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RETURN OF THE MARS
HOAX: There's an email going around claiming
that Mars will look as big as a full Moon on August 27th. Could
this possibly be true? Find out in today's
story from Science@NASA.
KAGUYA IMPACT UPDATE: The
nominal impact time (June 10 @ 1830 UT) has passed. So far we have
received no reports of a flash or debris plume observed by telescopes
on Earth. Stay tuned for updates.
IMPACT ALERT: Japan's
Kaguya spacecraft
will crash into the Moon on Wednesday, June 10th, at around 1830
UT. The timing favors telescopic observers in east Asia, Australia
and New Zealand, who may be able to see a brief flash of light or
a plume of debris rising from the Moon's southeastern limb close
to selenographic coordinates 80ºE, 63ºS. The expected impact point
is marked by a red dot in this image from astrophotographer Pete
Lawrence:
Click on the
image for a more detailed view.
Kaguya is a big spaceship. It masses 2,900 kg and
will hit the Moon at an oblique angle traveling approximately 6,000
km/hr. Whether it tumbles and bounces along the lunar surface or
runs headlong into some towering crater wall, no one can say. Clues
to the end of Kaguya will come on June 10th in the form of an explosive
flash (or lack thereof) and high-res images of the crash site taken
by future lunar orbiters.
The impact is not accidental. The Japanese space agency,
JAXA, has long planned to end the mission in this fashion. Kaguya
has been in lunar orbit since Oct. 2007; it has searched dark craters
for evidence of frozen water, mapped the moon's gravitational field,
and taken some of the all-time
prettiest pictures of Earth's satellite.
Farewell, Kaguya! Links for observers:
#1:
#2, #3.
LUNAR OCCULTATION:
Over the weekend, an unscheduled lunar occultation
occurred over Brisbane, Australia. Amateur astronomer Stephen
Mudge was outdoors for an stroll and had the presence of mind
to snap this picture:
"I came across this rare astronomical event on the evening
of June 7th. The nearly-full Moon was neatly covered by a native
brushtailed
possum wandering along the telephone wires on my street."
Brushtailed possums are nocturnal marsupials common throughout
Australia. Their habitat ranges widely from eucalyptus forests to
urban vegetable gardens. The furry creatures have even been known
to break and enter kitchens for a midnight snack. Astronomy is hungry
work!
"This possum seems to be enjoying the view of the rising Moon,"
notes Mudge, "while its tail nicely matches that of Scorpius
in the background!"
more moon shots: from
Martin Stojanovski of Rudine, Macedonia; from
John Stetson of Sebago Lake, Maine; from
Stephen W. Ramsden of Atlanta, Georgia; from
Elias Chasiotis of Sounio, Greece;
2009
Noctilucent Photo Gallery
[previous years: 2008,
2007, 2006,
2005, 2004,
2003]
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the Sunspot Cycle
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