The Sky Tonight

September 08, 2014

How NASA's New Carbon Observatory Will Help Us Understand Alien Worlds
Moffet Field CA (SPX) Sep 08, 2014
On July 2, NASA successfully launched the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2), a remote sensing satellite on a mission to precisely measure carbon dioxide levels in our planet's atmosphere. As a bonus OCO-2 will also help prepare us for eventually probing the atmospheres of alien worlds in sharper detail. Why study carbon dioxide? This gas essentially serves as Earth's thermostat. As a "greenhouse gas," carbon dioxide absorbs radiation emitted by the planet's surface that would otherwise escape ... read more

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Hubble Sees Spiral in Serpens This new NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows a beautiful spiral galaxy known as PGC 54493, located in the constellation of Serpens (The Serpent). This galaxy is part of a galaxy cluster that ... more		Dot Against the Dark As if trying to get our attention, Mimas is positioned against the shadow of Saturn's rings, bright on dark. As we near summer in Saturn's northern hemisphere, the rings cast ever larger shadows on ... more		Rosetta Comet is Darker than Charcoal Rosetta scientists also discovered the comet's surface so far shows no large water-ice patches. The team expected to see ice patches on the comet's surface because it is too far away for the sun's w ... more
				DNA May Have Had Humble Beginnings As Nutrient Carrier New research intriguingly suggests that DNA, the genetic information carrier for humans and other complex life, might have had a rather humbler origin. In some microbes, a study shows, DNA pulls dou ... more		Comet to pass Earth close enough for binoculars For those of us who are interested in astronomy but don't have the equipment to really take a peer into space, there will be an interesting opportunity this week. A comet named "Comet Jacques" will be passing Earth close enough to be viewed by binoculars. The people at the Southern Observatory for Near Earth Astroids Research (SONEAR) in Brazil saw the comet months ago with their high tech equipment, but now you can see it with something many people only use for looking at birds. ... more

Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison & Memory Foam Mattress Review

Cosmic forecast: Dark clouds will give way to sunshine Lupus 4 is located about 400 light-years away from Earth, straddling the constellations of Lupus (The Wolf) and Norma (The Carpenter's Square). The cloud is one of several affiliated dark clouds fou ... more		Hawaii scientist maps, names Laniakea, our home supercluster of galaxies University of Hawaii at Manoa astronomer R. Brent Tully, who recently shared the 2014 Gruber Cosmology Prize and the 2014 Victor Ambartsumian International Prize, has led an international team of as ... more		Sierra Space clears design milestone for missile tracking satellites in SDA Tranche 2 Top diplomats of North Korea, China agree to oppose 'hegemonism' Elbit secures 120 million order for Hermes 900 maritime surveillance UAS		Small Asteroid to Safely Pass Close to Earth Sunday A small asteroid, designated 2014 RC, will safely pass very close to Earth on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2014. At the time of closest approach, based on current calculations to be about 2:18 p.m. EDT (11:18 a ... more
				Researcher advances a new model for dark matter Astrophysicists believe that about 80 percent of the substance of our universe is made up of mysterious "dark matter" that can't be perceived by human senses or scientific instruments. "Dark m ... more		Researchers Discover New Clues to Determining the Solar Cycle Approximately every 11 years, the sun undergoes a complete personality change from quiet and calm to violently active. The height of the sun's activity, known as solar maximum, is a time of numerous ... more

Startup in the Land of the Rising Sun; A Japanese Solar Venture - by Bradley L. Bartz

Surface level ultraviolet spectra of comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko obtained NASA's Alice ultraviolet (UV) spectrograph aboard the European Space Agency's Rosetta comet orbiter has delivered its first scientific discoveries. Rosetta, in orbit around comet 67P/Churyumov-Geras ... more		How much gravity is enough? Keeping upright in a low-gravity environment is not easy, and NASA documents abound with examples of astronauts falling on the lunar surface. Now, a new study by an international team of researchers ... more		The first animals on Earth may have been sea sponges, study suggests Small Satellite Contracted to Probe Climate Effects of Space Radiation Fengyun satellite strengthens China global weather forecasting capacity		Single laser stops molecular tumbling motion instantly In the quantum world, making the simple atom behave is one thing, but making the more complex molecule behave is another story. Now Northwestern University scientists have figured out an elega ... more
Historic comet landing site to be unveiled on Sept 15 The European Space Agency (ESA) will on September 15 unveil which of five possible sites it has chosen for the first-ever landing of a probe from Earth on a comet, it said Thursday. ... more		Say hello to Laniakea, our cosmic neighbourhood Astronomers said Wednesday they have mapped the galaxy supercluster of which our Solar System forms a tiny part, and named the mighty mass Laniakea, or "immense heaven" in the language of Hawaii. ... more		Cool Calculations for Cold Atoms Chemical reactions drive the mechanisms of life as well as a million other natural processes on earth. These reactions occur at a wide spectrum of temperatures, from those prevailing at the chilly p ... more		Titan's subsurface reservoirs modify methane rainfall The international Cassini mission has revealed hundreds of lakes and seas spread across the icy surface of Saturn's moon Titan, mostly in its polar regions. These lakes are filled not with water but ... more

	NASA Invites Public to Submit Messages for Asteroid Mission Time Capsule NASA is inviting the worldwide public to submit short messages and images on social media that could be placed in a time capsule aboard a spacecraft launching to an asteroid in 2016. Called th ... more		Russia Considers Meteor Impact Prevention Project A project to protect people and economic facilities from the impact of space objects could be launched in Russia this year, Russian Emergencies Ministry has announced. "The Emergencies Ministr ... more

Worlds most powerful centrifuge begins operations in China

Breakthrough in UAV swarm intelligence as SRI redefines topology mapping

China factory activity shrinks in September for sixth straight month

Japan space agency unveils asteroid hunting probe		Why sibling stars look alike: Early, fast mixing in star-birth clouds		Astrophysicists Report Radioactive Cobalt in Supernova Explosion		Mysteries of space dust revealed		Witnessing the early growth of a giant
NASA's Spitzer Telescope Witnesses Asteroid Smashup		Quantum physics enables revolutionary imaging method		Technique uses fraction of measurements to find quantum wave functions		Rosetta arrival competition winners		Researchers Use NASA and Other Data to Look Into the Heart of a Solar Storm

US Space Debris Tracking Site To Be Build In Western Australia

What lit up the universe?

Integral catches dead star exploding in a blaze of glory

Orion Rocks! Pebble-Size Particles May Jump-Start Planet Formation

Measurement at Big Bang Conditions Confirms Lithium Problem

Evidence for Supernovas Near Earth

China Aims for the Moon, Plans to Bring Back Lunar Soil

Detecting neutrinos, physicists look into the heart of the sun

Best View Yet of Merging Galaxies in Distant Universe

NASA Captures Images of a Late Summer Flare

Eta Carinae: Our Neighboring Superstars

Hot-spring bacteria reveal ability to use far-red light for photosynthesis

Scientists observe quantum vortices in cold helium droplets

Removing the outcome unpredictability of ultracold atomic reactions

Photon speedway puts big data in the fast lane

Regulating Asteroid Mining

Landing site search for Rosetta narrows

How Titan's Haze Help Us Understand Life's Origins

Electric Sparks May Alter Evolution of Lunar Soil

Spectacular supernova's mysteries revealed

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