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Altair
Revealed
The close star, Altair, has had its surface seen. Four linked telescopes
(CHARA) on Mt. Wilson,CA, use image correction to gain 25X resolution
of the Hubble Space Telescope. They see a flattened Altair due to a rotation
in under 10 hours.
Amateurs
and Pros Team to Find Planet XO-3b
An international team of planet hunters has found an extrasolar planet
that is 13X of Jupiter and orbits its star in less than 4 days. This planet
occupies "the brown dwarf desert".
First
Discovery of a Comet Via Digital Camera
Terry Lovejoy found Comet C/2007 E2 with his trusty Canons. He shared
this year's Edgar Wilson Award for amateur comet finding with John Broughton
and David H. Levy.
Mira
Has A Comet-Like Tail
The well-known, long studied giant star has a tail 13 light years long.
Mira moves fast through molecules in its path.
A
Massive Star Duo
One star is 37X the mass of the Sun.The other is 62X the mass of the Sun.
They are close and orbit each other in slightly over two days.
WMAP Haze:
A Supposition Involving Dark Matter
The Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation is supposedly uniformly distributed
in the cosmos. But too many microwaves are near the center of our galaxy.
Dark matter destruction could be the source of the detected increase in
the cosmic microwaves.
Superfast
Spinning Supermassive Black Hole
The first quantative measurements of spin rate for
a supermassive black hole finds it zipping at 98.7% of the maximum possible
rate according to Relativity.
Utah
Has First International Dark-Sky Site
Natural Bridges National Monument is the first international dark sky
site as designated by the International Dark-Sky Association.
Brightest,
Most Powerful Stellar Explosion
It was 100X a typical sypernova.
Water
and A Faraway Planet
One research group did not find water. Now another group has found water
in the atmosphere of the extrasolar planet. It is close enough to its
star that the water is boiling away.
A
Star Nearly As Old As The Universe
The star, HE1523-0901, is 13.2 billion years old.
It is in our Galaxy.
South
Pole of Mars Has a Great Amount of Water
Polar region
has enough water to cover all of Mars to 36 feet deep
Water
Now Flowing on Mars
Orbiter shows recent gully-washers.
Comet
McNaught
A great comet it was, visible in the daytime, with a majestic sweeping
tail.
Comet
Encke Shows Trail
Holloway Comet Observatory finds Encke's trail with a 5 inch refractor
and CCD
Sub-Surface
Craters on Mars
Radar reveals craters under the Martian surface.
On
Earth, Comet Dust Analyzed
Samples from Comet Wild 2 brought to Earth show
the early Solar System was violent. The comet has high and low temperature
materials stored in it for billions of years.
Hydrogen
Peroxide Snow on Mars?
Static electrictiy from dust clouds could produce oxidation.
Is
the Lunar Ina Formation Current?
The formation is as recent as 10 million year ago or as recent as yesterday.
The
Impossible Supernova
Too bright? Too massive? A new kind of Type Ia supernovae?
Some
Galaxies Don't Show Enough Big Bang Afterglow
Massive clusters of galaxies should have more of
a "shadow" from blocked cosmic microwave backgound emission.
No
Pluto as a Planet, Xena Becomes Eris
Pluto has now an asteroid number of 134340. The former Xena is 136199.
Both numbers are a result of the IAU's decision withdrawing planetary
status from Pluto.
Shadow
Transit on Uranus
The Hubble Space Telescope shows, for first time, the shadow of one of
Uranus's moons, Ariel, against the clouds of Uranus.
Direct
Evidence for Dark Matter
A collision between two clusters of galaxies shows visible matter apart
from the majority of the mass (dark matter).
Ice
Geysers on Mars
They toss sand and dust hundreds of feet into the
Martian air. They are at the South Pole of Mars.
The
Faintest Stars
The Hubble scope took in the light of cluster NGC 6397 for 5 days. The
dimmest must be 8.3% of the Sun's mass.
Jupiter's
Red Spot Jr.
For the first time in history, a new red spot on
Jupiter.
Largest
Structure of the Universe
Linked galaxies across 200 million light-years.
Lucky
Imaging is LowCost, Sharp as Hubble
Ground-based scope takes millions of images very quickly. Software sorts
the ones without atmospheric blur.
The
Auroras of Mars
They arise from magnetic fields of the crust and are ultraviolet flashes.
Ancient
Supernovae From Echoes of Their Light
It is like an archeology of the supernovae.
NASA
Recorded A Lunar Hit
NASA video shows the hit. Most probably the impact was from a taurid.
It landed near the edge of Mare Imbrium.
Giant
Cloud of Alcohol in Space
Maser emission by methyl alcohol surrounds a stellar
nursery.
The
New Confirmed Moons of Pluto
Two new moons found for Pluto
Mystery
of Galactic X-ray Glow is Solved
White dwarfs and coronae of other more ordinary stars give the glow.
No,
Most Stars in Our Galaxy are Solo
Most galactic stars are red dwarfs. Most of them are not binaries.
"Planet
10" is Larger Than Pluto
So What Is A Planet?
Haystack
Observatory : Radio Detection of Deuterium
Amount of deuterium can be related to the amount of dark matter.
Fastest
Spin in the Solar System
In the Kuiper Belt, 2003 EL61 rotates every 3.9 hours.
Giant
Galaxies in the Very Early Universe
It was thought galaxies would be small early on.
Melting
Lunar Dust
Lunar soil melts (sinters) fast in a microwave. Put the microwave on wheels
and go to the moon?
Comet
Particles and Interstellar Dust Brought to Earth
Capsule from space lands in Utah.
Asteroid
Dust Could Affect Local Weather
Warm and high clouds of asteroid remains can be of 1,000 metric tons appearing
in a few seconds.
Asteroid
87 Sylvia has Two Moons
One is 7 km across. The other is 18 km across.
Milky
Way is a Barred Spiral
Infrared studies reveal bar going through center of the Milky Way.
Mystery
of Gamma Ray Bursts is Solved
The theory of a collision between two neutron stars or a black hole and
a neutron star is confirmed.
First
Planet With Three Suns
Planet has a year of only three and a half days.
Does
the Moon Cause Earthquakes?
Could the few centimeters of tide raised by the Moon in the earth's crust
trigger some earthquakes?
The Smallest
Star
A star, OGLE-TR-122B, is only 16% larger than Jupiter.
Mars
Could Have Life
The Mars Express finds possible evidence for life on Mars from measures
of methane. Also, geologically recent volcanism and glacial activity have
been proposed.
An Explosive
Success
The Deep Impact Probe slams into Comet Tempel 1.
Many
Black Holes Are at Our Galaxy's Center
There is the well known massive black hole at the center. In addition,
as many as 10,000 small black holes could be near the galactic center.
Distant
Quasar in Nearby Galaxy?
A high red-shift object lies within NCG 7319.
Strongest
Radiation Ever Was Recorded by the Tidbinbilla Radio
Telescope
A pulsar blasted space to such an extent that all known material there
would have been vaporized.
Four
Massive Hits Put Lunar Rock to Earth
A lunar rock, now in Oman,was affected by lunar impacts at 3.9 bil, 2.7
bil, 200 mil, and at 9,700 years ago.
The
Sun Was Not Alone
It could be that the Sun came from a crowd of stars. It then wandered
to its present lonely position.
Martian
Polar Spirals Explained
Logarithmic spiral gorges in Martian polar caps are due to planetary tilt,
a thin atmosphere, and a cold climate
Methane
on Mars
Is the methane a byproduct of life on Mars
or due to geological activity?
Amateur
Astronomer Photographs Surface of Venus
Christophe Pellier of Bruz, France, used a 14 inch Schmidt-Cassegrain
scope.
Comet
Wild 2 is Astoundingly Irregular
The comet's nucleus has tall projections, steep craters, and dozens of
jets from inside.
Sedna
is Most Distant Object in the Solar System
From Sedna, a pin held up in front of the Sun would cover the Sun. Sedna
is red, reflective, and takes 10,500 years to orbit the Sun.
Eternal
Light on the Moon
A lunar mountain is never dark.
Diamond
Star, 10 Billion Trillion Trillion Carats
It is 50 light years away in the constellation Centaurus.
Craft
Gets Pics and Particles of A Comet
A spacecraft takes close pictures of a comet's nucleus. The craft also
trapped part of the comet's tail. The particles are to be returned to
Earth.
Our
Galaxy Destroys a Dwarf Galaxy
Thousands of stars are moving through our Galaxy that were removed by
force. They were taken from a dwarf galaxy named Sagittarius.
Lunar
Prospecting By Means of X-rays
The Chandra X-Ray Observatory detects chemical elements of the lunar surface
from fluorescence caused by solar x-rays.
Flying
Pulsar Makes X-ray Bow Shock Wave
The 12 mile across pulsar called Geminga moves at 20X the speed of sound.
Radon on Mars Means Water on Mars?
Diffusing radon arriving at the surface of Mars could signal water below.
Planets
Could Form in Only 3 Million Years
Planets could exist after 3 million years and not the 10 to 12 million
years most think is needed to get a planet up and running.
A
Backward Satellite for Our Galaxy
Complex H, once thought to be a gas cloud, is now seen as a satellite
galaxy of our galaxy.
Galaxy
Size Limited by Black Hole Activity
Black hole
jets make galactic gas too energetic for black hole to control.
Gas
Telescope for Focus of Black Holes, Quasars
Earth-Orbit Synthesis is Put to Use to Make Scintillations from Radio
Sources
Not
All Galaxies Have Dark Matter
Three elliptical galaxies lack dark matter.
Gamma
Ray Bursts and Supernovas
Chandra's data shows gamma ray bursts and supernovas are related.
No
Quantum Cosmological Blur
No support for quantum time, space, and gravity.
Flat
Lens Could Enhance Resolution
The new physics of metamaterials confers optical advantages.
A
Diverse Big Bang Echo?
Cosmic microwave background radiation has an unexplained structure, not
the same in all directions.
An
Evaporating Planet
A hot Jupiter-like planet, too close to its star, is being scorched.
Universe
To Do An Increasingly Faster Expansion
Dark energy has a role
to play in accelerating a universal expansion that will not stop.
Gamma
Ray Bursts: Those Less Than 2 Seconds; More Than 2 Seconds
2,000 bursts have been checked. Fantastic explosions may account for the
longer bursts.
Huge
Ring of Stars Around Our Galaxy
A newly discovered
gigantic feature of our galaxy has been found. Several hundred million
stars surround our galaxy
Titan's
Storm Clouds Roam Over Lakes of Ethane and Methane
This giant moon of Saturn is veiled by an orange haze. Radar observations
tell us more about this satellite.
In
One Galaxy, Two Black Holes to Collide
First evidence of two black holes in one galaxy
and what's more they are to merge. Maybe other black holes became larger
by merger?
Polarization
of Cosmic Microwave Radiation
Astronomers operating
a telescope in Antarctica collected photons of light for 200 nights to
record the polarization and further confirm the Big Bang to now lead to
direct measurement of gravity waves.
No
Standard for Quasar Velocity
A recent survey of 200,000 galaxies and 25,000 quasars doesn't support
the notion of quasars near some galaxies close to us as all being at 59%
the velocity of light.
Amateurs
Find Asteroids and Other Things
The 3 telescopes of Roy Tucker
in a Tucson backyard are so arranged that they provide images in triplicate
- to detect celestial movement.
Amateurs
Find Supernovas
A large American telescope built in 9 years from
scrap by Tim Puckett is used by Puckett and volunteers to discover 54
supernovas. They searched through 500,000 photos made with the telescope
that is located in Georgia.
Vast
Amounts of Water on Mars
Water-ice on Mars is immediately below surface. Melt it all and you
have an ocean covering the planet. NASA and people to Mars, finally?
A Planetary
System Like Ours
In orbit about 55 Cancri is a planet - one of the 100 found
in systems beyond the Solar.
How's the Weather?
Like Jupiter, as Usual
Some stars, brown dwarfs, have Jupiter-like weather. Iron gas and else
causes
weather on stars - first time such has been observed.
The Moon Helps
Detect Life on Earth
The earth's blue oceans and the infrared of plant life are reflected back
from the Moon. Earthlike planets may have similar colors detected by 2015.
A
Planet and An Old Star
A giant star, Iota Draconis, has a planet in orbit about it. This is the
first time such a star has been found.
Sunlight
Produces Deadly Asteroids?
The Sun's radiative force via The Yarkovsky Effect could push asteroids
out of stable orbits.
A
First : Exoplanet's Atmosphere Revealed
HD209458, a star in Pegasus, has a planet that, as seen from the Earth,
passes in front of it.
The Greatest Comet
Hunter
It isn't a who, it is a what. NASA's SOHO has found 365 comets in 6 years.
Recent photos taken by SOHO show a comet on the way to collision with
the Sun.
The
Mystery of the Milky Way's X-ray Glow is Solved
The source for this glow is diffuse gas, not discrete objects.
Data Two Decades
Old Points to Life on Mars
Mars Landers' data show rhythmic metabolic activity for 9 weeks. No programmers
are now alive who could process the tapes, but printouts have been found.
Stellar
Sound
Now another star is known to emit sound. Tiny resonances in interior acoustics
of Alpha Centauri A have been discovered. It has a 7 minute oscillation.
The Sun does a 5 minute oscillation.
Mars
as Seen by Hubble
Mars has not been closer since 1988. Best view by Hubble Space Telescope
with recognition down to 10 miles in diameter on the planet.
Another
Asteroid Belt
There has been one asteroid belt in all the Universe - until now.
OH
Megamasers from Colliding Galaxies
Arecibo records radio signals from collisions that compress galactic gas.
The resulting megamasers show the frequency of these galactic collisions.
A Martian Glow
for Mustard Plants
Plants to be taken to Mars glow via reporter genes. Green glow can mean
heavy metals in the soil. Blue can mean peroxides are present.
A Drop in Cosmic
Rays Correlates With an Increase in Sunspots
There is a delay of a year in a drop of cosmic ray intensity vs. a rise
in sunspot numbers for alternate sun cycles.
Milankovitch
Cycles Cooled Earth
Millions of years ago an unusual association of low values for Earth's
orbital eccentricity and the tilt of the Earth's axis led to a huge expansion
of Antarctica's ice.
Reducing
Moonlight Glare with Polarizing Filters
Scattered moonlight blots out optical astronomy work for many nights of
the month.
Martian Gullies
- from Carbon Dioxide, Not Water?
Most gullies are in the coldest part of Mars, the southern highlands.
The gullies are always 100 meters from cliff tips. A suspended flow of
carbon dioxide matches the data.
Now
Two Black Holes in Our Galaxy
A smaller one has been found in our halo.
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