Universe Today

September 19, 2013December 23, 2015 by Elizabeth Howell

New U.S. Climate Map Shows Temperature Changes In HD. How To Prepare?

Average temperatures in the United States. Top, what they were in the 1950s. Bottom, the predictions for the 2090s. Credit: NASA

If you’re interested to see how warm your neighborhood will look like at 2090, here’s a chance. There’s new data available that has monthly climate projections for the continental United States at the size of a neighborhood, or about a half-mile (800 meters).

Readers who have moderate to advanced knowledge of how to manipulate datasets can see instructions for how to get the raw information here. As for everyone else, NASA briefly summarized how the information could be used for community planners to deal with the effects of climate change.

The map charts how rain and temperatures in the United States will be affected based on greenhouse gases. Because, of course, this is a projection, the researchers ran four different scenarios for the period between 1950 and 2099. Climate projections came from global climate models from the upcoming Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change 5th Assessment Report and historical surface observations.

The projections “may make it easier for resource managers to quantify anticipated climate change impacts on a wide range of conditions and resources important to local communities,” NASA stated.

The agency then provided a long list of research areas that would benefit, including “water supplies and winter snow packs, public health and the spread of insect-borne diseases, flood risk and potential impacts to critical urban infrastructure, wildfire frequency and severity, agricultural production, and wildlife and biodiversity.”

On this map of Nevada - northern California are superimposed graphics representing the average temperatures in the 1950s (top) and projected temperatures for the 2090s. Credit: NASA — On this map of Nevada – northern California are superimposed graphics representing the average temperatures in the 1950s (top) and projected temperatures for the 2090s. Credit: NASA

As you can see from the climate map above, Nevada and California are highly affected by the projections, and officials in the region are paying attention, according to NASA.

“We are using the 800-meter downscaled datasets for conservation planning and resource management in the San Francisco Bay Area,” stated Stuart Weiss, a researcher at the Terrestrial Biodiversity Climate Change Collaborative in the San Francisco Bay Area.

“They provide an indispensable, if necessarily hazy, crystal ball into hydrological and ecological responses through the 21st century. It will be a very useful tool for climate change planning and adaptation that will be exported to the remainder of California and eventually the western United States.”

The data was crunched using supercomputers at NASA’s Ames Research Center, allowing the team to “produce the downscaled, high resolution climate dataset for the U.S. within months of release of the final global climate scenarios prepared for the next IPCC assessment report,” NASA added.

Source: NASA

September 19, 2013December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Q & A with Homer Hickam: Rocket Boys and Science Experiments Gone Wrong

Homer Hickam. Courtesy HomerHickam.com.

Homer Hickam — you probably know the name from “October Sky,” the movie based on his memoir, “Rocket Boys.” But Hickam is also the author of several other books, crossing many genres and subjects. In addition to being an author and hobby rocket builder, he’s also been a miner, a soldier in Vietnam, a NASA engineer, and a SCUBA instructor, with interesting hobbies like hunting for dinosaur bones. We recently talked to Hickam about his latest book, Crescent (read our review here), but had the chance to talk about his life and career as an author.

Universe Today: Homer, with all the different books you’ve written, you are truly a man for all seasons!

Homer Hickam: I like to switch genres. Publishers hate that! What they’d really like me to do is to write Rocket Boys over and over again in some guise. I’d probably sell more books that way, but it’s not as much fun! And I like to write about different things and try to stretch myself.

UT: Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?

HH: My early teachers were pretty sure I was going to be a writer because I had no inclination towards math and science at all. And they knew I had some writing capabilities. If it hadn’t been for Sputnik, I probably would have ended up as an English professor! I had to work really hard to become an engineer. The way I looked at NASA was that it was an agency that was doing something adventurous and moving us outward into space, and what could be more fun than working with an outfit like that! But I didn’t know that Vietnam would come along and distract me and my generation for quite some time.

I was always open to doing many different things. When I came back from Vietnam I made up my mind that I wanted to live a life of adventure. But I also wanted to have some security in my life, and I have to say I’ve done both of those. I had day jobs that I really loved, but I also allowed myself to go out and do some dangerous stuff, and also do research and turned that into a writing career.

UT: Did you ever in your wildest dreams imagine that one of your books would be made into a musical?

HH: No, or a movie either! When you are a new writer, you think, all I have to do is get published and everyone is going to love what you’re saying and a movie will be next. But the truth is, it once you become a published author, you realize the odds of getting your book made into a movie are pretty slim – there are many more books coming out than movies being made, or musicals for that matter.

Rocket Boys was a phenomenon that I didn’t really realize how popular it was going to be and neither did the publisher. It kind of transcends the author. The story kind of hit at the right time – in 1998 the world was desperate for a story like that. I’ve tried to kill it several times but I can’t – people come up to me and say “I love your books!” and I ask which one – and usually they say, “Oh, you’ve written more than Rocket Boys?”

So, especially when you’ve written about your life, you tend to get pigeonholed into that. But I am grateful for Rocket Boys and its success and I wouldn’t change a thing.

Rare footage of Homer Hickam and zincoshine-propelled Auk rocket:

UT: What parts of Rocket Boys/October Sky being so successful has meant the most to you, personally?

HH: Shuttle astronauts used to watch it before their flight, which I thought were pretty cool, especially since I was the training manager for science flights, especially for Spacelab flights and I set up the curriculum for International Space station shuttle flights.

However, when astronauts would write and tell me how much the movie meant to them, as ungracious as it sounds, I ask them if they read the book! The book is different form the movie.

UT: One question I’ve always wondered … were you disappointed that the name of the movie wasn’t Rocket Boys, or did you like that the book and the movie were different names?

HH: Actually, I hated that, and I still hate it. The real story of how the movie was made was that the movie was made before the book came out, so it was actually a race to see which came out first. The movie people had no respect for the title because the book hadn’t proven itself. Even though they made the movie as Rocket Boys –(the script said Rocket Boys, the director’s chair said Rocket Boys — but at about the same time another movie came out called Rocket Man, which was a stupid comedy, and there was also the movie The Rocketeer, and the marketing people were worried about that.

The film people used anagram software, taking the words ‘Rocket Boys’ and turning it into ‘October Sky.’ They asked me what I thought of the new title, and I said, “I hate that title, it doesn’t mean anything, it’s dumb,” and they replied, “Great, we knew you’d like it.”

But I’m very proud of how October Sky worked out. I hear from engineers, technicians, doctors, and scientists from many different occupations who tell me that they are what they are because of October Sky.

I think every substitute teacher shows October Sky, and it has inspired many people to go into some kind of technical field. That’s not why I wrote the book, or agreed to do the movie, but that’s how it worked out. People see it and say, “If someone from Coalwood, West Virginia can do something like that, then so can I.” And I hear that from people from around the world.

Home video from Homer’s youth:

UT: Who would have thought that the book, the movie and now the musical would have inspired so many people!

HH: But for me, as the author, the primary story line was the father-son story, a boy who so craves the love of his father that you think he’d do anything. But when the father does put his hand out and says to follow in his profession, the boy has to say no. And I think that came out well in the movie. And I’m happy to say I’ve heard from a lot of adults who have either read the book or seen the movie and that’s what they got out of it.

UT: I have to ask you about your recent involvement with the science experiment gone wrong for the girl from Florida, Kiera Wilmot, whose exploding science experiment got her in trouble (read more about it here). What you did for her was just wonderful, by the way! How much of yourself did you see in what happened with Kiera?

HH: It was almost like it was taken out of my book, really. You have kids trying to do something scientific and messing up, as kids will do, and getting in trouble. Back in the 1950’s when the Rocket Boys and I got in trouble in a similar way, we knew it would only go so far, that we’d get in trouble with our parents. But now with the zero tolerance rules this young lady ended up locked up in a room for hours and threatened with two felonies and might be sent to prison.

I had to do something. I’m not a lawyer so I couldn’t get her off the hook, but I wanted something positive to come out of this. I live here in Huntsville, Alabama where Space Camp is and that was just a natural, that Kiera could come here and come to Space Camp and meet other kids that are interested in the sciences.

So I contacted her mother and asked if that was OK, and she said yes. Then I found out Kiera has a twin sister Kayla, and so for her we raised funds through a crowdsourcing site. We were looking to raise about $1,200 and we got almost $5,000.

And so, we were able to have their mother come as well, with some funds left over for their schooling back home and to help them prepare and apply to colleges. Additionally, with all the publicity, Kiera and Kayla are already getting some scholarships, and Kiera has been offered an internship with SpaceX.

As someone said, if it weren’t for experiments blowing up…there would be no Nobel Prize.

UT: Homer, thanks so much for spending some time with us today!

HH: Great to talk to you!

For more information about Homer Hickam, see his website.

September 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Ken Kremer

Antares Picture Perfect Blastoff Launches Commercial Space Race

Antares rocket lifts off at 10:58 a.m. EDT Sept 18 with commercial Cygnus cargo resupply ship bound for the International Space Station (ISS) from Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Pad-0A at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)
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WALLOPS ISLAND, VA – The new ‘Commercial Space Era’ received a resounding boost today when a privately developed Antares rocket lofting the first ever Cygnus commercial cargo resupply craft thundered to space from America’s newest launch pad at NASA Wallops along the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

The history making launch marks the first time that a spacecraft launched from Virginia is blazing a path to the International Space Station (ISS) – thereby scoring a milestone achievement to keep the orbiting lab complex stocked up with supplies and science experiments from American soil. This is the maiden flight of Cygnus.

Move over SpaceX ! Your space competition from Orbital Sciences has arrived!

It was a ‘picture perfect’ blastoff for the two stage Antares booster at 10:58 a.m. EDT this morning (Sept. 18) from the commercial Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Pad-0A at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

The blastoff of Antares was stunningly beautiful with intensely bright flames spewing from the rockets rear. And the incredibly loud roar of the first stage engines reverberated widely and wowed hoards of spectators gathered throughout the local viewing area in Chincoteague, Va. – and woke late sleepers some folks told me later today!

The rumbling thunder of Antares sounded as loud as a space shuttle.

Launch of the Antares rocket at 10:58 a.m. EDT Sept 18 with Cygnus cargo resupply ship bound for the ISS NASA Wallops, VA. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com) — Launch of the Antares rocket at 10:58 a.m. EDT Sept 18 with Cygnus cargo resupply ship bound for the ISS NASA Wallops, VA. LADEE Moon shot launch pad at right. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)

Antares and Cygnus were built by Orbital Sciences Corporation and its team of industrial partners using seed money from NASA’s COTS commercial transportation initiative aimed at fostering the development of America’s commercial space industry to deliver critical and essential supplies to the ISS.

America lost 100% of its capability to send humans and cargo to the ISS when NASA’s space shuttles were retired in 2011. Orbital Sciences and their competitor SpaceX, were awarded NASA contracts to restore the unmanned cargo resupply capability.

Thales Alenia Space in Italy designed and constructed the 17 foot ( 5 meter) long Cygnus module under contract with Orbital.

“Thales Alenia has actually built 50% of the pressurized modules currently comprising the ISS,” said Luigi Quaglino, Thales Alenia Senior Vice President.

“This is a historic accomplishment for commercial spaceflight with the picture perfect launch of Antares and Cygnus headed for the space station,” said Alan Lindenmoyer, NASA’s program manager for commercial crew and cargo, at a post launch briefing for reporters at NASA Wallops.

In fact this was the heaviest cargo load ever delivered to the ISS by a commercial vehicle, said Frank Culbertson, former astronaut and now Orbital’s executive Vice President responsible for the Antares and Cygnus programs.

A revolutionary new day has dawned in space by opening up new pathways enabling space exploration And it’s not a moment too soon given the continuing significant reductions to NASA’s budget.

COTS was aimed at revolutionizing how we reach space by privatizing routine space operations that thereby allows NASA to focus more on exploration beyond low earth orbit, getting people back to the Moon and beyond to deep space destinations including Asteroids and Mars.

Today’s Antares launch is the culmination of the COTS contract that NASA awarded to Orbital back in 2008.

Antares launch on Sept. 18 from NASA Wallops. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

“Today marks a milestone in our new era of exploration as we expand the capability for making cargo launches to the International Space Station from American shores,” said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden in a statement.

“Orbital’s extraordinary efforts are helping us fulfill the promise of American innovation to maintain our nation’s leadership in space.”

The Cygnus spacecraft is healthy and successfully unfurled its life giving solar panels starting 1.5 minutes after separation from the second stage that took place about 10 minutes after launch, said Culbertson.

Antares placed Cygnus into its intended orbit of about 180 x 160 miles above the Earth, inclined at 51.6 degrees to the equator, Orbital said.

Cygnus is traveling at 17,500 MPH and is on its way to rendezvous with the space station Sunday, Sept. 22. The cargo vessel will deliver about 1,300 pounds (589 kilograms) of cargo, including food, clothing, water, science experiments, spare parts and gear to the Expedition 37 crew.

The flight, known as Orb-D1 is a demonstration mission to prove that Cygnus can conduct a complex series of maneuvers in space safely bringing it to the vicinity of the ISS.

Mission controllers at Orbital will guide Cygnus to the vicinity of the ISS on Sept. 22.

Antares and Cygnus soar to space on a plume of smoke and ash from NASA Wallops on Sept. 18, 2013 at 10:50 a.m. EDT. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)

But its only after carrying out a series of 10 complicated maneuvering tests proving that the vehicle can safely and reliably approach the station up close that NASA and the ISS partners will grant permission to dock.

ISS astronauts Karen Nyberg (NASA) and Luca Parmitano (ESA) will then grapple Cygnus with the station’s Canadian built robotic arm and berth the capsule at an earth facing docking port on Sunday, Sept 22. will then grapple Cygnus with the station’s robotic arm and berth the capsule at an earth facing docking port.

NASA and Orbital Sciences officials brief reporters at the Antares post launch press conference on Sept 18; Robert Lightfoot, NASA Associate Administrator, Alan Lindenmoyer, NASA’s program manager for commercial crew and cargo, Frank Culbertson, Orbital Sciences Executive VP. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com) — NASA and Orbital Sciences officials brief reporters at the Antares post launch press conference on Sept 18; Robert Lightfoot, NASA Associate Admisistrator, Alan Lindenmoyer, NASA’s program manager for commercial crew and cargo, Frank Culbertson, Orbital Sciences Executive VP. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)

The Antares first stage is powered by dual liquid fueled AJ26 first stage rocket engines that generate a combined total thrust of some 750,000 lbs – originally built in the Soviet Union as NK-33 model engines for the Soviet era moon rocket.

The upper stage features an ATK Castor 30 solid rocket motor with thrust vectoring. Antares can loft payloads weighing over 5000 kg to LEO. The 2nd stage will be upgraded starting with the 4th Antares flight.

“Antares next flight is scheduled for December sometime between the 8th and 21st”, said Culbertson.

Ken Kremer
…………….

Learn more about Cygnus, Antares, LADEE, Curiosity, Mars rovers, MAVEN, Orion and more at Ken’s upcoming presentations

Sep 17/18: LADEE Lunar & Antares/Cygnus ISS Rocket Launches from Virginia”; Rodeway Inn, Chincoteague, VA

Oct 3: “Curiosity, MAVEN and the Search for Life on Mars – (3-D)”, STAR Astronomy Club, Brookdale Community College & Monmouth Museum, Lincroft, NJ, 8 PM

Oct 8: LADEE Lunar & Antares/Cygnus ISS Rocket Launches from Virginia”; Princeton University, Amateur Astronomers Assoc of Princeton (AAAP), Princeton, NJ, 8 PM

1st operational Cygnus pressurized cargo module from Orbital Sciences Corp. & Thales Alenia Space sits inside high bay clean room facility at NASA Wallops Flight Facility, VA for preflight processing. This Cygnus spacecraft arrived from Italy and may launch to the ISS as early as December 2013 from Wallops launch pad 0A. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)

Alan Lindenmoyer, NASA’s program manager for commercial crew and cargo at pre-launch rollout of Antares rocket to pad 0A at NASA Wallops. Credit: Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)

September 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Jason Major

Rocket Frog, Space Bat, and Now… a Launch Armadillo?

At 4:10 a.m. EDT this morning an Atlas V rocket launched from Cape Canaveral carrying the U.S. Air Force’s Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF-3) communications satellite into orbit. The early morning launch may have gone unwatched except by the most determined space fans (like this guy) but it definitely didn’t go unnoticed by one particular creature: an armadillo, spooked out of hiding by the thundering Atlas V engines and caught on GoPro camera by Matthew Travis.

Watch the video above — or better yet, go to YouTube and watch in fullscreen HD — and pay attention to the foreground field around the 2-minute mark… you’ll see something running across the grass toward the exhaust cloud. Sure looks like an armadillo to me!* (And yes, they’re that quick!)

Armadillos are ubiquitous across much of the southern U.S. and it’s not unusual to spot one on the Space Coast — but they’re not normally included in launch videos!

This little guy joins the ranks of unlucky critters caught in the way of rocket launches, the most recent being an amphibian sent airborne by the launch of NASA’s LADEE mission from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Prior to that, a freetail bat was spotted clinging to the STS-119 external fuel tank during countdown on March 15, 2009 (and then there was the turkey vulture struck by a rising shuttle stack… ugh.)

The fates of those last animals most likely weren’t good, but who knows… maybe this armadillo had better luck. They’re pretty tough.

Google+ HT and video credit: Matthew Travis. Check out Matthew’s site Zero-G News here and follow him on Twitter @spacearium.

__________________

ALSO: the Antares/Cygnus launch at 10:58 a.m. EDT from Wallops today also had an animal visitor: a bald eagle, which had happened to be perched atop one of the four lightning towers. See photos here. (Tip of the feather to Tom Wolf.)

*Update 9/19: Some (like launch photographer Ben Cooper) have suggested that this might be a hog rather than an armadillo. Both can be found in the area and can run pretty fast, and considering its apparent size in a wide-angle lens that may be the case. Hard to tell exactly, but it’s certainly got a close-up view of the launch!

September 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Shannon Hall

New Molecules Detected in Io’s Atmosphere

An image of Io taken by the automated spacecraft: Galileo. Image Credit: NASA

Io – Jupiter’s innermost Galilean moon – is the most geologically active body in the Solar System. With over 400 active volcanic regions, plumes of sulfur can climb as high as 300 miles above the surface. It is dotted with more than 100 mountains, some of which are taller than Mount Everest. In between the volcanoes and mountains there are extensive lava flows and floodplains of liquid rock.

Intense volcanic activity leads to a thin atmosphere consisting mainly of sulfur dioxide (SO₂), with minor species including sulfur monoxide (SO), sodium chloride (NaCl), and atomic sulfur and oxygen. Despite Io’s close proximity to the Earth the composition of its atmosphere remains poorly constrained. Models predict a variety of other molecules that should be present but have not been observed yet.

Recently a team of astronomers from institutions across the United States, France, and Sweden, set out to better constrain Io’s atmosphere. They detected the second-most abundant isotope of sulfur (34-S) and tentatively detected potassium chloride (KCl). The latter is produced in volcanic plumes – suggesting that these plumes continuously contribute to Io’s atmosphere.

Expected yet undetected molecular species include potassium chloride (KCl), silicone monoxide (SiO), disulfur monoxide (S₂O), and various isotopes of sulfur. Most of these elements emit in radio wavelengths.

“Depending on their geometry, some molecules emit at well known frequencies when they change rotational state,” Dr. Arielle Moullet, lead author on the study, told Universe Today. “These spectral features are called rotational lines and show up in the (sub)millimeter spectral range.”

These observations were therefore obtained at the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) antenna – a radio telescope located 16,700 feet above sea level in northern Chile. The main dish has a diameter of 12 meters, and is a prototype antenna for the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA).

The Atacama Pathfinder (APEX) antenna. Image Credit: ESO

Following 16.5 hours of total observation time and months of data reduction and analysis, Moullet et al. made a tentative detection of potassium chloride (KCl). Io’s volcanic ejecta produce a large plasma torus around Jupiter, which inlcudes many molecular species including potassium. This detection is therefore considered the “missing link” between Io and this plasma torus.

The team also made the first detection of one of Sulfur’s isotopes known as 34-S. Sulfur has 25 known isotopes – variants of sulfur that still have 16 protons but differ in their number of neutrons. 34-S is the second most abundant isotope with 18 neutrons.

Previously, the first-most abundant isotope of sulfur, 32-S with 16 neutrons, had been detected. Surprisingly the ratio between the two (34/32 S) is twice as high as the solar system reference, suggesting that there is an abundance of 34-S. A fraction this high has only been reported before in a distant quasar – an early galaxy consisting of an intensely luminous core powered by a huge black hole.

“This result tells us that there probably is some fractionation process that we haven’t yet identified, which is happening either in the magma, at the surface, or in the atmosphere itself,” explains Dr. Moullet. Something somewhere is producing an unexplained abundance of this isotope.

Other expected yet undetected molecules including silicone monoxide and disulfur monoxide remain undetected. It is possible that these molecules are simply not present, but more likely that the observations are not sensitive enough to detect them.

“To perform a deeper spectral search with a better sensitivity, our group has been awarded observation time with the Atacama Large Millimeter Array, a cutting edge interferometric facility in Chile, which will eventually include more than fifty 12-meter wide dishes,” explains Dr. Moullet. “We are in the process of analyzing our first dataset obtained with sixteen antennas, which is already much more sensitive than the APEX data.”

While Io is certainly an extreme example, it will likely help us characterize volcanism in general – providing a better understanding of volcanism here on Earth as well as outside the Solar System.

The paper has been accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal and is available for download here.

September 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

And the Winners Are … Amazing ‘Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013’ Photos Revealed

The overall winner of Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 photo from Mark Gee, titled 'Guiding Light to the Stars.' Credit and copyright: Mark Gee.

Feast your eyes!! Every year of the “Astronomy Photographer of the Year” competition provides incredible images of our night sky — whether they are striking pictures of vast galaxies millions of light years away, or dramatic images of the night sky taken much closer to home — and this year is no different. The awards were just announced at a special presentation at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, England for this fifth year of the competition, which is run by the Observatory in association with Sky at Night Magazine.

Above is the overall winner, from Mark Gee, which was the winner of the “Earth and Space” category, a gorgeous view of the Milky Way taken from Cape Palliser on the North Island of New Zealand.

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 has four main categories: Earth and Space, Our Solar System, Deep Space, and Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year. There are also three special prizes: People and Space, Best Newcomer (with the prize newly named for Sir Patrick Moore), and the Robotic Scope category, for images taken by a computer-controlled telescope accessed over the internet.
All the winning images here are linked to the originals posted in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year Flickr stream, so feel free to click on the images to see larger versions on Flickr.

Special congrats to Adam Block of the Mount Lemmon Sky Center in Arizona for winning the “Deep Sky” category. Adam is a “regular” on Universe Today, as we frequently feature his beautiful images in the astrophotos we share.

Here are the rest of the winners!

The winner for the Deep Space category in Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 goes to Adam Block: Celestial Impasto. Credit and copyright: Adam Block/Mt. Lemmon Sky Center.

The winner for the ‘Our Solar System’ category in Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 is Man-To Hui: ‘Corona Composite of 2012: Australian Totality’. Credit and copyright: Man-To Hui.

The winner for the Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 is Jacob Marchio: The Milky Way Galaxy. Credit and copyright: Jacob Marchio.

The Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 goes to Sam Christopher Cornwell for his ‘Venus Transit, Foxhunter’s Grave, Welsh Highlands’. Credit and copyright: Sam Christopher Cornwell.

Winner of the best Robotic Scope Image for Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 is László Francsics: The Trapezium Cluster & Surrounding Nebulae. Credit and copyright: László Francsics

The winner for the People and Space Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 is Mark Gee: ‘Moon Silhouettes.’ Credit and copyright: Mark Gee.

If you are impressed — or inspired — by these images, look to join in the competition for next year’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition! We’ll provide info on how to submit your photos when it becomes available (usually in January every year).

September 18, 2013May 8, 2017 by Elizabeth Howell

Goodbye Big Bang, Hello Black Hole? A New Theory Of The Universe’s Creation

Artist's conception of the event horizon of a black hole. Credit: Victor de Schwanberg/Science Photo Library

Could the famed “Big Bang” theory need a revision? A group of theoretical physicists suppose the birth of the universe could have happened after a four-dimensional star collapsed into a black hole and ejected debris.

Before getting into their findings, let’s just preface this by saying nobody knows anything for sure. Humans obviously weren’t around at the time the universe began. The standard theory is that the universe grew from an infinitely dense point or singularity, but who knows what was there before?

“For all physicists know, dragons could have come flying out of the singularity,” stated Niayesh Afshordi, an astrophysicist with the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Canada who co-authored the new study.

So what are the limitations of the Big Bang theory? The singularity is one of them. Also, it’s hard to predict why it would have produced a universe that has an almost uniform temperature, because the age of our universe (about 13.8 billion years) does not give enough time — as far as we can tell — to reach a temperature equilibrium.

Most cosmologists say the universe must have been expanding faster than the speed of light for this to happen, but Ashford says even that theory has problems: “The Big Bang was so chaotic, it’s not clear there would have been even a small homogenous patch for inflation to start working on.”

Representation of the timeline of the universe over 13.7 billion years, from the Big Bang, through the cosmic dark ages and formation of the first stars, to the expansion in the universe that followed. Credit: NASA/WMAP Science Team.

This is what the physicists propose:

The model they constructed has the three-dimensional universe floating as a membrane (or brane) in a “bulk universe” that has four dimensions. (Yes, this is making our heads hurt as well, so it might be easier to temporarily think of the brane as two-dimensional and the “bulk universe” as three-dimensional when trying to picture it.) You can read the more technical details in this 2000 paper on which the new theory is based.
So if this “bulk universe” has four-dimensional stars, these stars could go through the same life cycles as the three-dimensional ones we are familiar with. The most massive ones would explode as supernovae, shed their skin and have the innermost parts collapse as a black hole.
The 4-D black hole would have an “event horizon” just like the 3-D ones we are familiar with. The event horizon is the boundary between the inside and the outside of a black hole. There are a lot of theories of what goes on inside a black hole, although nothing has ever been observed.
In a 3-D universe, the event horizon appears as a two-dimensional surface. So in a 4-D universe, the event horizon would be a 3-D object called a hypersphere.
So basically, what the model says is when the 4-D star blows apart, the leftover material would create a 3-D brane surrounding a 3-D event horizon, and then expand.

The long and the short of it? To bring this back to things that we can see, it is clear from observations that the universe is expanding (and indeed is getting faster as it expands, possibly due to the mysterious dark energy). The new theory says that the expansion comes from this 3-D brane’s growth. But there is at least one limitation.

This artist’s impression shows the surroundings of the supermassive black hole at the heart of the active galaxy NGC 3783 in the southern constellation of Centaurus (The Centaur). New observations using the Very Large Telescope Interferometer at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile have revealed not only the torus of hot dust around the black hole but also a wind of cool material in the polar regions. Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser

While the model does explain why the universe has nearly uniform temperature (the 4-D universe preceding it would have existed it for much longer), a European Space Agency telescope called Planck recently mapped small temperature variations in the cosmic microwave background, which is believed to be leftovers of the universe’s beginnings. (Read more about the CMB here.)

The new model differs from these CMB readings by about four percent, so the researchers are looking to refine the model. They still feel the model has worth, however. Planck shows that inflation is happening, but doesn’t show why the inflation is happening.

“The study could help to show how inflation is triggered by the motion of the universe through a higher-dimensional reality,” the researchers stated.

You can read more about their research on this prepublished Arxiv paper. The Arxiv entry does not specify if the paper has been submitted to any peer-reviewed scientific journals for publication.

Source: Nature

September 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Watch Live: Commercial Antares Rocket Launches to Space Station

he Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket, with its Cygnus cargo spacecraft aboard, is seen during sunrise on the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) Pad-0A at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2013 in Virginia. NASA's commercial space partner, Orbital Sciences Corporation, is targeting a Sept. 18 launch for its demonstration cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

UPDATE: Orbital Sciences successfully launched its Cygnus cargo spacecraft aboard its Antares rocket at 10:58 a.m. EDT Wednesday from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Pad-0A at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. This is the first time a spacecraft launched from Virginia is heading toward the International Space Station. Above is the launch video, and we’ll have a full re-cap article coming soon! The live NASA TV feed is below. (end of update)

Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus spacecraft is set to become the second private spacecraft to launch to the International Space Station. Today’s historic launch from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia has a launch window from 10:50 AM to 11:30 AM EDT, with launch likely to occur at 0:58 a.m. EDT (1458 GMT) from Pad 0A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. You can watch it live here on NASA TV’s Ustream feed.

As of this writing, the Wallops range is currently red due to low cloud conditions and something called “distance focus over pressure,” according to the Orbital Sciences Twitter feed. However, they expect it to clear later in count, and the rocket is being fueled.

Also, if you live along the US east coast near the Virginia area, you may be able to see the launch for yourself! It won’t be as visible as the recent nighttime launch of the LADEE mission, but should still be visible to a wide area, if the skies are clear. Read our complete guide to how to view the launch here.

Live streaming video by Ustream

Here’s a timelapse of the Antares rocket heading out the the launchpad:

September 18, 2013April 26, 2016 by Nancy Atkinson

Advanced Satellite Blasts Off from Cape Canaveral: Launch Gallery

A United Launch Alliancee Atlas V rocet lifts off with the US Air Force’s third Advanced EHF satellite. Credit and copyright: John O’Connor/nasatech.net.

Early this morning a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket blasted off from Cape Canaveral in a gorgeous pre-dawn launch, sending the third Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF-3) satellite for the United States Air Force to orbit. The rocket lifted off from Launch Complex-41 at 4:10 am EDT (08:10 UTC) on Wednesday, September 18, 2013. Thanks to John O’Connor from nasatech.net for sharing his beautiful launch images with Universe Today.

This launch leads the way for a second launch today: the historic Orbital Sciences Antares commercial rocket carrying the first fully functional Cygnus commercial resupply vehicle to orbit from NASA’s Wallops Island Facility on a demonstration mission bound for the International Space Station.

The AEHF-3 will provide a state-of-the-art communications system for the US military and Department of Defense.

See more launches images below:

Awaiting its mission on Space Launch Complex 41, the Atlas 5 - 531/AEHF-3 stands ready as the weather slowly cleared. Credit and copyright: John O'Connor/nasatech.net, — Awaiting its mission on Space Launch Complex 41, the Atlas 5 – 531/AEHF-3 stands ready as the weather slowly cleared. Credit and copyright: John O’Connor/nasatech.net,

As the furious vibrations shake cascades of ice off of the liquid oxygen tank the Atlas 5-531 reaches for the sky and its supersynchronous transfer orbit. Credit and copyright: John O'Connor/nasatech.net. — As the furious vibrations shake cascades of ice off of the liquid oxygen tank the Atlas 5-531 reaches for the sky and its supersynchronous transfer orbit. Credit and copyright: John O’Connor/nasatech.net.

Halfway through the lightning wires, the Atlas 5 accelerates to its rendezvous with a supersynchronous transfer orbit. Credit and copyright: John O'Connor/nasatech.net. — Halfway through the lightning wires, the Atlas 5 accelerates to its rendezvous with a supersynchronous transfer orbit. Credit and copyright: John O’Connor/nasatech.net.

Through a cloud on its way to orbit, the Atlas 5 - 531 vehicle and it AEHF-3 payload dapple the clouds with light.... Credit and copyright: John O'Connor/nasatech.net. — Through a cloud on its way to orbit, the Atlas 5 – 531 vehicle and it AEHF-3 payload dapple the clouds with light…. Credit and copyright: John O’Connor/nasatech.net.

...and come out the top, amid the night, resplendent on a seething tower of dawn and thunder. Credit and copyright: John O'Connor/nasatech.net. — …and come out the top, amid the night, resplendent on a seething tower of dawn and thunder. Credit and copyright: John O’Connor/nasatech.net.

September 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Bob King

Tonight’s Harvest Moon Is For The Birds … Really!

The moon provides the perfect backdrop for watching birds migrate at night. Observers with spotting scopes and small telescopes can watch the show anytime the moon is at or near full. Photo illustration: Bob King

Tonight’s the Harvest Moon, the full Moon closest to the fall equinox. A perfect time to catch a big orange Moon on the horizon AND the annual fall bird migration. Every September and October anyone with a small telescope or spotting scope magnifying 30x can enjoy the sight of one bird after another flying over the cratered lunar landscape. It’s so easy.

Point your telescope at the Moon and watch for dark silhouettes to flutter across its face. Because the angle of the full Moon’s path to the horizon is very shallow in September and October, the time difference between successive moonrises is only about 20-30 minutes instead of the usual 50-60. That means you’ll catch both moonlight and bird flight on successive nights without having to stay up late.

The Harvest Moon rises over Lake Superior in Duluth, Minn. When you’re out enjoying this year’s full moon on Wednesday and Thursday nights, watch for the dark band you see in the photo. That’s the Earth’s shadow. It’s visible for about 15-20 after sunset and topped by the pink-tinged Belt of Venus, where the atmosphere is still reflecting reddened sunlight. Credit: Bob King — The Harvest Moon rises over Lake Superior in Duluth, Minn last September. When you’re out moon and birdwatching, look for the dark band below the rising moon. That’s the Earth’s shadow. It’s visible for about 15-20 after sunset and topped by the pink-tinged “Belt of Venus”, where the atmosphere is still reflecting reddened sunlight. Credit: Bob King

Many birds migrate at night both because it’s cooler and to avoid predators that could otherwise pick them off in a daylight run. Identifying the many warblers, blackbirds, sparrows, vireos, orioles and other species that fly across the moon while we sleep may be next to impossible for anyone but an expert, but seeing them is easy. Two night ago for fun, I counted a dozen birds in the five-minute interval around 10 o’clock through my 10-inch telescope at low power (76x). Assuming they continued to fly by at a steady rate, I could potentially have spotted 144 birds in just an hour’s time.

*Two of my favorite migrating birds: the winter wren (left) and chestnut-sided warbler. Credit: Bob King*

As you might suspect, most of those birds crossed the Moon from north to south (about two-thirds) with the other third traveling either east to west or northeast to southwest. Only one little silhouette flapped back up north in the ‘wrong’ direction.

According to the Chipper Woods Bird Observatory, located in Indianapolis, most nighttime migrators begin their flight right after sunset and continue until about 2 a.m. Peak time is between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. Bird typically migrate at altitudes ranging from 1,500 to 5,000 feet, but on some nights, altitudes may range from 6,000 and 9,000 feet. I could tell the high ones from the low ones by their size and sharpness. Nearby birds flew by out of focus, while distant ones were sharply defined and took longer to cross the moon.

Check out this animated wave of bird migration after sunset on Aug. 27, 2013 made with NEXRAD. Birds are visible funneling down both shores of Lake Superior and moving south of Duluth, Minn (city at center). Credit: NWS — Check out this animation showing a wave of bird migration after sunset on Aug. 27 made with NEXRAD. Birds are visible funneling down both shores of Lake Superior and moving south of Duluth, Minn (city at center). Credit: NWS

While birders may continue to use the moon night birding, they now have a new tool – NEXRAD or NEXt-generation of Weather RADar. About 150 NEXRAD sites were set up in the 1990s to track weather and storm systems across the U.S. When precipitation gets pinged by the radar’s pulse it reflects back a signal that identifies it as rain, snow or whatever. Included in the information is the material’s speed and direction of travel. NEXRAD works equally well on meteorite falls, birds and even insects. While storm activity typically shows up as familiar blotches of yellow, orange and red, birds appear as fine stipplings. By compiling NEXRAD loops, during particularly heavy migration times, you can actually watch swarms of birds wing their way south. Click HERE for a map of all U.S. NEXRAD locations, each of which links to current radar maps.

On the less technological side, watching birds pass across the Moon in a small telescope is a very pleasant activity reminiscent of meteor shower watching. At first you see nothing, then blip! a bird (meteor) flies by. You wait another minute and then suddenly two more appear in tandem. Both activities give you that delicious sense of anticipation of what the next moment might hold.

The best time to watch the nighttime avian exodus is around full Moon, when the big, round disk offers an ideal spotlight on the birds’ behavior, but anytime between waxing and waning gibbous phase will work. It’s an enchanting sight to see Earth’s creatures streak across an alien landscape, and another instance of how a distant celestial body “touches” Earth in unexpected ways.