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Old 22-12-2015, 00:54
Aetnla
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Old 22-12-2015, 10:15
Kapellmeister
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The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has made a breakthrough in space technology!

The first stage, with the big engines, etc. launched a smaller second stage into space with 11 communications satellites on board. The first stage then flipped around and returned to Earth, executing a perfectly vertical landing on a landing pad six miles away from the launch pad.

Something similar has been done recently with a much smaller rocket but this is the first time with a much bigger rocket that attained a much higher altitude.

Video report here from the BBC:

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-35157782

Here's the landing seen from a helicopter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCBE8ocOkAQ

And here's a video of the full launch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3G8GJQumBFs


I think it's absolutely incredible. It could've really marked the start of a new era in space technology and exploration as getting stuff into orbit is so difficult and so prohibitively expensive.

Well done to all the engineers and scientists at SpaceX. It's a truly remarkable feat!
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Old 22-12-2015, 17:07
TelevisionUser
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The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has made a breakthrough in space technology!

The first stage, with the big engines, etc. launched a smaller second stage into space with 11 communications satellites on board. The first stage then flipped around and returned to Earth, executing a perfectly vertical landing on a landing pad six miles away from the launch pad.

Something similar has been done recently with a much smaller rocket but this is the first time with a much bigger rocket that attained a much higher altitude.

Video report here from the BBC:

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-35157782

Here's the landing seen from a helicopter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCBE8ocOkAQ

And here's a video of the full launch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3G8GJQumBFs


I think it's absolutely incredible. It could've really marked the start of a new era in space technology and exploration as getting stuff into orbit is so difficult and so prohibitively expensive.

Well done to all the engineers and scientists at SpaceX. It's a truly remarkable feat!
Yes, it is one hell of a technical achievement and everyone at SpaceX deserves to be congratulated. It's taken a bit of time and a few failures to get there but it's been worth it.
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Old 22-12-2015, 18:22
An Thropologist
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I wonder if one of the enthusiasts on this thread can help me idenitify a group of stars or a constellation. I saw this in the Canaries last week where there is less light pollution than I have here. These stars are located near Orion. If one was looking at Orion's belt with the star below the three of the belt below the belt. and the thought of the four main stars surrounding them as hands and feet, the starting point woudl be his right hand. Moving out from there a 'short distance' away (visually speaking) is a cluster of stars, not very bright that in moderate conditions appear as a smudge in the sky.

Any idea what they are or where I can find a good map of the sky to try to figure it out? I have looked at lots of star maps in the last week and few of them show Orion and if they do it seems to be on the edge of the map area.
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Old 22-12-2015, 18:40
HenryGarten
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I wonder if one of the enthusiasts on this thread can help me idenitify a group of stars or a constellation. I saw this in the Canaries last week where there is less light pollution than I have here. These stars are located near Orion. If one was looking at Orion's belt with the star below the three of the belt below the belt. and the thought of the four main stars surrounding them as hands and feet, the starting point woudl be his right hand. Moving out from there a 'short distance' away (visually speaking) is a cluster of stars, not very bright that in moderate conditions appear as a smudge in the sky.

Any idea what they are or where I can find a good map of the sky to try to figure it out? I have looked at lots of star maps in the last week and few of them show Orion and if they do it seems to be on the edge of the map area.
How about downloading Stellarium ?


Maybe M42 ?
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Old 22-12-2015, 18:59
paulsh1
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I wonder if one of the enthusiasts on this thread can help me idenitify a group of stars or a constellation. I saw this in the Canaries last week where there is less light pollution than I have here. These stars are located near Orion. If one was looking at Orion's belt with the star below the three of the belt below the belt. and the thought of the four main stars surrounding them as hands and feet, the starting point woudl be his right hand. Moving out from there a 'short distance' away (visually speaking) is a cluster of stars, not very bright that in moderate conditions appear as a smudge in the sky.

Any idea what they are or where I can find a good map of the sky to try to figure it out? I have looked at lots of star maps in the last week and few of them show Orion and if they do it seems to be on the edge of the map area.
Not being an expert on this subject by any means but I too have been fascinated by a "smudge" in the night sky and after a bit of research online discovered it was The Pleiades, also known as The Seven Sisters.

On looking it up again,if it was in Orion, as the previous poster suggested it sounds like M42(Orion Nebula) which also a bit smudgy!

Last edited by paulsh1 : 22-12-2015 at 19:13. Reason: Edit
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Old 22-12-2015, 19:20
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Old 22-12-2015, 20:19
An Thropologist
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Thanks folks. We are moving in on an identification I think. M42 seems to be in the wrong place I think. That seems to be between Orion's legs so to speak.

The smudge I have in mind is more in the direction of Taurus but maybe not part of that constellation. To be honest Taurus is one of those constellations that convinces me that ancient man must have been 'on something'. How they saw crabs, bulls etc from a handful of random stars beats me. But may be I lack thier imaginations. Off to lok up Taurus.

Pleiades seems to be the right sort of vicinity.
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Old 22-12-2015, 20:50
Kapellmeister
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Thanks folks. We are moving in on an identification I think. M42 seems to be in the wrong place I think. That seems to be between Orion's legs so to speak.

The smudge I have in mind is more in the direction of Taurus but maybe not part of that constellation. To be honest Taurus is one of those constellations that convinces me that ancient man must have been 'on something'. How they saw crabs, bulls etc from a handful of random stars beats me. But may be I lack thier imaginations. Off to lok up Taurus.

Pleiades seems to be the right sort of vicinity.
Taurus is one of the more representative constellations! IMO. I wonder if you saw the Hyades cluster in Taurus, the nearest open cluster to the solar system.
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Old 22-12-2015, 23:19
An Thropologist
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Taurus is one of the more representative constellations! IMO. I wonder if you saw the Hyades cluster in Taurus, the nearest open cluster to the solar system.
bib Do you think so? I would have called Taurus the tuning fork had I been around then (although I wouldn't have known what a tuning fork was) I think Leo looks like a rocking horse and I would have described Aries as 4 stars in a row!

I think the Hyades cluster might be the answer to the smudge. Is that the densish btt in the middle of the constellation.

Thank you for the pointers folks. This thread is always a glimmer of intelligent good sense in a sea of madness.
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Old 22-12-2015, 23:48
Kapellmeister
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bib Do you think so? I would have called Taurus the tuning fork had I been around then (although I wouldn't have known what a tuning fork was) I think Leo looks like a rocking horse and I would have described Aries as 4 stars in a row!

I think the Hyades cluster might be the answer to the smudge. Is that the densish btt in the middle of the constellation.

Thank you for the pointers folks. This thread is always a glimmer of intelligent good sense in a sea of madness.
With Taurus I always think the snout\face is really noticeable with the two horns shooting off away from it one of its eyes is the very bright star Aldebaran. The Hyades cluster is part of the 'snout' and looks more smudgey if viewed with averted gaze rather than viewed directly.
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Old 23-12-2015, 14:48
atg
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From what's been said this is almost certainly the Pleiades. Away from the body of Orion and a "smudge" while the Hyades are much more spread out.

Other than Triangulum, and Triangulum Australe, you'd be hard pressed to defend many of the other constellations for accurate representation, although Orion and Scorpius are two of the more suggestive ones.
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Old 10-01-2016, 11:18
tiger2000
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Just a Heads Up that this years Stargazing Live starts this coming Tuesday on BBC2 @ 9pm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b019...casts/upcoming

There is also an extra episode on Friday night with live coverage of Tim Peake's Spacewalk on The ISS.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CYMxasDWcAAjn5z.jpg
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Old 10-01-2016, 15:56
Keyser_Soze1
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A fair and balanced assessment of Hawking's legacy.

He may be the most famous physicist on the planet but the field is filled with ultra-geniuses.

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20160...hawking-famous
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Old 10-01-2016, 17:02
WhatJoeThinks
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A fair and balanced assessment of Hawking's legacy.

He may be the most famous physicist on the planet but the field is filled with ultra-geniuses.

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20160...hawking-famous
A great article that.

I particularly liked the image of primordial black holes being white hot.
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Old 10-01-2016, 19:59
Keyser_Soze1
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Old 12-01-2016, 23:14
swingaleg
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Newsnight reporting a rumour that US Physicists are about to announce that they have detected gravity waves..........
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Old 13-01-2016, 19:06
Keyser_Soze1
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Spectacular new images of Ceres.

http://phys.org/news/2016-01-ceres-dawn-images.html
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Old 13-01-2016, 19:30
HenryGarten
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Newsnight reporting a rumour that US Physicists are about to announce that they have detected gravity waves..........
Hasn't that rumour been around for nearly 50 years?
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Old 13-01-2016, 19:47
njp
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Hasn't that rumour been around for nearly 50 years?
I think this is the first time such a rumour has been accompanied by an instrument of the required sensitivity to make it plausible...

I guess we'll have to wait a while longer for any official announcement.
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Old 13-01-2016, 19:59
FIN-MAN
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It looks like the moon. Such a stark contrast to those from Pluto. It really does show the desolation of space for Pluto and the violence further in our Solar System.
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Old 20-01-2016, 21:01
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The brightest Supernova yet discovered.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/scienc...957820/?no-ist
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Old 20-01-2016, 21:06
TelevisionUser
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This is breaking news but the initial report has yet to be verified by other scientists and the news source is credible (US equivalent of BBC Radio 4): Scientists Find Hints Of A Giant, Hidden Planet In Our Solar System
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Old 20-01-2016, 21:24
Keyser_Soze1
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This is breaking news but the initial report has yet to be verified by other scientists and the news source is credible (US equivalent of BBC Radio 4): Scientists Find Hints Of A Giant, Hidden Planet In Our Solar System
Just read this article - it seems to be reliable!

http://phys.org/news/2016-01-evidenc...th-planet.html
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Old 20-01-2016, 21:27
TelevisionUser
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This is breaking news but the initial report has yet to be verified by other scientists and the news source is credible (US equivalent of BBC Radio 4): Scientists Find Hints Of A Giant, Hidden Planet In Our Solar System
More details of this potential discovery:

EVIDENCE FOR A DISTANT GIANT PLANET IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM

Full 12 page report
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