And what will Betelgeuse look like when it does
01/01/21 10:13
Happy New Year everyone. 2020 was a particularly tough one for everyone. I hope you all got through it safely.
I found this article from early in the year at Astronomy.com website describing a simulation on what Betelgeuse may look like when it does blow. But, don't get too excited yet. It still has up to 100,000 years of life left. I may try to hang around for it though.
When Betelgeuse Goes Supernova, What Will It Look Like From Earth
Image courtesy of Astronomy.com and European Southern Observatory/L.Calcada
When will Betelgeuse blow?
11/18/20 18:41
So, have you been sitting around each night Orion is in your night sky watching to see if Betelgeuse is going to supernova? Yeah, I'd like to see that also. But, it is a complex thing to try and predict. Apparently, how big the red giant is has a lot to do with when the show will begin. As it turns out, we are not even sure how far away it is, making it virtually impossible to accurately tell it's size. Here's a story at Sky and Telescope with some details:
https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/how-big-is-betelgeuse-really/
https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/how-big-is-betelgeuse-really/
Arecibo in Danger?
11/16/20 18:43
| In August, the Arecibo radio telescope suffered a failure of an auxiliary support cable on the massive receiver hanging 300 meters over the disk. Not to be outdone, one of the main support cables failed this month, putting the entire dish at risk. You can read about the failure here: https://astronomy.com/news/2020/11/arecibo-radio-telescope-reeling-from-second-cable-failure Image courtesy of Astronomy Magazine. |
2000 Year Old Nova Remnant Discovered
05/11/19 13:16
Researchers at the University of Gottingen have discovered the remains of a 2000 year old nova in M22. This matches ancient Chinese records from 48 BC, making this one of the oldest confirmed astronomical observations. You can read about it at Science Daily. Here's an image taken from the Science Daily website:
The Universe Grows Younger
05/01/19 13:25
| Well, I feel much older now. It turns out the universe is a billion years younger than anyone thought. That makes me that much older, relatively. Wish I could wake up one morning and have someone tell me I'm way younger than I thought I was. Anyway, here is a link to an article at abcnews.com: | https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/study-universe-expanding-faster-younger-62656475
| Here's an exciting (and a bit scary) event to put on your calendar. On Friday, April 13, 2029, asteroid Apophis will pass about 31,000 km from the earth. At 340 m in length, that's a big chunk of rock to pass that close to the earth. Those in the know say there is no fear of it impacting. Here's a link to the article at space.com: | https://www.space.com/asteroid-apophis-2029-flyby-planetary-defense.html|
Footnote:
I apologize for leaving the site abandoned for quite a while. Due to extended family illness and craziness from a pandemic, I have not updated this site in some time. Things are better under control at home now so expect to see updates on a fairly regular basis. At the very least, expect the news page to receive regular postings.
I hope you like the new format for the site. I did this with RapidWeaver 8 running under MacOS Big Sur.
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