Sometimes paying my taxes doesn't piss me off quite as much as some other times:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17917102

A new billion-euro EU mission to Jupiter's moons, due to launch in 2022, and intended to look for plenty of stuff that might shed on light on the possibility of life on the said moons. Interesting, to put it mildly.

Space is something I need more of. where I live is a piece of shit. thanks for reminding me.

Well you can always get in the Tardis and go somewhere else.

The Opportunity rover is back in action on Mars after "hibernating" through the winter! Such a brilliant piece of engineering. Originally planned for a 90-day mission back in 2004, it's still going 8 years later.

Also, the next launch of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket is this Saturday at 8:55 am GMT, with a live feed on spacex.com. Go private space! This will be a test flight to prove that their can dock their Dragon capsule to the International Space Station; an important step on their way to getting a contract from NASA for resupplying the ISS. It will also be the first time a spacecraft from a commercial company visits the ISS. (Mind you, the actual docking to the station is not scheduled until 3 days after the launch, as I understand it).

If anyone is watching the SpaceX launch, come by the MA chatroom; we'll nerd out and such.

EDIT: Well, never mind. The launch was aborted at ignition. I think they said high pressure was detected in one of the chambers. It seems like the launch needs very precise timing too, apparently they had a very narrow launch window, and they just missed it. The next launch opportunity is Tuesday at 0744 GMT.

EDIT 2: "SpaceX reports the problem triggering the abort was a high chamber pressure reading on Engine No. 5 of the first stage. Aborts are common in Falcon 9 countdowns when computers recognize a limit out of a predefined range. Sometimes the fix is as simple as adjusting the acceptable range in the computer, but with a one-second launch window this morning, there will no opportunity to resolve the issue today." One-second launch window, holy shit.

Where are Voyagers 1 & 2 now?

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyag ... prise.html




http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyag ... Label.html

Voyager 1 & 2 - mission status 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLN7BU25EB0

New SpaceX attempt early tomorrow.

"SpaceX is pressing ahead with another launch attempt early Tuesday, aiming for liftoff at 3:44 a.m. EDT (0744 GMT) after engineers made repairs to an engine on the Falcon 9 rocket over the weekend. "

Heres hoping for a trouble free launch. Still can't believe most people have no idea this is even happening

The launch went off perfectly this time, the Dragon capsule is in orbit! They have a bunch of tests left to perform today, to demonstrate they'll be able to approach the ISS safely. The actual docking will then take place on Friday. According to current schedule, the ISS is supposed to grab unto Dragon with its arm at 8:06 am EDT (12:06 pm GMT) on Friday.

Awesome news, too bad they're company has a crap name.

I'm all for Orbital Sciences Corp, you just know a company with a name like that is going to be building the future human interstellar empire's warships.

SpaceX's Dragon capsule successfully docked with the ISS today! It is the first spacecraft from a private company to do so, hopefully heralding a future of more affordable spaceflight.
http://www.space.com/15881-spacex-capsu ... light.html

Transit of Venus will occur tomorrow, and one is not predicted to occur again until 2117, so this is a once in a lifetime chance.

Info here: http://venustransit.nasa.gov/transitofvenus/

Anyone else check out Venus?

Clouded out here in Ohio. I'm part of the local astronomical society and we had a pretty good turn out, despite the weather. We gave out solar glasses anyway, so people can use them for the eclipse in 5 years.

Cool pic of Venus silhouetted against the Sun's corona:

Twas too cloudy in my are to see the actual transit, but some of the pictures are amazing.

It would be really cool, if we make it to Mars by 2084, to see one of these: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transit_of_Earth_from_Mars

That's pretty goddamn insane. I mean, it's pretty much unfathomable that that is possible.

That sound unbelievably awesome. Too bad we have to wait for so long.

Not anymore, it ain't!

1 1/2 months without a space post? Time to try to breathe some life back in this thread!

Moon formation: Was it a 'hit and run' accident?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19011013

A home from home: Five planets that could host life
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19008908


P.S.: The Mars Science Laboratory, also known as the Curiousity rover, "is scheduled to land in Gale Crater at about 05:31 UTC on August 6, 2012." --Link-

Quite stoked.

Fucking sick man. My bro's always going on about Gliese 581g. Considering it's barely 20 light years away, I'm really optimistic that we're going to find something substantial within our lifetime.

Also, I've been following this lately. I'm sick of the only pictures of Pluto being those pixelated nightmares. 3 more years and we get to see that dwarf up-close and personal. Can't wait.

About 17 hours now until the Curiosity rover landing. Is there any video link where it can be followed once it's happening?

I really hope all goes well.

As I post this a news conference involving the scientists involved in this venture is streaming live in the link below. Pretty interesting to see the human element behind this feat.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-11386_3-57486458-76/watch-nasas-live-coverage-of-mars-rover-landing/

Of course! Full coverage will be broadcast on NASA TV, as most NASA events are.

Also, astronomer/blogger Phil Plait, astronomy professor Pamela Gay, and Universe Today editor Fraser Cain will be doing a Google+ Hangout (I don't think it requires a Google+ account to watch) starting at 3 am UTC (11 pm EDT) in which they'll interview various Curiosity team members and other guests, and then cover the landing live. It should be interesting, and possibly less dry than NASA's broadcast.

For those who have an Xbox 360, you can also have a live stream of the event on your Xbox. It should be advertised somewhere on your home screen.

Remember everyone, this historic event happens tonight at 5:31 am UTC (1:31 am EDT).

Success!!

Congrats NASA.

Tonight, I have truly witnessed something amazing:

There is a hot Asian chick working at NASA. Sittin' back there in the second-to-back row on the right-hand side, programming her way into my heart. You can deploy my heat shields anytime, baby~

Oh, and I guess some machine landed on Mars, too, I guess.

there are already pictures in colour:


the animation video of the landing sequence was simply amazing and that they actually did it even more. The upload of information is a bit slow though ... 32 Mbit per day, when all equipment and satellites around Mars are used. Friday will have the first panorama pictures.

Awesome picture of Curiosity parachuting down, taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter:


And of course, for those who haven't seen them yet, the first pictures the rover sent back from the martian surface:


Yes, these are crappy quality, but that's because they were taken with the "hazard cameras" located near the wheels, which are normally meant to take a look at what the rover is driving on and diagnose problems. Soon, Curiosity will deploy its mast and we'll then have hi-res color pictures!

Congrats to the NASA team on a job brilliantly done.

Unspoilering a resized version of this, because it's worth it. Space picture of the year?

Probably, since NASA was worried about the "7 minutes of terror" through Mars's atmosphere.

Absolutely cannot wait for the colour hi-res photos woop woop woop

Yeah, that picture is amazing, very cool, makes the whole venture worthwhile already haha.

A video made from pictures Curiosity took while it was descending through Mars' atmosphere:


Pretty cool pic of Curiosity's main target: Mount Sharp.


Also, the first color pic from surface, showing the north wall and rim of Gale Crater in the distance. It was taken from a camera on its still-undeployed arm, with the dust cover on; that's why it's skewed and hazy.


The rover is supposed to deploy its main camera mast today. We'll have to be patient though, they're mainly going to be running tests for the next few months. It might take a couple weeks to even start moving the rover at all.

What I hope is Curiosity detects signs of liquid water presently on or near the surface of Mars.

Now before you start yelling at me, yes I know the Martian atmosphere is too thin for water to exist in liquid form (it sublimates from solid to gas) HOWEVER... there are areas of Mars that are low enough in elevation that there is enough pressure for water to remain liquid. There are also areas of Mars that can regularly exceed freezing (the highest temperature on Mars is comparable to a warm Spring day on Earth - over 80 degrees Fahrenheit). Gale Crater, where Curiosity landed, is both a low-lying area and located along the equator.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_f ... ian_slopes

Droplets of brine were said to appear on the Phoenix lander, which was in a far colder environment. Mars may not be as dry as it seems after all... and with this subsurface water could have the possibility for subsurface life.

Mast is up.

Link to accompany (with pic). http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19186237

What's amazing is the progress we've made in the past 15 years alone. Anyone remember the huge hubbub that was made over the Sojourner rover in 1997? "OMG WE HAVE A MOVING VEHICLE ON MARS!!!" Now look at that tiny thing, almost like a joke, the instruments on Curiosity are larger than the entire Sojourner rover: