Dawn’s farewell tour of the giant asteroid Vesta
An evening pause: As Dawn begins its journey away from Vesta, the science team has put together this stunning video tour of the giant asteroid.
Tag: science
New Horizons — on its way to Pluto — will take a look at a different Kuiper Belt object in January 2015.
New Horizons — on its way to Pluto — will take a look at a different Kuiper Belt object in January 2015.
The encounter will take place at a range of about 75 million km, a distance somewhat subject to change depending on how the probe makes its course correction. At such a great distance, New Horizons will not be able to discern features on the surface of the KBO, nor will it be able to make spectroscopic observations to try to determine the composition of the surface material.
However, New Horizons will be in an excellent position to look for small, close-in moons around the object. It will also be in a position to observe the object’s phase curve, which is a measure of how the reflectivity of the surface changes as a function of viewing angle. This will reveal a great deal about the fluffiness of the surface material (note – fluffiness is a technical term meaning, roughly, “the opposite of dense”). These two observations cannot be made from Earth, even with the most powerful telescopes available.
Have three little photons broken theoretical physics?
Scientists have determined that the shape of a beer glass can influence how much beer you drink.
Science marches on! Scientists have determined that the shape of a beer glass can influence how much beer you drink.
After watching video of both sessions and recording how much time it took for the drinkers to finish their beer or sodas, Attwood’s team found that one group consistently drank much faster than the others: the group drinking a full glass of lager out of curved flute glasses. In a paper published this month in PLoS ONE, the team reports that whereas the group with straight glasses nursed their 354 milliliters of lager for about 13 minutes, the group with the same amount of beer served in curved glasses finished in less than 8 minutes, drinking alcohol almost as quickly as the soda-drinkers guzzled their pop. However, the researchers observed no differences between people drinking 177 milliliters of beer out of straight versus fluted glasses.
The last sentence reveals the large amount of uncertainty that surrounds this important research.
At 4:05 am last night the two Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP), designed to study the Van Allen radiation belts, were successfully placed in orbit by an Atlas 5 rocket.
At 4:05 am last night the two Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP), designed to study the Van Allen radiation belts, were successfully placed in orbit by an Atlas 5 rocket.
I am sure these two spacecraft will do good research and find out things about the Van Allen radiation belts that we will need to know when humans start traveling through them routinely. However, I must say that their name, the Radiation Belt Storm Probes, usually abbreviated as RBSP, is probably the worst name NASA has ever devised for a spacecraft: Impossible to remember, boring to hear, and completely forgettable. Other than that, it’s a public relations winner.
Astronomers have detected molecules of sugar in the gas cloud surrounding a young binary star about 400 light years away.
Sweet! Astronomers have detected molecules of sugar in the gas cloud surrounding a young binary star about 400 light years away.
Curiosity heads east 52 feet on the first leg of its exploration of Gale Crater.The journey begins: Curiosity heads east 52 feet on the first leg of its exploration of Gale Crater.
The journey begins: Curiosity heads east 52 feet on the first leg of its exploration of Gale Crater.
A scale that can measure the weight of a single molecule.
A scale that can measure the weight of a single molecule.
Nine substances that only exist in science fiction.
Nine substances that only exist in science fiction.
Until some engineer invents them, that is.
A solar system with two suns.
Planets without end: A solar system with two suns.
Kepler had previously found two planets orbiting two different binary stars. Here, the space telescope has found a binary star which has its own solar system of two planets.
Images from Curiosity have spotted some unexpected geology in Gale Crater.
Images from Curiosity have spotted some unexpected geology in Gale Crater.
A mosaic of high-definition images of Mount Sharp, the central peak dominating the landing site at Gale Crater, reveals tilted strata never before seen on Mars. The strata dip downwards at an angle close to that of the slope of the foothills of the 18,000-ft. tall mountain within which they are formed.
“The cool thing is the cameras have discovered something we were unaware of,” says mission chief scientist John Grotzinger. “This thing jumped out at us as being very different to what we expected,” he adds. Lying in the low-lying foothills beyond the dune field between the rover and the base of Mount Sharp, the inclined layers are a “spectacular feature” that could not be seen from orbit.
I think there are two reasons these tilted layers are puzzling scientists.
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