Universe Today

Buzz Aldrin is approaching 80 years of age, and he's decided it's not time to mince words. Not only is he rapping about what he accomplished during his astronaut career, but in today's online version of Popular Mechanics Buzz wrote an article outlining what he believes NASA's path and vision should be — for the next few years and into the next few decades. He's a man with a plan, and he calls it the "Unified Space Vision." He will present his plan to the Augustine Commission, an independent council appointed by President Obama to review NASA's human spaceflight objectives.

So just what does Buzz have in mind?
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Astronomers say they've discovered the "coming of age" of galaxies and black holes, thanks to new data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and other telescopes. The new discovery helps resolve the true nature of gigantic blobs of gas observed around very young galaxies, and sheds light on the formation of galaxies and black holes.

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Filed under: Astronomy, Black Holes, galaxies | 177 Comments »

With warmer weather returning to the Earth's northern hemisphere, we can again venture forth under the night sky for pleasant star gazing. If you're just beginning this pastime and are planning to rely upon binoculars, then you should also consider Stephen O'Meara's book, "Observing the Night Sky with Binoculars – A Simple Guide to the Heavens". It will have you comfortably cruising the night's starry sphere in no time with its straightforward techniques and handy mnemonics.
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Some things you just have to see to believe. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin recently cut a hip-hop song along with rappers Snoop Dogg and Talib Kweli. The website Funny Or Die has the music video of the song, "Rocket Experience. They also have the "making of" video of Buzz's song. Quincy Jones and Soulja Boy also make appearances. It's fun to watch, and Buzz really lets it all hang out – he's a very cool dude! And let's face it, everyone wants to see Buzz rapping about traveling in space, right? My favorite part is when Buzz is rapping while standing next to the famous cardboard cut-out of him standing on the Moon. (I have one of those…) Enjoy the video!

Also available: Download the song "Rocket Experience" on iTunes. A portion of the proceeds from the song sales of" Rocket Experience" will go to ShareSpace Foundation, to further benefit and support the work of the National Space Society, the Planetary Society and the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation.

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The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter fired its braking thrusters for 40 minutes early today, successfully inserting the spacecraft into orbit around the Moon. Over the next several days, LRO's instruments will be turned on and its orbit will be fine-tuned. Then LRO will begin its primary mission of mapping the lunar surface to find future landing sites and searching for resources that would make possible a permanent human presence on the moon. Also, early Tuesday, the companion mission Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) sent back live video as it flew 9,000 km above the Moon, as it enters its elongated Earth orbit, which will bring it on course to impact the Moon's south pole in October.
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Hey, kids! Are you ready to spend another warm, northern summer evening out under the stars? Then perhaps you'd like to introduce yourself to the Celestial Farmer and his family. Before the Moon comes back and steals away our dark skies, begin when night falls and watch overhead for the appearance of a bright, orange-looking star. Congratulations! You've just found Arcturus and you're on your way to learning our next constellation lesson. Now, sit back and listen to the voice of the wind as Sky Wizard Kim tells you a story… Click to continue…

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This week’s Carnival of Space is hosted by Ethan Siegal at Starts With a Bang.

Click here to read the Carnival of Space #108.

And if you’re interested in looking back, here’s an archive to all the past Carnivals of Space. If you’ve got a space-related blog, you should really join the carnival. Just email an entry to carnivalofspace@gmail.com, and the next host will link to it. It will help get awareness out there about your writing, help you meet others in the space community – and community is what blogging is all about. And if you really want to help out, let Fraser know if you can be a host, and he’ll schedule you into the calendar.

Finally, if you run a space-related blog, please post a link to the Carnival of Space. Help us get the word out.

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On Tuesday morning, the LCROSS spacecraft will fly by the Moon only 9,000 km above the lunar surface and send back live streaming video for about an hour. This relatively close encounter with the Moon, will help put LCROSS in the correct position to impact the lunar surface in October. LCROSS will never actually be lunar orbit, but is working its way to an elongated Earth orbit which will eventually bring it to the correct orientation for meeting up with the south pole of the Moon later this year. LCROSS will search for water ice on the moon by sending the spent upper-stage Centaur rocket to impact part of a polar crater in permanent shadows. The LCROSS spacecraft will fly into the plume of dust left by the impact and measure the properties before also colliding with the lunar surface. Live video streaming of the flyby begins at approximately 12:20 GMT (8:20 EDT) on Tuesday, June 23, 2009. Click here to watch.
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A couple flew like Superman and floated upside down to say their wedding vows on Saturday, as Zero Gravity Corporation hosted the world's first-ever weightless wedding. Noah Fulmor and Erin Finnegan were married on June 20 among family and friends who were all on board ZERO-G's G-FORCE One, a specially modified Boeing 727. Officiating the wedding was Richard Garriott, the sixth private explorer in history to go to space, and the first second-generation U.S. astronaut. "I am honored to be taking part in Erin and Noah's wedding. I know firsthand the added thrill microgravity will play in their already joyous event," said Garriott. "The excitement from these first ever microgravity nuptials will not soon fade in the minds of all the members of the wedding party."
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The "science book" by National Geographic shows just how 'incredibly, unbelievably, immeasurably cool' science is. With a format little changed from countless encyclopaedias, this book provides the reader with a huge expanse of our accumulated knowledge. From star shine to number systems and from behavioural patterns to fracture tectonics, it's all science and it's in this book.
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Almost everyone who is familiar with space images has seen this beautiful and color emission and reflection nebula – but take a really close look. This isn't a Hubble image. It was done with a ground based camera! Click to continue…

Filed under: Astronomy, Astrophotos | 8 Comments »

Hawaii beckons the weary winter resident who's searching for some relaxing moments on soft beaches while gentle sounds drift across with the breeze. The Big Island, with its high peaks and occasional dustings of snow, seldom attracts the Honolulu-bound pleasure seekers. But Jean-Charles Cuillandre has made a cinematic symphony that has another Hawaii based way of connecting a person to the ethereal pleasures of our existence.

Entitled "Hawaiian Starlight –Exploring the Universe from Mauna Kea", this DVD shares views and vantages from the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. Spectacular stills exhibit galaxies, star trails, asterisms and the occasional portion of the lunar surface. Simple transformations, whether rotating, enlarging or shrinking, give impressions of dynamism. Bright, almost startling, colours capture the attention and the viewer's wonder. With views that continually change and a soundtrack that steadily supports and subtly thrills, the main feature of this DVD easily keeps viewers in awe.
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Some of the best tourist discoveries occur off the beaten track. Plan to go somewhere, choose a fortuitous route and voila, a petite patch of paradise opens up in front of you. The same can be true for planning a night of star hunting. Dial coordinates into a 'go-to' satellite and you will immediately see your target, if all works well, but, you won't see anything else. However, take "The Cambridge Double Star Atlas" by James Mullaney and Wil Tirion, then star-hop to your destination, and who knows what you will find.
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Here's a rover update: Spirit remains stuck in her location on the west side of Home Plate, and work continues at JPL for testing on how to extract the rover from being embedded in soft soil. A rock may be underneath Spirit, keeping her from moving, but more images are being taken by the microscopic camera at the end of the robotic arm to try and determine exactly what is going on under and around the rover. But with a boosted power supply, Spirit has also been busy making scientific observations of her surroundings. And one more thing, which would be extremely fun, rover driver Scott Maxwell hinted on Twitter that Spirit has so much power now from a recent wind event that cleared off her solar panels that she may attempt to make overnight observations. So stay tuned for PANCAM images of the Martian night sky!

Enjoy this video update on the Mars Exploration rovers by another rover driver, Ashley Stroupe.
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There's good news ahead for dark sky supporters – a real prescription for light pollution. It's called Resolution 516: Advocating and Support for Light Pollution Control Efforts and Glare Reduction for Both Public Safety and Energy Savings. What's it all about and how did it turn out? Then step inside… Where it's dark at last. Click to continue…

Filed under: Earth, Environment | 6 Comments »