Saturday stargazing at Lawrence Hall of Science Nov 5, 2009
It's been 400 years since Galileo first pointed his telescope to the sky to look at the stars, and what better way to celebrate this International Year of Astronomy than by having a look at Jupiter, the planet that so mesmerized the great Italian astronomer ... "There is usually at least one planet that is very exciting to see - currently it's Jupiter - along with any number of deep-sky objects such as galaxies, nebulae and some of the more interesting stars." ... November offers not only good... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Science)
3 in Hawaii win governor's innovation awards Nov 3, 2009
The recipients for October include a biotechnology firm that is making important advances in life sciences, a University of Hawai'i planetary astronomer whose scientific achievements include the discovery of the rings of Jupiter, and a state government agency that is helping to set the foundation for alternative fuel transportation in Hawai'i and the nation ... His scientific achievements include the discovery of the rings of Jupiter and noble (inert) gases and heavy water on Mars ... Over his... (Honolulu Advertiser)
Skywatch: Leonid meteor shower Nov 3, 2009
Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system, with a diameter more than 10 times that of Earth's. To put that in perspective, imagine Jupiter as a golf ball ... Jupiter is so big that you don't even need a telescope to make out a few details. (AZCentral -- Travel)
Leonids meteors light up November skies Nov 1, 2009
For sky watchers not interested in rising before dawn for the Leonids, Jupiter offers an alternative that is visible all night. During November, Jupiter is clearly visible in the south in the constellation Capricornus ... Since Capricornus is made up of relatively faint stars, there should be no problem locating dazzling Jupiter. (Casper Star-Tribune, WY)
Russian president backs nuclear spaceship Oct 29, 2009
NASA also used small amounts of plutonium in deep space probes, including those to Jupiter, Saturn, Pluto and beyond. Upcoming NASA missions powered by plutonium include the over-budget and delayed Mars Science Laboratory, set to launch in 2011, and a mission to tour the solar system's outer planets scheduled to go up in 2020. (MSNBC -- Technology)
> read more Oct 28, 2009
During early evening for eastern North America, Jupiter's moon Ganymede occults (crosses over) Europa partially, from 8:31 to 8:40 p.m. EDT. In a telescope they'll appear to merge for a number of minutes, then separate ... Jupiter's moon Io occults Europa partially from 9:19 to 9:24 p.m. EDT. ... Jupiter this evening is 3. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Burgers paid for by mobile phone Oct 27, 2009
For Julie Ask, an analyst with research firm Jupiter, the partnership illustrates the need to have upfront agreements and co-operation for the chain needed for electronic payments to be a success. "Otherwise it suffers from the chicken and egg problem. POS [Point of Sale] equipment is needed to interoperate with technology in the cell phones. Carriers and handset manufacturers need incentives to add cost into the cell phones. There has to be a network for it to be interesting to anyone," she... (Yahoo News -- Wireless Technology)
Controversial study suggests vast magma pool under Washington state Oct 26, 2009
Most planets discovered so far are far bigger, Jupiter-sized or even larger. Two of the newly discovered planets were as small as five times the size of Earth and one was up to five times larger than Jupiter. (Fresno Bee -- Local)
Galileo upended science Oct 25, 2009
More critically, he discovered the four inner satellites of Jupiter still known as the "Galilean moons" today, in his honour and learnt that Venus, Earth's closest planet, goes through a full range of phases. Put together, his observations validated the revolutionary theory of Nicolaus Copernicus that Earth orbits the Sun, and not the other way round. (iAfrica.com)
Kepler and the Star of Bethlehem Oct 25, 2009
German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler came up with a planetary conjecture of planets Jupiter and Saturn, he called The Star of Bethlehem ... The "Star of Bethlehem" was a planetary conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in the evening sky, described to mean a close approach of planets in the sky ... In December 1603, Johannes Kepler was intrigued by the planetary conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. (Suite101.com)
Looking Up: Double Cluster is double the fun Oct 24, 2009
Monday night, the 26th, the moon is close to the bright planet Jupiter. Speaking of star clusters, a good time (clouds permitting) to see the Beehive Star Cluster will be in the early morning hours of Sunday, Nov. 1. (Belmont Citizen Herald, MA)
Bay Area stargazers to honor Galileo Oct 24, 2009
It was 400 years ago that Galileo Galilei, the Italian astronomer, trained his crude telescope on the sky and saw four tiny moons revolving around the planet Jupiter ... What: Amateur astronomers will set up their telescopes so visitors can peer at the sky and focus on Jupiter ... What: Telescopes will be set up so passers-by can take a look at Jupiter. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Science)
Panel says NASA shouldnt revisit moon Oct 23, 2009
Yet another option would be an alternative shuttle-derived launch vehicle called the Jupiter. It would take several years and billions of dollars to design and develop such rockets for deep-space missions. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Astronomers Find Organic Molecules Around Gas Planet Oct 22, 2009
Swain and his co-investigators used data from two of NASA's orbiting Great Observatories, the Hubble Space Telescope and Spitzer Space Telescope, to study HD 209458b, a hot, gaseous giant planet bigger than Jupiter that orbits a sun-like star about 150 light years away in the constellation Pegasus. The new finding follows their breakthrough discovery in December 2008 of carbon dioxide around another hot, Jupiter-size planet, HD 189733b ... Other large, hot Jupiter-type planets can be... (Science Daily)
* Kaohsiung amateur astronomer discovers asteroid Oct 21, 2009
The asteroid, located between Mars and Jupiter, is similar in size to Kaohsiung International Airport. At perihelion, the closest point to the sun in its orbit, the asteroid is 350 million kilometers from the sun; and at aphelion, its most distant point from the sun, it is about 450 million kilometers from the sun. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Sports)
Chance of life? 32 new planets found outside solar system Oct 20, 2009
The 32 exoplanets ranged in size from five times the mass of Earth to 5-10 times the mass of Jupiter, the researchers said. Astronomer Stephane Udry of the University of Geneva said this means that it is far more likely that there are Earth-like planets all over the cosmos. (India Times, India -- Health/Science)
The Great 2012 Scare — and What You Need To Know Oct 20, 2009
Krupp also reviews other recent end-of-the-world astro-manias: the "Jupiter Effect" doomsday of 1982, the "Harmonic Convergence" overthrow of the old world order in 1987, and the "5-5-2000" planet-alignment catastrophe predicted for 2000. Interestingly, some of the same people and their notions were behind these erroneous predictions too. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Towards Other Earths: 32 New Exoplanets Found Oct 20, 2009
However, planets up to several Jupiter masses have been found orbiting metal-deficient stars, setting an important constraint for planet formation models. Although the first phase of the observing programme is now officially concluded, the team will pursue their effort with two ESO Large Programmes looking for super-Earths around solar-type stars and M dwarfs and some new announcements are already foreseen in the coming months, based on the last five years of measurements. (Science Daily)
Scientists Find Trawl of 32 New Planets Oct 20, 2009
The planets range in size from about five times the size of Earth to about five times the size of Jupiter, they said. More have been discovered, too, they said, promising more announcements later this year. (Newsmax)
This Week's Sky at a Glance Oct 20, 2009
Look very high to Jupiter's upper right during evening this week for bright Altair. Look from Jupiter in the opposite direction for Fomalhaut on the rise ... Jupiter, by comparison, is currently 37 light-minutes from Earth. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
32extrasolar planets found Oct 20, 2009
Astronomers announced on Monday the discovery of 32 extrasolar planets, some just five times the mass of Earth and others five times heftier than giant Jupiter ... Most of the known exoplanets found previously are very large typically many times the size of Jupiter so the newfound smaller planets bolster the known population of lower mass planets by 30 percent, said study team member Xavier Bonfils of LAOG in Grenoble, France. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Looking Up: Clouds come and go, but stars shine on Oct 17, 2009
This Voyager 1 photo of Jupiter shows detail as small as 100 miles across, of the turbulent cloud patterns ... Jupiter: Forever cloudy, Jupiter might not even have a solid core to stand on ... Saturn: Similar to Jupiter but colder (-290. (Belmont Citizen Herald, MA)
Interstellar Wind Probe Finds Ribbon Structure Oct 16, 2009
The twin Voyager spacecraft, launched in 1977, traveled to the outer solar system to explore Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. In 2007, Voyager 2 followed Voyager 1 into the interstellar boundary. (Science Daily)
Asteroid Is Actually A Protoplanet, Study Of First High-resolution Images Of Pallas Confirms Oct 14, 2009
Pallas, which is named for the Greek goddess Pallas Athena, lies in the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars ... 25, 2007) Analysis of the chemical make up of two asteroids in the outer asteroid belt has thrown the classification system for these small bodies, which orbit between Mars and Jupiter, into disorder. (Science Daily)
Under the setting sun Oct 13, 2009
"In the winter, at around 6:30 p.m., the sky gives rise to a rainbow of watercolor reds, oranges and purples. A warm hue illuminates million-year-old mountain ranges. They jet out from sand dunes like the spine of some prehistoric reptile. Millennia of desert winds have sculpted stones and sand formations and the colors dance in the early evening light. Jupiter beams brightly in the sky, as a patchwork of celestial stars start to sparkle.". More from ForbesTraveler. (MSNBC -- Travel)
Mars or Europa? Which could show life first? Oct 13, 2009
Red Planet and Jupiter moon offer best hopes for scientists ... A dusty red planet and an icy moon of Jupiter may hold the best hopes for scientists trying to track down extraterrestrial life, at least in this solar system ... The more distant Europa could hide a churning ocean filled with life forms beneath its icy surface, as the moon gets gravitationally squeezed by Jupiter. (MSNBC -- Technology)
2012 isn't the end of the world, is it? Oct 12, 2009
It may sound all too much like other doomsday scenarios of recent decades the 1987 Harmonic Convergence, the Jupiter Effect or "Planet X". But this one has some grains of archaeological basis. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
2nd largest asteroid in Solar System protoplanet Oct 11, 2009
Pallas, which is named for the Greek goddess Pallas Athena, lies in the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. According to the planet formation theory, protoplanets are a cloud of gas, rocks and dust particles that are in the process of forming into a planet. (Xinhuanet, China)
Huge New Ring Spotted Around Saturn Oct 9, 2009
"The closest analogs to the Phoebe ring are the two gossamer rings associated with Jupiter's inner satellites, Thebe and Amalthea," they wrote ... Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune all have rings. (Newsmax)
Moon of Jupiter could support life Oct 9, 2009
Natural color image of Jupiter's moon Europa ... Jupiter's moon Europa is flowing with a buried liquid water ocean that contains much more oxygen than previously thought enough to possibly support life, scientists say. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Spitzer spies giant ring around Saturn Oct 9, 2009
Until now the largest-known planetary rings were Jupiter s gossamer rings and Saturn s E ring sheets of dust that extend to about 5 10 times the radius of their respective planets. Saturn's newly discovered belt blows these records completely out of the water. (Astronomy Now Online)
Seven Hours of Celebrating the Moon Oct 9, 2009
They were also saying they could see Jupiter. As I say, it was PACKED. Wall-to-wall. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
Iridium flares light up evening sky Oct 9, 2009
If you are close to the center of the beam, the flare can reach magnitude -8, much brighter than Jupiter at magnitude -2 ... 4 magnitude means that the satellite is 144 times as bright as Jupiter, but it wont seem so extreme to our eyes ... This is more than half way up the sky, and about half again as high as Jupiter, which can be seen off to the left, almost southeast, in Capricorn. (Florida Today)
For Future Superconductors, A Little Bit Of Lithium May Do Hydrogen A Lot Of Good Oct 9, 2009
Metallic hydrogen is thought to be present in the interiors of planets like Jupiter and Saturn because of the intense gravitational forces and pressures that are found there. On Earth, researchers have tried to pry loose hydrogen's electron by squeezing it between the facets of a diamond anvil cell under pressures up to 3. (Science Daily)
Napier, Parker, Spiller each take share in Tigers offensive woes Oct 8, 2009
Disclaimer - If ad is a click thru and you are having problems please click on link to download latest version of flash player. You are not logged in. (Orangeburg Times and Democrat, SC)
You can watch NASA give the moon a one-two punch Oct 8, 2009
This is all happening during a peak week in a yearlong celebrations commemorating the 400th anniversary of Galileo using a telescope to see Jupiter s moons. On Wednesday evening, the White House planned a star party for middle schoolers and about two dozen telescopes. (Roanoke Rapids Daily Herald, NC)
White House star-gazing party puts focus on astronomy Oct 8, 2009
And if the moon, Jupiter, stars, and the entire universe were not enough, the party also was to include the president, his family, two pioneering astronauts, and science teachers dressed up as Isaac Newton and Galileo ... This year marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo s first observations of Jupiter and its moons with a telescope, and has been designated the International Year of Astronomy ... People around the world are being encouraged to look at Jupiter and the moon this month. (Boston Globe)
Obama puts scientists, engineers in spotlight Oct 8, 2009
The event was organized under the auspices of the International Year of Astronomy, which marks the 400th anniversary of Galileos first observations of Jupiter and its moons with a telescope. OSTPTelescopes are set up in the dark for Wednesday night's White House star party. (MSNBC -- Politics)
Colossal dust ring detected around Saturn's moon Oct 7, 2009
Until now, the champion planetary rings in the Solar System were so-called "gossamer rings" surrounding Jupiter, the Solar System's largest planet, and Saturn's E ring. Phoebe's ring is far fainter than both, and appears to comprise dust from rocks bashed off the little moon by interplanetary debris or other particles. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
How to Watch NASA's Probe Smack the Moon Friday (SPACE.com) Oct 7, 2009
How to Watch NASA's Probe Smack the Moon Friday - Yahoo. Search Type Choose a search type from the items below. (Yahoo News -- Top Stories)
scientists discover hell planet Oct 7, 2009
Prof Fegley and his associate Laura Schaefer carried out the research using the modelling programme MAGMA. They had previously used the software to model the volcanoes on Jupiter s moon Io. COROT-7b was discovered by the in February, but the Washington University researchers were the first to model its atmosphere. (Harper's Magazine)
White House to throw star party Wednesday Oct 7, 2009
20 telescopes will be set up on lawn for attendees to gaze at moon, Jupiter ... Top targets on the celestial menu: The craters and mountains of Earth's moon, Jupiter and its own moons, and other stars and objects. (MSNBC -- Technology)
First Family to See First Light Oct 6, 2009
Jupiter will be up (a plus) and there's a whopper of an Iridium flare (magnitude -8) that night. But little else in the night sky will be obvious from our nation's light-drenched capitol. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Facelift for Scotland's 'Hubble' Oct 6, 2009
"The instrument was designed for viewing the planets and it can see as far as Neptune. The clouds on Jupiter are quite spectacular, as are Saturn's rings.". The work to restore the telescope is being carried out in Ayrshire, while companies from Glasgow and Hamilton have been involved in rebuilding the dome. (BBC News)
Water Lust: Why All the Excitement When H2O Is Found in Space? Oct 5, 2009
Observational evidence suggests that water as a solid, liquid or gas is present at the poles of Mercury, within the thick clouds of Venus, on , inside asteroids and comets, and on Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Scientists also have speculated that Jupiter's moons , Ganymede and Callisto have vast subsurface oceans of liquid water ... This particular property of water may make life viable in places like Europa, Jupiter's ice-covered moon that scientists suspect holds a liquid water ocean... (Scientific American)
Strange creatures rule October skies Oct 4, 2009
On that evening, the first quarter moon will pass just 2 degrees from Jupiter in Capricornus. October is a month when there are chills and thrills in the air. (Casper Star-Tribune, WY)
On moonless nights, look for the not-so-bright sights among stars Oct 3, 2009
Jupiter helps to find Altair ... Jupiter, the bright king of the planets, rules the south side of the sky these chilly October evenings ... Being so bright, Jupiter makes a good jumping-off point to sky sights that aren t quite so easy to spot. (Boston Globe)
Iridium will flare tonight Oct 2, 2009
Now look on the right side of the moon for Jupiter over in the south-southeast. Jupiter is so bright that it hardly can be mistaken for anything else ... The iridium flare will occur above and a little to the right of Jupiter. (Florida Today)
What (Maybe) Didn't Kill the Dinosaurs: Comets Oct 2, 2009
Cometary commotion: A new mechanism for how icy bodies get past Jupiter and Saturn suggests that comet showers did not play a big role in Earth s extinctions ... Comet dynamics depend heavily on Jupiter and Saturn: their huge gravitational fields tend to keep objects away from Earth ... Comets that manage to skirt Jupiter and Saturn, the conventional thinking goes, had to have originated in the outer reaches of the Oort cloud, where perturbations from outside the solar system can be felt most... (Scientific American)
Don't miss special effects of the harvest moon Oct 2, 2009
Just as the sun is setting in the west this weekend, look to the east and see the harvest moon and Jupiter rising ... The sun is setting behind you in the west, and the moon is rising in the east, Jupiter to the southeast. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Useless Knowledge: Planets align in today's quiz Oct 2, 2009
The Montana Standard. The Montana Standard. (Montana Standard, MT)
Giant Telescope Lets You See Moon, Jupiter And Venus Oct 2, 2009
As weather permits, the public can see objects in our Solar System including the moon, sun, Venus and Jupiter. to see an image of the telescope. (W-USA News, DC)
Its fall and a young mans fancy turns to ... Stonehenge? Oct 2, 2009
The right brighter star is the giant planet Jupiter, good to see with binoculars. Go to http://www. (Danvers Herald, MA)
Pebble Rain: Exoplanet Has Bizarre Atmosphere Oct 1, 2009
But because of the limitations of the indirect means by which they are discovered, most are Hot Jupiters, chubby gas giants orbiting close to their parent stars. (More than 1,300 Earths could be packed inside Jupiter, which has 300 times the mass of Earth ... Schaefer and Fegley modified the MAGMA program in 2004 in order to study high-temperature volcanism on Io, Jupiter's innermost Galilean satellite. (Science Daily)
World's Most Sensitive Astronomical Camera Developed Oct 1, 2009
(July 13, 2007) Astronomers who used powerful telescopes in Arizona and Chile in a survey for planets around nearby stars have discovered that extrasolar planets more massive than Jupiter are extremely rare in other. (Feb. (Science Daily)
Groovy Ganymede: New Map Helps Reveal Origins of Mysterious Features on Solar System's Biggest Moon Sep 30, 2009
The map supports the theory that Ganymede's grooves are the result of orbital resonances among Ganymede, Europa and Io as they circle Jupiter ... ICY SATELLITE: If Ganymede revolved around the sun rather than Jupiter, it would be classified as a planet ... In the search for , Jupiter's moon Ganymede, the largest in the solar system, is no Europa. (Scientific American)
LOOKING UP: Autumns stars are in view Sep 30, 2009
The planet may be as large as three times the mass of Jupiter ... This year, brilliant planet Jupiter prevails like a champion reigning in the southern sky. (Medfield Press, MA)
New moons on the horizon Sep 30, 2009
Till a decade ago only a few dozen moons were known, mostly orbiting the four gas giants - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune ... Since 2000, 47 new moons of Jupiter and 43 of Saturn have been discovered ... Candidates being explored include Enceladus, Saturn's tiny moon famous for its stripes (cracks in water ice and plumes of liquid water) and Jupiter's moon Europa that has a five-km-thick ice layer on its surface. (India Times, India -- Health/Science)
Telltale Tells Story Of Winds At Phoenix Landing Site Sep 30, 2009
29, 2009) Wind speeds and directions were measured for the first time in the Mars polar region using the Phoenix lander s Telltale instrument. Astronomers recorded Easterly winds of approximately 15-20 kilometres per hour during the martian mid-summer. (Science Daily)
An unfamiliar neighbourhood Sep 30, 2009
Earlier, the solar system - loosely defined as the chunk of space under the sun's gravitational pull - was thought of as nine planets with an asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter ... Launched in 2006, it did a flyby of Jupiter last year and got a speed shake-up for its long journey to Pluto and beyond. (India Times, India -- Health/Science)
A Full Moon Rising Sep 30, 2009
Jupiter is bringing you good luck. You could discover that you're getting a raise or a promotion. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
Mercury ready for a rare close-up Sep 26, 2009
The Cassini spacecraft swung by twice, once and then Jupiter before threading a daringly-close flyby of Saturn's rings that allowed the planet to capture it in orbit in 2004. Aerospace engineers can make such complicated stuff look easy, almost easy enough to forget this is actual "rocket science." But the mechanics of modern rockets in many ways still present daunting challenges, some 83 years after engineer Robert Goddard fired off the first liquid-fueled rocket. (USA Today -- Tech)
> read more Sep 26, 2009
Jupiter's moon Io crosses Jupiter's face from 8:45 to 11:02 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time tonight, followed by its tiny black shadow from 9:44 p.m. to 12:01 a.m. EDT.. Jupiter's Red Spot, meanwhile, should transit the planet's central meridian around 9:39 p.m. EDT. (For all of the Red Spot's transit times, good worldwide, use our , or print out our ... Jupiter's moon Io emerges out of eclipse from Jupiter's shadow around 9:11 p.m. EDT. A small telescope will show it swelling into view just east of... (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Twin Keck Telescopes Probe Dual Dust Disks Sep 25, 2009
If placed in our own solar system, the disk would span about four times Earth s distance from the sun, reaching nearly to Jupiter s orbit ... Much of the dust in our solar system forms inward of Jupiter's orbit, as comets crumble near the sun and asteroids of all sizes collide. (Science Daily)
Did comet crashes help spark Earth life? Sep 25, 2009
He was able to synthesize amino acids using lightning-like discharges in a reducing atmosphere of methane, ammonia and water similar to what exists on Jupiter. Since that pioneering work, researchers have come to believe that Earth's early atmosphere was in fact more oxidative, containing mostly nitrogen and carbon dioxide. (MSNBC -- Technology)
