The uncertainty of science: The extrasolar planet discovered orbiting Gliese 581 in its habitable zone might not exist, according to other scientists.
The world’s first everything-proof underground luxury community. Fun quote:
The Barstow bunker was built to withstand a 50-megaton nuclear blast 10 miles away, 450mph winds, a magnitude-10 earthquake, 10 days of 1,250°F surface fires, and three weeks beneath any flood. Vicino says that a soon-to-be-installed air-filtration system will also neutralize any biological, chemical or nuclear attacks. The Barstow branch will stock enough food and clothing to sustain 135 people for at least a year, and in a lifestyle that Vicino describes as compact but luxurious, like being on a cruise ship.
The first trapped Chilean miner is expected to be hauled from the mine sometime before midnight tonight.
The possibilities for China’s Chang’e 2 lunar probe include travel far beyond the Moon.
Based on the pace of discovery, scientists expect to discover the 500th extrasolar planet by the end of October.
A lost Michelangelo painting found in upstate New York home.
The state of NASA’s commercial crew program. Key quote:
The Obama administration requested $3.3 billion for commercial crew services over the next three years, but a so-called compromise bill forged in the Senate slashed the proposal in half. After months of heated contention, the House of Representatives finally agreed to the Senate authorization bill in late September, calling for $1.6 billion for the commercial program.
Five of the 33 trapped Chilean miners “originally formed breakway group“.
A 20 foot diameter asteroid is going to zip past the Earth on Tuesday, passing over East Asia only 28,000 miles away.
Obama signed the NASA authorization bill today.
Update and bumped: This Spaceflight Now article includes this quote from Senator Bill Nelson (D-Florida):
“What is in this bill is $11.5 billion over the next six years, anticipated, even though it’s a three-year authorization, for development and testing of a heavy lift rocket. Now if we can’t develop a new rocket for $11.5 billion, building on a lot of the technologies that were already developed in spending $9 billion (on the Constellation program’s Ares rockets), if we can’t do it for that, then we ought to question whether or not we can build a rocket.”
Based on NASA’s track record in trying to build a replacement to the shuttle, I remain very skeptical indeed whether NASA can build this rocket. I do hope, however, that my skepticism is proven wrong.
Note also that the funding for this authorization bill is as yet not appropriated. Plans to do so during the lame duck session of Congress after the elections remain fraught with problems.
The law of unintended consequences: Why ObamaCare killed child-only health plans.
The religion of peace strikes again! The Muslim Brotherhood, one of Islam’s most dominant political organizations, has declared war on the United States.
The various partners running the ISS are considering using it as a platform to launch an orbital manned mission to the Moon.
Archeologists have found 400,000 year old spears in what appears to have been an ancient lake shore hunting ground, suggesting that organized hunting occurred far sooner than previously believed.
Spaceweather.com noted yesterday that the amateur astronomers have reported the X-37B space plane missing. It did not show up when expected, based on its known orbit. Key quote:
It’s possible that the X-37B has landed. More likely, the space plane has maneuvered into a new orbit and will be recovered again in the nights ahead.
The discovery by scientists of carbonate rock deep below the Martian surface suggests the planet once had a rich carbon dioxide atmosphere. It also suggests that conditions might be more habitable for life deep underground.
Rescue shaft breaks through to Chilean miners.
Things must be looking up! The trapped Chilean miners are now arguing about who should be the last to exit.
After a three day stretch of blankness, a new sunspot has appeared on the Sun. The question remains: Have we now seen the last blank day for the just ending solar minimum?
The effort of NASA administrator Charles Bolden to increase cooperation with China is apparently in direct conflict with the wishes of Congress.
Japanese scientists have announced that the particles found in the Hayabusa return capsule are mostly made up of rocky materials.
The December Soyuz flight to ISS will be delayed due to the damage the capsule received during its transport by rail to Baikonur.
Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo made its first solo flight and landing today.
Physicist resigns from the American Physical Society over climategate. Key quote:
It is of course, the global warming scam, with the (literally) trillions of dollars driving it, that has corrupted so many scientists, and has carried APS before it like a rogue wave. It is the greatest and most successful pseudoscientific fraud I have seen in my long life as a physicist.
An evening pause: With the death of film director Roy Ward Baker yesterday, I think it appropriate to watch a clip from one of his classics, A Night to Remember (1958). This understated but frighteningly powerful film captured the reality of the Titanic’s sinking in a style that is unfortunately rare today.
