Astrosphere for June 12, 2007

Back out to the astrosphere. Let’s see what’s out there.

Today’s amateur astrophoto is from Bad Astronomy/Universe Today forum member clop. It’s a beautiful shot of the globular cluster Omega Centauri. You can see this and a photo of M83 in the forum.

First off, Emily Lakdawalla from the Planetary Society debunks the discovery of puddles on Mars. Apparently, they were on the side of a cliff.

We think we know what life looks like, but would we recognize non-carbon life if we saw it? The Daily Galaxy has an interesting story on this.

It’s time to go to school. First, the Astroprof explains how magnitudes work. And then Dr. Pamela Gay describes what a sidereal day is.

Now this is just crazy. Space entrepreneur Rick Tumlinson is working on a company that will let people skydive from space. Well, from 36,000 metres (120,000 feet). Alan Boyle has the details.