UNIverse November 2013
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE Jason discusses the evolution and potential misgivings of artificial intelligence
A GALAXY MADE IN WALES Martin Griffiths shares the Welsh heritage of Messier 64 - The Black Eye Galaxy
HOW-TO: DSLR & COMPACT ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY Get the best out of your camera
THE NIGHT SKY IN NOVEMBER Discover what’s hot and what’s not on the viewing list this month
November 2013
Editorial
UNIverse
Note from the Editors
The UNIverse team Jon Pratt
Hello and welcome to the November issue of UNIverse! We all hope you had an amazing summer and are ready for another fun-filled and astronomical academic year! This year, we hope to be able to bring you many more exciting features and are hoping to expand the scope of the magazine. If you have any suggestions, feedback or would be interested in submitting content to UNIverse, you can now reach us by email spacebasedwords@gmail.com Also, feel free to check out all of our additional content on: Facebook - facebook.com/GlamUNIverse Twitter - twitter.com/spacebasedwords Tumblr - spacebasedwords.tumblr.com Thank you!
Editor, Design BSc Observational Astronomy 2nd year
Dean Tookey
Editor, Columnist
BSc Observational Astronomy 2nd year
Amy Marklew Editor
BSc Observational Astronomy 2nd year Jason Wotherspoon Editor BSc Observational Astronomy 2nd year
The Quartet of Editors Other Written Contributors: Martin Griffiths Cover Image Credits Front: The Antennae Galaxies (NGC 4038 & NGC 4039) - two interacting spiral galaxies. Credit: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration Back:
As above.
Student Astrophotography Image Credits:
Helen Usher, Ryan D’Arcy, Paul Merriman and Simon Shelford.
Faulkes Telescope North located at located at the Haleakala Observatory in Hawaii. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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November 2013
Contents
UNIverse
2 Editorial 4 News 6 How to: DSLR & Compact Astrophotography by Dean Tookey 8 Artificial Intelligence by Jason Wotherspoon 12 The Night Sky in November by Amy Marklew 14 Astrophotography 16 Messier 64: A Galaxy Made in Wales by Martin Griffiths 18 Media Reviews 18 FUN. 19 Cosmic Crossword
NGC 2074, Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Livio (STScI)
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News
919 Confirmed Exoplanets Source: planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov
UNIverse
Happy Anniversary Curiosity!
August 6th, 2013, 05:17 UTC, marked the anniversary of the Curiosity rover’s landing on Mars. Although it has only been a relatively short time on the planet’s surface, the mission has been an incredible success, already completing its primary objective of observing the potential signs that the red planet could once have supported life. Curiosity still has a way to go however. Although it was initially drafted for a original mission duration of 2 years; this has, as of December 2012, been extended indefinitely. Mars Curiosity Rover self-portrait. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Galactic Dieting At the centre of the majority of galactic clusters a galaxy of monstrous proportions is thought to reside, that devours nearby neighbouring galaxies, to enable to grow to such a grand scale. However, new research obtained from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope and WISE, shows that the growth rate of these massive galaxies is actually slowing with age, contrary to what had been previously thought. Yen-Ting Lin of Academia Sinica, in a recent study, determined that “these massive galaxies may have started a diet in the last 5 billion years and therefore have not gained much weight lately.”
Simulated view of a galactic cluster. Credit: Rychard Bouwens (UCO/Lick Obs.), ACS Team, NASA
New Class of Stellar Cluster Discovered Star clusters complying to alternate properties, not seen before in previously defined classes, have recently been observed by an international team of astrophysicists, headed by Professor Duncan Forbes of the Swinburne University of Technology, in Melbourne, Australia. Using data from both the Hubble Space Telescope and W. M. Keck Observatory, the study of these stellar clusters has shown that there appears to be more of a graduation when it comes to cluster class, neither falling only one way or the other, showing more of a continuous range in relation to both size and mass. Forbes states that, “no single model [...] can currently reproduce the diversity of structural properties.” Globular cluster, Omega Centauri. Credit: ESO/INAF-VST/OmegaCAM.
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November 2013
Rejuvenating the Search for Extraterrestial Life
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For all those familiar with the Fermi Paradox, the estimates that there is both extraterrestial life and intelligence elsewhere in the Universe is great, but why have we not been contacted yet? Are we just not listening? To tackle this very issue, a new network tasked with the Search for ExtraTerrestial Intelligence or SETI as it is better known, has been launched in the UK. The UK SETI Research Network (UKSRN) is a result of the collaboration of 11 different institutions nationwide. The programme entails to use the newly commissioned e-MERLIN radio telescope array in order to conduct observations, as well as following an agenda to promote a wider understanding of SETI and how signals received will most likely be as far different from anything than we’ve ever encountered.
Knockin radio telescope, Knockin, Shropshire, England. Credit: Oosoom via Wikimedia Commons
Colliding Dead Stars: Crash for Gold Edo Berger of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA), studying short gammaray bursts (GRB) believes that the collision of dead stars; neutron stars, are responsible for the formation of many of the heavier elements we see today, as well as gold. Berger estimates that “the amount of gold produced and ejected during the merger of the two neutron stars may be as large as 10 moon masses.” By studying one of the nearest gamma-ray bursts to date, GRB 130603B, estimated at 3.9 billion light years, his team have been observing infrared light emitted by the radioactive decay of the ejecta material, which has shown to contain gold. Whether this process is responsible for all the gold within the Universe is yet to be seen. Artist’s conception - Collision between two neutron stars. Credit: Dana Berry, SkyWorks Digital, Inc.
True Blue For the first time, astronomers have determined the true colour of a planet orbiting another star. This feat was made possible using data gathered by the spectrograph aboard the Hubble Space Telescope, in which the colour was ascertained by measuring the planet’s albedo - the light reflected off its surface. Known as HD 189733b, the planet close up would exhibit a true colour similar to an azure blue. Unfortunately, this is not the result of light reflected off an ocean, but instead its atmosphere. That’s right, HD 189733b is a gas giant. Artist’s impression of HD 189733b. Credit: NASA/CXC/M. Weiss
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Perseid meteor. Credit: Jon Pratt
November 2013 UNIverse
How to:
DSLR & Compact Astrophotography by Dean Tookey
Astrophotography is an art form in itself. With just a handheld camera, everything from just basic constellations to some of the larger and brighter deep sky objects can be captured. A quick run through of good camera techniques: • Know your camera • Use the environment well • Be creative • The rule of thirds, where the primary points of interest in your scene sits along “third” lines
Equipment Camera: For astrophotography a DSLR is best but a Fairly good compact can allow for some interesting shots with the brightest stars, constellations and objects, such as the moon being easily captured. Lenses: This depends on the shot to be taken, a telephoto can allow for some deep sky objects to be taken with ease, however exposure time must be kept to minimum so that the stars don’t trail. Wide-field lens allow for many objects to be captured at once or for objects generally too large to be captured through a telescope. Wide field lenses also allow for landscapes to be captured within the shot as well. Tripod: This is a must for any astrophotography as due to the long exposures the slightest movement leads to motion blurring. Shutter release: This is also a must for the same reason as a tripod, however, if you don’t have access to a shutter release, try using the delay/timer function on your camera to reduce movement.
Camera setup for Astrophotography Exposure time: The exposure time is important as you want as long exposure as possible without the stars trailing, unless this is the desired effect. The exposure time depends on how wide you FOV is, the wider the FOV the longer you can expose but thirty seconds on your camera’s widest FOV setting is a good starting point. With a DSLR, the exposure can be easily changed all the way up to “bulb” which is as long as exposure as desired. With most compacts, there is a limit to how long your camera may expose but generally it can be increased enough for bright objects to be captured. F number (or focal ratio): This is the ratio of the lens’ focal length to the (Above) Canon 60D & 14mm wide field lens. diameter of the entrance pupil. Basically, the lower the F number, the more Credit: Wikimedia Commons 6
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November 2013
Guided DSLR shot of the Milky Way using manual tracking Credit: Dean Tookey
light you can collect on the sensor, however, the depth of field is reduced. For astrophotography, a lower F number is best as it allows for a reduction in exposure time. ISO: ISO is a way to reduce exposure time by decreasing the sharpness of an image. In most modern DSLR’s the image quality stays good up to around 1600, and can be increased even more if a camera has a ISO correct function. On most compact cameras, an ISO of 400 would give a fairly good image and allow enough light to fall on the sensor for a good image. White balance: This can be set to many different types of light, many astronomers prefer daily light (5200 K) but in a light polluted area this can lead to an unwanted orange glow in the image. This can be partially remedied by using the Tungsten light setting (3200 K). Playing around with the custom white balance can however yield the best results.
Basic techniques and tips Wide field shots: Wide field shots allow for a large amount of creativity as so much can be captured. Good items to capture include; the Milky Way, constellations, shooting stars and large nebulae, like the North American Nebula. Try getting some landscape in with the shots as this allows for different looks to your images - anything from a gritty industrial background to a pristine piece of countryside can really help to underpin your image. Zoomed in shots: This is only really possible with a DSLR with a low F number ad a high ISO setting as exposures must be kept to a minimum. Try taking an open cluster, such as the Pleiades, or even the Andromeda galaxy.
(Right) Recreation of the evolution of an astronomer with Milky Way. Brecon Beacons. Credit: Jon Pratt
Star trails: This too can only be attempted with a DSLR as the exposure time for this needs to be five to fifteen minutes at least. Landscapes can still be used for effect in these shots. Try pointing your camera at Polaris as this leads to a pleasing star trail. The longer the exposure, the better, so try turning down the ISO a bit. Due to the long exposure time, this can only really be done in a dark sky area and the camera must be left alone for the duration. (Right) Star trailing around Polaris, in the Brecon Beacons. Credit: Jon Pratt
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November 2013
A computer circuit board. Credit: Harland Quarrington via Wiki Commons
UNIverse
Artificial Intelligence by Jason Wotherspoon
The debate of artificial intelligence is a big one; theologically, philosophically and scientifically, which is probably why it occurs in so many science fiction stories either indirectly (Star wars or Star Trek) or head-on (the aptly named Artificial Intelligence or Blade Runner/Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?). Storytellers want the audience to become involved in the story they are telling, and what better way than to throw in a moral conundrum? The question is not whether ‘life’ will become alive, but what point does it stop being just a machine? In school, children are taught that for something to be alive, it must follow a series of steps - MRS GREN; Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Growth, Reproduction, Excretion, Nutrition. However, there are a number of machines that can replicate some or all of these signs, though admittedly biologists don’t tend to use key stage three knowledge in everyday work (maybe key stage four…) these are some of the basic principles of what we define as life, and current machines can do them, and yet a ‘living’ biological things such as a virus does not. Are we prejudice against calling machines that exhibit these processes because we made them, and can life only be living if it’s squishy and had millions of years of evolution? Where does a programmable engine stop being a set of instructions and becomes a living thing, and for that matter aren’t we all a series of complex instructions? Something else that happens very often in fiction is the look of the intelligence. Maybe in an effort to make human counterparts more at ease Data (Star Trek), Bishop (Aliens), Roy Batty (Blade Runner), David (A.I.), Sunny (I, Robot) are all humanoid, which may serve as both a blessing and a curse; in animation, there exists a theory called (Left) Artist’s represenation of AI. Credit: Alejandro Zorrilal Cruz via Wiki Commons
‘uncanny valley’, people can accept a cartoony animation as just that, however, as there are attempts to be more realistic, the audience finds this disconcerting (Beowulf for example) as there are things just not right about the animation (on a graph of realism against audience enjoyment this would be one side of the valley), however, once the animation becomes even more realistic and more ‘human’, the audience likes it more (for example Uncharted 3) this represents the other side of the valley. Humanity must bare this in mind 8
when people like MIRI (Machine Intelligence Research Institute) start to get close to their goal (if they ever do), because after all that effort of making an artificial intelligence, no one likes it because it’s in uncanny valley, what then? As you can’t destroy/kill this intelligence you created, it may not want you to after all, which brings up a good general rule of thumb for life; If it wants to stay alive, it’s already alive. This is demonstrated well in ‘The Long Earth’ where Lobsang proves
(Above) Honda’s ASIMO robot Credit: Vanillase via Wikimedia Commons
November 2013
that he is a Tibetan monk reincarnated into the body of a supercomputer, and hence turning him off would be murder. So, are we likely to see Artificial Intelligence in the future and if so, how?
(Above) Computer “Deep Blue” Credit: Jim Gardner via Wiki Commons
UNIverse
The road to a potential Artificial Intelligence really began back in 1997, when Deep Blue, an IBM machine, beat the chess champion Garry Kasparov 2 – 1, however it did this by analysing from a database of 700,000 grandmaster chess games, so was this A.I. or just a very complicated spellchecker? The same happened again in 2006, when Deep Fritz beat the chess champion, but the machine this time was on a much smaller scale. Watson in 2011 beat the question and answer gameshow Jeopardy, however, its memory contained terabytes of data including the entire contents of Wikipedia (a bit of a wonder it won then…). So when does processing data become a living mechanic, and for that matter how is what we do any different? We draw on our knowledge to make an educated guess after all. The answer may well be the Turing test. Developed in 1950, the Turing test, put forward by Alan Turing, states that if a computer and a human (with access to a computer to input answers) were placed in two separate rooms and an adjudicator in a third and then asked questions, when the adjudicator could not differentiate between the human and the computer, then that computer was deemed intelligent. There has been much debate as to the validity of any results obtained, however no computer has yet to complete it.
So, where does the future lead? Well currently Google are working on a computer that with no pre-programming, after being fed a LOT of Youtube clips, can categorise each clip into one of 22,000 categories (cat, human, car etc.), however, it only gets it correct 16% of the time. Although this is a big step up from previous attempts, it is very far from science fiction worthy. We may be a way from true A.I. but all the signs are there that we can reach one in the future, or at least one that can pass the Turing test and give the impression of life, if it is true intelligence however would forever be in doubt, and there would be a moral quagmire (giggity) to traverse to get to that point, but one day we may have a use for Asmiov’s Three Laws.
(Above) Boston Dynamics “Big Dog”. Credit: DARPA via Wiki Commons (Right) Sonny replica from film “I Robot” Credit: Eirik Newth via Wiki Commons (Background) Circuit board. Credit: Harland Quarrington via Wiki Commons
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November 2013
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November 2013 UNIverse
The Ring Nebula (Messier 57) Located in the Constellation of Lyra, Messier 57 is a planetary nebula approximately 700 parsecs away from Earth. The central star, thought to be a white dwarf, is surrounded by its namesake, a bright colourful ring of ionised gas. The colours infer differing atomic constituents such as ionised helium (blue), doubly ionised oxygen (greenish-blue), hydrogen (reddish) and doubly ionised nitrogen (also contributing to the reddish hue). As the star has come to the end of its lifetime on the main sequence converting hydrogen into helium, and moved onto the asymptotic giant branch as a red giant, it expelled its outer gaseous shell, before the fusion process runs out and the outward pressure is no longer strong enough to stop it collapsing in on itself, forming the remaining compact white dwarf star. Credit: NASA, ESA, C.R. O’Dell (Vanderbilt University), and D. Thompson (Large Binocular Telescope Observatory)
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November 2013
The Night Sky in November
UNIverse
by Amy Marklew Now that the nights are becoming increasingly longer, there will be plenty of time to discover the delights of the night skies this winter; from the hybrid solar eclipse (which is sadly will not be visible from most countries as it only makes landfall in central Africa) to Comet ISON which can see seen in the pre-dawn UK sky throughout November.
The Moon in November New: 3rd November First Quarter: 9th November Full: 17th November Last Quarter: 25th November
There will be a hybrid solar eclipse this month which will appear at sunrise on the east coast of the USA on the 3rd where it will follow a path east across the Atlantic before making landfall in west Africa before setting in Ethiopia. A hybrid solar eclipse occurs when the Moon is just too close to the Earth to not completely block the Sun.
The Planets in November Mercury:
Mercury is in inferior injunction on the 1st and moves quickly to be in greatest western elongation (19째) on the 18th. Visible in the early morning from the tropics and northern latitudes, Mercury can be viewed from the second week of November until December.
Venus:
Reaching eastern elongation (47째) on the 1st and from the southern hemisphere Venus will appear quite beautiful as it is visible in the early evening for most of the month. A good photo opportunity will present itself on the 6th with the waxing crescent Moon passing over 7째 north of Venus. An example of a Hybrid Solar Eclipse Credit: NASA
Mars:
This month, Mars is an early morning object as it is moving from Leo into Virgo throughout the month although the waning crescent Moon passes south of the red planet on the 27th.
Jupiter:
Jupiter is brilliant in Gemini this month, visible rising from the British Isles from early evening and visible throughout the night. It switches to retrograde motion on the 7th so appears stationary for a while.
Saturn:
Saturn is in conjunction with the Sun this month so will not be visible from the northern hemisphere, but may be visible for the keen of eye in the southern hemisphere low in the predawn sky. The sky as it would appear at midnight on the 15th of November from London. Credit: heavensabove.com
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November 2013
Deep Sky Objects in November
M31 - Andromeda Galaxy
M38 - Open Cluster
IC 5146 - Cocoon Nebula
At two million light-years away, the Andromeda Galaxy, M31, is the brightest visible galaxy visible from the northern hemisphere. The galaxy is close to overhead at 21:30 UT on Friday 8th. At magnitude +3.50 the galaxy should be visible to the naked eye and easily seen through a pair of binoculars. But if using a telescope, it is advised that the lowest power and widest-field eyepiece are used.
Found near the centre of Auriga and at a reasonable magnitude of 6.4 and a size of 21’, at least forty out of the one-hundred or so 155 million year old cluster stars can be seen through a 4-inch telescope. NGC 1907 can also be seen. This cluster is much fainter and smaller with a magnitude of 10.2, and at 6’ in size. In contrast to their appearance, these two clusters are about the same age and distance.
The Cocoon is a favourite target for amateur astronomers wanting a good photo, but it is often overlooked visually because it is quite faint. The photo above contains a combination of HII region - red - and reflection nebula - blue - cut by dark lanes of dust. The combination of these filters make for beautiful colour photographs, but unfortunately the nebula is not nearly as impressive through the eyepiece.
Credit: NASA
Comet ISON
Credit: NASA
Credit: NASA
The squares show the positions of the above deep sky objects; 1)M31, 2)M38 and 3) IC 5146 Credit: Stellarium 0.11.4
Until late November, the comet will be in the eastern morning sky at around 5am, UK time, but will become visible to the naked eye on the night of the 15th until the 22nd when it disappears as it begins its turn around the Sun. However, if ISON becomes a ‘Great Comet,’ it should not take much finding as it should be perfectly visible in the eastern sky just before dawn. There is also the possibility that the comet will fizzle out, but even if this happens, it shall still be worth looking for through binoculars or a telescope. November Key Events: 7th - Begins its pass under Virgo 18th - Near Spica 24th - Close to Saturn and Mercury 28th - Perihelion occurs at 18:40 UT, also at peak brightness
Comet ISON - May 8, 2013 Credit: NASA and ESA
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November 2013
Astrophotography
UNIverse
Object: Filters app Taken with Solar Megrez 72 by
Object: M17 - Omega (Swan) nebula Taken with SLOOH telescope by Paul Merriman
Object: T Filters appli Taken with SLO By Aaron Bond on t
Object: “Gulf Region” of NGC 7000 (North America Nebula) Filters applied: Baader Ha filter Equipment: WO123 refractor, Atik460 mono camera. Taken by Helen Usher
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The Sun plied: Ha rscope SF70 on a y Helen Usher
he Moon ied: Colour OOH Telescope the 24th April 2013
November 2013 UNIverse
Showcasing some of the best monthly images submitted by the BSc Observational Astronomy students of the University of South Wales
Object: M8 - Lagoon Nebula Filters applied: Colour Composite (R, V, B) Taken with Faulkes Telescope North Operated by Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network and taken by Ryan D’Arcy
Object: M107 (Globular Cluster) Filters applied: Colour Composite (R, V, B) Taken with Faulkes Telescope North Operated by Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network and taken by Simon Shelford
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November 2013
Messier 64: A Galaxy “M
UNIverse
Although many experienced observers prefer to target faint deep sky objects on the NGC list, there are no finer deep sky o doubt run Messier marathons wherein all 109 objects can be seen in one night. The catalogue is one of the finest introdu in the back of the mind is a reverent gratitude to this old observer for drawing attention to such heavenly delights.
Many of the objects within the catalogue were not Messier’s discoveries; he always gave due credit to other astronomers such discovery was a “nebula in Coma Berenices” discovered on 23rd March 1779 by Edward Pigott, a remarkable observe of the discovery, the Pigott family were living at Frampton House in the Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales. Pigott’s sighting w
The Vale of Glamorgan, then as now is dotted with farms and manor houses connections by land and sea to England and the continent, the Bristol cha Pigott’s family were independently wealthy, related to Viscount Fairfax through Gregory eventually changed his name to Fairfax and inherited Gilling Castle in of the large family estates that the Pigott’s moved to after spending many yea set up in the garden there was equipped with a quadrant and a three foot fo Dolland of London. Both father and son made several discoveries at Framp ments; the father discovering the double stars a Delphini, b Aquarii and x Pe nebula in Coma which Messier later indexed as M64.
A typical telescopic view of M64 through a 20cm scope. 20 sec exposure on Canon 1000d 80mm Equinox ED. Credit: M Griffiths
Anyone caring to look through K Glyn Jones original book on Messier’s Nebulae note that the discovery of M64 is generally ascribed to J E Bode. However, arc that Edward saw the nebula 12 days before Bode but he did not communica to Neville Maskelyne until 3rd September 1779 and the report was not made thus losing out on priority. Messier independently discovered the object on 1 This order of preference was eventually corrected by Bryn Jones in 2002 afte of Pigott’s original papers.
So what does M64 look like? According to Pigott its light was “exceedingly weak” and the object was about 2 minutes o extension. He plotted its position, determining the nebula’s location in the constellation to within two minutes of arc w transit telescope. Although the discovery was reported by Maskelyne and published in the Philosophical Transactions, littl was made of it. Other observers then picked up the object, notably William Herschel who showed it to Sir Charles Blagde spring evening, who exclaimed that it looked like a “black eye”. The name has stuck ever since. John Herschel also observe object thinking it to be a bright nebula with a possible double star at the centre. William Lassell also reported M64 in 1841 made a drawing of the object for his report to the Royal Society.
A 60 second exposure of M64 using an SBIG 7E CCD on 25cm Meade LX200 at COAA Observatory, Portugal. Credit: COAA
We now know that M64 is a fantastic galaxy lying 24 million light years aw containing 100 billion stars in an area about 51,000 LY across. Recent studies ha concluded that the “black eye” dust lane, the object’s most conspicuous featu is the result of a merger with another galaxy over 1 billion years ago. The out arms and dust lane are counter-rotating against the nucleus of M64 and t shear pressure has resulted in rapid star formation. Through any small telesco the galaxy is a grey white spot of light about 5’ arc in diameter (larger telescop will reveal more detail in the hazy outer edges and thus increase the angu size) and a conspicuous darkening to the north of the nucleus is visible. A 20 telescope will reveal this dust lane as a prominent part of the galaxy’s struct and a small starry nucleus will also become obvious. With careful observation use of averted vision it is possible to make out 2 or three knotty starburst reg against the dust lane with one just to the south of the nucleus being elon and the largest of these objects. M64 is an easy galaxy to photograph; even a exposure brings out the dust lane and most obvious visual features.
When examining this object in the spring or summer, spare a thought for its discoverer and the location it was discov Amongst the details of Messier’s list are such locales as Switzerland, Germany, France and Spain; who would have though would make it into the catalogue? The lush farmland, the steady air and good seeing of the Vale of Glamorgan still have the astronomer located here though it must have been less light polluted in Pigott’s day. M64 stands out as a lovely sprin sky observers. Hopefully its Welsh connection will make it an object of special interest to amateur astronomers across Cy 16
November 2013
Made in Wales”
UNIverse
by Martin Griffiths
objects than those within the Messier catalogue. Some readers have no uctions to deep sky observing. Whenever one examines an “M” object,
s who passed details of the objects on to him for verification. One er and the son of the astronomer Nathaniel Pigott. At the time was the only Messier object discovered in the principality.
s and is predominantly rural yet with good travel annel being just 2 miles away to the south. h marriage. Nathaniel’s eldest son, Charles n Yorkshire. Frampton House was a part ars in France. The observatory they ocal length 2” telescope made by pton House using these instruegasi; Edward discerning the
e and Star Clusters will chive records reveal ated the discovery public until 1781 1st March 1780. er his analysis
of arc in with the le more en one ed the 1 and
way, ave ure, ter the ope pes ular cm ture n and gions gated a short
vered from. ht that Wales attractions for ng beacon for dark ymru.
The Black Eye Galaxy (Messier 64) as viewed by the Hubble space telescope. Credit: NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI)
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November 2013
Media Reviews
UNIverse
Book: “The Commonwealth Saga” (Pandora’s Star & Judas Unchained) by Peter F. Hamilton Humanity has advanced and the joint discovery of wormhole travel, and bodily regenerating has meant that we are expanding at an ever increasing rate, creating a new Commonwealth. However, all is not as perfect as it may seem; a star far outside humanities domain simply disappears, leading to speculation and ultimately subterfuge as freedom fighters on the planet Far Away claim that an alien intelligence called The Starflyer has infiltrated the higher echelons of the commonwealth and are ultimately plotting its demise. Pandora’s Star does a very good job in setting up the story, and what life is like in the 24th century, and entices you to read on, never knowing how things will turn out, and always keeping you guessing how things will turn out, and the overall pacing of the books is very good, however the ending does fall a little flat. Only one of the characters was particularly unlikable, but considering an ensemble of approximately a dozen characters, this was an acceptable problem. One problem I did find was that there was never any threat of a permanent death, yes, people were killed, but with the regeneration facilities, they can whip up a new body in a matter of months, and so I never felt this as a threat. One of the noticeable things about the series are the aliens, these are truly alien and in many ways beyond human comprehension, adding to the depth of the Commonwealth universe. Regardless of its few flaws, it is well worth a read.
FUN.
Class O or Class T?
Author, Peter F. Hamilton Credit: Georges Seguin via Wikimedia Commons
3 out of 5 stars
A profile project to create an H-R diagram of Astronomy’s ‘hottest and nottest,’ rating from the hottest - Class O, to the coldest - Class T, and to discuss and recognise their contributions to the field of astronomical science. Oh, and how attractive they are.
Dr. Karen Nyberg
Mechanical Engineer, NASA astronaut & 50th woman in space. In 1998, after working as co-op at the Johnson Space Centre from 1991 to 1995 and after completing her doctorate, Nyberg joined the Crew and Thermal Systems Division at JSC working as an Environmental Control Systems Engineer. However, she was selected as an Astronaut Candidate by NASA in July 2000 and after two years of training she became a Mission Specialist and flew her first of two missions to the ISS in 2008, delivering components for the Japanese Kibō Laboratory, logging more than 13 days in space.
Credit: NASA/ISS crew
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The 44 year old mechanical engineering graduate from Minnesota is currently aboard the ISS, serving as a flight engineer for Expedition 36, Dr. Nyberg is involved in several anatomical experiments aboard the ISS with her fellow astronauts Fyodor Yurchikhin and Luca Parmitano.
Nyberg uploads daily photos onto her official Twitter account @AstroKarenN and can be frequently seen on NASA’s ISS Youtube outreach channel talking about her work and life on the International Space Station. Through her constant endeavour to inspire the next generation of astronauts we believe that she has earned herself a respectable class of A2.
June 2013
Cosmic Crossword
UNIverse
Across 2. The SI unit of pressure (6) 4. An indication of the range of frequencies, or wavelengths (4, 5) 7. The splitting of the atomic nucleus of a heavy element, resulting in the emission of nuclear energy and possibly causing a chain reaction (7) 10. Photons of wavelengths between about 0.1 Å and 100 Å - more energetic than ultraviolet, but less energetic than gammarays (5) 12. An atomic nucleus having the same number of protons as a more commonly found atomic nucleus but a different number of neutrons (7) 13. The energy associated with motion (7) 15. Fourth satellite of Uranus, discovered by Herschel (7) 16. Newtonian space, enshrined in aether theory, was denied in relativity (8, 5) 21. The theory that more complex and varied atoms develop from simpler ones, as through the synthesis of heavy atomic nuclei in stars (9) 23. The critical radius, according to the general theory of relativity, at which a massive body becomes a black hole (13, 6) 24. A quantum leap through a barrier (7, 9) 26. A general term describing any signal that impairs the efficient working of an electronic device (5) 27. The shift of spectral lines toward longer wavelengths in the spectrum of a receding source of radiation (8) 28. The term used to describe different quark types (7) 29. The fundamental unit of temperature in the SI system (6) Down 1. The fourth flavour (5) 3. A defect of refracting telescopes whereby light of different colours is focused at different distances behind the objective (9, 10) 5. When a wave is incident upon a barrier which is broken by a narrow slit of comparable size to the wavelength (11) 6. A Universe is called _______ if it would look the same to all observers, no matter where they were located (11) 8. A measure of the rotational deformation of a rotating body in hydrostatic equilibrium (4, 6) (2 Words) 9. The total celestial cosmos (8) 11. A band about 8° wide on the celestial sphere, centred on the ecliptic (6)
14. Light in the night-time sky caused by the collision of atoms and molecules (7) 17. The science of light (6) 18. Band that runs from top left to bottom right on the HertzsprungRussell diagram representing the majority of stars (4, 8) 19. The name of a hypothetical planet at one time thought to exist between the Sun and Mercury (6) 20. Period of time based on the revolution of the Earth around the Sun (4) 21. A measure of the amount of unavailable heat in a system; or a measure of the amount of disorder in a system (7) 22. The time-reversal of a black hole (5, 4) 25. Element created within supernovae with atomic number 79 (4)
Answers to June’s Crossword Across 6. Celestial mechanics 8. Equator 9. Dark energy 11. Singularity 13. Conjunction 14. Astrometry 20. Betelgeuse
22. Astrobiology 23. Parsec 25. SETI 26. Red dwarf
Down 1. Asteroid 2. Cosmological constant 3. Focal length 4. Luminosity 5. Aberration 7. Stephen Hawking 10. Fluorescence
12. Inertia 15. Hypernova 16. Hubble’s Law 17. Brown dwarf 18. Meteoroid 19. NGC 24. Crater
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“If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe.” - Carl Sagan
Written and published by the BSc Observational Astronomy students of the University of South Wales © 2013 USW