Carnival of Space #413

Here we go!

Sky Safari Helping You!
Pam Hoffman | Everyday Spacer

This is definitely something different for you and it’s training that would last a lifetime for the person going through the experience!

Challenger and Columbia Crews Memorialized in Emotional New “Forever Remembered” Exhibit at Kennedy Space Center
Ken Kremer | Universe Today

NASA’s two lost Shuttle crews from the searing Challenger and Columbia accidents are now memorialized in the newly opened, permanent and highly emotional “Forever Remembered” tribute display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.

The “Forever Remembered” memorial tribute was officially opened by NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana, both veteran shuttle astronauts, at a very special and…

Rosetta’s Comet Sparkles with Ice, Blows Dust From Sinkholes
Bob King | Universe Today

Comet 67P/C-G may be tiny at just 2.5 miles (4 km) across, but its diverse landscapes and the processes that shape them astound. To say nature packs a lot into small packages is an understatement.

In newly-released images taken by Rosetta’s high-resolution OSIRIS science camera, the comet almost seems…

Flying the Friendly Martian skies: NASA to test Mars Airplane Prototype
Paul Scott Anderson | Planetaria: Exploring Alien Worlds

For several decades, Mars has been a busy place, with orbiters, landers, and rovers providing unprecedented views of the Red Planet. Another exciting possibility which has yet to be realized is an airplane, which could soar through the atmosphere, showing Mars in a way not possible before – closer than an orbiter, but unique from a lander or rover stuck on the surface. NASA is now testing just such a concept, the first Mars airplane which could fly…

New Colour Images Show ‘Two Faces’ of Pluto and Odd Dark Spots Along Equator
Paul Scott Anderson | Planetaria: Exploring Alien Worlds

First there were the unusual bright spots on Ceres, which are still awaiting an explanation, and now as New Horizons races toward its flyby encounter with Pluto on July 14, another mystery has emerged: four intriguing large…

How I killed Pluto – Mike Brown
Gadi Eidelheit | The Venus Transit

New Horizons arrival to Pluto is a good time to recall why Pluto is not a planet anymore and who is the one to blame for it

If you are older than 15, you probably learned at school that the solar system includes 9 planets. This was not always the case. In ancient times there were only seven. Seven is a good number. It is a meaningful number as there are seven days in a week. Earth was the center of the world and did not count while the Sun and the Moon did. During and after the Copernican revolution the number changed quite often. Earth become a planet but the sun and moon were deleted from the list. Then came William Herschel and discovered Uranus, then came Adams, Leverrier and Galle predicting and finding Neptune. Meanwhile more large objects were found in what’s now called “The Asteroids’ belt” (Ceres, Palas, Juno, Vesta) and for some time they were also counted as planets and finally Clyde Tombaugh found Pluto in 1930 making a nice (but meaningless) number of 9 Planets. Then come Mike Brown and on his pursuit to find the tenth planet actually killed the ninth.

Sundials Stamps in Israel
Gadi Eidelheit | The Venus Transit

When I started my blog I never thought I will find myself one day helping the postal office to create a new series of stamps. Well, that happened!

During 2014 I had a unique experience – taking part in the design of a new series of stamps. I received a phone call from the Israeli postal service who contacted me after reading my article about sundials in Israel. Although I am not an academic expert on the matter, I gladly agreed to help.

As it turned out, issuing stamps is a serious matter. In Israel, the process requires a government decision, and after the decision is approved a long process begins. The first phase is to decide on a concept for the series, how may stamps there will be and what will be the connection between them. There are many sundials types and my original idea was to choose a sundial which was significant to…

El descubrimiento de Caronte
Fran Sevilla | Vega 0.0

Charon, the biggest moon of Pluton, was discovered in 1978. This article explains the discovery of this interesting body. The article is written in Spanish.

Pluto and New Horizons
Gadi Eidelheit | The Venus Transit

New horizons is finally arriving distant Pluto. After almost ten years the flyby is just hours away early on July 14th 2015. The spaceship will neither land on Pluto nor orbit it, but will pass in a mere distance of 11,000KM from its surface giving us unprecedented details and information about it.

I am updating this post frequently both with new photos and images but also with historic information. Don’t miss the chance to find Pluto yourself looking at two original images from the Lowell observatory.

That’s our Carnival! With all the Pluto activity and promised updates, stop back again soon to learn what is new from our contributing members!

Enjoy!