Astronomy

[Elgarian]

Wasn't it Brahe though (or whatever his name was) who was the conservative character?

Yes. He (Tycho Brahe) was the guy who could make all the measurements of planetary movement that Kepler needed.

I remember a book by Fred Hoyle (the cosmologist) from many years ago, in which he resurrected Kepler's work on the planetary orbital harmony business and asked 'how did he manage to get this to work so well?' I don't know if anyone ever came up with an answer.

[Sean]

I recommend Langgaard's Music of the spheres, if this hasn't been covered- not great music but appropriately peculiar (alongside the Joseph Strauss I guess).

[Florestan]

This science stuff never did us any good anyway.

Except allowing you to embark at Heathrow and arrive safe and sound in Thailand a few hours later; or curing you after you come back, in case you tasted a little too much of the local delights; or allowing you to rant on internet forums...

[Sean]

Hey... I don't go to Thailand.

[Opus106]

Hey John!

RESURGENT SUNSPOT: Yesterday, sunspot 1024 took the day off; the fast-growing active region stopped growing and even decayed a little. Today, the sunspot is growing again. It now measures 125,000 km from end to end, almost as wide as the planet Jupiter. This 3-day movie from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) shows recent developments:



The size of the spot makes it a fine target for backyard solar telescopes. And it is worth watching. Sunspot 1024 is the first big sunspot of new Solar Cycle 24, and it is crackling with minor but photogenic B-class flares. By itself, this one active region won't bring an end to the deepest solar minimum in a century, but it does show that the sun's magnetic dynamo is still working--a fact some had begun to doubt. More sunspots are coming, so stay tuned

It's lovely to watch the changing 'spots again.

More pictures from Earth-bound amateurs can be viewed at spaceweather.com

[mahler10th]

Hey John!

It's lovely to watch the changing 'spots again.

More pictures from Earth-bound amateurs can be viewed at spaceweather.com

Fantastic.  Thanks for that.  Now I can stop looking through my binoculars to spot them... Damned interesting things...

It now measures 125,000 km from end to end, almost as wide as the planet Jupiter.

I know.  I've been looking at them...

[Opus106]

[Wanderer]

Now I can stop looking through my binoculars to spot them...

Incidentally, a big no-no under any circumstances. 

(for the benefit of those not aware that the quote was meant in jest:-)

[Opus106]

Scientists have found evidence that another object has bombarded Jupiter, exactly 15 years after the first impacts by the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9.

Following up on a tip by an amateur astronomer, Anthony Wesley of Australia, that a new dark "scar" had suddenly appeared on Jupiter, this morning between 3 and 9 a.m. PDT (6 a.m. and noon EDT) scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., using NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility at the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, gathered evidence indicating an impact.

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/solarsystem/features/jup-20090720.html

[mahler10th]

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/solarsystem/features/jup-20090720.html

Thanks for keeping us informed of things like this opus.
Jupiter is taking a real pounding over the years.
I wonder how this will upset the balance of our big, jovial, red eyed brother - and what changes we'll see this time...

[owlice]

Yeah, how cool was that?!! Amateur astronomers rock!

Anyone here where the upcoming solar eclipse is visible?

[Opus106]

A shadow as wide as the U.S. of A.

[Opus106]

Anyone here where the upcoming solar eclipse is visible?

Hi, Owlice, I'm sorry I missed this post. Even though the central line began in my neck of the woods (considering the whole globe), my location witnessed only a partial eclipse. I did not bother getting up early as all the signs of a clear sky on that particular morning were unfavourable. But those who did manage to go to the planetarium in the wee hours said it cleared up a little towards to the end. I did, however, wake up early enough to catch the news channel broadcasting images from various points along the line of totality.

[Opus106]

A day late, but whatever...


Four hundred years ago tonight, a man from Pisa, Italy took a newly-made telescope with a magnifying power of 33X, pointed it at one of the brighter lights in the sky, and changed mankind forever.

[mahler10th]

THIS SHOULD BE CELEBRATED!! 
Someone please rustle up a quick tour de force String Quartet called "Four Fixed Stars"...or ressurect Hovhaness and have him do it. 

[Bogey]

Bump

Some beautiful star and planet gazing tonight.  We have, I believe, Mars looking very nice.

[Szykneij]

Bump

Some beautiful star and planet gazing tonight.  We have, I believe, Mars looking very nice.

This is what I've been seeing in the early evening the past few nights.

[drogulus]

     They're insanely bright, too.

[Opus106]

Bump

Some beautiful star and planet gazing tonight.  We have, I believe, Mars looking very nice.

It isn't too late to miss the Venus-Jupiter conjunction.

A few weeks ago, 7 of the brightest objects in the night sky appeared at a single time, and I caught most of them. From my vantage point, Mars was comparatively lower in the sky and hidden behind trees, but Mercury, Venus, Moon, Jupiter, Sirius and Canopus were easy pickings. I was out with my nephew, and we even saw a cloud of flying foxes (large fruit bats) flying over us getting ready for the night, their silhouettes starkly contransting against the blue of the twilight sky.

[Elgarian]

We've had one cloudy evening after another, these last few days. I keep popping outside each evening to see if there's a break, but no. It begins to look as though I'm not going to see them at their closest - such a shame. It was an impressive sight even a week ago.