[Astronews] IAAS Monthly Astronomy Newsletter

Fri Aug 31 23:50:47 EDT 2012

IAAS Monthly Astronomy Newsletter
September 2012

The International Association for Astronomical Studies provides this newsletter as a service for interested persons worldwide.

This newsletter is published on the World Wide Web at http://www.ki0ar.com/astro.html - The Home of KI0AR - and is received nationally and internationally. A PDF formatted downloadable version of the newsletter is at http://www.ki0ar.com/current_nl.pdf.

This newsletter is now available as an iTunes podcast. Visit http://www.apple.com, download and install iTunes (for either Mac or Windows). Search for "IAAS" and subscribe to the podcast. You may also go to http://www.ki0ar.com/astro.html and click on the Subscribe/RSS link. Update your smart phone, iPod or mp3 player and listen to the newsletter at your leisure. Comments and constructive criticisms are greatly appreciated.

An Open Invitation - For amateur radio operators and scanner enthusiasts, when in the Denver metro area, please join the Colorado Astronomy Net on the Rocky Mountain Radio League's (http://rmrl.hamradios.com/) 146.94 MHz repeater on Tuesday nights at 7 P.M. local time.

Special Notice to Denver, CO area residents and visitors to the area: The Plains Conservation Center in Aurora hosts Full Moon Walks every month, weather permitting, on or near the night of the full Moon. Visit http://www.plainsconservationcenter.org for more information and directions.

Excerpts from JPL mission updates are provided as a public service as part of the JPL Solar System Ambassador / NASA Outreach program. http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/ambassador/index.html

In This Newsletter...

* The Moon
* The Planets
* Astronomical Events
* Planetary/Lunar Exploration Missions
* Web Sites of Interest
* Acknowledgments and References
* Subscription Information

The Month At-A-Glance at http://www.ki0ar.com/ataglance.html
A calendar displaying the daily astronomical events.

The Moon

Phases:
* Last Quarter Moon occurs on the 8th.
* New Moon occurs on the 15th.
* First Quarter Moon occurs on the 22nd.
* Full Moon occurs on the 29th.

* The Moon is at Apogee on the 7th, 251,217 miles from Earth.
* The Moon is at Perigee on the 18th, 227,268 miles from Earth.

Moon/Planet Pairs:
* Venus passes 9° south of Pollux on the 1st.
* The Moon passes 5° north of Uranus on the 2nd.
* The Moon passes 0.6° south of Jupiter on the 8th.
* The Moon passes 0.6° north of asteroid Ceres on the 9th.
* The Moon passes 4° south of Venus on the 12th.
* The Moon passes 0.8° south of Spica on the 18th.
* The Moon passes 5° south of Saturn on the 18th.
* The Moon passes 0.2° south of Mars on the 19th.
* The Moon passes 0.4° south of Pluto on the 23rd.
* The Moon passes 6° north of Neptune on the 27th.
* The Moon passes 5° north of Uranus on the 30th.
* Mercury passes 1.8° north of Spica on the 30th.

For reference: The Full Moon subtends an angle of 0.5°.

The Planets & Dwarf Planets
Planetary Reports are generated by "TheSky" software. (http://www.ki0ar.com/planrpts.html) These reports provide predicted data for the planets on the first of each month for the current year. The rise and set times for the Sun and the Moon for each day of the month are also included in the reports. These reports have been optimized for the Denver, Colorado location, however, the times will be approximate for other locations on Earth.

(All times are local unless otherwise noted.)

* Planetary Highlights for September - Begin your September evenings by viewing Mars and Saturn low on the western horizon soon after sunset. Pluto, Neptune and Uranus rise later in the evening. Jupiter, Ceres and Venus are visible before sunrise. Mercury reappears later in the month in the west but remains very low to the horizon. The Earth reaches the Autumnal Equinox this month, beginning Fall in the northern hemisphere and Springtime in the southern hemisphere.

* Mercury - Is in superior conjunction on the 10th. You will have to wait until the last week of September to spot Mercury, however, you will need a flat western horizon to spot Mercury just 2° above the horizon about 30 minutes after sunset. Mercury sets about 7:16 p.m. by month's end. Mercury moves from the constellation of Leo into Virgo shining at magnitude -0.4.

* Venus - Rises at 2:49 a.m. on the 1st and about 3:33 a.m. by month's end. Venus is visible in the early morning sky before sunrise. On the morning of the 12th look for Venus between the Beehive Cluster M44 and a waning crescent Moon. Venus moves from the constellation of Gemini into Leo shining at magnitude -4.2.

* Earth - The Autumnal Equinox occurs at 10:49 a.m. EDT on the 22nd.

* Mars - Sets at 9:43 p.m. on the 1st and about 8:43 p.m. by month's end. Look to the west to spot the Red Planet soon after sunset. Mars moves from the constellation of Virgo into Libra shining at magnitude 1.2.

* Jupiter - Rises at 11:46 p.m. on the 1st and about 9:54 p.m. by month's end. Begin looking for Jupiter around midnight and enjoy viewing our largest planet in the early morning hours before sunrise. Jupiter is in the constellation of Taurus shining at magnitude -2.4.

* Saturn - Sets at 9:30 p.m. on the 1st and about 7:40 p.m. by month's end. Look for the Ringed planet in the west soon after sunset. Saturn is in the constellation of Virgo shining at magnitude 0.7.

* Uranus - Is at opposition on the 29th, rising as the Sun sets. Uranus is at its best for this year. Uranus rises at 8:32 p.m. on the 1st and about 6:31 p.m. by month's end. Uranus moves from the constellation of Cetus into Pisces shining at magnitude 5.7.

* Neptune - Rises at 7:05 p.m. on the 1st and about 5:05 p.m. by month's end. Neptune, having just passed opposition in late August, still remains near its best viewing in the early evening. Look for Neptune in the east after the Sun sets. Neptune is in the constellation of Aquarius shining at magnitude 7.8. 

Dwarf Planets
* Ceres - Rises at 12:33 a.m. on the 1st and about 11:01 p.m. by month's end. Look for Ceres in the east in the early morning hours before sunrise. Ceres moves from the constellation of Taurus into Orion shining at magnitude 8.7.

* Pluto - Sets at 1:40 a.m. on the 1st and about 11:38 p.m. by month's end. Pluto is in the constellation of Sagittarius shining at magnitude 14.1.

As always, good luck at spotting these two, a large telescope and dark skies will be needed.

Astronomical Events

Meteor Showers

* The Epsilon Perseids meteor shower is a relatively new meteor shower which can be observed from September 4th through the 14th. The Epsilon Perseids peaks on the night of the 9th, morning of the 10th. Observers can expect to see up to 5 or 6 meteors per hours during the peak.

* For more information about Meteor Showers, visit Gary Kronk's Meteor Showers Online web page at http://meteorshowersonline.com/.

Comets
* Comet C/2011 F1 LINEAR travels through the southern part of the constellation of Boötes shining at 10th or 11th magnitude. At least a 6 inch telescope will be needed to spot this comet. Start searching for Comet F1 LINEAR about 90 minutes after sunset about mid-month when the Moon will not interfere.

* For information, orbital elements and ephemerides on observable comets visit the Observable Comets page from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/Ephemerides/Comets/index.html).

* For more information about Comets, visit Gary Kronk's Cometography.com web page at http://cometography.com/.

Eclipses
* No eclipse activity this month.

Observational Opportunities
* Watch Mars and Saturn descend to the western horizon as the month progresses.
* Check out Uranus at opposition this month.
* Early mornings are great times to spot Venus, Jupiter and Ceres.

Asteroids (From west to east)
* Hygiea is in the constellation of Aquarius.
* Parthenope is at opposition on the 3rd in the constellation of Aquarius.
* Pallus is is at opposition on the 24th in the constellation of Cetus.
* Vesta is in the constellation of Taurus.

* Information about the Minor Planets can be found at http://www.minorplanetobserver.com the Minor Planet Observer web site.

Occultations
* Information on various occultations can be found at http://lunar-occultations.com/iota/iotandx.htm , the International Occultation Timing Association's (IOTA) web site.
Planetary/Lunar Exploration Missions
(Excerpts from recent mission updates)

* Cassini - August 29, 2012
Saturn and Its Largest Moon Reflect Their True Colors

"PASADENA, Calif. -- Posing for portraits for NASA's Cassini spacecraft, Saturn and its largest moon, Titan, show spectacular colors in a quartet of images being released today. One image captures the changing hues of Saturn’s northern and southern hemispheres as they pass from one season to the next.

The images can be found at http://www.nasa.gov/cassini, http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and http://ciclops.org .

A wide-angle view in today’s package captures Titan passing in front of Saturn, as well as the planet’s changing colors. Upon Cassini’s arrival at Saturn eight years ago, Saturn’s northern winter hemisphere was an azure blue. Now that winter is encroaching on the planet’s southern hemisphere and summer on the north, the color scheme is reversing: blue is tinting the southern atmosphere and is fading from the north.

The other three images depict the newly discovered south polar vortex in the atmosphere of Titan, reported recently by Cassini scientists. Cassini's visible-light cameras have seen a concentration of yellowish haze in the detached haze layer at the south pole of Titan since at least March 27. Cassini's visual and infrared mapping spectrometer spotted the massing of clouds around the south pole as early as May 22 in infrared wavelengths. After a June 27 flyby of the moon, Cassini released a dramatic image and movie showing the vortex rotating faster than the moon's rotation period. The four images being released today were acquired in May, June and July of 2012.

Some of these views, such as those of the polar vortex, are only possible because Cassini's newly inclined -- or tilted -- orbits allow more direct viewing of the polar regions of Saturn and its moons.

Scientists are looking forward to seeing more of the same -- new phenomena like Titan’s south polar vortex and changes wrought by the passage of time and seasons -- during the remainder of Cassini’s mission."

Cassini Imaging Team's website - http://ciclops.org.

For the latest mission status reports, visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm. The speed and location of the spacecraft can be viewed on the "Present Position" web page.
(http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/operations/present-position.cfm)

* New Horizons - August 24, 2012
The PI's Perspective
The Kuiper Belt at 20: Paradigm Changes in Our Knowledge of the Solar System

"New Horizons hopes to explore beyond Pluto, into the ancient and unexplored Kuiper Belt.
New Horizons remains healthy and on course, now more than 24 times as far from the Sun as the Earth is. This summer's spacecraft and payload checkout went extremely well, as did both major flight-software updates we loaded aboard New Horizons. And, the spacecraft's rehearsal of the closest-approach day of the Pluto encounter went just about perfectly.

After finishing all of this at the beginning of July, we put New Horizons back into hibernation, and we've been cruising that way for almost eight weeks. As those who follow New Horizons on Twitter (@NewHorizons2015) know, every Monday New Horizons checks in with a beacon that tells us if all is well, or not. And almost every week we've been able to report a "green beacon Monday" to our 22,000-plus Twitter followers, indicating the spacecraft is in good health.

New Horizons will cruise quietly in hibernation until Jan. 6, 2013, when we wake it up for a month of complex activities, including some advance work on next summer's checkout, and the third of the four major software upgrades needed before next summer's on-spacecraft rehearsal of the nine days surrounding Pluto closest approach.

Since activity on New Horizons is pretty quiet right now, I'll take this opportunity to mention that planetary science is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the discovery of the Kuiper Belt. That came in 1992, when the first Kuiper Belt Object (KBO) was discovered.

Actually, of course, the first object in the Kuiper Belt was discovered in 1930 — Pluto itself; and the second such object, Pluto's giant moon Charon, was discovered in 1978. The Kuiper Belt was first postulated — most famously by Gerard Kuiper — by planetary scientists back in the 1930s, ‘40s and ‘50s. But it took until 1992 for technology to mature sufficiently enough to find another object (outside the Pluto system) orbiting the Sun beyond Neptune."

Find New Horizons in the iTunes App Store here. (http://itunes.com/apps/newhorizonsanasavoyagetopluto)

New Horizons gallery http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/gallery/sciencePhotos/.

For more information on the New Horizons mission - the first mission to the ninth planet - visit the New Horizons home page: http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/.

* Dawn - August 13, 2012
Dawn Engineers Assess Reaction Wheel

"UPDATE (posted at 5:30 p.m. PDT on Aug. 15, 2012) : The Dawn flight team returned the spacecraft to its normal mode of operations on Tuesday, Aug. 14, and is revising the Vesta departure plan. Ion thrusting will resume on Friday, Aug. 17, and escape from Vesta is now expected to occur on Sept. 5. All of Dawn's reaction wheels remain powered off. The spacecraft will continue to use its attitude control thrusters for spacecraft pointing from now through the journey to Ceres. Arrival at Ceres is still expected to occur early in 2015. The reaction wheels will be exercised periodically during cruise.The Dawn team is identifying opportunities to do more troubleshooting on the wheel that developed excessive friction last week.

This artist's concept shows NASA's Dawn
spacecraft orbiting the giant asteroid Vesta. 
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech Full image and caption

PASADENA, Calif. -- Engineers working on NASA’s Dawn spacecraft are assessing the status of a reaction wheel -- part of a system that helps the spacecraft point precisely -- after onboard software powered it off on Aug. 8. Dawn’s mission is to study the geology and geochemistry of the giant asteroid Vesta and dwarf planet Ceres, the two most massive objects in the main asteroid belt. Dawn is now using its thrusters to point at Earth for communications. The rest of the spacecraft is otherwise healthy.

During a planned communications pass on Aug. 9, the team learned that the reaction wheel had been powered off. Telemetry data from the spacecraft suggest the wheel developed excessive friction, similar to the experience with another Dawn reaction wheel in June 2010. The Dawn team demonstrated during the cruise to Vesta in 2011 that, if necessary, they could complete the cruise to Ceres without the use of reaction wheels.

The spacecraft has been orbiting Vesta since July 15, 2011. Dawn concluded its primary science observations of Vesta on July 25, 2012, and has been spiraling slowly away from the giant asteroid using its ion propulsion system. Ion thrusting was halted to accommodate the reaction wheel investigation, which may briefly delay the escape from Vesta.

"The Vesta mission has been spectacularly successful, and we are looking forward to the exciting Ceres mission ahead of us," said Robert Mase, Dawn project manager, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

JPL manages the Dawn mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Dawn is a project of the directorate's Discovery Program, managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) is responsible for overall Dawn mission science. Orbital Sciences Corp. in Dulles, Va., designed and built the spacecraft. The German Aerospace Center, the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, the Italian Space Agency and the Italian National Astrophysical Institute are international partners on the mission team."

Dawn's Virtual Flight over Vesta

A gallery of images can be found online at: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dawn/multimedia/gallery-index.html.

For more information on the Dawn mission, visit the Dawn home page: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dawn/main/index.html.

* MESSENGER - August 27, 2012
MESSENGER Team Mourns the Loss of Neil Armstrong

"The news of Neil Armstrong's death this weekend left many members of the MESSENGER team mourning his loss and reflecting on his legacy. Armstrong died on August 25, at the age of 82. He commanded the Apollo 11 spacecraft that landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969; and an estimated 600 million people witnessed, by television or radio, as he became the first man to set foot on its surface.

"Neil Armstrong was an enduring icon for all of us interested in space and planetary exploration," says MESSENGER Principal Investigator Sean Solomon of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. "The Apollo 11 landing and Armstrong's first footstep on another world linked, in one historic instant, all of humanity with access to television or radio. That Armstrong's passing was barely one month after that of Sally Ride reminds us that the first pioneers of space travel transcended gender but were united by a courageous sense of adventure and wonder."

Larry Nittler, MESSENGER's Deputy Principal Investigator and a cosmochemist in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, adds, "Although I was only an infant when Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon, some of my earliest memories are of returning Apollo capsules. The extraordinary achievements of Armstrong and the other Apollo astronauts had an enormous impact on my life, certainly influencing my decision to go into planetary science."

Although Armstrong is best known for the historic moonwalk, that feat topped a string of accomplishments that included piloting the X-15 rocket plane and completing the first space docking maneuver during the Gemini 8 mission, which included a successful emergency landing. In the early 1960s, the X-15 became the first winged aircraft to attain hypersonic velocities of Mach 4, 5, and 6 (four to six times the speed of sound) and to operate at altitudes well above 100,000 feet. 

"X-15 flew to the edge of space 199 times, and Armstrong made seven of those flights," notes APL's MESSENGER Project Scientist Ralph McNutt, of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland. "I also remember well his salvage of the Gemini 8 mission -- a key to the lunar orbit rendezvous approach to manned lunar landings -- and his last-minute escape from the 'flying bedstead' (a nickname given to two experimental aircraft) during the development of Apollo, when America's race to the Moon with the Soviets had real, and serious, implications for the winner."

For teenagers across the country, McNutt says, Armstrong brought to life the iconic and heroic character typical in science-fiction books -- "the engineer/pilot, the astronaut who was leading American technology forward and humanity to the skies and beyond" -- inspiring legions to become space explorers."

The new app is available for download at http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/messenger-nasas-mission-to/id510144229?ls=1&mt=8.

For more information on the MESSENGER mission, visit the MESSENGER home page: http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/.

* Pack Your Backpack
Calling all explorers! Tour JPL with our new Virtual Field Trip site. Stops include Mission Control and the Rover Lab. Your guided tour starts when you select a "face" that will be yours throughout the visit. Cool space images and souvenirs are all included in your visit.
+ http://virtualfieldtrip.jpl.nasa.gov/ 
* Past, Present, Future and Proposed JPL Missions - http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions.

* For special JPL programs and presentations in your area visit the JPL Solar System Ambassador web site at http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/ambassador/index.html.
Mars Missions

Be A Martian

* JMARS - https://jmars.mars.asu.edu/
JMARS is an acronym that stands for Java Mission-planning and Analysis for Remote Sensing. It is a geospatial information system (GIS) developed by ASU's Mars Space Flight Facility to provide mission planning and data-analysis tools to NASA's orbiters, instrument team members, students of all ages, and the general public.

* Mars Science Laboratory - August 29, 2012
NASA Announces News Activities For Mars Landing

"NASA's Curiosity rover took its first test stroll Wednesday Aug. 22, 2012, and beamed back pictures of its accomplishment in the form of track marks in the Martian soil. Careful inspection of the tracks reveals a unique, repeating pattern, which the rover can use as a visual reference to drive more accurately in barren terrain. The pattern is Morse code for JPL, the abbreviation for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory     
in Pasadena, Calif., where the rover was designed and built, and the mission is managed.

"The purpose of the pattern is to create features in the terrain that can be used to visually measure the precise distance between drives," said Matt Heverly, the lead rover driver for Curiosity at JPL.

This driving tool, called visual odometry, allows the rover to use images of landscape features to determine if it has traveled as far as predicted, or if its wheels have slipped. For example, when the rover drives on high slopes or across loose soil, it will routinely stop to check its progress. By measuring its distance relative to dozens of prominent features like pebbles or shadows on rocks -- or patterns in its tracks -- the rover can check how much its wheels may have slipped. If Curiosity has not slipped too much, it can then re-plan the next leg of its drive, taking its actual position into account.

"Visual odometry will enable Curiosity to drive more accurately even in high-slip terrains, aiding its science mission by reaching interesting targets in fewer sols, running slip checks to stop before getting too stuck, and enabling precise driving," said rover driver Mark Maimone, who led the development of the rover's autonomous driving software.

The Morse code imprinted on all six wheels will be particularly handy when the terrain is barren. Curiosity won't be able to read the Morse code symbols in the track marks directly, but it will note that the pattern is a high-contrast feature. This will give the rover the anchor it needs in an otherwise featureless terrain.

"Imagine standing in front of a picket fence, and then closing your eyes and shifting to the side. When you open your eyes, you wouldn't be able to tell how many pickets you passed. If you had one picket that was a different shape though, you could always use that picket as your reference," said Heverly. "With Curiosity, it's a similar problem in featureless terrain like sand dunes. The hole pattern in the wheels gives us one 'big picket' to look at."

Mars Rover Landing - Free for the Xbox (requires Kinect)

Visit the Mars Science Laboratory page at http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl.

* Mars Exploration Rover Mission (Spirit and Opportunity) - August 28, 2012

SPIRIT UPDATE: Spirit Remains Silent at Troy - sols 2621-2627, May 18-24, 2011:

"No communication has been received from Spirit since Sol 2210 (March 22, 2010).

More than 1,300 commands were radiated to Spirit as part of the recovery effort in an attempt to elicit a response from the rover. No communication has been received from Spirit since Sol 2210 (March 22, 2010). The project concluded the Spirit recovery efforts on May 25, 2011. The remaining, pre-sequenced ultra-high frequency (UHF) relay passes scheduled for Spirit on board the Odyssey orbiter will complete on June 8, 2011.

Total odometry is unchanged at 7,730.50 meters (4.80 miles)."

OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: Opportunity Exceeds 35 Kilometers Of Driving! - sols 3051-3056, August 23-28, 2012:

"Opportunity has exceeded over 35 kilometers (21.75 miles) of odometry!

The rover is moving south along the inboard edge of Cape York on the rim of Endeavour Crater surveying exposed outcrop in search of phyllosilicate clay minerals that have been detected from orbit.

On Sol 3051 (Aug. 23, 2012), Opportunity continued to move about 98 feet (30 meters) south along the inboard edge of Cape York, imaging the outcrop to the west with both Panoramic Camera (Pancam) and Navigation Camera (Navcam). On Sol 3053 (Aug. 25, 2012), the rover drove further south with more of an inboard bias to be closer to the outcrop. Again, more detailed Pancam and Navcam surveys were performed. On Sol 3055 (Aug. 27, 2012), the Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT) on the end of the robotic arm was imaged to re-confirm the available bit for future grinding and the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) collected a measurement of atmospheric argon.

On Sol 3056 (Aug. 28, 2012), Opportunity headed almost due west in a direct approach to some exciting outcrop units. With that drive, the rover passed 35 kilometers of odometry. Not bad for a vehicle designed for only about 1 mile (1 kilometer) of distance and 90 sols (days) of lifetime.

As of Sol 3056 (Aug. 28, 2012), the solar array energy production was 568 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 0.570 and a solar array dust factor of 0.684.

Total odometry is 21.76 miles (35,017.33 meters)."

Landing sites link - http://marsoweb.nas.nasa.gov/landingsites/ 

Visit the Mars Exploration Rover page at
 http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html.

* Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission - May 09, 2012
NASA Spacecraft Detects Changes in Martian Sand Dunes

"PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has revealed that movement in sand dune fields on the Red Planet occurs on a surprisingly large scale, about the same as in dune fields on Earth.

This is unexpected because Mars has a much thinner atmosphere than Earth, is only about one percent as dense, and its high-speed winds are less frequent and weaker than Earth's.

For years, researchers debated whether sand dunes observed on Mars were mostly fossil features related to past climate, rather than currently active. In the past two years, researchers using images from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera have detected and reported sand movement."

MARS RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER HIRISE IMAGES

All of the HiRISE images are archived here:
http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/.

More information about the MRO mission is available online at http://www.nasa.gov/mro.

* Mars Odyssey Orbiter - July 25, 2012
Mars Orbiter Repositioned to Phone Mars Landing

"PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft has successfully adjusted its orbital location to be in a better position to provide prompt confirmation of the August landing of the Curiosity rover.

NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft carrying Curiosity can send limited information directly to Earth as it enters Mars' atmosphere. Before the landing, Earth will set below the Martian horizon from the descending spacecraft's perspective, ending that direct route of communication. Odyssey will help to speed up the indirect communication process.

NASA reported during a July 16 news conference that Odyssey, which originally was planned to provide a near-real-time communication link with Curiosity, had entered safe mode July 11. This situation would have affected communication operations, but not the rover's landing. Without a repositioning maneuver, Odyssey would have arrived over the landing area about two minutes after Curiosity landed.

A spacecraft thruster burn Tuesday, July 24, lasting about six seconds has nudged Odyssey about six minutes ahead in its orbit. Odyssey is now operating normally, and confirmation of Curiosity's landing is expected to reach Earth at about 10:31 p.m. PDT on Aug. 5 (early Aug. 6, EDT and Universal Time), as originally planned."

Global Martian Map: http://www.mars.asu.edu/maps/?layer=thm_dayir_100m_v11.

"A simulated fly-through using the newly assembled imagery is available online at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mars/missions/odyssey/20060313.html.

The fly-through plus tools for wandering across and zooming into the large image are at http://themis.asu.edu/."

DAILY MARS ODYSSEY THEMIS IMAGES
Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) web site: (http://themis.asu.edu/gallery)

The Odyssey data are available through a new online access system established by the Planetary Data System at: http://starbrite.jpl.nasa.gov/pds/ 

Visit the Mars Odyssey Mission page at http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/odyssey/index.html.

* Mars Missions Status - New Mars missions are being planned to include several new rover and sample collection missions. Check out the Mars Missions web page: http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/ and the Mars Exploration page: http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/.
Links and Other Space News
(If you have a link you would like to recommend to our readers, please feel free to submit it.)

* Astronomy 2009 - http://www.surveillance-video.com/astronomy-sept-2009.html - This site has some good links a young, interested student wishes to share.

* "TheSky" Software - http://www.bisque.com - Astronomy software by Software Bisque.

* A Short Guide to Celestial Navigation - http://www.celnav.de/ - Celestial navigation is the art and science of finding one's geographic position by means of astronomical observations, particularly by measuring altitudes of celestial objects − sun, moon, planets, or stars.

* Astrogirl Homepage - http://www.astrogirl.org - Family-friendly educational astronomy website.

* Astronomical Lexicon - http://www.ki0ar.com/astrolex.html - Many of the astronomical terms used in this newsletter are defined here.

* Astronomy Picture of the Day - http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html - A different picture of the cosmos every day.

* Black Hole Encyclopedia - http://blackholes.stardate.org/ - Excellent site from StarDate - University of Texas McDonald Observatory (http://mcdonaldobservatory.org/)

* Celestron Telescopes - http://www.celestron.com/ - Celestron telescopes.

* Cloudbait Observatory, Guffey Colorado - http://www.cloudbait.com - Submit your fireball reports here. Interesting, knowledgeable site.

* The Constellations and Their Stars - http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/constellations.html - Good site for finding out more about the 88 constellations and their associated stars.

* Denver Astronomical Society - http://www.denverastrosociety.org - Promotes the enjoyment and understanding of astronomical phenomena, history and lore by providing educational and observing opportunities for our members, general public, and outreach activities at the University of Denver's historic Chamberlin Observatory, schools, and nature centers.

* Distant Suns - http://www.distantsuns.com/ - Desktop Astronomy package for PCs.

* Green Laser - http://www.greenlaser.com - If you're looking for a reasonably priced laser pointer that is great for astronomy work, visit this site.

* Groovy Adventures - http://www.groovyadventures.com - Unique adventures and vacations including astronomy related vacations.

* Heavens Above - http://www.heavens-above.com - As the name implies - What's up in the heavens, particularly satellite passes.

* The International Dark-Sky Association - http://www.darksky.org - To preserve and protect the nighttime environment and our heritage of dark skies.

* JPL Solar System Ambassador Program - http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/ambassador/front.html - "Volunteers Bringing the Solar System to the Public"

* JPL Solar System - http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/solar_system/ - Jet Propulsion Laboratory information on our solar system.

* Meade Advanced Products Users Group - http://www.mapug-astronomy.net/ - Mapug-Astronomy Topical Archive & information resource, containing a massive 335 page archive of discussions about Meade equipment, and much more: observatories, observing lists, permanent piers, equatorial wedges, remote operations, software, eyepieces, etc.

* My Stars Live - http://www.mystarslive.com/ - Interactive Star Chart

* NASA Science News - http://science.nasa.gov/ - NASA missions, updates, astronomy news, excellent resource.

* Northern Colorado Astronomical Society - http://ncastro.org/ - The purpose of our organization is to encourage the understanding & interest in the science & hobby of astronomy.

* Sangre Stargazers - http://sangrestargazers.skymtn.com/ - New astronomy club in the Wet Mountain Valley of Custer County (about 45 miles due west of Pueblo, CO).

* Sky and Space - http://www.skyandspace.com.au/public/home.ehtml 
Astronomy from Down Under - The Southern Hemisphere's first astronomy and space magazine.

* Skymaps.com - http://www.skymaps.com - Free sky maps each month.

* Skywatch Sightings from NASA - http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/ - This site gives you the best times to watch the ISS pass over or near your location.

* Southern Colorado Astronomical Society - http://www.scasastronomy.info/ - Site under construction.

* Space.com - http://space.com - Interesting space and astronomy articles.

* SpaceLinks/Space Careers - http://www.spacelinks.com/SpaceCareers/ - SPACELINKS is a specialist staffing consultancy sourcing and supplying high caliber professionals for a wide range of world class organizations in the Space and Defense industry.

* Spaceflight Now - http://spaceflightnow.com/ - Launches and satellite news.

* "SpaceRef.com" - http://www.spaceref.com/ - SpaceRef's 21 news and reference web sites are designed to allow both the novice and specialist alike to explore outer space and Earth observation.

* Space Weather - http://www.spaceweather.com - Check out what the Sun is doing as seen from space.

* Stellarium - http://www.stellarium.org - Free, downloadable planetarium/astronomy software.

* Universe Today - http://www.universetoday.com - Short, interesting articles about space and related topics.

* Wikisky - http://www.wikisky.org - WIKISKY is a non-commercial project. The main purpose of WIKISKY is to consolidate astronomical, astrophysical and other information about different space objects and astrophysical facts.

Acknowledgments and References

Much of the information in this newsletter is from "Astronomy Magazine" (Kalmbach Publishing), JPL mission status reports, "Meteor Showers - A Descriptive Catalog" by Gary W. Kronk and other astronomical sources that I have stashed on my book shelves.

The author will accept any suggestions, constructive criticisms, and corrections. Please feel free to send me any new links or articles to share as well. I will try to accommodate any reasonable requests. Please feel free to send questions, comments, criticisms, or donations to the email address listed below. Enjoy!

Subscription Information

- Email Newsletter archives -
 http://ki0ar.com/pipermail/astronews_ki0ar.com/ 

- Full documentation of the online administration system is available at http://ki0ar.com/mailman/listinfo/astronews_ki0ar.com.

- The latest version of the newsletter is accessible from http://www.ki0ar.com/astro.html.

Keep looking UP!
73 from KI0AR

Created by Burness F. Ansell, III
ki0ar at yahoo.com

COO, Director of Aerospace Technologies, IAAS
JPL Solar System Ambassador, Colorado
Last modified: August 31, 2012

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