Carnival of Space #555

Bahamas-waters

Bahamas-waters

Stunning, eh? The Earth, the sky, space. It’s all amazing and wonderful, especially when you keep learning new things about everything around you. One of the best ways to get into all of this is the Carnival of Space. Over 100 space bloggers keep the torch alive by hosting, sharing and then, they pass it along.

You may Join Us, start here.

Here’s what’s happening this week, hosted by Pam Hoffman at Everyday Spacer.

Trappist-1 Model: Lights, Music and Science
HotPopRobot

TRAPPIST-1 is a planetary system, located 39 light years away from the Solar system, within the constellation of Aquarius. The parent star is an ultra-cool red dwarf star only slightly larger than Jupiter, and there are at least seven planets in orbit. Planets have sizes and masses comparable to the Earth and Venus.

Trappist-1 Model

Trappist-1 Model by HotPopRobot, a maker-family enterprise

And we learnt from Astronomer cum Musician Matt Russo that these planets are in harmonic resonance, ie. if their orbital period could be speeded up, they would produce good music. Check out Matt and his team’s amazing musical rendering of the orbits of these planets and the planetarium shows at…

How I Learnt that M-51 Galaxy is Interacting with NGC 5195 Galaxy using Computer Vision and Python
Artash Nath | HotPopRobot

Artash Nath

I am a Grade 6 student and a member of Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC) – Toronto. One of the best parts of being a Member is that I get to visit the Carr Astronomical Observatory (CAO) and observe the night sky using a research grade telescope. And stay up late in the night!

One of my favourite deep sky / Messier Objects to observe is the Whirlpool Galaxy (M51) – a spiral galaxy located within the constellation – Canes Venatici, 23 million light-years away. It appears nice and bright – far better than the fuzzy and nebulous views of several other…

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe Will Touch the Sun — So Can You
Bob King | Universe Today

How would you like to take an all-expenses-paid trip to the Sun? NASA is inviting people around the world to submit their names to be placed on a microchip aboard the Parker Solar Probe mission that will launch this summer. As the spacecraft dips into the blazing hot solar corona your name will go along for the ride. To sign up, submit your name and e-mail. After a confirming e-mail, your digital “seat” will be booked. You can even print off a spiffy ticket. Submissions will be accepted until April 27, so come on down!

That Interstellar Asteroid ‘Oumuamua Probably Came From a Binary Star System
Matt Williams | Universe Today

On October 19th, 2017, the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System-1 (Pan-STARRS-1) telescope in Hawaii announced the first-ever detection of an interstellar asteroid – I/2017 U1 (aka. ‘Oumuamua). Since that time, no effort has been spared to study this object before it leaves our Solar System. These include listening to it for signs of communications, determining its true nature and shape, and determining where it…

China is Working on a Rocket as Powerful as the Saturn V, Could Launch by 2030
Matt Williams | Universe Today

In the past decade, China’s space program has advanced by leaps and bounds. In recent years, the Chinese National Space Agency (CNSA) has overseen the development of a modern rocket family (the Long March series), the deployment of a space station (Tiangong-1) and the development of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program (CLEP) – otherwise known as the…

Volcanoes on Mars Helped Form its Early Oceans
Matt Williams | Universe Today

Thanks to the many missions that have been studying Mars in recent years, scientists are aware that roughly 4 billion years ago, the planet was a much different place. In addition to having a denser atmosphere, Mars was also a warmer and wetter place, with liquid water covering much of the planet’s surface. Unfortunately, as Mars lost its atmosphere…

Here Is Why Rush Limbaugh Is DEAD Wrong About Space Colonies
Mark Whittington | The Daily Caller

Recently, conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh began his broadcast to note the passing of Stephen Hawking and, along with casting doubt on the big bang, immediately attacked the idea of colonizing space, something that the late physicist often championed. Hawking, as well as other people, such as Elon Musk, suggested that the long-term survival of the human race can be ensured by expanding beyond the single planet we live on, the theory being that we should not have all of our eggs in one basket. Apparently the subject of…

House Members Demand Senate Confirm Jim Bridenstine as NASA Chief
Mark Whittington | The Hill

A group of more than 60 House members sent a letter to the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), demanding that Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.) be confirmed as NASA administrator. The interesting fact about the letter is that more than a dozen Democrats signed it, knocking down one of the main arguments for blocking Bridenstine’s nomination.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) said Bridenstine has been “divisive” and “partisan” as a representative from Oklahoma. The fact that Bridenstine’s fellow representatives, both Republicans and Democrats, have…

Multicolored Waters of the Bahamas
Andrea Meado | CosmoQuest

The astronaut photos above are of Andros Island in the Bahamas. The waters surrounding the island appear to be various shades of blue as seen from space. These color changes are due to variations in water depth and sediments suspended in the water. As seen in the top photo, there are stark color differences between shallow waters surrounding the island and deeper waters nearby. The shallow waters around Andros Island are…

CosmoQuest Shares Citizen Science at NSTA
Larry Lebofsky| CosmoQuest

The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) had its National Conference in Atlanta this year from March 15–18, 2018. Founded in 1944, NSTA is the world’s largest organization dedicated to building innovation and excellence in science teaching and learning. The conference in Atlanta was filled with thousands of science teachers, brimming with enthusiasm and educational strategies.

CosmoQuest team members and associates gave three workshops and participated in a…

Stephen Hawking – Was He Really All That?
Pam Hoffman | Everyday Spacer

Ad Astra Stephen Hawking! You were certainly one of a kind.

As this Carnival winds down, another is being created over at Next Big Future, Brian Wang hosting.

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