SETI bioastro: Fw: Astronomy.com Newsletter 9/9/2005

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From: LARRY KLAES (ljk4_at_msn.com)
Date: Sat Sep 10 2005 - 02:56:17 UTC

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From: AstronomyNewsletter<mailto:AstronomyNewsletter_at_maillist.astronomymail.com>
To: ljk4_at_msn.com<mailto:ljk4_at_msn.com>
Sent: Friday, September 09, 2005 6:14 PM
Subject: Astronomy.com Newsletter 9/9/2005

September 9, 2005

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NEWS
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SATURN DYNAMIC SATELLITE

"Warm temperatures" and "polar regions" are not phrases typically
associated with each other. But, then again, Saturn's icy moon
Enceladus is no ordinary object.

Planetary scientists continue to analyze the rich trove of observations
taken by the Cassini spacecraft as it flew within 110 miles (175
kilometers) of Enceladus' surface July 14. As they do so, they find
mounting evidence that ground fractures near the south pole vent water
vapor, creating the moon's atmosphere ...

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NEUTRON STAR RACES OUT OF GALAXY

A team of astronomers studying radio pulsar B1508+55 has obtained
a somewhat surprising result - the star is heading out of the Milky
Way Galaxy at the phenomenal velocity of 670 miles per second
(1,100 kilometers per second). At this great speed, the galaxy's
gravitational pull is not enough to keep the pulsar within its
confines. This means it has, for all practical purposes, been "kicked"
out of the galaxy. Such an outcast may belong to a new class of
neutron stars that are extremely dense and fast ...

In a move expected to give the Hubble Space Telescope at least 8
additional months of science observations, scientists have idled
one of its three operating gyroscopes. While three gyros are needed
to point the telescope and hold it on target, engineers and
astronomers worked out a scheme in which Hubble can do science with
only two functioning gyros.

"Hubble science on two gyros will be indistinguishable from the
superb science we have become accustomed to over the years," says
David Leckrone, senior Hubble scientist at NASA's Goddard Space
Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland ...

DEEP SKY MAGAZINE REPRINT: TAKING THE BULL BY THE HORNS IN TAURUS

This winter 1988 article introduces you to clusters, nebulae, and
unusual stars within the constellation Taurus.

As autumn fades into winter and temperatures plummet, temperate
latitudes receive frequent rushes of cold air that sweep our
atmosphere clean. In place of the haze and smog we have become
accustomed to gazing through dark skies set ablaze by bright stars.

Mighty Orion dominates the scene, teamed with his faithful hunting
dogs, Canis Major and Minor. Looking on, standing on the gentle
rifts of the winter Milky Way, are the Gemini twins, with Auriga
the Charioteer standing to their side. Below Auriga, seemingly
taunting Orion into action, is the fiery bull Taurus. Many splendid
deep-sky objects in Taurus provoke deep-sky observers into action ...

Note: To access this story, you will need to use a subscriber number
or newsstand code.

SEPTEMBER 2005 ASTRO BYTES

>>Auroral displays on the way?: Will the major flare on the Sun
generate increased auroral activity on Earth?

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READER GALLERY
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Filippo Ciferri imaged M27, a planetary nebula in the constellation
Vulpecula, from Rome.
Click here to view:
http://list.astronomy.com/UM/T.asp?A12.80.206.6.278623>

Mark Hodges photographed Jupiter, Venus, and the Moon from the Blue
Ridge Parkway, Roanoke, Virginia.
Click here to view:
http://list.astronomy.com/UM/T.asp?A12.80.206.7.278623>

Wayne Krill captured this view from Astronomy's 2005 Aurora Tour in
Fairbanks, Alaska.
Click here to view:
http://list.astronomy.com/UM/T.asp?A12.80.206.8.278623>

If you have images you'd like to share with other
newsletter readers, attach them to an e-mail sent to
mailto:jmcgovern_at_astronomy.com<mailto:jmcgovern_at_astronomy.com>. Make sure you include
the date, location, equipment, and methods used in
taking and processing each image in your e-mail.

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THE SKY THIS MONTH
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JUMPING ON THE SCALES

The solar system's largest asteroid, 1 Ceres, measures 595 miles across.
Not surprisingly, it was the first asteroid to be discovered. Although
it currently plies the modestly rich star fields of Libra the Scales,
Ceres glows at 9th magnitude, so it remains brighter than the typical
background star in this area.

To find Ceres, jump from Gamma Librae southward through the Zeta
triplet to the area depicted on the finder chart at right. Then zoom
in on the big rock's track. Chances are the first point of light you
see close to the predicted position will be Ceres. To be sure, make
a quick sketch of the region and return a night or 2 later to confirm
that your suspect object has moved slightly.

Although watching an asteroid blot out the light from a distant star for
a few seconds used to be a rare event, it now occurs almost monthly. No,
such events aren't becoming more common, we just can predict them for
fainter stars and asteroids thanks to improvements in star catalogs,
accuracy of asteroid orbits, and computer speed.

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EXPLORE THE UNIVERSE 2006
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Explore the Universe 2006, the annual special issue from Astronomy
magazine, will help you make the most of every minute under the stars
- all year long!

The 2006 edition features the year's best astronomy books, observing
tips, a stunning gallery of images submitted by Astronomy readers, and
much more!

Order your copy today of Explore the Universe 2006:
http://list.astronomy.com/UM/T.asp?A12.80.206.9.278623>

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HOBBY TIP OF THE WEEK
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>>Spy a birthplace for stars with your binoculars.

Stars in a cluster all formed from the same gas cloud. To witness
what a star cluster looks like soon after its genesis, shift your
gaze to Orion the Hunter's sword stars, just below his prominent
belt stars. If the night is crisp and clear, and you're away from
urban streetlight glare, unaided eyes will show that the sword
below Orion's belt isn't entirely composed of stars. Binoculars
show a steady patch of glowing gas where, right at this moment,
a star cluster is being born. It's called the Orion Nebula. A
summertime counterpart is the Lagoon Nebula, in Sagittarius the Archer.

With star factories like the Orion Nebula, we aren't really seeing
the young stars themselves. They are buried deep within the nebula,
bathing the gas cloud with ultraviolet radiation and making it glow.
In a few tens of thousands of years, stellar winds from these young,
energetic stars will blow away their gaseous cocoons to reveal a newly
minted star cluster.

The Orion Nebula, and its parent constellation of the Hunter, lingers
low in the southwest soon after sunset on spring evenings. Look in on
it for best views during winter and early spring.

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