Tuesday, December 26, 2017
Dragonfly or Stardust mission? (Basically – Titan or go to a comet) NASA considers…
While it
certainly makes sense that as we are learning over yonder in space at the same
time as maybe we send another off the opposite direction to study two totally
different things. Maybe it takes six years for a spacecraft to make the trip to
Titan but in the meantime one can send a separate spacecraft to
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko to collect surface samples… But honestly, Titan
certainly seems more important than going to a comet. So how does NASA decide
between two awesome missions?
Dragonfly,
that’s the name of the Titan concept, involves sending a quadcopter-like
spacecraft /flying robot to the alien Titan moon. It would be outfitted with
instruments capable of identifying large organic molecules, the quadcopter,
thanks to its flying abilities, would be able to visit multiple locations
hundreds of miles apart to collect samples and study the landscape on Titan. A
frigid moon of Saturn, Titan features a thick atmosphere and lakes and rivers
of liquid methane, and what scientists believe could be a watery ocean beneath
its frozen crust. Since we now that Titan has the ingredients for life, with
Dragonfly, we will be able to evaluate how far prebiotic chemistry has
progressed.
On the other
hand, there is the Stardust mission. Comets are believed to be among the most
scientifically important objects in the solar system, but they’re also happen
to be among the most poorly understood however, we have also sampled from the ‘coma’
of a comet in previous missions. Still, this would be for materials from its
icy surface so different in nature.
There is
importance in both missions, but one might want to consider what ‘our’ needs
are. DO we need to step up the idea of a colony or do we absolutely need to
know the answer to where we came from? -As well as the rest of the universe.
So, which
has been determined to be the one? Neither, really, both missions have entered
what is called a “concept study phase” where the scientists involved can
further develop their proposals. The final selection will be made sometime in July
of 2019 - whichever spacecraft is chosen, the launch is expected sometime in
2025.
Monday, December 18, 2017
“Somebody's
Watching Me” – Some Scientists are watching a cigar shaped asteroid that they
think just may be watching us!
An odd, cigar shaped
object or asteroid, traveling at about 85,700 mph is currently grabbing a lot
of attention.
Named “Oumuamua”, this
asteroid comes from the constellation Lyra (Where you can find that super
bright star Vega), a full twenty-five light years away.
The SETI Institute,
which employs over 130 scientists, educators, and
support staff with a mission statement of “Our mission is to explore,
understand, and explain the origin and nature of life in the universe, and to
apply the knowledge gained to inspire and guide present and future
generations,” has been scanning Oumuamua with the Allen Telescope Array spending
in excess of 60 hours checking for transmissions over a wide range of
frequencies. There is another SETI project, Breakthrough Listen, which has
plans to devote 10 hours to scrutinizing the same asteroid using a large
antenna in West Virginia.
The expected outcome?
Radio silence. But maybe, just maybe, Oumuamua is someone else’s attempt to
watch & listen to us.
This is actually based
on some real data. Most experts that believe interstellar travel is possible suggest
that a ship would probably be shaped like a cigar or needle, as it would be
lean and aerodynamic enough to minimize friction and slim the chances of
colliding with another asteroid or space-object not to mention any harmful gas
and dust. Because of how solid it appears and how fast it’s moving, ‘Oumuamua
(fyi - means scout or messenger in
Hawaiian) is unique. Given its high speeds Oumuamua will be making a fast exit
from our solar system but not before scientists aim to figure out whether the ‘rock’
might actually be an alien spacecraft—either for living beings/aliens or
perhaps a robotic probe.
Breakthrough Initiatives, you may know of the
group, remember Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, to study the galaxy for signs
of extraterrestrials, is most famous for its Stephen Hawking–backed Starshot
project to send cheap spacecraft to Alpha Centauri at one-fifth the speed of light to find
signs of habitability or alien life. Its more conventional
SETI sister project, Listen, uses radio telescopes to scan space and listen for
complex radio signals that might be signs of an alien civilization.
Sunday, December 17, 2017
IT’S OLD, IT’S BIG, IT’S A MONSTER…IT’S A SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE CLOSE TO THE BEGINNING OF TIME
It was there a full 690 million years after the big bang, the universe was just 5 percent of its current age and was still emerging from an enigmatic era known as “the dark ages.”
That such a huge black hole can exist from so far back in time shaping models of how black holes form for all time; offering insight into the universe’s early years.
Well, it has been found. This black hole was located by an Eduardo Bañados at the las Campanas Observatory in Chile.
Not sure whether it even existed, Eduardo had three nights of at the la Campanas Observatory in Chile to locate this supermassive black hole that is basically invisible to us but is gulping down some portion of the universe. Alas, on the third night, Eduardo found it. It was way out at the edge of the universe, a black hole 800 million times more massive than the sun. And all this took was a signal that traveled more than 13 billion light-years across time and space to reach Bañados’ telescope.
Wednesday, Bañados and his colleagues were able to reports a new find that is the oldest and most distant black hole ever discovered.
The object’s size is stunning, it existed just 690 million years after the big bang, when the universe was a toddler, just emerging from an era referred to as “the dark ages.”
And what will we gain from this discovery? Because such a large black hole existed so early in time, it will shape models of how black holes form. Also it will offer insight into the universe’s early years.
But the object Bañados and his colleagues discovered, called ULAS J1342+0928, was even bigger than they’d bargained for - suggesting that something might have made black holes grow more quickly. Scientists don’t yet know the underlying reasons for such rapid growth, or whether still older black holes are waiting to be found.
In a companion paper published in the astrophysical journal letters, the scientists report another odd finding: the galaxy where ulas j1342+0928 dwells was generating new stars “like crazy,” bañados said. Objects the size of our sun were emerging 100 times as frequently as they do in our own galaxy today.
“To build stars you need dust,” Bañados said. “but it’s really hard to form all this dust in such little time on cosmic scales - that requires some generations of supernovae to explode."
Mary Davie Data Analyst Franklin Mutual Insurance Group 973-948-3120 Ext. 8225 Toll Free: 800-842-0551 Ext. 8225 E-mail: mdavie@fmiweb.com |
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Thursday, December 7, 2017
SPACE-WORMS READY FOR MARS…
When you speak of Mars (and all of do from the speculative to the fact-based discussions) do you ever chat about the space-worms? What are they?
Earth worms really. Two healthy brand new baby worms were recently born in the Martian Soil. OK, the simulated Martian Soil. This is really good news for the future share-croppers of the red planet.
The recipe for the ‘Martian Soil’ was volcanic terrestrial rocks, pig manure, and live adult worms. If you saw the movie “The Martian” you may be wondering why the fuss? Mark Watney didn’t have any earth worms and he got potatoes to grow! What’s so special about Earth Worms?
First of all, like Mark Watney did, we need the plants in an oxygen friendly area. Perhaps a closed agricultural ecosystem -- one might start with an underground tunnel
And then oxygenate it….
Next we are going to want some Earth Worms spread all over and here’s why;
1. Earth Worms loosen the soil and make it easier for plants to develop their roots in soil even though it may be too hard/compact for deep root development. They create tunnels that can provide channels that roots can grow through easily, further encouraging root growth. Loosening the soil also makes it easier for water to penetrate deep into the soil, ensuring there is enough moisture in the soil to support the plants and encourage deeper root growth.
2. When earthworms move through the soil, organic materials and soil particles cling to them and come loose in other soil layers. The worms also break up fungi, dead roots and other large pieces of organic material in the soil as they move through, mixing it in with surrounding soil.
3. Earthworms eat organic material in the soil, with some worms eating up to half their body weight per day. The organic matter is ground up in a gizzard within the worm's body. Soil particles are also taken in by earthworms as they eat, with the particles becoming mixed in with organic waste as they move through the worm's digestive tract. The mixture of soil and organic waste is excreted from the worm's body as nitrogen-rich waste known as worm castings.
4. Bacteria and other microbes are an important part of healthy soil because they aid in the decomposition process and prevent harmful microbes from growing. Earthworms help to distribute these microbes throughout the soil and also drag organic material, such as dead leaves (not many on Mars), deeper into the soil for the microbes to break down. As earthworms break down larger organic materials in the soil, they also provide additional food for these microbes which in turn helps them to multiply.
So obviously, Earth Worms do quite a bit of work. And since now we know we can have them on Mars, maybe we can grow all sorts of stuff like Asparagus and Martian Tomatoes (I hear they are really good!)
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
"Danger Wil Robinson..” to Continuum Robotics, what a ride!
Euhler in his
Euler-Cauchy’s stress formula or in his Euhler’s equations of motion has dealt
with the distribution of forces and contact force density. This might not mean
much off hand but if you were to think about Continuum Mechanics then the
entire school of theories and thoughts gets interesting.
Continuum
mechanics deals with physical properties of solids and fluids which are
independent of any particular coordinate system in which they are observed.
These physical properties are then represented by tensors, which are
mathematical objects that have the required property of being independent of
coordinate system. These tensors can be expressed in coordinate systems for
computational convenience.
Perhaps you are
wondering why I am expounding on a topic that seems to have little to do with
space and the Universe…Well, it all starts with a robot. Remember “Danger Wil
Robinson..” How hard and unforgiving the ‘tissue’ of that robot was? Or maybe
you are a Stars Wars person, so let’s look at R2D2. Robotics is an active field
and the look of Robots vary greatly, but until recently, the touch didn’t vary
too much.
Welcome soft
robotics.
Soft Robotics is
the specific sub-field of robotics dealing with constructing robots from highly
compliant materials, similar to those found in living organisms. Similarly,
soft robotics also draws heavily from the way in which these living organisms
move and adapt to their surroundings. In contrast to robots built from rigid
materials, soft robots allow for increased flexibility and adaptability for
accomplishing tasks, as well as improved safety when working around humans.
Then of course
there is the hybrid soft robots that are built with an internal rigid framework
and then a soft exterior.
MIT & Harvard
have been working at length in the field of soft robotics seeking to make them
stronger, but also to make them able to pick up irregular shaped objects (to
use, for instance, working in a factory or manufacturing center).
What did this
result in?
Scientists at MIT
& Harvard were able to devise a new way to outfit the soft robots with more
strength and this is done by using origami skeletons in the soft robots. For
the muscles, yes, these robots have muscles; the scientists created a sealed
bag filled with air or fluid with a folding origami structure inside which becomes
the skeleton then in order to make the muscle contract, the pressure inside the
bag is reduced, and the artificial muscle contracts just as the muscles in a
human body do. The new technique allows the artificial muscles to lift 1,000
times their own weight.
These artificial
muscles are little more than flexible actuators, yet the factor used to measure
strength changes greatly. AND my tie in to space? These robots could be used in
space.
Tuesday, November 21, 2017
THE EARTH'S WAISTLINE GETS SMALLER, BUT THE TECTONIC PLATES REMAIN THE SAME...
You
see for four and a half billion years, Earths entire lifetime, our rotation has
been gradually slowing. The speed of average day has grown longer by (between
15 millionths and 25 millionths of a second every year) and you probably think
that would not be large enough to have an effect, and you’d be wrong.
What we have is a constant struggle between the planet's gravity and its
centrifugal force as its angular motion slows. Due to the loss in the Earth
Kinetic Energy from all forms of forces acting on it from the tides, or
galactic space dust, include the solar wind, also the space weather, the
geomagnetic storms, all working to slow it down.
This slow down permits gravity to pull the planet's shape
into a more perfect circle or sphere. Like a daisy chain of one thing causing
another, tremendous stresses within the Earth and in its crust struggle to fit
on the slowly changing mantle. Were the Earth's rotation not slowing, there
would be none of this stress, and the Earth would maintain its girlish curves
throughout time. Its rotation is gradually slowing however, (even taking the
conservation of momentum into consideration), causing its angular momentum to
become progressively weaker. Gravity remains just as strong as ever and
continues to exert the same amount of inward pressure.
This continuous struggle between gravity's centripetal
force and angular momentum's centrifugal force results in tremendous dynamic
stress within the Earth as it attempts to adjust to its trimmer shape. The
Earth finds itself gradually shifting its shape from that of an oblate spheroid
with a bulging equator & flatter pole regions to that of a more perfect
sphere. Throughout the ages, since day one, the Earth has been going through
this constant gradual change.
The surface of the Earth's mantle, especially in the
tropical and subtropical regions of the Earth is becoming smaller while the
pole regions have uplifted and become rounder. The fact that the Earth is
getting rounder, even today, has been confirmed by the satellite
"Lageos" which is being monitored by scientists at the University of
Texas Center for Space Research and at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
What it comes down to is an imbalance exists between the
angular momentum and gravity that cause the subduction motions of the
continental crustal plates due to their crusts shifts and crunches as they
continually try to fit what has become a diminishing area of mantle. There are
hundreds of GPS sensors along the Pacific Coast which indicate North America is
moving westward at about 3 inches per year and that the Pacific plate is
subducting under the continent's Pacific coast. Then the subducting ocean plate
is replaced by the central Pacific ridge of mantle oozing up to form a new
ocean bottom.
And guess what, it is this very activity, this
relentless, extremely slow, tremendously powerful, shrinking equatorial region
that then cause earthquakes to occur, volcanoes to erupt and the Earth's vast
mountain ranges to rise.
Dr. Roger Bilham from the University of Colorado has said
that the intense correlation between the changing rotation and the earthquake
and volcanic activity suggest there is going to be an increase in numbers of
intense earthquakes next year. During these periods the Earth's mantle
sticks a little more to the crust, which changes how outer core flows, creating
a mismatch between the speed of the solid crust and the mantle.
Experts warn we 'had it easy this year' with just six
severe earthquakes and claim that next year we could have at least 20 serious
earthquakes, and the most intense ones are expected to occur in tropical
regions, home to around one billion people and plenty of vacationing resorts.
Wednesday, November 15, 2017
A DIRE “WARNING TO HUMANITY” – take two
How much does your government love you? Do they aim to make
your breathing easier, more of a guarantee than a hope? Are they willing to
make the unpopular choices because those choices are in fact the better choices
or do they opt to make the easier choice because it gives you what you want
right now?
A government is not supposed to love you, want your vote
yes, love you? Breathing, well, given choices made thus far, it’s clearly not a
future goal. When it comes down to it, in general, people want what will make
they’re life better today and do not have much interest in tomorrow. We could
have a long debate about why, but let’s just concede that as fact. In general
politicians aim to provide a better tomorrow, maybe extend that a year or two,
but rarely do things that are for generations to come when it the current
generation, that’s the people who voted for them, doing less well. So,
basically, avoiding things shouldn’t impact the daily lives of John or Jane Q.
Public.
Understanding that, is it any wonder that on the 25th
anniversary for the original dire warning to humanity in which 1,700 scientists
from around the world listed the environmental plaques humanity faced, that
this time 15,000 scientists from 184 countries around the world found it
necessary to issue a more dire warning ?
In 1992, the original dire warning was sent out. The
catastrophic losses were listed as follows: stratospheric ozone depletion, air
and water pollution, the collapse of fisheries and loss of soil productivity,
deforestation, species loss and catastrophic global climate change caused by
the burning of fossil fuels.
25 years later has the world changed its tune? Cleaned up
its act? Anything?
25 years later, in 2017, 15,000 scientists have this time
come together and say “Humanity has failed to make sufficient progress in
generally solving these foreseen environmental challenges, and alarmingly, most
of them are getting far worse…Soon it will be too late to shift course away
from our failing trajectory.”
Let’s think about this, we live in a world where there was
the Paris Climate Accord. Wait, but we’re not in it. The last few years the
Great Barrier Reef (Coral reefs are complex structures built mainly from the
calcium carbonate [limestone] skeletons laid down by hard corals. These
reef-building corals are highly vulnerable to rising sea temperatures and ocean
acidification. Slowed growth and loss of hard corals will reduce essential
habitat for many other reef creatures) has gone through a lot, several
bleaching events, some loss from extreme weather, some ocean acidification and
none of it good. The Larsen C Ice shelf collapse, upper ocean temperatures have
increased more than 1 degree, the distribution of penguin colonies has changed,
decline in the krill (a tiny ocean crustacean resembling a shrimp that is the
primary food of baleen whales and other animals that filter their food from
seawater. ), and underneath all that ice that’s no longer there are nearly 100
volcanos – which is another climate change nightmare. We’ve had storms that are
stronger, bigger, and more destructive than ever. But we are the one country in
the world that hasn’t signed the Paris Accord. Remember what I said in the
second paragraph? Well, as long as it is believed by politicians that people
want what will make they’re life better today and do not have much interest in
tomorrow than nothing will ever change. Even though, and I am not positive,
but I know it in my gut, the pentagon has to prepare for Climate Change because
it is a major threat.
It is a major threat-that’s why 15,000 scientists just sent
you a dire warning.
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