Category: Space and Time

Exoplanets

On By A.P.In ExoplanetsLeave a comment

Researchers reporte in Nature last month ten newly discovered exoplanets that appear to be very distant from their stars, or not orbiting them at all.

Read, or listen to, the NPR interview with astronomer Joachim Wambsganss and planetary scientist Sara Seager about whether such planets could support life, and how they can disocver them with swarms of miniature satellite telescopes.

http://www.npr.org/2011/05/20/136501172/exoplanets-floating-freely-without-a-star

The Sun 360

On By A.P.In Space and TimeLeave a comment

NASA has managed to get a full 360 degree image of the Sun, which they say will help us understand complicated solar weather patterns and plan for future robotic or crewed spacecraft missions throughout the solar system.  It should also be helpful for airlines, power companies and satellite operators.

See here:  http://news.yahoo.com/video/science-15749654/24105295

UFOs in Colorado

On By A.P.In UFOLeave a comment

A Youtube video posted this week by residents of Lafayette, Colorado shows three seemingly unconnected red lights floating in the night sky on March 20, 2011.

During the video, voices can be heard trying to figure out what the lights could be. “That is the creepiest thing ever,” one man can be heard saying. “I wonder whether there will be anything in the news about this tomorrow,” another says.

The lights were also captured on video by others in the Lafayette area.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/25/lafayette-ufo-sighting-dr_n_840522.html?ref=email_share

Instead of aliens, maybe it is just road flares tied to balloons.  Someone did just that in 2010 in Southern California.  Shown below on the left is the scene from Colorado last week, and on the right is shown the road flares from last year in California.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2011/03/29/2011-03-29_video_of_ufo_in_colorado_more_likely_road_flares_not_aliens.html?r=news/national

Space Shuttle Liftoff Recorded From a Passenger Flight

On By A.P.In Lifelogging, Space and Time, Technology, The FutureLeave a comment

Check out this website for a cool angle of the last launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery, caputured from a cell phone on a passenger airline flight.

http://singularityhub.com/2011/03/01/stunning-video-of-shuttle-launch-as-seen-from-iphone-on-airplane/#

Thanks to Kebmobee for bringing this to the attention of the Its-Interesting community.

This article also touches on the subject of lifelogging, a prediction that in the future most everything will be recorded.

Read here about this phenomenon of lifelogging:  http://singularityhub.com/2010/07/20/your-entire-life-recorded-lifelogging-goes-mainstream/#

A new planet in our solar system?

On By A.P.In Space and Time2 Comments

Astrophysicists Daniel Whitmire and John Matese from the U of Louisiana say that the NASA Wise telescope has provided data that a giant gas planet four times the size of Jupiter may be lurking in the outer solar system, far beyond Pluto and 15,000 times farther away from the sun than Earth. 

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/02/15/scientists-telescope-hunt-massive-hidden-object-in-space/?hpt=C2

This massive object was first hypothesized in 1984 as Nemesis, a brown dwarf star companion to the sun.  Now, evidence exists that the object may be a giant gas planet, which Matese and Whitmire have named  Tyche, after the good sister of the goddess Nemesis in Greek mythology.   Within 2 years there should be direct evidence of this gas planet, if it exists.  If it’s there, it will probably be composed of hydrogen and helium and have colorful spots, bands and clouds like Jupiter.

The presence of such a massive object in the outermost reaches of our solar system could explain a barrage of comets from an unexpected direction.  

http://www.space.com/9612-giant-stealth-planet-explain-rain-comets-solar-system-edge.html

Also, its 27 million-year orbit could explain a pattern of mass extinctions on Earth.

http://www.space.com/8028-sun-nemesis-pelted-earth-comets-study-suggests.html

Tyche was the goddess of fortune, chance, providence and fate – the divinity guiding and conducting the affairs of the world.  Nemesis was regarded as the downside of Tyche who provided a check on extravagant fortune. The pair were often depicted as companions in Greek vase painting.  In the picture below, Nemesis is shown with her arm around Tyche.