Astronomy Thread

Leon

Empty pockets… I can relate. :cwy: Hahaha. :)

Monsoon. Crazy stuff. O,O Can't even imagine what light pollution must be in Mumbai! I have my telescope at my parents place, a city of like... 20k people and just that makes the light pollution terrible. I have a filter to get rid of some of the artificial light though which work pretty well.
Ah, also, in a month or so I'll be going up to the Swedish fells, man it gets crazy dark up there! You can see Andromeda with the naked eye and the milky way band and stuff! :)

I normally travel to the surrounding range of mountains. It is basically a camp in the middle of 20-30 sq km surrounding forest, where population is minimum.

What about Orion Nebula? Can you see it with naked eyes?

Sarfallet

@Leon:

I normally travel to the surrounding range of mountains. It is basically a camp in the middle of 20-30 sq km surrounding forest, where population is minimum.

That national park of your's then? :) Very cool with such a large park right inside your city!

@Leon:

What about Orion Nebula? Can you see it with naked eyes?

Well, Orion isn't visible during the summer but otherwise I'm sure it would be. You don't get much darker skies then you get up there. Hm, here's a google maps link. If it doesn't work you can search for "Härjedalen". The biggest… Ehr... City... In the area has a population of like 2500 people. :happy:

Cruithne

http://earthsky.org/space/big-sun-diving-comet-ison-might-be-spectacular-in-2013

I can't wait.

xan

@taboo:

theoretically, if we could control black holes, we might not even need cars

I guess you are referring to controlling black holes and in turn create worm holes for traveling anywhere in the universe? Star Trek!

One other awesome advantage would be unlimited energy generation from black holes. World without energy crisis BOOM!

Leon

@Sarfallet:

That national park of your's then? :) Very cool with such a large park right inside your city!

No not really. We are not allowed to enter the park. And i don't want to be mauled my Leopards lol.
@Sarfallet:

Well, Orion isn't visible during the summer but otherwise I'm sure it would be. You don't get much darker skies then you get up there. Hm, here's a google maps link. If it doesn't work you can search for "Härjedalen". The biggest… Ehr... City... In the area has a population of like 2500 people. :happy:

2.5k…Lucky. You are so lucky. I envy you. Since long i wanted to capture Orion Nebula. Here's the google map link from where i image space.

Sarfallet

@Leon:

No not really. We are not allowed to enter the park. And i don't want to be mauled my Leopards lol.

Leopards, haha that's one wild park you've got over there!! Star gazing is worth some sacrifice, but losing ones limb to leopards goes way beyond the call of duty! ;)

@Leon:

2.5k…Lucky. You are so lucky. I envy you. Since long i wanted to capture Orion Nebula.

It's a awesome place, though we mostly go there for the hiking. I will not even bring my telescope, but my dad has a really good spotting scope and binoculars which works well enough! :)
I can't image nebulae 'cause my mounts to bad for that sort of stuff. :P Maybe if I bought a motor for it…
Have you tried capture it? What exposure times were you using?

@Leon:

Here's the google map link from where i image space.

Whoa, that's quite far away from Mumbai! Not a one night thing I presume?

Ubiq

The other blue dot.

http://www.space.com/21928-alien-planet-blue-color-revealed.html

Leon

@Sarfallet:

It's a awesome place, though we mostly go there for the hiking. I will not even bring my telescope, but my dad has a really good spotting scope and binoculars which works well enough! :)
I can't image nebulae 'cause my mounts to bad for that sort of stuff. :P Maybe if I bought a motor for it…
Have you tried capture it? What exposure times were you using?

No not really. I am planning to capture it this yer though. I think 1/3rd of a second should be suffice.

@Sarfallet:

Whoa, that's quite far away from Mumbai! Not a one night thing I presume?

6 Hours Journey.

taboo

@Ubiq:

The other blue dot.

http://www.space.com/21928-alien-planet-blue-color-revealed.html

im curious why they'd envision that planet with that kind of atmosphere instead of the normal hot jupiter 'stripes'

http://www.space.com/12612-alien-planet-darkest-coal-black-kepler.html
this one is a fav too

Ubiq

Back in April, they had the Hubble take a gander at Comet ISON.

http://hubblesite.org/hubble_discoveries/comet_ison/blogs/blog-exclusive-ison-in-space

Ubiq

The Chelyabinsk meteor might have brothers and sisters out there.

http://www.nature.com/news/russian-meteor-may-have-gangmates-in-tow-1.13498

taboo

ohh someone uploaded my favorite episode finally

I love the soundtrack for this show. It's like a mix of Signs and Super Metroid haha

Hiroy

I actually watched that one earlier last week. For some reason I didn't like the narration of it, but it did introduce me to some neat stuff that I recalled learning about as a kid. Pulsar galaxies are my favorite. Mianly because it's like this slow and endering torture for planets themselves. It's amazing!

legumes

It surprisingly seems like something that would show up on BBC through, minus the britishness.

Did you guys see the documentary by stephen hawkings about the creation of the universe? It seemed pretty detailed the last time I caught it.

Ubiq

Music from the Depth of Space.

Uncanny Cyke

I love this thread already! lol but i don't know what people will talk about here?
When I was young (elementary), I loved astronomy so much, my ambition is to be an astronaut lol, but now I will be satisfied if I get a high grade telescope just to study stars/space again or take photographs.

(I just realized that now I can buy one! yey, thanks for this thread for reminding me that :D )

Ubiq

Sarfallet

Grasshopper is too cool. O,o I love the divert test they did a while back. Gonna look totally crazy when they start flying it around at super sonic speed. :)

Crossword

This photo taken during the summer by Cassini was released today (full size here):

!

Ubiq

Cassini's Saturn images are just amazing. Here's an annotated version of the image: http://i.imgur.com/RYURAVN.jpg

We really need to send more probes to the outer planets; they've been woefully ignored.

http://edudemic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/50-years-exploration-huge.jpg

While we're posting images…

! WHEEEEEE!

taboo

I like how Pluto is still included in everything despite being demoted. It makes for a good marker of the kuiper belt I guess

Did that one probe ever reach Pluto and charon for pictures yet btw? I think we were gonna get some close up pix of what makes Pluto so pink

Ubiq

A lot of people genuinely dislike Pluto's demotion so I'm not surprised it's in there.

New Horizons won't make its closest approach to Pluto until July 2015 so the first, extremely tiny pictures won't start coming in until late April of that year. It's a just a flyby though so it'll get some really nice images but nothing from orbit.

Namiorbust

@Ubiq:

Cassini's Saturn images are just amazing. Here's an annotated version of the image: http://i.imgur.com/RYURAVN.jpg

We really need to send more probes to the outer planets; they've been woefully ignored.

http://edudemic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/50-years-exploration-huge.jpg

While we're posting images…

! http://i.imgur.com/2vnggot.gif WHEEEEEE!

Unfortunately Uranus's flyby was largely ignored due to the Challenger explosion. Also on that flyby Uranus was fairly inactive. I know later images from the Hubble telescope showed a more active Uranus.

Edit: Does anybody know when the Messenger satellite goes into orbit around Mercury?

Ubiq

@Namiorbust:

Edit: Does anybody know when the Messenger satellite goes into orbit around Mercury?

March 2011. They're trying to get a second extension for the mission.

Namiorbust

@Ubiq:

March 2011. They're trying to get a second extension for the mission.

Thanks, Ubing. For some reason I didn't think it was in orbit yet. Maybe it's because I haven't seen any or their pictures from that mission yet.

Sarfallet

So… Something happened to C/2012 S1, looks like it broke up near perihelion. Some fragments may have survived. :( So sad, I was looking forward to seeing it.
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/Comet-ISON-Updates-193909261.html

Ubiq

People really aren't sure what happened to ISON.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2013/11/29/ison_after_perihelion_the_undead_maybe_somewhat_ex_comet.html

Sarfallet

Cassini captures a new awesome view of the hexagon storm.
Link to NASAs photojournal

Ubiq

An Atlas-5 rocket carried an imaging satellite called USA-247 into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office a couple of days ago.

Here's the mission patch for it:

!

TheCrystalShip

@Ubiq:

An Atlas-5 rocket carried an imaging satellite called USA-247 into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office a couple of days ago.

Here's the mission patch for it:

! http://i.imgur.com/H80RpbT.jpg

Yeah, I saw the fireball and felt the rumbling. My friends were talking about it on FB, I commented (ironically of course) that this logo actually makes me want to support spy satellites.

Ubiq

I like to think it was their second choice after they couldn't get the rights to:

!

Nex 0

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/10/rainbow-gravity-theory-universe-beginning_n_4418017.html?utm_hp_ref=tw I actually have never heard of this Rainbow Gravity theory, but I find it absolutely fascinating. Especially the idea that there was no Big Bang and our Universe has no beginning.

I just wish I better understood what the article was saying. There are definitely parts of it that went over my head.

taboo

i looove any Big Bang killer theory haha

idk i think the rainbow theory is neat but i like the idea that the universe renews itself periodically with a big bang. it just seems natural, like there's no infinite future or infinite past, that the sub atomic stuff isn't immortal…

taboo

Anybody watch Unexplained Files on the Science channel? I watched the bit about the Sri Lanka red rain and the conclusions they were coming up with we're really cool http://science.discovery.com/tv-shows/the-unexplained-files/the-unexplained-files-videos/red-rain-in-sri-lanka.htm

The cells they found in the water apparently didn't have DNA and they're thinking it came from a meteor impact

TheCrystalShip

I'd more like to believe that the Earth is just way more fucking complicated than we thought.

taboo

but seriously, what kind of cells can still reproduce after being baked at a temp of 300 degrees for over 15 hours?

TheCrystalShip

Sentient giant tube worm cells.

And why is it that when I search for "sentient giant tube worms" on Google images, this picture shows up?

!

I think that's case closed folks.

!

taboo

what are you even talking about

TheCrystalShip

I really don't know how to get out of this stressful situation safely, so you can do whatever you want with my dumb posts, just delete them or whatever.

Crossword

There's a possibility of an Aurora Borealis show tonight/early morning for the northern half of the USA/

The entirety of New England's in the "good" range and it's clear today, so maybe I'll try to take a peak.

Ubiq

Here's a picture of an exoplanet.

http://www.gemini.edu/node/12113

Ubiq

Japan is taking a long overdue step towards reducing orbital debris.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22129534.800-japans-huge-magnetic-net-will-trawl-for-space-junk.html?cmpid=RSS|NSNS|2012-GLOBAL|online-news#.UuBT9WTnZcy

xan

http://www.livescience.com/43235-intelligent-alien-life-detection-2040.html

We will soon encounter alien species by 2040. Not bad!

Of course, as mentioned, it also depends on the continued SETI funding for its activities which could also mean that this statement could have been released to gain attention for the same purpose. Nevertheless, 2040 here we come…

Cruithne

@xan:

Of course, as mentioned, it also depends on the continued SETI funding for its activities which could also mean that this statement could have been released to gain attention for the same purpose.

Probably that.

And we wouldn't be talking to them. Just finding out if an alien civilization that's reliant on electricity is out there and close enough that we can pick up those EM waves.

I wonder how they'd separate it from all the other noise stars produce.

xan

@Cruithne:

Probably that.

And we wouldn't be talking to them. Just finding out if an alien civilization that's reliant on electricity is out there and close enough that we can pick up those EM waves.

I wonder how they'd separate it from all the other noise stars produce.

Well as we know humans aren't peaceful creatures so if we see that the civilization is weaker than us the first reaction(after an initial attempt to communicate) would be an attempt for colonization. It has happened throughout earth's violent history anyways. In fact, if we encounter an advanced civilization it is highly likely that THEY would be hostile rather than being nice and helpful.

Cruithne

@xan:

Well as we know humans aren't peaceful creatures so if we see that the civilization is weaker than us the first reaction(after an initial attempt to communicate) would be an attempt for colonization. It has happened throughout earth's violent history anyways. In fact, if we encounter an advanced civilization it is highly likely that THEY would be hostile rather than being nice and helpful.

Duuuuude, the nearest star is 4 light years away. We're no where near at the level of technology required for space exploration to get even there.

And if they're at that level, we're probably not worth talking to, let alone obliterating.

taboo

I wonder if aliens aren't already here tbh

xan

@Cruithne:

Duuuuude, the nearest star is 4 light years away. We're no where near at the level of technology required for space exploration to get even there.

And if they're at that level, we're probably not worth talking to, let alone obliterating.

Ha ha yes of course with our current tehnology it's not even remotely possible. I am referring to the future when we have the technology and the resources to travel effortlessly through space. And forget the stars light years away, we haven't even confirmed if life exists in Mars or the moon.

It's not about the fact whether we are worth talking to or not but if I was an alien species finding a habitat here on earth, I would be more interested in the natural resources that earth offers that I won't mind risking a brutal takeover. We have seen obvious countless instances of that in our very own history where we invade other lands just for their resources.

–- Update From New Post Merge ---

@taboo:

I wonder if aliens aren't already here tbh

That would be a very scary possibility considering that they haven't been discovered yet. The first place where they could and should visit would be our oceans IMHO

taboo

Well honestly, what would we do if we discovered a new, more primitive alien race and we had the means to visit them? We'd probably want to be stealthy and unseen, yet observant while collecting samples for study. I'd like to think there are maybe 1-2 alien races out there that are perhaps 1000-100,000 years more advanced than we are (which is a blink of an eye in astronomical time).

Sarfallet

@xan:

It's not about the fact whether we are worth talking to or not but if I was an alien species finding a habitat here on earth, I would be more interested in the natural resources that earth offers that I won't mind risking a brutal takeover. We have seen obvious countless instances of that in our very own history where we invade other lands just for their resources.

Natural resources? You think they are after our oil or food? Most other resources are available and more easily accessible in other places in our solar system.
I'd wager that any civilization capable of interstellar space travel is advanced enough to be pretty nice fellas.