A Powerful Blast From the Distant Past

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As sure as the Sun rises, you can expect that astronomers are going to beat their records. Today, we can wave goodbye to the record for the most distant short-duration gamma ray burst. Astronomers working with NASA have announced a newly discovered explosion that occurred 7.4 billion light years away. That’s nearly double the distance to the previous record holder.

Gamma ray bursts are the most powerful explosions in the Universe, and they come in two varieties: short and long. The long variety are thought to be when an extremely massive star collapses into a black hole. The short variety are different, and probably occur when two compact objects, like neutron stars collide together.

This newly announced burst is in that second variety; a short burst. As the two neutron stars collide, they rapidly collapse into a black hole, and release a tremendous amount of energy into two counterflowing beams.

GRB 070714B was the second burst detected on July 14th, 2007 by NASA’s Swift Satellite. Its energy signature matched the short burst variety, and the burst of energy lasted a mere 3 seconds. Astronomers scrambled to perform followup observations with ground-based telescopes, and were able to track the fading afterglow. This allowed them to identify the blast’s host galaxy.

With the host galaxy known, the astronomers were able to measure its distance, and confirm that yes, this is the most distant short-duration gamma ray burst ever seen; doubling the distance of the previous record holder.

There are a few mysteries outstanding. GRB 070714B seems to have 100 times as much energy as you would expect for a short duration gamma ray burst. Perhaps this is a merger between a neutron star and a black hole, or maybe the ejected beams happened to be pointing right at the Earth. That would make it seem more energetic, like when someone shines a flashlight directly at you.

Original Source: NASA News Release

A Snapshot of NASA’s Science Plans

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As you’re probably aware, NASA has a lot of robotic explorers out there in space, and even more the works here on Earth. I was actually surprised to learn that they have 53 mission already in operation, and another 41 missions in development. But with the human exploration of the Moon charging forward, the robotic exploration missions are taking a bit of a hit. NASA administrator, Mike Griffin dropped the bad news in a press conference at the American Astronomical Society today. And then Associate Administrator Alan Stern picked up the pieces in a followup town hall meeting, explaining to scientists how they plan to move forward from here.

I won’t go too deeply into Mike Griffin’s presentation. Phil and Pamela captured the essence of the presentation quite nicely. Griffin hit us with the bad news about the deep cuts coming, and begged the community to try and stick together during these tough times.

After Griffin’s presentation, NASA Associate Administrator Alan Stern presented the state of robotic exploration and how the budget cuts will play out.

In opening up his presentation, Stern admitted that the Science Mission Directorate exploration program had suffered many setbacks, most of them self-inflicted through cost overruns. Over the last 5 years, the overruns have amounted to $5.7 billion. If these projects hadn’t gone over budget, the recent budget cuts might not have been necessary at all.

Stern emphasized his focus on holding project managers accountable for their budgets. Speaking to the research scientists in attendance at the town hall meeting, Stern said, “we’re going to get the project managers to toe the line and deliver projects on time and on budget so that we don’t mortgage your future.”

Of course, it’s unrealistic to think that there won’t be cost overruns. Overbudget and project management just go hand-in-hand.

The bulk of Stern’s presentation focused on how they would recover from the budget cuts. How they plan to rearrange the schedule to keep the spacecraft launching. This will be especially difficult with the James Webb Next Generation Telescope the lion’s share of the Science Mission Directorate’s budget.

Since April, though, they were able to get 5 new missions in the pipeline. And in one dramatic slide, Stern showed how the future mission pipeline has been improved. Many missions have been brought forward to launch several years ahead of schedule. Many mission will be launching this year, and the future launch schedule looks pretty decent too.

In responding to questions from the audience, Stern said that they have to deal with the current situation, and can’t hope for budget increases from Congress, “hope is not a strategy. We can hope that the Science Mission Directorate’s budget will be increased, but that’s not a strategy.”

Perhaps one of the most significant cuts in the last few years is the cancelation of the Terrestrial Planet Finder. This future mission would have had the power to observe atmospheres on Earth-sized planets orbiting other stars. Seeing ozone in the atmosphere of a distant planet would be a strong indication that there’s life there.

Although TPF has been scrapped, Stern said that the Science Mission Directorate is still committed to the search for exoplanets. One of these missions, the SIM Planet Finder has been mandated for completion by congress. With all the recent budget cuts, the money to work on SIM has to come from somewhere. And that somewhere is going to be other science missions.

Original Source: SMD Homepage

The Plan to Fix Hubble

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Although the space shuttles have a busy schedule completing the construction of the International Space Station, there’s one other job to complete – servicing the Hubble Space Telescope. NASA officials announced the details of the mission today at the Winter meeting of the American Astronomical Society. If all goes well, the space shuttle Atlantis will visit Hubble some time around August 2008, carrying 7 astronauts and the spare parts they need to bring Hubble back to top-notch condition.

Over the course of 11 days, the astronauts will perform a total of 5 spacewalks. During these trips to service Hubble, the astronauts will install two new science instruments, upgrade existing instruments and replace failing gyroscopes, batteries and thermal blankets. Atlantis will also reboost the telescope’s decaying orbit.

One of the most critical jobs will be to repair the telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). This is the visible light instrument that produces the pretty pictures that have made Hubble so famous. The instrument suffered a power failure in January 2007.

With this collection of upgrades, Hubble’s life should be extended to 2013. David Leckrone, Senior Hubble Project Scientist noted that “when the astronauts leave Hubble for the last time, it will be at the apex of its capabilities – better than it has ever been before.” In fact, with these upgrades, Hubble should be 90X more sensitive than before.

One of the unique challenges of this mission will be for the astronauts to repair components that were never designed for orbital repair. In some cases, the astronauts will need to open up boxes and replace circuit boards.

Lead astronaut John Grunsfeld explained just how complex the task of repairing the Advanced Camera for Surveys is going to be, “we’re going to do something that’s never been done before. We’re going to swap circuit boards. We’re going to be working with hundreds of number 4 torque screws. These are really tiny screws. Whatever you do, don’t lose a screw inside the telescope. I have to cut an electromagnetic blanket on the Advanced Cameras for Surveys which could leave sharp edges. We’re astronauts, wearing balloons of air around us, and we don’t like sharp edges. With that removed, I then have to remove 36 of these screws. But they’re at an angle, so I won’t be able to see or reach them easily. I’ve been training in an underwater tank, and plan to get to know each of these screws.”

To demonstrate the tools he’s going to be working with, John Grunsfeld wore his astronaut gloves during his presentation in today’s press conference. “I figured I needed as much practice with these gloves as possible.”

Even the death of Hubble is being arranged. At some point in 2020, when the telescope finally reaches the end of its enhanced lifetime, NASA intends to dock a rocket to the telescope and then drive it into the ocean. As part of this process, the astronauts will install a special docking module, so the deorbiting rocket can attach easily and complete its grim task.

China Plans for Big Year in Space

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China is hoping to launch 15 rockets, 17 satellites and its third manned mission in 2008. This is an ambitious manifest for any country, and it appears China hopes to take its global emergence to new heights in a year in which it will also host the summer Olympics.

No details were provided regarding specific dates or the types of unmanned missions that will be launched this year. The secretary-general of the Commission of Science Technology and Industry for National Defence, Huang Qiang, revealed the planned launches at a news conference on January 7, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

However, Chinese media reported earlier that the China National Space Administration plans to launch its third manned mission, Shenzhou VII sometime in October, and reportedly the mission will include a space walk. In 2003, China became only the third country to put a human into space using its own rocket, following the former Soviet Union and the United States, and in 2005 the Shenzhou VI rocket sent two Chinese astronauts on a five-day flight.

Xinhua quoted Huang as saying the Shenzhou VII was a major task for the year and called for full cooperation between all departments involved.

China successfully launched its first lunar probe, Chang’e 1 in October 2007. The spacecraft is now successfully in lunar orbit and it returned its first images of the lunar surface in late November 2007. Chang’e 1 is also obtaining 3-D pictures of the moon and mapping surface elements. This was the beginning of their “step by step” program of exploring the moon. China hopes to deploy a lunar lander for surface exploration of the moon in 2012, and attempt a lunar sample return mission in 2017.

China will also mount a joint effort with Russia to explore Mars in 2009.

Original News Source: Reuters

Matching Cyclone Found at Saturn’s North Pole

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Cassini keeps on brining us surprises from Saturn and its moons. Recently, it helped us narrow down the length of a day on Saturn. Now, infrared data from the spacecraft confirms a hot, hexagonal cyclone spinning away at the north pole of of the planet.

The south polar hot spot had been previously observed, and was thought to be due to the sunny conditions, as this region of Saturn is currently in summer. Observations from the Cassini spacecraft in early 2007 revealed that Saturn also has a hot cyclone spinning away at the north pole, despite the fact that this region hasn’t seen the Sun in over 10 years.

Voyager 1 and 2 took observations of the north pole in the 1980s, but the Cassini data gives a more detailed view of the features. It was thought that the sunlight was causing the hot spot at the south pole.This new data, though, adds a bit of mystery to the mechanisms causing the cyclones. They appear to be permanent fixtures of the planet, rather than caused by the seasons.

“The hot spots are the result of air moving polewards, being compressed and heated up as it descends over the poles into the depths of Saturn. The driving forces behind the motion, and indeed the global motion of Saturn’s atmosphere, still need to be understood,” said planetary scientist Leigh Fletcher of the University of Oxford, England, and lead author of the paper published in Science on January 4th.

The northern cyclone also has the peculiar shape of a hexagon, something absent from the southern cyclone. The recent findings place the hexagon higher up in the clouds than previously shown, though the cause of the curious shape is still unexplained.

Neptune is home to a hot spot on its southern pole, and the Great Red Spots on Jupiter is another example of long-lasting cyclonic features on a gas giant. Knowing more about the cyclones on Saturn will help us understand similar weather patterns on the other gas giants.

Winter lasts 15 years on Saturn, and in the next few years the north pole will again start to see sunlight, possibly changing the features of the cyclone and giving scientists a better understanding of how the Sun affects these tricky twisters.

Source: JPL Press Release

Comet, Cometary Dust Formed in Different Parts of Solar System

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Scientists studying the particles of comet dust brought to Earth by the Stardust spacecraft have uncovered a bit of a mystery. Research on the particles seem to indicate that while the comet formed in the icy fringes of the solar system, the dust appears to have been formed close to the sun and was bombarded by intense radiation before being flung out beyond Neptune and trapped in the comet. The finding opens the question of what was going on in the early life of the solar system to subject the dust to such intense radiation and hurl them hundreds of millions of miles from their birthplace.

The Stardust spacecraft flew to Comet Wild-2 in 2004, coming approximately 150 miles from the comet’s nucleus, and captured particles of dust and gases from the comet’s coma and then returned those particles to Earth in 2006.

Researchers from the University of Minnesota and Nancy University in France analyzed gases locked in the tiny dust grains, which are about a quarter of a billionth of a gram in weight. They were looking for helium and neon, two noble gases that don’t combine chemically with other elements, and therefore would be in the same condition as when the comet dust formed.

The analysis of the helium and neon isotopes suggests that some of the Stardust grains match a special type of carbonaceous material found in meteorites. The gases most likely came from a hot environment exposed to magnetic flares that must have been close to the young sun.

About 10 percent of the mass of Wild 2 is estimated to be from particles transported out from hot inner zones to the cold zone where Wild 2 formed. Earlier research showed that the comet formed in the Kuiper Belt, outside the orbit of Neptune, and only recently entered the inner regions of the solar system.

“Somehow these little high-temperature particles were transported out very early in the life of the solar system,” said Bob Pepin from the University of Minnesota. “The particles probably came from the first million years or even less, of the solar system’s existence.” That would be close to 4.6 billion years ago. If our middle-aged sun were 50 years old, then the particles were born in the first four days of its life.

The studies of cometary dust are part of a larger effort to trace the history of our celestial neighborhood.
“We want to establish what the solar system looked like in the very early stages,” said Pepin. “If we establish the starting conditions, we can tell what happened in between then and now.”

Stardust launched in February 1999, began collecting interstellar dust in 2000 and met up with Wild-2 in January 2004. It’s tennis raquet-sized collector made of an ultra-light material called aerogel, trapped aggregates of fine particles that hit at 13,000 miles per hour and split on impact. It is the first spacecraft to bring cometary dust particles back to Earth.

This study also has relevance in learning about the history of our own planet. “Because some scientists have proposed that comets have contributed these gases to the atmospheres of Earth, Venus and Mars, learning about them in comets would be fascinating,” Pepin said.

The research appears in the Jan. 4 issue of the journal Science

Original News Sources: University of Minnesota Press Release, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Press Release

Branson Wants to Fly Space Tourists into the Northern Lights

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For his next big plan for the private space industry, Richard Branson is thinking up new ways to excite affluent space tourists: flying them into the biggest lightshow on Earth, the Aurora Borealis. Although the New Mexico Virgin Galactic Spaceport isn’t scheduled for completion until 2010, the British entrepreneur is already planning his next project intended for cruises into the spectacular space phenomenon from an Arctic launchpad.

Located in the far north of Sweden (in the Lapland province), the small town of Kiruna has a long history of space observation and rocket launches. The Arctic location provides the town with unrivalled views of the Aurora Borealis as it erupts overhead. The Auroral lightshow is generated by atmospheric reactions to impacting solar wind particles as they channel along the Earth’s magnetic field and down into the thickening atmospheric gases.

Once a view exclusive only to sounding rockets, this awe inspiring sight may in the future be seen from the inside, and above, by fee-paying space tourists as they are launched into space from a new spaceport, on the site of an existing base called Esrange. Although launching humans into an active aurora holds little scientific interest (if it did, it would have probably been done by now), it does pose some prudent health and safety questions. As Dr Olle Norberg, Esrange’s director, confidently states: “Is there a build-up of charge on the spacecraft? What is the radiation dose that you would receive? Those studies came out saying it is safe to do this.” Phew, that’s a relief.

The chance to actually be inside this magnificent display of light will be an incredible selling point for Virgin Galactic and their SpaceShipTwo flights. As if going into space were not enough, you can see and fly through the atmosphere at it’s most magnificent too.

Source: The Guardian Unlimited

AAS Meeting All This Week

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Sure, it’s quiet for space news right now, but just you wait. Astronomers from across the US are gathering together here in Austin, Texas to meet and announce their latest findings at the Winter meeting of the American Astronomical Society. There are going to be dozens of big announcements, and literally hundreds of papers presented.

I’m here at the conference, and I’m going to try and bring you as much of this news as is humanly possible. So don’t be surprised if your feed reader starts to bog down with news, and you get gigantic email news updates from Universe Today.

The press conferences start Tuesday, January 8th, so don’t expect much between now and then.

Pamela, Phil and I are going to be doing an experiment this year as well. We’ll be liveblogging some of the big press events, capturing live video, and generally trying to give you all a sense of what it’s like to be here at the meeting.

So if you’re interested in catching our live updates, we’re going to have a special section of Astronomy Cast that you can check out. Just point your browser to astronomycast.com/live. We’ll have frequent updates during the meeting.

And one last reminder. If you’re actually here in Austin and want to meet the Astronomy Cast team and Dr. Phil Plait, we’re going to be having a reader meetup at the Iron Cactus on Tuesday night. Click here for more info.

Landing Sites for Mars Science Lab Narrowed to Six

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Where should the next spacecraft land on Mars? The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover is scheduled to launch in the fall of 2009. MSL is a long-range rover that will explore a region on Mars with the goal of determining if Mars has or ever had conditions capable of supporting microbial life. Over fifty landing sites have been proposed by various planetary scientists, and recently, the selection committee narrowed the field down to six possible sites. The final site and a backup will be selected in September of 2008. Here’s a look at the six final candidates:

Mawrth Vallis: Location:Northern Plains, east of Pathfinder rover site (24.65°N, 340.10°E)
Mars Global Surveyor MOLA Instrument
This is an ancient channel carved by catastrophic floods. Spectrometers on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) have detected clay minerals which contain water, and may also preserve organic materials, so there is great interest in studying these deposits to understand past environments that could have supported life. Images from the MRO HiRise camera show hills with several layers and intriguing boulders.

Nili Fossae Trough: Location: Near Isidis Planitia, and near the Beagle 2 intended landing site. (21°N, 74.2°E)
Nilli Fossae Trough.  Image Credit:  Mars Global Surveyor MOLA Instrument
This region has one of the largest and most diverse exposures of clays minerals that have been detected from orbit. Again, clay minerals contain water, and possibly organic materials. The area is a linear depression about 25 km wide that was created from tectonic activity.

Holden Crater: Location: South of Vallis Marineris (26.4°S, 325.3°E)
Holden Crater.  Image Credit:  Mars Global Surveyor MOLA Instrument
This crater contains deep gullies carved by running water as well as examples of what are assumed to be lake beds and sediments deposited by streams. These deposits are more than three billion years old, which dates back to a wetter period on Mars. Scientists believe Holden Crater once was a lake, and when the water disappeared, wind eroded the surface and formed the ripples and dunes that have been imaged by the HiRise instrument.

Eberswalde Crater: Location: South of Vallis Marineris (23.20°S, 326.75°E)
Eberswalde Delta.  Image Credit:  Mars Global Surveyor MOLA Instrument
The Eberswalde delta is the most convincing evidence on Mars for the persistent flow of a river into a standing body of water. HiRise images show many channels within the delta that have become inverted, which occurs as sediments deposited by flowing water solidify over time and become resistant to erosion. High resolution HiRise images show individual boulders breaking off from the channel deposits.

Miyamoto Crater: Location: Merdiani Planum, near Opportunity Rover site. (1.7°S, 352.4°E)
Miyamato Crater.  Image Credit:  Mars Global Surveyor MOLA Instrument
Located along the western boundary of Meridiani Planum, this 150-km crater has hematite and sulfate-bearing minerals, possibly created from lakes or groundwater. The southwestern part of the crater floor has been stripped by erosion, revealing clay minerals.

Northern Meridiani: Location: Meridiani Planum,2.34°N, 6.69°E
Meridiani.  Image Credit:  Mars Global Surveyor MOLA Instrument
This is the same area that the Opportunity rover has studied. By landing here, the MSL rover could increase our knowledge of the Meridiani region, which Opportunity has revealed to have a complex geologic history that involves flowing water, groundwater, lakes and wind. If chosen as a landing site, the MSL rover would study the smooth plains before driving to the ridged plains to the north.

MSL will arrive on Mars in 2010. Once on the surface, the rover will be able to roll over obstacles up to 75 centimeters (29 inches) high and travel up to 90 meters (295 feet) per hour. On average, the rover is expected to travel about 30 meters (98 feet) per hour, based on power levels, slippage, steepness of the terrain, visibility, and other variables. The science instruments on board include cameras, spectrometers, radiation detectors and environmental sensors.

Original News Source: HiRise Blog

New Solar Cycle Begins With New Year…

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According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a new solar cycle is about to begin. The original forecast for Solar Cycle 24 was slated for March 2008, but the action is already under way as the first magnetically reversed sunspot of the new 11-year cycle has already appeared in the Sun’s northern hemisphere! Will it be strong or will it be weak? Time will tell… But if you live in a high latitude northern area? Be on alert tonight!

Last April an international panel of solar experts forecast that Solar Cycle 24 would start in March 2008, plus or minus six months. Upcoming solar storms definitely lay ahead, but neither the NOAA Space Environment Center in coordination with an international panel of solar experts predict a record-breaker. The most recent activity forecast was predicted for March with the peak occurring in late 2011 or mid-2012—up to a year later than expected. While original forecasts put the beginning activity a last Fall, the delay has simply left the experts guessing.

During a solar cycle, the frequency of sunspots rises and falls and spotting new activity may mean that the action is just heating up. These areas of intense magnetic activity on the Sun, can affect Earth by disrupting electrical grids, airline and military communications, GPS signals and even cell phones. During periods of intense sunspot activity, known as solar storms, highly charged radiation from the Sun may head toward Earth…

“Our growing dependence on highly sophisticated, space-based technologies means we are far more vulnerable to space weather today than in the past,” said NOAA Administrator Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr.

What does that mean for the Blue Planet’s inhabitants? There’s nothing to fear… except perhaps that it might be cloudy! Increased activity is a wonderful time to begin studying sunspots for yourself and to keep a eye out for aurora activity. Solar cycle intensity is measured in maximum number of sunspots—dark blotches on the sun that mark areas of heightened magnetic activity. The more sunspots there are, the more likely it is that major solar storms will occur.

“By giving a long-term outlook, we’re advancing a new field—space climate—that’s still in its infancy,” said retired Air Force Brig. Gen. David L. Johnson, director of the NOAA National Weather Service. “Issuing a cycle prediction of the onset this far in advance lies on the very edge of what we know about the Sun.”

NOAA, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is celebrating 200 years of science and service to the nation and the world. The NOAA Space Environment Center also is the world warning agency of the International Space Environment Service, a consortium of 11 member nations that generate a first alert of solar activity and its affects on Earth and you, too, can check out the information here! Stay tuned as “Universe Today” brings you guidelines on how you can solar observe and when you can possibly expect aurora in your area! As it stands, a high-speed solar wind stream is already buffeting Earth’s magnetic field and this could spark a geomagnetic storm. For high latitude observers, this means you may see the aurora tonight!!