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08 March 2015

The Carnival of Space #396 is up @ Links Through Space


The Carnival of Space #396
Photo credit: Jason Major

Welcome to Links Through Space, astronomy for everyone.
This is the blog of our Astronomy Club here in Kustavi, Finland
We write/post news about space related topics and we showcase our Astrophotos and Timelapses.
Our blog is a way for you to follow Space/Astronomy news and find new links through the Internet about Space and astronomy.
So here we have it, Ladies and Gentlemen!
Links Through Space is honored to declare the 396th Carnival of Space live from Kustavi Finland.
 OPEN!

First of lets head to Brian Wang's The Next Big Future for some serious science. For years now he has brought us great news about our future in space and on Earth, it is worth visiting the site.

Researchers in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS) at MIT describe a technique that analyzes data from NASA’s Kepler space observatory to determine the types of clouds on planets that orbit other stars, known as exoplanets. 


US rocket company SpaceX has performed its first dual-satellite mission.

Next stop is Pamela Hoffman's Every day Spacer site for a chance to join them in cool astronomy and travel adventures. Get together and enjoy the night sky. Very cool!

Give us three days and three nights – learning by day, implementing what you learned and observing at night. We’ll help you understand your scope, scopes in general and the night sky at that time of the year. You’ll go to your next star party excited and ready!

Universe Today takes us to some awesome space news. always a joy to read them.

NASA scientists have determined that a primitive ocean
on Mars held more water than Earth’s Arctic Ocean and
that the Red Planet has lost 87 percent of that water to space.
Water would have covered 20% of the globe
about 3 billion years ago. Credit: NASA/GSFC
It’s hard to believe it now looking at Mars’ dusty, dessicated landscape that it once possessed a vast ocean. A recent NASA study of the Red Planet using the world’s most powerful infrared telescopes clearly indicate a planet that sustained a body of water larger than the Earth’s Arctic Ocean.

Watch this great video on the Northern lights posted by Jason Major

On March 6, the Dawn spacecraft will ease into orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres. This is the visit to a dwarf planet and scientists are eager to see its surface in detail. But did you know that Ceres got its name from the ancient Roman goddess of agriculture and grain crops?

Next ride will take you to new technologies to help the satellite business and the future of mankind.

NASA's Towed Glider Air-Launch System will launch small payloads, like mini-satellites, into space more efficiently and at a fraction it currently costs, according to officials. In a spree of ingenuity, researchers have devised a launch system.

NASA's Dawn spacecraft has become the first mission to achieve orbit around a dwarf planet.


Next at the Meridiani Journal stand, you can have fun with a couple of fun and life changing articles. Enjoy!

Jupiter’s moon Europa, with its subsurface ocean, is considered by many to be the best place in the Solar System to search for extraterrestrial life. With NASA now committing itself to a new mission sometime in the 2020s, the focus is turning to what would be the best strategy for looking for any life which may be there.



The search for life elsewhere has long focused on what we are most familiar with on Earth – in other words, “life as we know it". Is it the case?

- ‘Life not as we know it': new research shows how exotic biology may be possible on Titan. Article by Paul Scott Anderson.

Don't forget the Solar Eclipse of March 20. It is a very cool event, Gadi Eidelheit @ Venus transit blog tells us how to safely view it.

A total Solar eclipse is coming and the entire Europe will see a partial eclipse. This article describes how to view the Solar eclipse safely.
- How to view a Solar eclipse safely, article by Gadi Eidelheit.


Ankor Wat, Cambodia
1st Full moon of the Year 2014
Credit: Stefan Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis
Here at Links Through Space, we introduce an earlier series of posts on Astronomy in Cambodia. Astronomy Club Toutatis from Finland visit Astronomy in Cambodia.
- Astronomy in Cambodia. 2014.

So here you have it! All the thrills and excitements of the Astronomy/Space community.
The Carnival of Space #396

If you run a space/astronomy related blog, and would like to get more awareness, participate in the Carnival of Space. Every week, a different webmaster or blogger hosts the carnival, showcasing articles written on the topic of space. It’s a great way to get to know the community, and to help your writing reach a wider audience. If you’d like to be a host for the carnival, please send email to carnivalofspace@gmail.com

24 November 2014

Philae lander: Cartoon strips

Here are a few cartoon strips that I found on the net about the Philae lander.

Philae is a robotic European Space Agency lander that accompanied the Rosetta spacecraft until its designated landing on Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko (67P), more than ten years after departing Earth. On 12 November 2014, the lander achieved the first-ever controlled touchdown on a comet nucleus. Its instruments obtained the first images from a comet's surface. Philae is tracked and operated from the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) at Darmstadt, Germany. Several of the instruments on Philae made the first in situ analysis of a comet sending back data that will be analysed to determine the composition of the surface.

The lander is named after the Philae obelisk bearing a bilingual inscription used along with the Rosetta Stone to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics (Source Wikipedia).

Please feel free to put in comments new Philae Lander cartoon strips if you find on the net. Would be nice!


Translation: Hei! You are not here to joke around! -But I m have such a good time!


Links:
Philae Lander WIKIPEDIA
ESA Philea Lander instruments



17 November 2014

CARNIVAL OF SPACE #380 HERE YOU HAVE IT @ LINKS THROUGH SPACE



This week's Carnival of Space is blown away in the most desert parts of the globe.
The Sahara desert in Morocco.
Among this week's extraordinary space stories, we will be featuring here at Links Through Space an article on our preparations for our Expedition into the world of Meteorites
and Astrophotography in the Moroccan Sahara desert.

Please have a read and enjoy the carnival of Space #380.

Here are this week's Carnival of Space #380 space stories.

It's time for a crew swap on the International Space Station, with astronauts Reid Wiseman, Alexander Gerst, and Max Suraev returning home on an almost-perfect landing.
http://space.io9.com/ - Mika Mckinnon

Jupiter’s Great Red Spot Gets Its Color From Sunlight, Study Suggests http://www.universetoday.com/ - Elizabeth Howell


Reprocessed view by Bjorn Jonsson of the Great Red Spot
taken by Voyager 1 in 1979 reveals an incredible wealth of detail.
NASA’s Next Exoplanet Hunter Moves Into Development

A Lighthouse at the Heart of the Milky Way: Hunting Cosmic Neutrinos
http://www.chandra.si.edu/blog/node/528 - Andrea Peterson


The IceCube Lab in March, 2012. Credit: Sven Lidstrom. IceCube/NSF
NASA X-ray Telescopes Find Black Hole May Be a Neutrino Factory
http://www.chandra.si.edu/blog/node/527 - Megan Watzke

Cosmic Castaways’ Orphaned Stars Lighting Up the Universe in New Numbers
http://cosmoquest.org/ - tinyintern (but who is tinyintern?)


Artist’s conception of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). Image Credit: MIT
TESS exoplanet-hunting space telescope ready for development
http://themeridianijournal.com/ - Paul Scott Anderson

After a 10-year, 4-billion mile journey to Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko (C-G for short), the Rosetta spacecraft (which is now orbiting the comet) will drop a probe about the size of a kitchen range from a height of 13 miles.

Astronomy Club Toutatis is preparing for an expedition in Moroccan Sahara desert.
The sequel of the astronomy trip of 2012 at Sahara Sky Observatory.
Links Through Space - Stefan Lamoureux

Sahara Sky Observatory and your host Fritz Gerd Koring.
credit: S. Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis.
This week's Carnival of Space #380 picture is a free wallpaper of a flying circus (used as blown out tent for carnival effect). Credit: S. Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis

So here you have it! All the thrills and excitements of the Astronomy/Space community.
The Carnival of Space #380

If you run a space/astronomy related blog, and would like to get more awareness, participate in the Carnival of Space. Every week, a different webmaster or blogger hosts the carnival, showcasing articles written on the topic of space. It’s a great way to get to know the community, and to help your writing reach a wider audience. If you’d like to be a host for the carnival, please send email to carnivalofspace@gmail.com

Preparations for our Astronomy Club Toutatis Expedition in the Moroccan Sahara desert


This article is featured in Carnival of Space #380
Read more HERE for full carnival.


Kustavi, Finland

Getting ready for the ultimate astronomy adventure in the Moroccan Sahara desert. 10 days in the desert, extreme dark skies, astrophotography and meteorite expeditions. Here at the club I have been preparing for 2 months for this journey, I have learned a lot and it is all part of the outreach program of our Astronomy Club Toutatis, Kustavi Finland.

At home or on the field, research is research.
Astronomy Club Toutatis study on Meteorites 2014.
credit: S. Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis.
In 2012 we visited this amazing hotel/Observatory in the middle of the desert called Sahara Sky Hotel. This Hotel/Observatory is a Moroccan fortress type hotel that has a roof top terrace filled with telescope piers and exceptional quality telescopes to observe with. The hotel in itself is remote and has a dining room, a bar and even a sauna to relax in. This year I decided to go back and expand my experience further.

Sahara Sky Observatory with your host Fritz Gerd Koring.
credit: S. Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis.
Our journey will start with stargazing while one of the most spectacular meteor shower is happening, the 2014 Geminids. This should get the show started. We have also many telescopes to choose from to photograph deep sky objects, observe our solar system planets or even have a look at the Sun. For my part I will be photographing some deep sky objects for sure.  

The other part of our journey will be to hunt for meteorites in the Saharan desert near the Algerian border. This part of the journey is new to me. In 2012 the first time we went to Sahara Sky Hotel, the owner challenged us to come back soon and this time go to those ”secret” valleys where no one has gone for decades to hunt for meteorites. I took him to his word, accepted his challenge and organized this expedition.  

But first I had to do my homework...

I started to read about meteorites on the net, everything to get me started. Magnet tests, meteorite composition, Strewn field map reading. It is pretty cool science when you dig it all out at its core (literally).

At the University of Turku, Finland, I had the opportunity to visit the Geology department to see a meteorite found in the archipelago of Finland in 1971 named Häverö meteorite. This was my first meteorite and it helped me to understand more about the appearance, weight and magnetism of meteorites.

Me holding Meteor Haverö and Senior Lecturer, Deputy Head of Department
Timo Kilpeläinen from the Geology department of Uni. of Turku, Finland.
credit: S.Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis.

I also read an article about a Finnish meteorite collector Jarkko Kettunen and his trip into the Sahara desert to search for meteorites. (Issue Tähdet ja Avaruus 6/2014 Saharan kutsu).
I loved his story so I decided to contact him to ask for advice and tips. He replied to my emails with great information about places and tips on meteorite hunting. He was also so kind to send me one of his meteorite pieces from his collection to help us in identifying and getting the feel of a meteorite. I appreciated his kindness very much.

Finnish Meteorite collector Jarkko Kettunen
and the Meteorite piece given to me by Jarkko.
credit: S. Lamoureux/KTY Toutatis.

Now that all our preparations are done, we just have to wait to fly over there and enjoy the trip. I am really looking forward to it. 
...
Please continue reading the next post of my Astronomy trip in the Sahara, Southern Morocco HERE
Follow the complete travel post series and enjoy the astronomy behind it.

This is all part of the public outreach of Astronomy Club Toutatis, Kustavi, Finland.

Here are useful links you want to visit.

Continue to  read earlier Series of posts on Astronomy Trip: The Sahara 2012. HERE.


12 November 2014

Comet 67P/Churyumov Gerasimenko is having visit for dinner. Philae is bringing pie and ice cream!


An artist's impression of the Rosetta orbiter deploying the Philae lander to comet 67P/Churyumov Gerasimenko
Credit: ESAC Carreau/ATG medialab

Follow the descent of the lander Philae onto comet  67P/Churyumov Gerasimenko LIVE from ESA's control room(s). 
Here is the link to LIVE BROADCAST of the event.


22 October 2014

Construct Pinhole Camera for viewing of 23.10.2014 Partial Solar Eclipse

Check this short video on how to build an easy Pinhole Camera Shoe box to look at the Partial Solar Eclipse of 23.10.2014.

This video is on Space.com. It is so easy and you need only household items to build it.
Get your family and friends together and have a great viewing of an rare event like this Partial Solar Eclipse.

WARNING: DON'T LOOK AT THE SUN DIRECTLY WITHOUT PROTECTION. PLEASE USE ADULT SUPERVISION.



Here is a link to know when the Partial Solar Eclipse is in your region.
You just have to enter your city and you will have all the information needed to check this cool event.

Partial Solar Eclipse: Where and when in your city.Click HERE
Here is an example for Edmonton, Canada: Click HERE

07 October 2014

Total Lunar Eclipse (8.10.2014). Where and When?


Have a look at the Total Lunar Eclipse occurring on Wednesday 8.10.2014.
Follow these links to see how to see it and where to see it.

Total Lunar Eclipse 08.10.2014. Credit: Universe Today.


Picture Below an INFOGRAPH about LUNAR ECLIPSES from our friend Guy-André from Astroshop.eu. It is simple to understand and gives many great info's about the Lunar Eclipses.

LINKS:
Check where and when? Lunar Eclipse 8.10.2014
How to Take Great Photos of the Lunar Eclipse. Article by Bob King on Universe Today.com
Total Lunar Eclipse: The Complete Starwatcher's Guide. Article  by Columnist Joe Rao on Space.com
- Astroshop.eu Your partner for Astronomy.

(Click on image to enlarge and read)
Infographic: understanding lunar eclipses




Picture of Total lunar Eclipse 08.10.2014. Credit: Universe Today.

27 September 2014

I love you MOM!


I wanted to put this post into my blog to remember when was this historic moment. So here it is. Please have a read.
Cheers.

I love you MOM! (Tipsa)


Link to MOM mission:

ISRO Indian Space Research Organisation.



22 September 2014

New NASA Spacecraft, MAVEN arrives at Mars.


An artist's concept of MAVEN in orbit around Mars
(Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center).
NASA’s MAVEN Spacecraft Arrives At Mars This Weekend
NASA’s latest Mars mission will arrive at the Red Planet this Sunday after travelling 442 million miles during its 10-month journey. The spacecraft will study Mars from orbit in the hopes of answering the question: If Mars once had an atmosphere capable of sustaining liquid water at its surface, what happened to it?

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution spacecraft, or MAVEN for short, is NASA’s latest mission to study the Red Planet. It’s the first spacecraft sent specifically to study upper atmosphere of Mars. It’s job is to examine the composition, structure and escape of gases in the upper atmosphere of Mars, and to study how it interacts with the solar wind.

“So far, so good with the performance of the spacecraft and payloads on the cruise to Mars,” according to MAVEN project manager David Mitchell, of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The team, the flight system, and all ground assets are ready for Mars orbit insertion.”



The spacecraft is expected to begin orbital insertion at approximately 9:50 p.m. EDT Sunday, when it will fire its engines for 33 minutes to manoeuvre the spacecraft into a 35-hour elliptical orbit around Mars. The spacecraft will later be moved into a 4.5-hour science orbit.

Links: Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN 

Have a look at NASA television for Maven arrival HERE.
Please have a read on Universe Today for more information on The NASA new spacecraft to Mars, MAVEN!

08 September 2014

Meteorite in Nicaraguan capital Managua leaves a big crater.


The meteorite landed in a wooded area near
the international airport and an air force base
Credit: BBC News 
BBC News report that a Meteorite has falling in the Nicaraguan capital Managua that has left a crater of 12 meters by 5 meters.

They say it would have something to do with Asteroid 2014RC that was passing close to Earth at the time the meteorite fell.

Here is the link to the story on BBC News:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-29106843

Link to picture of Asteroid 2014 RC by Marco Bruno on google +, check it out!
https://plus.google.com/113260597352108277456/posts/gbhrVEB466c


06 September 2014

Comet Jacques at our astronomy club in Kustavi, Finland


Gif Animation of Comet Jacques (C/2014 E2)
60 x 30 seconds shots (30 minutes)
Credit: Stefan Lamoureux / Astronomy Club Toutatis
Comet Jacques (C/2014 E2) is a long-period comet discovered by the Brazilian astronomers Cristóvão Jacques Lage de Faria, Eduardo Pimentel and João Ribeiro de Barros on the night of 13 March 2014.
This comet is the second comet discovered by the SONEAR Observatory. 
SONEAR Observatory stands for Southern Observatory for Near Earth Asteroids Research. This Observatory is located in Oliveira, Minas Gerais, Brazil. 

Comet Jacques (C/2014 E2)
Normal / Invert.
Credit: Stefan Lamoureux / Astronomy Club Toutatis


Comet Jacques is a popular target these days, so I decided to photograph it. At our Astronomy Club Toutatis last Thursday we decided to do 3 activities related to astronomy. First, one of my friends wanted to learn how to use a telescope, so I showed her the ropes and she began to use the telescope by her self. The Moon was a perfect target for her practice. Next activity was to look at different constellations with the naked eye
and familiarize ourselves with the night sky. Third activity was to shoot Comet Jacques in all it's glamour. So here we are, few pictures of Comet Jacques, a Gif Animation to see it move between the background Stars and an invert picture of the Comet to enhance some details of the Comet.

Comet Jacques (C/2014 E2)
04.09.2014 Kustavi, Finland
Credit: Stefan Lamoureux / Astronomy Club Toutatis


Here are some links on Comet Jacques (C/2014 E2) and the Observatory SONEAR.
WIKI: C/2014 E2 (Jacques).
Real Time information on Comet Jacuqes.  
SONEAR webpage.
SONEAR Facebook page.



31 August 2014

Solargraphy! The art of Pinhole camera and long exposure photography.


2 Pinhole camera set at the same time at 60 km a part.
Solargraphy is a technique in which a fixed pinhole camera is used to expose photographic paper for an extremely long amount of time (in this case half a year). It is most often used to show the path taken by the sun across the sky, I call these lines in this post arc lines.

The picture on the left is of two Pinhole cameras pictures with 6  months exposure each. From 21.12.2013-21.06.2014. I had installed 1 Pinhole camera facing South on my home balcony in Turku, Finland and the other was at our Astronomy club's 
balcony in Kustavi, Finland (also facing South). These two locations are 60 km from each other, but are almost on the same latitude (60"N).

What you see on the pictures are the "arc lines" of our Sun. These arc lines are the Sun moving in the sky on each day. The Low arc lines represent Winter time and the higher arc lines represents Summer. The arc line start ( Sun rising) at the left of the picture and finishes at the right of the picture (Sun setting) Everything in between are the other Seasons.
Every "arc line" is 1 day of the 6 months exposure. Sometimes the arc line is cut or scuffled, this means that it was a cloudy day and the Sky was covered.
Have you noticed the dark thick gap between the lower arc lines and the higher arc lines? That is Spring with all its turmoil and cloudy days up to Summer. 

This post is linked to my 2013 Solargraph pinhole camera project.
Have a look at the post: Astronomy club's 6 months Pinhole Solargraph revealed. Great experience!

Here are cool links on Pinhole Cameras/ Solargraphy that you can do at home by yourself or with family and friends.

EAAE (European Association for Astronomy Education) Sunrise Project.
Link to Simple explanation to do a soda can pinhole camera 
Justin Quinnell video on soda can pinhole camera. Check it out!

29 August 2014

The Godlee Observatory: Manchester Astronomy Society since 1903


Godlee Observatory
on the roof of the Sackville Building
Credit: Michael Oates
As part of a trip to Manchester to visit a friend, I decided to visit the Godlee Observatory on the roof of the Sackville Building at the University of Manchester, England. 

This time I came unannounced. I found on the Internet that The Manchester Astronomical Society weekly meeting was on a Thursday, I taught: "Well, I arrive on a Thursday so I'll be there!"

The Manchester Astronomical Society founded in 1903 aim to encourage the study of astronomy for both the newcomer and the seasoned observer alike. Every Thursdays they meet in the Godlee Observatory where they present lectures on astronomy. Weather permitting you may also observe using the telescopes until as late as people want to stay.

As soon as we step into the Observatory, This typical English lad named Anthony "Tony" Cross Astronomy Outreach spokesman extraordinaire, welcomed me and my travel companion. I have to say I visited many Observatories in the World, Tony is probably my favorite Astronomy Outreach spokesman of all time. His swag ways, his competent speech and the knowledge of his astronomy is unprecedented.

The Godlee Observatory speaking to Tony
Credit: Milla Mäkilä
 As for the Godlee Observatory it is a beauty in itself. Straight  on the roof of the Sackville Building in the center of the city  at the University of Manchester, the Dome sticks out as a  tower from an other era in the midst of a newer Manchester.

 This Observatory is peculiar in 3 ways:
 1. The Grubb Dublin double telescope.
 2. The Dome is made of Papier-mâché.
 3. The founder Francis Godlee. Generous in time and money  to the less fortunate ones.



Howard Grubb and the double telescope at Godlee Observatory.
Sir Howard Grubb (1844-1931) was an optical designer from Dublin, Ireland. He was head of a family firm that made large optical telescopes, telescope drive controls and other optical instruments.
The Godlee double telescopes (made by Grubb of Dublin), which have been in regular use since 1903 are formed by an 8" refractor and a 12" Newtonian reflector.
The refractor is used mostly to view the moon and brighter objects, including the Sun projected as a 15" disk onto a screen fastened to the tailpiece. A cable link to a webcam attached to the telescope in the observatory on the floor above allows members to view the moon and brighter planets, collectively, via the digital projector.

What comes to mind when you think about Manchester. Football? Oasis? No! The weather!
The Dome of the Godlee Observatory was constructed with an unusual material. Papier-Mâché!
Papier-mâché is a sturdy material for construction, It seems to be a good idea to build a "lite" dome in this material. But the only problem is the rainy weather of the UK. It seems also that it has lasted for half a century. Since the 1950's renovations have been made to include fiberglass on the exterior of the dome.

8" Refractor Grubb Dublin @ Godlee Observatory
Manchester, England
Credit: Milla Mäkilä
The Observatory in 1903 was presented to the city of Manchester by Francis Godlee. A wealthy and generous man who love to give his time and money for the less fortunate. The Manchester cotton trade at this time was thriving, and the firm of Simpson & Godlee, cotton manufacturers and calico printers, steadily expanded. Its offices and warehouses moved to the centre of Manchester, and further mills were acquired at Bolton and at Bury. By the turn of the century, there was a workforce of some 1500 people. The firm's prosperity owed much to Francis Godlee, not only to his good business sense, but also to the sympathetic consideration he showed for his employees. He became chairman of the firm in 1914 on the death of William Simpson and continued to run the business through the difficult war years and after the war until a few years before he died.

Before I leave you with links to the Manchester Astronomical Society,  Godlee Observatory, the Grubb Dublin Telescope, Howard Grubb and Francis Godlee, I want to thank President Anthony Jennings, Marion and the Manchester Astronomical Society for their hospitality.  A special Thank to Kevin Kilburn to include Me as a speaker for their Power point presentation on our Sun. Thank you also for featuring my Gif animation of the green flash of our setting Sun I filmed last March in Tenerife, Canaria Islands. A huge Thank you  to Tony Cross for the gran tour of the Godlee Observatory. I know now where the Sun rises and where the Sun sets. Cheers!

Manchester Astronomical Society
Facebook page of the Manchester Astronomical Society

About Astronomy Club Toutatis, Kustavi, Finland

12 August 2014

Star Talk Radio with Neil DeGrasse Tyson anyone?


A shout to you who often listen to talk radio and is into astronomy.
Star Talk with Neil DeGrasse Tyson is a 24/7 podcast based radio all related to Astronomy.

Have a listen to these coherent, modern  and funny shows with special guess.
Listen to Star Talk Radio HERE 

You can also find Star Talk Radio in TuneIn for your mobile phone or tablet IOS or Android.