Dec 18, 2015 07:43 AM
(This post was last modified: Dec 18, 2015 07:49 AM by C C.)
Dust Devil 'Swarm' Races Across Martian Plain
http://www.space.com/31402-dust-devil-sw...plain.html
EXCERPT: By now most of us know that Mars is a windy planet (well, not as windy as “The Martian” would have us believe), where active aeolian processes shape the landscape continuously. [...] Fortunately for humanity, we have an armada of satellites in orbit around the Red Planet and these atmospheric phenomena can be recorded and tracked. [...] In this view over a plain in Ganges Chasma (inside the famous Valles Marineris region), HiRISE was able to spy on not one dust devil, but a whole swarm of them. [...] it is hoped that some of the secrets behind dust devil formation and evolution may be revealed. [...] Of particular interest, according to planetary scientist Paul Geissler, are two dust devils, of different sizes, in close proximity to one another...
Rare full moon on Christmas Day
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/201...151714.htm
RELEASE: Not since 1977 has a full moon dawned in the skies on Christmas. But this year, a bright full moon will be an added gift for the holidays. December's full moon, the last of the year, is called the Full Cold Moon because it occurs during the beginning of winter. The moon's peak this year will occur at 6:11 a.m. EST. This rare event won't happen again until 2034. That's a long time to wait, so make sure to look up to the skies on Christmas Day.
"As we look at the moon on such an occasion, it's worth remembering that the moon is more than just a celestial neighbor," said John Keller, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "The geologic history of the moon and Earth are intimately tied together such that the Earth would be a dramatically different planet without the moon."
As you gaze up at the Christmas moon, take note that NASA has a spacecraft currently orbiting Earth's moon. NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission has been investigating the lunar surface since 2009. LRO has collected a treasure trove of data with its seven powerful instruments, making an invaluable contribution to our knowledge about the moon. LRO is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. For more information on LRO, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/lro
Ancient Egyptians described Algol's eclipses
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/201...151651.htm
Their analysis revealed that the periods of Algol (2.85 days) and the Moon (29.6 days) strongly regulate the actions of deities in this calendar.
"Until now, there were only conjectures that many of the mythological texts of the Cairo Calendar describe astronomical phenomena. We can now unambiguously ascertain that throughout the whole year the actions of many deities in the Cairo Calendar are connected to the regular changes of Algol and the Moon," says Master of Science Sebastian Porceddu.
This research confirms that the first variable star, as well as its period, were discovered much earlier than was previously thought. These two "classical" milestones in the history of natural sciences need to be shifted three millennia backwards in time to 1244 -- 1163 BC.
This also confirms the two "modern" astrophysical results reported by the Helsinki group in the year 2013: The first direct observation ever of the expected increase of Algol's period and the accurate long--term estimate for the mass transfer in this binary system.
"I would have serious doubts, if someone claimed, for example, that the Bible contains information about water in Mars. We claimed that Ancient Egyptian religious texts contain astrophysical information about Algol. It was no surprise to us that there were, and there still are, skeptics," says docent Lauri Jetsu.
The research also confirms that the brightest phases of Algol and the Moon had particularly positive meanings for the Ancient Egyptians.
http://www.space.com/31402-dust-devil-sw...plain.html
EXCERPT: By now most of us know that Mars is a windy planet (well, not as windy as “The Martian” would have us believe), where active aeolian processes shape the landscape continuously. [...] Fortunately for humanity, we have an armada of satellites in orbit around the Red Planet and these atmospheric phenomena can be recorded and tracked. [...] In this view over a plain in Ganges Chasma (inside the famous Valles Marineris region), HiRISE was able to spy on not one dust devil, but a whole swarm of them. [...] it is hoped that some of the secrets behind dust devil formation and evolution may be revealed. [...] Of particular interest, according to planetary scientist Paul Geissler, are two dust devils, of different sizes, in close proximity to one another...
Rare full moon on Christmas Day
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/201...151714.htm
RELEASE: Not since 1977 has a full moon dawned in the skies on Christmas. But this year, a bright full moon will be an added gift for the holidays. December's full moon, the last of the year, is called the Full Cold Moon because it occurs during the beginning of winter. The moon's peak this year will occur at 6:11 a.m. EST. This rare event won't happen again until 2034. That's a long time to wait, so make sure to look up to the skies on Christmas Day.
"As we look at the moon on such an occasion, it's worth remembering that the moon is more than just a celestial neighbor," said John Keller, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "The geologic history of the moon and Earth are intimately tied together such that the Earth would be a dramatically different planet without the moon."
As you gaze up at the Christmas moon, take note that NASA has a spacecraft currently orbiting Earth's moon. NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission has been investigating the lunar surface since 2009. LRO has collected a treasure trove of data with its seven powerful instruments, making an invaluable contribution to our knowledge about the moon. LRO is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. For more information on LRO, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/lro
Ancient Egyptians described Algol's eclipses
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/201...151651.htm
Their analysis revealed that the periods of Algol (2.85 days) and the Moon (29.6 days) strongly regulate the actions of deities in this calendar.
"Until now, there were only conjectures that many of the mythological texts of the Cairo Calendar describe astronomical phenomena. We can now unambiguously ascertain that throughout the whole year the actions of many deities in the Cairo Calendar are connected to the regular changes of Algol and the Moon," says Master of Science Sebastian Porceddu.
This research confirms that the first variable star, as well as its period, were discovered much earlier than was previously thought. These two "classical" milestones in the history of natural sciences need to be shifted three millennia backwards in time to 1244 -- 1163 BC.
This also confirms the two "modern" astrophysical results reported by the Helsinki group in the year 2013: The first direct observation ever of the expected increase of Algol's period and the accurate long--term estimate for the mass transfer in this binary system.
"I would have serious doubts, if someone claimed, for example, that the Bible contains information about water in Mars. We claimed that Ancient Egyptian religious texts contain astrophysical information about Algol. It was no surprise to us that there were, and there still are, skeptics," says docent Lauri Jetsu.
The research also confirms that the brightest phases of Algol and the Moon had particularly positive meanings for the Ancient Egyptians.