Carnival of Space #319
http://www.dearastronomer.com/
Welcome to another installment of The Carnival of Space! Here’s some highlights of space and astronomy news from the past week. We’ve got great stories on Solar System Ambassadors, Habitable Moons, SpaceX, Comet ISON, and more!
First off, If you live in the US and are interested in space-related educational outreach, you might consider becoming a JPL Solar System Ambassador. September is the only month each year when applications are accepted for this volunteer program. Learn more about how you can join the NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassadors program at: http://flyingsinger.blogspot.com/2013/09/be-solar-system-ambassador.html
Over at The Venus Transit: A summary of Spica occultation from last week. The reappearace of Spica behind the crescent moon craters and mountain was simply one of th e best view I had this year. Check it out at: http://www.thevenustransit.com/2013/09/spica-occultation.html
Ever wonder if habitable moons like Endor or Pandora are really possible? TheSpacewriter investigates whether alien moons could offer habitable environments at: http://thespacewriter.com/wp/2013/09/10/alien-life-on-moons/
Signs of “Life” on the Lunar Frontier by Dr. Paul Spudis discusses recent lunar discoveries and activities. Learn more at: http://blogs.airspacemag.com/moon/2013/09/signs-of-life-on-the-lunar-frontier
Keep reading for more great highlights from the past week of space and astronomy news!
Here, There and Everywhere visited the Irving Central Library in Texas. Participants learned how everyday experiences on Earth and across the universe are connected by the laws of physics. In conjunction with the exhibit, the Irving Central Library planned a robust series of programs to help ignite students’ interests in science, technology, engineering and mathematics — just in time for the new school year. Check it out at: http://hte.si.edu/blog/here-there-and-everywhere-hosted-in-texas/
What laws apply to space age salvage operations? The story of maritime salvage, from civil war battleships to Apollo rockets. Learn more at: http://www.google.com/url?q=http://tranquilitybaseblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/salvage-law-in-space-age.html&usd=2&usg=ALhdy28VCQmPZyWW89R7IuGs_ktXGbd-PA
Next up is a pair of great stories from Next Big Future. First, Here is a Keith Henson article about space based solar power bootstrapping to use lasers on Skylon Spaceplanes to lower the cost of launch. Read the full article at: http://nextbigfuture.com/2013/09/propulsion-lasers-for-large-scale.html
Our second article from Next Big Future covers an upcoming SpaceX launch coming this week which if it goes off will have the soft splash down of the first stage. This could lead to a reusable first stage which would reduce launch costs by over 25% and all three stages reusable will reduce costs by ten to one hundred times. Learn more at: http://nextbigfuture.com/2013/09/if-spacex-gets-reusable-booster-they.html
Next up from PhotoSpace is A brief look at the Grasshopper test vehicle from Space X. What is SpaceX doing and how fast are the revisions to the platform coming? Learn more at: http://www.photostospace.com/company-info/blog/walk-with-me-young-grasshopper/
This image tracks the life of a Sun-like star, from its birth on the left side of the frame to its evolution into a red giant star on the right. Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser
A solar twin has recently been discovered – a star almost identical to our own Sun, but several billion years older. Learn more from the Urban Astronomer at: http://www.urban-astronomer.com/Urban-Astronomer-Updates/sunsoldertwinfound
Rounding out this week’s Carnival of Space is a pair of articles about Comet ISON. First, A debunking of the vairuos misinformation, misunderstandings and hoaxes surrounding comet C/2012 S1 ISON at: http://astroblogger.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/comet-ison-faq-for-perplexed.html
If you want to track Comet ISON yourself, here’s a script file so that you can simulate comet ISON in Celestia: http://astroblogger.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/comet-c2012-s1-ison-in-celestia.html
That’s it for this week’s Carnival of Space! Stay tuned for the next weekly showcase of articles written on the topic of space. If you have a science/space blog, joining the carnival is a good way to meet members of the space/science blogging community and help your site reach a wider audience.
If you’d like to be a host for the carnival, please send email to [email protected]
Ray Sanders is a Sci-Fi geek, astronomer and blogger. Currently researching variable stars at Arizona State University, he writes for Universe Today, The Planetary Society blog, and his own blog, Dear Astronomer
Source: http://www.dearastronomer.com/2013/09/17/carnival-of-space-319/
