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"New Horizons" Spacecraft Reveals Secrets On Its Way To Pluto
"NASA's New Horizons spacecraft will reach Pluto in 2015. In the meantime it has provided
new data on the planet Jupiter's atmosphere, rings, magnetosphere and its moons.
On its long way to Pluto and its moon Charon...
The spacecraft is working hard, testing its instruments before the primary goal - Pluto!"
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Aurora - A Pulsing Shimmering Glow
It may appear as colored lights in the sky or a motionless green arc that stretches across
the sky.
This is a light phenomenon, a glowing, shimmering pattern, known as the “Aurora Borealis”,
occurring in northern latitudes. Its name originates from "Aurora", the Roman goddess of dawn and the
Greek name for north wind.
There is also the same phenomenon known as the "Aurora Australis", occurring in southern
latitudes and ... (with images and video)
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Did Life Begin In Space? New Evidence From Comets
Recent probes inside comets show it is
overwhelmingly likely that life began in space, according to a new paper by Cardiff University scientists.
Professor Chandra Wickramasinghe and colleagues at the University’s Centre for Astrobiology have
long argued the case for panspermia - the theory that life began inside comets and then spread to
habitable planets across the galaxy...
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China And ESA Launch Moon Mission -
Chang'e-1
A bold new mission to the Moon was launched by the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA). Chang’e-1 blasted off
from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre, Sichuan, atop a Long March 3A rocket on October 24, 2007.
Chang’e-1 represents the first step in the Chinese ambition to land robotic explorers on the Moon before 2020.
Chang’e-1 has four mission goals to accomplish. The first is to make three-dimensional images of many lunar
landforms and outline maps of major lunar geological structures ... (with video)
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Astronomers Discover Sun's Twin at McDonald Observatory
Astronomers have discovered the best “solar twin” to date, using the 2.7-meter Harlan J. Smith Telescope at
McDonald Observatory.
The star, HIP 56948, is more like the Sun than any yet seen, and is 200 light-years
away in the constellation Draco, the dragon. The star may be a billion years older than the Sun
...
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Is a New Solar Cycle Beginning?
NASA
December 14, 2007
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The solar physics community is abuzz this week. No, there haven't been any great eruptions or solar storms.
The source of the excitement is a modest knot of magnetism that popped over the sun's eastern
limb on Dec. 11th, pictured below in a pair of images from the orbiting Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO).
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It may not look like much, but "this patch of magnetism could
be a sign of the next solar cycle," says solar physicist David Hathaway of the Marshall Space Flight Center.
Above: From SOHO, a UV-wavelength image of the sun and a map showing positive (white) and negative (black) magnetic
polarities.
The new high-latitude active region is magnetically reversed, marking it as a harbinger of a new solar cycle.
For more than a year, the sun has been experiencing a lull in activity, marking the end of Solar Cycle 23, which peaked
with many furious storms in 2000--2003. "Solar minimum is upon us," he says.
The big question now is, when will the next solar cycle begin?
It could be starting now.
"New solar cycles always begin with a high-latitude, reversed polarity sunspot," explains Hathaway. "Reversed polarity "
means a sunspot with opposite magnetic polarity compared to sunspots from the previous solar cycle. "High-latitude" refers
to the sun's grid of latitude and longitude. Old cycle spots congregate near the sun's equator. New cycle spots appear
higher, around 25 or 30 degrees latitude.
The region that appeared on Dec. 11th fits both these criteria. It is high latitude (24 degrees N) and magnetically
reversed. Just one problem: There is no sunspot. So far the region is just a bright knot of magnetic fields. If, however,
these fields coalesce into a dark sunspot, scientists are ready to announce that Solar Cycle 24 has officially begun.
Below: Solar Cycle 23 is coming to an end. What's next? Image credit: NOAA/Space Weather Prediction Center.
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Many forecasters believe Solar Cycle 24 will be big and intense.
Peaking in 2011 or 2012, the cycle to come could have significant impacts on telecommunications, air traffic, power grids
and GPS systems. (And don't forget the Northern Lights!)
In this age of satellites and cell phones, the next solar cycle could make itself felt as never before.
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The furious storms won't start right away, however. Solar cycles usually take a few years to build to a frenzy and Cycle 24
will be no exception. "We still have some quiet times ahead," says Hathaway.
Meanwhile, all eyes are on a promising little active region. Will it become the first sunspot of a new solar cycle?
Note: This story is based on material issued by NASA
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SPECIAL REPORTS
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Only on UFOArea.com - Visit our new section and you will find special reports on ancient astronauts, ufos, space and paranormal.
All articles are written by the UFOArea team.
Read our Reports
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Distant Alien World That Could Be Similar to Ours
Using the 3.6-m telescope an international team of astronomers from France, Switzerland, and Portugal
working in the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has discovered the most Earth-like planet outside our
Solar System. The planet's radius is estimated to be only 1.5 times
that of Earth. An unknown world seems to be covered with liquid oceans but may also be a rocky body
similar to Earth..."
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Strange Glowing Clouds Over The Polar Regions
"They are visible only at night, floating 50 miles above Earth around the polar regions. Their name is noctilucent ("night-shining" or "luminous at night") clouds. The clouds are wispy, thin and have grown brighter in recent years and they are definitely spreading. Their location is
an atmospheric layer known as "mesosphere" (middle sphere) extending between 50 and 85 km....
(wonderful images)..."
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Spectacular Sombrero Galaxy - Messier 104
"It resembles a shining UFO or a wide-brimmed hat but... this isn't what it looks like. Its marked
central bulge and its lane of dark interstellar dust give the galaxy its unusual resemblance.
This is a very beautiful compiled image of the Sombrero Galaxy hovering in space. Three separate
observatory images of the galaxy, photographed by NASA's... (wonderful images!)
"
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NASA Predicts Nongreen Plants on Other Planets
"NASA scientists believe they have found a way to predict the color of plants on planets in other solar systems.
Green, yellow or even red-dominant plants may live on extra-solar planets..."
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Scrutiny by NASA's newest Mars orbiter is helping scientists learn the stories of some of the
weirdest landscapes on Mars, as well as more familiar-looking parts of the Red Planet ... (with images)
