SPACE
& SCIENCE NEWS: November 2006
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US Air Force to build unmanned space planes
(Nov 21, 2006)
The US Air Force is working on an unmanned space plane based on NASA's
X-37 program, which at one time was planned to be the basis for the
space shuttle's successor. If successful, the plane would be the first
spacecraft since the shuttle that would be capable of returning experiments
back to Earth for analysis.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Supernovae explode in rare double-whammy
(Nov 21, 2006)
A portrait of two supernovae that exploded just five months apart
in the same galaxy has been made by NASA's Swift telescope. The galaxy,
called NGC 1316, has now produced four supernovae in 26 years, the
highest rate ever measured. All four supernovae were of type Ia, which
are thought to occur when a stellar ember called a white dwarf collects
too much matter from a companion star, igniting a runaway nuclear
reaction that tears the white dwarf apart.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
In the beginning: scientists get ready
to hunt for God particle
(Nov 20, 2006)
At security posts dotted around the fields between the Jura mountains
and Lake Geneva scientists are installing hi-tech retina scans above
shafts descending 80m down – and leading to the largest scientific
instrument ever built. The machine is being bolted together inside
a tunnel 27km long, and when the power is thrown on next year it will
recreate conditions unknown for 14bn years since the extraordinary
fireball that marked the beginning of the universe.
Read
more. Source: Guardian |
Mars rover snaps panorama of yawning crater
(Nov 19, 2006)
A new panorama of Mars's
Victoria crater has been released in honour of the hardy rover Opportunity's
1000th sol, or Martian day, on the Red Planet. Meanwhile, Opportunity's
twin, Spirit, has started moving again after seven months of being
parked in the same spot. Opportunity, which celebrated its 1000th
sol on Wednesday, took the panorama on 5 October from a perch on the
Cape Verde promontory at the edge of the 800-metre-wide crater.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Wanted: man to land on killer asteroid
and gently nudge it from path to Earth
(Nov 17, 2006)
It is the stuff of nightmares and, until now, Hollywood thrillers.
A huge asteroid is on a catastrophic collision course with Earth and
mankind is poised to go the way of the dinosaurs. To save the day,
NASA now plans to go where only Bruce Willis has gone before. The
US space agency is drawing up plans to land an astronaut on an asteroid
hurtling through space at more than 30,000 mph.
Read
more. Source: Guardian |
Dark energy's presence felt in the early
universe
(Nov 17, 2006)
Dark
energy – the mysterious entity that is speeding up the expansion
of the universe – has been present for at least 9 billion years,
suggests a study of the most distant supernova explosions ever recorded.
It appears to have been a repulsive force even in these early times,
casting doubt on models that suggest it was once attractive.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Twenty new stars in the neighborhood
(Nov 16, 2006)
Astronomers have identified 20 new stellar systems in our local solar
neighborhood, including the twenty-third and twenty-fourth closest
stars to the Sun. When added to eight other systems announced
by this team and six by other groups since 2000, the known population
of the Milky Way galaxy within 33 light-years (10 parsecs) of Earth
has grown by 16 percent in just the past six years. [Image:
Artist's concept of newly-found binary red dwarf SCR 0630-7643 AB]
Read
more. Source: NOAO |
Unruly star may be swallowing embryonic
planets
(Nov 16, 2006)
A rare outburst from an infant star suggests the star may be swallowing
embryonic planets. About a dozen infant stars have been seen to suddenly
brighten, sometimes by more than a factor of 100, in events called
FUors and EXors, after the identifying letters of the stars first
seen to exhibit them. The FUors may last hundreds of years, while
the EXors can be as brief as a few months.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Space mirrors could create Earth-like
haven on Mars
(Nov 15, 2006)
Mirrors in orbit around Mars
could create Earth-like conditions on a small patch of the planet's
surface, according to a NASA-funded study. The extra sunlight would
provide warmth and solar power for human explorers, but some experts
say the mirrors may be hard to deploy. Scientists and science-fiction
authors have long dreamed of turning Mars into a more Earth-like planet
for future human colonists.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
Fleet of probes enlisted to contact silent
Mars orbiter
(Nov 14, 2006)
NASA may call on its fleet of Martian probes – including the
twin rovers – to come to the aid of its Mars
Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft, which has not called home in
more than a week. On 2 November, the 10-year-old MGS notified Earth
that it had had trouble adjusting the position of one of its two solar
panels. Then it went silent for two days. A very weak signal was detected
on 5 November but nothing has been heard from the spacecraft since.
Read
more. Source: New Scientist |
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