dysnomia.us

eris and earth

News from Eris (the planet, schmuck- goddesses aren’t real):
Signs of Weather Seen on Dwarf Planet

And some enviro stories I’ve been meaning to post for a bit:

Greenpeace Goes to Africa
Wildlife groups see end of Bush abuse
Buried secrets: Is natural gas drilling endangering U.S. water supplies?
Burned: EPA Rules Against Coal Plant; Now What?

The Environmental Protection Agency appeals board ruled yesterday that one of its regional offices acted too soon in giving a permit for a new coal-fired plant in Bonanza, Utah. Environmental groups, led by the Sierra Club, argued that the EPA should have taken into account carbon-dioxide emissions from the new plant, after a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that said the EPA had the authority to regulate carbon-dioxide emissions under the existing Clean Air Act.

space news- spaceship two vs. nasa at fifty

Forget the Dark Knight–the White Knight Two mothership has arrived
Branson unveils space tourism jet

New Solar System Guide: The Latest Lingo

NASA at 50: Many happy returns?
Houston, we have a problem: Nasa will struggle when shuttle retires, says boss

(Stamp image from here)

The moon beckons again – for U.S., 8 other nations

NASA and the eight other countries – Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Britain and France – plan to formally announce the agreement Tuesday. The multinational agreement capped a momentous week at Ames, including the largest NASA science conference purely devoted to the moon since the 1970s.

news from space

Yep, enough space stories to warrant a separate post tonight….

For starters, Eris has a new brother. Let’s have a warm welcome for the solar system’s newest dwarf, er, little planet- Makemake.
Distant solar system body named ‘Makemake’

Prometheus Collides with Saturn’s Rings

The moon Prometheus slowly collides with the diffuse inner edge of Saturn’s F ring in this movie sequence of Cassini images. The oblong moon pulls a streamer of material from the ring and leaves behind a dark channel.

With the shuttle program winding down and no new system ready to launch, NASA is looking at a period of several years without its own ability to launch humans into space. Apart from the obvious bummer, it also has serious effects for the space industry:
NASA’s Conundrum: Cut Costs Without Layoffs
Florida Towns That Depend On NASA Brace For Lean Times

Not that everyone’s in agreement on what the next system will even be:
NASA Engineers Design Alternative Moon Rocket

In the meantime, we’re not exactly alone out there:
China ‘could reach Moon by 2020′

Mars Lander Exposes More Ice

And finally, here’s more Phoenix pictures from NASA.

news stories- guinea pigs, plutoids and pepper spray

VA testing drugs on war veterans

Getting ready for the Democratic National Convention:
Denver stocks up on pepper weapon: City orders guns that fire special plastic balls

Denver had war games this week. Minneapolis had them last week. Denver’s got the Dems this summer, and Minneapolis has the Republicans. But that’s not related at all:

The exercise by special ops troops, supported by Denver police SWAT teams and firefighters, is intended to prepare for a terrorism threat in a “realistic urban environment,” said Lt. Steve Ruh, a spokesman for the U.S. Special Operations Command, headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.
…
Military and police officials dismissed reports that the exercise was preparation for the Democratic National Convention coming to Denver in August.

“We have nothing to do with the Democratic National Convention,” said Ruh, noting that similar counterterrorism exercises have been conducted in Manhattan, Los Angeles and Houston.

Things still aren’t going well in Afghanistan:
Taliban apparently prepare for major battle near Kandahar

Robot Finds Mars Dry So Far

Strife and discord within the International Astronomical Union:
IAU Snobbery
Hail Eris, etc.

5th human foot washes up on B.C. shore

While the similarities to the other found feet is strong, she said there’s no indication this foot is related to the other cases.

“We’re certainly not discounting the possibility that this may be linked to the other recovered feet, but it’s just too premature and very speculative for us to even entertain that right now,” she said.

news stories- eris gets snubbed, sex in the church

This story barely even mentions Eris. What an unoriginal snub.
Pluto Now Called a Plutoid

Meanwhile, back on Mars:
Mars Soil Sample Finally Delivered to Phoenix Instrument

Pirates attack cattle ship bound for Western Australia
Pirates attack Cameroonian military convoy in Bakassi
Will piracy never be sunk?

Piracy is as old as seafaring and even ancient states suffered from this evil. Julius Caesar was probably one its most famous victims. Captured in the Aegean Sea in 75 BC, he was released for the princely ransom of 50 talents (the pirates had only asked for twenty, but Caesar insisted he was worth more), and promised his captors to come back and execute them, which he promptly did.

Danger Room debunks activist folklore:
Protesters Panic Over ‘Crap Cannon’

They had sex WHERE?

An Italian couple who were caught having sex in a church confessional box while morning Mass was being said have repented and made peace with the local bishop.
…
Their lawyer said they had been drinking all night and realized they had gone too far.

OK, real news some other time.