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Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day BMW Joe #313716 28th Apr 2009 7:05pm Joined: Oct 2008 Posts: 215 Claughton Riki_Wirral Addict Riki_Wirral Addict Joined: Oct 2008 Posts: 215 Claughton Originally Posted by BMW Joe Fantastic pictures Vanquished The Moon and Venus rising together in the early morning sky on Wednesday 22nd April 2009 Brilliant pic Joe, love it

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day Riki_Wirral #342397 14th Aug 2009 11:33am Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire This early morning skyscape was captured last week on August 4th, looking northeast across calm waters in the Turn Basin at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. In a striking contrast in motion, the space shuttle Discovery, mounted on a massive transporter, creeps toward launch pad 39A at less than two miles per hour, while a brilliant meteor streaks through the sky traveling many miles per second. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #343477 19th Aug 2009 2:57pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Bathed in sunlight, the International Space Station (ISS) arced through the evening sky above the town of Lauffen in southern Germany on May 31st. The timing of the bright passage was about 10 minutes after the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery on the STS-124 mission from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, in the southeastern US. Of course, Discovery was headed toward an orbital rendezvous with the ISS. In chasing after the space station, the shuttle also made a pass over Lauffen just 21 minutes after launch. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #343479 19th Aug 2009 3:19pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire The July 22nd total solar eclipse was the longest of the 21st century. From the point of maximum eclipse along the Moon's shadow track across the Pacific Ocean, the Moon completely blocked the Sun for a total of 6 minutes and 39 seconds. But from the deck of this cruise ship the duration of the total eclipse phase was extended to a whopping 6 minutes and 42 seconds by the ship's motion along the shadow track. This panoramic view of the scene shows the shimmering solar corona in a darkened daytime sky, with clouds silhouetted by a bright sky on the distant horizon, beyond the Moon's shadow. Mercury can be seen near the eclipsed Sun. Venus lies near the upper right edge of the frame. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #343481 19th Aug 2009 3:20pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire The daytime sky grew dark, the temperature dropped, and lights came on as Chongqing, China, was plunged into the Moon's shadow during the July 22nd total solar eclipse. This serene, wide-angle view of the event looks to the east over the large, populous city from a newly constructed park. Despite thin clouds, it captures the shimmering solar corona just before the end of the eclipse total phase. This total solar eclipse occurred near Aphelion, the point in Earth's elliptical orbit farthest from the Sun, and so the Sun was near its smallest apparent size. It also occurred when the New Moon was near Perigee, the closest point to Earth in the Moon's elliptical orbit, making the Moon near its largest apparent size. The small Sun and large Moon made this the longest solar eclipse of this century. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #343483 19th Aug 2009 3:23pm Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 12,369 Likes: 2 Birkenhead BMW Joe OP Wiki Master OP BMW Joe Wiki Master Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 12,369 Likes: 2 Birkenhead wow, liking that Autowirral.co.uk - The Northwest's Biggest forum of Motoring Enthusiasts. Cruisewirral.com - The Northwest's Biggest forum of Modified Car Enthusiasts.

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day BMW Joe #343513 19th Aug 2009 7:01pm Joined: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,875 Wirral Mondeo_Scott Forum Master Mondeo_Scott Forum Master Joined: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,875 Wirral

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day Mondeo_Scott #344498 24th Aug 2009 3:03pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Morning Glory Clouds Over Australia What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #344658 25th Aug 2009 12:03pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire What would Saturn's rings look like if the ring plane pointed directly at the Sun? That situation occurred earlier this month when equinox occurred on Saturn. Since the Earth is nearly in the same direction as the Sun from Saturn, the rings appeared to disappear from Earth. From the robotic Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn, however, the unusually illuminated ring plane could be viewed from on high. Pictured above, Saturn's rings, darker than ever seen before, were captured just a few hours before equinox on 2009 August 10. The reason for the unusual brightness of an inner ring is currently unknown, but possibly related to particle sizes there being larger than the 10 meter average thickness of the rest of Saturn's rings. Short light streaks in the frame are artificial image artifacts and have nothing to do with Saturn's ring plane. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #345172 27th Aug 2009 8:33am Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Scroll right to take in the view from the highest summit in the contiguous USA. The above 360-degree digitally stitched panorama, taken in mid-July, shows the view from 4,400-meter high Mt. Whitney in Sequoia National Park, California. In the foreground, angular boulders populate Mt. Whitney's summit while in the distance, just below the horizon, peaks from the Sierra Nevada mountain range are visible. Sky sights include light pollution emanating from Los Angeles and Fresno, visible just above the horizon. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #346164 1st Sep 2009 11:59am Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Unusual shadows and dark rings appeared around Saturn near its equinox last month. At that time -- early August -- Saturn's ring plane pointed directly at the Sun. Visible above, Saturn's moon Tethys casts a shadow visible only on the far right. Saturn's own shadow blacks out a large swath of rings on the right. The night side of Saturn glows with ringshine -- sunlight reflected by ring particles back onto Saturn. Images near equinox at Saturn are giving astronomers a chance to search for unexpected shadows that may illuminate previously unknown features of Saturn's complex ring system. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #346566 2nd Sep 2009 2:32pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Just one minute before midnight EDT, Friday, August 28, the Space Shuttle Discovery began a long arc into a cloudy sky. Following the launch, a bright and remarkably colorful trail was captured in this time exposure from the Banana River Viewing Site, looking east toward pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #346571 2nd Sep 2009 2:54pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Sometimes the sky itself is the best show in town. In January 2007, people from Perth, Australia gathered on a local beach to watch a sky light up with delights near and far. Nearby, fireworks exploded as part of Australia Day celebrations. On the far right, lightning from a thunderstorm flashed in the distance. Near the image center, though, seen through clouds, was the most unusual sight of all: Comet McNaught. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #347907 7th Sep 2009 8:11pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire A picturesque starscape capped a serene seascape as seen from Turkey this past August. In the above digitally stitched panorama, the Gelidonya Lighthouse shines in the foreground before a calm Mediterranean Sea. On the left, Jupiter is the brightest point in the image and since on the same side of the Sun as the Earth What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Re: Astronomy Picture of the Day StuyMac #347908 7th Sep 2009 8:13pm Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire StuyMac Wiki Master StuyMac Wiki Master Joined: Nov 2003 Posts: 12,002 Wirralshire Despina (pictured) is a tiny moon of Neptune. A mere 148 kilometers across, diminutive Despina was discovered in 1989, in images from the Voyager 2 spacecraft taken during its encounter with the solar system's most distant gas giant planet. What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?