New Discoveries *2* - ...Extraplanetary, deep space, CONTINUED

Palomar · 2003-11-21 07:28:51

Byron: "Actually, the "international" dating system makes perfect sense to me, as it's simply the logical progression of day, month, year. Why the Americans have to do it differently than the rest of the world is beyond me....lol."

*It makes more sense to do it the British way at least when writing out the date. I know of at least 3 grammar rules for the U.S. way of typing out dates in letters (for doctors, clinics, hospitals, etc.) -- which of course also makes 2 commas necessary in the sentence when you may already have 2 commas within the text of the sentence itself. It looks messy. It's easier to type out 21 November 2003 (no commas) than "Today, November 21, 2003, the patient came in,...." See? Oh well.

Byron: "Oh well, I'm one of the three people in the entire U.S. that believe that we need to switch over to the metric system ASAP..."

*No! Egad, no! :;):

Going back to the SOHO image Echus shared with us...wow, I didn't know so many comets were "out and about." I occasionally visit the SOHO web site; I guess I should drop in a bit more often. Yes, I think the sun is eating too many comets; solar indigestion.

--Cindy

dicktice · 2003-11-21 16:56:33

Cindy: You're right, as long as Bulgaria is the only other holdout, the United States of America shouldn't allow the rest of the World make you "go metric! Egad, indeed--and Heaven forbid. Now, if some kind soul only would disclose to me, the only one in the MS who seems not to know what "lol" means, I may be able to sleep nights.

Palomar · 2003-11-22 07:53:37

Cindy: You're right, as long as Bulgaria is the only other holdout, the United States of America shouldn't allow the rest of the World make you "go metric! Egad, indeed--and Heaven forbid. Now, if some kind soul only would disclose to me, the only one in the MS who seems not to know what "lol" means, I may be able to sleep nights.

A little close to home (literally)

*This guy had his telescope stolen! Geez. Well, I hope he gets it back. The scope itself is a rarity.

Dicktice: "lol" means "laugh out loud" or, according to Byron (did you not see his response to you elsewhere?), "lots of laughs." It's also often capitalized "LOL".

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-22 08:02:34

ALMA officially under construction

*Well, glad to read this.

Speaking of large arrays, my husband has promised to take me soon to Socorro, NM, to see the Very Large Array of radio telescopes there.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-22 08:09:15

Question for Mars buffs!

"Can you name the first artificial satellite of a planet other than Earth?"

*If you didn't guess correctly, don't feel bad...I didn't get it right either. Hey, I was only 6 years old then...

--Cindy

sethmckiness · 2003-11-22 09:31:43

Why is there a different definition for dormant volcanos on Earth, then Everywhere else.. sorry.. my two cents..

Palomar · 2003-11-23 15:01:00

Looks like a daisy...

*Or a Brown-Eyed Susan. Lovely photo.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-24 17:25:08

An article about the sun

*Fabulous. Says the sun "sheds its skin" like a snake.

"Astronomers have discovered a key fact required to understand the Sun's 11-year cycle of activity."

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-25 09:59:34

Calling all metal heads!

*Venus has "heavy metal mountains."

Usually I'm not greatly interested in Venus, but this article caught my eye. Mosh pits, anyone?

"The theory suggests at Venus's hot lower layers any metal would be vaporised and exist as a metallic mist. Only at higher elevations, where it is a little cooler, would that metal condense to form a thin, highly reflective layer on the ground."

*Metallic mist...imagine that.

--Cindy

jadeheart · 2003-11-25 19:34:42

interesting... so i wonder if you'd see stratification in conjunction with a temperature gradient... maybe different metals at different altitudes depending on their condensation point. maybe el dorado exists on venus-- not a mountain of gold but maybe just part of a mountain at a certain altitude frosted w/ gold.

i'd still rather visit mars.

Gennaro · 2003-11-25 20:15:34

Hmmm... if we only could terraform the place...

Shaun Barrett · 2003-11-26 07:12:40

Hi Jadeheart!
For all I know, your gold-plated mountains on Venus could be a reality. However, a quick google shows gold's melting point as 1064 deg.C, while lead melts at 327 deg.C.
The ambient temperature on Venus is about 460 deg.C. easily hot enough to liquify lead and give rise to lead vapour, but it seems harder to visualise gold vapour being produced under those conditions.

However, for the sake of your grand vision of golden peaks, I hope I'm completely wrong!

Palomar · 2003-11-26 07:26:58

New Twists on Milky Way's Big Black Hole

*It's a real spinner.

Another item in the story you don't often seen related: It takes our sun approximately 1 month to make a revolution on its axis.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-26 07:33:39

Hi Jadeheart!
For all I know, your gold-plated mountains on Venus could be a reality. However, a quick google shows gold's melting point as 1064 deg.C, while lead melts at 327 deg.C.
The ambient temperature on Venus is about 460 deg.C. easily hot enough to liquify lead and give rise to lead vapour, but it seems harder to visualise gold vapour being produced under those conditions.
However, for the sake of your grand vision of golden peaks, I hope I'm completely wrong!

*Actually, I hope you are correct about the improbabilities, Shaun.

If we did find there is a good quantity of gold on Venusian mountains, I imagine a way would be rather quickly found to "terraform Venus" all right, i.e. stripping and looting.

[However, I don't wish to get too far off-topic...there is already a thread established in a different folder as regards terraforming Venus.]

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-26 09:51:04

Mercury

*"Mysteries of Mercury: New Search for Heat and Ice."

A really terrific article...a wee bit dated, from 1 year ago.

Discusses Mariner 10, possible return missions, and this important item: "Mercury?s location makes it inherently important to solar system evolution theories."

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-11-29 07:54:05

*Phobos Shadow Over Mars & Ascraeus Mons:

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031129.html

Check out the links as well. Lots of good information here. The photo is an oldie but a goodie.

--Cindy

::EDIT:: Within the link above is another great link to Phobos (which I've not seen before at this web site):

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980914.html

It discusses (among other things) moon dust on Phobos: "Recent photographs of Phobos have indicated that a layer of fine powder estimated to be a meter deep covers the whole surface."

Byron · 2003-12-01 14:23:49

Check this out...to think that this might have happened a mere half a thousand years ago...

Asteroid Impact?

B

Palomar · 2003-12-02 06:30:42

Check this out...to think that this might have happened a mere half a thousand years ago...
Asteroid Impact?
B

"'Only a bolide could do this,' says Bryant, using a technical term for a sky-bursting cosmic missile. Geologists know such things can happen--a much bigger impact is believed to have ended the reign of the dinosaurs--but no such catastrophe is known in recorded history.

People would notice something like that. Sure enough, Bryant found recorded tales from Australian aborigines and New Zealand's Maori people recounting how, not long before the arrival of Europeans, the sky heaved and split, stars fell, and immense floods swept the land. Aborigine tales told of a huge, disintegrating ball of blue fire shooting overhead."

*Interesting. In my studies of mythology and comparative religion in the 1990s, I recall many mythological figures of "plumed serpents" and "fiery serpents"...could those have been references to meteors, even a huge cataclysmic meteor? I believe so. Some scholars speculate that statements in certain religious literature pertaining to "Lucifer (aka "Phosphorus" -- the "Light or Light-Bearer" as he was known in ancient mythology prior to the advent of Christianity) falling from heaven" refers to a cataclysm. These "fiery/plumed serpents," this very bright object ("Lucifer") falling from the sky...sure sounds like meteor activity to me (particularly large meteors) -- the long trails of flaming debris, etc.

A former acquaintance of mine was involved in a theorist network which proposed that conditions on Earth were near-paradisical (humanity's innocent childhood) until a great catastrophe befell it. Afterwards Earth's atmosphere became cold, the land was no longer as productive as it had been (famine), life became very difficult. This theory is, its theorists suggest, echoed in stories like "the Fall of Mankind" and the "expulsion from the Garden."

Mythology is important; it was the original way of relating history, and I believe holds many keys to understanding the past, the human psyche, etc.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-12-02 11:02:01

Dusty disc may mean more Earths

*Possibly more similar to our own solar system than yet detected.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-12-03 10:05:41

www.spaceweather.com

*This web site has some really cool informational links in it, including (but not limited to): Aurora forecasts; Vandenberg AFB missile launch schedules; photographing satellites (?!...that's an unusual hobby, I'd say); solar wind data; sunspot data; "Daily Sun" (I'll definitely be using this often, after I get my new telescope and solar filter); "List of Potentially Dangerous Asteroids"...and links pertaining to mirages.

It's a real treasure trove. Enjoy!

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-12-04 09:52:02

*This is an artist's rendition of "New Horizons" and in what locale it should be a year after its scheduled launch in 2006:

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031204.html

Why does it seem like 2006 is such a long time from now?
It seems time just drags and drags for these cute little beepers to get to their destinations/launch dates! (And I can't wait for the probe on its way to Titan to get there [January 2005] and start relaying info...not to mention our Mars probes).

As always, lots of interesting links in the article.

Eeeeeeek!!

I just realized I'll be 50 years old when New Horizons reaches its rendezvous [in 2015]! Oh my god...someone catch me...I feel faint...

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-12-05 08:00:16

*Mystery Star:

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031205.html

Oooooo, it's so pretty. A very interesting variable.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-12-09 08:04:11

The Lord of the Rings

*...what an understatement.

Closest to Earth in 30 years (last time this close was December 1973; every 30 years due to orbit time).

It's currently hanging around with Castor and Pollux...I'll be sure and catch this gem in my new telescope, when it arrives.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-12-09 08:16:14

Uranus carbon monoxide

*Uranus C02; interesting...bombardment by micrometeorites the cause?

Also comparison with Neptune; article suggests C02 in its (Neptune's) atmosphere comes from its interior. I wonder why they don't consider the C02 on Uranus also comes from its interior? Perhaps because of the difference in C02 (intensity) levels between the two planets -- ?

--Cindy

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