur astronomer in Australia, Anthony Wesley – similar to the 1994 Shoemaker-Levy 9 collisions. Following up the story today reveals how modern media has played its part in spreading the news and now Nasa’s Infrared Telescope on Hawaii is on the case. The Professor points to the Irish Astronomy forum discussion, but the initial notice seems to have been on an …
Wondrous images from the recently launched NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter [LRO] of some of the Apollo landing sites. The Apollo 11 landing site, whose launch 40 years ago I noted yesterday, is pictured left. And the Apollo 14 site image shows abandoned scientific instruments and a trail of astronaut footprints. [On tin-foil hat] That Apollo 14 landing site image Pete Baker
After a number of delays Space Shuttle Endeavour finally launched last night on Mission STS-127. Although there are some concerns about minor damage caused by pieces of foam insulation. You can watch the launch video here. But to mark the 40th Anniversary of the launch of Apollo 11, and the Guardian has a good collection of bits and pieces on the mission, here’s a fascinating clip of the Apollo 11 launch with comments from Buzz Aldrin and Mike Collins and …
As long as lightning doesn’t strike twice, Space Shuttle Endeavour is expected to finally lift-off just after 7pm EDT tonight [12.13 am BST] – one month later than scheduled. Mission STS-127 will carry seven astronauts and the final components of Japan’s Kibo laboratory to the International Space Station. As usual there’s a launch blog as well as live coverage on NasaTV, and astronaut Mark Polansky is still twittering. Meanwhile, after a successful initial test observation, ESA’s Herschel infrared observatory has …
The amendment on defamation of religion, aka blasphemous libel, passed its Seanad vote yesterday along with the rest of the Irish Government’s satirical Defamation Bill. But only on the second attempt after a walk-through vote was called on a Fine Gael amendment, which would have deleted the offence of blasphemy from the Bill, giving government whips time to herd two wandering Senators into line. Atheist Ireland’s Michael Nugent, in the Irish Times, is launching a “campaign to repeal the blasphemy …
An odd iol report records Northern Ireland deputy First Minister Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness, MP, MLA, repeating what he was told at the North-South Ministerial Council meeting on Monday. There’s an associated Sinn Féin press statement. And this from the iol report Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams said his party had called the meeting with Mr Cowen to help keep a focus on political developments in the North during the economic crisis. But he insisted they weren’t overly worried the …
Will Crawley notes that the British Library – in collaboration with St Catherine’s Monastery, Sinai, Leipzig University library, the national library of Russia in St Petersburg, and the Instititute for Textual Scholarship and Electronic Editing at Birmingham University – has made available online pages, transcriptions, and translations, of what is believed to be the oldest bible in the world, written in Greek, the 4th Century Codex Sinaiticus. More on the project here. As the BBC report says – “For those …
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, launched on 18th June, has transmitted its first images of the lunar surface. You can view the images in greater detail here. Btw, it’s still twittering. Its companion mission LCROSS is expected to make lunar impact on October 9, 2009. Japan’s Kaguya lunar videos here and here. And here’s that stunning launch video again. Pete Baker
More science news via the Professor. [More?! – Ed] Indeed. Japan’s JAXA/KAGUYA (SELENE) lunar probe identified uranium on the Moon’s surface. And, although it was mentioned when I noted Kaguya’s timely demise, the spectacular on-board footage of its final descent is worth putting out front. Below the fold there’s an informative video from NasaTV using images from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter – Soaring over Mars. Soaring over Mars. Enjoy. Pete Baker
The Royal Observatory at Greenwich may have an exhibition of images from the Cassini-Huygens mission, but Cassini itself is continuing to observe in and around Saturn. The discovery of sodium salts in the water-ice jets of Enceladus is being interpreted as evidence of a reservoir of liquid water beneath its surface. “Our measurements imply that besides table salt, the grains also contain carbonates like soda. Both components are in concentrations that match the predicted composition of an Enceladus ocean,” Postberg …
