|
|
| Reminder: Plan for the Lunar Eclipse |
Oct 22, 2004 - As we reported a week ago, there's going to be a lunar eclipse on October 27/28 which will be visible from the Americas and Western Europe. This'll be the last chance to see a total lunar eclipse for a while, so I highly suggest - no, I demand - that you set aside some time on Wednesday evening to enjoy it. We're having an eclipse party with some friends.
If it's cloudy in your area, or you live in a part of the world that just can't see it, don't worry, I'll be putting together my regular list of astrocameras focused on the Moon. If you're going to be broadcasting coverage of the eclipse onto the Internet, please email me at info@universetoday.com so that we can get as complete a coverage as possible.
Thanks!
Fraser Cain
Publisher
Universe Today |
|
|
|
 |
| Image credit: NASA/JPL |
|
| Spirit Steering Problem Returns |
| Oct 22, 2004 - NASA engineers thought that a steering problem on Spirit had cleared up, since they hadn't seen it in almost two weeks. Well, it's back. The glitch first appeared on Oct. 1, and forced the rover to stay put for 5 days while engineers searched for the cause. It went away after that, and returned again on Oct. 13. Engineers are now considering workarounds that would get the rover driving again, such as disabling the brakes on the steering actuator that keeps the misbehaving wheel pointed properly. This means the freely turning wheel might give the rover some difficulty as it negotiates rough terrain. (Full Story) |
|
|
|
 |
| Image credit: NASA |
|
| Frame Dragging Confirmed |
| Oct 22, 2004 - When developing his General Theory of Relativity, Albert Einstein predicted that the Earth should drag space and time around with it as it rotates on its access. NASA's Gravity Probe B spacecraft was launched earlier this year to help confirm this prediction, but an international team of researchers has beaten the spacecraft to a conclusion. By carefully tracking the position of the LAGEOS and LAGEOS 2 satellites - beachball-sized spheres covered in mirrors - they discovered that their orbit is being shifted by about two metres a year by this dragging effect by the Earth's gravity, almost exactly what was predicted by Einstein. (Full Story) |
|
|
|
 |
| Image credit: ESO |
|
| The Virgo Galaxy Cluster is Still Being Formed |
| Oct 22, 2004 - At a distance of only 50 million light-years away, the Virgo Cluster is the nearest galaxy cluster to us. It's a giant structure consisting of hundreds of galaxies, both large and small, spiral and elliptical; 16 objects in this cluster are members of the famous Messier list of space objects. Astronomers have located a large number of planetary nebula floating in the "intercluster" space between galaxies, and theorize that they must be a fraction of the free floating stars and other objects which swarm around the cluster. By measuring the path of these objects, astronomers have been able to track how the Virgo Cluster is still in the process of formation. (Full Story) |
|
|
|
|
