Dec 17, 2015 A new supernova illustrates the same old problems. In January 2014 astronomers discovered the first type 1A supernova seen in a decade. Type 1A class stellar explosions (or, implosions) are important to how astronomers view the Universe for two reasons: their light-curves, or graphs of their intensity…
Dec 16, 2015 Near-infinite density is not logical in three-dimensional space. A special press conference was called on November 15, 2010 in order to announce the discovery of “the youngest black hole ever detected.” The object (SN1979C) was identified by bright X-ray emissions that have not varied in output…
Dec 15, 2015 The thermonuclear Sun theory is falsified. Hypothetically, how does the Sun produce heat and light enough to sustain life on our planet at a mean distance of 149,476,000 kilometers? It is apparently not a hot rock, so what is it? According to spectrographic analysis, the Sun is…
Dec 14, 2015 Curiosity is analyzing “dark dunes” on Mars. Recently, the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) known as “Curiosity” arrived at a vast dune field in Gale Crater. Curiosity was launched on November 26, 2011 on a two-year mission. However, in December 2012 its sojourn on Mars was extended…
Dec 11, 2015 Radio signals from deep space? Redshift is the method astronomers use to measure the distance to remote objects in space. Parallax measurements enable them to determine the distances for nearby stars, but past a few light-years the angles are too small and cannot be resolved. Using…
Dec 10, 2015 The two moons of Mars will soon receive a visitor. According to a recent press release, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to launch a probe to the enigmatic Martian moons, Phobos and Deimos. It is hoped that the newly minted mission will return samples…
Dec 9, 2015 Galaxy addition or subtraction? According to a recent press release, NGC 5291 in the constellation Centaurus, was involved in a “collision” with another galaxy billions of years ago, causing a ring to form. The ring then evolved into star-forming regions, as well as dwarf galaxies like…
Dec 7, 2015 Dark matter galaxies? Solving a particular puzzle can be clouded by a layer of presumptions. Such is the case, according to a recent press release announcing the creation of a computer model to predict the existence of satellite galaxies. Researchers with the Dark Energy Survey at…
Dec 4, 2015 Did volcanically induced acid fog partially erode Mars? A recent conference about the possibility of water on Mars shifted the focus, somewhat. Rather than concentrating on open water or deposits of ice in the remote past, researchers now think that water vapor might have eroded some…
Dec 2, 2015 Galactic dust is often filamentary. Plasma is electrically ionized. By definition, electrons are stripped from atomic nuclei in plasma, since electron orbital dynamics can be overcome by thermal and other energy sources. When regions in plasma develop excess charge, due to gravity or other influences, electric…
