Vernal Equinox Is Coming… Balance Eggs Or Believe In Science?
Spring
officially arrives for everyone, including astronomers on March 20. The word
"Equinox" literally means "equal night". It's all about the balance of light -
not the myth of balancing eggs. On Thursday, both the day and night are the same
length. But what's so special about it? It's a date that most of us recognize as
symbolic of changing seasons. North of Earth's equator we welcome Spring, while
people south of the equator are gearing up for the cooler temperatures of
Autumn.
ATV Jules Verne Reaches "Parking Orbit" 2000km from ISS
Peering across 2000 km of space, the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV),
"Jules Verne", leads the orbit of the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS
will now be a speck on the ATV's horizon, but only hours earlier, it completed a
fly-by 30 km underneath, giving the station and space shuttle Endeavour crew a
look of the precious cargo shipment. Jules Verne will now sit and wait in
"parking orbit" until the coast is clear for the ATV to dock early next month…
Gravity Waves in the Atmosphere can Energize Tornados (Video)
Gravity waves are global events. Much like the ripples on a massive pond,
these large-scale waves can propagate from an atmospheric disturbance over
thousands of miles. These waves are maintained by the gravitational force of
Earth pulling down and the buoyancy of the atmosphere pushing up. Until now it
has been hard to link atmospheric gravity waves with other atmospheric
phenomena, but new research suggests that gravity waves passing over storms can
spin up highly dangerous and damaging tornados… Suddenly gravity waves
become very important and may help to forecast where and when tornados may
strike…
Geologist Finds a Meteorite Crater in Google Earth
Want to discover an impact crater, and even get it named after you? All
you've got to do is spend a few (hundred) hours poring over images in Google
Earth or Google Maps. That's exactly what Geologist Arthur Hickman did, turning
up a previously unknown impact crater when he was searching for iron ore in the
mountains of West Australia.
Great Images From the STS-123 Mission
There have been some outstanding images coming in from the current space shuttle mission at the International Space Station. The crews of Endeavour and the ISS continue their near-frantic pace of spacewalks and outfitting of the station during the STS-123 mission. During the 3rd spacewalk, astronauts Rick Linnehan (right) and Bob Behnken work on the new Dextre, also known as the Special Purpose Dextrous Manipulator (SPDM). This image highlights how big the station is getting, as the astronauts are almost dwarfted by this one area of the truss section.
Organic Molecules Seen in an Extrasolar Planet
The Hubble Space Telescope has turned up evidence for organic molecules on a
planet orbiting another star. Organic molecules? Like the stuff we're made of?
Yes, but wait, this isn't the discovery of life. In fact, it's just the
tell-tale signature of methane in the atmosphere of a distant, superheated
planet.
(more…)
Arctic's Oldest and Thickest Ice is Melting Away
It's been a strange year for the Arctic. During the summer, high
temperatures melted away vast regions of the Arctic sea ice, opening up the
Northwest Passage for the first time. But then this winter has been unusually
cold, bringing back large large areas of sea ice. So what's going on? Is the
Arctic recovering, or is Global Warming marching on?
Celebrate Sun-Earth Day 2008 on March 20
Written by Tammy Plotner
Over
the past seven years, NASA Sun-Earth Connection Education Forum has
sponsored and coordinated education and public outreach events to
highlight NASA Sun-Earth Connection research and discoveries. Their
purpose is to interest school students and the general public to
participate in programs that occur throughout the year and the kickoff
is about to begin. This year's main event will be on March 20, 2008.
Sun-Earth Day isn't strictly limited to this single day. It's a combination of programs and events throughout the year and celebrated this year on March 20. Middle schools are invited to participate, learn about solar science, solar energy and career choices. Following the events will prepare participants to watch a total solar eclipse on August 1, 2008 via a live web cast from China!
A wealth of website related resources provided by a collaboration of partners that include science centers and museums around the world, the Exploratorium, NASA Connect, Sun-Earth Connection missions and others, offer up awesome experiences like watching a Polar Sunrise.
All you need is an Internet connection to visit the unscripted and unpredictable look into some of the latest information on Space Weather, Sun-Earth Day, Solar Week and the new 'student based' Space Weather Action Center at NASA Edge where they're currently featuring programs on "The Sun-Earth Connection" and "Magnetospherence".
Visit the Solar Week website for educational classroom activities and games geared for upper elementary, middle and high school students with a focus on the Sun-Earth connection. Students learn about solar eclipses, sunspots, and solar storms through a series of activities, games, and lessons.
GO here for more and for links..
http://www.universetoday.com/2008/03/18/
celebrate-sun-earth-day-2008-on-march-20/
1 comment on Space News and wow Views..3/20/08
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Wow views is right!!
