And a Happy St. Patrick’s Day 2011 to you and to NASA whose space probe Messenger is to go into elliptical orbit around speedy Mercury tonight and for one Earth year after.Here’s a Timeline of the 6-year+ project to investigate Mercury.NASA’s Messenger page has lots of info (apt for anything to do with Astrology’s mental planet, Mercury!) and says that Orbital Insertion begins tonight at 8:45 pm
Tag: astronomy
Behemoth Sunspot 1166’s X-CLASS Solar Flare 3.9.11
Space Weather News for March 10, 2011X-CLASS SOLAR FLARE: March 9th ended with a powerful solar flare. Less than an hour before midnight (UT), Earth-orbiting satellites detected an X1.5-class explosion from behemoth sunspot 1166. First-look data suggest that the blast did hurl some material toward Earth. Check SpaceWeather News for movies of the flare and updates on its possible effects. SOLAR
View a Horoscope of the First Moon Landing
Update 6:00 pm est: Alex D’Atria of GOP Astrology has sent along the coordinates for the First Moon Landing from NASA’s Apollo info for those who are interested:Apollo 11 (Columbia and Eagle)Saturn V (AS-506, SM-107, CM-107, LM-5)July 16-24, 1969Neil A. Armstrong (commander), Michael Collins (CM pilot), Edwin E. (Buzz) Aldrin Jr. (LM pilot)08 days, 03 hours, 18 minutesFirst manned lunar landing
Major Solar Flare erupts, Uprisings across globe 2.15.11
As Above, So Below…eruptions are flaring up all over the place, including space:Space Weather News for Feb 15, 2011MAJOR FLARE: Earth-orbiting satellites have detected the strongest solar flare in more than four years. At 0156 UT on Feb 15th, giant sunspot 1158 unleashed an X2-class eruption. X-flares are the strongest type of x-ray flare, and this is the first such eruption of new Solar Cycle
Eclipse photos Jan 4, 2011
This year, the most unusual gift I received for my birthday is this morning’s Solar Eclipse!Space Weather News for Jan 4, 2011FANTASTIC SOLAR ECLIPSE: When the sun rose over Europe this morning, a piece of it was missing. The Moon had covered as much as 86% of the solar disk, producing a partial solar eclipse and a fantastic crescent-shaped sunrise. The most amazing apparition, however, may have
Quadrantid Meteors and a Solar Eclipse Jan 4, 2011
Space Weather News for Jan 3, 2011QUADRANTID METEOR SHOWER: Sky watchers in the northen hemisphere should be alert for meteors before sunrise on Tuesday, Jan. 4th. Earth is about to pass through a narrow stream of debris from shattered comet 2003 EH1, the parent of the annual Quadrantid meteor shower. Forecasters say the encounter could produce a fast flurry of 100 meteors per hour during the
There Be Storms on Saturn! Dec 28, 2010
Zeeks! With America’s Saturn Return 14Lib48 well underway into 2011, the planet of accountability, responsibility, authority, stability, and restriction is experiencing a time of unstable weather. Sound familiar?Space Weather News for Dec 28, 2010BIG STORM ON SATURN: Got a telescope for Christmas? Point it at Saturn. A giant storm even brighter than Saturn’s rings is raging through the planet’s
There Be Storms on Saturn! Dec 28, 2010
Zeeks! With America’s Saturn Return 14Lib48 well underway into 2011, the planet of accountability, responsibility, authority, stability, and restriction is experiencing a time of unstable weather. Sound familiar?Space Weather News for Dec 28, 2010BIG STORM ON SATURN: Got a telescope for Christmas? Point it at Saturn. A giant storm even brighter than Saturn’s rings is raging through the planet’s
SpaceWeather News: Lunar Eclipse Dec 21, 2010
Space Weather News for Dec 19, 2010LUNAR ECLIPSE: For the first time in many years, northern winter is beginning with a total lunar eclipse. On Dec 21, 2010, the date of the northern winter solstice, the full Moon will pass through Earth’s shadow, turning the lunar orb a delightful shade of coppery-red. Sky watchers in North America are favored with an overhead view as the eclipse unfolds on
New Comet glides by Saturn; Sunspot 1121 update
Space Weather News for Nov 8, 2010POSSIBLE COMET OUTBURST: A comet discovered just a few days ago by amateur astronomers in Japan is gliding by Saturn in the pre-dawn sky. Comet Ikeya-Murakami (C/2010 V1) is not visible to the unaided eye, but observers say it is a fairly easy target for backyard telescopes. Images obtained over the weekend reveal what appears to be an outburst in progress. The