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| Help Out Gulf Coast Astronomers |
Oct 12, 2005 - Aaron Price from Slacker Astronomy has set up a new fund to help the hurricane ravaged observatories and astronomical societies along the US Gulf Coast. If you'd like to help some fellow astronomers get back on their feet, check the site out and see how you can get involved.
Fraser Cain
Publisher, Universe Today
P.S. Aaron also wanted me to remind you to listen to Slacker Astronomy #29: Carrying the 1’s Along Gravitational Highways. He's particularly proud of it. :-) Give it a listen! (Full Story) |
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| Book Review: Heavenly Intrigue |
| Oct 12, 2005 - Great scientists don't necessarily make for great people. One reportedly never took a bath in his long life. Many were so anti-social as to have their mental stability questioned. Sordid character traits often set them well apart from peers and students. Joshua Gilder and Anne-Lee Gilder explore this avenue in their book Heavenly Intrigue. In it, they bring to life the olden times of Europe and two great astronomers, Johannes Kepler and Tycho Brahe. Then, step by step, they lead the reader onto a great scientific undertaking that might have its roots in a less than great murder. (Full Story) |
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| Artist illustration of the new Crew Exploration Vehicle. Image credit: Northrop Grumman. Click to enlarge. |
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| New Details About Space Shuttle Successor |
| Oct 12, 2005 - A Northrop Grumman/Boeing team has unveiled new details about the successor to the space shuttle: the Crew Exploration Vehicle. This new spacecraft, reminiscent of the original Apollo capsule, is expected to carry humans to the International Space Station by 2012 and return them to the Moon by 2018. Unlike Apollo, however, the CEV will carry four astronauts to the Moon and back. It will orbit the Moon autonomously, allowing all four astronauts to descend to the surface. (Full Story) |
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| Computer illustration of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Image credit: NASA. Click to enlarge. |
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| Life's Building Blocks are Common in Space |
| Oct 12, 2005 - NASA researchers have found that many of the basic building blocks for life here on Earth are common throughout the Universe. Using the Spitzer Space Telescope, the researchers observed that complex organic molecules called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are everywhere they looked: in the Milky Way and in the most distant observable galaxies. Most of these molecules contain nitrogen, which is the key requirement for life. (Full Story) |
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| Shenzhou-6 launches with two astronauts. Image credit: Xinhua. |
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| Second Chinese Shenzhou Launches |
| Oct 12, 2005 - China continued on its ambitious plans for human space exploration this morning with the launch of its second manned spacecraft this morning. The capsule Shenzhou-6 was lofted into orbit atop a Chinese Long March booster, carrying two astronauts: Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng. The mission is expected to last up to 5 days, and the astronauts will perform a series of scientific experiments. (Full Story) |
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