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Marrakech: The Style | Mustapha Blaoui’s Showroom
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(by floridapfe)
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Lemurs, Madagascar
Photo: Stephen AlvarezDecken’s sifakas appear right at home in their karst home in western Madagascar. These lemurs live...
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The blind astrophysicist: Even as a kid, Wanda Diaz dreamed of being a scientist. But just as that dream was starting to come true, it unraveled. While studying physics at the University of Puerto Rico, Wanda discovered she had diabetes and was going blind. (Photo: Wanda Diaz)
So how does a blind scientist measure and represent what’s going on in outer space? Wanda learned how to listen to the planets and stars, and developed a technique that may also help those of us who can see. More.
Killer ‘Hot Jupiters’ Could Abort Formation of Alien Earths
This December, Jupiter will rival the brilliance of Venus in the night sky as Earth makes its closest approach to the giant planet for this year (no doubt 2012 soothsayers will mistake it for the final approach of the mythological doomsday planet Nibiru).
December’s “Christmas Star” appearance of Jupiter will belie the fact that this 318 Earth-mass monster had the potential to snuff-out Earth’s formation 4.5 billion years ago.
The Earth From Space: The Site of a Meteor Impact in Algeria
“Astronauts on board the International Space Station snapped this picture of the Ouarkziz Impact Crater in northwestern Algeria, the site of a meteor crash that occurred less than 70 million years ago, during the time when dinosaurs still inhabited the Earth. A stream channel that cuts through the rim of the crater formed following the impact The crater is about 3.5 kilometers across.”
How Saturday’s ‘Supermoon’ Will Affect Us
Astronomers call it perigee-syzygy; the rest of us call it “supermoon.” Either way, the alignment of the sun and moon will coincide with the moon’s closest approach to Earth on Saturday (May 5), resulting in the biggest full moon of the year. But don’t worry, it won’t break Earth.
Saturday’s supermoon will be especially super. Richard Nolle, the astrologer who coined the term “supermoon,” defined it as a full moon that occurs within 12 hours of lunar perigee, or the point in the moon’s slightly non-circular monthly orbit when it swings closest to our planet. On Saturday, the timing of the two events will be almost perfect: the moon will reach its perigee distance of 221,802 miles (356,955 kilometers) — the closest lunar perigee of 2012, in fact — at 11:34 p.m. Eastern Time, and it will fall in line with the sun (thereby becoming full) just one minute later.
Yay supermoon!
A group of big-name technology entrepreneurs and investors have created a company called Planetary Resources Inc. that will mine asteroids for water and valuable minerals – gold and platinum, among others. (Image: NASA)
The company says they plan to go after the 1,500 or so asteroids that pass near the earth. Their first step is to launch telescopes that will search for the 10 percent of asteroids with abundant resources. After that, the entrepreneurs hope to build robot-controlled space ships to mine the minerals.
Space law attorney Rosanna Sattler says these very wealthy entrepreneurs are committed to asteroid mining and aren’t afraid to invest, and perhaps lose, their money. More.
California fireball produces jackpot for meteorite hunters
Meteorite hunter finds pieces of a mini-bus sized meteor that lit up in the skies above California and Nevada this week. More pieces of the meteor are expected to be found as hunters scour the area.
obon:
New Infographic Visualizes the Space Debris Cloud Surrounding Earth
Space debris remains one of the biggest challenges for a space-faring humanity in the 21st century, as even the smallest pieces can pose a serious threat to satellites, manned spacecraft and the International Space Station. Now our friends at Fast Company have stumbled on a nifty infographic by Austrian designer Michael Paukner that lays out the space clutter situation more clearly.
Angry Sun Erupting
Image Credit & Copyright: Alan Friedman (Averted Imagination)
