Where's Saturn? Is that a UFO--or the ISS? What's the name of that
star? Get the answers from mySKY--a
fun new astronomy helper from Meade. LAUNCH
POSTPONED: Continued problems with fuel sensors
have prompted mission controllers to postpone today's planned launch
of space shuttle Atlantis on an 11-day construction mission to the
International Space Station. The next launch window: January 2008.
NASA says
January 2nd is the earliest Atlantis will leave the launch
pad (photo credit: Mike Theiss).
SUNSPOT SUNSET: Sunspot
group 978 continues to grow (movie)
and it now occupies an expanse of sun more than 6 times wider than
Earth. "Sunspot 978 is quite big and interesting," says
Peter Heinzen of Raron,
Switzerland. "I photographed the spot last night just as the
sun was setting behind some fir trees here in the Swiss Alps."
He used a Canon
EOS 40D and a sun-filtered Takahashi FS-78 refractor to capture
this rare "sunspot sunset." Although sunspot 978 is large
and growing, the sunspot's magnetic field remains uncomplicated
and stable; no big solar flares are in the offing. Stay tuned for
updates.
more images: from
Franck Charlier of Marines, Val d'oise - France; from
Javier Temprano of Santander, Spain; from
Rogerio Marcon of Campinas - Sao Paulo, Brazil; from
Oldfield of Hong Kong; from
the Hinode spacecraft in Earth orbit; from
J. Fairfull and J. Stetson of South Portland, Maine; from
John Nassr of Baguio, Philippines; from
Pete Lawrence of Selsey, UK; from
Cai-Uso Wohler of Bispingen, Germany;
SUNSET MIRAGE: "Every
day recently I've been taking my
camera to work where I have a nice view over Santa Monica Bay,"
reports photographer Jeff Hapeman
of Santa Monica, California. "On December 4th I caught this
amazing sunset mirage."
Photo details: Canon
G9, ISO 80, 1/640s, f/4.8.
A temperature inversion layer split the setting sun
into 3 ... 4 ... 5 pieces! Atmospheric optics expert Les Cowley
says the California Coast is a good place to see such things. "The
combination of cold offshore ocean current and warm winds from the
land give temperature inversions, layers of abnormally hot and cold
air that bend the sun’s rays to form sunset
mirages and green
flashes."
In this particular case, "just one inversion
has given us three squashed suns, one setting above the layer, one
rising from the sea and another sinking towards it. Microstructure
or multiple stacked inversions have split the topmost sun into three
more little pieces."
The topmost sun often disappears with a final green
flash. Says Hapeman, "I'm hoping to catch that next!"
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