annular eclipse 2012

this is my favourite photo so far of yesterday's annular solar eclipse.   it was taken aboard the international space station. 

(UPDATE: fairly sure the above image is a creation of digital art, similar to this one.   still gorgeous as art though... )

i also love this one.   isn't shanghai a crazy-looking city?!?

Photo Credit: ~mimo~

love of astronomy

spotted at a colleague's new place of employment (a university in europe):

astounding stories of super science

a few weeks ago, we held the inaugural "astounding stories of super science" symposium in hobart, tasmania, the australian island-state off the south east coast.  a nice venue for a meeting!

under the super science initiative, the australian government funded a one-off program sponsoring 100 young research fellows across three branches of science: space and astronomy, marine and climate, future industries.  as far as i can tell, this initiative is unique among countries around the world and i feel very lucky to take part!  

the research topics among the space science and astronomy super science fellows cover a wide range of topics, from observing the most distant galaxies in the universe, to measuring the shape of earth's surface.   because of this diversity, some of us supers decided it would be a good idea to get together, meet, share our research with each other, network, see a new place in the world, and generally enjoy our science and our fantastic titles! 

while organizing the symposium, we discovered an old science fiction magazine from the 1930s called astounding stories of super science, and our inspiration was found! 

twenty-three super science fellows from astronomy and space science attended the symposium, along with a smattering of other astronomers from around australia.  

Natasha Hurley-Walker discussing the murchison widefield array

the symposium was officially opened by His Excellency The Honourable Peter Underwood AC, Governor of Tasmania (yes, the full title is required), who invited us to and evening at the government house!

it was a fancy event and we queued to be properly introduced to the governor one by one as we entered the estate.

he graciously and enthusiastically talked to each of us in turn.  when i commented to him that i thoroughly enjoyed the title of super science fellow and had a cape to go with the persona, he smiled and replied that he was disappointed i didnt wear it for the occasion!   i said i thought it would have been a bit inappropriate for his soiree and he just laughed out loud without responding further.  damn, damn.  i missed an opportunity there! 

 one afternoon several of us walked to the peak of mount wellington to enjoy the view over hobart.

and, of course, a couple of us attended the conference dinner sporting full on, super regalia!  

good times ;)

the water's fine

looks like a mighty fine place for a swim! 

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cosmic pioneers

simple designs that capture key contributions of several cosmic pioneers.

designed by megan lee.

annular solar eclipse, 20th may 2012

if you are in asia or north america, check the map below to see if you can witness the annular solar eclipse this sunday, may 20th!

if you are along the path of visibility, make sure you use eye protection or some other clever trick for viewing the eclipse!!   since it won't be a total solar eclipse, the sun won't be entirely blocked by the moon and a small bright ring (or annulus, hence the name "annular eclipse") of sunlight will still be visible.

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if you are not along the path of visibility, there are several options to watch online: click HERE!

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enjoy!

colours of inspiration

a very interesting photo captured by the sartorialist on lafayette street in new york city. 

galaxy writer

ever feel the need to write something with galaxies?   now you can!  pop on over to galaxy writer where you can enjoy this project by steven bamford.   the galaxy images come from the galaxy zoo.

the working product is one of the web-based results of the chicago science hack day!

olympic evolution

getting excited about the summer olympics in london, set to kick off july 27th, 2012?  i certainly am, despite the fact that the logo and mascots are horribly designed and downright creepy. 

a nice visualization of all countries participating in the olympic games since 1896 comes from alicia korn:

the inner ring shows the flags of the 14 countries who competed in the first of the modern olympic games.  the outer ring shows all of the almost 200 countries that will participate this year!

When I heard the learn'd astronomer

When I heard the learn'd astronomer

by Walt Whitman

 

When I heard the learn'd astronomer, 

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me, 

When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, 

     and measure them, 

When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with 

     much applause in the lecture-room, 

How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick, 

Till rising and gliding out I wander'd off by myself, 

In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time, 

Look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.

A Zodiacal Skyscape: Jack Fusco

the photo above shows venus (the brightest), jupiter, the pleiades star cluster, and the glow of zodiacal light from february this year. 

jervis bay supermoon

i went camping over the weekend at jervis bay (pronounced "jar-vis"), about a three hour drive south of sydney.  i'm sure these beaches are much more crowded in the summer months, but they were wonderfully isolated for us!

after a day of bush walking, rock climbing along the shoreline, sea creature searching, bird watching, and eating, we sat on the white sands by the sea, listening to the waves, watching the day slip away.

  the sun set to our left.

 

the full ("super") moon rose to our right.  yes, it looked amazingly bright in the empty landscape, but its not really that much brighter than normal even though it was a perigee and therefore at the closest point to earth in it's not-quite-circular orbit.
 

an incredibly bright venus sank in the sky over the water.

lunar light reflected off the waves.   pools of moon.  

and all around our campsite were my favourite birds - kookaburras!! 

 

bright venus over the beach

i'm spending the weekend camping at jervis bay with some friends, a big moon at perigee and an impressively bright venus!

lectures by feynman

i never get tired of listening to physicist richard feynman talk about... pretty much anything.   here is part 1 of a seven part lecture series he gave at cornell.

enjoy and then watch all seven lectures!
 

hopscotch

because some days i feel so excited that i just want to keep hopping...!

via fresh photons

dirty space news: strange ring galaxy

today i'd like to add another entry to the infamous dirty space news series! 

last year, astronomers serendipitously discovered a strange ring galaxy that they called Auriga's Wheel.  these are the discovery images taken by the suburu telescope in hawaii: 

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you can read all about the system in a post by one of the astronomers behind this work at the cosmic horizons blog, but in short, they believe this structure is the result of two galaxies experiencing a head on collision!  

below is the colorful image of the system (left) and the sketch of what the authors think is happening in this intense galaxy collision.

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just this year, the authors have published a paper where they have attempted to model the coupling of the system. the image below reveals that we are lucky to be able to see the current structure, as it only achieves this particular position during a relatively short time of peak performance.

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luckily, the authors have produced a video of their stimulating simulation:




finally, hear astronomer richard lane talk all about this research and much more in his recent interview on the astropodcast!

rocket science vs. brain surgery

just saw this video from the comedic genius of mitchell and webb.





i must admit, i have pulled out the old "it's not exactly rocket science" line before, but i usually reserve it for other astronomers or when someone is being a bit of a jerk...

a farewell to the shuttles

many people have been touched by the sight of NASA's last remaining shuttles being carried to their final resting places.  here is a shot of the enterprise shuttle on april 27th, 2012, on its way to its new home at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in new york city. 

Photo Credit: Smithsonian Institute / Mark Avino and NASA

(see a photo of the cast of Star Trek and NASA's Enterprise in 1976: HERE!)

in case anyone wants to read a bit more about astronomy or give some books to others, i thought i would take this opportunity to share some i've come across recently.  long ago i shared an adult list of accessible science reading that includes carl sagan, richard feynman, and mike brown's recent book about pluto. 

here i suggest a couple books aimed at kids.

(1) "Starry Messenger" by Peter Sis has some lovely illustrations and is a nice story about galileo.

(2) "The Way the Universe Works" Dorling Kindersley authors: Robin Kerrod and Giles Sparrow is jam packed with lots of good info across most of astronomy. it's more encyclopedia-like and less story-like, but would be fun for kids of all ages to look through and read more as interest arises.

(3) "George's Secret Key to the Universe" by Stephen and (his daughter) Lucy Hawking.  did you know stephen hawking and his daughter write a kids adventure book?   i didnt until recently.  it is aimed at the 7-8+ age group, i think.  i have not read it, but i've heard it has pretty good ideas about the vastness of the universe as explored through the tale of a little kid.


hope those help anyone who knows curious kids who have been inspired by NASA's latest hurrah.  i'd be interested in hearing your suggestions for other adult or kids astronomy books in the comments!  

s'mores!

s'mores are an american campfire classic consisting of a roasted marshmallow placed between two graham crackers along with a large chunk of hershey chocolate.

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there is a definite technique to the process of making a s'more, but no real wrong method.  

finding a roasting stick of proper thickness and length on which to place your marshmallow is the first challenge.  you must be able to hold the marshmallow into the fire while standing at enough distance to not burn yourself!  bonus points for sticks that allow for multiple marshmallows roasting simultaneously. 

then you have to get good fire coverage of the marshmallow so that it doesnt burn too much on the outside before it melts through to the center, ensuring that the marshmallow doesnt slide right off the stick if it accidentally melts too much!

the final step involves sliding the perfectly roasted marshmallow between the chocolate-laden graham crackers without getting your fingers too sticky. then you have to wait just long enough that the chocolate melts from the heat of the marshmallow, but not too much!

finally, a wonderful few mouthfuls of yumminess await.

why am i mentioning all this?   because of a hilariously posh little indoor s'mores tray that i just saw on the internets.  if this was on the menu, i would order it immediately!

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rocket shadow

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