China’s Shenzhou-9 and Crew Return to Earth

China’s Shenzhou-9 spacecraft and its three-member crew has returned to Earth with a jarring, rolling ground landing in Inner Mongolia at 10:05 local time (02:05 GMT). While in space, the crew successfully carried out their 13-day mission, accomplishing a manual docking with the Tiangong-1 laboratory module and performing a series of experiments. The crew included the first Chinese woman in space, 33-year-old female fighter pilot Liu Yang, along with commander Jing Haipeng, and Liu Wang.

Read more: Article by Nancy Atkinson on Universe Today

Virtual Star Parties every Sunday on Google +!

You want to see the night sky and chat about it on the computer. Every Sunday on Google + Frasier Cain and many More host a hang out where you can listen and participate.

Some people have there "web cam" hanging out of there telescope to show a specific object in the night sky and have a topic. The hang out place is for people to interact, participate and listen to topics related to space and to be able to see it through a telescope (or many telescopes).

Have a look at this "mini" documentary on the hang out phenomena on Google + and join the fun!




You can have more information on the hang outs and the schedules here on Google + HERE

Mars! You poke my Curiosity.

Mars Science Laboratory (MSL, or Curiosity) is a Mars rover launched by Nasa on November 26, 2011. Currently en route to the planet, it is scheduled to land in Gale Crater at about 05:31 UTC on August 6, 2012. The rover's objectives include searching for past or present life, studying the Martian climate, studying Martian geology, and collecting data for a future manned mission to Mars.

The project is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of California Institute of Technology. When MSL launched, the program's director was Doug McCuistion of NASA's Planetary Science Division.

Here is a great video from Nasa on the landing of the rover. This last leg of this epic journey into interplanetary exploration within our solar system shows how the project is simply over futuristic.






There are 42 days left before the Mars rover landing. On August 6th the small car size rover willl be expected to land in Gale Crater on the surface of Mars to look for evidence of life.

Here are the goals and objectives of the Mars Science Laboratory project.
The MSL (Mars Science Laboratory) mission has four scientific goals:

1. Determine whether Mars could ever have supported life
2. Study the climate of Mars
3. Study the geology of Mars
4. Plan for a human mission to Mars

To contribute to these goals, MSL has six main scientific objectives:

1. Determine the mineralogical composition of the Martian surface and near-surface geological materials.
2. Attempt to detect chemical building blocks of life (biosignatures).
3. Interpret the processes that have formed and modified rocks and soils.
4. Assess long-timescale (i.e., 4-billion-year) Martian atmospheric evolution processes.
5. Determine present state, distribution, and cycling of water and carbon dioxide.
6. Characterize the broad spectrum of surface radiation, including galactic radiation, cosmic radiation, solar proton events and secondary neutrons.

As part of its exploration, it is measuring the radiation exposure in the interior of the spacecraft as it travels to Mars, important data for a future manned mission.

READ more on Wikipedia: Mars Science Laboratory

Shenzhou 9 Launches and Docks with Chinese Spacelab

A Chinese Long March 2F rocket blasted off carrying the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft and three Taikonauts including 33-year-old female fighter pilot Liu Yang, China’s first woman sent to orbit.
Read more: http://www.universetoday.com/95854/shenzhou-9-launches-with-first-chinese-woman/#ixzz1yGzvN3lt

The crew of the Chinese Shenzhou-9 spacecraft docked today with the Tiangong-1 mini-spacelab and the three taikonauts entered the small spacelab for the first time.
Read more: http://www.universetoday.com/#ixzz1yGzfoiQB

Transit of Venus 2012: The Conclusion

Transit of Venus 2012
Credit: Janne Leppäkoski

12.06.2012 Kustavi Finland                                                           

The Transit of Venus 2012 comes to an end for our Astronomy Club Toutatis. We took lots of pictures of many stages of the event including phases and whereabouts of the Planet. Starting with Venus slowly going towards the Sun and achieving its phases to the Transit of our Sun's disk. we took the time to follow Venus for almost half a year until this June, we hope to follow it again as it starts it's phases on the other side of the Sun. As a morning star I guess.

Here at the bottom you can see our latest short videos of the view from our telescope. On the first video, you can see the Sunspots in the middle of the Sun just before they sink into the clouds. The second video is also the Transit of Venus from our telescope 8" reflector.
This shot is with a canon 550D prime focus through a X2 Barlow to the scope. The last video is Us setting the camp with the telescope and the tent. :) 

Hope you have enjoyed the experience of Venus and it's transit as much as we did. We want to thank everybody involved in this fabulous journey through Space. Thank you!

Transit of Venus with Sunspots 1493 and 1496

Transit of Venus in clouds

Setting up the camp

Transit of venus 2012: The return home

Amazing double rainbow on the way back home
Click to enlarge Credit: S. Lamoureux

08.06.2012
Middle of Finland, Finland

On the way back home, we saw an amazing double rainbow. At first it stood out only as a red ray of light, as we called it a redbow. Then the colors slowly came about.

This picture was taken with a fisheye lens 8mm.

The return home took 18 hours. Many great hours in a cramp car and radio music. Thanks to Sam, Uolevi and Nina to be part of this unbelievable journey.

Click HERE to read the 15th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

You can see our Astrophotos of the Transit of Venus HERE 

Transit of Venus 2012: New Astrophotos!

Transit of venus 06.06.2012  Enontekiö, Finland
Credit: KTY Toutatis ry.

Enontekiö, Finnish Lapppland
Transit of Venus 2012

Here is the last picture of the 3 pictures I manage to capture of the transit. Really starting to glow out of the clouds, the Sun shone direcly to the lens with no Sun filter. This was an amazing moment, just above the cloud blanket. Venus was brillant, I mean pitch black!

HERE are more Astrophotos of our Astronomy Club.

Click HERE to read the 14th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

Transit of venus 2012: Astrophotos of the Transit in Enontekiö, Finland

Transit of venus seen from Enontekiö, Finland
06.06.2012 00h21UT / Credit: KTY Toutatis

Here is an other picture of the Transit. Real sharp. Good shot!

This picture was taken at 00h21 UT. You can clearly see the black dot and the Sun.

Picture specs:
Canon EOS 550D
f/0
Exposure: 1.3 sec.
ISO 100

Click HERE to read the 13th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

Enjoy!

Transit of venus 2012: First Astrophotos from Transit of Venus Enontekiö, Finland

Transit of Venus 2012 / Enontekiö, Finland

Enontekiö, Lappland, Finland
Transit of Venus 2012

First contact!
Here is our first picture of the transit of Venus. This picture was taken with SkyWatcher 200mm/HEQ5/x2 Barlow/Canon 550D prime focus

We really had to chase the Sun around in the telescope. The picture is taken with guiding system (Synscan).

Enjoy the picture and hop outside for an early stroll down the river and feast yourself on this fabulous sight.

Click HERE to read the 12th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

TRANSIT of VENUS 2012! 1 day 19 min 10 sec to GO!

View the Transit of venus 2012 simulation from your location.
Watch how the Transit unfold itself on the disk of the Sun.
Show SUNAEON simlations to your friends, family, neighbours and enjoy the transit of venus 2012.

Click HERE to read the 11th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

TRANSIT of VENUS 2012! We arrived at Enontekiö

The happy bunch

04.06.2012 Enontekiö, Finland

We arrived in Lappland in the village of Hetta in the early hours of the morning. The Sun had only set for an hour before it rose again and started our day at 03h40 in the morning. It was the shortest night I have ever experience.

We slept into the next day and woke up to a fabulous landscape. The "Midnight" Sun was shining and the village was buzzling with people.

After a good breakfast, we headed to our observation place and looked for the best possible place for the seeing of the Transit and a good place to set camp and fishing grounds.

So here we are now sipping tea and wondering about tomorrow...
The Transit of Venus 2012 has begun!

Click HERE to read the 10th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

Enontekiö, Finland

VENUS 2012! From our Astronomy Club here in Kustavi, Finland

Phases of Venus. Fortnight 05-19.05.2012
credit: KTY Toutatis Astronomy Club
Click to Enlarge

Kustavi, Finland
On this picture you can see 3 different phases of Venus throughout the month of May 2012.
These shots of Venus were taken with a SkyWatcher 8" Reflector on a HEQ5 mount. The Synscan GO TO, Camera Canon 550D + Positive projection T-adapter. 4mm eyepiece and Barlow x2.
All in all we stood at x500 of magnification.

The seeing is not the sharpest, but you can still see the spiky crescent ends at each phases.
On this photo you can clearly see the planet getting bigger (or closer to us). Theses pictures of Venus are all the same size with the telescope configuration.

The bluish colors of the planet is due to the set up on my camera with "white balance" set to Tungsten (+/-3200K). Also you can notice that the last crescent of Venus of the picture has a bluish background, this is due to the brightness of the dawn at this period of the year.

Here are the Specs for this image:
SkyWatcher 8" Reflector / HEQ5
Barlow lens x2 (negative projection)
T-ring / T adapter for positive projection / 4mm eyepiece
Canon EOS 550D
Exposure: 1/25 to 1/4 sec.
ISO 800

Not many days to the last Transit of Venus of our time. Be prepared and get your Venus-glasses (Sun filters) on time and Enjoy the spectacle.
Here is a good Photo guide that shows you in pictures how to protect your eyes and your equipment from the Sun.

Click HERE to read the 9th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland

HERE on SPACE.com


 

VENUS 2012! It's phases, transit, whereabouts PART 5

Computer simulation of Phases of Venus.
20.05.2012   Phase: 0.085  Diameter: 51.0"
Click on image to enlarge

This week end - May 20, 2012

As the Annular Solar eclipse hit between Asia and America, Those of us who can not see the eclipse are still having eyes on Venus.

On May 20 18h35 UT, Venus will be at Phase 0.085, standing below 10% of illumination. This wide crescent viewed in telescopic view is impressive. We at the Astronomy club here in Finland we have followed Venus throughout the Spring time up to here. It is fascinating to see the changes in Size and in Shape of the Planet viewed by us here on Earth.

Here is the link to see the Computer simulation of the Phases of Venus in any given day of the year.

In a personal note I watch Venus through our mobile Skywatcher 200p/ HEQ 5/ Canon 550D and different kind of eyepieces. Maximum of Magnitude 500x (BarlowX2-4mm eyepiece-T ring Canon 550D). For those of you who has a telescope, now is the time to stare at the most brightest spot in the sky. Before Sunset look to the west and search for the first "star" to appear. This will be Venus. Set your finder scope manually on Venus and work your way up to capture beautiful moments in time. 
Here is the most recent picture of Venus I took on the night of May 15 2012. The disk was a thin crescent shape of +/-13% of illumination with a diameter of 47,4". Picture bellow.

Telescopic view Mag 500x canon 550D
15.05.2012    Phase: 0.131   Diameter 47.4"

credit: KTY Toutatis Astronomy Club
Click on image to enlarge

Annular Solar eclipses, Planet phases and transits, Comets, Meteor showers or Galaxy viewed through a telescope. The Universe is moving and buzzing around us. The possibilities are infinite (in our personal life-span).

Click HERE to read the 8th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland.

Enjoy the night sky. Clear skies!

Solar eclipse of May 20, 2012

Annular Solar Eclipse at High Resolution
Credit & Copyright: Stefan Seip

An annular solar eclipse will take place on May 20, 2012 (May 21, 2012 for local time in Eastern Hemisphere), with a magnitude of 0.9439. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partially obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun, causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring), blocking most of the Sun's light.

The annular phase will be visible from the Chinese coast, northern Taiwan, the south of Japan, and the western part of the United States and Canada. Guangzhou, Taipei, Tokyo and Albuquerque will be on the central path. Its maximum will occur in the North Pacific, south of the Aleutian islands for 5 min and 46.3 s, and finish in the western United States.

So Please people have your telescopes, cameras and your filters ready and take as much pictures as possible. Us at the Astronomy Club in Southern Finland there is no chance to see it, but with your photos and pictures of the Annular Solar Eclipse, we will be part of it as well.
Good luck and clear skies!

Wikipedia: Solar eclipse of May 20, 2012
Global circumstances and animation HERE

TRANSIT of VENUS 2012! Less than 25 days to go

Transit of Venus in 2004

The last Transit of Venus visible to people of our time will occur  in less than 25 days. This spectacular event will be followed by many around the globe, Are you one of them? And do you want to get involved?

Here is a video-teaser of a group of people doing a documentary on "our last transit of Venus". The film project is led by Lightcurve Films (lightcurvefilms.com), and currently counts with the collaboration of Anton Stoelwinder Produkties (antonstoelwinder.nl), Interstellar Studios (interstellarstudios.com), Windmill Film (windmillfilm.com) and Museum Boerhaave in Leiden, the Netherlands (museumboerhaave.nl).

As Steven Van Roode explains it "We are preparing a documentary film project around the event and on this channel you can find related videos. The film will highlight three groups of people: scientists who will observe the Transit to study Venus and exoplanets, amateurs and students who will redo the experiment of determining the size of the Solar System and professionnals and/or amateurs historians with the intention to observe the Transit with 18th and 19th century instruments." 


our last Transit of Venus (teaser) from Lightcurve Films on Vimeo.

We are looking for further film production partners across the world and people from the three groups described above. Feel free to contact us about the project if you are interested to collaborate (tov2012@lightcurvefilms.com).
More information on the Transit of Venus 2012 and links to many other websites can be found on transitofvenus.nl

Click HERE to read the 7th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland. 
 

The transit of Venus project is part of the Astronomers without Borders programme

astronomerswithoutborders.org

Carnival of Space #248 @ DEAR ASTRONOMER Check it out!

Curious about Space? Want to read articles on Astronomy?

Here is the Carnival of Space #248.

A collection of Space related topics of the week to read and enjoy.

Ray Sanders at DEAR ASTRONOMER is our host for the Carnival of Space 248.

Here is your tickets!

ENTER

If you’re interested in looking back on the Carnival of Space, here’s the complete list that we have on UT or the archive to all the past Carnivals of Space. If you’ve got a space-related blog, you should really join the Carnival. Just email an entry to carnivalofspace@gmail.com, and the next host will link to it. It will help get awareness out there about your writing, help you meet others in the space community – and community is what blogging is all about. And if you really want to help out, sign up to be a host. Send and email to the above address. 

VENUS 2012! It's phases, transit, whereabouts PART 4

2 different phases of Venus
credit: KTY Toutatis Astronomy Club
(Click on picture to enlarge)

Venus, the second closest Planet to our Sun. The closest Planet to Earth, our twin sister and Morning Star as well as Evening Star. More Astrophotos of Phases of Venus HERE

Over the last months, At the Astronomy Club we have observe Venus to catch it's phases before the big day of the Transit on June 5-6.2012. The picture on the left shows 2 phases of Venus. We have the smaller "half-dot" that is Venus at 65% of full and the bigger crescent is Venus at 26% of full. These two observations of Venus are taken 2 months apart. The "half-dot" is taken on the 26 of February 2012 and the bigger crescent is taken on May 1 2012. You can clearly see the difference in the phases.
It was very nice to observe the changes in the phases of venus on it's own. You really get the feeling that it is true, and not only in the books.
 
The Phases of Venus result from the planet's orbit around the Sun inside the Earth's orbit giving the telescopic observer a sequence of progressive lighting similar in appearance to the moon's phases.
It presents a full image when it is on the opposite side of the Sun. It shows a quarter phase when it is at its maximum elongation from the Sun.
Venus presents a thin crescent in telescopic views as it comes around to the near side between the Earth and the Sun and presents its new phase when it is between the Earth and the Sun. Since the planet has an atmosphere it can be seen at new in a telescope by the halo of light refracted around the planet.

Crescent of Venus / phase 0.227
credit: KTY Toutatis Astronomy Club
(Click image to enlarge)

The full cycle from new to full to new again takes 584 days (the time it takes Venus to overtake the Earth in its orbit). The planet also changes in apparent size from 9.9 arc seconds at full (superior conjunction) up to a maximum of 68 arc seconds at new (inferior conjunction). Venus reaches its greatest brilliancy (magnitude –4.5) when it is an intermediate crescent shape at the point in its orbit when it is 68 million kilometers away from the Earth (a combination of its closeness and the fact that it is 28% illuminated).

Until the day of the Transit, that is in 31/32 days. We have the chance to picture Venus in it's thin crescent phase and see it grow in size.

Click HERE to read the 6th post of our journey through astronomy in Enontekiö, Lappland. 

Wikipedia: Phases of venus
More Astrophotos of Phases of Venus HERE 

Carnival of Space #246 Here at LINKS THROUGH SPACE

Links Through Space

Carnival of Space #246

Welcome to Links Through Space, astronomy for everyone.

This is the blog of our Astronomy Club here in Kustavi, Finland

We write news about space related topics and we showcase our Astrophotographies and Timelapses.

Our blog is a way for you to 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 246th Carnival of Space live from Kustavi Finland.

 OPEN!

Earth Day rhyms with birthday

Ron Cobb's 1969 Ecology Symbol

Earth Day is a day early each year on which events are held worldwide to increase awareness and appreciation of the Earth's natural environment. Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network, and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year. In 2009, the United Nations designated April 22 International Mother Earth Day. Earth Day is planned for April 22 in all years at least through 2015.


The Earth Day name
According to Nelson, the moniker "Earth Day" was "an obvious and logical name" suggested by "a number of people" in the fall of 1969, including, he writes, both "a friend of mine who had been in the field of public relations" and "a New York advertising executive," Julian Koenig. Koenig, who had been on Nelson's organizing committee in 1969, has said that the idea came to him by the coincidence of his birthday with the day selected, April 22; "Earth Day" rhyming with "birthday," the connection seemed natural so the name stuck.

Please read further on Wikipedia: "Earth Day" HERE 

Paths of the Sun around the world: Project Solargraphy

Paths of the Sun with Pin Hole Camera  credit: Sakari Ekko

The Global Project Of Solargraphy, Art and Science combine! 

As I was reading Ian Musgrave Astroblog, he was talking about a project with pinhole cameras that he recently joined and made for him self the cameras and all. I became curious!

The Global Project of Solargraphy purpose is to find out how different the paths of the Sun are around the world. The project manager Tarja Trygg from Finland invites anyone to take part in this mapping of the Sun seen from different latitudes.

The goal of the project is to create pinhole cameras "solargraphs" all over the world and build a World Map of Solargraphs. It is not possible to do this alone. That is why the help of  Volunteers around the world has been very important. 

They have placed pinhole cameras at various latitudes in various countries. The only way to make this art of pinhole photography project to work is with collaboration. Experience the magic of Solargraphs - Photographs Like You have Never Seen. You can have more details of how to make a pinhole camera and details on installation, exposures periods and after exposing HERE.

HERE is the link to Tarja Trygg's website for SolargraphyGallery

For my part I will start to make my own Pinehole Camera and send my data to tarja for her real cool project!

Clear skies Everybody!