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Post by skywalker on Jan 1, 2011 17:40:35 GMT -6
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Post by auntym on Jan 11, 2011 0:04:43 GMT -6
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110110/ap_on_sc/us_sci_space_blobHubble telescope zeroes in on green blob in space click on link to see photoBy SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein, Ap Science Writer – Mon Jan 10, 6:21 pm ET WASHINGTON – The Hubble Space Telescope got its first peek at a mysterious giant green blob in outer space and found that it's strangely alive. The bizarre glowing blob is giving birth to new stars, some only a couple million years old, in remote areas of the universe where stars don't normally form. The blob of gas was first discovered by a Dutch school teacher in 2007 and is named Hanny's Voorwerp (HAN'-nee's-FOR'-vehrp). Voorwerp is Dutch for object. NASA released the new Hubble photo Monday at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Seattle. Parts of the green blob are collapsing and the resulting pressure from that is creating the stars. The stellar nurseries are outside of a normal galaxy, which is usually where stars live. That makes these "very lonely newborn stars" that are "in the middle of nowhere," said Bill Keel, the University of Alabama astronomer who examined the blob. The blob is the size of our own Milky Way galaxy and it is 650 million light years away. Each light year is about 6 trillion miles. The blob is mostly hydrogen gas swirling from a close encounter of two galaxies and it glows because it is illuminated by a quasar in one of the galaxies. A quasar is a bright object full of energy powered by a black hole. The blob was discovered by elementary school teacher Hanny van Arkel, who was 24 at the time, as part of a worldwide Galaxy Zoo project where everyday people can look at archived star photographs to catalog new objects. Van Arkel said when she first saw the odd object in 2007 it appeared blue and smaller. The Hubble photo provides a clear picture and better explanation for what is happening around the blob. "It actually looked like a blue smudge," van Arkel told The Associated Press. "Now it looks like dancing frog in the sky because it's green." She says she can even see what passes for arms and eyes. Since van Arkel's discovery, astronomers have looked for similar gas blobs and found 18 of them. But all of them are about half the size of Hanny's Voorwerp, Keel said.
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Post by skywalker on Jan 11, 2011 8:33:52 GMT -6
It does look like a frog. That is so weird. It even has yellow eyeballs. So what's the Dutch word for frog?
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Post by auntym on Jan 11, 2011 13:09:29 GMT -6
CHINA'S PHANTOM SUN: TRIPLE SUN OVER CHINA
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Post by auntym on Jan 11, 2011 13:55:02 GMT -6
Is it Venus or a UFO?
Dec 6, 2010
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2011 14:54:49 GMT -6
I was just checking out the green blob..I think it's Kryptonite fragments. Nods wisely.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2011 21:27:18 GMT -6
It does look like a frog. That is so weird. It even has yellow eyeballs. So what's the Dutch word for frog? According to Google translator, "Frog" is "Kikker". I'm not making this up... lol... in German it's "Frosch".
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Post by auntym on Feb 27, 2011 23:13:18 GMT -6
ancientvisitors.blogspot.com/2011/02/universe-challenge-for-mankind.html The universe: a challenge for mankindHow far have we come in the exploration of the universe? How much do we really know about it? Up till now mankind has succeeded in setting foot on the Moon. This one time project is long ago by now, so long that we only have black-and-white images of it. More recently missions to the moon have been put on hold and all efforts have gone into the exploration of the mysterious planet Mars. The planet Mars is of course a much bigger challenge than the moon. The question if there is life on Mars is still unanswered. Despite the fact that a manned mission to Mars has not been undertaken so far, Mars is a bigger success than the Moon. NASA’s robotic space mission on Mars started in 2003 and continues today. Two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, are exploring the planet Mars, studying its geology and searching for traces of water. This expensive project has delivered magnificent images of the Red Planet, suggesting that life once could have existed there. If it exists today, still remains to be seen. A phenomenon that has been subject to much speculation is the Mars Face, a structure that from above looks like a face and from the surface seems to be a strange, round, maybe artificial structure. TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by Deleted on Feb 28, 2011 10:45:13 GMT -6
There is so much about our own planet we don't know can you imagine what 'secrets' the universe holds? Our brains don't compute that high LOL
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Post by skywalker on Feb 28, 2011 13:28:17 GMT -6
That's true, Jo. The amount of the universe we have explored is equal to less than one grain of sand in the Sahara Desert.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 10:42:34 GMT -6
Well..each grain of sand could be it's own minute universe..
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Post by skywalker on Mar 1, 2011 15:49:18 GMT -6
Or each atom of each grain of sand might be a universe. And our universe might just be an atom in an even bigger universe. And people think they know everything there is to know...
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Post by bewildered on Mar 1, 2011 20:24:14 GMT -6
Or each atom of each grain of sand might be a universe. And our universe might just be an atom in an even bigger universe. And people think they know everything there is to know... ...and it could all simply be a matter of perspective. Time is relative to the observer. So is space.
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Post by auntym on Mar 22, 2011 22:20:24 GMT -6
Revelation 12/ Virgo in Sky--- September 28--29--2011
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Post by swamprat on Mar 23, 2011 9:13:49 GMT -6
Now THAT'S scary!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2011 14:50:02 GMT -6
I agree swamprat... spooky...
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Post by auntym on Apr 29, 2011 22:44:25 GMT -6
news.yahoo.com/s/space/20110429/sc_space/sixplanetsnowalignedinthedawnskySix Planets Now Aligned in the Dawn SkyGeoff Gaherty, Starry Night Education, Space.com geoff Gaherty, Starry Night Education, space.com – Thu Apr 28, 10:31 pm ET If you get up any morning for the next few weeks, you’ll be treated to the sight of all the planets except Saturn arrayed along the ecliptic, the path of the sun through the sky. For the last two months, almost all the planets have been hiding behind the sun, but this week they all emerge and are arrayed in a grand line above the rising sun. Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter are visible, and you can add Uranus and Neptune to your count if you have binoculars or a small telescope. This sky map of the six planets shows how they should appear at dawn to observers with clear weather and an unobstructed view. Astrologers have always been fascinated by planetary alignments, and the doomsayers of 2012 have been prophesying a mystical alignment on Dec. 21, 2012. The modern tools of astronomers, such as planetarium software, show otherwise: absolutely no alignment at any time in 2012. But they also reveal a beautiful alignment visible during the month of May this year. [Planet Skywatching Guide for 2011] TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by auntym on May 3, 2011 12:09:30 GMT -6
Skywatching Guide: Meteor Showers of 2011 by Geoff Gaherty, Starry Night Education Date: 02 May 2011 Time: 01:16 PM ET www.space.com/11541-2011-meteor-showers-skywatching-guide.htmlA 2010 Orionid meteor, seen over Western Ontario, Canada. A waxing gibbous moon shines brightly at the left side of the image. CREDIT: NASA courtesy of Meteor Physics Group, University of Western Ontario 2011 meteor showers. CREDIT: RASC Observer's Handbook 2011 and International Meteor Organization Current meteor forecast models project a strong Draconid outburst, possibly a full-blown storm, on Oct. 8, 2011, according to William Cooke of the Meteoroid Environment Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by auntym on May 4, 2011 11:43:16 GMT -6
The Great Morning Planet Show of May 2011Uploaded by Sheilaaliens on May 4, 2011 www.spaceweather.com/ "The Great Morning Planet Show of May 2011 is underway. Every morning for the rest of this month, you can see a beautiful gathering of four planets in the eastern sky.
"This is beautiful sight before dawn," says photographer Liz Gleeson. "Venus and Mercury have been visible for a couple of weeks, but now Mars and Jupiter have joined them for a four-way conjunction."
An animation from Sky & Telescope shows what is in store for the rest of the month. The quartet of worlds will rearrange themselves on a daily basis, forming different shapes in the pre-dawn sky. The best mornings are the ones around May 11th, when Venus and Jupiter converge to form a tight pair. They are so bright, they might fool you into thinking you've witnessed a double supernova beaming through the morning twilight. But, no, it's just the two brightest planets in our own solar system.
Stay tuned for a whole month of morning marvels!"
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Post by paulette on May 4, 2011 12:07:42 GMT -6
Thanks for posting astronomical events. Just before dawn is now about 3:45 am. Sigh. But if I'm up anyway - I'll look east for sure.
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Post by auntym on May 5, 2011 8:51:46 GMT -6
Journey to the Edge of the Universe
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Post by auntym on May 11, 2011 8:55:12 GMT -6
www.space.com/11613-planets-converge-night-sky.html Mercury, Venus, Mars & Jupiter Converge in Night SkyJoe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist Date: 09 May 2011 Time: 02:35 PM ET In May and June 2011, four planets will converge in the night sky.CREDIT: Starry Night Software
During this month of May, four bright planets will engage in a fascinating dance with each other in the morning sky. Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter will be involved in a series of conjunctions, joined at the end of the month by a very thin, waning crescent moon. We could even refer to this as a "celestial summit meeting," or more precisely, a series of summit meetings during May 2011. Twice during May three planets will converge to form a "trio." According to Belgian calculator Jean Meeus, a trio is when three planets fit within a circle with a minimum diameter of 5 degrees. Such a limit was one that Meeus chose more or less arbitrarily, but as he notes, "We have to make a choice." On Wednesday (May 11), Mercury, Venus and Jupiter will converge within 2.05-degrees of each other, followed just 10 days later by another trio, this time formed by Mercury, Venus and Mars, which will crowd within a 2.13-degree circle. Then late in the month, on three successive mornings, May 29th, 30th, and 31st, the waning crescent moon will arrive, sweeping past Jupiter, Mars, Venus and Mercury stretched out across the eastern sky from upper right to lower left. [Video: See the Moon and Planet Alignments through June] TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by lois on May 26, 2011 11:55:16 GMT -6
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Post by lois on May 26, 2011 12:00:54 GMT -6
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Post by auntym on Jun 1, 2011 14:57:50 GMT -6
SKY NIGHT, SKY BRIGHT, WERE IN FOR A SKY TREAT TONIGHT. LOOK UP TONIGHT FROM MIDNIGHT ON.
Uploaded by rulesofethics on Jun 1, 2011
The eclipse begins, and then work its way east across the International Date Line. Because of that timing, this eclipse will have the quirky circumstance of beginning on the morning of Thursday (June 2) and ending on the evening of Wednesday (June 1). See video details for link.
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Post by auntym on Jun 1, 2011 19:01:30 GMT -6
io9.com/5807429/this-faraway-galaxy-is-the-milky-ways-identical-twinJun 1, 2011
This faraway galaxy is the Milky Way’s identical twinAvatar for Alasdair Wilkins Alasdair Wilkins —This faraway galaxy is the Milky Way's identical twinThis is the galaxy NGC 6744, located about 30 million light-years away. It just so happens that this galaxy looks pretty much exactly like what our own galaxy would look like...except this galaxy is twice as big as ours. Still, despite its vastly bigger size, NGC 6744 is otherwise a dead ringer for our own galaxy, which makes it invaluable for visualizing what our galaxy looks like. While we have a fairly decent handle on what the Milky Way should look like, the fact that we're stuck inside it means that we can never get a really good look at it. TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by auntym on Jun 2, 2011 13:38:17 GMT -6
www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2070503,00.html Look Up! A Rare Planetary Alignment, Visible from EarthBy Jeffrey Kluger Tuesday, May 10, 2011 Good thing President Obama released his long-form birth certificate. Now we can all go back to worrying about an even greater threat than the possibility that the President is a Kenyan double agent: the much buzzed-about reports that the world is going to end in 2012. It was the Mayans — or maybe the Romans or the Greeks or the Sumerians — who called the shot this time, evidently on a day Nostradamus phoned in sick. Apparently, a rogue planet named Nibiru (which frankly sounds more like a new Honda than a new world) is headed our way, with a cosmic crack-up set for next year. No matter who's behind the current prediction, there are enough people ready to spread and believe in this kind of end-of-the-world hooey that you have to wonder if the earth isn't starting to take things personally. TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by auntym on Jun 4, 2011 12:50:42 GMT -6
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Post by auntym on Jun 4, 2011 13:00:28 GMT -6
gawker.com/5800550/everyone-is-ominously-calm-about-this-planetary-alignmentEveryone Is Ominously Calm About This Planetary AlignmentBy Adrian Chen —Everyone Is Ominously Calm About This Planetary AlignmentA weird thing is happening in the sky: planets will align this month. But the strangest thing is happening here on Earth: There's been hardly a peep about disasters and doom. Did the internet forget its hysteria generator at home? Venus, Mercury, Mars and Jupiter will be "involved in a series of conjunctions" this month. Three planets will join in the sky to form a tightly-bound "trio." Usually, this is cue for every bored office worker to start pounding on their keyboard and making things like "WE ARE DOOMED" trend on Twitter. Indeed, part of the mythos of 2012 doomsayers includes a similar planetary alignment. TO CONTINUE READING CLICK ON ABOVE LINK
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Post by swamprat on Jun 8, 2011 9:15:21 GMT -6
The Republic
Reaching for the stars: It's alive out there! Scientists seek out the evidenceBy Marc Kaufman The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.) First Posted: June 07, 2011 - 4:03 am WASHINGTON — All around the world — from the deep gold mines of South Africa to the far-seeing telescopes in Chile's Atacama Desert, from the frigid glaciers of Antarctica to the halls of the world's best universities and research institutions — scientists are on a quest unlike anything we've seen before. Tens of thousands of researchers are involved in the effort, one which three years of reporting has convinced me will be — or certainly could be — the big idea of our era. This hidden-in-plain-sight campaign is the renewed scientific push to find signs of life, or of past life, beyond the confines of our planet. From astrochemistry we have learned that all of the elements and molecules needed for life as we know it — hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, water, and complex carbons — are present throughout the universe. These non-living building blocks need planets to land on where they can possibly interact in ways that can lead to biology and life, and now we know that such planets (or exoplanets, are they're called) are common. More than 500 have been positively identified in the past 15 years, 1,200 new candidate planets were discovered by NASA's Kepler mission this year, and astronomers now are convinced there are billions, and maybe hundreds of billions, of exoplanets in the Milky Way and beyond. A new consensus has grown among those who study Mars that the currently dry and very cold planet was once much warmer and wetter. Perhaps most intriguing, a team under the leadership of NASA's Michael Mumma at the Goddard Space Flight Center has determined that the gas methane spurts out of the Martian surface at regular times and in particular places. The great excitement regarding Martian methane flows from this fact: About 90 percent of the methane on Earth is produced by living things. This doesn't mean that the methane on Mars is necessarily also produced through biology, but it sure makes it a real possibility. In the meantime, NASA is also preparing to launch its most ambitious mission to Mars since Viking, back in the 1970s. The mission, with its largest and most-sophisticated-ever rover, called Curiosity, is scheduled to launch in the fall and land on Mars in August 2012. With the end of NASA's space shuttle program coming soon, many Americans have complained that the nation's efforts in space are flagging. Nothing could be further from the truth. They're just changing. ABOUT THE WRITER Marc Kaufman is a science writer and editor at The Washington Post, and author of the recently released book "First Contact: Scientific Breakthroughs in the Hunt for Life Beyond Earth," by Simon & Schuster. His website is habitablezones.com. He wrote this for The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.).
Read more: www.therepublic.com/view/story/SCI-ASTROBIOLOGY-COMMENTARY_5288821/SCI-ASTROBIOLOGY-COMMENTARY_5288821/
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