SPACE
& SCIENCE NEWS: January 2004
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Extraordinary mud-like substance close
to Spirit rover
(Jan 8, 2004)
The rock-strewn floor of Mars's Gusev Crater blossomed into sharp
view Tuesday with the release of the most detailed image ever obtained
from the planet, taken by the rover Spirit's panoramic camera in a
tantalizing foretaste of things to come. The composite image revealed
a mysterious substance right at the rover's feet, which scientists
described as a "strangely cohesive" clay-like material with alien
textures. Spirit exposed the material when it dragged its collapsed
air bags across the Martian surface to retract them after its Saturday
night bounce-down. "The way the surface has responded is bizarre,"
said lead rover scientist Steve Squyres of Cornell University, at
the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is managing the mission.
"I don't understand it. I don't know anybody on my team who understands
it... It looks like mud, but it can't be mud." The material was mashed
and clumped, like something moist and viscous, and was broken away
in pieces at some spots.
Read
more. Source: Washington Post |
Rare shark is second known giant squid
predator
(Jan 8, 2004)
A little known shark that lives in waters off Antarctica is only the
second creature known to science that hunts giant squid for food.
Sleeper sharks even appear to target the biggest species of large
squid – the colossal squid, which is about double the size of
the shark. The huge sperm
whale was previously the only animal thought to rely on giant
and colossal squid for food.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Space, the busy frontier: Mars rovers are
just the start
(Jan 8, 2004)
The year is just eight days old and already two widescreen dramas
with all-star casts have been acted out in the universal studios.
Mars has suddenly become crowded with two new visitors from Earth
on its surface – Britain's troubled Beagle 2 and Nasa's Spirit.
Plus, there's a third on the way and three orbiters in the skies overhead.
And, even before the latest assault on the red planet, a little American
spaceship called Stardust sped at 6km a second through the tail of
comet Wild-2, catching a tiny sample of the ice and dust streaming
from the celestial snowball several times the size of an ocean liner.
But by next Christmas, the Beagle 2, Spirit and Stardust missions
will seem to have been warm-up acts to a year of space spectaculars,
devised by scientists and engineers who have invested decades of their
lives to snatch a few hours, days or months of glory in the heavens.
Image: Cassini at Saturn.
Read
more. Source: Guardian |
Giant galaxy string defies models of how
universe evolved
(Jan 7, 2004)
Wide-field telescope observations of the remote and therefore early
Universe, looking back to a time when it was a fifth of its present
age (redshift = 2.38), have revealed an enormous string of galaxies
about 300 million light-years long. This new structure defies current
models of how the Universe evolved, which can't explain how a string
this big could have formed so early. The string is comparable in size
to the "Great Wall" of galaxies found in the nearby Universe by Dr.
John Huchra and Dr. Margaret Geller in 1989. This is the first time
astronomers have been able to map an area in the early Universe big
enough to reveal such a galaxy structure.
Read
more. Source: Goddard Space Flight Center |
Beagle 2 almost certainly lost
(Jan 7, 2004)
The Beagle 2 mission to Mars is almost certainly dead. A last-ditch
attempt to contact the probe by the lander's mothership turned up
nothing on Wednesday. The mothership, Europe's Mars Express orbiter,
made its first pass over Beagle 2's landing site at about 1215 GMT.
Scientists hoped the orbiter might hear signals from the lander, despite
the failure of NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter and the 76-metre Jodrell
Bank radio dish in the UK to hear any communications after Beagle
2's arrival at Mars on Christmas Day. But at about 1500 GMT, David
Southwood, head of science at the European Space Agency, announced
bad news at a press conference in Darmstadt, Germany. "We did not
get any content of a signal or indeed a signal from the surface of
Mars," he said. "I have to say this is a setback and it makes me feel
really very sad."
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Red planet, blue rocks
(Jan 7, 2004)
The first full-color snapshots of Mars have surpassed all expectations
and shown the so-called red planet actually boasts subtle shades of
blue and ochre, NASA scientists said Tuesday. The image, actually
a mosaic of 12 images taken by a high definition camera, is of such
high quality that NASA was able to zoom in on details of stones and
pebbles in the reddish brown sand in front of the robot. The 12-million-pixel
image is "three or four times better than any previous mission," said
Jim Bell, who is in charge of the "PanCam." The picture is so close
to reality that "it is approximately the color you would see" with
your eyes.
Read
more. Source: Mars Daily |
Spirit rover sends back color images
(Jan 6, 2004)
The robotic probe Spirit has sent back its first colour images of
Mars. The pictures of the dusty and rocky surface are the most detailed
ever obtained by a lander on the planet. US space agency scientists
report that the rover is in excellent health as they continue to prepare
it for its mission to explore Gusev Crater.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
D-day beckons for missing Beagle
(Jan 6, 2004)
The European Space Agency is to make a last-ditch attempt on Wednesday
to locate the missing Beagle 2 probe. Mission scientists are pinning
their hopes on Beagle's mothership, Mars Express, which will fly over
the presumed landing site at 1213 GMT. Numerous attempts to communicate
with the lander through the US satellite Mars Odyssey and radio telescopes
on Earth have all ended in failure. If Mars Express cannot find Beagle,
the mission will be classed as lost.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Space station springs a leak
(Jan 6, 2004)
The international space station is experiencing a slow, steady drop
in air pressure, and American and Russian flight controllers are investigating
possible causes of the leak. Mission Control notified astronaut Michael
Foale and cosmonaut Alexander Kaleri about the leak just before their
bedtime late Monday afternoon. "There's no action for you at this
time and no immediate concerns," Mission Control assured the two men.
"We'll continue to investigate this on the next shift and we may have
some actions for you tomorrow."
Read
more. Source: CNN |
Spain probes shower of fireballs
(Jan 6, 2004)
Spanish investigators are continuing their search for meteorite fragments
following spectacular sightings of fireballs in the sky on Sunday.
Police combed a number of areas on Monday – concentrating on
an area near Leon and Palencia – but have found nothing so far.
They received hundreds of calls at the weekend about loud explosions,
tremors and colourful displays in the sky. Experts say the cause may
have been a disintegrating meteoroid. However, they say the noise
and tremors may have been caused by it breaking the sound barrier
rather than crashing into the ground.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
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