November, 2004

Tuesday, November 30th, 2004
Rings Below

The orbiting Cassini Spacecraft snapped this picture on October 27th capturing the backside of Saturn and its ring system as it moved above their orbital plane. Checkout the Cassini Website for more details.

Monday, November 29th, 2004
Black Holes Formed Early

Using observations made by the orbiting Chandra X-Ray Observatory, astronomers have discovered that super-massive black holes formed very early in our Universe's existence... some 12.7 billion years ago...  much earlier than previously estimated. Checkout CNN.com/SPACE for more details. 

Saturday, November 27th, 2004
Cassini-Huygens In Orbit

The Cassini Spacecraft is getting ready to release the Huygens probe in December. Checkout the ESA Website for more details. 

Friday, November 26th, 2004
Titan Closeup

Saturn's tiny moon Hyperion is a mere 165 miles across. Note the odd color variations across its surface.  Checkout the Cassini Website for more details. 

Thursday, November 25th, 2004
Happy Thanksgiving!
Titan Closeup

The result of the closest flyby of Saturn's moon Titan, this 9 image mosaic is the most detailed ever taken of the ringed planet's largest moon. Checkout the Cassini Website for more details. 

Wednesday, November 24th, 2004
Beautiful Lunar Views

Skies were clear last night here in Park City... revealing some spectacular views of Earth's nearest celestial neighbor. The coming full moon will offer skywatchers many similar views throughout the holiday weekend. Get out there and take advantage of them. 

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2004
Mimas Dwarfed By Saturn Storm

Saturn's moon Mimas is dwarfed by a huge white storm cloud in this recent image taken by the orbiting Cassini Spacecraft. Note the subtle colored bands ringing the giant planet... they're a subdued version of a similar feature on the planet Jupiter. Checkout the Cassini website for more details.

Sunday, November 21st, 2004
Solar Activity Continues

A huge Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) almost occurred the other day. As it turned out, the event was unable to break free from the Sun's incredible gravity... and it fell back into the Sun. Click here to view an animation of the event.

Saturday, November 20th, 2004
Black Hole Hunter

NASA's Swift Observatory rocketed into space on Saturday morning. It's mission... to seek out the birth of one of astronomy's toughest topics... black holes. Checkout CNN.com/Space for the details..

Friday, November 19th, 2004
Three Hundred Sols And Counting

NASA's Spirit Rover continues to do an excellent job... with more than 300 martian days
logged on the red planet so far. This is well beyond its life expectancy. Visit SpaceDaily.com to find out what its been up to.

Thursday, November 18th, 2004
Aurora Watch / Leonid Meteor Shower

Skywatchers are in for a treat this weekend. There is an aurora watch coinciding with the peak of the Leonid Meteor Shower. Luckily, the moon is still a reasonable phase... and setting before the shower peaks (in the wee hours on Friday morning). So, while you're out checking out The Leonids... be sure to periodically monitor the northern horizon. Checkout our Viewing Tips and for even more information, visit our Leonid Meteors Page

Wednesday, November 17th, 2004
Europe Goes To The Moon

Europe's SMART-1 spacecraft entered lunar orbit earlier today. It's goal is to test navigation techniques that will be required for future planetary missions. For more information,visit SpaceDaily.com

Monday, November 15th, 2004
Craters On Tethys

A pair of large craters are clearly visible in this Cassini image of Saturn's moon Tethys. Other smaller craters are also hinted at. The image was taken in late September as the spacecraft orbited the ringed planet. Checkout this Cassini press release for more information.

Saturday, November 13th, 2004
Leonid Meteor Shower

The annual Leonid Meteor Shower peaks next Friday morning. Meteor activity will increase as the week progresses. Leonid meteors are remnants of the passing of the Comet Tempel-Tuttle. The radiant of the shower is in the western portion of the constellation Leo (hence the shower's name) in the "sickle" or "backwards question mark.". 
Viewing conditions are again favorable this year... as the moon will be a tiny crescent that will have set by the time the radiant climbs into the sky. Skywatchers are encouraged to dress warm, grab a reclining chair, and head out in the wee hours. Highest counts are expected between about 2:00am and sunrise. For more information, visit our Leonid Meteors Page

Friday, November 12th, 2004
Waves In Saturn's Ring

Density waves can be seen in this Cassini image of Saturn's beautiful rings. Caused by the gravitational influence of Saturn's sheppard moons, Janus and Pandora, the image was made using the Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph when the star Xi Ceti passed behind the rings. The flickering of the starlight was converted into the ring density depicted by the image. Checkout the Cassini Website for more detail.

Thursday, November 11th, 2004
Sharpest Images Of Planet Uranus

Astronomers using The Keck Observatory have produced the highest quality ground-based images of the planet Uranus ever taken. Using adaptive optics, astronomers were able to record details previously available only to space-based observatories. Checkout the Keck Press Release for more details.

Aurora Subsiding
The geomagnetic storm which has raged for the past several days is subsiding now. There are still a couple of CME's heading in our general direction though. Skywatchers should stay alert... and keep an eye on the Geomagnetic Monitor to the upper right. If it goes red... aurora are possible. Checkout the Spaceweather.com aurora gallery for a boatload of pics from the recent event.

Wednesday, November 10th, 2004
Aurora Watch Continues

Geomagnetic activity remains high... The Planetary Kindex being pegged most of last night and into the morning. If only skies were clear here in Park City :( Hopefully, skies are clear where you are. Skywatchers are encouraged to keep an eye on the northern horizon for aurora. Also keep an eye on the Geomagnetic Activity graph to the upper right. If its red, activity is possible. Checkout the Spaceweather.com gallery for more pics.

Tuesday, November 9th, 2004
Saturn's Southern Hemisphere

Look at the incredible detail revealed in this recent Cassini Spacecraft image of Saturn's Southern Hemisphere. Checkout the Cassini website for more information.

Monday, November 8th, 2004
Northern Lights Continue?

Geomagnetic activity remains high again this evening. Skywatchers are encouraged to keep an eye on the northern horizon for aurora. Also keep an eye on the Geomagnetic Activity graph to the upper right. If its red, activity is possible. Checkout the Spaceweather.com gallery for more pics.

Sunday, November 7th, 2004
Aurora!!

Aurora have been spotted here in Park City :-)  If its dark where you live... head outside and look towards the north. You just might be in for a treat!!! Checkout some of the nights highlights in our aurora gallery.

Saturday, November 6th, 2004
Still going... and going...

NASA's Mars Rover's continue to amaze mission scientists as they continue to perform well beyond their expected lives. The Opportunity rover has in fact gained power recently. NASA is likely enjoying the struggle to understand this "malfunction" :-)
Checkout CNN.com/SPACE for more info. 

Friday, November 5th, 2004
CME: Weekend Aurora Watch

A series of 5 Coronal Mass Ejections (CME) have been detected erupting on the Sun yesterday and today. One of these was even a Full Halo event. These will likely reach Earth starting late tonight. Skywatchers should be alert for aurora after nightfall tonight and tomorrow night. For more information, pay a visit to www.Spaceweather.com.

Wednesday, November 3rd, 2004
Conjunction: Venus & Jupiter

The planets Venus and Jupiter continue to move towards a tight conjunction on Thursday and Friday mornings when they'll be separated by a mere .6°. The two brightest planets are easy targets in the eastern sky before sunrise. They were found early this morning moving into position. Click here for an animated gif.

Tuesday, November 2nd, 2004
Conjunction: Venus & Jupiter

Over the next several days, the planets Venus and Jupiter will move into a tight conjunction Closest pass will occur on Thursday and Friday mornings when the two are separated by a mere .6°. The two brightest planets are easy targets in the eastern sky before sunrise. They were found early this morning moving into position. Click here for an annotated version.

Monday, November 1st, 2004
Space Shuttle To Fly In May

NASA is targeting May 2005 for the return to flight for the grounded space shuttle fleet. They were hoping for a March date, but two direct hits from hurricanes this past summer made that an impossibility. Checkout CNN.com/SPACE for more details.  

Sunday, October 31st, 2004
Aurora Watch
A series of Coronal Mass Ejections (CME) erupted yesterday from sunspot #691. Skywatchers, especially those in the north, should be alert for northern lights after midnight tonight.

Galactic Ghoul

Happy Halloween! The Spitzer Space Telescope imaged this ghoulish image. Click here to see it transformed into a scary Halloween monster. 

Saturday, October 30th, 2004
Cassini Reveals Titan's Young and Active Surface

Using it's radar imaging system, Cassini was able peer through Titan's hazy atmosphere revealing a diverse and very complex geography. Read more by visiting the Cassini Website.  

Friday, October 29th, 2004
Titan May Be Geologically Active

Evidence uncovered by the recent Cassini flyby of Saturn's moon Titan indicates that the giant moon may be quite active geologically speaking. There is even the possibility that liquids may exist on its surface. This false-color image shows Titan in ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths. It was taken during Cassini's successful flyby on Oct. 26, 2004. For more details on the image, checkout the Cassini-Huygens website..

Thursday, October 28th, 2004
Eclipse (and curse) Is History

Now we know what it took to end the Curse of the Bambino: a lunar eclipse. The Boston Red Sox won the World Series on Wednesday night under a lunar eclipse that turned the moon a vivid shade of Red Sox red. Sox-fan Bob Colwell of Somersworth, New Hampshire, took this picture during the game. For more awesome shots of the event, which was unseen here in Park City :(  Checkout Spaceweather.com.

Wednesday, October 27th, 2004
Lunar Eclipse Tonight!!

Tonight's full moon will be a special one... marked by a total lunar eclipse visible across 6 continents. By 7:15pm MDT, the Earth's shadow will begin to take a noticeable bite out of the moon. Totality will occur around 8:20pm and continue until 9:45pm. Let's hope for a few hours of clear skies!! Checkout our Lunar Eclipse Guide for more information. 

Tuesday, October 26th, 2004
Cassini Makes Closest Pass Ever

The Cassini Spacecraft flew within 750 miles of Saturn's moon Titan early Tuesday afternoon... snapping some truly impressive pictures in the process This shot, taken in infrared, peers through Titan's hazy clouds revealing significant surface detail. Click here to view more images including an animation made from images across various infrared wavelengths.   

Monday, October 25th, 2004
Cassini Set For Titan Flyby

The Cassini Spacecraft will fly within 750 miles of Saturn's moon Titan early Tuesday afternoon. Cassini will snap infrared and radar images 100 times sharper than any taken so far of Titan, said JPL mission scientists. During this flyby, Cassini will be out of communication with ground controllers. Checkout CNN.com/SPACE for more details. 

Sunday, October 24th, 2004
Growing Sunspots

Sunspot #684 is just rotating into view...and growing rapidly in the process. It was barely visible on Saturday... by Sunday it was 5x the size of Earth. Sunspots which grow this rapidly often become unstable and erupt. Keep an eye on Spaceweather.com for the latest on this evolving giant. 

Friday, October 22nd, 2004
Lunar Eclipse Coming Wednesday

We've got quite a treat coming up on Wednesday (10/27)... a total lunar eclipse... the last until sometime in 2007. Skywatchers everywhere except Australia will get to see a least a piece of it. For us here in Park City, the event is pretty close to perfectly timed. Checkout Science@NASA for more details including viewing times in your area. This interesting shot, taken by the Mir 27 crew, shows what a lunar eclipse looks like from space. 

Thursday, October 21st, 2004
Saturn On Display

Checkout the Photo Essay created by the Cassini Team. It contains some of the finest images of Saturn ever released.

Wednesday, October 20th, 2004
Orionid Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight


The annual Orionid Meteor Shower peaks tonight and into the wee hours on Thursday morning 10/21. Best views will be when Orion is high... and the moon is low (or gone)... from about 2:30am until first light (6:00am). The Orionids are so named because shower meteors appear to radiate from a point within the constellation Orion. The shower typically produces about 15 meteors per hour at its peak. 

Sunday, October 17th, 2004
Star Party A Big Hit


Showing that persistence can pay off, star party attendees were treated to some awesome deep sky views as cloudy skies gave way to a beautiful star filled sky. Thanks to all who make this another great season!

Friday, October 15th, 2004
90 Day Roundtrip to Mars?

Scientists at the University of Washington are developing a new means of propulsion that could dramatically cut the time needed for astronauts to travel to between the planets. This evolving technology could herald a new era in human space travel. Checkout SpaceDaily.com for more details.

Thursday, October 14th, 2004
New Crew for ISS

A Soyuz rocket lifted off today with the International Space Station's 10th crew. The astronauts will spend 6 months in orbit.

Tuesday, October 12th, 2004
Partial Solar Eclipse

A partial solar elcipse will occur on Thursday, October 14th. Unfortunately for us, the event will only be visible to parts of NE Asia, Hawaii and portions of Alaska. At the point of maximum eclipse, near Kenai Alaska, 92% of the sun's diameter will be obscured. Interestingly, the eclipse will start on Thursday... and end on Wednesday :-\ Checkout Space.com for more info.

Monday, October 11th, 2004
Cassini Details Saturn's Southern Bands

The orbiting Cassini Spacecraft snapped this exquisite shot of Saturn's southern hemisphere on Sept. 3rd, 2004. The image details the delicate equatorial bands which wrap the planet. Looking much like giant Jupiter's equatorial bands in the shot, Saturn's bands are in fact much fainter. Checkout the Cassini website for more info.

Saturday, October 9th, 2004
The Moon and Venus

Look for a small (18% illuminated) waning crescent Moon to pose alongside the planet Venus on Sunday morning. The two will be high in the eastern sky before sunrise... and look much like the accompanying shot taken in May of 2005.

Friday, October 8th, 2004
New Orbiting Observatory To Scan The Cosmos


NASA officials announced the approval of a mission to scan the cosmos in infrared light. Dubbed the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), the orbiting observatory will be more than 500,000 times more sensitive than previous surveys. With its exceptional capabilities, astronomers hope to catalog the roughly 2/3 of all nearby stars that are too cool to see invisible light... study planet forming regions around nearby stars... and examine some of the most energetic galactic collisions in the universe. Checkout this NASA News Release for more details. 

Thursday, October 7th, 2004
Great Observatories Unravel Kepler's Mystery


Astronomers combined images from 3 of the worlds most powerful telescopes (Hubble, Chandra, Spitzer) to unravel a 400 year old mystery. The mystery was the appearance of a new star in the western sky. We now know this event to have been a supernova... one of the most powerful events in the universe. For more information on Kepler's Supernova, checkout this NASA Press Release. 

Wednesday, October 6th, 2004
Newly Discovered Object Puzzles Astronomers


Astronomers using the the Gemini and Keck telescopes have discovered an object that is neither a star nor a planet. At one point in time, it was a star in a binary system... but gravity from its more massive companion stripped it of so much mass that it became unable to sustain nuclear fusion. It has become "a cool, dark ember about the size of Jupiter" that resembles no known star types. Click here to see what it looks like now... and here for a map to help you find it in the sky. For more information, checkout the Gemini Press Release. 

Tuesday, October 5th, 2004
Blue Moon Over Washington


It's only fitting that the first blue moon spotted during the recent alert was found very near the source of the alert... the Mt. St. Helens area. Volcanic particles of just the can right size filter out the red portion of the spectrum... leaving blue light to dominate. The result is captured in this Oct. 2nd shot by Ryan Tiedeman at Bonney Lake, Washington. Checkout Spaceweather.com for more information.

Monday, October 4th, 2004
SpaceShipOne Claims X-Prize


Scaled Composites and its SpaceShipOne soared into history yesterday claiming the $10 million X-Prize by making two manned space flights inside a two week window. This incredible feat marks the beginning of a new era in space travel and tourism. Find out more on CNN.com/SPACE.

Sunday, October 3rd, 2004
Blue Moon Alert


We're serious about this. With all the particulate matter being pumped into the atmosphere by Mt. St. Helens (see story below), conditions are ripe for seeing a blue moon! Volcanic particles can act as filters to red light... leaving the moon to turn blue. Tom King of Texas snagged this blue moon last October. Checkout Spaceweather.com for all the details.

Saturday, October 2nd, 2004
Our Active Planet


In a sign that we too live on a very active planet, Mount St. Helens blows a large cloud of smoke and ash into the sky. Scientists fear that a major eruption could be imminent. Checkout CNN.com/SPACE for more details.