Space and Astronomy Megathread (MERGED)

[Mandalore464]

Edit : Deleted

 

[Destructus86]

eh, that's cool and all. But waaaayyy too much guess work involved in that article/study.

 

[redhawk23]

It's another freaking planet that we've been sending rovers to since the 70's. I guess I'm being pessimistic with my whole not being excited for doing what we've done before and being surprised about how people who've never expressed an interest in astronomy before becoming fair weather fans of NASA over this.

Want to get me to go insane? Find life or put a man there, another little robot is cool but not something to celebrate over if you're not an astronomy buff.

The rovers, particularly the latest one perform a variety of functions with several different tools providing us with far more new information than a person would for a bare fraction of the cost.

 

[:eek:]

Mars rover discovers mysterious 'blueberries'

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sc...rs-mysterious-blueberries-20120915-25ykn.html

 

[:eek:]

Warp Drive May Be More Feasible Than Thought, Scientists Say

http://www.space.com/17628-warp-drive-possible-interstellar-spaceflight.html

 

[moviedoors]

Warp Drive May Be More Feasible Than Thought, Scientists Say

http://www.space.com/17628-warp-drive-possible-interstellar-spaceflight.html

That is awesome. I hope these guys prove warping space is possible even on a tiny tiny scale. If they do that, they open the floodgates for funneling some actual money into these endeavors.

 

[Mike_D202]

Yeah I'm REALLY hoping they keep researching/testing this warp drive theory. I'd like to see some kind of space travel before I get too old and die (and I'm only 29).

 

[:eek:]

Strange Layer of Venus Surprisingly Cold

http://www.space.com/17850-venus-atmosphere-cold-layer.html

 

[matrix_ghost]

Strange Layer of Venus Surprisingly Cold

http://www.space.com/17850-venus-atmosphere-cold-layer.html

They should sent a probe again to the surface of Venus.
We got some color images of the surface but i think with today's state of technology we can more footage.

 

[:eek:]

Super-Earth Planet Likely Made of Diamond

http://www.space.com/18011-super-earth-planet-diamond-world.html

 

[:eek:]

Discovery! Earth-Size Alien Planet at Alpha Centauri Is Closest Ever Seen

http://www.livescience.com/24037-earth-size-alien-planet-alpha-centauri.html

 

[:eek:]

'Super-Earth' Alien Planet May Be Habitable for Life

http://www.space.com/18393-alien-planet-super-earth-habitable-hd-40307g.html

 

[Matt Mortem]

'Super-Earth' Alien Planet May Be Habitable for Life

http://www.space.com/18393-alien-planet-super-earth-habitable-hd-40307g.html

Interesting. Shame we won't really be able to check it out in depth for a long time.

 

[tzarinna]

I signed up to get notices from NASA when the Space Station will be visible in my area. So, like tomorrow morning at 4 am, ugh.

 

[Xeno]

Has The Universe Stopped Producing New Stars?

An international team of astronomers has published a new study suggesting that nearly all of the stars that will ever exist in our universe have in fact already been born.

Using three telescopes — the Subaru Telescope and the UK Infrared Telescope in Hawaii and the Very Large Telescope in Chile — the team put together the most robust survey of star formation yet.

They found that the rate of star formation has decreased to such an extent that only 5% more stars than those that exist today will be produced in the remaining lifespan of the Universe.

This is interesting. The universe may be going dark faster than scientists previously thought. It will still be many billions of years before the last star bursts into existence, however.

 

[Mike_D202]

Oh good, well we have a lot of billions of years left then.

 

[gohei_]

I signed up to get notices from NASA when the Space Station will be visible in my area. So, like tomorrow morning at 4 am, ugh.

I did the same. Have no idea when it's gonna happen though.

 

[Piper Maru]

I watched the Northern Lights yesterday, quite a show.

 

[Matt Mortem]

Has The Universe Stopped Producing New Stars?



This is interesting. The universe may be going dark faster than scientists previously thought. It will still be many billions of years before the last star bursts into existence, however.

Hmmm that's interesting. My understanding is Nebula's make stars, and some nebula's form after a star goes kaput, so I could reason that there could be more star producing nebula's created in the distant future. Trouble with Astronomy and Astrophysics is there are tons of theories and hunches, and there's a lot that's difficult to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt. That's still a really interesting study.

 

[:eek:]

NASA Outpost Beyond Moon Could Lead to Mars

http://www.livescience.com/24921-nasa-moon-outpost-mars.html

 

[:eek:]

It's Official! Water Ice Discovered on Mercury

http://www.space.com/18687-water-ice-messenger-discovery.html

 

[Bim]

Beautiful! http://www.theverge.com/2012/12/7/3739426/very-large-telescope-survey-telescope-vst-carina-nebula

Telescope with 268-megapixel camera snaps its first amazing picture of deep space

If you've ever wondered what a 268-megapixel camera is capable of producing when pointed at the outer reaches of space, the European Southern Observatory has you covered. The organization has released the first image taken with its aptly-named Very Large Telescope Survey Telescope (VST), which it claims is the largest such 'scope in the world for surveying our skies in visible light. The VST's primary strength is its incredible, almost unfathomable field of view — "twice as broad as the full Moon," by the ESO's calculations. Whereas other telescopes can often only capture small portions of the sky at any given time, this Very Large Telescope has been primed to photograph massive regions in quick fashion. Key to all of this is that 268-megapixel CCD camera, dubbed OmegaCAM, and developed as part of a concerted effort involving five research institutions.

The subject of the inaugural shot is the Carina Nebula, which as it turns out is a popular target for researchers to set a telescope's sights on. Yet despite our familiarity with the nebula, it still serves as a great subject when it comes to showcasing the VST's far-reaching imaging capabilities. According to the ESO, it will be used in the coming years to survey remote solar system bodies, the milky way, extragalactic planetary nebulae, and other cosmological interests.

Expand to see image (large)

Spoiler

 

[Piper Maru]

^

Outstanding! Set it as my wallpaper.

 

[Mike_D202]

My jaw dropped, can't wait to see more pics.

 

[jaqua99]

Yeah I'm REALLY hoping they keep researching/testing this warp drive theory. I'd like to see some kind of space travel before I get too old and die (and I'm only 29).

Exactly. Opens up wormholes. Its too important. The nearest star is 4.2 light years away. We are going to need other means of travel regarding deep space, aside from speed.

and regarding the topic from months ago. The space program needs to be worked on. Yeah, people are marveling over putting a probe on mars. But it is nothing new. Been doin it since the 70s. We put a man on the moon in the 60s. What advances have we made since then? Nothing. We arent close to leaving the solar system. The closest star is 4.2 light years away. The fast vehicle created by mankind were the helios probes which reached speed up to 150,000 miles per hours. Light travels at 186,000 miles per second. At that rate still, the nearest star is still a 4 year trip away. With the fastest craft now, it would take 70,000 years to reach alpha centauri. And that's just assuming this planet doesn't have intelligent life on it. For all we know, we may not find an empty, habital planet closer than 80 light years.

There is SO much work to be done. This needs to be understood by everyone. The space program needs to be constantly worked on. The sun will die in a few billion years, and we are going to need to leave. This isn't a bridge we cross when we get there. We have so much work to do. In terms of space travel, mankind hasn't made much progress. And to enter deep space, speed isn't an issue. We are going to have to find space-time warping methods of travel. We are a LONG way away from that. Unless we are being helped by other extraterrestrial life, like some government people claim, mankind is gunna runitself dry.

The Space program, and funding is the most important thing right now.
Having a strong military isn't going to mean **** when our sun leaves its main sequence and starts to swell into an unstable red giant

Hmmm that's interesting. My understanding is Nebula's make stars, and some nebula's form after a star goes kaput, so I could reason that there could be more star producing nebula's created in the distant future. Trouble with Astronomy and Astrophysics is there are tons of theories and hunches, and there's a lot that's difficult to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt. That's still a really interesting study.

Beautiful! http://www.theverge.com/2012/12/7/3739426/very-large-telescope-survey-telescope-vst-carina-nebula

Telescope with 268-megapixel camera snaps its first amazing picture of deep space

If you've ever wondered what a 268-megapixel camera is capable of producing when pointed at the outer reaches of space, the European Southern Observatory has you covered. The organization has released the first image taken with its aptly-named Very Large Telescope Survey Telescope (VST), which it claims is the largest such 'scope in the world for surveying our skies in visible light. The VST's primary strength is its incredible, almost unfathomable field of view — "twice as broad as the full Moon," by the ESO's calculations. Whereas other telescopes can often only capture small portions of the sky at any given time, this Very Large Telescope has been primed to photograph massive regions in quick fashion. Key to all of this is that 268-megapixel CCD camera, dubbed OmegaCAM, and developed as part of a concerted effort involving five research institutions.

The subject of the inaugural shot is the Carina Nebula, which as it turns out is a popular target for researchers to set a telescope's sights on. Yet despite our familiarity with the nebula, it still serves as a great subject when it comes to showcasing the VST's far-reaching imaging capabilities. According to the ESO, it will be used in the coming years to survey remote solar system bodies, the milky way, extragalactic planetary nebulae, and other cosmological interests.

Expand to see image (large)

Spoiler

beautiful.