+ . * . . . + . . +
. . . db . . . . . + + . .
+ . . .d88b . . + . ,d . . . . . . .
. . . d8'`8b + . . . 88 . + . . . + .
. + d8' `8b . ,adPPYba, MM88MMM 8b,dPPYba, ,adPPYba, . .
. . . d8YaaaaY8b . I8[ ."" . 88 . 88P' . "Y8 a8" . "8a * .
+ . . d8""""""""8b `"Y8ba, .88. 88 + . 8b . d8 . +
. .d8' + . `8b aa . ]8I 88, .88 * "8a, . ,a8" + .
. . d8' . + `8b `"YbbdP"' + "Y888 88 . . `"YbbdP"' . . .
. d8' + . . * .. . .. . + . . . . .
* .d8' . T H E A R M C H A I R A S T R O N O M E R . + .
. + . + .. . . . + * . . +
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
/// VOLUME I, NUMBER 2 FEBRUARY 1995 ///
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
I N T H I S I S S U E
(-01-) Welcome Back!
(-02-) COLUMN: This Month in Astronomy
(-03-) COLUMN: The Software Page
(-04-) COLUMN: The Net Surfer (Using the Web)
(-05-) Music from the Hearts of Space Radio Show
(-06-) Star Date Radio Program
(-07-) NASA: Cyberspace at JPL
(-08-) ESA: On the Track of El-Nino
(-09-) NASA: Two Hubble Images Show Aftermath of Violent Cosmic Events
(-10-) NASA: Reusable Launch Vehicles
(-11-) NASA: International Space Station Agreement
(-12-) COLUMN: Planetarium News (Star Trek)
(-13-) NASA: Mars Exploration Planned
(-14-) NASA: Pluto Fast Flyby redefined as Pluto Express
(-15-) LOCAL: Impression 5 Science Center Needs Volunteers
(-16-) Subscription and Other Pertinent Information
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-01-) W E L C O M E B A C K !
Welcome to the second issue of _The Armchair Astronomer_, a monthly e-zine
devoted to the study and application of astronomy and its impact on the
average layperson.
This month I have added two (hopefully) regular columns that I hope you
will enjoy. The first covers new software, and the second covers everything
out there in cyberspace. I have also changed the table of contents slightly
so that you can more easily see at a quick glance what issues will be
covered this month.
The parenthetical reference numbers at the begiining of each line in the
table of contents can be used to search ahead for any particular article of
interest. Note that the subject lines will vary from those shown in the
table of contents, so just use the numbers for your searches.
Thanks for your feedback! Many readers of our first issue requested the
addition of HTML codes [see (-03-)] throughout the issue for ease of use.
Date: Tue, 10 Jan 1995 10:32:52 -0800
From: alan houser
To: vanhoose@cl-next4.cl.msu.edu
Subject: ASTRO feedback
Bravo, Todd...
I am adding your ezine to my hotlist, and I have several Scouts
who are beginning work on Space Exploration Merit Badge whom I
will point in its direction.
One suggestion: you should make the table of contents clickable,
so that people can jump to the article they want. Especially
helpful when using Lynx or another line-based browser.
Alan R. Houser ** Scoutmaster, Berkeley Troop 24 ** troop24@emf.net
** Troop 24 WWW page ** http://www.emf.net/~troop24/t24.html **
Another subscriber suggested that some imbedded graphics would also
increase appeal to the somewhat non-technical target audience I have
selected. My reasons for not doing so are twofold. First, I do this out of
my spare time, and I don't have a lot of that. Second, I must appeal to
the least common denominator, and many of my readers have only e-mail
access, so there is no practical way of incorporating either HTML or
graphics. The only way to do so would be to produce two versions of the
same issue, one with graphics and codes and the other without, which
brings us back to my first problem.... So, for now, barring any monetary
or chronological windfalls, I will be limiting this e-zine to pure ASCII.
I would also like to personally welcome all the Boy Scouts reading this
e-zine. Scouting is where I was first really exposed to astronomy, and I
use the skills and values I learned in Scouting every day of my life.
Best wishes to you all!
Oh, and one more thing: this month's issue is rather lengthy. If the
sheer weight, so to speak, of this newsletter is scaring you off, do not
worry. I'm just clearing out an especially large mailbox of astronomy
information this month.
That aside, let us move along to the real heart of the matter. Turn your
lights down, sit back, relax, and begin your journey to the stars....
- Todd, Eagle Scout Class of '87
31 January 1995
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-02-) T H I S M O N T H I N A S T R O N O M Y - F E B R U A R Y
Every month this column will try to prepare readers for upcoming
astronomical events both up in the sky and down on the ground.
If you know of an event that should be posted here, please send
mail to vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu.
9 FEB marks the 5th anniversary of the 1990 VENUS FLYBY by the GALILEO
SPACECRAFT. MARS is in OPPOSITION on 11 FEB. 17 FEB marks the 65th
anniversary of the DISCOVERY OF PLUTO by CLYDE TOMBAUGH.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-03-) T H E S O F T W A R E P A G E
The Software Page is a place for announcements and reviews of
new astronomy-related software (both commercial and shareware).
If you have a product that would like to be reviewed or promoted
in this column or if you have a review of a package that you would
like to share, please send e-mail to vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu.
FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN MACINTOSH ARCHIVES (mac.archive.umich.edu)
/mac/misc/astronomy/mpjastro1.3.sea.hqx
1358 1/9/95 BinHex4.0,SelfExtractingArchive
Planetarium type astronomy program. For any date and time from the
year 1 to 4000, from any location on Earth, it displays the positions
of the stars, planets, Sun and Moon. Features include solar system
charts, eclipse tracking, all constellations, and more.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-04-) T H E N E T - S U R F E R
This column explores the frequently uncharted waters of the Internet
in search of sites, files, web pages and anything else that is
related to the study and application of astronomy.
The world of electronic communication is expanding at an astounding rate,
and new services and features are being introduced constantly. This column
will surf the stars, so to speak, in search of sites on space. By way of
introduction to net-surfing, some explanation of the most popular
netspace, the WORLD-WIDE WEB, should be given.
The World-Wide Web (WWW) is a collection of computers that share hypertext-
based data to one-another. HYPERTEXT is text with imbedded "anchors," or
pointers, to other text documents. Most of these documents are plain ASCII
text files with special formatting codes added. One common formatting code
standard is called the Hypertext Markup Language, or HTML (those of you
already comfortable with file formats may notice that many of the files I
will be pointing out to you soon have "html" as their "extension").
Hypertext files are shared with the rest of the world--or with the rest of
the Web at least--using special software that supports the Hypertext
Transport Protocol, or HTTP (you'll see this acronym again soon too).
HTTP requires that all files be locatable by a Universal Resource Locator,
or URL. A URL comes in some variety of this form:
protocol://host:port/path/file.extension
URL formatting is increasingly being used in various different software
applications, so you'll no doubt come across one some time.
Now, before you can use any of this information, you need HTTP "client"
software, i.e., software that can help your computer (the client) hook up
to someone else's computer (the server). The two most popular packages for
net surfing are Mosaic and Netscape. They both have shareware versions
that you can use. That and some network software is all you need to start
"net surfing."
If you've made it this far, you're ready to visit some Web pages. This
e-zine sits on one of them; the URL for it is:
http://lalaland.cl.msu.edu/~vanhoose/astro/news.html
Combined with some HTML code, this entry might look something like this:
The Armchair Astronomer
The above lines produce an entry on your screen that lets you, with a
single click, visit the most recent edition of this very publication.
Now that we have everything down, I'll provide to you, in a format
suited for ASCII display, some of the URLs that I like the most (please
note, experienced net-surfers, that all of these links are available
through my Web pages at "http://lalaland.cl.msu.edu/~vanhoose/link.html"):
Todd's Astronomy Mailing List Archive (archived articles and columns)
http://lalaland.cl.msu.edu/~vanhoose/astro.html
AstroWeb, the Astronomy Web Service (astronomy and astrophysics links)
http://fits.cv.nrao.edu/www/astronomy.html
Guide to NASA Online Resources (pointers to everything from NASA on the net)
http://naic.nasa.gov/naic/guide/
Welcome to the Planets (tour of the planets)
http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/
The Nine Planets (tour of all the planets)
http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/nineplanets.html
Space Activism Home Page (politics and the space program)
http://muon.qrc.com/space/start.html
The Space Calendar (all the major upcoming astronomical events)
http://newproducts.jpl.nasa.gov/calendar/calendar.html
Astronomy and Space Science Education Resources (excellent resources)
http://www.halcyon.com/cairns/astro.html
In future months we will continue to explore various links to cyberspace.
If you have any of your own that you like, please let me know!
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-05-) Music from the Hearts of Space Radio Show
[Excerpted from the HOS Home Page]
To explore [...] sounds and spaces, in 1973 [producer Stephen Hill] began
Music from the Hearts of Space as a weekly three-hour live radio program
on KPFA-FM in Berkeley, California. Joined a year later by former co-
producer Anna Turner, the show became a weekly habit for thousands of
northern California listeners. Ms. Turner left the program in 1987 to
pursue independent writing and production projects, and Hill now works
with associate producer Neil Harvey and occasional guest producers.
After ten years development as a local program, Music from the Hearts
of Space began national syndication to 35 stations via the NPR satellite
in January, 1983. Within three years, Hearts of Space had signed its
200th station. Now passing its tenth year, it is the #1 contemporary
music program on public radio, carried by over 285 stations, including
30 in the top 40 markets.
From its inception as a 3 hour free-form mix, Hearts of Space has
evolved into a tightly structured, artfully edited music experience.
With minimal commentary, it combines the best of contemporary
electronics, classical adagios, space jazz, and contemplative acoustic
musics from around the world.
Hearts of Space now has its own node on the global Internet. Currently
accessible through gopher at hos.com [URL: "gopher://hos.com"], the Hearts
of Space server contains every playlist from mid-1990 to the present, a
list of stations that carry the radio program, release sheets for every
title in the HOS catalog, an order form, artist bios, and more. You can
get each week's HOS playlist delivered to your e-mailbox by sending the
word "subscribe" [no quotes] to playlist-request@hos.com, and credit card
orders for HOS titles are accepted at orders@hos.com. Any e-mail message
to info@hos.com will get you an up-to-the-nanosecond guide to Hearts of
Space online offerings. Our server is administered by Liberty Hill
Cyberwerks.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-06-) Star Date Radio Program
[Excepted from the Star Date Home Page]
The Star Date radio series is celebrating its sixteenth anniversary
this year. It is the longest running science feature in the country.
Every day, this daily series of two-minute programs, which airs on
about 200 radio stations in the United States, its territories, and
Canada, informs millions of listeners about the universe.
Star Date explores the night sky in a style that is both informative
and entertaining. It tells listeners about the stars and planets,
about the history and evolution of the Universe, the space program,
and about our own Earth. It explains the complicated events in our sky
in intelligent yet easy-to-understand language. Star Date also
describes the latest astronomical research, the history of astronomy,
and milestones in the human exploration of space. And it passes on the
rich and beautiful skylore from many cultures.
Star Date is produced by The University of Texas at Austin McDonald
Observatory, a major international research center and a leading
education and public information source.
Star Date began in 1977 as a telephone message service and quickly
went on the air in Austin as a daily radio program. With a grant from
the National Science Foundation (NSF No. OSS-7824651) the series began
national distribution in late 1978. With NSF support, it was
distributed to stations free, and within two years was heard on 1,000
radio stations in the United States, its territories, and Canada.
Prior to the end of the grant period in 1981, Star Date began charging
radio stations a subscription fee so that the program's costs could be
covered after NSF support ended. Star Date is currently funded in part
by NASA and in part by charging an acquisition fee in order to cover
Star Date has received several major awards from both science
organizations and broadcasters. In 1993 Star Date received the gold
medal from the New York Festivals International Radio Competition in
the science and technology category and in 1994 it received the bronze
medal. It has also received the Ohio State Award for "excellence in
public information broadcasting," the prestigious Dorothea
Klumpke-Roberts Award from the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for
"outstanding contributions to the public's appreciation and
understanding of astronomy," and a first-place award from the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting for "excellence in informational
programming."
Star Date is distributed on compact discs, which provide the greatest
possible fidelity through their digital format. Star Date receives many thousands of letters each year from adults and children who are motivated
to learn more about space after hearing one or more Star Date episodes. Listeners who write receive a copy of Star Date Magazine, a full-color, bi-monthly publication that provides in-depth information on astronomical
research as well as skywatching tips. Based on letters received in the
past from listeners, we know that Star Date has a significant impact on
scientific literacy.
STAR DATE CONTENT
Each month, Star Date offers a balance of astronomy and space-science
topics. About one-half of each month's programs are related to
skywatching: eclipses, meteor showers, planetary conjunctions, stars
and constellations, and so on. These scripts contain both pertinent
observational details -- when and where to look, and what to look for
-- and scientific background. For example, a script on a planetary
conjunction might emphasize that, while two planets appear near each
other in the sky, they are really tens or hundreds of millions of miles
apart. Or a script on a particular star might relate information about
the star's temperature and composition, or about its mythology.
Mythologies are not limited to those of the Greeks or other western
European cultures; Star Date strives to incorporate the skylore of
American Indian tribes, African tribes, Oriental cultures, and other
civilizations.
Other topics are related to important anniversaries -- the birthdays
of important astronomers, or anniversaries of key scientific
discoveries or space-exploration accomplishments. These scripts not
only describe the events, they try to place them in the appropriate
context. A script on the birthday of Copernicus, for example, would
describe how his findings revolutionized human understanding of the
universe, and of humanity's place in the cosmos.
A third topic area is recent discoveries in astronomy, astrophysics,
and physics. We try to convey the latest research results on
everything from quasars to extrasolar planets to neutrinos.
Star Date also looks inward, toward planet Earth. We discuss how Earth
interacts with the space environment, how scientific satellites
examine Earth from orbit, and how Earth compares to the other planets
in our solar system.
Finally, Star Date covers a variety of topics that may be related only
peripherally to the core subject of astronomy, but that help place
astronomy in a broader historical, scientific, and cultural
perspective. These topics include information on the evolution of the
calendar, pieces on artistic works related to the heavens, and any
other topic that conveys information on the importance of astronomy to
our history, culture, and our daily lives.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The StarDate Radio Script Archive is available at URL:
http://www.as.utexas.edu:80/PIO/SD_scripts/
The McDonald Observatory home page is available at URL:
http://www.as.utexas.edu/PIO/PIO_page.html
For more information about the StarDate Radio show or the monthly
StarDate magazine, call 1-800-NIGHT-SKY (1-800-644-4875).
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-07-) Date: Jan 6 13:12 PST
Subject: Cyberspace at JPL
From: NasaNews
Space flight controllers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory may soon be
spending most of their time in cyberspace -- not to navigate the
Internet as most computer users would -- but to monitor real-world
spacecraft exploring new vistas in space billions of miles away.
The three-dimensional software tool that will make this possible --
called the Cyberspace Data Monitoring System -- is currently under
development at the Laboratory and being designed to monitor the health
and status of spacecraft and Earth-orbiting satellites.
The new software boasts colorful display grids of spacecraft
subsystems. Each grid can be rotated at different angles to give
controllers different dimensional views of the data. If the
information is being viewed at more than 100 percent on the screen, the
controller can "fly over" the data grid using a mouse and zoom in on
other subsystem information. Up to 20 or 30 individual spacecraft can
be monitored simultaneously with this new cyberspace feature.
"This graphical interface represents a next generation approach to
monitoring systems for a variety of space flight and terrestrial
applications," said Dr. Ursula Schwuttke, supervisor of the JPL Flight
Projects Office Information Systems Testbed, which is developing the
software interface.
"There are myriad advantages to displaying spacecraft subsystem
information in an abstract, visual way," she said. "Most importantly,
a visual software interface allows us to display a dramatically
increased amount of data all at the same time and it gives operators
immediate visual recognition of potential problems by using icons that
change in color or begin flashing when a situation is becoming serious
on board the craft."
The system is a departure from conventional text-based software
programs. Rather than displaying tables of alphanumeric data and text,
the cyberspace environment presents data in three dimensions, using
specified colors and shapes, such as squares, circles and diamonds, to
denote different data channels and values. Motion is used to denote
changes in status quo.
In the 3-D environment, flight controllers can pitch, yaw, roll, zoom
in and zoom out of data grids that are displaying information about the
status of spacecraft subsystems such as power, temperature, alarms and
star calibration reference points.
When a channel goes into alarm, its corresponding channel object or
icon changes color and position, said Robert Angelino, lead software
developer for the cyberspace project. Two types of alarms are detected
by the system: conventional limit-based alarms and trend alarms, which
have not typically been used in monitoring systems.
"Trend alarms display the rate of change of a channel value," Angelino
said. "If the rate of change exceeds a predefined magnitude over a
predefined time period, then the channel triggers a trend alarm. So,
for instance, if the temperature on board the spacecraft is heating up
to unusually high levels, or a gyro is beginning to drift off course,
the corresponding channel objects will change colors from yellow to
red. The channel objects will also spin if they are in yellow and flash
if they are being displayed in red.
"This scheme allows for the unambiguous display of all the various
alarm combinations," he said. "At any time, regardless of whether a
channel is in alarm, the user can click on a channel object using the
mouse and pop up a text window that displays all the information about
the channel that was selected, including its value and alarm status."
The software provides mission analysts with short- and long-term trend
analysis capabilities. Short-term trend analysis, consisting of the
trend alarming system of spinning and flashing motions and color
changes, occurs automatically. On-demand, long-term trend analysis
will provide detection of alarm conditions that manifest themselves
over extended periods of time and the ability to display plots of any
telemetry channel over the same time periods.
"Trend analysis is very important since JPL's Multimission Ground Data
System does not provide that capability and mission analysts currently
have access to trend information only if the analysis has been
performed by hand," Schwuttke said.
Cyberspace data monitoring software has been installed in JPL's mission
operations center and is being evaluated using real data from the
Magellan, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft. Data from all three
missions can be displayed in a single window and many more space flight
missions could be added to the system.
The software is also in the process of being installed at Kirtland Air
Force Base at the Phillips Lab Payload Operations Center in
Albuquerque, New Mexico, for the TAOS (Technology for Autonomous
Operational Survivability) mission, Schwuttke said. In addition, the
software is becoming increasingly popular within the Air Force. A
version of the program that displays data from TAOS, the Miniature
Seeker Technology Integration (MSTI-II) mission and other satellite
missions was demonstrated in November at Onizuka Air Force Base in
Sunnyvale, Calif.
The cyberspace interface is being developed as a generic monitoring
application that will be versatile and applicable to a variety of
ground-based industrial uses, such as monitoring levels of radiation in
nuclear power plants or levels of toxicity at chemical waste sites.
"The software clearly allows considerable flexibility in selecting the
classification and level of detail to be used for routine monitoring of
data," Schwuttke noted. "Cyberspace monitoring interfaces can also
work as a companion piece to other data processing tools for more
detailed data visibility."
Development of the Cyberspace Data Monitoring System is being carried
out with funding from the U.S. Air Force and the JPL Multimission
Operations Systems Office for NASA's Office of Space Science.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-08-) Date: 9 Jan 1995 01:22:26 -0800
Subject: On the Track of El-Nino
From: sci.space.news
European Space Agency
Press Infomation Note No. 26-94
Paris, France 30 November 1994
ON THE TRACK OF EL-NINO
Every year around Christmas, nature gives the fishermen of Peru a
break. When the westerly trade winds weaken in the southern summer,
the system of maritime streams running counterclockwise gets out of
step: the Humboldt stream, which carries cold, nutrition-rich water
northward along the coast of Chile, is pushed aside by warm northbound
water moving in from the equatorial region. For centuries, this
intermezzo has locally been called El-Nino, the Christ Child. It puts
fishermen out of work for a while, but most of the time it also brings the
long awaited rain. As autumn moves in and the southern hemisphere
begins to cool off, the trade winds regain their force, and with the cold
water the fish shoals return.
But there are times when this heavenly pause turns into hell, at least for
the fishermen. This occurs every few years in irregular intervals when El
Nino turns out to be particularly strong and the anchovies stay away
longer than usual. Because when that happens, heavy rains strike the
coastal deserts of Peru, covering the whole country with a dense layer of
green within a few weeks time. For the farmers, these are the anos de
abundancia, the year of abundance.
But such disruptions of the normal seasonal changes, which occur every
few years, not only strike the northwest coast of Latin America: on the
other side of the Pacific, in Southeast Asia and India, such seemingly
accidental mishaps have been known as long as anyone can remember.
One of the first to explore this phenomenon was Sir Gilbert Walker of
Great Britain, head of the meteorological observation service in India.
He wanted to find out why the rain-carrying monsoon did not materialize
in certain years, and he made a very interesting discovery in the process:
in normal times, atmospheric pressure over the south Pacific -- along the
eastern shore of New Zealand, which at that time was also part of the
British Empire -- was high, while the pressure above the Indian Ocean
was low, and this pressure differential boosted the monsoon. But when
the atmospheric pressure over the south Pacific weakened, the pressure
over the Indian Ocean increased, which kept the monsoon from
developing its full force, and the result was a dry year. To describe
this pressure transfer, Sir Gilbert coined the term "Southern
Oscillation", but he was unable to explain the phenomenon he had
observed.
In the eyes of today's climatologists, who, with the help of
sophisticated satellites, receive data simultaneously from all corners of
the world, this is hardly surprising: "Although Walker already took a trans-regional approach to climate phenomena, his concept was not
sufficiently global," explained Professor Klaus Hasselmann of the Max-Planck-Institut for Meteorology in Hamburg. "Because the same years
that bring devastating droughts to India give Peru a period of abundance.
And by now, the Southern Oscillation, which is equally responsible for dry years in India and the anos de abundancia in Peru, is also held
responsible for unusual dry spells in parts of the USA and Australia as
well as other irregularities of global weather," Hasselmann added.
Does this make the Pacific the "weather kitchen of the globe"? A
fascinating idea that challenges meteorologists and climatologists.
Because if it is confirmed, it might facilitate long-term weather
forecasts or at least trend analyses. To confirm this hypothesis,
scientists need as much precise information as possible to permit
mathematical modeling of the processes involved, thus giving them a
basis for comparing theory and reality. They not only need the usual
data about temperature, atmospheric pressure and wind direction and
speed, but also corresponding data on surface water layers which are in
constant exchange with the atmosphere.
In this respect, the European Space Agency's (ESA) remote sensing
satellite ERS-1 has, since its launch in July 1991, supplied valuable
information, which has helped to clause this annoying data gap. As
Professor David T. Llewellyn-Jones from the University of Leicester
explained, its instrumentation is particularly suited to the task of
measuring wind and water data simultaneously. "The sophisticated
radar system aboard this satellite permits continuous observation of the
ocean areas covered, registering the data required to determine wind
speed and direction while at the same time analyzing upwellings --
continually and globally in a 35-day pattern. A second instrument, the
ATSR (Along-Track Scanning Radiometer), scans the surface along the
satellite's path, thus providing detailed pictures of the temperature of
large distribution of water areas, with a precision of 0.5 degrees." "This
precision," says C.T. Mutlow of Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, "is
achieved by successively scanning the same ocean surface from two
different angles."
Another instrument that proved to be particularly valuable in observing El
Nino was the radar altimeter aboard the ERS-1 satellite. It permitted
comprehensive measuring of sea level changes, which previously could
be registered only by a number of coastal stations. The average sea
level indicates the cold and warm ocean currents almost like a map. With
the help of these data, scientists in 1991/92 were able to monitor an El-
Nino Southern Oscillation practically in real time. Since then, American
scientists even succeeded in proving traces of an El-Nino anomaly that
had occured ten years earlier, in 1982/83, and is considered to be the
strongest El-Nino of this century. Its early development was, almost
accidentally, observed by scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution and from Duke University in North Carolina, Aboard the
research ship "Conrad", which had been sent by the Lamont-Doherty
Geological Observatory on an expedition along the equator, they
registered, south of Hawaii, the starting point of their journey, a water
temperature of 27 degrees Celsius -- three degrees above the expected
value.
Normally, seasonal wind systems close to the equator push warmer and
thus lighter Pacific surface water westward to the coast of Southeast
Asia. The atmosphere there heats up, creating a rather durable low-
pressure area. At the same time, the air along the coast of Chile and
Peru is cooled off by the cold Humboldt stream and drops to the ground,
thus creating an equally durable high-pressure system. Professor
Hasselmann explained the modern view of an El-Nino anomaly as
follows: "This pressure differential between the western and the eastern
Pacific rim supports the trade winds, which propel the ocean currents
during most of the year. If the low-pressure system over the western
Pacific is reduced precisely at a time when the trade winds weaken
anyhow, the wind direction can, in the extreme case, be reversed and
move warm water towards the east."
In the early eighties, these patterns had not yet been fully explored so
that the scientists aboard the "Conrad" could not assess the implications
of their observations. As the warm surface water reached the west coast
of South America, the marine food chain was massively disrupted. Fish
shoals moved to other areas, and even the marine birds who normally
breed in large numbers on the coastal islands, were decimated or moved
on in search of other hunting grounds. The desert area along the South
America Pacific coast experienced extremely heavy rains, causing
numerous floods and mud-slides. And thousands of miles to the north,
the western United States also registered record precipitation. At the
same time, the region on the western Pacific rim (Australia, Indonesia,
the Philippines and India) were devastated by a lengthy drought, and
even in far-off Africa, the already difficult situation deteriorated
further. In its 1994 "Report to the Nation", the U.S. National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) evaluated the overall economic
damage attributable to El-Nino at more than 8 billion dollars worldwide.
In view of such global effects, forecasting El-Nino is of great ecological
and economic interest -- not only for South America. The first results
have been rather encouraging. Once an El-Nino event has been identified,
it is, for instance, now possible to forecast its development over
an 18-month period with the help of climate models. This can be used to
optimize crop planning in Peru: more rice in heavy El-Nino years with
strong rains, more cotton in years with little precipitation. Still
lacking is a system that will permit forecasting of El-Nino anomalies -- probably because not all aspects of a possibly self-regulating system of
interactions between the atmosphere and the ocean have yet been uncovered.
The new insights into the "aftermath" of the last major El-Nino anomaly,
which, to some extent, were gained with the help of ERS-1 data, can help
close this gap. It appears that there is a link between that event and
the rise of the surface temperature of the northern Pacific in 1992/93.
In the context of a long-term observation between 1986 and 1993, American
scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory in Mississippi and at the
University of Boulder, Colorado, first registered a slight rise of the
sea level along the U.S. west coast, which, beginning in the early
nineties, was accompanied by a warming-up of the northern Pacific beyond
the 35th parallel. This amounts to a northward drift of the Kuroshio
stream, which carries warm, salt-rich water from the western Pacific
south of the Japanese islands to the east, making it the equivalent of
the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic.
Still open is the question whether the extreme rainfalls in the
Mississippi area in the summer of 1993 were related to the migration of
the Kuroshio stream and the resulting high-temperature zone in the
northern Pacific. But the parallels to the effects of an El-Nino anomaly
are striking. Still unanswered is also the question whether -- and if
so, how -- the long-term aftermath of such anomalies can in turn spawn
the development of the next anomaly. Early next year, ESA will launch
its new satellite ERS-2. The data supplied by ERS-2 from 1995 to 1998
might bring the much-needed clarification, which is indispensible for a
reliable prognosis of such events.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-09-) Date: Tue, 10 Jan 95 12:15:43 -0500
Subject: Two Hubble Images Show Aftermath of Violent Cosmic Events
From: baalke@kelvin.jpl.nasa.gov (Ron Baalke)
TWO HUBBLE IMAGES SHOW AFTERMATH OF VIOLENT COSMIC EVENTS
Two new images taken by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope (HST) provide
details of the results from two violent cosmic events. One images
shows a single star which blew off its outer shell 1,000 years ago
and the other shows the unusual result of two galaxies which collided
eons ago. Both images were taken with the Wide Field and Planetary
Camera-2 and will be available January 10 and 11, respectively.
"Ring World" Colliding Galaxies (image available January 10)
This image shows a rare and spectacular head-on collision between two
galaxies located 500 million light-years away in the constellation
Sculptor. The galaxy, called the Cartwheel Galaxy, is surrounded by
a ring-like feature which is a direct result of a smaller intruder
galaxy -- possibly one of two objects to the right of the ring --
which careened through the core of the Cartwheel galaxy. The
collision sent a ripple of energy into space, plowing gas and dust in
front of it. The ring is now a stellar birthplace for at least
several billion new stars and is so large the entire Milky Way Galaxy
would fit inside. Hubble resolves bright blue knots that are
gigantic clusters of newborn stars and immense loops and bubbles
blown into space by exploding stars (supernovae) going off like a
string of firecrackers.
"Cat's Eye Nebula" (image available January 11)
A fascinating and colorful preview of the possible eventual fate of
Earth's sun is evident in the Hubble image of a planetary nebula,
named NGC 6543 but nicknamed the "Cat's Eye Nebula," which is in the
last stages of its life after an explosion about 1,000 years ago blew
away the outer gas layers of the star.
This image reveals surprisingly intricate structures including
concentric gas shells, jets of high-speed gas and unusual shock-
induced knots of gas. The nebula, located 3,000 light-years away in
the northern constellation Draco, is a visual "fossil record" of the
dynamics and late evolution of a dying star.
Images are available to news media representatives by sending a fax
request on letterhead to the NASA Headquarters Broadcast and Imaging
Branch at 202/358-4333.
Photo numbers are:
"Cats Eye" Planetary Nebula NGC 6543:
B&W: 95-H-23 Color: 95-HC-23
"Ring World" Galaxy:
B&W: 95-H-24 Color: 95-HC-24
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-10-) Date: Jan 13 22:52 UTC
Subject: Reusable Launch Vehicle Notices
From: NasaNews
REUSABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE NOTICES ISSUED
NASA today issued two Cooperative Agreement Notices (CANs) requesting
proposals for the development of technology demonstrators for a
Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) program.
The goal of the RLV technology program is the continued lowering of the
cost of access to space to promote the creation and delivery of new
space services and other activities that will improve economic
competitiveness. The Program will implement the recently-released
National Space Transportation Policy, specifically Section III,
paragraph 2(b): "Research shall be focussed on technologies to support
a decision, no later than December 1996, to proceed with a sub-scale
flight demonstration which would prove the concept of single-stage to
orbit."
Sponsored by NASA's Office of Space Access and Technology (OSAT), the
"X-34" CAN is intended to: (1) stimulate the joint
industry/Government-funded development of a small reusable, or
partially-reusable, booster that has potential application to
commercial launch vehicle capabilities and which will provide
significantly reduced mission costs for placing small payloads into a
low Earth orbit and, (2), demonstrate technologies that have
application to future reusable launch vehicle systems. Some of these
technologies may be demonstrated as a part of the basic booster design
and some through test bed application of the booster for demonstration
of alternate technologies.
The development schedule should support flight tests beginning in
late-1997, orbital launch by mid-1998 and test bed applications later
in 1998. Offerers must submit proposals in response to this CAN by
Feb. 24, 1995. NASA may fund one or more proposals and industry
cost-sharing contributions will be required to match on a cumulative
basis, as a minimum, the NASA funds provided directly to the offerer
under the resulting Cooperative Agreement. The current expected NASA
program funding for the X-34, through FY 1999, is $70 million.
The second CAN released today is intended to stimulate the joint
industry/government co-funded concept definition and design of a
technology demonstrator vehicle, designated the "X-33," followed by the
design/demonstration of a competitively selected concept or concepts.
The X-33 must adequately demonstrate the key design and operational
aspects of a reusable space launch system so as to reduce the risk of
developing such a commercially-viable launch system.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-11-) Date: Jan 13 16:12
Subject: Space Station Agreement
From: NasaNews
NASA, BOEING SIGN AGREEMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
NASA and Boeing Defense and Space Group, Missiles and Space Division,
of Houston, TX, today completed negotiations and signed a $5.63 billion
contract for the design and development of the International Space
Station.
The contract, which extends through June 2003, is a cost-plus-incentive-
fee and award-fee agreement.
"We are extremely pleased to have a final agreement with our prime
contractor," said Randy Brinkley, Space Station Program Manager. "The
NASA and Boeing team members involved in drawing up the agreement did
an outstanding job, and have incorporated unique features to reduce
cost and to reduce risks to the taxpaying public."
Under the agreement, Boeing is responsible for the integration and
verification of the International Space Station system. Boeing also is
responsible for the design, analysis, manufacture, verification and
delivery of the U.S. on-orbit segments of the station. The contract
also directs Boeing to interact with NASA's international partners at a
technical level to ensure physical, functional, safety and operational
compatibility between elements within constraints of the various
agreements between the participants.
Boeing was selected as prime contractor for the station in August 1993,
following the redesign of Space Station Freedom.
"The Space Station is a catalyst for global cooperation," said Wilbur
Trafton, Space Station Program Director. "As the largest international
scientific and technological development ever undertaken, the
International Space Station will bring together resources from the
United States, Russia, Japan, member nations of the European Space
Agency, Canada and Italy."
The 400-ton station will include laboratories from four space agencies
that will support a variety of materials processing, microgravity
sciences and life sciences experiments.
Assembly will begin in November 1997 with the launch of the U.S.
purchased Russian FGB power and propulsion module. It will be followed
by the launch of the U.S. Lab Module in November 1998, the Canadian
robotic arm in December 1998, the Japanese Experiment Module in March
2000 and the European Columbus Orbital Facility in February 2001.
Assembly is scheduled to be completed in June 2002. Fabrication of
several elements has begun. Construction of the U.S. laboratory will
begin this year.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-12-) P L A N E T A R I U M N E W S
This column will discuss the latest and greatest news for all the
planetarium mavens out there. If you have any, please send it to
vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu.
As with some many of you out there I would guess, I am a Star Trek fan,
so I was waiting with baited breath for the first episode of Voyager,
Paramount's debut show on their debut network. But if you're curious
what's keeping some of the old Enterprise crew members busy these days
(besides the movie deals), you may want to visit your local planetarium.
Gates McFadden is narrating a new planetarium show, "Through the Eyes of
Hubble." The show opens March 17th at Carnegie's Pittsburgh Science Center.
Planetarium visitors around the world will have an opportunity to
explore black holes, embryonic solar systems, primeval galaxies and
other wonders of the universe as revealed by NASA's Hubble Space
Telescope in the new planetarium program.
The 40-minute multimedia show is a joint production of the Space
Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, and Henry Buhl, Jr.
Planetarium and Observatory, Pittsburgh, PA. Following its March 17,
1995 debut at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, the show will
be sold, internationally, to other planetariums.
Through computer graphics, multi-screened video projections, and dozens
of special effect projectors the program presents a celestial array of
spectacular Hubble results including observations of Comet
Shoemaker-Levy 9's crash into Jupiter, protoplanetary systems in the
Orion Nebula, monstrous black holes, infant galaxies, and other
observations that may shed light on the fate of the cosmos itself.
"Hubble's results are revolutionizing astronomy, and we are eager to
share the intrigue and excitement of these discoveries with planetarium
visitors worldwide," says Dr. Robert Williams, Director of the Space
Telescope Science Institute. "Our mission to educate the public about
astronomical discovery is no less important than our operating the
Hubble Space Telescope."
"This joint project between the professional astronomers and The
Carnegie Science Center's planetarium staff will take the public out to
the edge of our knowledge about the universe," says Seddon Bennington,
director of The Carnegie Science Center. "It's a wonderful
collaboration that provides the broadest public audience an opportunity
to see through a window to what's out there."
Actress Gates McFadden, who played Dr. Beverly Crusher in the
television series "Star Trek The Next Generation" narrates the show.
"For the last seven years I've had the opportunity to bring fictional
space exploration into many lives in my role on Star Trek," she says.
"Now, this is a wonderful opportunity to share in the real exploration
of space. Though we can't yet travel to the stars, Hubble is boldly
looking where no one has looked before."
The producers estimate that millions of planetarium visitors around the
world will have an opportunity to see "Through the Eyes of Hubble" over
the next year.
The Space Telescope Science Institute is operated by the Association of
Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) for NASA, under
contract with the Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. The
Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation
between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA).
Star Trek fans may also want to look for shows narrated by Leonard Nimoy,
William Shatner, Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-13-) From: "JPL Universe"
Date: January 13, 1995
MARS PROGRAM TO OVERSEE 10 YEARS OF MISSIONS
NASA embarked on a decade-long program of Mars exploration in
1994, establishing at JPL a program office that will oversee all
Mars missions planned for the next 10 years.
The JPL Mars Exploration Office, established in July 1994, was
put in place in response to NASA's initiative to scale back the
cost and development time of spaceflight missions and to begin a
sustained program of Mars exploration. Donna Shirley, manager of
the Mars Pathfinder rover project, was named in August 1994 to
manage the newly formed office.
The first two missions of the Mars Exploration Program got
under way last year and will continue to play prominent roles for
about 350 project personnel until they are launched in November
1996.
The missions are the Mars Global Surveyor, an orbiter that will
arrive at Mars in September 1997, and the Mars Pathfinder lander
and rover, which will land on the planet and place the first
robotic rover on the surface in July of the same year.
Mars Global Surveyor got off to a running start in July 1994,
with the selection of Martin Marietta Technologies Inc. of Denver,
Colo., to build the spacecraft.
Development of the spacecraft is on a fast track schedule, with
built-in performance measurement to assure on-time readiness for
launch in just 28 months from the time the contractor was named
last year.
On average, the development of planetary spacecraft in the past
has been about 66 months. The project has been capped at $100
million per year.
The Surveyor will be a polar-orbiting spacecraft designed to
provide global maps of surface topography, distribution of
minerals and monitoring of global weather. The spacecraft, which
will be launched from a Delta II launch vehicle, will carry six of
the eight scientific instruments carried aboard the Mars Observer
spacecraft.
The mission will rely on an aerobraking technique--developed
during the final days of the Magellan mission--that will provide a
means of minimizing the amount of fuel necessary to lower it into
a low-altitude mapping orbit over Mars.
Mars Pathfinder received a fiscal year 1994 start by NASA's
Office of Space Science, with a cost cap of $150 million in fiscal
year 1992 dollars. The project reported excellent progress in all
aspects of development during 1994.
Integration of prototype models of the rover, imager, flight
system and ground-data system was accomplished. Conceptual testing
of components of the innovative entry, descent and landing
subsystems was also finished, including testing of air bag
inflation and retraction mechanisms, testing of the heat shield
material and testing of the rocket-assisted deceleration
mechanism. Flight hardware and software will be completed this
year and delivered to start the assembly and testing of the flight
system in June.
In the meantime, a request for proposals has been issued to
industry for design of the 1998 mission to Mars. Industry
responses were expected to be returned by April 1.
International participation, collaboration and coordination
will be a cornerstone of all new missions to Mars, and each pair
of spacecraft launched during the next decade will build on the
experience of its predecessors.
For instance, landers in future years--1998, 2001, 2003 and
2005--will capitalize on the experience of the Mars Pathfinder
lander mission. By the same token, progressively smaller,
streamlined orbiters will allow smaller and less expensive launch
vehicles to be used as NASA's armada of spacecraft is readied to
explore and act as data relay stations for international missions
of the future.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-14-) From: "JPL Universe"
Date: January 13, 1995
PLUTO FAST FLYBY REDEFINED AS PLUTO EXPRESS
For Pluto Fast Flyby, 1994 was a leaner, meaner year, as in
response to the new budget climate, the project has been
"reconstituted" as Pluto Express.
"The project will cost less and feature technology that will
serve as a pathfinder for affordable next-century missions to the
outer solar system and beyond," according to Robert Staehle, Pluto
preproject manager.
The Pluto spacecraft has been redesigned for a mass of less
than 100 kilograms, and Russian Drop Zonds will be used to sample
the planet's atmosphere if initial discussions on Russian
cooperation come to fruition, he explained.
Staehle noted that prototype software was tested this past year
in an effort "to enable highly autonomous cruise."
Prototype instruments were also delivered from JPL and other
investigators. They were able to demonstrate that science goals
"can be met with an ultraviolet/visible/infrared radio science
flight instrument total weighing less than 7 kilograms, and using
less than 6 watts, for less than $30 million," he said.
"Two years ago, people laughed when we proposed such
requirements," Staehle noted. "But with the current technology, we
have shown that we can do the Pluto science set within these
constraints."
Currently, the team--comprising about 30 employees--has created a
"menu of options that streamline the project. NASA Headquarters is
evaluating the possibilities.
"Do we go with direct trajectory, which is simpler?" Staehle
asked. "Do we choose less costly operations, but on a trajectory
requiring an expensive upper stage?"
"Do we work with the Russians and launch on their Proton
rockets? Would each probe carry a Drop Zond, which would then be
dumped?"
Or, Staehle offered, should the team launch without the
Russians' help, using a Delta rocket? These are the options
currently being examined.
Regardless of configuration, the launch is planned for 2001,
with the project beginning in 1998.
Staehle characterized the past year as "tumultuous, because
people are still making up their minds as to what kind of mission
we'll fly."
But the biggest achievement, he maintained, is that "a year
ago, the questions were `if we do this.' Now, it's `when we do
this mission.' "
He said he feels Pluto "will happen."
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-15-) Date: Fri, 13 Jan 95 11:08:40 -0500
From: Steve Dunham
To: vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu
Subject: [21144bsm@msu.edu: Impression 5 Science Center]
To: grads@math.msu.edu
From: 21144bsm@msu.edu
Subject: Impression 5 Science Center
Impression 5 Science Center, located near Michigan Avenue in downtown
Lansing, is the largest hands-on science center in the state of Michigan.
They need volunteers at all levels, including helping in their new
multimedia MacLab, working as demonstrators, and many other positions.
Volunteers are needed in virtually every area of the science center.
Interested persons may contact: Danielle Casavant, Volunteer Coordinator,
(517) 485-8116.
Barbara
Graduate Office
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
(-16-) SUBSCRIPTION AND OTHER PERTINENT INFORMATION
_The Armchair Astronomer_ is edited and distributed electronically on
a monthly basis or whenever possible by Todd E. Van Hoosear. This is not
an official publication of Michigan State University.
_The Armchair Astronomer_ compiles articles and commentaries on the study
of astronomy and its applications. Submissions and comments are welcome.
Please direct all subscription requests and article submissions to:
vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu.
When making any inquries related to this list, please preface your subject
with "ASTRO: " so I can easily spot list-related mail.
This compilation is copyright (c) 1995 Todd Ellis Van Hoosear. The editor
makes no claims to any individual articles printed herein and the authors
of any included articles retain full rights to their works. All copy-
righted works have been reproduced with permission of the copyright owner.
Permission is granted to reproduce and distribute individual articles of
this compilation unless otherwise stated. Please be sure to give the
original author credit for any reproduced works.
The most current issue of this publication is available for access via
HTML clients at URL: http://lalaland.cl.msu.edu/~vanhoose/astro/news.html.
If possible, individual articles will also be indexed at URL: http://lalaland.cl.msu.edu/~vanhoose/astro.html.
Back issues can be found at URL: http://lalaland.cl.msu.edu/~vanhoose/astro/newsMMYY.html
(".../news0195.html" for January 1995 for example).
News from NASA is brought to you by the Microwave Subnode of NASA's
Planetary Data System. Other news is compiled from posts to
sci.space.news, from Jonathan's Space Report (jcm@urania.harvard.edu),
and from other sources.
/////////////////////////////// END OF ISSUE /////////////////////////
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- T o d d E. V a n H o o s e a r -
``'''vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu - vanhoose@msu.edu - vanhoose@lalaland.cl.msu.edu
(._.) Michigan State University - East Lansing, MI USA
(_) Computer Laboratory - Department of Communication
`---' My Home Page
"Grad school: it's not just a job, it's an indenture."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~