Rebecca teaches a low mass star about skepticism
Updated: 2010-01-31 14:30:59
Well, I assume he’s a low mass star since he was in Red Dwarf. Anyway, Skepchick Rebecca Watson rides in a car with Robert Llewellyn and they talk skepticism and such. It’s an enjoyable video, with some NSFW language.
Weekend field trips on the Web
Updated: 2010-01-30 00:20:00
Lemelson-MIT Invention Index: Teens xcited about tech
Transterrestrial.com: Why Obama is a space conservative Mail on Sunday: Subway map of the Milky Way
'Nova' on PBS: 'Ghosts of Machu Picchu'
Daily Grail: 'Evidence of the Afterlife' ..(read more)WISE Spots its First Asteroid
Updated: 2010-01-27 20:51:29
Ok, the picture might not look like much at first glance however it does represent something quite extraordinary: the WISE spacecraft has spotted its first asteroid and it is named 2010 AB78. The red dot in the center of the image is the asteroid.
No, the asteroid is not going to hit the Earth or [...]Slacker Mike Simonsen on Astronomy.FM Friday night
Updated: 2010-01-25 04:30:56Hey, Slacker friends, Mike will be on Astronomy.FM Friday night at 9PM EST, talking with Marty Kunz on the Event Horizon program about AAVSO, variable stars, AAVSO, cataclysmic variables, AAVSO, Mike’s research interests, AAVSO, epsilon Aurigae, AAVSO, telescopes and whatever else comes to mind…which could be just about anything!An Event of Power and Force
Updated: 2010-01-25 00:37:10
Can you imagine being in space, calmly watching a star, and all of a sudden…
Kepler’s Supernova Remnant, Went supernova circa October 1604 Image: NASA/JPL ESA-SOHO Chandra/Spitzer/Hubble
Isn’t that gorgeous? Spectacular? Better hope you’re a few light years away from that puppy, because when it goes, it GOES.
In a short time, a star going supernova will radiate [...]Naming a Planet
Updated: 2010-01-24 14:31:57
The really isn’t meant as a commercial, I just found it funny. The “deer in the headlights” look is about what I’ll look like this week after the staff meeting I have to go to.
View the opposition of Mars this month
Updated: 2010-01-18 05:00:00The opposition of Mars is always an exciting time for planetary observers as it allows us the best view of our smaller neighbor. The opposition of Mars during this apparition occurs on January 29, 2010 at 19:27 UT.Focusing on Titan’s lakes and Io’s volcanism
Updated: 2010-01-17 18:36:16A little while ago I had a lot of fun being interviewed by Jheni, J and Andy from Focus magazine’s podcast. We talked about a new astronomy TV series coming to our screens called ‘Seven Wonders of the Solar System’. Presented by particle physicist Prof Brian Cox the series will, according to the BBC, look [...]new exoplanets.org table
Updated: 2010-01-14 16:09:09news via twitter. –Ben Twitter.com/Exoplanetology Hey, exoplanets.org just launched their new exoplanets data http://exoplanets.org/exotable/exoTable.html includes plots! Nice!Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2010
Updated: 2010-01-13 20:24:17After the huge success of Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2009 the Royal Observatory Greenwich (and Sky at Night Magazine, as media partner) have today opened entries to this year’s competition. Last year the competition received hundreds of images showing everything from spectacular swirling nebulae to moonscapes reminiscent of the views seen by Apollo astronauts. This [...]IYA Closing Ceremony
Updated: 2010-01-09 14:42:00As I write this the International Year of Astronomy closing ceremony is taking place. If you are quick you can catch some of the live webcast. Currently, Catherine Cesarsky is giving an overview of the year. One of the statistics is that 148 countries took part in the IYA2009. That sounds impressive but I hadn't quite realised how impressive that is. Catherine just showed a map of the world with participating countries shown in red. It is noticeable that Africa isn't as red as other continents.Countries (in red) that took part in the Year of Astronomy 2009 CREDIT: IAU/Catherine Cesarsky - taken from Astronomy Blog (www.strudel.org.uk/blog/astro/)UK Snow
Updated: 2010-01-07 21:30:00Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive UK Snow An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name UK Snow Via Will Gater I saw this amazing image of the UK taken by NASA's Terra satellite today . The image shows almost the entire country sporting a layer of snow . Snow blanketed the UK on 7th January 2010. : CREDIT The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer MODIS on NASAs Terra . satellite On Twitter people have been using the hash tag uksnow to provide real time snowfall updates Citizen Meteorology and Web Developer Ben Marsh has created a real time map to show where the snow is falling as well as people's photos . It has been fascinating to watch the snow head over from Liverpool and Warrington to Manchester in real time and then see it start falling outside my own . window Tags : uk snow Terra NASA twitter Posted in astro blog by Stuart on Thursday 07th Jan 2010 21:30 GMT Add a comment Permalink Comments : ADD A : COMMENT Don't provide an email URL unless really necessary as your comment may get caught in the spam filter . The ground rules for commenting : are No profanity or personal attacksVaried Voices
Updated: 2010-01-07 19:32:00Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive Varied Voices An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name Varied Voices The 365 Days of Astronomy podcast the official podcast of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 is continuing into 2010. The format remains the same with each episode contributed by different people from around the world . Although many people have signed up for days in 2010, there are still plenty . available Throughout 2009 I created the Weekly version of the podcast which distilled every 7 days into an omnibus edition . At the end of each weekly episode I read out a standard blurb describing the podcast and how to get involved . To shake things up a bit for 2010 I thought it would be nice to have a series of different voices read the outro . I have around 10 voices so far but still need another 42 before the end of the year . The voices I have are heavily biased towards the UK and US so I'm particularly keen to get voices representing other . countries If you'd like to contribute please record the following lines and send them to me stuart followed by followed by strudel.org.uk TheBook Review: The Monthly Sky Guide
Updated: 2010-01-05 17:38:42
One of the nice things about publishing an astronomy blog is we get copies of astronomy books from various publishers sent to us to review. Just before Christmas Cambridge University Press sent us a copy of the eighth edition of Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion’s ‘The Monthly Sky Guide’.
This book is a classic beginner level [...]Podcast: Kepler and Extrasolar Asteroids
Updated: 2010-01-04 03:44:51We have a new podcast on the feed here and over at 365 Days of Astronomy. Mike Simonsen interviews Dr. Steve Howell about the Kepler mission, extrasolar asteroids and Ophiuchans. Steve is an interesting guy and this is an interesting interview. The version at 365 Days of Astronomy is the short version. The extended version is [...]2009: My year in communication
Updated: 2010-01-03 20:20:00: Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive 2009 : My year in communication An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name 2009 : My year in communication Following on from the previous post here is a break down of my year in communication . Anyone who knows me has probably heard me complaining about the volume of email I've been getting in 2009. In 2008 I had an average of 33.4 emails per day and this has doubled to 66.8 emails per day during 2009. Thankfully , the email mountain was in the first half of the year and I've worked hard to reduce it as the year has gone on . I still have too many email conversations that would be much better and easier as telephone calls . The reduction has to continue into 2010 otherwise I'll never have time to do anything . productive Emails per month during 2009. Does not include spam . : CREDIT . Stuart Anyone who has been reading this blog for some time will be able to predict the plot showing the number of blog posts . It had been dropping through 2008 and that trend has continued into 2009. This is partly because so many other blogs cover the latest astronomical news2009: My year in travel
Updated: 2010-01-03 18:03:00: Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive 2009 : My year in travel An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name 2009 : My year in travel At the end of 2008 I calculated the total amount of travel I had done by different modes of transport . It turned out that I had travelled almost the circumference of Mars I decided to repeat this exercise for the International Year of Astronomy 2009. In 2009 I travelled an equivalent to 87 of the way around the Earth 34735 km The rough breakdown is shown . below My travel during 2009 broken down by form of transport . I travelled roughly 87 of the circumference of the Earth . : CREDIT . Stuart I travelled further by all modes of transport during 2009. The biggest percentage rise was in train travel 9700 compared to 3910 km in 2008 as I managed to replace a few flights with trains . I also travelled some way by boat this year due to a holiday in . Norfolk All in all , I failed in my attempt to cut down my travel and particularly my flights . On a positive note , I reduced the fractional amount travelled by . plane My average speed for 2009 was 1.1 m s or equivalentSaturn is of one Time’s top 2009 pictures
Updated: 2010-01-03 15:01:12Time Magazine lists an image of Saturn as of one Time’s top pictures of 2009. see it at : http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1946595_2010965,00.html You can get the the Full size 7227 samples x 3847 lines image, or smaller sizes too, here: http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA11667 or http://ciclops.org/view/5773/The_Rite_of_Spring It make’s a great desktop image. Thanks Cassini and Carolyn Porco –BenSpaceBuzz 0.4
Updated: 2010-01-03 00:55:00
Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive SpaceBuzz 0.4 An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name SpaceBuzz 0.4 It is funny how some things work out . A year ago to the day I released SpaceBuzz 0.3. Today I have released version 0.4. SpaceBuzz is a program I wrote which monitors the tags used in astronomy blogs and then attempts to find out what are hot topics right now . My latest addition is to display graphs showing the popularity of each tag by week over the past year . For instance , this plot shows the popularity of the tag Moon The popularity of the tag Moon on astronomy blogs in the past year : CREDIT Stuart Spacebuzz There are 176 blogs included in SpaceBuzz . If you write one and it isn't included , let me know . If you have a blog and are still not using tags yet , please consider giving them a try Tags : blog spacebuzz graphs Posted in astro blog by Stuart on Sunday 03rd Jan 2010 12:55 GMT 3 Comments Permalink Comments : SpaceBuzz 0.4 I'm wondering if you would release this application as an open source . programme I would like to test it and add some language support , like Chinese etc .Vinnie
Updated: 2009-12-31 07:06:13Jump To Content Home Webcam ThrockNet Projects Links Comment Username : Password : Register 3d 9h 43m 59s left Vinnie Posted by nuxi on 2009-Dec-31 at 02:06:13 in My Life Login to reply So back in 2008 I took care Mary's dog Cleo for a bit . This time I have her other . doggy Vinnie decided to stretch right as I took that photo . Here is his Where is Cleo face that he's been giving me all . day And finally , the when are you going to sleep : faceRed Blue Moon
Updated: 2009-12-30 13:47:00Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive Red Blue Moon An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name Red Blue Moon The International Year of Astronomy 2009 is almost over . It has been a busy year full of events the world over If you've not yet taken part in a global event , you still have chance on New Year's Eve when the Moon will be . full The Moon is full every moon-th but this will be the second full Moon of this calendar month This doesn't happen too often and is commonly named a Blue Moon Blue is just the name for it and the Moon won't actually turn that shade In fact , if anything , the Moon may actually go slightly red tomorrow night because there will also be a partial eclipse visible from Europe , Africa , Asia , Australia and bits of Canada Greatest eclipse will be at 19:22 UT Join people around the world taking a Blue Moon Walk look up , observe the Moon and welcome in 2010. Tags : Moon Blue Moon lunar eclipse Posted in astro blog by Stuart on Wednesday 30th Dec 2009 13:47 GMT Add a comment Permalink Comments : ADD A : COMMENT Don't provide an email URL unless really necessary as your“The science of Avatar” – new S@N podcast episode
Updated: 2009-12-27 17:31:26With the release of James Cameron’s new 3D movie Avatar, cinema-goers are being transported to the surface of an alien world called Pandora. Pandora is an exomoon (a moon of an extrasolar planet) and the setting for much of the film’s spectacular action. For the new episode of the Sky at Night Magazine podcast I [...]A chilly crescent
Updated: 2009-12-20 18:28:58
Despite the bitterly cold wind, tonight’s crescent Moon was a sight that I couldn’t resist photographing. The first and third shots show an interesting phenomenon known as ‘Earthshine’ where the shadowed part of the Moon is partially illuminated by light reflected off the Earth. If you look closely at the first image you’ll be able [...]The Cosmic Keyhole at The Book Depository
Updated: 2009-12-20 11:06:27I’m very pleased to say that my new book The Cosmic Keyhole is now on sale at the online book store The Book Depository. At the moment it’s available for a discounted price of just over £15 (a discount of over 40%) and you can get free delivery to the UK and many other countries [...]Video Podcast: Citizen Sky Lite Brite
Updated: 2009-12-18 02:37:15Hey, all. We made this video describing epsilon Aurigae and the Citizen Sky project. Similar to our supernovae video from 2006, this was done almost entirely with diagrams made with Lite Brite pegs. BTW, the first phase of the eclipse will be ending any day now as the star reaches minima. However, there are [...]Hubble reveals a sparkling spectacle in the LMC
Updated: 2009-12-15 21:41:21
A section of the new Hubble image showing the star cluster R136 and surroundings.
Credit: NASA, ESA, and F. Paresce (INAF-IASF, Bologna, Italy), R. O’Connell (University of Virginia, Charlottesville), and the Wide Field Camera 3 Science Oversight Committee. Click for a larger version.
I’ve thought hard about how I might write this post. How do you go [...]Podcast: Heat
Updated: 2009-12-12 18:04:13Our last episode of the 2009 version of the 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast aired today, December 12th, 2009. We put the extended version of this episode on the Slacker Astronomy feed, or you can listen right now using the player below. Our topic is heat and we discuss heat, temperature, thermodynamics, black bodies and associated [...]A quick guide to the Geminid meteor shower
Updated: 2009-12-12 15:38:16
A meteor from the 2009 Geminid meteor shower darts through the constellation of Hydra, close to the star Alphard, as captured by Pete Lawrence. Credit: Pete Lawrence
The annual Geminid meteor shower will put on a celestial show over the next few nights with some predictions suggesting that over 100 meteors could be spotted shooting across [...]Slide through the spectrum with Chromoscope
Updated: 2009-12-04 19:49:24A section of the Milky Way in microwaves. Credit: NASA / WMAP Science Team If you’ve ever wondered what the Orion Nebula looks like in the far-infrared or what the Milky Way looks like at microwave wavelengths then you’re going to like Chromoscope. This exciting new website is the brainchild of professional astronomers Stuart Lowe, Rob [...]