9.27.2009

La Agua Luna


Thirsty, anyone?  
This weekend was really super hot and humid, and I probably drank a few gallons of water. . . . 
Good thing I'm not on the moon! 
haha. . .



Okay, that was lame.  BUT I do have a point.  I'm referring to NASA's  exciting and recent discovery of water molecules on our lunar buddy, of course!


No, not "lakes, oceans or even puddles. Water on the moon means molecules of water and hydroxyl that interact with molecules of rock and dust specifically in the top millimeters of the moon's surface."


So dirty water, basically.  Sorry to disappoint.


Read it hurr! 


-Martha


Mars-tastic


So, here at The University of Texas, we are lucky enough to have an extremely hard-working and dedicated professor by the name of Dr. Jack Holt.  He's awesomely cool, just take my word for it.

You WOULD know how awesome he is IF you went to his Hot Science/Cool Talks presentation a few weeks ago.  IF you went to this, then you would be a more intelligent and cool person.  I went, and I am infinitely cooler because of it.

Just to give you a taste of the coolness he oozes, here is an article about the research that Dr. Holt is conducting on Martian ice glaciers.

Dr. Holt works closely with the SHARAD project (ahem, in Rome!) to produce significant evidence that glaciers exist on Mars, albeit covered in dust.  This radargram makes it possible to produce the image shown above.

Soooo, check out this article , it's made of awesome.

-Martha

9.24.2009

2nd UT Planetary Organization of Space Science and Exploration (UT POSSE) Meeting!


All right guys, so yesterday we had our 2nd and all-time best ever meeting of our renamed UT POSSE.  Here are the topics we covered:


Our activities and objectives:

-twice a month seminar and/or meetings with speakers concerning space, focusing on hard bodies
-field trips to space- and planetary- related places
-social-video viewings 
-integration of our organization with planetary-interested members of other colleges at UT
-possible job applications and internship opportunities
-mailing list
-honory doctorates
-discovering more organizations we can collaborate with


We will also be presenting a poster at the UT Planetary Science Symposium (Oct. 2!!), and came up with a basic design.


We specified our Official Purpose: 


UT POSSE exists to promote, facilitate and coordinate space,lunar and planetary science studies throughout The University of Texas community.


“Human fashions don’t apply”


Membership requirements:
Must have planetary, space and lunar interest and have UT affiliation.



Officers:
President - Tim Shin
Vice President - Martha Altobelli
Secretary - Kelly Harris



Thanks everyone for coming to the meeting!  There is no way we would have gotten so much done and so much valuable input if you hadn't been there.


Special thanks to Paige Pharr and Steven Gohlke for conjuring up our SAWEET new name: UT POSSE

We are so excited about getting our organization off the ground, and all the enthusiasm at the meeting really boosted our awesomeness.  So thanks!

-Martha


9.23.2009

How many MIT students does it take . . .

This just goes to show you that with a couple of geniuses, a cell phone, and $150, pretty much anything can be done.  The video is kinda bumpy, but still saweet!  I think we should totally try this.

Just don't forget the genius part, otherwise, things could go horribly wrong.


-Martha

9.21.2009

New Superearth


-at a planetary science convention-
HARPS team member:  
"Hey guys, I just wanted to thank everybody for reading this.  I would like to announce that we have discovered a new planet of superearth standing!"
-applause-
-Kanye West jumps onto stage-
HARPS team member:
. . . "Uh what . . . I'm sorry, sir, what are you doing?"

Kanye West:
"I'm sorry to interrupt, I'm sure this planet is great and everything, but Earth is still the most superplanet in the whole universe!"
-crickets-


Ahaha that was fun.


I hadn't gotten to make a Kanye joke, yet.


Hopefully we will be hearing more about this ESO article soon.


-Martha

9.19.2009

We're Mapping our Junk now?

Good job guys!  We've finally done it !


NASA has calculated that we've produced enough trash to actually cause a distraction in space.  What an accomplishment.  


I mean really, "space is a very big place" (ahem . . . understatement of the year!) and it's quite an achievement.  There's so much now, that we have to map it so we don't run into our own junk! 


I realize that space debris is a necessary thing, but since we don't know the consequences of it yet, I can't be one to support dumping our waste into space.


Space dumping is a little ridiculous when you think about it.  Maybe we should think about turning a planet into a colossal landfill.  Oh wait, we already have . . . 


-Martha


P.S. Sorry about not posting in a while - I've been crazy busy!

9.18.2009

Well that was a great talk...But now for Budget Woes!


Sorry We've been off the radar for a little while - busy week.

Dr. Holt's talk last week was interesting and entartaining. Best part of all was the little kids asking the questions afterward. We learned a lot about the polar regions of Mars and how Italian radar has been helping us to understand where water is suspected to be in several ice caps and below the surface of Mars.

Martha got stuck with one of the little ones who just wanted to talk about saving Yoshi in some Super Mario game he had. Needless to say, it was humorous.

-----

Now, Sean has brought to our attention a US News & World Report article on how "Budget Woes Could End NASA's Space Exploration Plans".... One of my favorite lines is "Trying to put a thousand pounds of canaries in a 500-pound box is where we are now."

President Obama has decided to review NASA's budget by use of the Review of US Human Space Flight Plans Committee to decide whether or not NASA should get as much money as it's asking for to further it's plans for human space exploration. Such things include a replacement vehicle for the space shuttle and future missions to Mars and the Moon. The Augustine report from that committee is soon to be delivered to congress of its findings on the matter later this month. It seems like it will be a balance between cost and benefit of these missions and which are plain unnecessary to the current administration.

One scary line from
the article was said byJohn Logsdon, a former director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University: "The message is pretty ugly. The whole notion we are going back to the moon, given the current budget is a myth"


Hopefully we can still get the Constellation program that will implement the Ares booster rockets to get to Mars! (They'll be usable for the moon too...)





-Tim


picture of Ares Rocket courtesy of globalsecurity.org/space/systems/images/clv-atk_evolution2.jpg

Click the pic for a NASA video!

9.10.2009

Hot Talk! Icy Mysteries of Mars Revealed Friday! 7pm!

I want to re-post a previous entry on Dr. Jack Holt's talk this Friday (Tomorrow). This is going to be really cool and Martha and I are definitely going. I suggest getting there at least a half hour early


What: Icy Mysteries of Mars Revealed
When: 7pm, Friday, September 11, 2009
Where: UT Campus, Welch Hall 2.224
Schedule: 5:45-7 - Pre-lecture Fun,
Lecture - 7-8:15
Click here for More info!

-Tim
----------------------------------------------------------
Nope, I didn't make up that title...it was already that cheesy! Well okay...maybe part of it...

Next Friday, September 11, our very own Dr. Jack Holt will be giving a cool talk on hot science entitled: "Icy Mysteries of Mars Revealed"!

Now, I can tell you I am definitely going to be there - what better way to get your Mars fix AND take care of getting credit for going to see a seminar/lecture (e.g. honors...) than right here at UT-Austin's Welch building?

Here's an excerpt from UT's OnCampus site on ESI's Hot Science/Cool Talks:

"Join us for an evening of Mars exploration as the Environmental Science Institute presents this talk. Dr. Holt and his scientific colleagues have discovered enormous reserves of frozen water on Mars. Could this water mean life on the red planet? What implications does this discovery hold for future voyages to Mars? Make sure to come early to experience interactive exhibits and activities presented by our partners! K-12 teacher workshop begins at 6 p.m. Free refreshments will be provided. "

Definitely arrive early because I went to a similar talk last year by Don Blankenship and it gets PACKED!

What: Icy Mysteries of Mars Revealed
When: Friday, September 11, 2009
Where: UT Campus, Welch Hall 2.224
Schedule: 5:45-7 - Pre-lecture Fun, 7-8:15 - Lecture
Click here for More info!

So come with the UT Planetary Science group, get free refreshments, and get ready to enjoy what should be a thoroughly entertaining talk on one of our faves!



See ya there!

-Tim











9.09.2009

My Hubble Bubbles!


NPR has released a story including the new beautiful pictures that are coming forth from the Hubble Space Telescope's new camera/imagers (freshly installed in May 2009). They say that many astronomers consider this "space porn"

These pictures truly are spectacular and you should check out and read the story by NPR here.

If you want more info on The Hubble Telescope and the original scoop from NASA, then go to http://hubblesite.org



-Tim

9.06.2009

Big Brother Jupiter

I think The Times got it wrong - Jupiter is definitely a brother-type, not a Father figure.



Read this .



You know big brothers.  They're always taking your stuff, eating your food, and perpetually finding any excuse to pick on you at their disposal.


Enter Jupiter - our big brother.


This giant of a planet has been eating our Snickers bars for the past few billion years, but at the same time, Jupiter's wide girth has prevented some major beat-downs directed toward Earth.



For example, just last week, Jupiter got served a black-eye in comet form - Taking one for the team.


I guess sometimes, brothers do serve a purpose.


P.S. this does not pertain at all to my own brother - who is awesome.


-Martha


9.05.2009

"All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." - Mars

Just in case you haven't heard the news . . . Mars exploration scientists have determined all the properties needed for water, exist on the planet.  This suggests that at some point in its history, Mars was somewhat like Earth in its ability to support life.

Yep, so Mars is something like Earth's great (times a few billion) grandfather (or grandmother).













Time Magazine has showcased some pretty amazing images of Mar's landscape.  They look eerily familiar . . .  Is that a dried-up delta?  Dunes?

If Mars is/was capable of producing these natural water features, then it's not completely insane to suggest the possibility of Marian life, is it?

. . . maybe there's oil . . .

JUST KIDDING!

Anyway, enjoy these beautiful photographs.
-Martha


9.02.2009

Hot Science - Cool Talks! Oh Ares, how I love the...


Nope, I didn't make up that title...it was already that cheesy! Well okay...maybe part of it...

Next Friday, September 11, our very own Dr. Jack Holt will be giving a cool talk on hot science entitled: "Icy Mysteries of Mars Revealed"!

Now, I can tell you I am definitely going to be there - what better way to get your Mars fix AND take care of getting credit for going to see a seminar/lecture (e.g. honors...) than right here at UT-Austin's Welch building?

Here's an excerpt from UT's OnCampus site on ESI's Hot Science/Cool Talks:

"Join us for an evening of Mars exploration as the Environmental Science Institute presents this talk. Dr. Holt and his scientific colleagues have discovered enormous reserves of frozen water on Mars. Could this water mean life on the red planet? What implications does this discovery hold for future voyages to Mars? Make sure to come early to experience interactive exhibits and activities presented by our partners! K-12 teacher workshop begins at 6 p.m. Free refreshments will be provided. "

Definitely arrive early because I went to a similar talk last year by Don Blankenship and it gets PACKED!

What: Icy Mysteries of Mars Revealed
When: Friday, September 11, 2009
Where: UT Campus, Welch Hall 2.224
Schedule: 5:45-7 - Pre-lecture Fun, 7-8:15 - Lecture
Click here for More info!

So come with the UT Planetary Science group, get free refreshments, and get ready to enjoy what should be a thoroughly entertaining talk on one of our faves!



See ya there!

-Tim














9.01.2009

I'm sorry, I'm going to miss class on Monday. I'll be on Mars.

Get ready for some mind-blowing science.

My wonderful friend Tim (you might know him . . . he's kind of a big deal) has been talking about Dr. Robert Zubrin for quite some time now - and for good reason.  This guy is a genius!

Not only is he VERY enthusiastic (I would say obsessed, but that would be harsh . . . so I won't) about furthering space exploration, but he's also formulated an extremely plausible plan to (get ready for it)
GO TO MARS.

I know - it sounds crazy.  They said we could never do it, and maybe we can't, but if you watch The Mars Underground videos on YouTube you may just be enlightened.

Here they are:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Don't be daunted by how many parts there are.  They're all about 9 minutes long to make up one complete short film.  Besides, we're scientists, we're very thorough people.

Anyway, they're so darn interesting that you're going to want to watch them again, and again, and again, and . . .

Also, click on the main title for a link to The Mars Society, of which Dr. Zubrin is the founder and President.

-Martha