Engineers at the NASA/CalTech operated Jet Propoulsion Laboratory (JPL) have found an ingenious way to entend the life of the aging spacecraft – the only one to visit the ice giants, Uranus and Neptune and is now sending back vital data about the region beyond the Heliosphere – the region […]
Planet 9 – The Controversial missing planet?
We know a lot about the solar system – but we also know so little. Over the last century or so there have been several theories of additional planets inhabiting both the inner and the outer solar system. Vulcan During the 19th century it was discovered the planet Mercury was […]
The Hitch-hikers Guide to the Universe
A lot of people out there have an interest in the heavens to one extent or another, some take it to the level of professional qualifications, some have simply educated themselves and know as much, if not more, than some professional astronomers – but the educational information available on the […]
Revisiting where we may find life and the Drake equation
Where should we look for life? Developed in 1961 by the late Frank Drake, a giant of the SETI community, it was an initial attempt to ascertain how many intelligent civilisations might exist that humanity could potentially communicate with. Every parameter was a best guess, nothing definitive was known, and […]
Impacts – how often, how deadly, can we prevent them?
Over the years of humanity looking to the heavens we have been aware of ‘stuff’ burning up in the atmosphere, in the early days we did not know what this was or where it came from, there are stories of “stones from the heavens” thrown by angry gods and in […]
When is a planet not a planet?
In 2006 the IAU (international Astronomical Union) held a meeting, IAU0603, and resolution 5A discussed the “Definition of a Planet”. Courtesy the IAU. RESOLUTIONS Resolution 5A is the principal definition for the IAU usage of “planet” and related terms. Resolution 6A creates for IAU usage a new class of objects, […]
Former mini-Neptune/ice dwarf – or just Terrestrial?
The astronomy world has been abuzz for several years regarding the discovery of so many mini-Neptunes – planets that seems to be similar in characteristics to Neptune, but smaller. A Mini-Neptune, also called an ice dwarf or transitional planet, is a planet less massive than Neptune but resembling Neptune in […]
Betelgeuse Update – Smaller and Nearer than first thought.
This article was originally published by the Australian National University and all rights are reserved by them. Supergiant star Betelgeuse smaller, closer than first thought Friday, October 16, 2020 — It may be another 100,000 years until the giant red star Betelgeuse dies in a fiery explosion, according to a new study by an international team of […]
Colonising Mars
There is a lot of debate about colonising Mars, in fact the conversations have been had for more than 100 years, but realistic plans to at least land humans on Mars are around 50 years old. In 1976 the debate grew when NASA successfully landed the Viking 1 and 2 […]
News – 12 August 2020
Researchers have concluded that the molten rock and cooled volcanic glass present on the surface of Lava-Ocean Planets is unlikely to be the cause of their brightness, some of which have an albedo higher than Earth. This is intriguing, these lava-Ocean worlds are similar in size to Earth but whizz […]
The Moon – our amazing companion
For as long as humans have gazed upward to the sky, there are many who gazed is awe at the site of the Moon in our sky. For many thousands of years the Moon has been both a source of inspiration and terror in all cultures around the world, with […]
NUCLEOSYNTHESIS IN STARS
How the elements are made The manufacture of all the elements of the periodic table is the result of nucleosynthesis within stars, successively heavier elements are created by combining the atoms that form the nuclei of lighter elements. The most abundant element in the observable Universe is Hydrogen, which occurs in […]
Life in the Universe : Where is it; Will it be intelligent; Can we Communicate; Can we meet?
Humans have pondered these questions about the Universe, to one degree or another, for at least several hundred years, perhaps thousands of years, yet despite the advances in society, science and our overall understanding of the Universe, we are still no closer to answering these questions, or are we closer […]
Black Holes – The end of Space-Time Jim, but only as we know it!
Black holes are some of the most enigmatic but fascinating objects in the Universe. They appear to be the final chapter in the life of massive stars, packing material in so densely that the gravitational field is so strong that electromagnetic radiation (light to you and me) cannot escape. The […]
Supernova Classifications
The story of Betelgeuse has kicked things off, so it seems appropriate to discuss Supernova. I am sure if I asked the question; “What is a Supernova“ Most would answer the obvious, “An old star exploding at the end of it’s life“ Whilst true, it is also not accurate either. […]
The Most likely Naked Eye Supernova
ETA Carina. (10h 45m 03.591s / −59° 41′ 04.26″) It is believed that before Western Sailors ventured south enough to see Eta Carina, once called Eta Argus, that is was the brightest star in the sky as seen from Earth, perhaps as bright as magnitude -4.3, however, since it was […]
Betelgeuse, and the story of a Supernova
There has been quite a bit of discussion of late regarding the dimming of the star α Orionis (Alpha Orionis) or commonly known as Betelgeuse. Betelgeuse is a semi-regular variable Supergiant Star that is located to the upper right of the attached Hertzsprung-Russel diagram. It is classified as spectral class M1-M 2-1a […]