Astronomy posts
- May 20, 2013
- 02:19 PM
- 20 views
Subaru Telescope Observations and the CoRoT Mission Unveil the Future of the Sun
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
A team of astronomers led by Jose Dias do Nascimento (Department of Theoretical and Experimental Physics, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte [DFTE, UFRN], Brazil) has found the farthest known solar twin in the Milky Way Galaxy– CoRoT Sol 1, which has about the same mass and chemical composition as the Sun. Spectra from the High Dispersion Spectrograph (HDS) on the Subaru Telescope showed that CoRoT Sol 1 is about 6.7 billion years old while space-based data from the CoRoT (Convect........ Read more »
NAOJ Press Release. (2013) Subaru Telescope Observations and the CoRoT Mission Unveil the Future of the Sun. Subaru Telescope NAOJ. info:/
- May 18, 2013
- 07:06 AM
- 32 views
Ground-breaking science and spectacular cosmic images from the PAPER instrument in the Karoo
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
-Scientific studies done with the “PAPER” array, one of the world-class scientific instruments in South Africa’s Karoo Radio Astronomy Reserve, is producing ground-breaking science and spectacular cosmic images, resulting in several important articles in top astronomy journals.
-The first scientific paper based on observations performed with South Africa’s new KAT-7 radio telescope, has been accepted for publication by the prestigious journal Monthly Notices of the Roy........ Read more »
SKA SA Project Office. (2013) Ground-breaking science and spectacular cosmic images from the PAPER instrument in the Karoo. SKA Africa . info:/
- May 15, 2013
- 04:07 PM
- 38 views
Discovering a new planet (TAU-CfA articles)
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
1.TAU team takes part in discovering new planet
A team of astronomers at TAU and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics have announced the first-ever discovery of an extrasolar planet via induced relativistic beaming of light from the host star.
2.New Method of Finding Planets Scores its First Discovery
- CfA... Read more »
TAU News office. (2013) TAU team takes part in discovering new planet. Tel Aviv University. info:/
- May 14, 2013
- 10:06 AM
- 36 views
First ever discovery of an alien planet with the help of Einstein's Theory of Relativity
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Main Point:
Scientists have found, for the first time, an alien planet, dubbed as "Einstein's planet", with the help of the Einstein's Theory of Relativity.
Published in:
The Astrophysical Journal
Study Further:
"Einstein's planet" is officially called as Kepler-76b and is the first planet found by this method. It is the latest of the 800 planets located beyond our Solar System.
This planet is 25% larger than Jupiter and is two times of its we........ Read more »
Simchon Faigler, Lev Tal-Or, Tsevi Mazeh, Dave W. Latham, & Lars A. Buchhave. (2013) BEER analysis of Kepler and CoRoT light curves: I. Discovery of Kepler-76b: A hot Jupiter with evidence for superrotation. The Astrophysical Journal. arXiv: 1304.6841v3
- May 11, 2013
- 01:34 PM
- 66 views
Birth of a Black Hole
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
A new kind of cosmic flash may reveal something never seen before: the birth of a black hole.... Read more »
Marcus Woo. (2013) Birth of a Black Hole. Caltech news . info:/
- May 9, 2013
- 06:10 AM
- 50 views
Herschel finds hot gas on the menu for milky way’s black hole
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
ESA’s Herschel space observatory has made detailed observations of surprisingly hot molecular gas that may be orbiting or falling towards the supermassive black hole lurking at the centre of our Milky Way galaxy.... Read more »
ESA. (2013) Herschel finds hot gas on the menu for milky way's black hole. ESA Herschel. info:/
- May 7, 2013
- 04:52 PM
- 45 views
Moon rocks offer new view of lunar dynamo
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
The Moon clung to its magnetic field until at least 3.56 billion years ago, a study suggests — about 160 million years longer than scientists had thought.
That small change may be enough to rule out some ideas about how the Moon generated and held onto its ancient magnetism, through a process known as a dynamo.
“It seems like the lunar dynamo lasted very late in the Moon’s history,” says Benjamin Weiss, a palaeomagnetics expert at the Massachusetts Institute of Tech........ Read more »
Witze, A. (2013) Moon rocks offer new view of lunar dynamo. Nature. DOI: 10.1038/nature.2013.12929
- May 7, 2013
- 09:46 AM
- 47 views
One step closer to solar wind-powered spacecraft
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
A little over a year ago, a research team started to develop a vital part of a Finnish invention – an electric solar wind sail for interplanetary journeys. Now, a prototype has been successfully manufactured and tested.... Read more »
Anneli Waara. (2013) One step closer to solar wind-powered spacecraft. Uppsala University. info:/
- May 5, 2013
- 02:53 AM
- 50 views
The SPICAV-UV Instrument Aboard Venus Express
by Paul Wren in Venus Dispatches
IntroductionThe European Space Agency’s Venus Express (VEX) is the only active spacecraft mission at the planet Venus. It carries a number of instruments: A magnetometer, a wide-angle CCD camera, a space plasma detector, a Fourier spectrometer, a thermal spectrometer, a radio science package, and a cluster of spectrometers specifically designed to study the Venusian atmosphere: SPICAV (Spectroscopy for Investigation of Characteristics of the Atmosphere of Venus). This package conta........ Read more »
Bertaux, J., Nevejans, D., Korablev, O., Villard, E., Quémerais, E., Neefs, E., Montmessin, F., Leblanc, F., Dubois, J., Dimarellis, E.... (2007) SPICAV on Venus Express: Three spectrometers to study the global structure and composition of the Venus atmosphere. Planetary and Space Science, 55(12), 1673-1700. DOI: 10.1016/j.pss.2007.01.016
- May 5, 2013
- 01:28 AM
- 40 views
Venus has an Ozone Layer, too
by Paul Wren in Venus Dispatches
An atmospheric study using the SPICAV-UV instrument recently came to my attention where researchers (Montmessin, et al. 2011) used the data archive to identify (for the first time) a layer of ozone in the upper atmosphere of Venus (previously, ozone had only been identified in the atmospheres of Mars and Earth).The team analyzed the complete SPICAV dataset, and determined that UV absorption by O3 was observed during a stellar occultation run on the night side of Venus during orbit #348. Th........ Read more »
Montmessin, F., Bertaux, J., Lefèvre, F., Marcq, E., Belyaev, D., Gérard, J., Korablev, O., Fedorova, A., Sarago, V., & Vandaele, A. (2011) A layer of ozone detected in the nightside upper atmosphere of Venus. Icarus, 216(1), 82-85. DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2011.08.010
- May 2, 2013
- 09:50 AM
- 53 views
Meteorites May Reveal Mars’ Secrets of Life
by Jason Carr in Wired Cosmos
In an effort to determine if conditions were ever right on Mars to sustain life, a team of scientists, including a Michigan State University professor, has examined a meteorite that formed on the red planet more than a billion years ago. And although this team’s work is not specifically solving the mystery, it is laying … Read More →... Read more »
Stopar, J., Taylor, G., Velbel, M., Norman, M., Vicenzi, E., & Hallis, L. (2013) Element abundances, patterns, and mobility in Nakhlite Miller Range 03346 and implications for aqueous alteration. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 208-225. DOI: 10.1016/j.gca.2013.02.024
- May 2, 2013
- 09:40 AM
- 60 views
Leo P, newly discovered dwarf galaxy near our Milky Way
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Main points:
Scientists have found a new dwarf galaxy, dubbed Leo P, near our Milky Way. This galaxy is present about five to six million light-years away from Milky Way.
Journal:
The Astronomical Journal
Study Further:
Astronomers found this galaxy with Arecibo Observatory radio telescope in Puerto Rico and first considered it as a cloud of hydrogen gas. Later they confirmed the finding with optical telescopes at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona.
Leo P is one of the l........ Read more »
Rhode, K., Salzer, J., Haurberg, N., Van Sistine, A., Young, M., Haynes, M., Giovanelli, R., Cannon, J., Skillman, E., McQuinn, K.... (2013) ALFALFA DISCOVERY OF THE NEARBY GAS-RICH DWARF GALAXY LEO P. II. OPTICAL IMAGING OBSERVATIONS. The Astronomical Journal, 145(6), 149. DOI: 10.1088/0004-6256/145/6/149
- April 29, 2013
- 03:59 AM
- 76 views
Speed of light may not be a constant
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Main point:
Researchers have found a theoretical possibility that the speed of light may not be constant and it may change while interacting with the ephemeral particles in the vacuum.
Journal:
European Physical Journal D
Study Further:
Researchers based their report on the findings related to vacuum. Vacuum is a space that was thought to be fully empty of matter but at the smallest and the most basic level of quantum physics, it is not empty as it is occupied with particle pairs ........ Read more »
Leuchs, G., & Sánchez-Soto, L. (2013) A sum rule for charged elementary particles. The European Physical Journal D, 67(3). DOI: 10.1140/epjd/e2013-30577-8
Urban, M., Couchot, F., Sarazin, X., & Djannati-Atai, A. (2013) The quantum vacuum as the origin of the speed of light. The European Physical Journal D, 67(3). DOI: 10.1140/epjd/e2013-30578-7
- April 28, 2013
- 05:27 AM
- 72 views
A Massive Pulsar in a Compact Relativistic Binary
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
Pulsar Tests Gravity
Because of their extremely high densities, massive neutron stars can be used to test gravity. Based on spectroscopy of its white dwarf companion, Antoniadis et al. (p. 448) identified a millisecond pulsar as a neutron star twice as heavy as the Sun. The observed binary’s orbital decay is consistent with that predicted by general relativity, ruling out previously untested strong-field phenomena predicted by alternative theories. The binary system has a peculiar combi........ Read more »
Antoniadis, J., Freire, P., Wex, N., Tauris, T., Lynch, R., van Kerkwijk, M., Kramer, M., Bassa, C., Dhillon, V., Driebe, T.... (2013) A Massive Pulsar in a Compact Relativistic Binary. Science, 340(6131), 1233232-1233232. DOI: 10.1126/science.1233232
- April 28, 2013
- 03:46 AM
- 74 views
Blowing Bubbles from Our Galaxy
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
In the center of our Galaxy lies a region called the Central Molecular Zone (CMZ). This region is filled with gas and is forming stars at a rate of about 0.1 M☉ yr-1 — enough to qualify it as a starburst region (a region with an abnormally high star formation rate), but relatively modest when compared to very active star-forming regions we observe in places such as M82, which clocks in at a rate 100 times higher. Thus the author suggests the CMZ might serve as somewhat of a prototype for........ Read more »
SUSANNA KOHLER. (2013) Blowing Bubbles from Our Galaxy. Astrobites. info:/
- April 26, 2013
- 01:32 AM
- 101 views
Confirmation of Einstein’s general theory of relativity in extreme conditions
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Main points:
Astronomers have found that the gravitational waves are produced even in the spacetime when the two stars, in the extreme conditions, move around each other. This is the proof of the Einstein's gravity theory in the one of the most extreme conditions yet studied.
Journal:
Science
Study Further:
Einstein's general theory of relativity:
Gravity is the cause of the curvature of spacetime created by the presence of mass and energy, according to the Einstein&#........ Read more »
Antoniadis, J., Freire, P., Wex, N., Tauris, T., Lynch, R., van Kerkwijk, M., Kramer, M., Bassa, C., Dhillon, V., Driebe, T.... (2013) A Massive Pulsar in a Compact Relativistic Binary. Science, 340(6131), 1233232-1233232. DOI: 10.1126/science.1233232
- April 25, 2013
- 09:21 AM
- 84 views
Newborn Stars and their Effect on the Universe
by Jason Carr in Wired Cosmos
When galaxies form new stars, they sometimes do so in frantic episodes of activity known as starbursts. These events were commonplace in the early Universe, but are rarer in nearby galaxies. During these bursts, hundreds of millions of stars are born, and their combined effect can drive a powerful wind that travels out of the … Read More →... Read more »
Sanchayeeta Borthakur, Timothy Heckman, David Strickland, Vivienne Wild, & David Schiminovich. (2013) The Impact of Starbursts on the Circumgalactic Medium. The Astrophysical Journal. arXiv: 1303.1183v2
- April 25, 2013
- 08:08 AM
- 87 views
Two Water Worlds for the Price of One
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
Astronomers have found such a planetary system orbiting the star Kepler-62. This five-planet system has two worlds in the habitable zone – the distance from their star at which they receive enough light and warmth for liquid water to theoretically exist on their surfaces. Modeling by researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) suggests that both planets are water worlds, their surfaces completely covered by a global ocean with no land in sight.... Read more »
David A. Aguilar, & Christine Pulliam. (2013) Two Water Worlds for the Price of One. C f A Press Room. info:/
- April 24, 2013
- 05:49 AM
- 89 views
Seeing Stars
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
“WE’LL BE ABLE to see the beginning of the universe as we know it today,” says Charles Alcock, director of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) and professor of astronomy—imaging the radiation signatures from ancient galaxies billions of light years from his hilltop office on Garden Street, near the Radcliffe Quad. Addressing that same frontier, Abraham (Avi) Loeb, Baird professor of science and chair of the astronomy department, characterizes the researc........ Read more »
John S. Rosenberg. (2013) Seeing Stars. Harvard Magazine. info:/
- April 23, 2013
- 05:13 AM
- 93 views
Herschel links Jupiter’s water to comet impact
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
ESA’s Herschel space observatory has solved a long-standing mystery as to the origin of water in the upper atmosphere of Jupiter, finding conclusive evidence that it was delivered by the dramatic impact of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 in July 1994.
During the spectacular week-long collision, a string of 21 comet fragments pounded into the southern hemisphere of Jupiter, leaving dark scars in the planet’s atmosphere that persisted for several weeks.... Read more »
Markus Bauer. (2013) Herschel links Jupiter’s water to comet impact. ESA Herschel. info:/
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