Heh.  I was tapped out, too much stuff to read today and none of it jogging my brain's creative center.  I stumbled on this fun toy and played around with it for a bit; it's amusing and will do until the Muse dignifies me with her presence.  (Blast that blog monkey on my back; he's only insistent on posting, not on quality!)  Enjoy!

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the blackest gift

10:58:25 PM    comment []

Sure hope you’ll be able to catch this wherever you are; it may be too cloudy here for viewing.  In my locale in Michigan, the moon will rise about 7:20 pm.  The special treat will be Jupiter’s appearance in the sky in tandem with the moon; they will be less than a fist apart in the sky, dancing together across night.

While you’re checking your Sky Chart at Sky and Telescope, be sure to note the story about the Hubble Telescope.  It seems that the House of Representatives has heard loud and clear the public’s objection to the shuttering of Hubble and now wants to do something to prevent it.  You’ll also note a couple of important and developing science stories to which Hubble contributes – the first about the finding of the oldest objects to date in the universe, at the farthest edge of the universe, and about dark matter’s role in the expansion of the universe.  Damned good stuff; we should continue this kind of work rather than throw away our best tool only to sit and speculate for decades until a better tool comes along.

Happy skywatching!

3:25:31 PM    comment []