Want to own and drive a car faster than 265 miles per hour? You can!
Want to own and drive a car able to go faster than 265 miles per hour? You can!
Want to own and drive a car able to go faster than 265 miles per hour? You can!
Author: Robert Zimmerman
Want to own and drive a car faster than 265 miles per hour? You can!
“The SLS program should be canceled now to free up approximately $10 billion programmed for this decade.”
I’m both glad and not surprised that some heavy hitters are beginning to say this. As I noted last year, as the commercial space program begins to show success the politics will increasingly favor it over the very expensive and not very productive NASA-built Space Launch System.
Be prepared for SLS to steadily lose political support in the coming years.
I’m both glad and not surprised that some heavy hitters are beginning to say this. As I noted last year, as the commercial space program begins to show success the politics will increasingly favor it over the very expensive and not very productive NASA-built Space Launch System.
Be prepared for SLS to steadily lose political support in the coming years.
The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer on ISS has detected a surplus of positrons, anti-matter electrons, that physicists believe are caused by the existence of dark matter.
The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer on ISS has detected a surplus of positrons, anti-matter electrons, that physicists believe are caused by the existence of dark matter.
The lead scientist of the experiment also emphasized that dark matter is not the only possible explanation, and that “The detailed interpretation of our data probably will have many theories.”
The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer on ISS has detected a surplus of positrons, anti-matter electrons, that physicists believe are caused by the existence of dark matter.
The lead scientist of the experiment also emphasized that dark matter is not the only possible explanation, and that “The detailed interpretation of our data probably will have many theories.”
North Korea on Wednesday closed access to the Kaesong Industrial Park, a joint factory zone with South Korea.
Bad news: North Korea on Wednesday closed access to the Kaesong Industrial Park, a joint factory zone with South Korea.
Experts on the Korean situation had noted that we shouldn’t take seriously the harsh language coming out of North Korea as long as Kaesong was in operation. Thus, this news is very bad indeed.
Bad news: North Korea on Wednesday closed access to the Kaesong Industrial Park, a joint factory zone with South Korea.
Experts on the Korean situation had noted that we shouldn’t take seriously the harsh language coming out of North Korea as long as Kaesong was in operation. Thus, this news is very bad indeed.
10 More Amazing Science Stunts
An evening pause: I especially like the trick where you pick up a penny from the bottom of a dish filled with water, without getting wet.
An evening pause: I especially like the trick where you pick up a penny from the bottom of a dish filled with water, without getting wet.
New computer simulations suggest that the spiral arms of galaxies are not only a natural phenomenon but that they are a persistent one.
New computer simulations suggest that the spiral arms of galaxies are not only a natural phenomenon but that they are a persistent one.
New computer simulations suggest that the spiral arms of galaxies are not only a natural phenomenon but that they are a persistent one.
An audit of California’s fiscal state has found it to be $127 billion in the red.
The day of reckoning looms: An audit of California’s fiscal state has found it to be $127 billion in the red.
Were California’s state government a business, it would be a candidate for insolvency with a negative net worth of $127.2 billion, according to an annual financial report issued by State Auditor Elaine Howle and the Bureau of State Audits. The report, which covers the fiscal year ending June 30, 2012, says that the state’s negative status — all of its assets minus all of its liabilities — increased that year, largely because it spent more than it received in revenue. [emphasis mine]
None of this is a surprise. California voters chose Jerry Brown and the Democrats to lead them into more debt.
The day of reckoning looms: An audit of California’s fiscal state has found it to be $127 billion in the red.
Were California’s state government a business, it would be a candidate for insolvency with a negative net worth of $127.2 billion, according to an annual financial report issued by State Auditor Elaine Howle and the Bureau of State Audits. The report, which covers the fiscal year ending June 30, 2012, says that the state’s negative status — all of its assets minus all of its liabilities — increased that year, largely because it spent more than it received in revenue. [emphasis mine]
None of this is a surprise. California voters chose Jerry Brown and the Democrats to lead them into more debt.
Astronomers watch the central supermassive black hole of a galaxy eat something, either a planet or a brown dwarf.
Astronomers watch the central supermassive black hole of a galaxy eat something, either a planet or a brown dwarf.
Astronomers were using Integral to study a different galaxy when they noticed a bright X-ray flare coming from another location in the same wide field-of-view. Using XMM-Newton, the origin was confirmed as NGC 4845, a galaxy never before detected at high energies. Along with Swift and MAXI, the emission was traced from its maximum in January 2011, when the galaxy brightened by a factor of a thousand, and then as it subsided over the course of the year. “The observation was completely unexpected, from a galaxy that has been quiet for at least 20–30 years,” says Marek Nikolajuk of the University of Bialystok, Poland, lead author of the paper in Astronomy & Astrophysics.
By analysing the characteristics of the flare, the astronomers could determine that the emission came from a halo of material around the galaxy’s central black hole as it tore apart and fed on an object of 14–30 Jupiter masses. This size range corresponds to brown dwarfs, substellar objects that are not massive enough to fuse hydrogen in their core and ignite as stars. However, the authors note that it could have had an even lower mass, just a few times that of Jupiter, placing it in the range of gas-giant planets.
All the instruments listed above are orbiting space telescopes. You can read the science paper here.
Astronomers watch the central supermassive black hole of a galaxy eat something, either a planet or a brown dwarf.
Astronomers were using Integral to study a different galaxy when they noticed a bright X-ray flare coming from another location in the same wide field-of-view. Using XMM-Newton, the origin was confirmed as NGC 4845, a galaxy never before detected at high energies. Along with Swift and MAXI, the emission was traced from its maximum in January 2011, when the galaxy brightened by a factor of a thousand, and then as it subsided over the course of the year. “The observation was completely unexpected, from a galaxy that has been quiet for at least 20–30 years,” says Marek Nikolajuk of the University of Bialystok, Poland, lead author of the paper in Astronomy & Astrophysics.
By analysing the characteristics of the flare, the astronomers could determine that the emission came from a halo of material around the galaxy’s central black hole as it tore apart and fed on an object of 14–30 Jupiter masses. This size range corresponds to brown dwarfs, substellar objects that are not massive enough to fuse hydrogen in their core and ignite as stars. However, the authors note that it could have had an even lower mass, just a few times that of Jupiter, placing it in the range of gas-giant planets.
All the instruments listed above are orbiting space telescopes. You can read the science paper here.
Cover story: Exploring Caves in Space
Bernadette Peters & Stephen Sondheim – Send In the Clowns
An evening pause: An apropos song I think for April Fools. That’s Stephen Sondheim on the piano, accompanying Bernadette Peters.
James Hansen is retiring from NASA and will dedicate his time to global warming activism.
James Hansen is retiring from NASA and will dedicate his time to global warming activism.
All that is really changing is that Hansen will no longer work for the government. The activism has been going on for a very long time.
Also, it is interesting how this New York Times article seems very unaware of this fact, which makes all of Hansen’s global warming claims very suspect. Might the Times not want the public to know this annoying detail?
James Hansen is retiring from NASA and will dedicate his time to global warming activism.
All that is really changing is that Hansen will no longer work for the government. The activism has been going on for a very long time.
Also, it is interesting how this New York Times article seems very unaware of this fact, which makes all of Hansen’s global warming claims very suspect. Might the Times not want the public to know this annoying detail?
Homeland Security has been claiming that it has the authority to inspect private safety deposit boxes without warrants.
Does this make you feel safer, or more free? Since 2011 Homeland Security has been claiming that it has the authority to inspect private safety deposit boxes without warrants.
Does this make you feel safer, or more free? Since 2011 Homeland Security has been claiming that it has the authority to inspect private safety deposit boxes without warrants.
Are your indoor tomato plants probable cause for an armed raid?
Are your indoor tomato plants probable cause for an armed raid?
Yes, if it was up to most police departments and governments today.
Are your indoor tomato plants probable cause for an armed raid?
Yes, if it was up to most police departments and governments today.
Astronomers searching the WISE infrared data archive think they might find a Jupiter-sized planet lurking near the Oort Cloud.
Astronomers searching the WISE infrared data archive think they might find a Jupiter-sized planet lurking near the Oort Cloud.
Astronomers searching the WISE infrared data archive think they might find a Jupiter-sized planet lurking near the Oort Cloud.
Debbie Reynolds – Tammy
An evening pause: If you listen real close to the second movement of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, you will hear the roots of this lovely song.
At a cave rescue course
Posting this weekend is light because I am attending a class here in Tucson on cave rescue. Today, Saturday, was a mostly in class session going over the basics, most of which I am very familiar with from many years of experience. We did spend ninety minutes learning how to carry people around in a sked or sled, two different types of equipment used to carry a patient through difficult cave passage. In this case the terrain was simulated by going up, over, under, and around scaffolding and vehicles inside a garage. Lots of fun.
On Sunday we will be doing a mock rescue, whereby we will arrive at a cave entrance where we will have to locate the patient in the cave and get that person out of the cave safely. Should be most interesting.
Posting this weekend is light because I am attending a class here in Tucson on cave rescue. Today, Saturday, was a mostly in class session going over the basics, most of which I am very familiar with from many years of experience. We did spend ninety minutes learning how to carry people around in a sked or sled, two different types of equipment used to carry a patient through difficult cave passage. In this case the terrain was simulated by going up, over, under, and around scaffolding and vehicles inside a garage. Lots of fun.
On Sunday we will be doing a mock rescue, whereby we will arrive at a cave entrance where we will have to locate the patient in the cave and get that person out of the cave safely. Should be most interesting.
Connie Dover – I am going to the west
An evening pause: On this the first anniversary of the day we moved into our dream home, on a western hill of Tucson overlooking the mountains and the city, let us revisit this magnificent song by Connie Dover, this time sung live.
A boycott of Colorado because of its new gun restrictions appears to building among hunters.
Pushback: A boycott of Colorado because of its new gun restrictions appears to building among hunters.
Pushback: A boycott of Colorado because of its new gun restrictions appears to building among hunters.
What it feels like to have your life savings stolen by the global elite.
Coming to America: What it feels like to have your life savings stolen by the global elite.
Coming to America: What it feels like to have your life savings stolen by the global elite.
Riverdance – violins
An evening pause: I am usually not a big fan of the big production Irish shows like Riverdance or Celtic Woman, as often the heart of the music gets lost in the big production. Here, however, they keep it somewhat simple, and the result is we see some good fiddling.
The collapse of household income since 2009.
The collapse of household income since 2009.
A comparison of the graph in the article above with the changing federal debt (both graphs below the fold) is quite revealing. The steep drop in household income in 2009 lines up precisely with the steep rise in federal deficits beginning in 2009. I wonder if they have anything to do with each other? The article also notes the possible negative impact of Obamacare. How could they think such a thing?
» Read more
The collapse of household income since 2009.
A comparison of the graph in the article above with the changing federal debt (both graphs below the fold) is quite revealing. The steep drop in household income in 2009 lines up precisely with the steep rise in federal deficits beginning in 2009. I wonder if they have anything to do with each other? The article also notes the possible negative impact of Obamacare. How could they think such a thing?
» Read more
“We’re just not interested in continuing to support bureaucracies and talkfests.”
Canada to the UN environmental movement: “We’re just not interested in continuing to support bureaucracies and talkfests.”
The country has pulled out of a UN program supposedly aimed at “combating desertification,” noting that
only 18% of the roughly CAD$350,000 per year that Canada contributed to the U.N. initiative is “actually spent on programming,” [Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper] told Parliament this week during question period. “The rest goes to various bureaucratic measures. … It’s not an effective way to spend taxpayers’ money.”
As is their normal approach to debate, there is a lot of wailing, gnashing of teeth, and name-calling among the environmentalists, but no substantive response to counter Harper’s point above.
Canada to the UN environmental movement: “We’re just not interested in continuing to support bureaucracies and talkfests.”
The country has pulled out of a UN program supposedly aimed at “combating desertification,” noting that
only 18% of the roughly CAD$350,000 per year that Canada contributed to the U.N. initiative is “actually spent on programming,” [Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper] told Parliament this week during question period. “The rest goes to various bureaucratic measures. … It’s not an effective way to spend taxpayers’ money.”
As is their normal approach to debate, there is a lot of wailing, gnashing of teeth, and name-calling among the environmentalists, but no substantive response to counter Harper’s point above.
One very good sign that North Korea’s recent warlike threats are merely posturing.
One very good sign that North Korea’s recent warlike threats are merely posturing.
[W]e do have one pretty good metric with which to judge the country’s intentions: the Kaesong Industrial Complex. The Kaesong Industrial Complex, located just across the northern side of the border, is staffed by South and North Koreans. It can’t function without Pyongyang’s daily okay. If the North suddenly shuts down Kaesong at some point, watch out. But as long as it’s still running, as it has been throughout the provocations and tensions of the last few weeks, we can probably – probably — assume that North Korea is not actually planning to launch a war.
And the complex is still in operation.
One very good sign that North Korea’s recent warlike threats are merely posturing.
[W]e do have one pretty good metric with which to judge the country’s intentions: the Kaesong Industrial Complex. The Kaesong Industrial Complex, located just across the northern side of the border, is staffed by South and North Koreans. It can’t function without Pyongyang’s daily okay. If the North suddenly shuts down Kaesong at some point, watch out. But as long as it’s still running, as it has been throughout the provocations and tensions of the last few weeks, we can probably – probably — assume that North Korea is not actually planning to launch a war.
And the complex is still in operation.
“The fact that global surface temperatures have not followed the expected global warming pattern is now widely accepted.”
The uncertainty of science: “The fact that global surface temperatures have not followed the expected global warming pattern is now widely accepted.”
This quote above refers to scientists in the climate field, who are now admitting that for the past 20 years the climate has shown no warming, despite the continuing increase in CO2 in the atmosphere and their computer models that all predicted increased temperatures because of that CO2.
The uncertainty of science: “The fact that global surface temperatures have not followed the expected global warming pattern is now widely accepted.”
This quote above refers to scientists in the climate field, who are now admitting that for the past 20 years the climate has shown no warming, despite the continuing increase in CO2 in the atmosphere and their computer models that all predicted increased temperatures because of that CO2.
India has successfully tested a homebuilt engine to be used in its more powerful geosynchronous launch rocket, set for launch in July.
The competition heats up: India has successfully tested a homebuilt engine to be used in its more powerful geosynchronous launch rocket, set for launch in July. More here.
Previous launches of the GSLV rocket used a Russian-built engine on a second stage. They also ended in failure, not because of the Russian equipment but because of other problems.
The competition heats up: India has successfully tested a homebuilt engine to be used in its more powerful geosynchronous launch rocket, set for launch in July. More here.
Previous launches of the GSLV rocket used a Russian-built engine on a second stage. They also ended in failure, not because of the Russian equipment but because of other problems.
After a fast four orbit/six hour flight a Soyuz capsule carrying there astronauts has successfully docked with ISS.
After a fast four orbit/six hour flight a Soyuz capsule carrying there astronauts has successfully docked with ISS.
After a fast four orbit/six hour flight a Soyuz capsule carrying there astronauts has successfully docked with ISS.
Rachel Barton Pine – Molly on the Shore by Percy Grainger
An evening pause: The pace and speed of this music might make us feel breathless, but she’s having so much fun playing it!
There astronauts were successfully launched today from Russia and are expected to dock with ISS later tonight.
Three astronauts were successfully launched today from Russia and are expected to dock with ISS later tonight.
They are the first crew to use the fast route to ISS, only six hours, rather than the more traditional two day rendezvous path.
Three astronauts were successfully launched today from Russia and are expected to dock with ISS later tonight.
They are the first crew to use the fast route to ISS, only six hours, rather than the more traditional two day rendezvous path.
Elon Musk confirms that on future Falcon 9 launches they will do tests of a powered return of the first stage.
The competition heats up: Elon Musk confirms that on future Falcon 9 launches they will do tests of a powered return of the first stage.
For the upcoming flight, after stage separation the first stage booster will do a burn to slow it down and then a second burn just before it reaches the water. In subsequent flights they will continue these over-water tests. He repeatedly emphasized that he expects several failures before they learn how to do it right. If all goes well with the over-water tests, they will fly back to launch site and land propulsively. He expects this could happen by mid-2014.
These tests are an extension of the Grasshopper tests, only this time they will take place during an actual launch.
The competition heats up: Elon Musk confirms that on future Falcon 9 launches they will do tests of a powered return of the first stage.
For the upcoming flight, after stage separation the first stage booster will do a burn to slow it down and then a second burn just before it reaches the water. In subsequent flights they will continue these over-water tests. He repeatedly emphasized that he expects several failures before they learn how to do it right. If all goes well with the over-water tests, they will fly back to launch site and land propulsively. He expects this could happen by mid-2014.
These tests are an extension of the Grasshopper tests, only this time they will take place during an actual launch.
Science and sequestration in context
On March 21, the House accepted the continuing resolution proposed by the Senate for the year 2013. This continuing resolution will fund everything in the federal government though September of this year, and includes the cuts imposed on March 1 by sequestration.
As it always does, the journal Science did a specific analysis of the science portion of this budget bill. As usual, they looked only at the trees, not the forest, comparing the budget changes up or down for the 2012 and 2013 years only, noting how those changes will impact each agency’s programs. As usual, Science also took the side for more federal spending, assuming that in each case any cut was sure to cause significant harm to the nation’s ability to do cutting edge science.
I like to take a wider and deeper view. Below is a chart showing how the budgets for these agencies have changed since 2008. They give a much clearer perspective of the consequences of sequestration and the cuts, if any, imposed by Congress on these science agencies.
» Read more