Universe Today - October 28, 2004

Share Your Eclipse Experience
Oct 28, 2004 - Well, how did it go? Did you get a chance to see the eclipse from your part of the world? Did you share it with your friends and family, and maybe build a little astronomy enthusiasm in your loved ones? One eye on the sky and one eye on the game? Come to the forum and share your experiences from last night. I'll let you know how my night went. If you got pictures from last night, join the forum and post your photos into the Astrophotography forum and enjoy the "ooohs and ahhhs" from jealous rained out (or geographically challenged) forum members from around the world. Next eclipse is in 2007.

Fraser Cain
Publisher
Universe Today
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Book Review: Space Tourism - Do You Want to Go?
Oct 28, 2004 - Today is only a short moment from the future. To get there from here, you can follow a preset path that leaves little margin or opportunity for error. Another route is to strike out on your own toward a destination that has few signposts showing the way. John Spencer and Karen Rugg are heading in a very new direction and in their book Space Tourism - Do You Want to Go?, they present a comprehensive, near term space industry focused entirely on space tourism. After all, the future is what you make of it. (Full Story)
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Image credit: Max Planck Society
Most Active Sun in 8,000 Years
Oct 28, 2004 - The Sun is more active today than it has been in 8,000 years, according to new research from the Max Planck Institute. Researchers discovered that a certain isotope of carbon, C-14, depends on the amount of cosmic rays that reach the Earth's surface. When solar activity is high, the Sun's magnetic field provides a shield against these cosmic rays, and when it's low, the Sun lets more cosmic rays reach the Earth. By measuring C-14 levels in dead trees which were buried in the ground, the scientists were able to build up a historic record of solar activity. Scientists have found that solar activity levels only slightly influence the Earth's climate and global temperature. (Full Story)
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Image credit: Hubble
Survivor Found From Tycho's Supernova
Oct 28, 2004 - Using the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have located what they think is the burned out star at the heart of Tycho's Supernova Remnant, which exploded in 1572. This discovery provides the first direct evidence that these kind of supernovae, called Type 1a, occur when a white dwarf consumes material from a binary companion until it reaches a certain point and explodes. They discovered the star, which is similar to our own Sun, because it's moving away from the explosion three times faster than other objects in the region - it was sling shotted away when its dancing partner vapourized. (Full Story)
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Image credit: NASA/JPL/SSI
False Colour Image of Titan
Oct 27, 2004 - This image of Titan was taken yesterday during Cassini's 1,200 km (750 mile) flyby past its surface. It's actually a false colour image of the moon, built by merging together four images taken in different wavelengths of light. The red and green colours show areas revealed in infrared light, and the blue is ultraviolet wavelengths. Full colour visible light images are still in processing, and should be released later this week. (Full Story)
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