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Space and Astronomy Thread
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WhatJoeThinks
06-04-2016
Originally Posted by TelevisionUser:
“There's an interesting planetary new update from the Planetary Society's Emily Lakdawalla including an excellent picture of Comet P67 backlit by the Sun: http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily...pril-2016.html

In other news, Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown have now gone on record as saying that they think that the proposed new Planet Nine could be found within just 2 years. There are some links to more Planet Nine news below:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/ar...d-planet-nine/

http://www.redorbit.com/news/space/1...t-nine-040616/

https://www.newscientist.com/article...en-by-the-sun/”

They have "now gone on record as saying"?! Mike Brown, in particular, could hardly have been more forthcoming with his opinions. He's been blogging constantly. You seem to be implying that now that it's there for all to read it might be (more) likely to be true, or that having "now gone on record" is a step in that direction.
Keyser_Soze1
07-04-2016
Supernovae showered the Earth with radioactive debris.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2...n-earth-space/

http://phys.org/news/2016-04-superno...ve-debris.html
brangdon
09-04-2016
SpaceX successfully landed a first stage on their floating barge last night. Dragon capsule is on course to be picked up by the space station tomorrow. http://www.spacex.com/webcast

I watched the launch and landing live. It was awesome.
atg
09-04-2016
Originally Posted by brangdon:
“SpaceX successfully landed a first stage on their floating barge last night. Dragon capsule is on course to be picked up by the space station tomorrow. http://www.spacex.com/webcast

I watched the launch and landing live. It was awesome.”

Thanks for the link, that was absolutely breathtaking stuff. How do they do that????

Could do without all the cheering and hollering at every single stage of the launch though...
SegaGamer
09-04-2016
Originally Posted by atg:
“Thanks for the link, that was absolutely breathtaking stuff. How do they do that????

Could do without all the cheering and hollering at every single stage of the launch though...
”

I agree, i had to mute it, i can't stand all of that kind of crap, it cheapens the moment.
Keyser_Soze1
10-04-2016
The search for exoplanets and the Milky Way's youngest Supernova.

http://phys.org/news/2016-04-worlds.html

http://www.livescience.com/54357-mil...use-found.html
brangdon
10-04-2016
Originally Posted by SegaGamer:
“I agree, i had to mute it, i can't stand all of that kind of crap, it cheapens the moment.”

They also have a technical webcast at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_Gmgj3N_Z0.
TelevisionUser
10-04-2016
Originally Posted by Keyser_Soze1:
“Supernovae showered the Earth with radioactive debris.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2...n-earth-space/

http://phys.org/news/2016-04-superno...ve-debris.html”

The interesting thing about that is that the Earth was close to cluster of large young stars a few millions years ago, and being large, they went bang! They were perhaps 300 light years away (thankfully) and there appear to be a number of incidents but with no adverse effect on life on Earth. The next star to blow up is Betelgeuse and it's 640 or so light years away so that will provide a nice display for a while: http://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/...xplode-someday and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtWe...&nohtml5=False

In other news:

Planet Nine's profile fleshed out. Astrophysicists have outlined what Planet Nine might be like - if indeed it exists.

The bombardment of Mars some 4 billion years ago by comets and asteroids as large as ~200 miles across likely enhanced climate conditions enough to make the planet more conducive to life, at least for a time, says a new University of Colorado Boulder study.

A near-record supermassive black hole discovered in a sparse area of the local universe indicates that these monster objects — this one equal to 17 billion Suns — may be more common than once thought, according to University of California, Berkeley, astronomers.

Kepler Planet-Hunting Spacecraft in 'Emergency Mode'. NASA's prolific Kepler planet-hunting spacecraft appears to be in trouble. Kepler's handlers learned during a routine contact on Thursday (April 7) that the space telescope — which has discovered more than 1,000 alien planets since its March 2009 launch — is now in "emergency mode" (EM).
TelevisionUser
13-04-2016
Well, the Starshot Project as certainly grabbed the headlines as we can see below:

http://suttonnick.tumblr.com/image/142703345801

Starshot Project: Stephen Hawking and Mark Zuckerberg launch most ambitious alien-finding project ever. The backers hope that the project can send tiny rockets 25 trillion miles into space in just 20 years – and send back pictures, potentially showing worlds that could support life

While I think it is well-intentioned, it's going to cost $ Insane billions and take decades. Furthermore, I don't see any value in sending such interstellar probes to external solar systems if the only type of planet they have is Mercury star roasters, for example.

If it were up to me, I'd much rather spend the money on human trips to Mars (and a base there) and improved, larger space telescopes to specifically look for Earth-like planets around the nearest Sun-like stars.
Keyser_Soze1
13-04-2016
Originally Posted by TelevisionUser:
“Well, the Starshot Project as certainly grabbed the headlines as we can see below:

http://suttonnick.tumblr.com/image/142703345801

Starshot Project: Stephen Hawking and Mark Zuckerberg launch most ambitious alien-finding project ever. The backers hope that the project can send tiny rockets 25 trillion miles into space in just 20 years – and send back pictures, potentially showing worlds that could support life

While I think it is well-intentioned, it's going to cost $ Insane billions and take decades. Furthermore, I don't see any value in sending such interstellar probes to external solar systems if the only type of planet they have is Mercury star roasters, for example.

If it were up to me, I'd much rather spend the money on human trips to Mars (and a base there) and improved, larger space telescopes to specifically look for Earth-like planets around the nearest Sun-like stars.”

Here are some more links to Breakthrough Starshot.

It's the possibility of the sheer speed that excites me - finally a plausible method of propulsion that could send a (very tiny) spacecraft through the interstellar gulfs in decades rather than tens of millennia.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-36025706

http://www.livescience.com/54384-ste...auri-star.html

http://www.livescience.com/54382-ste...hot-video.html

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2...tarshot-space/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMkW...ature=youtu.be

http://phys.org/news/2016-04-alpha-centauri-life.html
WhatJoeThinks
13-04-2016
I've always thought that if aliens ever visited the Earth they'd be far more likely to be much smaller than us rather than bigger or the same size. If Star Trek is anything to go by then most aliens will be remarkably similar to humans but the chances of a human-sized alien creating an interstellar spacecraft are far less likely than mouse-sized or ant-sized aliens due to the differing energy requirements.

[Edit] I'm reminded of the Vl'Hurgs from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
atg
13-04-2016
Originally Posted by WhatJoeThinks:
“I've always thought that if aliens ever visited the Earth they'd be far more likely to be much smaller than us rather than bigger or the same size. If Star Trek is anything to go by then most aliens will be remarkably similar to humans but the chances of a human-sized alien creating an interstellar spacecraft are far less likely than mouse-sized or ant-sized aliens due to the differing energy requirements.

[Edit] I'm reminded of the Vl'Hurgs from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. ”

A more dedicated Trekker would know the reason for this:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_...xt_Generation)

tdenson
13-04-2016
Originally Posted by atg:
“
Could do without all the cheering and hollering at every single stage of the launch though...”

I disagree. Don't forget this is their life's work, they will have put their heart and soul into this project, allow them a bit of emotion.
I attended a New Scientist astronomy lecture day last Autumn, and one of the speakers was the mission controller for the Pluto flypast. When you hear some of the back stories you understand the emotion that is released when a mission is successful. One anecdote he told us was that just a week before reaching Pluto - 14 years into the mission from when they first started - they decided to compress the photos they had taken so far to make room for the fly by photos. However, simultaneously they did a software update and these two things had not been done together before. The computer crashed, and it was several nerve wracking days before they got it working again..
WhatJoeThinks
13-04-2016
Originally Posted by atg:
“A more dedicated Trekker would know the reason for this:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_...xt_Generation)

”

Of course I knew! How dare you question my Star Trek credentials!
tdenson
13-04-2016
Originally Posted by Keyser_Soze1:
“Here are some more links to Breakthrough Starshot.

It's the possibility of the sheer speed that excites me - finally a plausible method of propulsion that could send a (very tiny) spacecraft through the interstellar gulfs in decades rather than tens of millennia.
”

I totally agree. When something can happen within the current generation's lifetime it changes the game.
Keyser_Soze1
14-04-2016
Originally Posted by tdenson:
“I totally agree. When something can happen within the current generation's lifetime it changes the game.”

We will just have to wait and see but...

Repent all you sinners for the end is nigh!

http://www.livescience.com/32879-wha...-sun-dies.html
atg
14-04-2016
Originally Posted by WhatJoeThinks:
“Of course I knew! How dare you question my Star Trek credentials! ”



atg
14-04-2016
Originally Posted by tdenson:
“I disagree. Don't forget this is their life's work, they will have put their heart and soul into this project, allow them a bit of emotion.
I attended a New Scientist astronomy lecture day last Autumn, and one of the speakers was the mission controller for the Pluto flypast. When you hear some of the back stories you understand the emotion that is released when a mission is successful. One anecdote he told us was that just a week before reaching Pluto - 14 years into the mission from when they first started - they decided to compress the photos they had taken so far to make room for the fly by photos. However, simultaneously they did a software update and these two things had not been done together before. The computer crashed, and it was several nerve wracking days before they got it working again..”

A bit of emotion, yes, but this was like they'd scored the winning goal in the cup final at every routine stage. I could have understood if they'd saved it all for the amazing shit if the landing, faster than I expected it to be.

Otherwise, surely handshakes all round and a "jolly well done" would have sufficed?
TelevisionUser
15-04-2016
Originally Posted by Keyser_Soze1:
“Here are some more links to Breakthrough Starshot.

It's the possibility of the sheer speed that excites me - finally a plausible method of propulsion that could send a (very tiny) spacecraft through the interstellar gulfs in decades rather than tens of millennia. ”

Originally Posted by tdenson:
“I totally agree. When something can happen within the current generation's lifetime it changes the game.”

I do think though that it's only worth sending out these very expensive probes to the nearest other solar systems [see virtual stereogram here http://www.space.com/images/i/000/01...jpg?1319137355 ] where there's a planet that's like Earth or like Mars which is potentially terraformable otherwise the sense of disappointment could lead to the end of the missions just as we saw the Apollo missions cancelled early due to lack of public interest.
brangdon
15-04-2016
Originally Posted by atg:
“A bit of emotion, yes, but this was like they'd scored the winning goal in the cup final at every routine stage. I could have understood if they'd saved it all for the amazing shit if the landing, faster than I expected it to be.”

I think they knew better than you how difficult those "routine" stages were. Let's not forget the previous attempt to resupply the ISS failed the main mission.

I didn't find the cheering crass until they started chanting "USA! USA!". Then they came across as insular red-necks rather than rocket scientists.
atg
16-04-2016
Originally Posted by TelevisionUser:
“I do think though that it's only worth sending out these very expensive probes to the nearest other solar systems [see virtual stereogram here http://www.space.com/images/i/000/01...jpg?1319137355 ] where there's a planet that's like Earth or like Mars which is potentially terraformable otherwise the sense of disappointment could lead to the end of the missions just as we saw the Apollo missions cancelled early due to lack of public interest.”

And of course a star that will outlive the sun, otherwise it's a bit pointless.
Keyser_Soze1
17-04-2016
A more in depth article (from The Atlantic) on Starshot.

http://www.theatlantic.com/science/a...ntauri/477669/
hellsTinkerbell
17-04-2016
I love this sort of space stuff......glad im not the only one who keeps looking up.

I'd love to see(never ever in my lifetime or many generations of mine) the planet that has been discovered ....so carbon dense that in effect it is one mahoosive diamond and the couple of others that are so surreal but probably stunningly beautiful that they will not support human life(yet).
They are out there and have been discovered.
Keep looking up people.
TelevisionUser
17-04-2016
Originally Posted by atg:
“And of course a star that will outlive the sun, otherwise it's a bit pointless.”

The good news is that the great majority of stars within a 20 light year radius of Earth are of the star types G, K and M which are relatively long lived [our Sun = G2 class]

Originally Posted by Keyser_Soze1:
“A more in depth article (from The Atlantic) on Starshot.

http://www.theatlantic.com/science/a...ntauri/477669/”

That is a very useful article because it gives a broad figure for the cost of the final, complete project, i.e. in the billions range. The UK spent $30 billion on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the USA spent 10x that much. The UK spending alone would pay for 6 return trips to Mars and probably 6 complete Starshot projects so it is do-able (there is the political will to do the wars but not to go to Mars or to build Starshot and it inadvertantly shows that humanity is not at any civilised level and shouldn't really be allowed out of the pen of this solar system at this time).

Within that 20 light year radius of Earth I previously mentioned, my money is on there being at least one or more Earth- or Mars-like worlds out there that are worth sending Starshot probes to. Incidentally, Starshot would be very handy for the exporation of the outer solar system, e.g. Eris, Planet NIne (if and when it's discovered).

And now for some dreamtime:

https://cnet4.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r...kepler186f.jpg

http://annesastronomynews.com/wp-con...ble-Worlds.jpg

http://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/624/c...6_84457225.jpg
andy1231
17-04-2016
Originally Posted by atg:
“A more dedicated Trekker would know the reason for this:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_...xt_Generation)

”

I think Gene Roddenberry reasoned that the human form was the most efficient for higher intelligence in beings ie 2 arms 2 legs 2 eyes, head at the top etc. Not sure if this will turn out to be true should we ever encounter alien life.
Also of course it was easier to cast human actors in alien roles
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