Skip to main content

Home/ SciByte/ Group items tagged scibyte40

Rss Feed Group items tagged

Mars Base

Runaway Planets Tossed From Galaxy at Fraction of Speed of Light | Space.com - 1 views

  • Planets in tight orbits around stars that get ejected from our galaxy may actually themselves be tossed out of the Milky Way at blisteringly fast speeds of up to 30 million miles per hour, or a fraction of the speed of light, a new study finds.
  • would be some of the fastest objects in the galaxy, aside from photons
  • In terms of large, solid objects, they would be the fastest. It would take them 10 seconds or so to cross the diameter of the Earth
  • ...10 more annotations...
  • In 2005, astronomers found evidence of a runaway star that was flying out of the Milky Way galaxy at a speed of 1.5 million mph (2.4 million kph).
  • part of a double-star system that wandered too close to the supermassive black hole
  • In the seven years since, 16 of these hypervelocity stars have been found
  • typical runaway planet would likely dash outward at 7 to 10 million mph (11.3 to 16.1 million kph), but given the right circumstances, a small fraction could have their speeds boosted to up to 30 million mph (48.3 million kph).
  • hypervelocity planets will escape the Milky Way and travel through interstellar space
  • a civilization on such a planet, they would have a very exciting journe
  • Once the planet exits from the local group of galaxies, it will be accelerated away by cosmic expansion. So, within 10 billion years, it would go from the center of the galaxy to all the way to the edge of the observable universe
  • planet that tightly orbits a runaway star will cross in front and cause its brightness to dim slightly in what astronomers call a "transit
  • To hitch a ride on a hypervelocity star, a planet would have to be locked in a tight orbit, which ups the odds of witnessing a transit to around 50 percent
  • first time someone is talking about searching for planets around hypervelocity stars
Mars Base

Rare Rain on Titan; Once Every 1,000 Years - 0 views

  • According to data gathered by NASA’s Cassini mission, parts of Titan might not see rain for more than 1,000 years.
  • there are lakes and rivers of liquid hydrocarbons on the surface
  • the rains that feed them may come few and far between
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • surface temperatures plunge to -179C
  • hydrological cycle runs with methane: methane lakes, methane rivers, and methane rain
  • In all of its observations of Titan, Cassini only spotted two instances of darkened regions that might have indicated rainfall.
Mars Base

Hubble Treasures Contest: iPad And iPod Touch Up For Grabs | Video | Space.com - 0 views

  • Over a million observations of the Universe have been made by the Hubble Space Telescope. Spacetelescope.org is asking the public to sift through the archives, adjust the colors of their favorite photos with an online tool, and submit to the contest
  • Over a million observations of the Universe have been made by the Hubble Space Telescope. Spacetelescope.org is asking the public to sift through the archives, adjust the colors of their favorite photos with an online tool, and submit to the contest
  • Spacetelescope.org
Mars Base

Hubble's Hidden Treasures 2012 | ESA/Hubble - 0 views

  • Since 1990, Hubble has made more than a million observations
  • the most stunning are in our Top 100 gallery and iPad app.
  • Searching Hubble’s archive for hidden treasures is a lot of fun, and it’s pretty straightforward, even if you don’t have advanced knowledge
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • prepared some tutorials to get you started with searching the archive
  • Hubble’s Hidden Treasures 2012: Find and tweak Hubble observations using a set of simple online tools. It’s easy and fun, and anyone can take part. Top prize: Apple iPod Touch and goodies
  • Hubble’s Hidden Treasures 2012 Image Processing: Find Hubble observations and then process them using professional astronomical imaging software. An extra challenge for amateur astronomers or people keen to learn about astronomical image processing. Top prize: Apple iPad and goodies
  • you’re playing with real data from the world’s most famous astronomical observatory
Mars Base

Join the 2012 Hubble's Hidden Treasures Competition | ESA/Hubble - 0 views

  • hidden in Hubble’s huge data archives are still some truly breathtaking images that have never been seen in public
  • Hubble’s Hidden Treasures
  • inviting the public into Hubble’s vast science archive to dig out the best unseen Hubble images
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • you could win an iPod Touch in our Hubble’s Hidden Treasures Competition.
  • Download the data from the Hubble Legacy Archive, process using powerful open-source software such as the ESO/ESA/NASA FITS Liberator and make a beautiful image for our Hubble’s Hidden Treasures Image Processing Contest Flickr group.
  • you’ll be in with a chance to win an iPad.
  • Both parts of the Hubble’s Hidden Treasures competition close on 31 May 2012
  • The best datasets that you identify will also be featured as future pictures of the week and photo releases on spacetelescope.org.
Mars Base

Jupiter May Help Supercharge Orionid Meteor Shower | Halley's Comet | Space.com - 0 views

  • Jupiter's powerful gravity can help supercharge a meteor shower caused by trailing chunks of the famed Halley's comet, a new study suggests
  • Every October, skywatchers are treated to a dazzling show when the Orionid meteors — leftover bits of Halley's comet
  • The Orionids are incredibly active from time to
  • ...15 more annotations...
  • activity is generated by a complex orbital interplay among Jupiter, the comet and the meteoroids
  • according to the study
  • Previous research had suggested that intense Orionid outbursts occur after the meteoroids fall into resonances with Jupiter's orbit
  • Resonances are gravitational sweet spots in which objects' orbits around the sun are related by a ratio of two whole numbers. (A 1:2 resonance, for example, means that one body completes one orbit in the time it takes another object to make two orbits.)
  • new study finds that Halley's comet itself has likely been in resonances with Jupiter in the
  • which in turn increases the odds of populating the Orionid stream with resonant meteoroids
  • particles ejected during those times tend to clump together due to periodic effects from Jupiter
  • modeled the orbital evolution of Halley's comet over a long stretch of time
  • from more than 12,000 years in the past to 15,000 years into the future
  • determind that from 1404 B.C. to 690 B.C., the comet was likely trapped in a 1:6 resonance with Jupiter
  • Halley completed one orbit for every six orbits of Jupiter around the sun).
  • from 240 B.C. to 1700 A.D., the comet was in a 2:13 orbital resonance with Jupiter
  • Debris deposited during these two periods are directly linked to heightened activity in the Orionid meteor showers in some years, according to the study.
  • the unusual Orionid outburst observed in 1993 was due to 2:13 resonant meteoroids sloughed by Halley around 240 B.C
  • predicts that the next similarly heightened display of meteors from this 2:13 resonance will be in 2070 A.D.
Mars Base

Billions of Habitable Worlds Likely in the Milky Way - 0 views

  • results from a new study that searched for rocky planets in the habitable zones around red dwarf stars
  • now estimates that there are tens of billions of such planets in the Milky Way galaxy
  • probably about one hundred in the Sun’s immediate neighborhood, less than 30 light years away.
  • ...13 more annotations...
  • new observations with HARPS mean that about 40% of all red dwarf stars have a super-Earth orbiting in the habitable zone where liquid water can exist on the surface of the planet
  • first direct estimate of the number of smaller, rocky planets around red dwarf stars
  • another recent finding which suggested that every star in our night sky has at least one planet circling it — which didn’t include red dwarf stars – and our galaxy could be teeming with worlds
  • HARPS team surveyed a carefully chosen sample of 102 red dwarf stars in the southern skies over a six-year period
  • total of nine super-Earths (planets with masses between one and ten times that of Earth) were found, including two inside the habitable zones of Gliese 581 and Gliese 667 C respectively
  • combining all the data, including observations of stars that did not have planets, and looking at the fraction of existing planets that could be discovered, the team has been able to work out how common different sorts of planets are around red dwarfs
  • find that the frequency of occurrence of super-Earths in the habitable zone is 41% with a range from 28% to 95%.
  • Less than 12% of red dwarfs are expected to have giant planets (with masses between 100 and 1000 times that of the Earth).
  • habitable zone around a red dwarf, where the temperature is suitable for liquid water to exist on the surface, is much closer to the star than the Earth is to the Sun
  • But red dwarfs are known to be subject to stellar eruptions or flares, which may bathe the planet in X-rays or ultraviolet radiation, and which may make life there less likely.”
  • Gliese 667 Cc. This is the second planet in this triple star system and seems to be situated close to the center of the habitable zone
  • this planet is more than four times heavier than the Earth it is the closest twin to Earth found so far and almost certainly has the right conditions for the existence of liquid water on its surface
  • second super-Earth planet inside the habitable zone of a red dwarf
Mars Base

Growing bones with Lego - 0 views

  • A video produced for Google Science Fair shows how researchers at Cambridge making synthetic bone have turned to legendary children’s toy Lego for a helping hand.
  • The video, which has already had over 100,000 views, goes behind the scenes at the lab to show how the team develop the bone samples.
  • Bone has excellent mechanical properties for its weight
  • ...14 more annotations...
  • synthetic bone has a range of revolutionary applications; from the obvious, such as medical implants, to the almost science fiction, such as a material in building construction
  • the process involved in producing samples of bone is tedious and time consuming.
  • To make the bone-like substance you take a sample, then you dip it into one beaker of calcium and protein, then rinse it in some water and dip in into another beaker of phosphate and protein – you have to do it over and over and over again to build up the compound
  • team started to think about ways of automating the arduous process – the ideal being a robot of some kind that they could set up and run in the background
  • One way would be to buy very expensive kit off the shelf
  • Lego just seemed like the simplest, and cheapest, way to go about things
  • researchers decided to build cranes from a Lego Mindstorms robotics kit
  • contains microprocessors, motors, and sensors that can be programmed to perform basic tasks on repeat
  • sample is tied to string at the end of the crane which then dips it in the different solutions
  • Research is a funny thing because you might think that we order everything up from scientific catalogues – but actually a lot of the things we use around the lab are household items, things that we picked up at the local home goods store – so our Lego robots just fit in with that mind-set
  • The team at Cambridge are working on hydroxyapatite–gelatin composites to create synthetic bone, and the work is generating considerable interest due to the low energy costs and improved similarity to the tissues they are intended to replace.
  • video was made in the lab at the Department of Engineering by Google to help promote their online Science Fair
  • international competition run by the company to encourage teenagers to engage with science
  • Anybody and everybody between 13 and 18 can enter
Mars Base

Jupiter helps Halley's Comet give us more spectacular meteor displays - 0 views

  • The dramatic appearance of Halley's comet in the night sky has been observed and recorded by astronomers since 240 BC. Now a study shows that the orbital influences of Jupiter on the comet and the debris it leaves in its wake are responsible for periodic outbursts of activity in the Orionid meteor showers. The results will be presented by Aswin Sekhar at the National Astronomy Meeting in Manchester on Tuesday 27th March.
Mars Base

How to find hidden treasures in the archive | ESA/Hubble - 0 views

  • How to find hidden treasures in the archive
  • The main interface to get at the Hubble data is the Hubble Legacy Archive website.
  • search box lets you look for objects based on their name or coordinates
  • ...19 more annotations...
  • advanced search option is useful to restrict the search to specific instruments (cameras) on Hubble
  • recommend narrowing your search to give only results from ACS, WFC3 and WFPC2 – Hubble’s general purpose cameras.
  • Universe is a big place
  • there are many, many objects which Hubble has never studied
  • not all of Hubble’s observations are images
  • most observations are only released to the public a year after they have been made
  • scientists get the first chance to work with their data. These are marked “proprietary data, no preview”.
  • several options for how to display the results
  • easiest is to click on the images tab, which gives you preview images of all the results
  • Another useful view is the footprints tab, which shows the location of Hubble’s images overlaid on an image of the part of the sky where they are located
  • in most cases) offer an option to open the interactive display
  • opens the interactive tool which you can use to look at the image in more detail, and carry out basic image processing such as adjusting the zoom and changing the contrast and colour balance
  • lets you save your work as a JPEG.
  • process is entirely browser-based, and you need no special software
  • You can also download the data in FITS format
  • can then use
  • FITS Liberator
  • Photoshop
  • more sophisticated image processing
Mars Base

What is image processing? | ESA/Hubble - 0 views

  • What is image processing?
  • Hubble takes pictures which capture many more colours and gradations of light and dark than the human eye (or consumer digital cameras) can see
  • are also quirks in how its cameras work
  • ...7 more annotations...
  • designed to make scientifically useful observations rather than being optimised for pretty pictures.
  • most of these quirks have already been corrected in the data you find in the archive,
  • images are still scientific data rather than photographs like those from a normal digital camera
  • still contain far more information than the eye can see.
  • beautiful Hubble images that we all know have all been extensively tweaked and optimised by hand, in order to reveal as much of the data as possible
  • brightening the glowing gas in nebulae or compressing the dynamic range of galaxy images so that the core and spiral arms can both be seen equally clearly
  • Image processing is the name for this process of selecting data, adjusting colour, contrast and dynamic range to reveal the hidden detail in Hubble’s scientific data.
Mars Base

A planetary system from the early Universe - 0 views

  • A group of European astronomers has discovered an ancient planetary system that is likely to be a survivor from one of the earliest cosmic eras, 13 billion years ago. The system consists of the star HIP 11952 and two planets, which have orbital periods of 290 and 7 days, respectively. Whereas planets usually form within clouds that include heavier chemical elements, the star HIP 11952 contains very little other than hydrogen and helium. The system promises to shed light on planet formation in the early universe – under conditions quite different from those of later planetary systems, such as our own
  • widely accepted that planets are formed in disks of gas and dust that swirl around young stars
  • many open questions remain
  • ...25 more annotations...
  • what it actually takes to make a planet
  • With a sample of, by now, more than 750 confirmed planets
  • astronomers have some idea of the diversity among planetary systems
  • certain trends have emerged
  • Statistically, a star that contains more “metals” - in astronomical parlance, the term includes all chemical elements other than hydrogen and helium – is more likely to have planets.
  • suggests a key question
  • Originally, the universe contained almost no chemical elements other than hydrogen and helium
  • what about planet formation under conditions like those of the very early universe
  • ? If metal-rich stars are more likely to form planets
  • stars with a metal content so low that they cannot form planets at all
  • then when
  • should we expect the very first planets to form
  • a group of astronomers
  • has discovered a planetary system that could help provide answers to those questions
  • part of a survey targeting especially metal-poor stars
  • identified two giant planets around a star known by its catalogue number as HIP 11952
  • at a distance of about 375 light-years from Earth
  • these planets
  • are not unusual
  • What is unusual is the fact that they orbit such an extremely metal-poor and, in particular, such a very old star!
  • planets around such a star should be extremely rare
  • Compared to other exoplanetary systems
  • not only one that is extremely metal-poor
  • at an estimated age of 12.8 billion years, also one of the oldest systems known so far.
  • In 2010 we found the first example of such a metal-poor system, HIP 13044. Back then, we thought it might be a unique case; now, it seems as if there might be more planets around metal-poor stars than expected
Mars Base

Billions Habitable Planets in Milky Way | Search for Life on Alien Planets | Space.com - 0 views

  • The findings are based on a survey of 102 stars in a class called red dwarfs, which are fainter, cooler, less massive and longer-lived than the sun, and are thought to make up about 80 percent of the stars in our galaxy
Mars Base

Many billions of rocky planets in the habitable zones around red dwarfs in the Milky Way - 0 views

  • new result from ESO’s HARPS planet finder shows that rocky planets not much bigger than Earth are very common in the habitable zones around faint red stars. The international team estimates that there are tens of billions of such planets in the Milky Way galaxy alone, and probably about one hundred in the Sun’s immediate neighbourhood. This is the first direct measurement of the frequency of super-Earths around red dwarfs, which account for 80% of the stars in the Milky Way.
Mars Base

Bezos Expeditions | F-1 Engine Recovery - 0 views

  • Those five F-1s burned for just a few minutes, and then plunged back to Earth into the Atlantic Ocean, just as NASA planned. A few days later, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the moon.
1 - 20 of 34 Next ›
Showing 20 items per page