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| Image credit: PBS |
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| TV Alert: The Elegant Universe |
Oct 27, 2003 - Tune your television to PBS on Tuesday, October 28 for a two-hour Nova episode called "The Elegant Universe", based on the book of the same name by Brian Green. Followed by the one-hour conclusion on November 4. It'll cover the current theories about the Universe, and should put a lot of complex concepts like "string theory" into a form non-cosmologists might be able to understand. If you don't get PBS in your part of the planet, the entire show will be available online from the PBS website.
I'll be watching.
Fraser Cain
Publisher
Universe Today
P.S. I had a warning on Friday from one reader that pointing your telescope or binoculars at the Sun for too long without a proper filter could damage it, so if you're going to project an image, only do it for a few seconds at a time to protect your equipment. And remember, don't look at the Sun directly - you could permanently damage your eyesight.
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| Image credit: CAIB |
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| Additional Columbia Documents Coming |
| Oct 27, 2003 - The Columbia Accident Investigation Board announced on Friday that they will be releasing volumes II through VI of their analysis and recommendations. The documents can be downloaded will be available for download on Tuesday, and printed copies can be ordered through an official government printer. The new volumes contain appendices and supporting documentation for Volume I, which was released back in August, and is still considered their formal recommendations on the accident. |
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| Image credit: JAXA |
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| Contact Lost with Japanese Satellite |
| Oct 27, 2003 - Ground controllers have lost contact with Midori 2, a $587 million environmental research satellite launched in December last year. The Japanese/US spacecraft didn't check in on Saturday when it flew over a ground station; shortly after that it went into safe mode, and then all telemetry was lost. Controllers are trying to recover contact with the satellite, but it will probably be difficult because it's not even sending out telemetry data. Midori 2 was supposed to last at least 3 years and use five scientific instruments to gather data about water vapour, ocean winds, sea temperatures, sea ice, and marine vegetation. |
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| Image credit: NASA |
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| Expedition 7 Ready to Return |
| Oct 27, 2003 - The crew of Expedition 7, American astronaut Ed Lu and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, and ESA astronaut Pedro Duque are set to return to Earth later today in their Soyuz capsule. If everything goes as planned, the capsule will land in Kazakhstan Tuesday morning at 0241 GMT (9:41 p.m. EST Monday). Controllers are hoping for a smoother return flight than last time, when a computer error sent the crew of Expedition 6 went 400 km off course and had a bit of a rough landing. Russian engineers believe they have the problem under control, and the astronauts are trained to override the computer if the Soyuz goes off course. |
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