Page 19 of 21 FirstFirst ... 91718192021 LastLast
Results 181 to 190 of 203

Thread: Current Events in Astronomy

  1. #181
    From space.com
    The phosphine discovered in Venus' clouds may be a big deal. Here's what you need to know.

    From astrobiology.com
    Possible Marker Of Life Spotted On Venus

    Life on Venus would certainly be exciting, And it may be easier to get a sample return of the upper atmosphere than it would be to get a soil sample from Mars
    My inner Mulder wants to believe, but my inner Scully remains skeptical.

  2. #182
    My inner Mulder wants to believe, but my inner Scully remains skeptical.

  3. #183
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    Could use garlic.
    Astronomers see a black hole 'spaghettify' a star in real time

    Coming too close can mean being instantly transformed into some very unpleasant pasta.
    By Eric Mack

    It's one of those astounding events that sounds like science fiction, but is just plain science. Astronomers say they were able to capture the process of a star being ripped into strips and devoured by a black hole in unprecedented detail.

    Story Continues
    BlackHole1.JPG
    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

  4. #184
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    Nasa announces 'exciting' new discovery about the Moon.

    A live NASA broadcast from SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, a modified 747 aircraft).
    10/26/2020 1205pm EST.

    Water has been known to exist within the Moon's deep crater's shadows.
    It has been newly discovered that water also exists out in the open, on sun lit surfaces.
    Previously it had been thought water in the open would be lost to space.
    This discovery means much more water may exist on the moon.
    Water has many uses beyond drinking. Such as fuel, or media for experiments, etc.
    If water can be used from the moon, it would help reduce payload weight.
    Further research on why the water remains in the open, when exposed to sunshine, is planned.
    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

  5. #185
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    Sad follow up to Sept 2020 story about damaged Aerocebo Radio Telescope.
    .
    After Suffering Irreparable Damage, It’s Lights Out for the Arecibo Observatory’s Iconic Telescope
    By Rasha Aridi
    .
    After 57 years of gazing into the universe and helping astronomers unravel the cosmos' mysteries, the Arecibo Observatory's world-renowned telescope in Puerto Rico will be torn down, reports Alexandra Witze for Nature.

    The observatory has three towers equipped with cables that hold up the telescope's enormous, 1,000-foot reflector dish. In 2017, Hurricane Maria battered the already deteriorating telescope. This August, an auxiliary cable slipped out of its socket, inflicting a 100-foot-long gash in the dish. Three months later, a main cable connected to that same tower snapped, causing more devastating damage. Teams of engineers looked for remedies to help save the telescope, but repairs would be too risky for a construction team to safely undertake, reports Ashley Strickland for CNN.

    Given the age of the telescope, it would need more intensive maintenance in the future since the cables were weaker than originally thought. For this reason, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced yesterday that plans to decommission the telescope were underway.
    Story continues





    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

  6. #186
    Quote Originally Posted by calikid View Post
    Sad follow up to Sept 2020 story about damaged Aerocebo Radio Telescope.
    .
    After Suffering Irreparable Damage, It’s Lights Out for the Arecibo Observatory’s Iconic Telescope
    By Rasha Aridi
    .
    After 57 years of gazing into the universe and helping astronomers unravel the cosmos' mysteries, the Arecibo Observatory's world-renowned telescope in Puerto Rico will be torn down, reports Alexandra Witze for Nature.

    The observatory has three towers equipped with cables that hold up the telescope's enormous, 1,000-foot reflector dish. In 2017, Hurricane Maria battered the already deteriorating telescope. This August, an auxiliary cable slipped out of its socket, inflicting a 100-foot-long gash in the dish. Three months later, a main cable connected to that same tower snapped, causing more devastating damage. Teams of engineers looked for remedies to help save the telescope, but repairs would be too risky for a construction team to safely undertake, reports Ashley Strickland for CNN.

    Given the age of the telescope, it would need more intensive maintenance in the future since the cables were weaker than originally thought. For this reason, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced yesterday that plans to decommission the telescope were underway.
    Story continues






    Bummer:::


  7. #187
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    Moon rocks arrive on Earth for the first time since 1976 as China lunar mission ends

    By Sophie Lewis


    Moon rocks arrive on Earth for the first time since 1976 as China lunar mission ends

    By Sophie Lewis

    December 16, 2020 / 2:43 PM / CBS News

    For the first time in more than 40 years, a capsule has returned to Earth carrying samples of rocks from the moon — thanks to a Chinese spacecraft that touched down Wednesday afternoon.

    According to state media, a capsule from the uncrewed Chang'e 5 probe landed with its parachutes in the Siziwang district of the Inner Mongolia region just after 1:00 p.m. ET Wednesday, early Thursday morning in the region.
    Story Continues
    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

  8. #188
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    This mission includes a small Helicopter called "Ingenuity", how cool is that?

    NASA's Perseverance Mars rover landing will be must-see TV
    The next robot on Mars will touch down in a few weeks, and the views will be truly other-worldly.
    by Eric Mack

    NASA is just weeks away from landing a shiny new robot on the surface of Mars, and for the first time, we'll be able to see and hear what it's like to touch down on another world.

    Perseverance is due to land in Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, the first artificial object to land on the surface since the Mars Insight lander in 2018 and the first rover since Curiosity touched down in 2012.

    But the new rover on the block is carrying more audio-visual gear than its predecessors to capture portions of the pivotal entry, descent and landing, or EDL, phase of the mission. A camera mounted on the back shell of the spacecraft is pointed up and will be able to catch a view of the parachutes that will deploy during descent to slow Perseverance as it comes in for its landing. Beneath this is a downward-pointing camera on the descent stage, which further slows and orients the rover for landing.
    Story Continues
    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

  9. #189
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    NASA's Mars rover Perseverance successfully touches down on the red planet
    by Denise Chow
    .

    South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg charged with 3…
    NASA's Perseverance rover nails Mars landing, ready to search for life

    NASA kicked off a new era of Mars exploration Thursday with the successful landing of Perseverance, a car-size robotic explorer that will search for traces of ancient life on the planet and collect what could be the first rocky samples from Mars that are sent back to Earth.
    .
    The rover touched down at around 3:55 p.m. ET, after executing a daring and dramatic landing that had been nicknamed the "seven minutes of terror." Perseverance is now NASA's fifth rover to land on Mars and is set to begin a two-year mission to roam its surface and search for signs of ancient microbial life.
    Story Continues


    .
    Still waiting for the "Seven Minutes of Terror" video to be released by NASA!
    .
    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

  10. #190
    Lead Moderator calikid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sunny California
    Posts
    10,228
    Blog Entries
    19
    Fairly spectacular view of the "Sky Crane" lowering of the car sized Rover to Mars surface, from downward facing cameras.
    .
    The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but
    progress. -- Joseph Joubert
    Attachment 1008

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •