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Solar System

Comet Conundrums Resist Bluffing
September 9, 2008
Scientists may claim they are learning about the origin of the solar system, but the fine print shows them scratching their heads.  This is apparent in a couple of discoveries about comets this week.     One Science Daily article is entitled, “Comets Throw Light On Solar System’s Beginnings.”  Scientists at the UK’s national synchrotron […]
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Physics

Modeling Just-So Stories for Earth History
September 8, 2008
Models are only simulations of reality.  In science, they have a long history of simplifying complex physical phenomena in an attempt to understand them.  Many times, empirical evidence can correct a model.  The model then becomes a more accurate simulation, and can even provide additional insights and make predictions.  Can modeling work for the unobservable, […]
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Amazing Facts

Cassini Survives Enceladus Geyser Plunge
August 12, 2008
The Cassini spacecraft has done it again – returned some of the most stunning outer planet images ever taken.  Zipping by at just 30 miles over the active surface of Enceladus, Cassini did a “skeet shoot” of high-res images achieving 7 meters per pixel in places – the highest resolution of any shot of a […]
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Bible and Theology

Life in Space: Follow the Hot Water, not the Hot Air
August 8, 2008
Planetary scientists have their eyes and instruments on regions of hot water, but speculating too dogmatically about life in space could get you in hot water yourself.     Simon Klatterhorn (geologist, U of Idaho) is mesmerized by the possibility of life at Europa, Jupiter’s ice-crusted oceanic moon.  In an interview by Science Daily, he […]
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Media

Phoenix Did NOT Find Mars Life
August 4, 2008
A media snafu has NASA spokespersons rushing to deny that life has been found on Mars, reported Space.com.  For example, Live Science reporter Leonard David said that the White House has been alerted to the potential for new information about life on Mars based on findings from the Phoenix Lander.  The apparent secrecy has teased […]
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Solar System

Ethane Lake Found on Titan
July 31, 2008
Liquid ethane has been detected in a lake near the south pole of Saturn’s moon Titan, reported JPL yesterday.  This confirms long-held suspicions that ethane, a byproduct of methane disruption by the solar wind, accumulates on the surface of the large atmosphere-shrouded moon.  A problem remains why there is so little of it.  Pre-Cassini predictions […]
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SETI

What’s SETI Got to Do With It?
July 31, 2008
The science news outlets are all posting a story from Space.com about how you can adopt a scientist.  Mark Showalter is an interesting guy – astronomer, scuba diver, amateur naturalist, award-winning photographer, and specialist in planetary rings.  But why was this story posted in the SETI column?     There doesn’t seem to be anything […]
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Solar System

Earth from Space Is a Special Place
July 21, 2008
The Deep Impact spacecraft, 31 million miles away, captured images of the moon circling the Earth, reported Space.com (for the sequence of images, click here).  “Making a video of Earth from so far away helps the search for other life-bearing planets in the universe by giving insights into how a distant, Earth-like alien world would […]
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Solar System

Watery Moon Upsets Conventional Wisdom
July 14, 2008
The moon looks pretty dry.  It may have maria (oceans) but the figurative term would not attract customers for beachfront property: its seas are made of hardened lava.  The moon’s “Ocean of storms” (Mare Procellarum) only gets rain in the form of solar wind and cosmic rays.  Still, could there be water molecules in this […]
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Amazing Facts

Love Your Planet
July 13, 2008
Modern astronomy and space travel have given humans the ability to view the earth from a distance and ponder its significance.  Some astronomers expected the earth to be ordinary-looking.  In many respects, however, astronomy is teaching us otherwise.  Clara Moskowitz, staff writer for Space.com began an article by saying, “Earth is one special planet.”   […]
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Solar System

First Mercury Research Papers in from MESSENGER
July 9, 2008
Science published a suite of papers analyzing data from the first MESSENGER spacecraft flyby of Mercury.1  The flyby last January was the first since Mariner 10 visited in the 1970s.  Mariner 10 had left many questions that are now being revisited.  Among the dozen papers and articles, here are three that discuss the most significant […]
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Solar System

Saturn Rings: F is for Flamboyant
July 2, 2008
Cassini provides additional evidence that Saturn's F-ring is young.
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Physics

Hopes Die for Enceladus Longevity
June 19, 2008
Ever since Enceladus, the little 300-mile-across moon of Saturn was found in 2005 to be erupting out its south pole, scientists have tried to explain how it could be possible.  They have looked high and low for an energy source to power the geysers of the little moon dubbed “Cold Faithful” for billions of years.  […]
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Origin of Life

Mars Life Hopes Suffer Double Disappointment
May 29, 2008
Just when the new Phoenix lander was flexing its arm and going to work (see JPL), hoping to determine the habitability of Mars, two papers came out expressing doubt it will find anything. Toxic salty stew:  Space.com summarized a new paper in Science1 that concluded Mars has way too much salt.  Although some earth organisms […]
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Solar System

The Phoenix Lands on Mars
May 26, 2008
The Phoenix Spacecraft successfully landed on Mars Sunday night.  Its mission is to look for water and the potential habitability of life in the northern latitudes of the red planet near its polar cap for the next 3 months.  This is the first soft landing on Mars in 32 years, and the third in history […]
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