Burzycki.org

Here on Earth, gravity keeps us firmly on solid ground. But when astronauts set foot on some of the more exotic objects in the Solar System, just walking is going to be a struggle. In the microgravity of an asteroid, every step astronauts take will send him flying up in a long arc, and maybe out into space. It would be almost impossible to get around. Fortunately, MIT researchers have developed a tether system that could keep astronauts firmly anchored to the surface, but still let them walk around. (more…) No comments

Here's your nice space photo for the day. You might not be aware, but when Venus is at its closest and brightest, it actually looks like a crescent. Here's a photo captured two days ago by John Chumack. Got some money to burn? Astronomy.com is reporting that a large metal meteorite is up for sale. Cosmic Variance has some good advice to would-be graduate students. Here's how to survive and thrive that grueling educational period. Popular Mechanics is reporting on a new proposal from Boeing to put a gas station in space. It could make getting to the Moon much easier. I love this blog. Aerospace worker Damaris B. Sarria really really wants to be an astronaut. Her blog chronicles her journey. And look at this, NASA just opened up applications for more astronauts. You remember Wolf 359. Come on Star Trek geeks. It's actually a really close star that you can find in the night sky. Astroprof shows you how. No comments

Well this news can't be good. While human bodies tend to get weaker during long duration spaceflight, dangerous microbes just get feistier, returning to Earth even more infectious. A colony of Salmonella typhimurium, the main culprit in food poisoning, flew aboard the space shuttle Atlantis last year. They came back three times more likely to cause disease when compared to control bacteria on the ground. (more…) No comments

Black holes are already plenty bizarre. Imagine all the mass of several suns compressed down into an object of potentially infinitely small size. But what if you could find an object that's even stranger: a theoretical "naked singularity"; a black hole spinning so quickly that it lacks an event horizon. A point in space where the density is infinite, yet still visible from the outside. (more…) No comments

Science fiction writers have been imagining other worlds for years, and now they're going to get a little scientific help, thanks to NASA. The agency recently modeled a range of roughly Earth-sized planets, from the familiar to the exotic. Instead of thinking just about planets with Earthlike characteristics, they imagined every possible kind of planet that might exist around other worlds. This should keep the writers busy. (more…) No comments

First the photo. Winensky captured this great image of the Moon, using a 7-megapixel camera connected to a 3" reflector telescope. Click this link to see the whole collection, including a mosaic with several images stitched together. Did any Canadians catch last night's "Race to Mars". What did you think of it? Mark Mortimer was good enough to write a review here on Universe Today. Personally, I was so grateful for the careful and accurate presentation of science that I wasn't too concerned about it being a little boring. I also caught last night's premiere of Heroes. Now that was boring, and didn't have the science to back it up. Pamela Gay gets frustrated by television physics as well - she thinks our heroes should be getting a little hungrier. What do you use for your skywatching software? Astroprof reviews Stellarium. You can't go wrong with free. You've got to love the Space Review. Consistently great articles and opinion pieces about space exploration. Check out this one entitled, The rise and fall of great space powers. And here, editor Jeff Faust contemplates Mike Griffin's recent remarks. Over at Centauri Dreams, Larry Klaes looks at the rise of submillimetre astronomy. No comments

911 Calls – How to use the system properly: We often respond to 911 calls where a child has recently learned from school or another source how to summon a police officer or medical help by dialing 911. The children, not knowing any better, dials 911 to “test it out” or for a problem like mom [...]

No comments

911 Calls – How to use the system properly: We often respond to 911 calls where a child has recently learned from school or another source how to summon a police officer or medical help by dialing 911. The children, not knowing any better, dials 911 to “test it out” or for a problem like mom [...]

No comments