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Old 26-06-2010, 17:00
TelevisionUser
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...according to this news report here http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/science_a...t/10408113.stm and here http://www.astronomynow.com/news/n1006/25mars/

That liquid water existed on Mars indicates that the planet had a thicker atmosphere and was warmer. Whether that increased the possibility of primitive life evolving there is an unknown.
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Old 10-07-2010, 11:15
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The return capsule recovered from the Hayabusa spacecraft which landed on asteroid Itokawa and returned to Earth does contains dust particles.

However, it is too soon to say whether these dust particles orginate from the asteroid or from Earth. More on this story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/science_a...t/10519895.stm
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Old 10-07-2010, 11:22
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Total solar eclipse tomorrow. Easter Island will get doused in darkness.

See http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse.html
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Old 10-07-2010, 12:23
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Black hole blows huge gas bubble

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/science_a...t/10555633.stm
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Old 11-07-2010, 23:37
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Seems like Easter Island was lucky with the eclipse today!

See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/lat...a/10592671.stm
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Old 12-07-2010, 00:58
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They found a smaller planet orbiting a sun with a transiting larger planet, by observing variation in the length of transits. Presumably they can apply the same technique to other transiting systems, and get a better idea of the rarity of little planets like our own in systems with big planets. Maybe they'll be able to apply this straight to Kepler data. Pretty awesome.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0708192842.htm
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Old 12-07-2010, 01:05
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Technical question,
I recently got a reflecting telescope 4 inch (I think,)
having hell of a job lining up the sighting scope on the top so that it..lines up, hence it takes me bloody ages to find anything other than the moon, any tips on how to align the spotting scope?
thanks,
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Old 12-07-2010, 02:19
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Hiya OHG
If you haven't already tried it - do the alignment during the day, using something in the distance, such as a tree on a hillside, or if in town... on a TV aerial as far away as possible.

If you need help that's specific to the scope, could you post the make and model - or a pic of the finder..??

And if you think you'll get into the hobby, check out my astronomy forum.
(link is in my profile)
Lots of good people there - always happy to help a beginner.
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Old 12-07-2010, 13:39
OLD HIPPY GUY
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Hiya OHG
If you haven't already tried it - do the alignment during the day, using something in the distance, such as a tree on a hillside, or if in town... on a TV aerial as far away as possible.

If you need help that's specific to the scope, could you post the make and model - or a pic of the finder..??

And if you think you'll get into the hobby, check out my astronomy forum.
(link is in my profile)
Lots of good people there - always happy to help a beginner.
Thanks Carlos,
will give that a go, as for my "scope" all I know at the moment is that it has the word "traveller" written on its side, all the paperwork for it is up in the attic,
it's my first reflector, had a few refractors in my younger days,
the wife bought it for me as a Xmas present, problem is she didn't take into account the huge row of trees that overlook our yard, I have a very limited observation area hehe,
will check out your forum cheers,
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Old 12-07-2010, 20:13
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...as well as Carlos' rather good site, there a few other astronomy related sites worth a mention and the links are below:

http://www.astronomynow.com/

http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/

http://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/Default.asp?bhjs=0
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Old 13-07-2010, 12:03
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Has anyone else who's got an android smartphone installed the Google Sky Map app? It's one of the coolest things I've ever had on a phone but I'd be interested to know if it's actually very practical as an observation tool?
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Old 17-07-2010, 23:36
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Today is the 35th anniversary of the link up of Apollo with Soyuz.
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Old 19-07-2010, 21:12
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...are described in this article here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10639789.

Nasa's Messenger space probe is going round the smallest planet and it has identified volcanoes that are "only" a couple of billion years old. This means there must have been significant vulcanism on Mercury for its first two billion years of existence and its core must have remained molten for a similar period of time.
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Old 19-07-2010, 21:48
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Today is the 35th anniversary of the link up of Apollo with Soyuz.
Cool but a tad depressing.

Maybe there's hope ...
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Old 31-07-2010, 12:38
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There is a nice gathering of planets in the western sky just now. It is at its best tonight I think.

See http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100731.html
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Old 31-07-2010, 13:53
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The other night I was messing around with my digital camera and found a long exposure setting, so I set it to 30 seconds and pointed it up at the night sky (excuse the window frame on the side of the image) My question to you all is: are the blobby things in the image galaxies? you can see stars on the image so I know its not them. Unfortunately its only an 8mp camera that isn't designed for night shots and I haven't been able to try and do more to try and get a better image as it has been cloudy every night since.

My image.
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Old 31-07-2010, 15:01
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The other night I was messing around with my digital camera and found a long exposure setting, so I set it to 30 seconds and pointed it up at the night sky (excuse the window frame on the side of the image) My question to you all is: are the blobby things in the image galaxies? you can see stars on the image so I know its not them. Unfortunately its only an 8mp camera that isn't designed for night shots and I haven't been able to try and do more to try and get a better image as it has been cloudy every night since.

My image.
No.

The Andromeda Galaxy is closest to us and I think that is in one part of the galaxy and you'll notice it as gassy, foggy in pics and it will probably move in a 30 second exposure. Other galaxies are too distant and faint and far off for a 30 second exposure.

Looks like dust.
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Old 31-07-2010, 15:04
d'@ve
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The other night I was messing around with my digital camera and found a long exposure setting, so I set it to 30 seconds and pointed it up at the night sky (excuse the window frame on the side of the image) My question to you all is: are the blobby things in the image galaxies? you can see stars on the image so I know its not them. Unfortunately its only an 8mp camera that isn't designed for night shots and I haven't been able to try and do more to try and get a better image as it has been cloudy every night since.

My image.
You won't see galaxies on a photo taken with an ordinary digital camera, the marks look like dust or smudges on the lens, window glass or sensor to me. If they are stars, they are way out of focus.

Any astronomical objects in focus photographed with camera placed on a solid object or on a tripod and a 30 second exposure will show as a short streak due to the earth's rotation (or satellite movement).

What camera is it, what is the lens focal length and what manual control do you have (if any)?
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Old 31-07-2010, 15:49
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You won't see galaxies on a photo taken with an ordinary digital camera, the marks look like dust or smudges on the lens, window glass or sensor to me. If they are stars, they are way out of focus.

Any astronomical objects in focus photographed with camera placed on a solid object or on a tripod and a 30 second exposure will show as a short streak due to the earth's rotation (or satellite movement).

What camera is it, what is the lens focal length and what manual control do you have (if any)?
Thanks I know there is no smudges on the lens and it was taken with the window open, also they aren't stars as I can see stars when I zoom in. So I just wondered what they were.
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Old 03-08-2010, 12:15
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See http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100803.html
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Old 10-08-2010, 20:32
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...or even dryer according to very recently published research in Science magazine. After analysing rock samples brought back by the Apollo astronauts, the researchers found that there was no or very little hydrogen in the magma ocean during the Moon's formation.

That means there was little chance of useful amounts of water being present so Earth's natural satellite may have always been too dry to host life. More on this story here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10880032.

This is separate from the ice at the poles issue and the indications are that ice from comet impacts, etc. has been preserved in some shady craters at the Moon's poles. This has potential positive implications for resources for any future human explorers or colonists.
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Old 18-08-2010, 22:20
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http://www.space.com/spacewatch/nept...adline+Feed%29

Neptune will be returning close to the spot where it was discovered in 1846, marking its first complete trip around the sun since its discovery.
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Old 19-08-2010, 23:30
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http://www.space.com/spacewatch/nept...adline+Feed%29

Neptune will be returning close to the spot where it was discovered in 1846, marking its first complete trip around the sun since its discovery.
Indeed, KJ44. The discovery of that blue world (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptune) has been attributed to both John Couch Adams and Urbain Le Verrier. Although roughly the same size as Uranus, it certainly has a more active atmosphere and a large and interesting moon - Triton.

Neptune's also been in the news recently too. Neptune, like Jupiter and Mars, has a Trojan asteroid sharing its orbit - see here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10954453. Trojan asteroids http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_asteroids inhabit the gravitational neutral points (Lagrangian points http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagrangian_point) that occur between two significant bodies but they don't collide with the planet concerned because they stay within those neutral zones which lie in advance of, and behind, the planet's orbit.
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Old 19-08-2010, 23:40
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Indeed, KJ44. The discovery of that blue world (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptune) has been attributed to both John Couch Adams and Urbain Le Verrier. Although roughly the same size as Uranus, it certainly has a more active atmosphere and a large and interesting moon - Triton.

Neptune's also been in the news recently too. Neptune, like Jupiter and Mars, has a Trojan asteroid sharing its orbit - see here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10954453. Trojan asteroids http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_asteroids inhabit the gravitational neutral points (Lagrangian points http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagrangian_point) that occur between two significant bodies but they don't collide with the planet concerned because they stay within those netral zones which lie in advance of, and behind, the planet's orbit.
Wow that that is very interesting.

It reminds me of a certain media personality who was talking about the Voyager enounter with Neptune a few years before it was due. She said "I predict they will find rings around Neptune". Hold on....hadn't someone already done that?
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Old 23-08-2010, 09:00
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Nice video of aurora australis. See http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/collecti...85nk0#p00380m2
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