Category: Points of Information
Very brief descriptions, with appropriate links, of current or recent news items.
Why is the NASA Astronaut Office Censoring Astronaut Don Pettit’s Blog?
Mars Express has found more evidence that Mars once had oceans.
Mars Express has found more evidence that Mars once had oceans.
Two oceans have been proposed: 4 billion years ago, when warmer conditions prevailed, and also 3 billion years ago when subsurface ice melted following a large impact, creating outflow channels that drained the water into areas of low elevation.
“MARSIS penetrates deep into the ground, revealing the first 60–80 metres of the planet’s subsurface,” says Wlodek Kofman, leader of the radar team at IPAG. “Throughout all of this depth, we see the evidence for sedimentary material and ice.” The sediments revealed by MARSIS are areas of low radar reflectivity. Such sediments are typically low-density granular materials that have been eroded away by water and carried to their final destination.
This later ocean would however have been temporary. Within a million years or less, Dr Mouginot estimates, the water would have either frozen back in place and been preserved underground again, or turned into vapour and lifted gradually into the atmosphere. “I don’t think it could have stayed as an ocean long enough for life to form.”
Mars Express has found more evidence that Mars once had oceans.
Two oceans have been proposed: 4 billion years ago, when warmer conditions prevailed, and also 3 billion years ago when subsurface ice melted following a large impact, creating outflow channels that drained the water into areas of low elevation.
“MARSIS penetrates deep into the ground, revealing the first 60–80 metres of the planet’s subsurface,” says Wlodek Kofman, leader of the radar team at IPAG. “Throughout all of this depth, we see the evidence for sedimentary material and ice.” The sediments revealed by MARSIS are areas of low radar reflectivity. Such sediments are typically low-density granular materials that have been eroded away by water and carried to their final destination.
This later ocean would however have been temporary. Within a million years or less, Dr Mouginot estimates, the water would have either frozen back in place and been preserved underground again, or turned into vapour and lifted gradually into the atmosphere. “I don’t think it could have stayed as an ocean long enough for life to form.”
Nine unique and unusual travel spots
Nine unique and unusual travel destinations.
The universe is a strange and wonderful place. Go out and see it.
Nine unique and unusual travel destinations.
The universe is a strange and wonderful place. Go out and see it.
Using images taken by its lunar probe Chang’e 2, China today published a high resolution global map of the Moon.
Using images taken by its lunar probe Chang’e-2, China today published a high resolution global map of the Moon.
Using images taken by its lunar probe Chang’e-2, China today published a high resolution global map of the Moon.
Studying fire in space
Obamacare vs. the Catholics
Religious liberty is such an inconvenient thing: Obamacare vs. the Catholics.
And then there’s this: An affront Catholics agree on.
And this: The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America has announced its unanimous support of the Catholic Church and opposition to the Obama Administration over the new Obamacare regulations.
My question is this: if Obama should back down before the election and cancel these odious regulations, will the liberal church leaders forget the whole thing and support him again, or will they finally wake up and see him for what he is: an arrogant power-hungry politician eager to force his will on everyone, regardless of their beliefs?
Religious liberty is such an inconvenient thing: Obamacare vs. the Catholics.
And then there’s this: An affront Catholics agree on.
And this: The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America has announced its unanimous support of the Catholic Church and opposition to the Obama Administration over the new Obamacare regulations.
My question is this: if Obama should back down before the election and cancel these odious regulations, will the liberal church leaders forget the whole thing and support him again, or will they finally wake up and see him for what he is: an arrogant power-hungry politician eager to force his will on everyone, regardless of their beliefs?
Space technology at the Super Bowl
More than 6,000 people submitted their applications to NASA last week to become astronauts, the most since 1978.
More than 6,000 people submitted their applications to NASA last week to become astronauts, the most since 1978.
Once again, this is strong evidence that Americans want to explore space, and that there is a market out there for private enterprise to cash in on. NASA doesn’t even have a way to put any of these astronauts into space, and yet, people come out in droves to apply.
More than 6,000 people submitted their applications to NASA last week to become astronauts, the most since 1978.
Once again, this is strong evidence that Americans want to explore space, and that there is a market out there for private enterprise to cash in on. NASA doesn’t even have a way to put any of these astronauts into space, and yet, people come out in droves to apply.
More and more the Atlas V appears to be “the vehicle of choice for manned missions.”
More and more the Atlas V appears to be “the vehicle of choice for manned missions.” Key quote:
NASA could have gone down this path last decade and possibly shaved years — and billions of dollars — off the development time of a capability to carry astronauts to the space station.
More and more the Atlas V appears to be “the vehicle of choice for manned missions.” Key quote:
NASA could have gone down this path last decade and possibly shaved years — and billions of dollars — off the development time of a capability to carry astronauts to the space station.
Attack of the blobs
President Obama versus religious liberty
Mitt Romney: President Obama versus religious liberty.
Mitt Romney: President Obama versus religious liberty.
For the last five days there has been no contact with the Russian scientists drilling down more than two miles to Lake Vostok in Antarctica.
Updated and bumped: Six days now, and no word.
Fact meets science fiction: For the last five days there has been no contact with the Russian scientists drilling down more than two miles to Lake Vostok in Antarctica.
The team from Russia’s Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) have been drilling for weeks in an effort to reach isolated Lake Vostok, a vast, dark body of water hidden 13,000 ft. below the ice sheet’s surface. The lake hasn’t been exposed to air in more than 20 million years.
Priscu said there was no way to get in touch with the team — and the already cold weather is set to plunge, as Antarctica’s summer season ends and winter sets in. “Temps are dropping below -40 Celsius [-40 degrees Fahrenheit] and they have only a week or so left before they have to winterize the station,” he said. “I can only imagine what things must be like at Vostok Station this week.”
Updated and bumped: Six days now, and no word.
Fact meets science fiction: For the last five days there has been no contact with the Russian scientists drilling down more than two miles to Lake Vostok in Antarctica.
The team from Russia’s Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) have been drilling for weeks in an effort to reach isolated Lake Vostok, a vast, dark body of water hidden 13,000 ft. below the ice sheet’s surface. The lake hasn’t been exposed to air in more than 20 million years.
Priscu said there was no way to get in touch with the team — and the already cold weather is set to plunge, as Antarctica’s summer season ends and winter sets in. “Temps are dropping below -40 Celsius [-40 degrees Fahrenheit] and they have only a week or so left before they have to winterize the station,” he said. “I can only imagine what things must be like at Vostok Station this week.”
R.I.P: Roger Boisjoly, 73, has died.
R.I.P: Roger Boisjoly, 73, has died.
Boisjoly was the engineer who in 1985 warned NASA about the danger of launching the shuttle in cold weather, that the solid rocket booster’s joints might not seal correctly under those conditions, thereby causing a catastrophic failure. Sadly, he was ignored, even ostracized, and on January 28, 1986, Challenger broke apart 74 seconds after launch, killing seven astronauts.
R.I.P: Roger Boisjoly, 73, has died.
Boisjoly was the engineer who in 1985 warned NASA about the danger of launching the shuttle in cold weather, that the solid rocket booster’s joints might not seal correctly under those conditions, thereby causing a catastrophic failure. Sadly, he was ignored, even ostracized, and on January 28, 1986, Challenger broke apart 74 seconds after launch, killing seven astronauts.
Arizona State University (ASU) blocks access to a petition-hosting site right after university officials discover the site includes a petition calling for lower ASU tuitions.
Modern academic debate: Arizona State University (ASU) has blocked access to a petition-hosting site right after university officials discovered the site includes a petition calling for lower ASU tuitions.
Modern academic debate: Arizona State University (ASU) has blocked access to a petition-hosting site right after university officials discovered the site includes a petition calling for lower ASU tuitions.
On Sunday the Army acted to silence its chaplains from reading the Catholic letter condemning the Obama administration’s requirement that churches pay for abortions and contraception in violation of their religious principles.
We don’t need no stinkin’ First Amendment: On Sunday the Army acted to silence its chaplains from reading the Catholic letter condemning the Obama administration’s requirement that churches pay for abortions and contraception in violation of their religious principles.
We don’t need no stinkin’ First Amendment: On Sunday the Army acted to silence its chaplains from reading the Catholic letter condemning the Obama administration’s requirement that churches pay for abortions and contraception in violation of their religious principles.
Iran’s state media today announced that the country had used its own rocket to put into orbit a small weather/Earth observation microsat,
Iran’s state media today announced that the country had used its own rocket to put into orbit a small weather/Earth observation microsat.
Iran’s state media today announced that the country had used its own rocket to put into orbit a small weather/Earth observation microsat.
Virgin Galactic hopes to begin the first powered flight tests of SpaceShipTwo this coming summer.
Getting close: Virgin Galactic hopes to begin the first powered flight tests of SpaceShipTwo this coming summer.
“Over the next few months we’re integrating parts and pieces of the hybrid rocket motor into the SpaceShipTwo airframe, completing ground testing of the rocket motor, and then [will] try and start powered flight over the summer,” [chief executive officer and president George] Whitesides told SPACE.com. Those rocket-powered flights, he said, will continue for some period of time. Whitesides said it looks possible “to get up to space altitude by the end of the year, if all goes well.”
The company is also building a second WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo,
Getting close: Virgin Galactic hopes to begin the first powered flight tests of SpaceShipTwo this coming summer.
“Over the next few months we’re integrating parts and pieces of the hybrid rocket motor into the SpaceShipTwo airframe, completing ground testing of the rocket motor, and then [will] try and start powered flight over the summer,” [chief executive officer and president George] Whitesides told SPACE.com. Those rocket-powered flights, he said, will continue for some period of time. Whitesides said it looks possible “to get up to space altitude by the end of the year, if all goes well.”
The company is also building a second WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo,
More than 40 non-Catholic religious organizations, including both Jews and Protestants, have declared their “solidarity” with the Catholics against the Obama administrations new health regulations.
More than 40 non-Catholic religious organizations, including both Jews and Protestants, have declared their “solidarity” with the Catholics against the Obama administration’s new health regulations under Obamacare.
More than 40 non-Catholic religious organizations, including both Jews and Protestants, have declared their “solidarity” with the Catholics against the Obama administration’s new health regulations under Obamacare.
Union membership dropped by 16,000 last year in Wisconsin.
Those protests apparently backfired: Union membership dropped by 16,000 last year in Wisconsin.
Those protests apparently backfired: Union membership dropped by 16,000 last year in Wisconsin.
New dates, March 20 and May 15 respectively, have been set for the ISS launches of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule and the next manned Soyuz capsule.
New dates, March 20 and May 15 respectively, have been set for the ISS launches of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule and the next manned Soyuz capsule.
The launch date for Dragon, however, is far more tentative.
New dates, March 20 and May 15 respectively, have been set for the ISS launches of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule and the next manned Soyuz capsule.
The launch date for Dragon, however, is far more tentative.
“This issue isn’t going away for the president; it too clearly reveals his indifference to those he thinks he doesn’t need.”
Another superEarth has been found orbiting a star in the habitable zone.
Another superEarth has been found orbiting a star in the habitable zone.
An M-class dwarf star called GJ 667C, which is 22 light-years away from Earth, had previously been observed to have a super-Earth (called GJ 667Cb) that orbited the star in only 7.2 days, making it too close to the star, and thus too hot, to support life.
The study started with the aim of learning more about the orbit of GJ 667Cb. But the research team found a clear signal of a new planet (GJ 667Cc) with an orbital period of 28.15 days and a minimum mass of 4.5 times that of Earth.
Though the planet is much closer to its star than the Earth, the star itself is much smaller and dimmer, so overall the planet gets about the same amount of energy as the Earth.
Another superEarth has been found orbiting a star in the habitable zone.
An M-class dwarf star called GJ 667C, which is 22 light-years away from Earth, had previously been observed to have a super-Earth (called GJ 667Cb) that orbited the star in only 7.2 days, making it too close to the star, and thus too hot, to support life.
The study started with the aim of learning more about the orbit of GJ 667Cb. But the research team found a clear signal of a new planet (GJ 667Cc) with an orbital period of 28.15 days and a minimum mass of 4.5 times that of Earth.
Though the planet is much closer to its star than the Earth, the star itself is much smaller and dimmer, so overall the planet gets about the same amount of energy as the Earth.
Six charts from the Congressional Budget Office that will scare the bejeebers out of you
Six charts from the Congressional Budget Office that will scare the bejeebers out of you.
Six charts from the Congressional Budget Office that will scare the bejeebers out of you.
The scale of the universe
Want to know where we fit in the actual scale of the universe? Go here.
Want to know where we fit in the actual scale of the universe? Go here.
The Palestinians in Gaza fired seven rockets into Israel on Wednesday.
Land for peace: On Wednesday the Palestinians in Gaza fired seven rockets into Israel.
Remember how the Israelis were promised peace if they would only leave Gaza? They did, and have gotten nothing but rocket attacks since.
Land for peace: On Wednesday the Palestinians in Gaza fired seven rockets into Israel.
Remember how the Israelis were promised peace if they would only leave Gaza? They did, and have gotten nothing but rocket attacks since.
A report tonight at the Daily Caller says that at least two Justice Department prosecutors accepted cash bribes from allegedly corrupt finance executives who were indicted but never arrested or prosecuted.
Oh my, how much worse can it get? A report tonight at the Daily Caller says that at least two Justice Department prosecutors accepted cash bribes from allegedly corrupt finance executives who were indicted but never arrested or prosecuted. Worse,
The sitting governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands, his attorney general and an unspecified number of Virgin Islands legislators also accepted bribes, the source said, adding that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is aware prosecutors and elected officials were bribed and otherwise compromised, but has not held anyone accountable.
I must point out that a certain skepticism is called for: This story is very vague about who, what, when, and where, and its sources are anonymous. Nonetheless, if true this might very well be the bombshell story that ends Eric Holder’s career. What it does to the Obama administration remains to be seen.
Oh my, how much worse can it get? A report tonight at the Daily Caller says that at least two Justice Department prosecutors accepted cash bribes from allegedly corrupt finance executives who were indicted but never arrested or prosecuted. Worse,
The sitting governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands, his attorney general and an unspecified number of Virgin Islands legislators also accepted bribes, the source said, adding that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is aware prosecutors and elected officials were bribed and otherwise compromised, but has not held anyone accountable.
I must point out that a certain skepticism is called for: This story is very vague about who, what, when, and where, and its sources are anonymous. Nonetheless, if true this might very well be the bombshell story that ends Eric Holder’s career. What it does to the Obama administration remains to be seen.
By a significant majority the House has voted to repeal part of Obamacare.
More House action: By a significant majority the House has voted to repeal part of Obamacare.
Once again, that a significant number of Democrats joined the Republicans in this vote illustrates where the political power lies. The Democratic leadership and President Obama are fighting a losing battle trying to support this turkey, especially since this section of Obamacare has already been abandoned as unworkable by the White House.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius effectively suspended the program last fall, conceding she couldn’t find a way to make it pay for itself. And the Congressional Budget Office took the program off the books, releasing lawmakers from budget rules that would have otherwise required them to replace the lost savings.
Since the rest of Obamacare is unworkable as well, expect more action to repeal it after the November election. And I expect that effort to succeed.
More House action: By a significant majority the House has voted to repeal part of Obamacare.
Once again, that a significant number of Democrats joined the Republicans in this vote illustrates where the political power lies. The Democratic leadership and President Obama are fighting a losing battle trying to support this turkey, especially since this section of Obamacare has already been abandoned as unworkable by the White House.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius effectively suspended the program last fall, conceding she couldn’t find a way to make it pay for itself. And the Congressional Budget Office took the program off the books, releasing lawmakers from budget rules that would have otherwise required them to replace the lost savings.
Since the rest of Obamacare is unworkable as well, expect more action to repeal it after the November election. And I expect that effort to succeed.
The House has voted to freeze all congressional and federal pay for another year, through 2013.
The House has voted to freeze all congressional and federal pay for another year, through 2013.
On a vote of 309 to 117, GOP supporters scored the two-thirds majority needed to approve the measure under a suspension of normal procedural roles. The bill, introduced by Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.), would extend the current two-year freeze on federal cost-of-living raises for an additional year starting next January. Lawmakers haven’t raised congressional pay in four of the last six years.
The bill would need to be approved by the Senate before becoming law.
The yay votes above included a significant number of Democrats, once again indicating where the political winds are blowing. Even as their leadership poo-poos this vote, their membership knows what the voters want.
The last sentence in the quote above illustrates again which party in Congress is really doing nothing, as it is the Senate where this bill might die, and it is the Senate that the Democrats control.
The House has voted to freeze all congressional and federal pay for another year, through 2013.
On a vote of 309 to 117, GOP supporters scored the two-thirds majority needed to approve the measure under a suspension of normal procedural roles. The bill, introduced by Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.), would extend the current two-year freeze on federal cost-of-living raises for an additional year starting next January. Lawmakers haven’t raised congressional pay in four of the last six years.
The bill would need to be approved by the Senate before becoming law.
The yay votes above included a significant number of Democrats, once again indicating where the political winds are blowing. Even as their leadership poo-poos this vote, their membership knows what the voters want.
The last sentence in the quote above illustrates again which party in Congress is really doing nothing, as it is the Senate where this bill might die, and it is the Senate that the Democrats control.
The Orion test capsule arrived in Alabama for tests, covered in fan signatures.
You think Americans aren’t interested in space travel? Get this: The Orion test capsule arrived in Alabama for tests, covered in fan signatures.
Orion and NASA’s space launch system might not get us there, but that doesn’t matter in this case. The public is expressing its desire for space travel quite clearly. All they need is someone to provide it to them at a reasonable cost.
You think Americans aren’t interested in space travel? Get this: The Orion test capsule arrived in Alabama for tests, covered in fan signatures.
Orion and NASA’s space launch system might not get us there, but that doesn’t matter in this case. The public is expressing its desire for space travel quite clearly. All they need is someone to provide it to them at a reasonable cost.
Space Adventures has set the date, before February 2017, for its circumlunar tourist flight.
Space Adventures has set the date, sometime before February 2017, for its circumlunar tourist flight.
Space Adventures has set the date, sometime before February 2017, for its circumlunar tourist flight.