Kinkajou : What is SETI?
Erasmus : SETI is a mnemonic word which stands for “Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence”. It has grown to become a worldwide corporation of astronomers, engineers, computer experts, scientists and even the general public. The first experiment was run by Prof Francis Drake in 1960 at a radio telescope facility in West Virginia. SETI is designed to answer the question “are we alone?” in the universe.
SETI predominantly listens to signals from space. The project looks for techno signatures arising from industrial civilisations. Possible sources of techno signatures include:
- spacecraft within and outside the solar system,
- asteroid mining within the solar system,
- optical light signals from planets arising from cities or from laser communications emissions or signalling,
- excess infrared radiation,
- chemical emission spectra,
- radio waves,
- All microwaves.
Kinkajou : I thought we were sending them a message?
Erasmus : Most SETI projects have not emitted signals into space.
ActiveSETI has however attempted messaging to extra-terrestrial intelligences by emitting radio signals into space.
However such activities have drawn some severe criticism.
- Stephen Hawking, a well-known physicist asserted in his book that alerting extra-terrestrial intelligences to our existence is foolhardy. He stated that human history has many examples of men treating civilisations of inferior technology very harshly. In his book “A Brief History of Time” he suggested that humanity should “lay low”.
- Science fiction author David Brin has expressed similar concerns. His novel “Startide Rising” is full of examples of hostile alien civilisations. (Big species with big fleets and even bigger guns).
- The International Academy astronautics SETI study group stated in a “Nature” magazine editorial in 2006 that “it is not obvious that all extra-terrestrials civilisations will be benign, or that contact with even a benign one would not have serious percussions”.
Drake Equation > Fermi Paradox
Kinkajou : So do they also look at UFOs here? Why look elsewhere for your aliens when they may just be visiting down the road?
Erasmus : SETI does not explore UFO phenomena.
Kinkajou : How likely is it that there are aliens out there?
Erasmus : Prof Drake pioneered the famous Drake equation, which is an estimate of how many planets in our Milky Way galaxy may be inhabited by intelligent life forms.
The Equation takes the number of stars in our galaxy, assigns a probability that those stars have planets, and a probability of a number of these planets that can support life, multiplies the probability that these planets may actually develop life at some stage, then multiplies the probability that these plants will develop “intelligent” life, again multiplies this by the fraction of civilisations that may develop a technology that can be detected in space by us, and finally multiplies this by the length of time which such civilisations release detectable signals into space.
Using this equation gives an answer of approximately 36 million planets able to support detectable intelligent life with in our galaxy alone.
Kinkajou : If there are that many of them out there, either we've got something wrong in our calculations or else there may be other factors preventing us from finding them.
Erasmus : Our experience leads us to believe that life is much more robust than we may have previously believed. Bacteria can live deep within the earth using rocks and minerals as energy sources.
Some bacteria can live at extremely high temperatures near ocean floor volcanic vents which emit sulphur, which oxidises to sulphuric acid. Recent experience in astronomy has revealed that many suns are orbited by large planets, detectable to us at distances of light years.
Kinkajou : So you know that planets exist and that life is possible in many different, even hostile places. Life should be common.
Erasmus : This statement is challenged by the Fermi Paradox. This asked the question of “why signals from extra-terrestrials have not been heard by us?” and “why we have not been contacted by extra-terrestrials?”
The Fermi paradox takes a Drake equation and makes the statement that “the size and age of the universe lead us to believe that many alien technologically advanced civilisations must exist within our galaxy”.
However, this belief is inconsistent with our observations. To date, humans as a civilisation do not believe that alien extra-terrestrial intelligences exist within our galaxy.
The Fermi paradox states that:
- Both our initial assumptions are incorrect and that technologically advanced intelligent life is much rarer than we believe or
- Our current observational methods are incomplete and we have not detected them yet or
- Our search methods are flawed or inappropriate, and we are not searching for the correct indicators for the presence of extra-terrestrial intelligences.
Looking for Aliens: "SETI"
Kinkajou : So what are we doing looking for these aliens?
Erasmus : Every SETI search tries to optimise four factors:
- percentage of sky to covered by detectors
- Spectrum coverage
- signal types analysis with background noise reduction
Kinkajou : Complicated. So we really are trying to do the best we can within the physical constraints of our search environment and search capacities. So what exactly are we doing?
Erasmus : The biggest Current SETI projects include:
- SERENDIP VI (one site based at the University of California, Berkeley; the other site based in Australia known as Southern SERENDIP).
Search for Extra-terrestrial Radio Emissions from Nearby Developed Intelligent Populations)
- Project Phoenix this project conducts observations at 64 meter parks radio telescope in Australia, at the 43 m radio telescope in Greenbank West Virginia and a 300 meter radio telescope in Puerto Rico. These telescopes monitored frequencies between 1200 MHz to 300 MHz and were sensitive enough to pick up high-intensity transmissions 200 light years away.
Berkeley SEI Search
Erasmus : Other projects include:
- SETI@Home This project coordinated several hundred thousand participants and their computers, developing a computational power of approximately 617 Teraflops. This allowed for accelerated analysis of data streams arising from the observational telescopes.
- Allen telescope array. Currently this project combines approximately 42 radio telescopes of approximately 6 m in diameter to form an array.
Between 2007 and 2015, the Allen telescope array has identified hundreds of millions of potentially technological signals. Further analysis of the signals suggested that Earth-based transmitters produced much of the “noise” detected.
However, a threshold time limit of one hour was assigned for the detection of signals. Signals under this time duration have been labelled as noise. The “WOW!” signal itself to not reach this threshold.
- setiLIVE: This project displays radio frequency signals LIVE from the SETI Institute's Allen Telescope Array (ATA) while it's pointed at stars that, based on Kepler exoplanet discoveries, have the best chances of being home to an alien civilization. If any possible signals are found, the ATTA will be retargeted for a follow up assessment.
The data observed covers frequencies where human made Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) exists. The working basis of this project is that the trained human eye may have a better probability of detecting significant signals than a computer algorithm, which may be programmed to look for not quite the right thing.
- Ohio State Big Ear: This project is based on of the former Ohio State University Radio Observatory (OSURO), also known as Big Ear. The Observatory was a Kraus-type radio telescope.
Big Ear covered an area larger than three football fields. The telescope was famous for discovering some of the most distant known objects in the universe, as well as for the "Wow!" Signal and the longest-running SETI (Search for Extra-terrestrial Intelligence) project entered into the Guinness Book of Records.
- The SETI League developed project Argus. The concept focused on coordinating a global network of small amateur built radio telescopes converted from backyard satellite TV dishes 3 to 5 m in diameter. These amateur radio telescopes have a sensitivity equivalent to the big ear telescope which detected the landmark “WOW! “signal.
- Columbus Optical SETI Observatory, Optical SETI at Berkeley, Optical SETI at Harvard.
This project uses optical monitoring for signs of extra-terrestrial intelligence.
Microwave Energy Strength
The premise of the project is that optical interstellar communication is possible. So the project hopes to detect a laser signal essentially downgalaxy (downwind) of the transmission target. A laser com signal fired at a distant star for communications purposes will spill over and perhaps hit a star down range, (us we hope).
The science on which it is based is that an infrared pulse or a light pulse from a laser focused into a narrow beam would appear thousands of times brighter than the sun to distance civilisations in the beam’s line of fire.
With current technology we can generate a directed laser pulse that outshines the broadband visible light of the sun by a factor of 10,000. We believe that we can detect a signal up to 60 light years away.
- One strategy for optical SETI is to look for narrow spectrum emissions consistent laser light in the high-resolution spectra of target solar systems.
- Another alternative is to look for short optical pulses. Currently monitoring as occurs uses the strategy looking for short optical pulses and the 300 to 600 nm band.
Diagram of the stars in the (20 light-years) Solar neighbourhood
Kinkajou : I think it needs to be more sensitive. There are lots of star systems within a 60 light year radius (statistically about 3000). But the issue is about what are the chances of accidentally overshooting onto a target downrange. I think that’s more likely to happen if we could detect signals at a 200-300 light year range.
Artist’s conception of the Milky Way with the Sun’s position. During the last decade it was clearly established that the Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy
Also mis-shoots or misalignments may not last very long (I would guess minutes only), so you need to be monitoring everything almost all the time to increase success probability.
Problems with optical SETI revolve around the effects of wetness and cold causing photo -detector malfunctions. This means that the detected positive hits consist substantially of false positive detections due to partial detector failure. The current hit rate is approximately one good hit per night of observation.
So to be categorised as a possible pulse from extra-terrestrial civilisation signal would need to be composed of successive pulses from potential source, perhaps exhibiting some regularity in the transmissions.
City At Night
Kinkajou : So maybe we are actually detecting when aliens are having a hot steamy shower?
Erasmus : Maybe the aliens don’t wash. What happens if they are like reptiles and enjoy a good hot sand bath and maybe a bit of a sandblast as well?
Other SETI Projects
Erasmus: So let’s keep on going talking about other SETI projects.
- Project BAMBI (Design, construction, and initial observational results of a 4-GHz amateur radio telescope with circuit board layouts, software, and schematics.)
- Other SETI activities include some scientists searching the libration points in the vicinity of the Earth and the Moon. There are five Earth Moon Lagrangian positions/ stable solar synchronised positions. The purpose was to attempt to find possible orbiting extra-terrestrial interstellar probes.
Lagrange Points Our Solar System
BETA and Microwaves
Erasmus : I think the technology that best represents the SETI direction is the BETA project. BETA is mnemonic that stands for Billion channel Extra Terrestrial Assay.
The system is capable of monitoring 240 million channels through a 240 million channel Fourier spectrometer, capable of tracking 80 million channels each with a bandwidth of 0.5 Hz using three directional antennas. This gives a 40 MHz instantaneous bandwidth for each feed.
Programmable “feature recognisers sift through approximate 250 MB/sec of data looking for distinctive features in the signals that are consistent in the two sky antennas with the movement of the earth.
This observational cycle of 16 seconds repeats eight times at two seconds each time during the sidereal drift of a point source through the antennas 0.5° detection beam. The system scans the micro spectrum from 1.4 to 1.72 GHz in eight steps of two seconds each.
The spectrum of observation was chosen because there is a high detection band in the microwave frequencies, adjacent to the hydrogen spectral lines.
Erasmus : More about the science theory involved:
Calculations allow for the movement of the earth around the sun and through space as well is the rotation of the earth.) A third antenna faces the horizon and detects noise signals arising from the earth itself.
The interference signals are subtracted from the sky-based detection signals, using a computer-based adaptive RFI filtering. This scheme recognises that interference occurs consistently in time and frequency.
The algorithm states:
- If there is interference at a certain frequency of the certain time, it is probable that there will be interference at that frequency shortly before and shortly after that time.
- If there is interference at a specific frequency at a specific time there is likely to be interference at nearby frequencies at that time.
- The algorithm notches out small spectrum bands which show interference or noise. It enables the elimination of approximate 99% of the interference at the detector, while masking less than 1% of the available spectrum.
Kinkajou : Tell us about using microwaves for detecting the aliens!
Microwaves occur in the frequency range 300 MHz to 300 GHz.
Microwave wavelengths cover 1mm to 1000mm
Microwaves have a long wavelength, though not as long as radio waves.
Microwaves are a form of electromagnetic radiation. This broad definition includes both UHF and EHF (millimetre), and various sources use different boundaries.
In all cases, microwave includes the entire SHF band (3 to 30 GHz, or 10 to 1 cm) at minimum, with RF engineering often restricting the range effectively between 1 and 100 GHz (300 and 3 mm).
Air Water EMF Attenuation
The Earth's atmosphere is transparent to some wavelengths of microwave radiation, but not to others. The longer wavelengths (waves more similar to radio waves) pass through the Earth's atmosphere more easily than the shorter wavelength microwaves. Microwave telescopes need to be large, but not as large as radio telescopes.
Microwave Background Radiation (or Cosmic Background Radiation) is the primordial radiation field that fills the universe, having been created in the form of gamma rays at the time of the big bang. It has now cooled so that its temperature today is 2.73K and its peak wavelength is near 1.1mm (in the microwave portion of the EM spectrum)
The Microwave Anistrophy Probe (due to be launched in 2000) will study small fluctuations in the Microwave Background Radiation.
Erasmus : Not all microwaves can be detected on the surface of our planet.
The atmospheric attenuation of microwaves in dry air with a perceptible water vapour level of 0.001 mm. The downward spikes in the graph correspond to frequencies at which microwaves are absorbed more strongly. Some standards designate the right-hand side of the graph as within the range of infrared.
Radio Waves and SETI
Kinkajou : Tell us about how we are using radio waves to find alien civilisations!
Radio waves occur in the frequency range 3 Hz - 300 GHz.
Radio waves wavelengths cover 100 000km - 1mm.
Of all of the types of electromagnetic radiation, radio waves have the lowest frequency and the longest wavelength.
The atmosphere of the Earth is transparent to radio waves with wavelengths of a few millimetres to about twenty metres.
Due to the transparency of the atmosphere to radio waves Radio telescopes can be ground based. Radio telescopes consist of very large dishes constructed of metal plates which focus the radio waves to a point above the centre of the dish where the receiver is located. Radio telescopes have to be very large because the long wavelengths of the EM radiation result in poor resolution.
Today the majority of radio astronomy is done using interferometry which acts to improve the resolution obtained. The largest single radio telescope in the world in located in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. It is 300 metres in diameter and is constructed in a natural bowl shaped depression.
Numerous sources of radio waves have been detected such as radio galaxies and quasars as well as emissions from the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy.
The WOW Signal
Kinkajou : have we ever found anything:
Erasmus : Yes. The WOW! Signal is the main contender.
The WOW signal
On August 15, 1977 Jerry Ehman, a SETI project volunteer saw a printout containing a startlingly strong radio signal. The signal lasted the full 72 seconds of the observation window of the BIG EAR telescope.
Jerry Ehman circled the part of the printout containing the signal (the vertical column containing the sequence 6EQUJ5), and wrote “WOW!” in the margin of the page. The band with the signal is approximately 10 kHz. “6EQUJ5” describes intensity variation of the signal, each character representing approximately 12 seconds of detected transmission.
The signal appeared to arise in the sky in the region of the constellation Sagittarius. Tau Sagittarii is the closest and most easily visible staff. The band width at which the signal is detected is a band with reserved for astronomical purposes. Terrestrial transmitters are forbidden to transmit at this wavelength.
This signal is believed by some to be the best indication that extra-terrestrial intelligence exists. However repeated searches have not found any evidence of this signal again.
The SETI Institute does not officially recognise the WOW! Signal as being of extra-terrestrial origin as it was unable to be verified.
Telescope Array doing Long BaseLine Interferometry
Kinkajou : WOW!
So what can you see as the problems with SETI?
Erasmus : SETI has been plagued over a number of years by the need for private funding as well as intermittent and inadequate government funding. A number of projects have languished over the years as a result of this.
I think there are number of serious flaws with the SETI project. The most critical and basic observation is that a radio wave detection is focused within 200 MHz of the hydrogen line. This takes advantage of the transparency of the atmosphere to microwaves. However, I think that extra-terrestrial civilisations are likely to do the same things for the same reasons as we do.
We only use microwaves for point-to-point transmission at low signal intensities. Microwaves cook things. They are dangerous. They harm biological life forms.
I think the true Holy Grail of SETI observation will occur when we are able to undertake broad spectrum readings spanning from radio waves to light frequencies. This may mean that observational platforms may have to rest in orbit all be built on atmosphere free sites such as the dark side of the moon.
A claim was made that the detectors can detect a gigawatt of microwaves at 200 light years. However, it is much more likely that a megawatt of microwaves is emitted. Using inverse square law, this implies a detection range of approximate 6 light years. About the only place we can detect specific micro-outputs may be our closest star system, namely Alpha Centauri.
In fact, if alien civilisation use microwaves for communication, they may well be used to link from one star system to another adjacent star system. These emission beams would be focused, indeed most likely bypassing our solar system undetected.
Kinkajou : How safe do you think it will be to communicate with aliens?
Erasmus : I think there is a lot to be said for the danger of communicating to an alien civilisation. My own personal life experience is that a decision should be made when one has an understanding of the consequences of that decision. If one does not understand the likely response of one’s alien neighbours, perhaps drawing attention to oneself may be unwise.
There is no reason that other civilisations will not view us as competitors rather than compatriots.
Innovations in SETI
Kinkajou : What innovations do you think will help us find extra-terrestrial life?
Erasmus : A number of ideas suggest themselves.
- I think there is a need for the development of atmosphere free observational platforms. (i.e. platforms in space or one the dark side of the moon). These would need to cover optical as well as radio spectra. This will enhance our ability to study adjacent solar systems and improve our ability to detect extra- terrestrial civilisations.
- Alternatively, like in UFO the TV series, set up SID= Space Intruder Detector.
As a simple observation, when one looks into the night sky of a city there may only be several hundred stars visible due to light pollution and other chemical pollutants in the air. This would substantially degrade detection capability.
In country areas, there are millions of stars visible. The sky looks like there is white dust scattered across the band of the Milky Way. The effect of the atmosphere on the observations of the galaxy would mirror the effect of cities polluting the sky and hiding the stars.
- Lasers may well be used by alien civilisations. However they are most suited for point-to-point communication and it is likely that directed signals would bypass us and be unlikely to be detected.
High detection range / sensitivity is critical if you are trying to find downrange overshoots. (Scarily, to be a goer, this idea demands that the Aliens have a space based civilisation or empire, within which they need to communicate).
- Our search parameters are likely to be highly inappropriate. A probable detection scenario involves receiving a direct transmission from the planet to a spaceship.
If the spaceship is travelling to our solar system or into the region of our solar system, the transmission may well be detected. You’d have to wonder if this was inadvertently the basis of the WOW signal.
- Most stellar conversations will be one-way conversations for brief periods of time, sending bursts of information which may loop within the transmission segment but not repeat, due to the limitation of the speed of light affecting communications.
Erasmus :A substantial amount of information can be coded into high-frequency transmissions. So it is unlikely that two-way conversations will occur, due to limitations of the speed of light.
- Analysis of the nature of the signal is necessary to detect communications. For example, we use amplitude modulation (AM) and frequency modulation (FM) as signal modifiers to transmit information.
This information coding system becomes a lot more complicated if the aliens involved were trying hard not to be heard. Separation of a data stream into multiple carrier bands in a long term repetitive though seemingly random transmission sequence, especially with planned frequency drift would make signal detection hard.
I’m not sure our SETI signal analysis is up to the task of detecting these transmission methods. Could we record and put a signal back together again.
- Polarisation of signals also becomes important. Detectors with horizontal polarisation are unable to pick up vertically polarised emissions.
It becomes obvious that there are many complexities in detecting other extra-terrestrial civilisations. Atmospheric limitations on signal detection may well deny the ability to detect many transmission frequencies. It also becomes obvious we need to enhance our capacity to detect and process signals over a greater region of the sky.
We do have the technological capacity to put a substantial amount of observational equipment into space. It’s just not cost effective for us to seriously do this at this time. Other priorities suggest themselves as first choice to use space based resources. E.g. Military satellites, Weather satellites, Geological survey satellites, or Communications satellites suggest themselves.
Goo : Well here’s to the future.
As my mother told me, “Be careful what you ask for.
You may in fact get exactly what you ask for”.
Space Defence Platforms


Accueil > Recherche > Équipes > Géodynamo > Sujets de stage et de thèse > Sujets de stage > Are oscillations of the magnetospheric magnetic field responsible of oscillations of the dipole field in the core ?
par- 7 juillet 2017
supervisors : N. Schaeffer & N. Gillet, geodynamo team, ISTerre
contact : firstname.lastname@example.org, email@example.com
summary : The dipole magnetic field is generated within the Earth’s outer core. It shows, at period about 10 years, intriguing oscillations detected in ground based observatories. The magnetospheric magnetic field also fluctuates at the same periods, influenced by the solar wind. This external field diffuses down to the core surface. There, electrical currents in the fluid iron respond to this excitation. Similarly, oscillation of the internal dipole of Mercury have recently been detected in records of the Messenger mission, at a period characteristic of the external field.
The aim of this project is to study if external fields can be responsible of such oscillations of the internal dipole fields in the cores of the Earth and Mercury. This issue will be tackled by means of a numerical code (simulating fluid motions in the presence of a magnetic field in a rotating sphere), in order to quantify the response of the fluid outer cores to an external magnetic forcing.
Dans la même rubrique :


Breitling does it again. Today, the brand makes a real statement about its heritage and watchmaking prowess at a huge product-release event in Zurich. Not only is the Swiss watch brand releasing all-new beloved AAA UK replica Breitling Cosmonaute watches, but also it is recalling its rich aviation history for this release. The new timepiece recalls the watch worn by American astronaut Scott Carpenter in a space mission in 1962. Additionally, to set the tone for the release event, Breitling even brings the original high quality Breitling fake watches worn by Carpenter (and fairly well destroyed in the seawater landing) to the forefront for the first time since the mission.
The Space and Watch Race
In the 1960’s when the world is in a space race, with various countries competing to be first in space and first on the moon, a similar race was taking place on Earth in the world of wristwatches. Watch brands were vying for room on astronaut’s and cosmonaut’s wrists.
In America, NASA was testing best Breitling replica watches — for durability and precision in the face of gravitational forces, sudden pressure and temperature changes and more — from a host of the best brands to determine which watch would be the official space watch. Meanwhile, brands everywhere were finding their way into the programs. Breitling was one such brand.
The perfect copy Breitling Navitimer Cosmonaut watches made its debut to the world in 1961 and was made according to strict specifications for aviation and space needs. Not too long afterward, on May 24, 1962, American astronaut Scott Carpenter skyrocketed into space on the Aurora 7 spacecraft, wearing a specially made variation of the Breitling Cosmonaut watch on his wrist. It featured a 24-hour dial so he could determine day from night in space. Previous luxury Breitling replica watches in space were a Swiss pocket watch with a strap, and a Russian wristwatch – a distinction Breitling is keen to make.
As such, Breitling has the distinction of being the first “Swiss wristwatch in space.” When the fake Breitling Cosmonaut watches for sale was available for general sales in 1962, it kept the same specs as the watch Carpenter wore.
The Mercury 7 spaceflights were the first human-crewed flights and in the fourth such mission where Carpenter wore his Breitling, the Mercury-Atlas 7 mission, he orbited the Earth three times – a huge achievement for the era. He was just the sixth human being to fly in space.
After the orbits, the Aurora 7 space capsule safely splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, but the recovery mission took three hours, during which time the 1:1 Breitling replica watches was exposed to constant seawater and was damaged. Breitling replaced Carpenter’s watch and kept the corroded model – a piece of space history – for its archives. Now, for the unveiling of the commemorative watch, Breitling brought the origin watch out of hiding and showcased it alongside the new piece.
The New Replica Breitling Cosmonaute Limited Edition Watches
Now, in honor of the 60th anniversary of that space flight, Breitling unveils the cheap fake Breitling Navitimer B02 Chronograph 41 Cosmonaute Limited Edition COSC-certified chronometer watches. Paying homage to the original that Carpenter wore, the looks are incredibly similar, but with updated tweaks.
The watch, with circular slide rule bezel designed to help pilots make mathematical calculations for fuel, flight times and more, retains the 24-hour time indication, and offers a column-wheel chronograph. It measures 41mm in diameter and is crafted in stainless steel. It boasts a platinum bezel (unlike the original) and a rich black dial with the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association “wings” logo on it. It is offered with either a black alligator strap or a seven-row steel bracelet.
The case back is engraved with several tribute elements, including the date of the Aurora 7 mission, the words “First Swiss wristwatch in space”, and the watch’s number, since each of the 362 watches is numbered. The transparent sapphire back allows for a view of the in-house-made mechanical hand-wound Breitling B02 movement, with its bridges engraved with “Carpenter,” “Aurora 7” and “3 orbits around the Earth.”
The 2022 Breitling super clone watches is created in a limited edition of 362 pieces (a nod to the three orbits around Earth and the year 1962) and retails for $10,800 on strap and $11,200 on steel bracelet.
Joining Breitling at the event was former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and also on exhibit was a Cosmonaute once owned by astronaut John Glenn and acquired at auction in 2019 by Gregory Breitling.
“When we introduced the redesigned Breitling Navitimer replica watches shop online earlier this year, a question on everybody’s lips was, ‘What about the Cosmonaute?’ Today, I’m thrilled to finally announce two Cosmonaute reveals: the first-ever public viewing of the watch Scott Carpenter wore into space, and a 60th-anniversary limited-edition timepiece that pays tribute to its history-making forerunner,” said Georges Kern, CEO of Breitling in a press statement.


Written in response to this question:
Here’s a mystery: What happens when a werewolf astronaut goes to the moon? Does he wolf out in his suit and die? Never wolf out as it’s technically not the full moon?
I’ve heard this one a lot, so by now I’ve developed a response…
I think it’s pretty obvious that the whole moon connection is a very magical thing. There isn’t much magic in yeeting whence on out to the moon itself. My personal theory is that the moonlight is specifically required in order to affect werewolves at all. But moonlight is just sunlight (and some earthlight) reflected off the moon and sent back to earth. It’s this particular process that creates the magic necessary to influence werewolves.
Which of course could also mean that werewolves are affected by sunlight – if there is sunlight during the day enough to cancel the moonlight, since the moon can be “shining” even when the sun is up because it’s reflecting if it’s in phase. So does this mean that werewolves are much less likely to turn when the sun is shining? Would this affect them in space, and essentially make them immune to transforming, because of the influence of the sun?
Or is the curse itself just not stupid enough to not have a person turn when they are obviously in a situation where it would potentially kill them?
Anyway, by all that logic, if you go to the moon itself, there is no moonlight in the same way there is on earth, so there is no magic, and werewolves would be fine.
This is some hardcore werewolf theorizing, you guys. I have fun with it.
(I always prefer the magic over science approach with werewolves, and a werewolf going to the moon, to me, is totally viable and it’d be silly to say anything otherwise. I’m not going to get too deep into the science side of it, as a result.)


What is LIGO?
LIGO stands for Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory. In English, this project measures and captures the movement of gravitational waves: ripples in the fabric of space-time first theorized by Albert Einstein in his theory of relativity. The scientists behind the LIGO project discovered a gravitational wave signal on September 15, 2015.
Scientists believe these ripples were from two colliding black holes approximately 1.3 billion years ago. These ripples come from huge objects colliding into each other, for example, two black holes using their gravity to propel themselves into each other. You can watch this video which shows an animation of what the collision could look like. To learn more about black holes, I suggest checking out Kip Thorne’s Black Holes: The Most Luminous Objects in the Universe, But No Light! For the most part, it is an easy read and Thorne does a proficient job to put it in terms that make sense to ordinary people, such as myself, who don’t know that much about astrophysics.
Why Does LIGO Matter?
This is not the first detection of gravitational waves; scientists have been able to study them indirectly, but this validates Einstein’s theory of relatively, which is the exciting part. The importance of this information allows scientists to observe the universe in a different way, hopefully leading to more discoveries.
Cool Video: You can check out this video to see what a gravitational wave sounds like. Note, this is not the actual sound, gravitational waves are not a form of sound. Like sound waves, gravitational waves carry vibrations making it possible for us to alter it into an audible sound.
How Does LIGO Work?
LIGO works like this: a laser beam is split down two 2.5 mile arm-like containers which have mirrors. This reflection off of the mirror converges at a point of the arm, which cancels each other out. When a gravitational wave passes through this laser beam, it alters the length of the arm and causes the beams to travel different distances. Scientists use light detectors to measure this process. The observatories in Washington and Louisiana collaborate simultaneously as they collect the data which allows them to triangulate the gravitational wave’s source in the sky. I’ve had to re-read the explanations several times to try and grasp the idea; the visualization below helps.


Listening to music in the bus, taking a relaxing bath, watching movies and tv shows in bed, wrapping my hands around the warm cup of coffee.
Planet Earth is 4.543 billions of years old. It's the third planet from the sun and the 5th largest planet in the Solar System. The Moon is it's one and only satellite. Without her, days on Earth would only last 6 to 12 hours. The Earth's axis is tilted. This tilting is what gives us the four seasons of the year. The first photograph of Earth ever taken from space was captured in 1946. Earth's inner core is composed mostly of iron. It's the only astronomical object known to have bodies of liquid water on its surface.
I felt you in the pages of the book, the morning coffee & the afternoon walk. I felt you in the wind.


It is 1:30 a.m, and the alarm goes off on my phone. I told my wife I might want to take a drive to see if I could see any of whats left of the Camelopardalid meteor shower. I said, “I’ll set my alarm, and I’ll either wake up and say “Oh – hell no” or I’ll actually get up and do it.” The problem is, there aren’t any good viewing spots close to home. It requires a bit more of a commitment then just rolling out of bed and looking outside. We are thoroughly contaminated with the light pollution of the Metro-Detroit area. It is at least an hour and a half drive with zero traffic to get far enough away. I did get up, although after a few rehits of the snooze button. I left my house at 2:00 a.m.
I have read a little lately on night photography, and only attempted it once unsuccessfully in the past. Conditions were looking much more favorable this time around. With Michigan being pretty flat, the best places I know for the best view sky to horizon are on the Great Lakes. The closest, accessible dark sky spot I know of is on Lake Huron. I arrived there at 3:30 am. Astronomical Twilight starts at 4:53 am, Nautical at 5:33, leaving me a good hour and a half or two hours to bumble my way around trying to make any photographs.
Some helpful articles on night photography:
The sky was beautiful, only hindered by a set of powerful flood lights that were on at this park. So much for complete darkness. But later I would find those flood lights would help in some ways. I could make out the Milky Way as it created an arch over me running from the Northeast to Southwest. I just watched for meteors for awhile, and only saw one.
My first photos were pretty dark. I knew from the material I read that I should try to keep my shutter speed to around 20 seconds to prevent streaking from star movement with my combination of camera and lens (Nikon D800 / Nikon 14-24 f/2.8). Some articles mentioned up to 30 seconds should be OK. Since this was with my lens wide open at f/2.8, and my photos were still dark, I started cranking up the ISO. I was seeing better results when I was overexposing according to my meter reading by about 2 stops. It became clearer with practice in the field, just as the articles mentioned, that the more light sensitive you make your camera setup, the more stars you are going to pull in. Much more than you can see with your own eyes it seems.
I had already imagined this composition since I was familiar with this location and these dock pilings. I just didn’t know how the sky would be aligned, or how I could get enough depth of field to get both the pilings and the sky sharp, and let in enough light. It took a bit of trial and error to reach a compromise on where I set the focus. The resulting image when I started processing it was pretty decent, but it lacked definition in the Milky Way that I had hoped for. I found I was able to get better definition by creating 3 separate virtual copies in Lightroom, each varied by +/- 1.5 on exposure, and then merge those together. The green color of the pilings is caused by that flood light I mentioned. The camera was much more sensitive than my eyes for the red color at the horizon, because I never saw any of it.
I played with this section of the sky a bit, and then the moon began to rise, right on the horizon aligned with the dock. While this may seem like a cool thing, given the moon was just a sliver of a crescent, all it did was create a bright distraction, and corresponding distracting reflection across the water.
I moved to another section of the sky, facing more along the southern view of the shoreline. Here it was difficult not to get some lights from houses in the frame, as well as city light pollution to the south. But the more detailed part of the Milky Way was in this area. One thing I found in the various frames I looked at after being home was that the camera captured a lot more of the meteor shower than I actually saw. In this instance, you can see one of them in the top third of the frame, pointing toward the 5 o’clock position.
I was pleased with a few of the shots from this quick trip in the middle of the night. It allowed me to get some experience in creating and processing night sky images. One of the more fascinating parts was in looking at the photographs fully zoomed in.
The Cosmos has always held a great sense of wonder for me, and to explore part of it within my own photographs let my imagination roam far, far away. In the more literal sense, one can appreciate what Dorothea Lange stated so profoundly:
“While there is perhaps a province in which the photograph can tell us … there is another in which it proves to us how little our eyes permit us to see.”


Sunday, September 27, 2009
Just wanted to take a second and give props to NASA, who, problematic though they are, make up for at least some of it by publishing the Astronomy Picture of the Day, which I use as my homepage. The universe is full of cool stuff, and though I think it's best explored, for now, by robots, I do like looking at the pictures. Like this one today. What a feeling that must be, to be untethered in space, floating free, with only a spacesuit and a nitrogen jet between you and frozen oblivion. The quiet must be immense.


Is it true deer can’t be shot one hour after sunset?
GEORGE WALLACE says:
Sunset is not, as most people think, the time at which the sun disappears and it starts to get dark.
There is an astronomical definition of sunset which is the moment at which the sun’s centre crosses the observer’s rational horizon.
Without trying to explain the complexities of nautical astronomy this means that the time of sunset occurs when, at sea, the sun appears to be about half its own diameter above the horizon.
So it’s going to be light for some time afterwards.
That’s all very well at sea when there’s a good horizon but inland we need to refer to our diaries for the correct time of sunset and add an hour to find the time of the final whistle.
For example the time of sunset today is 18:25pm. As I returned from yet another unsuccessful attempt to catch a salmon the time was 19:10pm and I could still have seen a deer with the naked eye at 200 yards, even with a mist rising over the riverside meadows.
That’s 45 minutes after sunset at a time of year when twilight is much shorter than in the summer.
On many a summer night it doesn’t seem to get really dark at all, so a study of the official time of sunset is mandatory if one wishes to avoid infringing the Deer Act.
As a rough guide, if deer are at all difficult to see you really shouldn’t be trying to shoot them.
That’s responsible, ethical hunting as well as compliance with the Law.


Phases of the Moon Necklace
Our sterling silver Phases of the Moon necklaces are hammered with a patina finish highlighting subtle hints of texture. The pendant delicately suspends from a sterling silver chain. Choose from half or three quarter moon phase.
Pendant is approximately 20mm wide.
Handcrafted in our Boulder studio, each piece is one-of-a-kind and may vary slightly in shape, color, and size.
All metals are certified recycled.
Oxidized jewelry may brighten over time. We are happy to restore it to its original darkness. See customer care tab for details.


Tuesday, April 22, 2008
to pass (time) in reverie
"There are various ways in which a person could "travel into the future" in a limited sense: the person could set things up so that in a small amount of his own subjective time, a large amount of subjective time has passed for other people on Earth. For example, an observer might take a trip away from the Earth and back at relativistic velocities, with the trip only lasting a few years according to the observer's own clocks, and return to find that thousands of years had passed on Earth. It should be noted, though, that according to relativity there is no objective answer to the question of how much time "really" passed during the trip; it would be equally valid to say that the trip had lasted only a few years or that the trip had lasted thousands of years, depending on your choice of reference frame."


The Galileo cocktail cup was named after the famous Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei – the father of observational astronomy. It is a unique technology of drinking glass that represents innovation of traditional manufacturing processes. A glass star inside the cocktail cup symbolizes Galileo’s discoveries and observations of the Milky Way. The Galileo cocktail cup – let’s discover!
Elderflower lemonade with using of the cocktail cup!
A brilliant drink for party-goers not on the booze, this refreshing cocktail looks and tastes fantastic.
- 2 lemons
- 2 tbsp caster sugar
- 35 ml Elderflower cordial
- A handful of frozen berries
- Sparkling water, to top up
How to mix
- Squeeze the juice of one lemon into a jug, add the sugar and elderflower cordial and mix well to dissolve.
- Put a few ice cubes in each glass, slice the remaining lemon and add to the glasses along with the frozen berries.
- Top up with sparkling water to taste and mix with a straw.


People who uses moon calendar are informed that the December 2022 moon calendar is available on this page and you can download it in a printable format. A moon calendar comes in handy when it comes to keeping a check on the phases of the Moon. If you are not aware then please note that there is a continuous change in the direction and shape of the moon and that change is visible every night. There are a lot of people who rely on the phases of the moon for their daily life activities. If moon phases has an impact on your life as well then do check out the moon calendar on this page and download it for your use in a printable format and take a print-out for your use.
- December 2022 Printable Calendar
- December 2022 Weekly Calendar
- December and December 2022 Calendar
- December 2022 Hindu Calendar
- December 2022 Moon Calendar
Moon Phases Calendar December 2022
Below you can see a moon calendar for the month of December 2022. As you can see, there is a moon phase for each day of this month. Download this calendar, take a print-out, and place it on your desk or hang it on the wall for your reference.
With the help of templates shared here, you can check the phases of the Moon for each day. Print the lunar calendar for your use from this page.
Full Moon and New Moon for December 2022
Below you can see the dates of the four important phases of the Moon i.e. first quarter, full moon, last quarter, and new moon. Check out the dates of the full moon and new moon below. Download the moon calendar to keep a check on the phases of the Moon for each day of the December’s month.
- Full Moon: 8th December 2022
- Last Quarter: 16th December 2022
- New Moon: 23rd December 2022
- First Quarter: 30th December 2022
People who keep a check on the phases of the Moon can now download the moon calendar for this month as well. It is important to note that a moon calendar is different for every month, therefore, make sure to download a moon calendar for every month. On this page you can see a moon or lunar calendar for the month of December 2022.


As has become customary, this holiday is celebrated every year on the weekend-Saturday, falling in the interval from mid-April to mid-May, and closest to the day when the Moon is seen in the first quarter phase (very convenient: in the evening, and high in the sky), may 10 this year.
For several years in a year marked by two days of Astronomy: one in the spring and one in autumn. So the organizers of holidays want to determine which of them will attract more attention.
If you are a real astronomer, celebrate this holiday can be on the night of 10 to 11 may, watching as Saturn, Earth and Sun are on a straight line, t. (e). happens to the confrontation of Saturn. During the confrontation the doughnut giant turns on the minimum distance to the ground is 8.9 astronomical units (about 1196 million km). Observe with the naked eye.
Saturn will be visible almost all night in the constellation Libra, in the form of a small pale-yellowish spots, opoâsannogo ring.
To date, the gas giant rings disclosed at 22°, so the brightness of Saturn is higher than during previous confrontations over the past 5 years.
You may view a live broadcast of the event space (at 5.30 am. ..):
[youtube_sc url=»http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PcaOZ8uJP0″ title=»Сатурн» theme=»light»]


In our first article, we examined the Adad-Guppi Stele, an historical document which quickly demolishes Watchtower’s theory of possible gaps in the established line of Neo-Babylonian Kings.
For the next piece of primary evidence, we will look at the planet Saturn. This article will help us to comprehend how Saturn’s position in the sky can easily be used to establish the time period when Jerusalem was destroyed.
In our modern age, we take the measurement of time for granted. We can easily forget that all the technology is based on the movement of a planetary body, specifically our Earth. A year is the time it takes the Earth to make a full revolution around the sun. A day is the time it takes the Earth to make a full revolution around its axis. The movement of the planets are so consistent, so reliable, that ancient civilizations used the sky as a celestial calendar, a compass, a clock, and a map. Before GPS, a ship’s captain could navigate anywhere on earth with just a timepiece and the night sky to guide him.
The Babylonians were experts in astronomy. Over many centuries, they recorded precise planetary, solar and lunar movements as well as eclipses. The combination of these planetary positions locks them into an absolute timeline that we can trace back with precision. Each combination is as unique as a human fingerprint or a lottery ticket number.
Think of a chronological list of 12 lottery ticket numbers won on specific dates over a given year. What are the chances of those exact same numbers coming up on different dates ever again?
As we stated in the first article, our purpose here is to use the two-part article titled, “When was ancient Jerusalem Destroyed?”, published in the October and November, 2011 issues of The Watchtower to demonstrate clearly that the publishers had all the information necessary to reveal the truth that they had been wrong about 607 BCE all along, yet chose to ignore it and perpetuate a harmful false teaching.
To this end, let’s look at how Saturn’s location can be used to establish the dating of Nebuchadnezzar’s 37th regnal year. Why does that matter? It matters, because according to Jeremiah 52:12, “In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that is, in the 19th year of King Neb·u·chad·nezʹzar the king of Babylon” Jerusalem was destroyed. The siege lasted over a year (Jeremiah 52: 4, 5). Jeremiah got a vision in the 18th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign while the city was under siege (Jeremiah 32:1, 2) So, if we can fix with precision the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar, it is an easy subtraction to arrive at the year of Jerusalem’s destruction.
You can be sure that if astronomical data pointed to 607 BCE, The Watchtower article would be all over it. Yet, no mention is made of Saturn’s position at all. They ignore this valuable piece of evidence entirely. Why?
Let’s look at the evidence, shall we?
VAT 4956 is a number assigned to a particular clay tablet which describes astronomical data relating to the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign.
The first two lines of the translation of this tablet read:
- Year 37 of Nebukadnezar, king of Babylon. Month I. (the 1st  of which was identical with) the 30th  (of the preceding month), the moon became visible behind the Bull of Heaven; [sunset to moonset:] ….[….]
- Saturn was in front of the Swallow.,  The 2nd, in the morning, a rainbow stretched in the west. Night of the 3rd, the moon was 2 cubits in front of [….]
Line two tells us that “Saturn was in front of the Swallow” (The region of the night sky today called Pisces.)
Saturn is much farther from our Sun than is Earth, and so it takes a lot longer to complete a full orbit. A single orbit is about 29.4 Earth years in fact.
Our modern clocks are divided into 12 hours. Why 12? We could have had 10 hour days and 10 hour nights, with each hour made up of 100 minutes each, and each minute divided into 100 seconds. Indeed, we could have divided our days up into segments of any length we chose, but 12 was what the time keepers long ago settled on.
The ancient astronomers also divided the sky into 12 segments known as constellations. They saw familiar star patterns and thought these resembled animals and so named them accordingly.
As Saturn orbits around the Sun, it appears to move through all 12 of these constellations. Just as the hour hand of a clock takes an hour to move through each of the twelve numbers on the clock, so Saturn takes about 2.42 years to move through each constellation. Thus, if Saturn was observed in Pisces—at the top of our celestial clock—in the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar, it wouldn’t appear there again for almost three decades.
As we noted before, given the precision with which we can date events based on planetary movement data, one has to wonder why such an important fact was left out. Surely anything that would categorically prove 607 BCE as the date of Jerusalem’s destruction would have been front and center of the Watchtower article.
Since we know exactly where Saturn is today—you can even verify that yourself with the naked eye—all we have to do is run the numbers backward in 29.4 year orbital segments. Of course, that is tedious. Wouldn’t it be nice if we had a piece of software to do that for us with the kind of precision a computer can offer? The November Watchtower article mentions a piece of software they used for their calculations. If they ran a calculation on Saturn’s orbit, they make no mention of it, though it is hard to imagine they wouldn’t have done so in the hopes of establishing 607 as the date.
Fortunately, we also have access to a wonderful software program that can be downloaded and run on a smart phone or tablet. It’s called SkySafari 6 Plus and is available on the web or from the Apple and Android stores. I would recommend you download it yourself so you can run your own research. Make sure you get the “Plus” version or higher as the cheapest version does not allow calculations for years before Christ.
Here’s a screenshot of the settings used for our own research:
The location is Baghdad, Iraq which is close to where ancient Babylon was located. The date is 588 BC. The Horizon & Sky is hidden to make it easier to see the background constellations.
Now let’s see if the date of 588 produces a match with what the Babylonian astronomers recorded for the position of Saturn during the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar. Remember, they said it appears in front of the Swallow, which today is known as Pisces, “the Fish”.
Here’s the screen capture:
As we see here, Saturn was in Cancer (Latin for Crab).
Looking at the chart above showing the 12 constellations, we see that Saturn would have to move through, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpius, Sagittarius, Capricornus, and Aquarius, before reaching Pisces or the Swallow. So if we add 20 years and go with the date the Archeologists say was Nebuchadnezzar’s 37th year, 568, where is Saturn?
And there we have Saturn in Pisces, just where the Babylonian astronomers said it was in the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign. That would mean that his 19th year would fall between 587/588 just as the Archeologists claim. According to Jeremiah, that was when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem.
Why would the Organization withhold this information from us?
In the November broadcast on tv.jw.org, Governing Body member Gerrit Losch told us that “Lying involves saying something incorrect to a person who is entitled to know the truth about a matter. But there is also something that is called a half-truth….So we need to speak openly and honestly with each other, not withholding bits of information that could change the perception of the listener or mislead him.
Would you think that withholding this vital astronomical data from us that pinpoints the year of Jerusalem’s destruction amounts to “withholding bits of information that could change the perception” we have about 607 BCE and 1914 CE? Is the Organization, through its chief teaching instrument, “speaking openly and honestly” with us?
We might excuse this as a mistake made due to imperfection. But remember, Gerrit Losch was defining what constitutes a lie. When a true Christian makes a mistake, the correct course of action is to acknowledge it and correct it. However, what about one claiming to be a true Christian who knows something to be true and yet conceals that truth to perpetuate a false teaching. What does Gerrit Losch call that?
What would be the motivation for such an action?
We must bear in mind that pinning 607 BCE as the year of Jerusalem’s destruction is the cornerstone of the 1914 doctrine. Move the date to 588, and the calculation for the start of the last days moves to 1934. They lose the World War I, the Spanish Influenza and the famines caused by the war as part of the their “composite sign”. Worse, they can no longer claim 1919 as the year Christ Jesus appointed them as the Faithful and Discreet Slave (Matthew 24:45-47). Without that 1919 appointment, they cannot claim the right to exercise authority in the name of God over Christ’s flock. They, therefore, have a powerful vested interest in supporting the 1914 doctrine. Still, it is hard to imagine that men you may have esteemed all your life could be capable of knowingly perpetrating such a colossal deception. Nevertheless, a critical thinker looks at the evidence, and does not allow emotion to cloud his thinking.
(For a thorough analysis of the 1914 teaching, see 1914 – A Litany of Assumptions.)
There is another piece of evidence which they have withheld. As we saw in the last article, they need us to accept the belief that there is a 20-year gap in the timeline of the kings of Babylon. That supposed gap allows them to move the date of Jerusalem’s destruction back to 607. They claim that there is 20 years of information missing from the written record. In the last article, we demonstrated that no such gap exists. Does the astronomical data also demonstrate the absence of any such gap? Here is the list of two predecessor kings to Nebuchadnezzar.
|Number of Years
|647 – 626 BCE
|625 – 605 BCE
|604 – 562 BCE
These names and dates are established by the “Saturn Tablet (British Museum Index BM 76738 + BM 76813) which is found in a book written by N.W Swerdlow, titled, Ancient Astronomy and Celestial Divination, chapter 3, “Babylonian Observations of Saturn”.[i]
Line 2 of this tablet states that in Year 1, month 4, day 24 of Kandalanu’s reign, Saturn was located in front of the Crab constellation.
Using the data from this tablet and the recorded years of each king’s reign, we can see that the astronomical data continues to match Saturn’s positions all the way back to King Kandalanu who began ruling in 647 BCE.
This second confirmation, after the evidence from our last article, deals a one-two punch to the Organization’s fiction of a 20-year gap. Undoubtedly, this is the reason why this evidence never found its way into the 2011 two-part article.
Examining The Watchtower’s Argument
On page 25 of the November 2011 issue, we find this argument in favor of 607 BCE:
In addition to the aforementioned eclipse, there are 13 sets of lunar observations on the tablet and 15 planetary observations. These describe the position of the moon or planets in relation to certain stars or constellations.18
Because of the superior reliability of the lunar positions, researchers have carefully analyzed these 13 sets of lunar positions on VAT 4956.
Why are they going for lunar positions over planetary observations? According to footnote 18: “Though the cuneiform sign for the moon is clear and unambiguous, some of the signs for the names of the planets and their positions are unclear. “
The trusting reader is not likely to notice that no mention is made of which “signs for the names of the planets…are unclear”. Additionally, we are not told who the researchers are who have carefully analyzed the “13 sets of lunar positions”. For us to be sure there is no bias, these researchers must have no connection with the Organization. Additionally, why do they not share the details of their research as we have done here in this article, so that the readers of The Watchtower can verify the findings for themselves?
For instance, they make this claim from the second Watchtower article:
“While not all of these sets of lunar positions match the year 568/567 B.C.E., all 13 sets match calculated positions for 20 years earlier, for the year 588/587 B.C.E.” (p. 27)
We have already seen in these two Watchtower articles that hard archeological and astronomical data and primary source evidence have been omitted or misrepresented. Gerrit Losch, in the video cited earlier, said: “Lies and half-truths undermine trust. A German proverb says: “Who lies once is not believed, even if he says the truth.”
Given that, they can hardly expect us to now take everything they write as gospel truth. We need to check things for ourselves to see if they are telling us the truth or misleading us. It may well be a challenge for those of us raised as Witnesses to believe that the leadership of the Organization could be capable of willful deception, yet the facts we’ve already uncovered make it difficult to look the other way. Given that, we will take the time in a future article to examine their claim to see if the lunar data does indeed point to 588 versus 586 BCE.
[i] Use https://www.worldcat.org/ to locate this book at your local library.


The inner planet Mars will make an astrological transit on the 6th of November 2018. The transit will be from Capricorn to Aquarius. Mars will stay in Aquarius till the 23rd of December 2018. The transit will have different significance, effects and meaning for different signs in this time period.
Aquarius, the 11th sign is in the ‘Air’ element of the 4 Astrology elements that each sign falls in, i.e., Air, Water, Fire and Earth. Aquarian natives are generally smart, intellectual, balanced, humanistic and analytical thinkers. Mars, a masculine planet is related to the drive, courage and energy. Mars can be malefic too, e.g., Manglik Dosh factor is a known setback. The aggressive planet Mars can be both constructive and destructive for a native.
Mars generally stays in a sign for about 2 months; however, the stay in a sign can be much longer too, depending on the motion, retrograde status and stage of Mars. Mars rules Aries and Scorpio. Mars rules Houses 1st and the 8th.
Mars, the 4th planet from the Sun in our solar system, takes almost 687 Earth days to make one revolution around the Sun, i.e., 1.88 Earth years. The size of Mars is a little more than half of the size of Earth.
Mars, the red planet, is given significant status from the ancient times and in different mythologies. Mars is called Mangala in Sanskrit and is also considered as the God of War in Hinduism. Mars is the Roman God of War, as well. A few deities associated with Mars are Lord Karttikeya, Lord Skanda, Lord Mangal Dev, Lord Hanuman, Greek God Ares.
Tuesdays are dedicated to Mars. Tuesday is called Mangalvaar in Hindi, Mardi in French, Martis in Latin, Martes in Spanish, Vtornik in Russian, Dienstag in German, Kayobi in Japanese, Xingqier in Chinese, althulatha in Arabic. The Astrology color of Mars is red and the gemstone is red coral. Friendly with Mars are the Sun, Earth’s moon and Jupiter; opponents are Saturn and Rahu-Ketu. Mercury and Venus are neutral with Mars.
A Mantra for planet Mars is—
Om An Angarakay Namah
ॐ अं अंगारकाय नम:


Giant spider ‘attacks’ Australian space telescope
It’s an arachnophobe’s worst nightmare come true.
A security camera fixed on the giant antenna at Canberra’s Deep Space Communications Complex caught a terrifying spider “attack” this week when a giant huntsman spider crawled across the lens.
The effect was chilling – making it look like the giant arachnid was dwarfing the 34-meter wide deep space antenna.
“When mission scientists decided to put images from Mars on the World Wide Web, we don’t think this is what they had in mind,” the Canberra Deep Space Network tweeted, according to 9 News Australia.
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Greetings Earthlings! In keeping with the “Month of Variety” figured it was time to go with something out of this world. One of the many great things about living out in the country is you get to experience all that the night has to offer. If the howling coyotes don’t intrigue you or the bats don’t take your breath away (literally spooked one out from under our deck tonight) and the billions of visible stars don’t captivate you .. there’s always the majesty that is …
… the full Moon. In particular I’ve always referred to this as a Harvest Moon. Not sure where I learned that, but guessing once again it has its roots in my early education years since the fact it was orange is what I associate with the Harvest Moon. According to Wikipedia, that may not be a requirement. What makes it the Harvest Moon is the closest full moon to the Autumnal Equinox. Now whether that means it is always orange is left unclear. Another interesting note was that the Harvest Moons are unique in that the time difference between when the moon rises on successive evenings is significantly shorter than average. Typically the moon rises 50-47 minutes later each day. The Harvest Moon successive nights is only in the 30 minute range.
Personally, I generally liked the half moon form better than the full. Just gives a more eerie feel and the texture on the surface at the midpoint gives a cool jaggedness too it. And as Pink Floyd so eloquently stated, don’t let the band you’re in start playing a different tune or you just might be there.
I can imagine the anguish that previous statement probably caused. “The dark side of the moon isn’t referring to the “missing” part you idiot, it is meant to refer to the OTHER side of the moon”. You know, the one that was introduced to us thanks to Apollo 8 in 1968 – since that point it is no longer a mystery, we KNOW what the back side of the moon looks like and it is bright pink with millions of multi-color spots all over it – pretty much looks like a giant cupcake with sprinkles.
Question time – what direction does the Moon orbit the Earth? If you said same direction as the Earth.. you get a big gold star! Now what appears to be the harder question since there are a lot of people out there that don’t know the correct answer (and yet they are still allowed to vote). Does the Earth orbit about around the Sun or does the Sun orbit around the Earth?
Hit the jump to see a few more shots of our little buddy in the sky
Probably a good time to point out these shots were taken with my F2.8 200-400. Can’t remember if the 1.4 tele was on that and don’t have my Raw drive open at the moment so can’t confirm either way. Thinking it was not but I’ll update this when I find out. Regardless, I thought they came out quite nice.
I was trying out different angles and treatments on the shots in the digital darkroom. Some I kept cooler, some a little brighter and others I warmed up like the half moon above and the shot below. The Harvest Moon shot was actually already tinted orange so that was not color manipulated.. well, not much hehehe. I wanted to have a variety of options in case I needed a particular style in the future. You know, just in case there might be a need to spruce up another shot (future post foreshadowing). Or if I wanted to pull a Peter Lik and throw a tree in the foreground.. just saying. Decided I might like some glow so worked up some shots with a little longer exposure.
Then found one that was opened up even longer giving a pretty wide glow – probably use this one for spooky Halloween effect in cloudy/foggy setting.
To be honest, these pictures bring me back to my high school physics days. One of our labs was to measure the height of a mountain on the moon. Believe that was Mons Pico – 2km if you are curious. One of the few high school classes that more than prepared me for college. Credit goes to Father Pisors . Definitely one of my favorite teachers and was quite saddened when I learned of his passing (link here). I’ve often been critical of my early education years, but I only have high praises for this teacher – truly cared about his student, forced us to expand our mental muscle and was an absolute stickler when it came to the quality of your work. If he noticed you made the same mistake in your lab book in a future lab, you got dinged big time – there is no room in life for sloppiness young man.
Oh, and for those still chewing on their pencils – the Earth orbits around the Sun. Apparently news to 25% of people surveyed (link here)
5 thoughts on “Little Boy Blue”
Well, this was a surprise! Did you use the Beast to get super close shots, or simply look up and take the pictures?
In case anyone is searching someday on Google, I’d like to say here that Father Pisors was a fantastic teacher of mine at Griffin High School in Springfield, Illinois, really a remarkable man and the one responsible for my Physics degrees after that. I remember watching him prove something in Calculus class and inadvertently saying “Cool!” when he was done, which startled him and the rest of the class so it was a little embarrassing. I might add that the English teachers I had were real fans of him as well, since they said he would consistently fight for the Humanities courses and the need for qualified teachers, not gym teachers, to teach them.
The moon is very interesting. The moon’s libration, it’s wobbliness, is significant and with proper astronomical knowledge can be used to create stereo pairs of the moon. A libration video that shows the surprising extent of the wobble is on http://lcni.uoregon.edu/~dow/Marks_photos/stereo_pairs/Apollo_moon/Stereo_pairs_of_moon.html . The stereo pairs at the top of that page are for cross-eyed viewing, but there are others online (and the old stereo card at the bottom of that page) that are for parallel viewing, which I much prefer.
Also, it’s surprising that the moon’s orbit around the sun does not have loops, but is convex everywhere because the speed of the Earth and moon around the sun is about 30 times faster than the speed of the moon around the Earth, so the moon never goes backward relative to the sun as it goes around the Earth, and in fact has a nearly circular orbit around the sun. See universetoday.com/30674/lunatic-fringe-stereo-moon-by-jukka-metsavainio/ where I’ve left off the www prefix because two or more links in a comment require moderator approval to be posted (we’ll see if this trick works!).
We are lucky to have the Moon, and only one moon, and a large one at that, including the fact that it subtends almost exactly the Sun’s angular diameter from Earth so we can have cool solar eclipses.
Thanks for the cool Moon photos!
I figured you had fond memories of Father Pisors as well… it probably goes without saying that having your brothers proceed you in that very same Physics class is an additional hardship resulting from ridiculous high bars of expectations. “You know, your brother would never have missed that easy physics problem.” hehehe
Interesting, I had no idea it wobbled any, not to mention THAT much. Nice animation on that website – it’s as if the craters were deeper on one quadrant forcing the orbit vibration. Either that or we knocked it out of whack when we landed on it!. Odd that it makes such good stereo pairs as a result. So Mr. Astronomy… are there any other moons that behave in this similar behavior? I’ve heard that this behavior is beneficial to us – how not sure – or if that is even true. What I do know is true is a full moon makes me hungrier, my teeth grow a little longer and for some reason my body hair grows out – guessing this is just normal with everyone so never talk about it much.
Hey, your trick with the links worked – looks like it didn’t need to be moderated!
Oh, The Beast is the 200-400 so yes, these were all taken with that glass.
Hey don’t dis the great Peter Lik! He made millions on Bella Luna! I am sure it is not shopped as he never, ever shops ;). Mr. One and Done
Now that comment is just dripping with sarcasm – and the fact you know the name of his picture is disturbing. Oh, and you and I BOTH know the truth about that shot thanks to our insider information … and I like to refer to him as Mr. Idontshop .. and then chuckle to myself


The Baikonur Cosmodrome is the world’s oldest and largest operational space launch facility.
Yuri Gagaran was shot into space from here.
The Buran program was the largest and most expensive project in the history of Soviet space exploration.
Only one of the Buran shuttles completed one unmanned orbital spaceflight in 1988.
The shuttle was unfortunately destroyed when a hangar collapsed in 2002.
The program was stopped in 1993 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
All images © Bob Thissen
By Bob Thissen


May the Fourth be with you
May 4 at 1:00 pm - 6:30 pm
SteamRanger is sending you off into an outer space adventure. But first we have to travel on our MMOPoT (Most Modern Operating Piece of Transport) to Planet Strathalbyn for a meal and movie. Let’s run through the program…
We start our journey at Cape Canaveral Launch Pad (Well, not really Cape Canaveral. Just our version, Mount Barker Station) where we wait for our countdown to begin at 1.30pm. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Off we go in our all steel carriages with diesel 958 up front. As we push through the atmosphere (Mount Barker outer areas) and onto our journey into outer space (the countryside). While we are in this outer space, we will be in radio silence (no WIFI). A quiz will be held during this time where the winners will get a prize. Arriving at our destination Planet Strathalbyn you will find that you won’t need to use your oxygen tanks as the air on Planet Strathalbyn is breathable.
WARNING! Due to less gravity, we ask parents to hang onto their children so they don’t float away. A short walk to our Base Station SNC for our movie (SpaceBalls PG). After the movie we will make our way back to the Planet Strathalbyn Relaunch site (remembering to hang on to your children) and board our MMOPoT back to Cape Canaveral (Mount Barker Station). On our way homeward bound you may see stars twinkling as we rocket past them at a great rate of knots and arriving at around 6 pm.
Adults and children are invited to come dressed up as your favourite Sci/Fi character and be in the running for a great prize.


- 💯 Your ring will charge every time it’s exposed to any source of light, including daylight!
- 💯 Galaxy rings are made from a mixture of resin and phosphorus glow powder. The glow will remain visible for several hours after it’s charged!
- 💯 This urban spirits inspired us to create a new collection of rings that reflect the universe!
- 💯 The bustle of Stars, the luminous neon and the pulsing nightlife can be felt in your very core!
- 💯 This glow Ring let’s you feel the galaxy in your hands! There is a certain energy that can be found out of planets and in the galaxy !
- Size: US 5-11
- Weight: about 4.5 grams
- Width:8 mm
- Thickness: 2 mm
- 1 x Fashion Cool Luminous Ring


With the recent discovery made that water exists in the moon, Pocari Sweat is taking off for the lunar surface with Pocari Sweat in powder form.
We will wait expectantly—from over 380,000 kilometers away—for the day when people touch down on the lunar surface and drink Pocari Sweat made with the moon's own water.
Pocari Sweat is launching the Lunar Dream Project in Summer 2016. The makers of the refreshing and healthy drink will create the Dream Ring as a key to open the capsule that will fly to the moon with your dreams. When you touch down on the moon someday, use your Dream Ring to open the capsule to reencounter your dreams from today. If will be such an out-of-this-world experience if you celebrated this by drinking the included Pocari Sweat powder by mixing it with the moon’s own water.
The goal of this project doesn’t end when the Dream Capsule lands on the moon. Rather, it will signal the beginning of a new space age and inspire children to dream of space. As part of its Lunar Dream Project, Pocari Sweat Philippines will invite 20 Class A Primary Schools (Elementary) from Metro Manila, Pampanga, Bulacan, Batangas and Laguna for the Moon/Solar System Exhibit Competition and School Caravan that will run from September – November 2015.


- How long does it take to return from space?
- How many days on Earth is a year in space?
- How do female astronauts urinate in space?
- Do astronauts drink their own urine?
- How do you poop in space?
- Did they recover the bodies of the Challenger crew?
- Can astronauts walk when they land on Earth?
- Can astronauts walk after coming back from space?
- Are there dead bodies in space?
- Do astronauts drink alcohol in space?
- Do astronauts feel heavy when they return to Earth?
- Can u get pregnant in space?
- What happens to astronauts when they return from space?
- What does space smell like?
- Did NASA leave dogs in space?
- What happens if you vomit in space?
- Who’s the youngest astronaut?
- Can astronauts get sick?
- Why can’t astronauts burp in space?
- Do astronauts vomit when they land?
- Do female astronauts wear bras in space?
How long does it take to return from space?
The ride home from the International Space Station sees the astronauts brake from 28 800 km/h to a standstill at touchdown in barely three hours.
How does the Soyuz spacecraft reenter the atmosphere.
And how does the capsule land?.
How many days on Earth is a year in space?
365 daysA year on Earth is approximately 365 days. Why is that considered a year? Well, 365 days is about how long it takes for Earth to orbit all the way around the Sun one time.
How do female astronauts urinate in space?
With the older latrine models on the ISS, astronauts urinate into a handheld funnel and defecate into a device that looks like a smaller version of a traditional toilet seat. A fan inside each apparatus suctions the waste away from the body, an important function in an environment where everything floats.
Do astronauts drink their own urine?
Astronauts have been drinking distilled urine since 2009, and they currently recapture 93 percent of wastewater, but the system they’re using now is heavy, slow and has been prone to breaking down. It spins the urine at high speed to separate out the water vapor, then treats it chemically.
How do you poop in space?
Today, astronauts at the International Space Station poop into a little plate-sized toilet hole, and a fan vacuum-sucks their excrement away. A separate funnel equipped with a fan suctions their pee away.
Did they recover the bodies of the Challenger crew?
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said today that it had recovered remains of each of the seven Challenger astronauts and had finished its operations to retrieve the wreckage of the space shuttle’s crew compartment from the ocean floor.
Can astronauts walk when they land on Earth?
Astronauts and cosmonauts that live in space for six months to a year experience physical changes that have noticeable effects once they return to Earth’s gravity, including changes to vision, balance, coordination, blood pressure, and the ability to walk, which impact their ability to perform basic tasks.
Can astronauts walk after coming back from space?
It’s really hard to walk when you come back to Earth from space. … Astronauts exercise for about two hours every day when in space to keep up muscle mass and bone density while in microgravity, but that doesn’t mean that it’s automatically simple to walk upright in Earth’s gravity.
Are there dead bodies in space?
As of 2020, there have been 15 astronaut and 4 cosmonaut fatalities during spaceflight. Astronauts have also died while training for space missions, such as the Apollo 1 launch pad fire which killed an entire crew of three. There have also been some non-astronaut fatalities during spaceflight-related activities.
Do astronauts drink alcohol in space?
Alcoholic drinks are generally disallowed in spaceflight, but space agencies have previously allowed its consumption. NASA has been stricter about alcohol consumption than the Roscosmos, both according to regulations and in practice. Astronauts and cosmonauts are restricted from being intoxicated at launch.
Do astronauts feel heavy when they return to Earth?
Even after a ten-to-fourteen-day mission to space, the return is dramatic. Your balance system is turned upside down, and you feel very dizzy. When you stand up for the first time, you feel about five times heavier than you expect. All of this can be unsettling, and nausea is not unusual.
Can u get pregnant in space?
As a result NASA’s official policy forbids pregnancy in space. Female astronauts are tested regularly in the 10 days prior to launch. And sex in space is very much frowned upon.
What happens to astronauts when they return from space?
In space, astronauts lose fluid volume—including up to 22% of their blood volume. … Upon return to earth, the blood begins to pool in the lower extremities again, resulting in orthostatic hypotension.”
What does space smell like?
Astronaut Thomas Jones said it “carries a distinct odor of ozone, a faint acrid smell…a little like gunpowder, sulfurous.” Tony Antonelli, another space-walker, said space “definitely has a smell that’s different than anything else.” A gentleman named Don Pettit was a bit more verbose on the topic: “Each time, when I …
Did NASA leave dogs in space?
The dogs reached space on July 22, 1951, but did not orbit. They were the first mammals successfully recovered from spaceflight. After Laika, the Soviet Union sent two more dogs, Belka and Strelka, into space on Aug. 19, 1960.
What happens if you vomit in space?
The vomit could smear the inside of the helmet, blinding the astronaut. And because it could not be removed, it could be inhaled or clog their oxygen circulation system.
Who’s the youngest astronaut?
Alyssa CarsonThere aren’t many teenagers like Alyssa Carson from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. At the age of 18, she is the world’s youngest astronaut-in-training and already has three TEDx Talks under her space belt.
Can astronauts get sick?
While floating off-Earth, astronauts have endured upper respiratory infections (URI) or colds, urinary tract infections and skin infections, Jonathan Clark, a former (six-time) crew surgeon for NASA’s Space Shuttle program and current associate professor of neurology and space medicine at the Center for Space Medicine …
Why can’t astronauts burp in space?
On Earth, gravity pulls liquids and solids to down to the bottom of our digestive systems, while gases stay up top and get forced back up the esophagus as a burp. That can’t happen in space. Without gravity to separate them, “the air, food and liquids in your stomach are all floating together like chunky bubbles.
Do astronauts vomit when they land?
NASA astronauts acclimating themselves to space adaptation syndrome in a KC-135 airplane that flies parabolic arcs to create short periods of weightlessness. In about two thirds of the passengers, these flights produce nausea, giving the plane its nickname “vomit comet”.
Do female astronauts wear bras in space?
According to this Salon article, yes they do. They don’t need the support, but the bra keeps their wobbly bits in place while floating around in microgravity. They also like having an extra layer between said bits and the cameras all over the space station.


Historic Eclipse in the Gardens
Experience History with HC
Be part of history and witness the Total Solar Eclipse of 2017 with Historic Columbia at Historic Eclipse in the Gardens on Monday, Aug. 21. Experience this once-in-a-lifetime event on the expansive grounds of the Robert Mills House & Gardens, located in the heart of downtown Columbia, S.C. At 2:41 p.m., guests will see the much-anticipated total solar eclipse for 2 minutes and 36 seconds of darkness, which is the longest 100% total eclipse for a metro area on the East Coast of the United States.
Historic Eclipse in the Gardens will feature an expansive outdoor area for eclipse viewing, live music and children’s entertainment from Pears 4 Bears, hands-on kid’s activities, tours of the historic Robert Mills House and much more. Misting stations will be available for guests to stay cool in the summer heat. Eclipse viewing glasses will be available at no charge for event guests. Food and drinks will also be available for purchase. Guests are encouraged to bring their own blanket and/or chair, sit back and experience a celestial spectacle of a lifetime. To ensure a safe and fun viewing of the eclipse for everyone, we ask that you please refrain from bringing personal telescopes and other viewing equipment.
This event will take place from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. on the grounds of the Robert Mills House & Gardens, located at 1616 Blanding Street. Tickets are SOLD OUT!
Click here to learn more about Historic Columbia's Total Eclipse Weekend programming.
Please note that this event is rain or shine and tickets are non-refundable.
At 2:41 p.m. on Monday, August 21, 2017, viewers in the greater Columbia, S.C., area will experience the longest total solar eclipse on the East Coast, with 2 minutes and 36 seconds of darkness in the middle of the afternoon. NASA estimates that South Carolina could see an influx of up to 1 million visitors to witness the first total solar eclipse to make a path all the way across the continental U.S. in 99 years. From Aug. 18 to 21, 2017, visitors and residents in the greater Columbia, S.C., region will enjoy long weekend of eclipse-related activities hosted by area attractions, arts and culture organizations, restaurants, hotels, retailers, community groups and more leading up to and during the eclipse. The Total Eclipse Weekend Columbia, S.C., initiative is spearheaded by a coalition of regional entities whose mission is to create an incredible, weekend-long experience for those witnessing the eclipse in the region.


Birthday Star Map Canada
Renu, rohit, rupali, tanvi, roopak, taara are some of the examples. If you are interested in knowing the possible range, you can note the planets' positions for 00:01 and then for 23:59, which will give you this range.
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For this nakshatra, you can choose names starting with the syllables, ru, roo, re, ro, ta and taa. Sky map online web app provides free, printable & interactive sky charts for any location, time and viewpoint. A birth chart, also known as a natal chart, is a map of where all the major planets and astral bodies were located at the time you were born.
Most people are aware of their sun sign, however, there are multiple aspects of astrology governing our lives. All of the astral bodies were moving through different zodiac signs and houses at your time. Sun, moon, asc personal daily horoscope transit chart calculator secondary progressions, solar return synastry, composite, davison chart traditional astrology calculator sidereal astrology calculator various astrology calculations returns, midpoints,.
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It is clear that the moon and sleep seem inexorably linked since the dawn of time. Indeed, many sleepers experience some difficulty falling asleep during Full Moon periods.
The latter has always been the subject of fascination in man. There is no shortage of myths and theories about this astral phenomenon: transformation into a werewolf, hyperactivity in children, increased libido or even hair growth, but then what should we believe?
Several researchers have conducted studies to provide scientific answers to the influence of the phases of the Moon on the quality of sleep . Thus, we will see in this article the effects of the Moon on sleep and we will give you tips for better sleep.
I - The effects and consequences of the moon on sleep
Did you have trouble sleeping last night? Did you wake up long before the alarm clock rang? If this happens at the approach of the Full Moon or during it, it is not a coincidence!
- Shorter nights: Studies have shown a causal link between the moon and the ability to fall asleep. Indeed, according to a study published in the journal Science Advances , the time to fall asleep would be longer during the 3 to 5 days preceding the Full Moon and the duration of sleep would be shorter.
- An affected mood? In addition, the moon can have an impact on our mood. Indeed, the lunar rays can affect the region of the brain that regulates our nervous system (the hypothalamus). This is why some people may seem particularly moody a few days before the Full Moon.
The moon can therefore have an influence on sleep cycles !
II - Why does the moon prevent us from sleeping? What are the causes ?
- Brightness level: The moon's brightness level plays a crucial role in our deep sleep. The higher the moon is lit by the sun and the higher it is, the more frequent nocturnal awakenings will be.
- Disturbed melatonin levels: According to Encyclopedia of Sleep author Alex Dimitriu, our melatonin levels are affected to drop during the Full Moon. Melatonin is a natural hormone that we secrete at the end of the day to prepare our body to fall asleep. Thus, a deficit of melatonin at certain periods of the Moon, can explain our difficulty sleeping or waking up more frequently during the night. On the other hand, the rate doubles during the New Moon (Invisible Moon).
III - How to sleep better during the Full Moon?
If you experience particular difficulty sleeping during certain lunar cycles, you may be a “luno-sensitive” person. For this, we advise you to set up a wellness routine during the days preceding the Full Moon. For example, you can:
- Take a nice hot bath in the evening to promote muscle relaxation
- Prioritize reading a good book on screens before going to bed
- Take care to sleep in total darkness by removing any source of light that could disturb your sleep. You can also wear a sleep mask .
- Be careful not to drink beverages that may excite you such as tea, coffee or sugary drinks
- Avoid doing high-intensity sports in the evening and favor calm activities such as yoga so as not to raise your body temperature before going to bed.
- Opt for natural foods rich in melatonin: oats, barley, rice, oilseeds such as walnuts and hazelnuts, bananas, ginger, valerian tea, lavender or marjoram
- Finally, choose quality bedding , such as a pillow or a natural duvet.
In conclusion, the moon can have effects on the quality of our sleep and our mood. The main cause being the bluish light of the Moon which interferes with the production of melatonin. However, this varies greatly from person to person depending on their sensitivity and scientific studies do not always agree. In case you have difficulty sleeping during the Full Moon, you can adopt a wellness routine that will help you fall asleep!
Find the next Full Moon & New Moon dates on https://www.pleine-lune.org/
- ScienceAdvances: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abe0465
- Science and Future: https://www.sciencesetavenir.fr/sante/la-lune-perturberait-bien-le-sommeil_23473


, originally uploaded by MarioZoots.
Posted by Michael Crowe at 2:03 PM
Astronomers have spotted the most distant object yet confirmed in the universe – a self-destructing star that exploded 13.1 billion light years from Earth. It detonated just 640 million years after the big bang, around the end of the cosmic "dark ages", when the first stars and galaxies were lighting up space.
Posted by Michael Crowe at 1:44 PM
Posted by Michael Crowe at 6:57 PM
Posted by Michael Crowe at 12:55 PM
Posted by Michael Crowe at 2:00 PM
Posted by Michael Crowe at 12:19 AM
The largest diamond ever found is the burned out corpse of a star named BPM 37093, about 50 light years away from Earth.
The white dwarf star is a chunk of crystallized carbon that weighs 5 million trillion trillion pounds.
Astronomers say that similarly, our Sun will deplete its nuclear fuel and die in another five billion years. About two billion years after that, the cinder Sun will be a similar diamond.
Posted by Michael Crowe at 10:39 PM