Hi all,
1. IAA LECTURE Wednesday 12 November, 7.30 p.m. Larmor Lecture Theatre, Physics Building, QUB: "NIGHT SKY HUNTING" by Martin McKenna.
ABSTRACT
The talk will be part biography and part sky phenomena. Martin will describe how Comet Hale-Bopp first got him into astronomy, the development of his observing career and passion, the night I decided I wanted to learn all the stars in the sky, his ever bigger telescopes, comet-hunting], a few close calls and near misses when I came close to making a discovery and didn't.
He will then describe recent sky events which have impressed him, the auroras of May and Oct 2024, the NLC display of July 2024, comet NEOWISE of July 2020. Then a very brief change to how he got into storm chasing, the joys of the photogenic challenges it brings. The talk will end with a brief look at comet Lemmon to show he's still into comets as much as ever
Brief Bio:
Martin McKenna is an amateur astronomer and photographer from N. Ireland. After witnessing great comet Hale-Bopp in 1997 his life changed forever. He quickly developed a passion for the stars and for comets in particular and spent over ten years searching the skies for a new comet of his own. Martin has a particular interest in transient events and enjoys photographing the aurora borealis and noctilucent clouds. His passion for the sky also has evolved to daytime events such as atmospheric optics and convective weather events. Currently he splits his time between visual observations of the sky using his 10" telescope and photographing dramatic sky events with the intention of documenting memories and creating time lapse video sequences covering everything from a pulsating corona to an explosive updraught on a thunderstorm. He currently lives in Mid-Ulster and enjoys the dark skies from the Sperrins.
[I would also add that he has had the honour of having an asteroid named after him: 42531 McKenna. He was also awarded 'Irish Astronomer Of The Year 2005' by the Irish Federation Of Astronomical Societies. He is one of the most enthusiastic, dedicated, and indefatigable observers you will ever meet He reminds me of myself 50 years ago – and I can't say fairer than that! This talk will be a treat for everyone who simply enjoys observing the beautiful and amazing sky above us.]
2, Universe expansion actually slowing down?!?
Universe's expansion might be slowing down, not speeding up
I'm quoting this RAS Press Release in full. I referred to it on WhatsApp a few days ago, but it was embargoed until today, which I respected.
" The universe's expansion may actually have started to slow rather than accelerating at an ever-increasing rate as previously thought, a new study suggests.
"Remarkable" findings published today in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society cast doubt on the long-standing theory that a mysterious force known as 'dark energy' is driving distant galaxies away increasingly faster.
Instead, they show no evidence of an accelerating universe.
If the results are confirmed it could open an entirely new chapter in scientists' quest to uncover the true nature of dark energy, resolve the 'Hubble tension', and understand the past and future of the universe.
Lead researcher Professor Young-Wook Lee, of Yonsei University in South Korea, said: "Our study shows that the universe has already entered a phase of decelerated expansion at the present epoch and that dark energy evolves with time much more rapidly than previously thought.
"If these results are confirmed, it would mark a major paradigm shift in cosmology since the discovery of dark energy 27 years ago."
For the past three decades, astronomers have widely believed that the universe is expanding at an ever-increasing rate, driven by an unseen phenomenon called dark energy that acts as a kind of anti-gravity.
This conclusion, based on distance measurements to faraway galaxies using type Ia supernovae, earned the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics.
However, a team of astronomers at Yonsei University have now put forward new evidence that type Ia supernovae, long regarded as the universe's "standard candles", are in fact strongly affected by the age of their progenitor stars.
Even after luminosity standardisation, supernovae from younger stellar populations appear systematically fainter, while those from older populations appear brighter.
Based on a much larger host-galaxy sample of 300 galaxies, the new study confirmed this effect at extremely high significance (99.999% confidence), suggesting that the dimming of distant supernovae arises not only from cosmological effects but also from stellar astrophysics effects.
When this systematic bias was corrected, the supernova data no longer matched the standard ΛCDM cosmological model with a cosmological constant, researchers said.
Instead, it aligned far better with a new model favoured by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) project, derived from baryonic acoustic oscillations (BAO) – effectively the sound of the Big Bang – and cosmic microwave background (CMB) data.
The corrected supernova data and the BAO+CMB-only results both indicate that dark energy weakens and evolves significantly with time.
More importantly, when the corrected supernova data were combined with BAO and CMB results, the standard ΛCDM model was ruled out with overwhelming significance, the researchers said.
Most surprising of all, this combined analysis indicates that the universe is not accelerating today as previously thought, but has already transitioned into a state of decelerated expansion.
Professor Lee added: "In the DESI project, the key results were obtained by combining uncorrected supernova data with baryonic acoustic oscillations measurements, leading to the conclusion that while the universe will decelerate in the future, it is still accelerating at present.
"By contrast, our analysis — which applies the age-bias correction — shows that the universe has already entered a decelerating phase today. Remarkably, this agrees with what is independently predicted from BAO-only or BAO+CMB analyses, though this fact has received little attention so far."
To further confirm their results, the Yonsei team are now carrying out an "evolution-free test", which uses only supernovae from young, coeval host galaxies across the full redshift range. The first results already support their main conclusion.
"Within the next five years, with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory discovering more than 20,000 new supernova host galaxies, precise age measurements will allow for a far more robust and definitive test of supernova cosmology,: said research professor Chul Chung, a co-lead on the study along with PhD candidate Junhyuk Son.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, which sits on a mountain in the Chilean Andes, is home to the world's most powerful digital camera. It began scientific operations this year and could answer vital questions about our own solar system and the wider universe.
After the Big Bang and the rapid expansion of the universe some 13.8 billion years ago, gravity slowed it down. But in 1998, it was established that nine billion years after the universe began, its expansion had started to speed up again, driven by a mysterious force.
Astronomers dubbed this dark energy, but despite it making up about 70 per cent of the universe it is still considered to be one of the greatest mysteries in science.
Last year, data from DESI in Tucson, Arizona suggested that the force exerted by dark energy had changed over time, evidence for which has been growing ever since.
The hope is that with these new tools in their arsenal, astronomers will now be better equipped to find clues about what exactly dark energy is and how it influences the universe."
I have often said, just based on logic, that early Type 1a supernovae would be different to later (2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation ones), simply because they had much lower metallicity (they were initially only composed of hydrogen, helium, and a small amount of lithium). Therefore we could not assume that they reached the same absolute magnitude as later ones, and therefore we could not use them as reliable distance indicators. And that's what was giving rise to the idea that the expansion of the universe was accelerating, thus begetting the ad-hoc hypothesis of Dark Energy.
And it also resolves the 'Hubble Tension' problem.
Of course, this finding is itself open to challenge, but it certainly is thought-provoking!
3. ASTRONOMY/ASTROPHYSICS MASTERCLASS, Maynooth, 13 Nov.
The following event in Maynooth has been brought to our attention and may be of interest to members with school students in 5th or 6th years. It looks very interesting and they can book either individually or (via teacher) as a class/group If someone wants to follow up, get in touch with Maynooth, all the details are in the following link:
https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/news-events/astrophysics-cosmology-masterclass-mu-dept-phy
sics (thsnks to John Dolan for this)
4. ANOTHER COMET
5. DIAS Wants your aurora photos – no matter how bad!
https://www.dias.ie/cosmicphysics/astrophysics/aurora-eire/
6. LIGHT POLLUTION SURVEY
We are reaching out as part of a research initiative called the Blu-RAY project, developed by researchers from TU Dublin, University College Cork, and the National Parks and Wildlife Service and supported by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Ireland. The project explores perspectives on light, lighting, and their impact on humans, animals, and the environment, with a particular focus on blue light.
To ensure broad and inclusive participation, we are seeking the support of relevant organisations and institutions to help circulate a short online survey among their members and networks. The survey is anonymous and designed according to TU Dublin ethic research principles, it takes about 15 minutes to complete, and is open to all adults, regardless of their background or expertise.
We would be very grateful if your organisation would consider sharing the survey link with your members, either via email, or newsletter, or social media. Your support would greatly enhance the reach and value of the project's findings.
Survey link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Blu-RAY
If you require any further information about the project or the survey, I would be happy to provide more details.
Thank you very much for your time and consideration. We greatly appreciate your help in supporting environmental research and public engagement on this important topic.
Warm regards, Anna Crowley, Post Graduate Researcher, TU Dublin
Email: C20343001@mytudublin.ie
7. SATURN fading but still visible, JUPITER well placed:
The second biggest planet in our system is still well-placed for observing after its opposition on Sep 21.
Both the Sun and the Earth are now on the South side of the ring plane, but the rings present to us at a very narrow angle of just over 1 degree, and they will close even further as Saturn retrogrades, due to Earth's orbital motion.
Now is a good time to look for the fainter inner satellites, as the rings are much less bright than when fully open. The current magnitudes (outwards from Mimas) are: Mimas 13.0, Enceladus 11,8, Tethys 10.3, Dione 10.5, Rhea 9.8, Titan 8.4. `
Saturn has now faded slightly to mag 1, diameter 18.7"
JUPITER IS VISIBLE IN THE MORNING SKY, high up in Gemini. Look for the Great Red Spot in the planet's S. Hemisphere, and the 4 Galilean satellites, visible even in binoculars
8. IAA SUBSCRIPTIONS WERE DUE on 1 September
After many many years of keeping the subs constant at £20 we have reluctantly had to raise the amount to £25, to cover rising costs. Student membership is only £10. Details on the IAA website https://irishastro.org/
Please amend your payment details accordingly. If you have already paid at the old rate, please add an extra £5 via Paypal or whatever is convenient.
9. Two New Comets – last chances to see them, And maye 3I Atlas?
Comet 3I/ATLAS now visible from Earth with a small telescope https://share.google/hzgTMh0Yj7X2vldFY (but not from here!)
Astrophotographers capture dazzling new views of Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) as it brightens for October skies | Space https://share.google/yLYu8mUyjFnFPsmw9
LATEST:
Comet Lemmon was closest to Earth on October 21. It'll be closest to the sun on November 8. Click here for finder charts and more. Many in the EarthSky community have already captured glorious images of this comet as it has sped inward in our solar system. See the photos.
See also: Monday's Comet Tracker: How To See Two Comets Close To Bright Stars https://share.google/6cunoUTdSa1aWbPBl
10. INTERSTELLAR COMET, 3I/ATLAS
(Prof Alan Fitzsimmons' superb talk on 1 October has whetted our interest in this object even more!)
Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS - Everything We Know - Newsweek https://share.google/MdItd4oiAnZvwybhu
1st known interstellar visitor 'Oumuamua is an 'exo-Pluto' — a completely new class of object, scientists say | Space https://share.google/vGHZM6kvulUiGnPMb
Avi never gives up ! Harvard Astronomer Claims "Major Anomaly" As Interstellar Object 3I/Atlas Measured Over 33 Billion Tons | IFLScience https://share.google/myii6Cwb2dxXQxRyr
It's official! An interstellar object is visiting our solar system
With an absolute magnitude of about 12, it will be interesting to see how much it brightens as it nears perihelion. We may get our best view as it moves out from the solar glare in December, and gets closest to Earth, although even then it will be about 1.6 AU away.
Please ignore all the media speculation about this being an alien artefact: just Avi Loeb off on his favourite hobby-horse again. - As Prof Chris Lintott told me recently 'It's nonsense on stilts!'
And NASA has just released the following NASA responds to claim that mystery space object is potential alien spacecraft
Since this is the first chance any of us will have had to see a non-stellar object from outside our solar system, I'm giving the following details for initial planning. No doubt more accurate details will be available in due course:
Epoch = 2025 Oct. 12.0 TT
T = 2025 Oct. 29.41062 TT Peri. = 127.93850
e = 6.1801697 Node = 322.18759 2000.0
q = 1.3620397 AU Incl. = 175.11382
(Note that the inclination is much more than 90 degrees – almost 180, in fact. This means that it is travelling round the Sun in almost the opposite direction to all the planets. Which also means that if it were to hit us, it would be quite a bang!)
The following ephemeris is from the above orbital elements, and uses photometric power-law parameters H = 9.5 and 2.5n = 8 for the magnitudes. (Delta is distance from Earth, and r (Radius Vector) is distance from the Sun, both in AUs). Elong is angular elongation from the Sun.
it is now too close to the Sun for easy observation, but may be visible by 21 November, much better placed for Northern observers.
I wonder who in Ireland will be first to image it? And I hope to be able to see it visually, although I no longer have my own 37cm reflector!
Date TT R. A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. Phase Mag.
2025 11 21 12 34.09 -02 22.3 2.040 1.593 49.8 28.3 12.7
2025 11 26 12 18.72 -01 01.8 1.978 1.694 58.9 29.9 12.8
2025 12 01 12 01.83 +00 27.9 1.920 1.808 68.4 30.5 13.0
2025 12 06 11 43.30 +02 06.8 1.871 1.932 78.4 30.0 13.1
2025 12 11 11 23.10 +03 54.3 1.833 2.063 88.8 28.5 13.3
2025 12 16 11 01.34 +05 48.4 1.811 2.202 99.7 26.1 13.5
2025 12 21 10 38.31 +07 45.8 1.808 2.345 110.8 23.1 13.7
2025 12 26 10 14.50 +09 42.1 1.828 2.493 122.1 19.5 14.0
2025 12 31 09 50.52 +11 32.4 1.872 2.645 133.3 15.7 14.2
2026 01 05 09 27.06 +13 12.7 1.941 2.799 144.3 11.8 14.5
2026 01 10 09 04.75 +14 40.1 2.035 2.956 155.0 8.1 14.8
2026 01 15 08 44.07 +15 53.7 2.153 3.114 165.1 4.6 15.1
2026 01 20 08 25.34 +16 53.8 2.293 3.274 174.5 1.7 15.4
2026 01 25 08 08.70 +17 41.8 2.454 3.436 175.2 1.4 15.7
2026 01 30 07 54.15 +18 19.6 2.632 3.599 167.0 3.5 16.1
See also section on this comet under 'weblinks' at the end.
Avi Loeb goes off the rails! Harvard Professor Warns Public to 'Take Vacations Before October 29' — Says NASA Is Concealing the Truth About 3I/ATLAS
And it gets worse! Doppler Code? Experts Claim 3I/Atlas Is Sending a Signal Back Toward Earth
11. WhatsApp Group for alerts on Observing Nights.
The IAA have set up a WhatsApp Group for updates on Observing Nights. If you would like to be included in this group, please e-mail Mary at callistoboxers@hotmail.com with your full name & mobile telephone number.
No discussions about anything other than Observing Nights will be posted on this group.
12. IAA 50th Anniversary History booklet All IAA members should have received a free copy of this history of the IAA with their latest Stardust. It would be good to have some feedback, so any comments are welcome.
Did you find it interesting or useful?
Any major omissions or errors that you are aware of? Any memories that it brought back for you?
13. ISS
The ISS will start a new series of evening passes on 17 November. Details for your location are available on www.heavens-above.com
14. ALAN 2025, 28 – 30 October 2025, Westport, Co.Mayo.
This event was superb – 200 attendees (the biggest number ever), with people from 45 countries, and every inhabited continent. Congratulations to all involved, particularly the amazing, indefatigable, Georgia McMillen, and Prof Brian Espey of Dark Sky Ireland, and to Lisa Hallinan, the event organiser for Mayo CC,
15. Mayo Dark Sky Festival, 31 October – 2 November. This was another great success, centred mainly just 'up the road' from Westport, in Newport. Another amazing programme, with a wide variety of talks and events, and we even got a good bit of clear sky on the Friday evening at the Dark Sky Park at Ballycroy.
16. Possible GEMINIDS Observing Event, 12/13 December
More details later, but keep the date free if you are interested.
17: HEADS UP – Advance notice. IFAS Convention, Saturday 12 September 2026.
"From Ancient Stones to Distant Stars". Birr Castle, Co Offaly. This event, being organised by Ronan Newman, chair of IFAS, is the first event of its kind. It will be an all-day event, with a possible optional dinner in the evening, and possibly observing if clear. Top speakers are being invited, and there will also be major contribution from IFAS clubs. Details still being arranged, but mark the date in your diaries.
18. 2026 Eclipse planning.
This may be of interest to those planning observing locations for the total solar eclipses in 2026 and 2027
Global risk map reveals the most dangerous countries and cities
And weather prospects for the coming eclipses such as the one in Spain in 2026, and N. Africa in 2027, are on www.eclipsophile.com . The discussions there will help you pick a site for the eclipse, as weather is one of the important factors to consider.
19: Recurrent Nova T Corona Borealis – Latest predictions- 10 November?:
By extrapolating the empirical fact that the previous T CrB eruption dates were separated by an integer multiple of the orbital period 228 days, the next eruptions should appear at 27 March 2025, 10 November 2025, 25 June 2026 or 8 Feb 2027. No physical hypothesis is made behind this extrapolation. I urge observers to be cautious about it, since an external perturbation could happen, and to continue to monitor the light-curve of the star. (By Jean Schneider, Paris Observatory)
Obviously it didn't explode on 27 March, so the next date is 10 November.
(It's well over a year and a half now since the first predictions of an 'imminent' outburst! But, it could explode any time, so, keep an eye on it - comparison charts can be found on the websites of the BAA Variable Star Section, or the AAVSO. The current magnitude is around 10, so you'll need a good telescope to see it now.
(BTW, don't confuse it with the other nearby famous variable star, R CrB, which does the opposite – it stays normally around 6th magnitude, but occasionally dims to as faint as magnitude 14 or 15!)
Anyway, do keep an eye out – T CrB lies just outside the East side of the circle of the 'Crown', about a degree from Epsilon CrB, but you really do need charts to observe it properly. It's now visible in the sky each night.
It's at Declination: 25° 55′ 12.613″; R.A.: 15h 59m 30.1622s)
20: EASY TEASER ANSWERED:
What's the next (and last) one in this sequence A, A, D, M, M, M ?
Clue: If there's one more in the sequence, how many in total?
Another clue: What's in a name?
Another clue: Do I have to point you in the right direction to start?
ANSWERED! It's P for Phecda, the stars in the 'Plough' or Big Dipper, in alphabetical order. Alioth, Alkaid, Dubhe, Megrez, Merak, Mizar and Phecda.
Well done to a new winner, Angela O'Connell.
21. DIFFICULT TEASER ANSWERED
Which well-known song refers (indirectly) to Earthshine?
ANSWERED: by Peter Denman, again! – It's "The Whole of the Moon", by the Waterboys: "I saw the crescent, You saw the whole of the Moon"
Well done again, Peter
22. NEW EASY TEASER:
When does 3 come before 1?
23. NEW DIFFICULT TEASER:
What record or distinction is held by the constellation Draco?
24. HEADS UP. I'm not absolutely certain, because I didn't start keeping records immediately, but AFAIK that's the 99th teaser. Which means that the 100th is next. And I'm working on an absolute demon to really test you! But it will be worth it, as I will donate a significant prize to the winner, provided that s/he gets the answer within a certain number of clues.
Remember, send answers to me only at my aol address: terrymosel@aol.com.
25. INTERESTING WEBLINKS (Disclaimer – Use of material herein from various sources does not imply approval or otherwise of the opinions, political or otherwise, of those sources). NB: If the title in the weblink does not indicate the subject matter, I give a brief simple intro before the link. I may also comment about the link afterwards.
ASTROPHYSICS:
'Unlike any we've ever seen': Record-breaking black hole eruption is brighter than 10 trillion suns
The future ability to test theories of gravity with black-hole shadows | Nature Astronomy https://share.google/pNioTlyVbbHgTMDy7
Rare sighting: lone black hole gobbles up star on galaxy's outskirts | Watch
Astronomers capture a violent super-eruption from a young sun | ScienceDaily https://share.google/BRzwAnlTBFvKGMMyV
Euclid spots forming stars https://x.com/esascience/status/1985995510067642534?t=3X0ZSGdUnfPIRYCMIhRnvg&s=09
Long-Lived Gamma-Ray Burst Is Unlike Any Seen Before | Scientific American https://share.google/jC2TVzeZLWL22FwXK
'Universe breakers' discovered by James Webb space telescope may be a new class of cosmic object: the black hole star | Live Science https://share.google/SuVZgKFmNzS0PqyZf
James Webb telescope discovery of 'bizarre' object from the dawn of time could reveal the origin of black holes | Live Science https://share.google/TVjww6E2JSTjRs3ss
Physicists detect rare 'second-generation' black holes that prove Einstein right... again https://share.google/b1kWKoLdbSUsj4IHM
A Colossal Wave Is Rippling Through The Milky Way, Gaia Data Reveals : ScienceAlert https://share.google/XoltMy6XYq74Eaam5
Brightest ever flare from supermassive black hole spotted by scientists in California | Science, Climate & Tech News | Sky News https://share.google/1rVf9sTPqxRGCX3b6
Pixelized galaxy cluster strong lens modeling improves precision of Hubble constant measurement https://share.google/xzN1ipzLcT4P4ncuB
We may have found a surprisingly nearby cluster of primordial stars | New Scientist https://share.google/OYSGxMqMThFe1Ksup
COMET I3/ATLAS (I3 stands for 'Interstellar 3', i.e. the 3rd known interstellar object)
No, interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS hasn't 'changed color', scientist says China's Tianwen 1 Mars probe captures images of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS | Space
Comet 3I/ATLAS has been transformed by billions of years of space radiation, James Webb Space Telescope observations reveal
'Interstellar visitor' 3I/ATLAS may have changed color behind the sun | Live Science COSMOLOGYA new equation may explain the Universe without dark matter | ScienceDaily https://share.google/cRKis4ugma4KqeDXh
JWST reveals chaotic early universe https://search.app/8FfRpHistoric Collaboration Suggests "Ghost Particles" Could Explain All of Existence - The Debrief https://share.google/rjjmcJLgRekjSBByD EARTH & MOONAstronomer captures 2 meteors slamming into the moon (video) | Space Mining Company Says It's Identified Hugely Valuable Material on Surface of the Moon https://share.google/CB6HWm00yEW9Pfez1 EXOPLANETSRepeated Impacts Could Regenerate Exoplanet Atmospheres Around Red Dwarfs - Universe Today https://share.google/pNSChdcl0sTsm3k9X
James Webb and Very Large telescopes discover bizarre 'runaway' planet that's acting like a star, eating 6 billion tons per second | Live Science Multiply that by 31,536,000 to get the figure per year. It doesn't say what its current mass is, but if its big, and if that rate continues, it will soon be a Brown Dwarf!
JWST captures stunning 3D view of a planet's scorching atmosphere | ScienceDaily https://share.google/gbF5lUxL1pmVUdgGY IMAGESRomance takes a cosmic form in NASA's breathtaking image of the Antennae Galaxies, two massive spiral galaxies locked in a slow motion collision. Located about 60 million light years away in the constellation Corvus, their graceful arms stretch outward like https://search.app/9vhfK LIGHT & SATELLITE SKY POLLUTIONNew 'dark sky' law forces homeowners to turn off lights by midnight
250 International Dark Sky Places | DarkSky International
SOLAR SYSTEM There's another comet ATLAS in our solar system — and it just turned gold after a perilous dance with the sun | Live Science https://share.google/v3aDWEh8GjCnMjgGZ
Saturn's moon could harbour ALIEN life as scientists spot heat coming from Enceladus
New Photos Expose Pluto's Mysterious Far Side For The First Time | Watch
Back to Venus? These 5 Venus missions could launch in the next decade to study Earth's 'evil twin' | Space
Webb telescope spies Io's volcanic activity and sulfurous atmosphere https://phys.org/news/2025-11-webb-telescope-spies-io-volcanic.html New laser drill could help scientists explore ice-covered worlds like Jupiter's ocean moon Europa | Space https://share.google/Re5jrDm7YrxjEqAuMMolecules on Saturn's moon Titan are breaking a fundamental rule of chemistry, research reveals | Live Science https://share.google/On32PROtyhIDWJObKYoung Jupiter protected Earth from the sun, study finds SPACESpaceX Has Faster, Safer and Simpler Plan for Returning Astronauts to the Moon | NextBigFuture.com https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2025/10/spacex-has-faster-safer-and-simpler-plan-for-returning-astronauts-to-the-moon.html China reached out to NASA to avoid a potential satellite collision in 1st-of-its-kind space cooperation | Space https://share.google/e5TQXmP6fWalEbdv8
Watch Blue Origin's huge New Glenn rocket launch NASA Mars mission on Nov. 9 | Space
The Secret Station China Built While Everyone Watched The ISS Die | Watch
Mission to Mars: how space exploration pushes the human body to its limits https://share.google/FziYbs3OyKgvfxloe
Elon's Next Big Swing: 'Dyson Sphere' Satellites That Harness the Sun's Power https://share.google/YiHqygeLDIzkYfIw0
Trump reverses course to renominate billionaire Musk ally to lead Nasa | Nasa | The Guardian https://share.google/ucb7ihLkaYd78jL7k
Workers fear NASA is quietly gutting the iconic home of Hubble and Webb. The agency says it's strategically closing buildings | CNN https://share.google/WVYbxsYKYA9JjybGc
New Glenn to launch NASA Mars mission this week https://share.google/8rutnOetiChbk6T2NReturn of Chinese astronauts delayed after spacecraft struck by debris | China | The Guardian https://share.google/4382Qgq1BAzVlZSeVA commercial space station startup now has a foothold in space - Ars Technica https://share.google/qZChsBKQlZBQsQVpbIndia space agency launches its heaviest satellite https://share.google/UUXVx80CUBZ9U41mD
TELESCOPES, INSTRUMENTS, TECHNIQUES
4MOST observes very wide field https://x.com/konstructivizm/status/1986023435886104797?t=98P-7JkMWHZ1gfRAJJTbuA&s=09
Scientists recreate cosmic 'fireballs' to probe mystery of missing gamma rays | University of Oxford https://share.google/IoRAFCVj7Xhwf7aKH
This Clever Telescope Hack Just Opened a Sharper View of the Universe https://share.google/4QQWMP6m5rDoRqcTZ
Greatest Spectroscope Ever Built Can Tell What 2,400 Cosmic Objects Are Made of Every 20 Mins. https://share.google/a4regbnz8dSGZ7gBL
FINAL WORD:
"The treasures hidden in the heavens are so rich that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment." - Johannes Kepler
26. JOINING the IRISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION. This link gives options to join the IAA.
https://irishastro.org/join-the-iaa/ If you are a UK taxpayer, please select the 'gift-aid' box, as that enables us to reclaim the standard rate of tax on your subscription, at no cost to you. You can also make a donation via Paypal if you wish: just click on the 'Donate' button. See also https://irishastro.org/
The Irish Astronomical Association is registered with The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland NIC 105858
DISCLAIMER: Any views expressed herein are mine, and do not necessarily represent those of the IAA.
Clear skies,
Terry Moseley
