Astronomy is a subject as large as the universe. It’s due to the fact that astronomy is all about the universe. Astronomy news is interesting, to say the least, and can be found in media reports as well as on web sites such as those maintained by astronomy magazines and agencies like NASA. Let’s look at some of the more interesting tidbits.
The magazine “Astronomy” is a great source of astronomy news. NASAs IBEX, Interstellar Boundary Explorer, was one exciting story. Just as weatherman study winds in fronts, IBEX studies outer space fronts. To be exact it is the solar wind and how it interacts with space beyond the reach of the sun. IBEX will also accurately map the boundaries of the sun’s solar system.
There’s also astronomy news about a new aurora on Saturn, unique compared to other auroras we’ve known. An aurora results when charged particles stream along the planet’s ‘magnetic fields. Earth’s auroras result from the solar winds. Jupiter produces the particles and the magnetic field that creates its auroras. Saturn’s aurora, which covers a very large area, has been seen in infrared and will teach scientists a lot about this phenomenon.
”Universe Today” is yet another great source of astronomy news. Contact was reestablished with a roving probe on Mars. The rover had lost contact after running through a massive dust storm. But the Rover named Spirit recovered from a near catastrophic low power period. Its solar panels couldn’t get sun in the dust storm, and scientists feared it would go into a low power coma-like mode from which it would not wake. But it recovered and now it’s back on the job.
Contact with intelligent life may be a matter of less than 15 years thanks to the Allen telescope array, at least that’s what’s in astronomy news. The array is set to grow up from its current 42 antennas to over 350. It’s only a matter of a short time before it hears signals from deep enough in space that intelligence is sure to be found.
There could be no bigger astronomy news than actual contact with intelligence.
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