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Don't miss the 'unconventional' Blue Moon of August 2024
August 2, 2024
Monday, Aug. 19 brings the start of another major political convention in Chicago. And that night, skywatchers will be able to gaze upon a most "unconventional" full moon, because it will also be — all politics aside — a "Blue Moon."
But wait a minute, you might ask … isn't a "Blue Moon" defined as the second full moon that occurs during a calendar month?
This months' full moon falls on Aug. 19 and it will be the only full moon of August 2024. So how can we call it a "Blue" moon?
Yet it indeed is a "Blue" moon, but only if we follow a now somewhat obscure rule. In fact, the current "two full moons in one month" rule has superseded the rule that would allow us to call this month's full moon "blue."
The Almanac rule
The confusion over exactly how to brand a particular full moon as "blue" can be traced back to "Sky & Telescope" magazine, which turned a literary lemon into lemonade by proclaiming that — however unintentional — it changed pop culture and the English language in unexpected ways.
In the July 1943 issue of "Sky & Telescope," in a question-and-answer column written by Lawrence J. Lafleur, there was a reference made to the term "Blue Moon."
Mr. Lafleur cited the unusual term from a copy of the 1937 edition of the now-defunct Maine Farmers' Almanac (NOT to be confused with The Farmers' Almanac which is still published in Lewiston, Maine).
On the almanac page for August 1937, their calendrical meaning for the term "Blue Moon" was given.
That explanation said that occasionally "… one of the four seasons would contain four full moons instead of the usual three."
"There are seven Blue Moons in a Lunar Cycle of nineteen years," continued the Almanac, ending on the comment that,
"In olden times the almanac makers had much difficulty calculating the occurrence of the Blue Moon and this uncertainty gave rise to the expression 'Once in a Blue Moon.'"
An unfortunate oversight
But while Mr. LaFleur quoted the Almanac's account, he made one very significant omission: He never specified any date for the Blue Moon.
And as it turned out, in 1937, it occurred on Aug. 21. That was the third full moon in the summer of 1937, a summer season that would see a total of four full moons.
Names were assigned to each moon in a season: For example, the first moon of summer was called the early summer moon, the second was the midsummer moon, and the last was called the late summer moon.
But when a particular season has four moons the third was apparently called a "Blue" Moon so that the fourth and final one can continue to be called the late moon.
So where did we get the "two full moons in a month rule" that is so popular today?
Pruett's Mistake
Once again, we must turn to the pages of "Sky & Telescope."
This time, on page 3 of the March 1946 issue, James Hugh Pruett wrote an article, "Once in a Blue Moon," in which he made a reference to the term "Blue Moon" and referenced Mr. LaFleur's "Sky&Telescope" article from July 1943.
But because Pruett had no specific dates to fall back on, his interpretation of the ruling given by the Maine Farmers' Almanac was highly subjective.
Pruett ultimately came to this conclusion:
"Seven times in 19 years there were - and still are - 13 full moons in a year.
This gives 11 months with one full moon each and one with two. This second in a month, so I interpret it, was called Blue Moon."
How unfortunate that Mr. Pruett did not have a copy of that 1937 almanac at hand, or else he would have almost certainly noticed that his "two full moons in a single month assumption" would have been completely wrong.
For the Blue Moon date of August 21, 1937 — as is the case in August 2024 — was most definitely not the second full moon that month!
Going viral!
Mr. Pruett's 1946 explanation was, of course, the wrong interpretation and it might have been completely forgotten were it not for Deborah Byrd who used it on her popular National Public Radio program, StarDate on Jan. 31, 1980.
We could almost say that in the aftermath of her radio show, the incorrect Blue Moon rule "went viral."
Over the next decade, this new blue moon definition started appearing in such diverse places such as the Kids edition of the World Almanac, and the board game Trivial Pursuit.
I must confess that I was even involved in helping to perpetuate the new Blue Moon phenomenon.
More than 40 years ago, in the Dec. 1, 1982 edition of The New York Times, I made reference to it in the "New York Day by Day" column.
cont.
https://www.space.com/blue-moon-august-2024
Canada finishes space launch negotiations with the United States
Aug. 2, 2024 9:11 a.m. PDT
Canada is a step closer to the final frontier after completing negotiations with the United States on an agreement with major implications for domestic space launches.
The agreement, which is yet to be signed, will establish the legal and technical safeguards needed to use U.S. space launch technology, expertise and data for launches in Canada.
"Canada's vibrant and growing commercial space launch industry relies on its ability to collaborate across borders," said Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly in a news release Friday.
She said this agreement, when in force, will position Canada as a global leader in commercial space launch.
Maritime Launch Services, the company developing Canada's first commercial spaceport in northeastern Nova Scotia, said in a news release that the agreement is a major step forward for the industry.
"We look forward to welcoming our American clients to Nova Scotia in the coming months as we prepare for Canada's first orbital launch from Spaceport Nova Scotia in 2026," said president and CEO Stephen Matier.
The federal government is in the process of modernizing its regulatory framework around commercial space launch activities as the industry sees tremendous growth globally.
Ottawa has said it hopes to position Canada as future leader in commercial space launches. The country has geographical advantages, including a vast, sparsely populated territory, and high-inclination orbits.
"This development not only enhances the sector's diversity but also strengthens its global competitiveness, reinforcing Canada's position as a leader in space exploration and technology," said Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne in a news release.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/canada-finishes-space-launch-negotiations-with-the-united-states-1.6987436
Britain hosts first space wargame
August 1, 2024
The wargame saw participation from staff across the Ministry of Defence, industry, and international allies.
Major General Paul Tedman, Commander of UK Space Command, oversaw the event, which aimed to explore how commercial space-based ISR can complement defence’s own space-based ISR systems, including the Programme ISTARI.
“Space Warrior has provided critical insights into what on-orbit ISR capability we need and how much.
Crucially, it has also evaluated whether we should own the capability, access it through commercial or collaborate with allies.
I’m grateful to our industrial partners and military allies for their participation, input, and support. Space is a team sport,” stated Major General Tedman.
Rear Admiral Andrew Betton, Strategic Command’s Director of the Integrated Warfare Centre, also emphasised the importance of this exercise.
“Through wargames like Space Warrior, which explore opportunities beyond our current capabilities and expertise, we are working to develop tomorrow’s integrated force,” he said.
Betton highlighted the need to consider activities across all domains.
“It is vital that we consider our activities across all domains, and Space Warrior is an important step forward in expanding our understanding of how we can most effectively operate in this challenging domain, and the multiple interdependencies that enable multi-domain operations,” he added.
Allen Antrobus, Chair of the Security and Defence Committee at UK Space, praised the event as a significant milestone.
“UK Space Command’s inaugural Space Warrior Wargame was a timely and well-run event as we head into the next Strategic Defence Review.
The inclusion of colleagues from across the industrial sector was an important step forward in demonstrating the MOD’s commitment to listen and engage with the wider defence industrial base,” Antrobus said.
In addition to the wargame, UK Space Command is preparing to launch its first satellite, Tyche, this summer.
Tyche will be the first in a network of new satellites under Programme ISTARI, operating in Low Earth Orbit with a high-resolution electro-optical sensor designed and built in the UK as part of a ÂŁ22m contract with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd.
The satellite will be launched by SpaceX from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Since its formation in 2021, UK Space Command has participated in various exercises and wargames worldwide.
“Space Warrior” is set to become a regular event, fostering stronger relationships and understanding among UK Space Command, its allies, partners, and industry.
https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/britain-hosts-first-space-wargame/
August 2, 2024 Press Engagement with Acting Director Ronald L. Rowe, Jr.
United States Secret Service Acting Director Ronald L. Rowe, Jr., hosted a press engagement from the Secret Service headquarters in Washington, D.C., August 2, 2024. During the press engagement, he elaborated on a timeline of events in the days leading up to the attempted assassination of former President Trump and the activities of Secret Service personnel during those critical moments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MChjgS7Q_BA
Exploring Deep Space: NASA Announces 2025 RASC-AL Competition
Aug 01, 2024
NASA has officially announced the 2025 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) competition, an initiative to fuel innovation for aerospace systems concepts, analogs, and technology prototyping through university engagement. RASC-AL, one of NASA’s longest-running student competitions, solicits concepts from the next generation of engineers and scientists to explore the future of deep space exploration.
RASC-AL is seeking proposals from the university community to develop new concepts that leverage innovation to improve our ability to operate on the Moon, Mars and beyond.
This year’s themes range from developing large-scale lunar surface architectures enabling long-term, off-world habitation, to designing new systems that address objective characteristics and needs and leverage human-scale exploration infrastructure for new science paradigms.
Through RASC-AL, teams and their faculty advisors will design innovative solutions with supporting original engineering and analysis in response to one of the following three themes:
Sustained Lunar Evolution – An Inspirational Moment
Advanced Science Missions and Technology Demonstrators for Human-Mars Precursor Campaign
Small Lunar Servicing and Maintenance Robot
“The RASC-AL competition is a wellspring for groundbreaking ideas,” said Dan Mazanek, Assistant Branch Head for the Exploration Space Mission Analysis Branch (SMAB) at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.
“It fosters creativity and pushes the boundaries of what is possible in space exploration. We are looking for innovative solutions that can advance our capabilities beyond Earth’s orbit and pave the way for sustainable lunar exploration and beyond.”
Interested undergraduate and graduate university student teams and their faculty advisors should submit a Notice of Intent by October 16, 2024, and submit proposals and videos by February 24, 2025.
Based on review of the team proposal and video submissions in March, up to 14 teams will be selected to advance to the final phase of the competition – presenting their concepts to a panel of NASA and industry judges in a competitive design review at the 2025 RASC-AL Forum in Cocoa Beach, Florida next June.
In addition to their research, teams are also highly encouraged to develop a prototype of part or all of their concept to demonstrate its key functions.
Each finalist team will receive a $6,500 stipend to facilitate their full participation in the 2025 RASC-AL Competition, and the top two overall teams will be awarded with additional travel stipends to present their concept at an aerospace conference later in 2025.
Dr. Christopher Jones, Chief Technologist for the Systems Analysis and Concepts Directorate (SACD) at NASA Langley, emphasized RASC-AL’s distinctive fusion of educational value with real-world experience.
“RASC-AL provides students with a unique opportunity to engage directly with NASA’s vision for space exploration.
Participants not only gain hands-on experience in developing aerospace concepts but also contribute fresh perspectives that the Agency can take as inspiration for future missions and technologies.”
The call for proposals is now open, with proposal submissions due by February 24, 2025. Interested student teams are encouraged to visit the official RASC-AL competition website for detailed guidelines and eligibility requirements.
https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/langley/exploring-deep-space-nasa-announces-2025-rasc-al-competition/
Stockton Professor's Deep-Sea Discovery Could Help Search for Alien Life on Other Worlds
08/01/2024
Lauren Seyler believes the search for alien life in the universe begins much closer to home — on the bottom of the ocean.
The Stockton University assistant Biology professor — who also dabbles in astrobiology — spent three weeks this summer off the coast of Chile as the co-principal scientist on a research expedition studying the ocean floor near the Atacama Trench, at depths of more than 9,300 feet.
The goal? Locate areas called seeps where chemical energy, such as methane gas, is released.
Then, using a remote-operated vehicle (ROV) take sediment samples and video and observe how that gas creates life where light, the most common source of energy on Earth, can’t possibly reach because of the depth.
“Methane is a great source of energy,” said Seyler, who has taught at Stockton since 2020.
“Sources of chemical energy are truly alien. It’s such an interesting way of looking at life as a concept because it’s so different from what we see in our day-to-day lives.
We are here where the sun is shining and there’s oxygen and there’s plants. But it’s a very, very different world down there, and that’s what I love about it. It’s just so fascinating.”
Astrobiology is a fairly recent field of study that only dates back to the 1950s and 1960s and focuses on how life originated on Earth and how life could form on other worlds.
It’s an umbrella term that incorporates chemistry, physics, geology, biology and oceanography.
“We are trying to figure out how life originated on Earth from geochemistry,” said Seyler, who will teach a general studies class at Stockton in Astrobiology in the fall semester.
"How did life develop from chemistry into cells and multicellular life. And how does that relate to the history of the planet as a whole?”
Often astrobiologists’ research overlaps with oceanographers since the search for life on other planets is primarily the search for water.
“We know that life on Earth requires water. We don’t have any examples of life that doesn’t require water in some form,” she said.
“There are other ocean worlds in our solar system, including Europa, a moon of Jupiter, and Enceladus, a moon of Saturn, that may be home to life that uses chemical sources of energy as opposed to sunlight.”
And this expedition allowed Seyler and other scientists to study how an ecosystem dependent on chemical energy, like methane, creates microbes and other life.
After more than three years of planning, Seyler co-led the expedition onboard a vessel owned by the Schmidt Ocean Institute, a nonprofit whose goal is to advance innovative oceanographic research through technological advancement, collaborative research, outreach and education.
“We were really fortunate to work with Schmidt. The ship, the Falkor (too), is incredible. It has a huge lab space, multimedia room, computers and monitors in every room,” she said. “A lounge, karaoke room, chefs who prepare food at regular meal times. They really thought of everything to make this as comfortable as possible for the scientific party. It was a combination floating hotel and laboratory.”
The expedition also had a high-speed internet connection that allowed the scientists to livestream dives and take part in a webcast with NASA’s Astrobiology Program about their research.
But even with all of the latest technology and equipment, the discovery of the methane seeps “ended up being a fortunate accident” and was not without numerous challenges, Seyler said.
“Originally we had planned to look at more shallower sites closer to the Chilean coast, but our permit wouldn’t allow us to go within 12 nautical miles of the coast,” she said.
Also, a delay in receiving the permit condensed the expedition’s time from two weeks to only six days, “which was insane considering all the things that we had planned to do,” she said.
The expedition had some ocean-floor mapping data to determine where to look.
They knew that naturally occurring methane seeps often formed in locations like the Atacama Trench, where two tectonic plates collide and one is pressed under the other, forming ridges, cliffs and fissures. But Seyler admits they “got very lucky.”
The ship used multibeam sonar to search the ocean floor for the best possible locations. Then an ROV traversed to the bottom and very, very slowly (less than 2 mph) searched about 300 feet ahead for ridges and outcroppings of rock where methane might bubble up.
“It’s like climbing up a mountain with one flashlight. You have a very narrow field of view,” she said.
And with the compressed schedule and limited dive time, Seyler and the other scientists worked 20- to 22-hour days, mostly staring at a computer screen.
cont.
https://www.newjerseystage.com/articles/getarticle2.php
The super remote 'Alien Island' that's got the world's 'weirdest landscape'
02:00, Thu, Aug 1, 2024
An island off Yemen's coast has weird landscapes and species giving it an almost alien appearance.
Socotra island, part of the archipelago of the same name, is famed for the bizarre trees which grow there from the striking Dragon Blood Trees with their umbrella-like appearance to the towering Cucumber Trees.
When the United Nations ran a study counting the flora and fauna on the island, they found over 700 endemic species, a host of which haven't been seen anywhere else in the world.
For example, 37 percent of its 825 plant species and 90 percent of its reptile species are unique to the islands.
There are also over 192 types of birds, 253 types of corals, and over 1000 marine life species residing on the shores, including some unusual creatures such as blue tarantulas and bizarre-looking chameleons.
Then there is the scenery itself; narrow coastal planes, limestone cliffs and caves, and the towering Hajhir Mountains.
The Socotra archipelago, with its four islands and two rocky islets, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Hailed as one of the most isolated landforms on earth, it's believed that the archipelago used to be part of the Gondwana supercontinent, but broke away over 20 million years ago.
Unfortunately, it's unlikely you'll be able to visit the island any time soon. Socotra has historically been politically governed by Yemen, which is in the midst of a civil war.
Socotra was not involved in the conflicts (it lies 350km off Yemen's southern coast), but in April 2018 it did become a source of political tension between the UAE and Yemen
The UAE sent troops to Socotra, but Yemen officials argued that the country had not sought permission to deploy, causing tensions to rise.
However, the two countries managed to broker a deal in which Saudi soldiers replaced the UAE troops (Saudi Arabia is one of Yemen's allies), to work on military training with Yemeni security forces, the latter who operate the island's airport and the port.
The Foreign Office advises against all travel to both Yemen's mainland and its islands, which it has done so since March 2011, before the civil war broke out in 2015.
It explains: "FCDO advises against all travel to the whole of Yemen due to the unpredictable security conditions. If you’re in Yemen, you should leave immediately.
“Support for British people is severely limited in Yemen. The UK government cannot help British nationals leaving Yemen. There are no evacuation procedures in place.”
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1930545/socotra-island-yemen-weird-landscape
Indian astronomers have found 34 new giant alien radio sources using the GMRT near Pune!
August 2, 2024
Giant Radio Galaxies (GRGs) are radio galaxies that have expanded to sizes spanning megaparsecs.
To put this in perspective, while the Milky Way galaxy is approximately 100,000 light-years wide, GRGs stretch across millions of light-years.
Ironically, it is their immense size that makes GRGs rare and challenging to detect.
One possible formation scenario for GRGs involves the powerful radio jets from a galaxy extending into relatively empty regions of intergalactic space.
In an astonishing leap forward for astronomy, a team of Indian researchers has uncovered 34 new GRSs using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT).
This discovery, not only a testament to India's growing prominence in the field of space exploration, provides fresh insights into the enigmatic behaviour of the universe’s largest and most mysterious structures.
This groundbreaking discovery stems from the TIFR GMRT Sky Survey (TGSS), conducted between 2010 and 2012. Covering about 90% of the sky at 150 MHz, the survey has become a treasure trove for astronomers.
The team, comprising PhD students Netai Bhukta and Souvik Manik, and astronomers Sabyasachi Pal and Sushanta K Mondal, delved into the TGSS Alternative Data Release 1, leveraging GMRT’s exceptional sensitivity at low frequencies to uncover these colossal structures.
Giant radio sources are cosmic behemoths, stretching millions of light-years across and representing the final stage of radio galaxy evolution.
Their sheer size and rarity have long puzzled scientists. The recent discovery of 34 new GRSs, among the most distant ever detected, challenges the prevailing theories about their growth.
Notably, two of these objects defy the conventional understanding that GRSs predominantly expand in low-density environments, suggesting that other factors contribute to their enormous size.
The GMRT, operated by the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA) of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), is situated near Khodad village, 90 km north of Pune.
This state-of-the-art facility has placed India at the forefront of radio astronomy, enabling scientists to peer deep into the universe and uncover its secrets.
The success of this discovery underscores India’s growing capabilities and ambitions in space research, marking a significant milestone for the country’s scientific community.
The study of GRSs is not merely an academic exercise; it has profound implications for our understanding of the universe.
These giant structures provide critical insights into the behaviour of the intergalactic medium and the complex interactions between black holes and their surrounding environments.
By examining these massive entities, scientists can better understand the distribution of matter in the cosmos and the forces shaping the evolution of galaxies.
With plans to present new GRS samples in forthcoming articles, the researchers aim to conduct detailed analyses based on multiwavelength observations.
These studies will further unravel the mysteries surrounding the formation and growth of giant radio sources, contributing to our broader understanding of the universe.