MAIN ARTICLE: Mysterious Space Blob Discovered at Cosmic Dawn.
Page 2: Hurricane-Killing, Space-Based Power Plant?
Poll Results: The poll yesterday had the strongest turnout to date. Scroll down for latest results.
Star Trek: In the News. "Star Trek" Virgin Boldly Goes To Film.
Yesterday's Comments: "But, Dad, he's putting his feet on my side of the galactic hyperdrive." - Guaunyu
Today's Poll: Dual use Space Based Solar Power - pros and cons.
COSMIC BLOBS:
The Carnegie Institution for Science was founded in 1902 and has long been known for outstanding science. Can you just imagine the sophisticated scientific language that you must have to aquire in order to even understand what they are talking about? You know, scientific language like "blob".
The reason you would have to know that term is because it is mentioned over 20 times in a paper just published by the Institute. In that paper they describe just exactly what they found in the deepest recesses of both space and time. It's what known as "extended Lyman-Alpha blobs".
That's right, Carnegie Scientists have discovered a giant blob in space.
Don't walk ... RUN!
Mysterious Space Blob Discovered at Cosmic Dawn
"Pasadena, CA —Using information from a suite of telescopes, astronomers have discovered a mysterious, giant object that existed at a time when the universe was only about 800 million years old. Objects such as this one are dubbed extended Lyman-Alpha blobs; they are huge bodies of gas that may be precursors to galaxies. This blob was named Himiko for a legendary, mysterious Japanese queen. It stretches for 55 thousand light years, a record for that early point in time. That length is comparable to the radius of the Milky Way’s disk.
The researchers are puzzled by the object. Even with superb data from the world’s best telescopes, they are not sure what it is. Because it is one of the most distant objects ever found, its faintness does not allow the researchers to understand its physical origins. It could be ionized gas powered by a super-massive black hole; a primordial galaxy with large gas accretion; a collision of two large young galaxies; super wind from intensive star formation; or a single giant galaxy with a large mass of about 40 billion Suns. Because this mysterious and remarkable object was discovered early in the history of the universe in a Japanese Subaru field, the researchers named the object after the legendary mysterious queen in ancient Japan.
"The farther out we look into space, the farther we go back in time, " explained lead author Masami Ouchi, a fellow at the Observatories of the Carnegie Institution who led an international team of astronomers from the U.S., Japan, and the United Kingdom. "I am very surprised by this discovery. I have never imagined that such a large object could exist at this early stage of the universe’s history. According to the concordance model of Big Bang cosmology, small objects form first and then merge to produce larger systems. This blob had a size of typical present-day galaxies when the age of the universe was about 800 million years old, only 6% of the age of today’s universe!"
Extended blobs discovered thus far have mostly been seen at a distance when the universe was 2 to 3 billion years old. No extended blobs have previously been found when the universe was younger. Himiko is located at a transition point in the evolution of the universe called the reionization epoch—it’s as far back as we can see to date. And at 55 thousand light years, Himiko is a big blob for that time."
--end quote--
COSMIC MAPS:
In June 2001, NASA, along with Princeton University, launched a mission called the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe or (WMAP). This allowed reseachers the first detailed look at our expanding universe.
According to the article Himiko was discovered at 12.9 billion light years. If you look at the above map, and slide down the timeline to the left that would put this blob only 800 million light years from the big bang. This is the oldest of the various "blobs" discovered to date.
PAGE 2:
There has been a couple times that a really great comment is made and I give it a page so it gives an opportunity for more people to read and comment on it. Today's poll is related to this comment by Rimjob.
"Hurricane-Killing, Space-Based Power Plant?
"Recently, San Francisco-based Pacific Gas & Electric made a deal with a company called Solaren, which plans to create a space-based solar power network.
Well, someone noticed that in the patent for this network, Solaren claims the network could also be used to dissipate Hurricanes.
"The present invention relates to space-based power systems and, more particularly, to altering weather elements, such as hurricanes or forming hurricanes, using energy generated by a space-based power system," Jim Rogers and Gary Spirnak write in their 2006 patent application.
By heating up the upper and middle levels of an infant hurricane, they say they could disrupt the flows of air that power the enormous storms. Air warmed by tropical waters flows up through a hurricane and is vented through the eye into the upper atmosphere. Theoretically, you could heat up the top of the storm and lower the pressure differential between layers, resulting in a weaker storm.
--end quote--
I am currently not really advocating space based solar power (SBSP). I believe we should be conducting space based demonstration projects for now. Long term I am in favor of it. Is this the real reason the military came out for this or were their stated concerns the real ones?
How favorable are you for a dual use system like this being launched? Launch it and regulate the hell out of it or keep space based solar power on a back burner?
POLL RESULTS:
With yesterday's poll results the total votes cast for space diaries now broke the 9000 mark. The poll that ran yesterday: "Is it time to revisit ITAR?", had to do with America's export laws relating to aerospace companies and their ability to sell goods and services outside the United States.
The outcome of the poll was pretty clear.
80% Yes, it is time to open up America's ability to compete globally.
09% No, I do not want a terrrorist organization gaining American technology.
09% 23 votes No opinion.
It looks like there are many people tired of the usual politics. ITAR was established at time when republicans were hounding Clinton about overseas sales.
"Star Trek" Virgin Boldly Goes To Film
Caroline McCarthy Reviews Latest Installment Of Classic Sci-Fi Franchise
"When I walked into a theater at Viacom's midtown headquarters for an advance screening of the new J.J. Abrams-directed "Star Trek" prequel on Wednesday night, I felt like that kid who hadn't done her homework - for an entire semester.
And yet that was crucial to my assignment: to see if it was possible for someone completely new to the "Star Trek" universe to understand, process, and more importantly enjoy this new film.
Here's my background. I had never seen any of the prior "Star Trek" films or television series. I knew little more than the fact that it's all about a bunch of people flying a spaceship called the Enterprise, that Leonard Nimoy played an extraterrestrial named Spock who had funny ears and liked to say "Live long and prosper," and that the Klingon language has such a rabid following that the Bible has been translated into it.
Technically, the closest I'd come to seeing anything related to "Star Trek" was the 1998 parody "Galaxy Quest," in which the actors from a washed-up Trek-like TV show are enlisted by benevolent aliens who think they're the real thing (Little-known fact: That was the first movie role for Justin "I'm a Mac" Long). But I'm also a huge fan of Abrams' hit series "Lost," so I suppose I had a leg up there."
--end quote--
YESTERDAY'S COMMENTS:
"A classic ITAR story I heard at a Space Frontier conference --- the speaker was Canadian and worked at a Canadian company which sold NASA a piece of hardware. NASA modified the equipment but then it broke.
They called the manufacturer for assistance in making repairs and the company said "Ship it to us and we'll take a look."
"We can't"
"Why not?"
"ITAR and you're in Canada"
"But we made it in the first place."
"Doesn't matter"
Long story short, some Canadian technicians flew south (at US taxpayer expense), and consulted on the repairs, with an ITAR compliance officer at their elbows the entire time." - Bill White
"yep, that's my main complaint about ITAR my school's satellite program was investigated for weeks because an inexperienced undergrad accidentally told the European manufacturer of a satellite's power board some information through e-mail. He was having no luck troubleshooting a problem with the board and thought he would include some details of the configuration to get more help. Now every time a student joins the program, the school's legal department made it a requirement that they have to go through a several hour course on ITAR restrictions before they can begin work." - ankey
TODAY'S POLL:
Read other NASA and Space diaries on DKOS.