Sputnik – How Science Fueled SciFi Dreams and Failed October 4, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in Sci Fi, Science, science fiction, scifi, space, sputnik.1 comment so far
It was 50 years ago that Sputnik hit the Earth’s outer atmosphere and became the first man made object orbit the Earth.
Yes it kicked off the Space race.
Yes it fueled that fantasies of countless science fiction fans
But the legacy of Sputnik was that unmanned robotic satellites lead the way – its the same today 50 years later.
50 years ago I doubt that there were few people that didn’t think humans would now be living in Space. Beyond the 8 humans on the International Space Station – that’s just not happening.
Sputnik made us think that we could escape the bounds of the Earth and fly above it. Reality is we can’t because we can’t afford it.
What Sputnik represents is the great antoganist – there is no such thing today and hasn’t been for far too long in the space game. Without an antagonist and a race of some sort SciFi dreams will never leave up to science reality.
Star Trek’s George Takei Gets His Own Asteroid October 2, 2007
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As the helmsman of the Starship Enteprise, Mr Sulu flew past many asteroids.
Now, George Takei (the actor who played Sulu) is getting an actual bona fide asteroid named after him.
WOW.
Last week the Committee on Small Body Nomenclature of the International Astronomical Union approved the name “7307 Takei” for the asteroid previously labeled “1994 GT9.” The Takei reference will be used in the scientific community to identify this minor body from now on, presumably forever.
Asteroid 7307 Takei is approximately 5 miles in diameter, located in an orbit ranging between 2.5 and 3.0 AUs from the Sun in the mid-solar system asteroid belt (an AU is the distance from the Sun to the Earth).
“I am honored, indeed transported to the galaxies, to know that my name has been assigned to an astronomical object in our solar system,” Takei told STARTREK.COM. “I am yet to come down to Earth.”
Duke University Searching for – Naked Singularities September 26, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in black hole, naked singularity, Sci Fi, Science, scifi.Tags: black hole, naked singularity scifi, Science, science fiction
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ThoughT that the only people at Duke looking for ‘naked’ were the Duke Rugby team? (i know…bad taste..)
Turns out not all Black Holes are actually – well..black.
Apparently research from Duke University think there is a way to determine whether some black holes are not actually black.
“It would show that nature has surprises even weirder than black holes,” said Arlie Petters, a Duke professor of mathematics and physics in a statement.
Since no one has even measured the core of a black hole it has been impossible to actually determine if they were in fact all black. The Duke team has a plan to figure it out.Working with research at the University of Cambridge they figure that a black hole could be shed of its event horizon and become a naked singularity if its angular momentum — an effect of its spin — is greater than its mass.
…I’m not an astrophysicist but if a black hole’s center of mass is a black dwarf that has so much gravity that all light gets sucked in..i don’t see how a naked singularity could exist unless of course..the dwarfs gravity is somehow..incomplete..
Anyways..if you’re interested in the full story check out the Duke site
NASA is Hiring Astronauts – Do you have the Right Stuff? September 19, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in astronauts, ISS, jobs, NASA, Sci Fi, Science, science fiction, scifi, space station.1 comment so far
At the dawn of the Space Age, NASA recruited its astronauts from the best and brightest in its military corps.
In 2007 – NASA is recruiting astronauts online…and you could be one of them.
In a public posting on the USAjobs site, NASA has posted a job ad for a job that is truly out of this world.
JOB SUMMARY:
NASA, the world’s leader in space and aeronautics is always seeking outstanding scientists, engineers, and other talented professionals to carry forward the great discovery process that its mission demands. Creativity. Ambition. Teamwork. A sense of daring. And a probing mind. That’s what it takes to join NASA, one of the best places to work in the Federal Government.The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has a need for Astronaut Candidates to support the International Space Station (ISS) Program.
The salary range is – 59,493.00 – 130,257.00 USD per year.
Want to apply? Just go online and GOOD LUCK !
It’s A Google Universe – And We Just Live In It August 23, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in astronomy, awesome, cylon apocalypse, cylons, google, google earth, google sky, google universive, lightsabers, Sci Fi, Science, science fiction, scifi, star trek tng, starwars, YouTube.add a comment
If you ever had a doubt that we’re all just playing in the Google Universe – doubt no more.
Google Earth has gone Universal. That is Google Earth which up until this week was limited only to our little blue planet now has a ‘sky’ portion that shows you the stars from your location.
This is perhaps the greatest thing to happen to astronomy thus far in the young history of the Internet.
How many times have I struggled – traveling as much as I do – trying to figure out the sky from wherever my travels take me? – Sure the charts help but Google Earth Sky mode is…
AWESOME.
It is the most fluid, dynamic and visually accurate astronomy program i have ever seen and i strongly encourage anyone with an interest in the skies to check it out.
Star Wars Rebellion #9 – Another Dark Horse Winner! August 14, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in comic books, comics, Dark Horse, darktower, Darth Vader, rebellion, Sci Fi, Science, science fiction, sciencefiction, scifi, spacey, star trek tng, Star Wars, star wars legacy, star wars rebellion, starwars, weird al, wyl tarson, zarek.1 comment so far
Sure Star Wars Rebellion is Star Wars pulp – but it’s good pulp and
I LIKE IT.
Issue #9 has a great panel flow that really captures the traditional Star Wars flow of multiple things happening that then come together.
What makes this current story arc so engaging is our ‘hero’ Wyl Tarson is a scumbag two timer that is now being two timed double crossed himself.
And since he’s a minor Star Wars universe character he can easily die too which makes the ending of this arc also interesting.
This is the third issue in this story which left off in issue #8 (also awesome). Issue 10 will see all this wrap up.
Will Tarson’s head EXPLODE? Will the Imperial hub EXPLODE?
And whose arm/leg/head will Vader hack off with his angry Sith Lightsaber?
Do Martians Live Underground? June 8, 2007
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Apparently there is a deep hole on Mars that could lead to a route to Life on Mars.
No i’m not making this up and it’ss actually Science and not SciFi.
A very dark spot on Mars could be an entrance to a deep hole or cavern, according to scientists studying imagery taken by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
The geological oddity measures some 330 feet (100 meters) across and is located on an otherwise bright dusty lava plain to the northeast of Arsia Mons, one of the four giant Tharsis volcanoes on the red planet.
The hole might be the sort of place that could support life or serve as a habitat for future astronauts, researchers speculated.
REad the whole story on Space.
Star Trek’s Planet Vulcan is real? May 17, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in JPL, NASA, Science, science fiction, sciencefiction, scifi, showmescifi, spock, Star Trek, startrek, vulcan, YouTube.add a comment
NASA has just posted a video titled ‘Search for Spocks Home’ on the JPL site.
According to Star Trek canon Vulcan is located orbitting the star we know as 40 Eridani A.
Guess what?
It’s real and NASA’s got a plan to find out what’s out there.
But is it logical?
and will life, Live Long & Prosper there?
Earth-like Planet Found? I don’t think so April 25, 2007
Posted by showmescifi in astronomy, exoplanets, Science, science fiction, sciencefiction, scifi.2 comments
Mainstream media has been keen to pick up on the apparent discovery of the most earth like exoplanet yet discovered.
Problem is they’re wrong.
Apparently astronomers were researching two Jupiter-size planets with the Keck Telescope in Hawaii, when they noticed a wobble that could not be accounted for by the two-planet model they used. Doppler measurements revealed an inner planet. It orbits Gliese 876, an M dwarf star about one-third of the Sun’s mass.
“This planet answers an ancient question,” says team leader Geoffrey Marcy. “Over 2,000 years ago, the Greek philosophers Aristotle and Epicurus argued about whether there were other earthlike planets. Now, for the first time, we have evidence for a rocky planet around a normal star.”
Now I don’t know about you but I don’t consider a Red Dwarf to be normal or Earth-like. Maybe more like Superman’s homeworld of Krypton.
Our Sun is not a red dwarf and has some very specific radiation and magnetic characteristics that are key to the existence of life in this Solar system.
Does a Red Dwarf have such characteristics?
There are undoubtably Earth-like planets out there. I suspect that that they orbit Earth-like stars.
If I were a betting man i’d say they orbit the two closest Earth-like stars: Epsilon Eridani and Tau Ceti.
Star Trek Shields Soon To Be Science Fact – Not Science Fiction April 18, 2007
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RED ALERT SHIELDS UP!!
Where would the Starship Enterprise NCC-1701 be without her shields?
(oh yeah it would be the NX-01 with that totally bogus hull plating nonsense).
According to a report on the BBC, British scientists are actively working to make SciFi Shields a reality. Details have been presented at the Royal Astronomical Society’s National Astronomy Meeting in Preston, UK.Scientists hope to mimic the magnetic field which protects the Earth.
Don’t expect to be deflecting Klingon disruptors anytime soon though..the shields are more about deflecting solar radiation than incoming particle weapons fire.
You don’t need much of a magnetic field to hold off the solar wind. You could produce the shield 20-30 kilometres away from the spacecraft,” explained Dr Ruth Bamford, from the Rutherford-Appleton Laboratory in Didcot, UK in a statement
Read the full story on the BBC site.
NASA Predicts Non-Green Plants on Other Planets April 11, 2007
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from the fact is stranger than fiction dept..
Apparently Earth is likely the exception when it comes to having green plants. Green, yellow or even red-dominant plants may live on extra-solar planets.
As you probably remember from biology it’s chlorophyll that makes plants green. In most plants on Earth they absorb blue and red light and less green light. Therefore, chlorophyll appears green. Though some green color is absorbed, it is less than the other colors.
According to NASA scientists, our Sun has a specific distribution of colors of light, emitting more of some colors than others.
Gases in Earth’s air also filter sunlight, absorbing different colors. As a result, more red light particles reach Earth’s surface than blue or green light particles, so plants use red light for photosynthesis. There is plenty of light for land plants, so they do not need to use extra green light. But not all stars have the same distribution of light colors as our Sun. Study scientists say they now realize that photosynthesis on extrasolar planets will not necessarily look the same as on Earth.
Read the full story on the NASA site.
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