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Wednesday 27 July 2011

Atlantis Transits the Sun Just Before Landing

Space Weather News for July 21, 2011
http://spaceweather.com

FINAL ACT: Space shuttle Atlantis landed in Florida this morning, bringing an end to NASA's 30-year shuttle program.  Just 21 minutes before the de-orbit burn, a photographer in Germany snapped what may be the last-ever photo of a shuttle in space.  He caught Atlantis transiting the face of the sun, silhouetted against a backdrop of solar fire in conjunction with nearby sunspot AR1254. Visit
http://spaceweather.com
 for images and more information.

AURORA WATCH: A fast stream of solar wind is buffeting Earth's magnetic field on July 21st.   High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras, especially in the southern hemisphere where night skies are winter-dark.  Aurora alerts are available from
http://spaceweatherphone.com (voice) or http://spaceweathertext.com
 (text).

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Good Clear Skies
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Astrocomet
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Colin James Watling
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Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
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--
Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
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Information:
http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
--
More Info:
http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

Special video look at Atlantis' launch / Hubble's latest discovery

NEWSALERT: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 @ 1710 GMT
---------------------------------------------------------------------
  The latest news from Spaceflight Now


**************************************
Own a piece of Space History with The Space Shuttle Commemorative Coin.
Limited edition coins made with metal flown in space on the very first
Space Shuttle mission: STS-1. History you can hold in your hands. Get
yours today at:

http://www.SpaceShuttleCoin.com
**************************************


AWE-INSPIRING ONBOARD VIDEO VIEWS OF ATLANTIS' LAUNCH
-----------------------------------------------------
Take a ride on the final space shuttle launch with remarkable footage
captured from cameras mounted on the solid rocket boosters, external fuel
tank and even inside Atlantis' cockpit looking back at the astronauts.
Check out these amazing videos of the spacecraft soaring to orbit, which
are presented here for Spaceflight Now+Plus users with launch audio.

http://www.spaceflightnowplus.com/index.php

NOT YET A SUBSCRIBER? LEARN MORE:
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/store/sfnplus/index.html


HUBBLE DISCOVERS PLUTO'S FOURTH MOON
------------------------------------
Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope to look for potential rings
around dwarf planet Pluto have instead uncovered a fourth moon orbiting
the distant icy world.

http://www.astronomynow.com/news/n1107/20pluto/


ASTRONAUTS READY ATLANTIS FOR THURSDAY'S LANDING
------------------------------------------------
The crew of the shuttle Atlantis, working through one of the busiest days
of their mission, tested the orbiter's re-entry systems Wednesday and
packed up for landing Thursday to close out NASA's 135th and final shuttle
mission.

http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/status.html


+++
FINAL SPACE SHUTTLE ASTRONAUT PATCH!
Emblem for STS-135 now available in our store.
http://www.spaceflightnowstore.com/
+++

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Good Clear Skies
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Astrocomet
--
Colin James Watling
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Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
--
--
Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
--
Information:
http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
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More Info:
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Monday 25 July 2011

Comet Garradd (2009 P1)

Should hopefully now be visible in good Binoculars or a Telescope at magnitude 7.6 in the constellation of Pegasus...
 
25/7/2011-Finally got to see this Comet around Midnight in the lower Western part of Pegasus-using my 20x100 mounted Binoculars the sky was just clear enough to pick out the faint Coma of the Comet, I wasn't sure of any tail although there may have been one pointing in the direction of Cygnus which was overhead but it wasn't very discernible so I can't be exactly sure, I would say the Comet brightness is Magnitude 7.5 to 8 and is also visible in 20x60 Binoculars as well-great to see this and well pleased-this is now my 23rd Observed Comet since Comet Hyakutake in 1996-good clear skies...
 
 
 
  • 2009 P1 (Garradd) is brightest from September 2011 to March 2012
  • 2010 X1 (Elenin) may be a naked eye or binocular object in 2011 October
  • 2011 L4 (PANSTARRS) may be a naked eye object in 2013 March

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  • Good Clear Skies
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    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    Tuesday 19 July 2011

    International Space Station bids goodbye to the shuttle

    NEWSALERT: Tuesday, July 19, 2011 @ 1722 GMT
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------
      The latest news from Spaceflight Now

    ****************************************************
    America's role in Future Space™ is at a crossroads.

    After 135 Space Shuttle launches, the program is ending. Where will
    America's space program go from here, how will we get there, will our
    nation remain the space leader? We need our nation's leaders to act now.
    Find out more.

    http://www.FutureSpaceUSA.com
    ****************************************************

    INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION BIDS GOODBYE TO THE SHUTTLE
    -------------------------------------------------------
    The final space shuttle parted company with the International Space
    Station today in a sentimental sendoff for America's winged machines that
    spent the past decade constructing the million-pound science complex and
    supplying the orbiting laboratory with vast loads of logistics. In 37
    missions, the shuttles spent 276 days, 11 hours and 23 minutes docked at
    the station.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/status.html

    NASA AGREES TO HELP MODIFY ATLAS 5 ROCKET FOR ASTRONAUTS
    --------------------------------------------------------
    United Launch Alliance and NASA will share technical data to help ready
    the company's Atlas 5 rocket for astronaut passengers, officials announced
    Monday. The agreement places the Atlas 5 rocket among the top competitors
    to launch the next piloted spacecraft from U.S. soil after the retirement
    of the space shuttle.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/19ulaccdev/

    DAWN UNMASKS VESTA
    ------------------
    The Dawn spacecraft slipped into orbit Saturday around Vesta, one of the
    largest unexplored objects in the solar system. Vesta is the second-most
    massive body in the main asteroid belt, and Dawn returned its first
    close-up image of the 300-mile-wide protoplanet on Sunday.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/18vesta/

    +++
    FINAL SPACE SHUTTLE ASTRONAUT PATCH!
    Emblem for STS-135 now available in our store.
    http://www.spaceflightnowstore.com/
    +++

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    Good Clear Skies
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    Astrocomet
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    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
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    More Info:
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    Russian radio telescope launched / GPS bird goes up / Shuttle update

    NEWSALERT: Monday, July 18, 2011 @ 1652 GMT
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------
      The latest news from Spaceflight Now

    **************************************
    Own a piece of Space History with The Space Shuttle Commemorative Coin.
    Limited edition coins made with metal flown in space on the very first
    Space Shuttle mission: STS-1. History you can hold in your hands. Get
    yours today at:

    http://www.SpaceShuttleCoin.com
    **************************************

    RUSSIAN SATELLITE ON MISSION TO PEER INSIDE BLACK HOLES
    -------------------------------------------------------
    Russia launched a long-delayed radio telescope Monday to help astronomers
    see deeper into supermassive black holes, obtain views of collapsed stars
    and better measure the influence of dark energy on the cosmos.
    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/18spektr/

    LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY:
    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/18zenitgallery/

    RAFFAELLO CARGO MODULE RETURNED TO SHUTTLE BAY

    ----------------------------------------------
    In the dwindling hours of the shuttle program's last visit to the
    International Space Station, the Atlantis astronauts detached the bus-size
    Raffaello cargo module and moved it back to the shuttle's payload bay
    early Monday, wrapping up NASA's final shuttle-station resupply mission.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/status.html

    SPACE STATION RESTOCKING COMPLETED BY ATLANTIS CREW
    ---------------------------------------------------
    The Atlantis astronauts put in a final day of logistics transfer work
    Sunday, working through off-duty time to finish moving a last few items
    into the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module for return to Earth.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/110717fd10/index2.html

    GPS NAVIGATION SATELLITE TAKES NIGHTTIME RIDE TO ORBIT
    ------------------------------------------------------
    Continuing a prolific partnership that has benefited billions of users
    around the world, the Delta rocket family Saturday successfully launched
    its 50th satellite for the Global Positioning System.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/delta/d355/status.html

    LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY:
    http://spaceflightnow.com/delta/d355/launch/

    TWO BROADCASTING SATELLITES SHARE PROTON ROCKET RIDE
    ----------------------------------------------------
    Communications satellites for North America and Kazakhstan blasted off on
    top of a Proton rocket Friday and successfully arrived hours later at
    their targeted posts thousands of miles from Earth.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/proton/ses3/

    LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY:
    http://spaceflightnow.com/proton/ses3/launch/

    DAWN ASTEROID EXPLORER MOVES INTO ORBIT AT VESTA
    ------------------------------------------------
    NASA's robotic Dawn spacecraft drifted into orbit around Vesta on
    Saturday, starting a yearlong science campaign to map one of the solar
    system's largest unexplored worlds sandwiched in the main asteroid belt
    between Mars and Jupiter.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/17dawn/

    +++
    FINAL SPACE SHUTTLE ASTRONAUT PATCH!

    Emblem for STS-135 now available in our store.
    http://www.spaceflightnowstore.com/
    +++

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    Good Clear Skies
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    Astrocomet
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    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
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    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    Monday 18 July 2011

    [BAA-ebulletin 00591] Variable Star Observing Guide

    ============================================================
    BAA electronic bulletin
    ============================================================
    Members may wish to know that the price of the Variable Star Observers
    Guide has been reduced to just £3.50 (from £5.00) including postage
    and is available from the Sales page at
    http://www.britastro.org/sales2006/index.html

    Roger Pickard, Director BAA VSS
    11/7/2011
    ============================================================
    BAA-ebulletin mailing list
    This is an announcements only list - please do not reply to the list.
    To unsubscribe please send an e-mail to
    circadmin@britastro.org
    or visit
    http://lists.britastro.org/mailman/listinfo/baa-ebulletin
    (c) 2011 British Astronomical Association    http://www.britastro.org/
    ============================================================

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    Good Clear Skies
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    Astrocomet
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    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
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    More Info:
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    [BAA-ebulletin 00592] MM Taylor sponsored ride

    ============================================================
    BAA electronic bulletin
    ============================================================

    2011 July 16

    Martin Morgan-Taylor (Campaign for Dark Skies committee) is cycling in
    August from Leicester to Paris; two countries and 300 miles in four
    days. The primary purpose of the ride is to raise money for an
    educational charity.
    However, he has been told that any excess over a certain amount can go
    to another good cause of his choice. He has reached this amount, so
    BAA members can sponsor him for the Campaign for Dark Skies!
    If you'd like to support CfDS with Martin, please send a cheque
    payable to "Campaign for Dark Skies" to CfDS, 38 The Vineries,
    Colehill, Wimborne, Dorset BH21 2PX. Please enclose a covering note or
    write on the envelope "MMT".

    Thank you for your support.

    Bob Mizon
    Coordinator
    CfDS
    ============================================================
    BAA-ebulletin mailing list
    This is an announcements only list - please do not reply to the list visit:
    http://lists.britastro.org/mailman/listinfo/baa-ebulletin
    (c) 2011 British Astronomical Association    http://www.britastro.org/
    ============================================================

    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
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    More Info:
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    Fwd: Final shuttle crew arrive at Space Station

      NEWSALERT: Monday, July 11, 2011 @ 1912 GMT
    -----------------------------------------------
       The latest news from Spaceflight Now

    **************************************
    Own a piece of Space History with The Space Shuttle Commemorative Coin.
    Limited edition coins made with metal flown in space on the very first
    Space Shuttle mission: STS-1. History you can hold in your hands. Get
    yours today at:

    http://www.SpaceShuttleCoin.com
    **************************************

    SPACE STATION RESUPPLY POD HOISTED FROM ATLANTIS' BAY
    -----------------------------------------------------
    A cargo-delivery module packed with 9,400 pounds of food, equipment and
    science gear departed shuttle Atlantis' payload bay this morning and
    parked at the International Space Station's doorway for unloading.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/110711fd4/

    Check our Mission Status Center for the latest on the mission and live
    streaming video from space:

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/status.html


    ATLANTIS GRACEFULLY DOCKS TO INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
    --------------------------------------------------------
    America's final space shuttle has arrived at the International Space
    Station, the science laboratory it trucked piece by piece to orbit for
    assembly, to deliver one last massive load of goods and provisions that
    only the winged spaceplanes can carry.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/110710fd3/index2.html


    AMERICA'S SPACE SHUTTLE BLASTS OFF ON LAST MISSION
    --------------------------------------------------
    After a cliff-hangar countdown, the space shuttle Atlantis thundered to
    life and majestically rocketed into history Friday, putting on one last
    sky show for spectators jamming area roads and beaches to witness NASA's
    135th and final shuttle launch.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/110708launch/

    See photos from Spaceflight Now's sound-triggered cameras placed at the
    launch pad:

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/remotes/


    Cornerstone of Chinese space station to launch soon
    ---------------------------------------------------
    China plans to launch the first module of an envisioned space laboratory
    by the end of September, and the rising space power will attempt its first
    in-orbit docking weeks later, according to space program officials and
    state-run media reports.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/04tiangong/

    +++
    COMMEMORATE THE SHUTTLE PROGRAM!
    Mission patches and more available in our store.
    http://www.spaceflightnowstore.com/
    +++

    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    NASA says JWST needs more cash / Delta 4 to launch GPS tonight

       NEWSALERT: Friday, July 15, 2011 @ 1404 GMT
    ------------------------------------------------
         The latest news from Spaceflight Now


    **************************************
    Own a piece of Space History with The Space Shuttle Commemorative Coin.
    Limited edition coins made with metal flown in space on the very first
    Space Shuttle mission: STS-1. History you can hold in your hands. Get
    yours today at:

    http://www.SpaceShuttleCoin.com
    **************************************


    NASA: EXTRA MONEY NEEDED TO LAUNCH JWST THIS DECADE
    ---------------------------------------------------
    One week after a House subcommittee proposed terminating NASA's costly
    successor to the orbiting Hubble observatory, agency officials told an
    advisory panel Thursday that the James Webb Space Telescope can be
    launched as soon as 2018, but political realities could delay the
    mission's start well into the 2020s.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/14jwst/


    ASTRONAUTS RESTART COMPUTER
    ---------------------------------------------------------
    Atlantis commander Christopher Ferguson and pilot Douglas Hurley carried
    out troubleshooting procedures early Friday and successfully restarted a
    shuttle flight computer that failed Thursday. But it is not yet clear what
    caused the initial failure and given the critical nature of the machines,
    flight controllers planned to carefully monitor general purpose computer
    No. 4 to make sure it was, in fact, running normally.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts135/status.html


    DELTA 4 ROCKET TO LAUNCH NEW GPS SATELLITE TONIGHT
    --------------------------------------------------
    After having to scrub Friday's attempt to launch a next-generation Global
    Positioning System satellite because stormy weather prevented the team
    from retracting the protective mobile service gantry away from the Delta 4
    rocket, officials have reset the predawn liftoff for Saturday at 2:41 a.m.
    EDT (0641 GMT) from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/delta/d355/status.html


    DISCOVERY LEAVES HANGAR TO MAKE ROOM FOR ATLANTIS
    -------------------------------------------------
    The space shuttle Discovery on Wednesday morning made her first public
    appearance outside the hangar since being retired, emerging without any
    main engines, nose thrusters or aft rocket pods. Seeing the stripped down
    orbiter with a gaping hole in the nose was a harsh reminder that the
    spaceship's flying days are over.

    SPECIAL PHOTO GALLERY:
    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts133/rollovergallery/

    VIDEO REPORT:
    http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts133/rollovergallery/video.html


    SOYUZ ROCKET LAUNCH BEEFS UP GLOBALSTAR SATELLITE FLEET
    -------------------------------------------------------
    Six fresh spacecraft for Globalstar's mobile communications satellite
    fleet were deployed Wednesday by a Russian Soyuz rocket, propping up the
    company's degraded two-way voice service for more than 400,000 subscribers
    around the world.

    http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1107/13soyuzglobalstar/

    +++
    FINAL SPACE SHUTTLE ASTRONAUT PATCH!
    Emblem for STS-135 now available in our store.
    http://www.spaceflightnowstore.com/
    +++

    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    Atlantis Crew Sees Auroras from Space

    Space Weather News for July 16, 2011
    http://spaceweather.com

    AURORAS UNDERFOOT: Flying the last mission of NASA's 30-year shuttle program, the crew of Atlantis has witnessed a beautiful display of auroras from Earth orbit--and there might be more in the offing.  Visit
    http://spaceweather.com for photos and the geomagnetic forecast.

    ASTEROID VESTA: This weekend, NASA's Dawn spacecraft is entering orbit around Vesta for a year-long study of the giant asteroid. Dawn's cameras are expected to reveal a primitive world of desolate beauty from close range. As close as Dawn will be, however, you can be even closer; it's actually possible to hold a piece of Vesta in your hand. Authentic Vesta meteorites are now available in the Space Weather Store:  
    http://www.shopspaceweather.com/asteroid-vesta-meteorite.aspx

    --
    Good Clear Skies
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    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    NASA's Dawn Spacecraft Enters Orbit Around Asteroid Vesta

    News release: 2011-212

    NASA's Dawn Spacecraft Enters Orbit Around Asteroid Vesta

    The full version of this story with accompanying images is at:
    http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2011-212&cid=release_2011-212

    PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Dawn spacecraft on Saturday became the first probe ever to enter
    orbit around an object in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

    Dawn will study the asteroid, named Vesta, for a year before departing for a second destination, a dwarf
    planet named Ceres, in July 2012. Observations will provide unprecedented data to help scientists
    understand the earliest chapter of our solar system. The data also will help pave the way for future human
    space missions.

    "Today, we celebrate an incredible exploration milestone as a spacecraft enters orbit around an object in the
    main asteroid belt for the first time," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. "Dawn's study of the
    asteroid Vesta marks a major scientific accomplishment and also points the way to the future destinations
    where people will travel in the coming years. President Obama has directed NASA to send astronauts to an
    asteroid by 2025, and Dawn is gathering crucial data that will inform that mission."

    The spacecraft relayed information to confirm it entered Vesta's orbit, but the precise time this milestone
    occurred is unknown at this time. The time of Dawn's capture depended on Vesta's mass and gravity, which
    only has been estimated until now. The asteroid's mass determines the strength of its gravitational pull. If
    Vesta is more massive, its gravity is stronger, meaning it pulled Dawn into orbit sooner. If the asteroid is less
    massive, its gravity is weaker and it would have taken the spacecraft longer to achieve orbit. With Dawn
    now in orbit, the science team can take more accurate measurements of Vesta's gravity and gather more
    accurate timeline information.

    Dawn, which launched in September 2007, is on track to become the first spacecraft to orbit two solar
    system destinations beyond Earth. The mission to Vesta and Ceres is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion
    Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Dawn is a
    project of the directorate's Discovery Program, which is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center
    in Huntsville, Ala.

    The University of California, Los Angeles, is responsible for the overall Dawn mission science. Orbital
    Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., designed and built the spacecraft. The German Aerospace Center, the Max
    Planck Institute for Solar System Research, the Italian Space Agency and the Italian National Astrophysical
    Institute are part of the mission's team.JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

    For information about the Dawn mission, visit:
    http://www.nasa.gov/dawn and http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/.

    To follow the mission on Twitter, visit:
     
    -end
    -

    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    Tuesday 12 July 2011

    The Fireball Over Kessingland I See Last Night...

    Society for Popular Astronomy
     
    Meteor Section Fireball Report Form
     
    Thank you. You have submitted the following fireball report to the SPA Meteor Section. You will be redirected to the Meteor Section Home Page in 30 seconds.

    Observer:
    Name: Colin James Watling
    Email: astrocomera@googlemail.com

    Site Location:
    Town: Kessingland Village Lowestoft
    County: Suffolk
    Country: U.K
    Latitude: 52 ° 25 ' 05 " N
    Longitude: 1 ° 43 ' 58 " E

    Date / Time:
    Date (Year - Month - Date): 2011 - 7 - 11
    Time: 22 h 22 m 00 s
    TimeZone BST

    Start of fireball's track:
    90 ° altitude, 280 ° azimuth
    or
    h m s RA ° Dec

    End of fireball's track:
    10 ° altitude, 280 ° azimuth
    or
    h m s RA ° Dec

    Apparent speed: 4

    Visible duration (in seconds): 3
    If the object was visible for more than 10 seconds it may not have been a fireball.

    Train Details: Slight pointed tail with no diffuse

    Sounds: Rumble like thunder overhead

    Fragmentation: No Fragmentation

    Colours: White to blueish in colour but mainly white

    Magnitude Estimate: >5

    Additional comments: Haze over the sky and a Gibbous Moon in the South with Light interference and cloud blocking out part of it-see it from my open bedroom window-I heard the dull Rumble sound overhead and see the bright fireball with sharp pointed tail appear through the clouds at about 45 degrees and disappear in the East about 10 Degrees over the North Sea within a few seconds. I can only guess because of its trajectory and it came from the Azimuth that this was a Northern Summer Cygnid Fireball.
    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    Monday 11 July 2011

    [BAA-ebulletin 00590] Reminder for Next meeting in Jersey

    ============================================================
    BAA electronic bulletin
    ============================================================

    Just a reminder of the details for the BAA meeting in Jersey The
    Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel, Jersey, St Helier, Channel Isles on 2nd
    - 4th September. Titled "Astronomy Away from Home" The closing date is
    12th August 2011

    This meeting highlights the way amateurs can do really useful
    astronomy when not at home.

    The cost for Friday & Saturday will be £5.00 for BAA members and £7.00
    for non-BAA members. Accompanied Children under 16 £2.50. This cost
    includes hot & cold drinks on Saturday during registration and in the
    afternoon. The tour costs £26 adult and £22 under 17's

    Programme for the weekend

    Fri 2nd Sept
    19:00 - 19:55  Reception and display stands. Cash bar
    19:55 - 20:00  Dr David Boyd, BAA President – Official welcome
    20:00 - 21:00  Dr John Mason – Hunting the Northern Lights: Nature's
    extraordinary light show
    21.10 - 22.00  Cash bar & observing the moon setting from the Hotel terrace

    Sat 3rd Sept
    09:00 - 09:45  Registration & Refreshments
    09:45 - 10:00  Dr David Boyd, BAA President – Official welcome
    10:00 - 10:45  Mike Frost – Visiting Camera Obscuras of the world
    10:45 - 11:30  Dr Stewart Moore – Have Binoculars will travel
    11:30 - 12:15  Mike Maunder – The MK1 Eyeball
    12:15 - 14:00  Lunch
    14:00 - 15:00  David Le Conte - CI megalithic tombs: An astronomical connection?
    15:00 - 15:45  Roger Pickard – Variable Stars on the Move
    15:45 - 16:30  Tea
    16:30 - 17:15  Nick James – Imaging eclipses: the battle against
    baggage allowances
    17:15 - 17:30  Q&A session
    17:30               Raffle & Close

    Time to go out and have dinner, wander around & enjoy the sunset in
    the West over the sea and St Aubin

    20:00 - 21:30  Eric Blakeley of Channel TV – "The Roving Reporter"
    21:30               Formal Close

    21.30 - 22.30  Observing on the Hotel terrace & Cash Bar

    Sun 4th Sept
    10:30 - 17:00  Tours of the island including the War Tunnels (at
    additional cost, please see below)

    Details correct at the time of printing.

    Event Organiser:        Mrs Hazel Collett, e-mail
    meetings@britastro.or
            Tel:
    07944 751277
    Local Co-ordinator:    Mr M Maunder, e-mail
    baa@speedibrews.com Tel:
    01483 756201

    PLEASE NOTE – Jersey is not in the UK, or EC and many mobile phones do
    not allow calls within, as well as off-Island without prior
    arrangement with the Service provider.

    Further details can be found on the BAA website at
    www.britastro.org/jerseymeeting

    --
    Hazel Collett
    Meetings Secretary for the British Astronomical Association
    ============================================================
    BAA-ebulletin mailing list
    visit: http://lists.britastro.org/mailman/listinfo/baa-ebulletin
    (c) 2011 British Astronomical Association    http://www.britastro.org/
    ============================================================

    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    Fwd: Cassini Spacecraft Captures Images and Sounds of Big Saturn Storm

    News release: 2011-203                                                  July 6, 2011

    Cassini Spacecraft Captures Images and Sounds of Big Saturn Storm

    The full version of this story with accompanying images is at:
    http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2011-203&cid=release_2011-203

    PASADENA, Calif. – Scientists analyzing data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft now have the first-
    ever, up-close details of a Saturn storm that is eight times the surface area of Earth.

    On Dec. 5, 2010, Cassini first detected the storm that has been raging ever since. It appears at
    approximately 35 degrees north latitude on Saturn. Pictures from Cassini's imaging cameras show the
    storm wrapping around the entire planet covering approximately 1.5 billion square miles (4 billion
    square kilometers).

    The storm is about 500 times larger than the biggest storm previously seen by Cassini during several
    months from 2009 to 2010. Scientists studied the sounds of the new storm's lightning strikes and
    analyzed images taken between December 2010 and February 2011. Data from Cassini's radio and
    plasma wave science instrument showed the lightning flash rate as much as 10 times more frequent
    than during other storms monitored since Cassini's arrival to Saturn in 2004. The data appear in a
    paper published this week in the journal Nature.

    "Cassini shows us that Saturn is bipolar," said Andrew Ingersoll, an author of the study and a Cassini
    imaging team member at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif. "Saturn is not like
    Earth and Jupiter, where storms are fairly frequent. Weather on Saturn appears to hum along placidly
    for years and then erupt violently. I'm excited we saw weather so spectacular on our watch."

    At its most intense, the storm generated more than 10 lightning flashes per second. Even with
    millisecond resolution, the spacecraft's radio and plasma wave instrument had difficulty separating
    individual signals during the most intense period. Scientists created a sound file from data obtained
    on March 15 at a slightly lower intensity period.

    Cassini has detected 10 lightning storms on Saturn since the spacecraft entered the planet's orbit and
    its southern hemisphere was experiencing summer, with full solar illumination not shadowed by the
    rings. Those storms rolled through an area in the southern hemisphere dubbed "Storm Alley." But the
    sun's illumination on the hemispheres flipped around August 2009, when the northern hemisphere
    began experiencing spring.

    "This storm is thrilling because it shows how shifting seasons and solar illumination can dramatically
    stir up the weather on Saturn," said Georg Fischer, the paper's lead author and a radio and plasma
    wave science team member at the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Graz. "We have been observing
    storms on Saturn for almost seven years, so tracking a storm so different from the others has put us at
    the edge of our seats."

    The storm's results are the first activities of a new "Saturn Storm Watch" campaign. During this
    effort, Cassini looks at likely storm locations on Saturn in between its scheduled observations. On the
    same day that the radio and plasma wave instrument detected the first lightning, Cassini's cameras
    happened to be pointed at the right location as part of the campaign and captured an image of a small,
    bright cloud. Because analysis on that image was not completed immediately, Fischer sent out a
    notice to the worldwide amateur astronomy community to collect more images. A flood of amateur
    images helped scientists track the storm as it grew rapidly, wrapping around the planet by late
    January 2011.

    The new details about this storm complement atmospheric disturbances described recently by
    scientists using Cassini's composite infrared spectrometer and the European Southern Observatory's
    Very Large Telescope. The storm is the biggest observed by spacecraft orbiting or flying by Saturn.
    NASA's Hubble Space Telescope captured images in 1990 of an equally large storm.

    The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the
    Italian Space Agency. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena manages the mission for the
    agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The radio and plasma wave science team is
    based at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, where the instrument was built. The imaging team is
    based at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo. JPL is a division of the California Institute of
    Technology, Pasadena.

    For images and an audio file of the storm, visit:
    http://www.nasa.gov/cassini and
    http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov.

    -end-
    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    Information:
    http://www.clubbz.com/club/2895/LOWESTOFT---3054/Lowestoft%20And%20Great%20Yarmouth%20Regional%20Astronomers%20(Lyra
    --
    More Info:
    http://www.localokel.com/event/666/good_clear_skies

    SPA ENB No. 313

                     ***********************************
                     The SOCIETY for POPULAR ASTRONOMY
                    ***********************************
            ====================================================
             Electronic News Bulletin No. 313      2011 July 10
            ==================================================== 
     
    Here is the latest round-up of news from the Society for Popular
    Astronomy.  The SPA is Britain's liveliest astronomical society, with
    members all over the world.  We accept subscription payments online
    at our secure site and can take credit and debit cards. You can join
    or renew via a secure server or just see how much we have to offer by
     
    PLANETS
    By Andrew Robertson, SPA Planetary Section Director
     
    Jupiter is back -- only just, but will be much better placed in about
    a month's time when it will be higher in a darker sky in the early
    hours.  I got my first view of it this apparition at 3am BST on July 3.
    What immediately struck me was two 'full' equatorial bands again.  The
    SEB was in fact slightly wider than the NEB but not quite as dark.
    There was a bit of detail visible amongst the belts despite the poor
    seeing.  I've seen two images of Jupiter taken in the last week, one
    admittedly from the south of France where it is about 9 degrees
    higher and in a darker sky.  The other was taken by SPA member Simon
    Kidd at 4.51am BST on July 1 from Welwyn with a C14 telescope.  The
    Sun would have risen about 10 mins earlier!  At the end of the month
    at the end of nautical twilight/start of civil twilight (3.30am BST)
    Jupiter will be at 34° altitude in the ESE. Any reports of
    observations would be most welcome via:
     
     
    CLOSE FLYBY OF TINY ASTEROID
    NASA
     
    On June 27 the tiny asteroid MD2011 MD passed the Earth at a distance
    of just 12,000 km.  Its trajectory took it over the southern Atlantic
    Ocean and the Antarctic coast.  Its trajectory was modified by the
    encounter, and it is uncertain whether the object will visit us again
    in the future.  The asteroid poses no danger since its diameter is
    estimated to be somewhere in the range 5 to 20 metres and would be
    significantly reduced after a passage through the terrestrial
    atmosphere (should that ever happen), so it would have only a limited
    impact.  To give some idea of the consequences, Meteor Crater near
    Flagstaff, Arizona, is thought to have been made by the impact of a
    body about 50 metres in diameter, which would have been even bigger
    before passing through the atmosphere.  Still, 12,000 km is really
    very close, slightly less than the Earth's diameter; geostationary
    satellites orbit at a distance of 36,000 km.  Researchers at JPL
    estimate that an event of this type happens about once every 6 years.
     
     
    THERE MAY BE NO SUNSPOT CYCLE 25
    Astropublishing
     
    Three independent works, based on three different indicators of the
    solar cycle, have reached the same conclusions: the next solar
    maximum, of the current cycle 24, predicted to occur in 2013, will be
    practically non-existent, while the following cycle, due in 2020, may
    never arrive.  The first of the three studies is by a team of
    researchers from the [U.S.] National Solar Observatory.  They modelled
    the internal plasma flows that cause surface oscillations, identifying
    an east-west current that begins at intermediate latitudes and moves
    slowly towards the solar equator. That flow is tightly related to the
    formation of new sunspots, and its behaviour in the recent past led to
    the correct prediction of the late arrival of cycle 24.  When one
    solar cycle is under way, the flow of plasma re-organises itself for
    the next cycle, but in the last few years there has been no sign of
    the new flow that would eventually give life to cycle 25.
     
    The second study uses the strength of the magnetic field in sunspots
    as an index for the solar cycle.  Spots typically form in magnetic
    fields of 2500-3500 gauss, and do not appear at all at field strengths
    below 1500 gauss.  The data collected during the last 13 years show a
    long-term weakening of the sunspot magnetic fields, a trend confirmed
    by the increasing temperature of the spots.  In cycles 23 and 24 the
    mean magnetic-field strength in sunspots decreased by 50 gauss per
    year, a trend that, if it continues, will soon make the average field
    intensity fall below 1500 gauss, making sunspots very rare phenomena
    in the next decades.
     
    The third study looked at the migration toward the solar poles of
    active regions in the corona that, for all their delicate beauty,
    actually trace intense magnetic structures rooted in the solar
    interior.  Using highly-ionized iron present in the corona as a tracer
    and examining 40 years of observations, scientists found that the
    speed of migration of the active regions, typically appearing between
    70° and 80° latitude, has been much slower in cycle 24.  As a
    consequence, the structures from cycle 23, still present beyond 80°,
    may last much longer than normal, in some sense hindering the
    appearance the active regions of the next cycle.
     
     
    SUN AND PLANETS CONSTRUCTED DIFFERENTLY
    NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory
     
    Researchers analyzing samples returned by the 2004 Genesis mission
    have discovered that the Sun and the inner planets may not have formed
    in the manner previously supposed.  Genesis collected samples from the
    solar wind -- material ejected from the Sun.  Such material can be
    thought of as a fossil of our nebula because the preponderance of
    scientific evidence suggests that the outer layer of the Sun has not
    changed measurably for billions of years.  The Sun contains more than
    99% of all the material in the Solar System.  Genesis was launched in
    2000 August, and travelled to the L1 Lagrange point about 1 million
    miles from the Earth, where it remained for 886 days between 2001 and
    2004, passively collecting solar-wind samples.  In 2004 September, the
    spacecraft released a sample-return capsule, which entered the Earth's
    atmosphere.  Although it made a hard landing as a result of a parachute
    failure, it was the first U.S. sample return since the final Apollo
    lunar mission in 1972, and the first material collected beyond the
    Moon.
     
    The samples revealed slight differences between the Sun and planets in
    oxygen and nitrogen, which are two of the most abundant elements in
    our Solar System.  Researchers found that the Earth and the Moon, as
    well as Martian and other meteorites which are samples of asteroids,
    have a lower concentration of O-16 than does the Sun.  The implication
    is that we did not form out of the same solar-nebula materials that
    created the Sun -- how and why not remains to be discovered.  The air
    on Earth contains three different kinds of oxygen atoms which are
    differentiated by the number of neutrons they contain.  The vast
    majority of oxygen atoms in the Solar System are composed of O-16, but
    there are also tiny amounts of O-17 and O-18.  Researchers studying
    the oxygen of Genesis samples found that the percentage of O-16 in the
    Sun is slightly higher than on Earth or on other terrestrial planets,
    the other isotopes' percentages being slightly lower.
     
    Differences were also found between the Sun and planets in the element
    nitrogen.  Like oxygen, nitrogen has one isotope, N-14, that makes up
    nearly 100% of the atoms in the Solar System, but there is also a tiny
    amount of N-15.  In comparison with the Earth's atmosphere, in the Sun
    and Jupiter there is slightly more N-14, but 40% less N-15.  The Sun
    and Jupiter appear to have the same nitrogen composition.  As is the
    case for oxygen, the Earth and the rest of the inner Solar System are
    very different in nitrogen.  These findings seem to show that the
    terrestrial planets, meteorites and comets, are anomalous compared to
    the initial composition of the nebula from which the Solar System
    formed.  Understanding the cause of such heterogeneity is the next
    problem.
     
     
    EVIDENCE THAT SATURN'S MOON ENCELADUS HAS SALTWATER OCEAN
    University of Colorado at Boulder
     
    Astronomers say that samples of icy spray shooting from Saturn's moon
    Enceladus and collected during Cassini spacecraft fly-bys show the
    strongest evidence yet for the existence of a sub-surface salt-water
    ocean.  The plumes shooting water vapour and tiny grains of ice into
    space were originally discovered emanating from Enceladus by the
    Cassini spacecraft in 2005.  The plumes were originating from the
    so-called 'tiger-stripe' surface fractures at that moon's south pole
    and apparently have provided the material for the faint E Ring that
    traces the orbit of Enceladus around Saturn.  During three of
    Cassini's passes through the plume in 2008 and 2009, the on-board
    cosmic dust analyzer measured the composition of freshly ejected plume
    grains.  The icy particles hit the detector's target at speeds of up
    to 11 miles per second, and were instantly vaporized; the analyzer
    separated the constituents of the resulting vapour clouds.
     
    The study shows that the ice grains found further out from Enceladus
    are relatively small and mostly ice-poor, closely matching the
    composition of the E Ring.  Closer to the moon, however, relatively
    large, salt-rich grains dominate.  Researchers claim that there is
    currently no plausible way to produce a steady outflow of salt-rich
    grains from solid ice across all the tiger stripes other than from
    salt water under Enceladus' icy surface.  The study indicates that
    'salt-poor' particles are being ejected from the underground ocean
    through cracks in the moon at a much higher speed than the larger,
    salt-rich particles.  The E Ring is made up predominantly of such
    salt-poor grains, although it seems that 99% of the mass of the
    particles ejected by the plumes is made up of salt-rich ones.  Since
    the salt-rich particles were ejected at a lower speed than the
    salt-poor ones, they fell back onto the moon's icy surface rather than
    making it to the E Ring.
     
    According to the researchers, the salt-rich particles have an 'ocean-
    like' composition that indicates that most, if not all, of the
    expelled ice comes from the evaporation of liquid salt water rather
    than from the icy surface of the moon.  When salt water freezes slowly
    the salt is 'squeezed out', leaving pure water-ice behind.  If the
    plumes were coming from the surface ice, there should be very little
    salt in them, which is not the case, according to the research team.
    The researchers believe that perhaps 50 miles beneath the surface
    crust of Enceladus, between the rocky core and the icy mantle, a layer
    of water exists that is kept in a liquid state by gravitationally
    driven tidal forces created by Saturn and several neighbouring moons,
    as well as by heat generated by radioactive decay.  According to the
    scientists, roughly 200 kg of water vapour is lost every second from
    the plumes, along with a smaller amount of ice grains.
     
     
    NEUTRON STAR FLARES UP
    European Space Agency (ESA)
     
    The XMM-Newton space observatory has watched a faint star flare up at
    X-ray wavelengths to almost 10 000 times its normal brightness.
    Astronomers believe that the outburst was caused by a clump of matter
    falling onto a neutron star.  With a radius of about 10 km but the
    mass of the Sun, a neutron star is so dense that it has a very strong
    gravitational field.  The clump of matter came from the neutron star's
    blue-supergiant companion star.  The flare lasted four hours and the
    X-rays came from the gas in the clump as it was heated to millions of
    degrees while being pulled into the neutron star's intense gravity
    field. In fact, the clump was so big that only a small part of it
    actually hit the neutron star.
     
    XMM-Newton observed the flare during a scheduled 12.5-hour observation
    of the system, which is known by its catalogue number IGR J18410-0535,
    but the astronomers were unaware of the result immediately.  The
    telescope works through a sequence of observations that are pre-
    planned to make the best use of the observing time, then sends the
    data to the Earth.  It was about ten days after the observation that
    astronomers received the data and quickly realised that they had seen
    something special.  Not only did they see the flare, but the
    observation lasted long enough to see it from beginning to end.  An
    X-ray flare of such a magnitude can be expected a few times a year at
    most for that particular star system.
     
     
    THE MILKY WAY'S NEWLY RECOGNIZED SPIRAL ARM
    Astropublising
     
    Scientists have discovered in the Milky Way a previously unknown
    spiral arm that fits perfectly into the symmetrical pattern made by
    the other arm segments already mapped. The resulting picture of the
    Galaxy is a very symmetrical spiral pattern.  The story of the
    discovery is reminiscent of how discoveries were made decades ago,
    because it was made with a small radio telescope only 1.2 metres in
    diameter, from the roof of a scientific institute (the Harvard-
    Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, CfA), and not with a gigantic
    instrument far from any built-up area.
     
    The work was done by two CfA astronomers, who made use of the fact
    that radio waves can penetrate the dense clouds of dust that occupy
    the Galactic plane (and obscure what lies beyond at other
    wavelengths), to look for traces of the carbon monoxide molecule,
    which tends to be found in spiral arms and so is an excellent tracer
    of Galactic structure.  They pointed their telescope towards the
    outermost parts of our galaxy, discovering the new section of spiral
    arm, which is likely to be the end of the 'Scutum-Centaurus arm',
    although the segment which connects the two is purely an
    extrapolation.  With the closer Perseus arm, the Milky Way then has
    two main arms, almost perfectly symmetrical, which spiral outwards
    from the ends of a small central bar.
     
     
    MOST DISTANT QUASAR FOUND
    ESO
     
    A team of European astronomers has used the Very Large Telescope and
    other telescopes to discover and study the most distant quasar found
    to date.  That brilliant beacon, powered by a black hole with a mass
    two billion times that of the Sun, is the brightest object yet
    discovered in the early Universe.  The quasar that has just been
    found, named ULAS J1120+0641 , is seen as it was only 770 million
    years after the Big Bang (redshift 7.1).  It took 12.9 billion years
    for its light to reach us.  Although more distant objects have been
    confirmed (such as a gamma-ray burst at redshift 8.2, and a galaxy at
    redshift 8.6), the newly discovered quasar is hundreds of times
    brighter than those.  Amongst objects bright enough to be studied in
    some detail, it is the most distant by a large margin.  Objects so
    far away cannot be found in visible-light surveys because their light,
    its wavelengths stretched by the expansion of the Universe, falls
    mostly in the infrared part of the spectrum.  The object was found in
    the course of a survey made with UKIRT, the UK's dedicated infrared
    telescope in Hawaii.
     
     
    HYDROGEN PEROXIDE FOUND IN SPACE
    ESO
     
    Molecules of hydrogen peroxide have been found for the first time in
    interstellar space.  On Earth, hydrogen peroxide plays a key role in
    the chemistry of water and ozone in the atmosphere, and is familiar
    for its use as a disinfectant or bleach.  An international team of
    astronomers made the discovery with the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment
    telescope, in the Chilean Andes.  They observed a region in our galaxy
    close to the star Rho Ophiuchi, about 400 light-years away. The region
    contains cold (around -250 C) dense clouds of cosmic gas and dust, in
    which new stars are being born.  The clouds are mostly made of
    hydrogen, but contain traces of other molecules in space.  Telescopes
    such as the one in Chile, which make observations of light at
    millimetre- and sub-millimetre wavelengths, are ideal for detecting
    the signals from molecules.  Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)is thought to
    form in space on the surfaces of cosmic dust grains -- very fine
    particles similar to sand and soot -- when hydrogen (H) is added to
    oxygen molecules (O2).  A further reaction of the hydrogen peroxide
    with more hydrogen is one way to produce water (H2O).
     
     
     
    Owing to holidays, the next scheduled edition of the bulletin will be
    issued on August 15th.
     
     
     
    Bulletin compiled by Clive Down
     
     
    (c) 2011 the Society for Popular Astronomy
     
    --
    Good Clear Skies
    --
    Astrocomet
    --
    Colin James Watling
    --
    Various Voluntary work-Litter Picking for Parish Council (Daytime) and also a friend of Kessingland Beach (Watchman)
    --
    --
    --
    Real Astronomer and head of the Comet section for LYRA (Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Regional Astronomers) also head of K.A.G (Kessingland Astronomy Group) and Navigator (Astrogator) of the Stars (Fieldwork)
    --
    --