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 'WORLD of SPACE and ASTRONOMY'

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For The Media

If you are interested, an interview with astronomer, writer, educator and public lecturer representing Australasian Science Magazine and Editor of Astro Space News, Dave Reneke(Astro-Dave) can be arranged by contacting Dave by Phone/Fax(02) 65 85 2260 Mobile: 0400 636 363 or email Dave for an instant reply to davereneke@gmail.com. David is well experienced talking to the media and presents information in an easy to understand, up to date and informative manner. Interviews can be on any subject, tailored to your requirements.

AUSTRALASIAN SCIENCE MAGAZINE

Get your science news straight from the scientists themselves. No hype, no spin, no bull: just the facts.Australia’s most inspiring scientists choose to write about their world-class discoveries in Australasian Science, Australia’s only monthly science magazine.

Australasian Science is dedicated to Australian and New Zealand science, providing a unique local perspective on scientific developments and issues that other science magazines can’t match. Australasian Science boasts Australia’s most experienced team of science journalists, including Australia's only two international Science Journalism Laureates.

Its Patrons are Nobel Laureate Prof Peter Doherty and renowned science broadcaster Robyn Williams, representing excellence in science and its communication. Written in simple language, Australasian Science is a unique and independent source of news and commentary on local scientific developments.

Check out the latest issue NOW: http://www.australasianscience.com.au/  For school & institution rates please contact Control Publications on 03 9500 0015. Fax: (03) 9500 0255 Email science@control.com.au

THIS WEEK'S TOP STORY   

The Hubble Space Telescope and Keck Observatory images may support the idea that Jupiter is in the midst of violent global climate change.

Space hotel taking bookings for 2012 opening

The cost of three nights on the Galactic Suite Space Resort (plus a two-month training course on a Caribbean island beforehand) will be $4.4 million US. At least 43 people have already reserved their place, with over 200 expressing an interest.

Guests would circumnavigate the globe every 80 minutes and see the sun rise 15 times a day. They would get around their "pod" rooms by wearing Velcro suits that stick them to the walls to enable them to crawl.

CEO of the Barcelona-based company Galactic Suite Ltd, Xavier Claramunt, said the hotel would make his company a leader in the fledgling industry, which he believes has a great future, with space tourism becoming commonplace. Claramunt, formerly an aerospace engineer, said that within perhaps only 15 years, it could be quite normal to spend a weekend in space.

The Galactic Suite Space Resort plans to start with one pod holding four passengers and two astronaut pilots. The pod would orbit 280 miles (450 km) above the earth and travel at 18,640 mph (30,000 kph). Passengers would take a day and a half to reach the pod by Russian-built rocket, after blasting off from a spaceport on a Caribbean island. The rocket would dock with the pod for their entire stay to give the guests a sense of security. At the end of their stay the passengers would return to the rocket for the trip back to earth.

Claramunt said the project had received an anonymous grant of $3 billion given to the company by a space enthusiast billionaire. Critics have questioned the timeframe, but the company is confident it is on track for the 2012 opening.

Another space tourism project under construction is Spaceport America, being built in Mexico. This will be the first facility for space flights for commercial and private passengers. Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson's space tour company will offer rides to suborbital space from the spaceport for $200,000. Bookings are pouring in, with 300 people already having signed up or paid in advance.

 Physorg

 Caves On The Moon!

Caves on the Moon!  Not the title of a fifties pulp scifi novel, hovering above a pastel picture of Dirk Squarejaw in his astro-nautical suit as he scoops up a swooning space damsel, but an actual factual real thing.  That might just become mankind's first home away from home. 

 Daily Galaxy

Zooming in on Universe's First Starlight

Astronomers have published the discovery of the farthest known object in the cosmos, the first starlight ever recorded: a star that exploded when the universe was only 630 million years old — only 4.6% of its current age. Light from this cataclysm had been traveling towards us for about 13 billion years, finally arriving here last April 23.

It was spotted only because the dying star was bright — it emitted as much energy in its final moments as the sun emits in about a billion years of life — and of course because astronomers had been searching for just such activity. Scientists have seen the first star to send light which reached Earth.

 This light is the earliest, the furthest away, the most red-shifted, and every other factor that could possibly say "Everything else ever came after this." The bright light is also poignant as it results from a Gamma Ray Burst, GRB 090423, meaning that this first light comes from the death of a star imploding into a neutron star or even an early black hole.  

Daily Galaxy 

 UFO video from Birmingham makes waves on YouTube

This YouTube UFO video (which can be viewed below the article) is making waves on the internet at the moment. It was allegedly filmed on 3 October in the night skies above Birmingham in the UK, a UFO hotspot.

"The most beautiful and important thing I have ever seen. This was filmed on my Nokia n95 8 GB on 03/10/09 in Birmingham England. I have no idea what it was but I know what I saw and it freaked me out big time. If you want to pm me I will share the original which has more footage on it. Haters can get screwed as my friends were there and so was one of their mums and our neighbors were there. It was there for about 5 minutes and my mate has footage on his phone too but it is really bad quality."

 50 Cent believes we are not alone

The 'Candy Shop' rapper is a massive fan of fantasy novels and is certain there are other life forms which are deliberately kept hidden from the public.

He said: "I read a lot of science fiction because I just want to get away from what's going on at the time, I read fantasy books. "Like things about different planets and other worlds. 

It's interesting how often they've made films with aliens in them and it has to come from somewhere. "Why do I keep seeing the aliens landing on earth in films?  I believe something is going on that they ain't telling us!"

The 34-year-old rapper has never made contact with aliens or UFOs himself, and is worried his fans will think he is crazy when they find out he is obsessed with extra-terrestrials.

He added: "I've never seen a UFO.  I'm crazy enough to be putting what I've said out there.  People will be seeing this about UFOs and stuff and thinking '50 getting high!'"

Ireland Online

How to see a Black Hole

A black hole is like a scary monster from children’s literature. It’s vividly imagined but never actually seen in real life.This is true even for the largest black holes we know — the ones that reside at the centers of galaxies. The nearest of these lies some 30,000 light-years away, in the core of the Milky Way.

If you placed it in our solar system it would probably span the orbit of Mercury. Yet, because of its great distance, it’s a mere speck against the sky, about 36 million times smaller than the full Moon. How could anyone see any detail when looking at something with an apparent size that small?

Amazingly, there is a way. And now it’s promising not only to reveal the giant black hole in our own galaxy, but also a much larger and more active one in the galaxy known as M87 in Virgo.

The nifty trick that puts this ambitious goal within reach is called very long baseline interferometry. VLBI involves two or more radio dishes that are spaced as far apart as possible — for example, in Arizona and Hawaii. The dishes observe the same radio sources in the sky, and when their signals are combined they form an image that’s as sharp as what you would get from a single receiver as big as the separation between the dishes. The idea is to show the way radio emission is spatial distributed across a small region of sky. It’s just what you need to “see” a black hole.

But what does that mean? Aren’t black holes supposed to be, well, black? Yes and no. If completely isolated in space, a black hole would indeed be well camouflaged. But in the densely populated center of the Milky Way, there is plenty of hot gas swirling around the giant black hole there.

The energized ions in the gas give off radio waves. Seen up close, there should also be a dark sphere at the center of that swirl of gas, where matter funnels in and never comes out. The dark sphere is the infamous event horizon. It’s the point of no return, from which not even light can escape. In this case, “seeing” the black hole means seeing the event horizon silhouetted against the glowing gas.

Sky and Telescope USA 

Space Auction Promises the Moon

Ever wanted to shoot the breeze with a legendary moonwalker?  Own a genuine relic of space travel from an astronaut's personal collection?  Don a real astronaut flight suit?  Bids started on these and other cool space artifacts in the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation's (ASF) 7th Annual Astronaut Experiences and Memorabilia Auction.

Like no auction around, this one offers unique lots like Diamond Seats at an Astros' Baseball Game with the last man to walk on the moon, Gene Cernan; dinner with Apollo 13 Commander Jim Lovell; an American flag that flew to the moon; and the first female Space Shuttle Pilot and Commander's NASA training shirt.

"Every last penny raised from this auction will go directly to support college students pursuing degrees in science and technology," said Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke.  "There are only so many space artifacts out there, so this is a way for folks to obtain an authentic space item while helping a great organization!"

Duke is one of 70 astronauts from the Mercury to Space Shuttle programs, who have donated an artifact, signature or time to this cause.  Twelve of the 50 auction lots are one-on-one experiences with hero astronauts, while the others boast autographed memorabilia, items flown into space and astronauts' personal relics.

All the lots were available for viewing at www.astronautscholarship.org/auction.   Winning bids, over fair market value, should be considered a charitable donation.

All auction proceeds go directly to support the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, a 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization established in 1984 by the six surviving members of America's original Mercury astronauts.  Its mission is to aid the United States in retaining its world leadership in science and technology by providing scholarships for college students who exhibit motivation, imagination, and exceptional performance in these fields. 

Today, more than 80 astronauts from the Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, Space Shuttle and Space Station programs have joined in this educational endeavor and in all, have disbursed $2.8 million to students nationwide.   

Astronaut Scholarship Foundation  

Anniversary: Dog becomes first creature sent into space

This month we celebrate a very special anniversary. On November 3, 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2, a one-way, history-making trip for a dog named  Laika.

Laika, a stray picked up off the streets of Moscow, became the first living creature to orbit the Earth.

Her heart rate soared and within hours — not days as the Soviet Union led the world to believe — she died of overheating and stress, the BBC reported in 2002 after new evidence was revealed at the World Space Congress.

Laika and two other dogs, Albina and Mushka, underwent training prior to launch, including high-altitude flights and being kept in smaller and smaller cages.

Laika was not just her name, but also what Russians called a northern breed known for their endurance. The "laikas" are also known as Karelian Bear Dogs, according to the American Kennel Club, and remains one of the most popular breeds in Finland, where it originated.

USA Today 

Get set for the Leonids meteor shower

Cross your fingers for clear skies: Meteors ahead.  The Leonid meteor showers, due the night of November 17 & 18 can be spectacular.  With a night sky free of a hindering, bright moon and Earth's cosmic positioning, astronomers think many meteors will be visible in the hours after midnight.

Shooting stars occur when the Earth — on its trek around the sun — passes through the dusty trails left by comets.  The remnant dust, as it strikes Earth's upper atmosphere, burns up and appears as shooting stars streaking through our heavens.  Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle causes the Leonid meteors, and this year's show is courtesy of the comet's visits in 1466 and 1533. 

From shower to slight storm: The rate at peak viewing time could be more than 100 meteors an hour.

How do you find meteors?  It's easy.  Grab a Thermos full of hot cocoa, find a dark sky and look up.  They appear to emanate from the constellation Leo, which ascends the eastern sky before midnight.  Barring cloudy skies, they'll be around until the first signs of daybreak.

Meteors

Empty space in our solar system is not actually empty as there are many millions of tiny particles hanging around between the planets.  As the earth races on its orbit round the sun, some of these particles are swept into the atmosphere and even something the size of a grain of sand will become a bright meteor in our sky. 

On any clear night away from the city lights you are likely to see perhaps two or three meteors every hour, but occasionally there can be far more.  These “meteor showers” can usually be tied back to the passage through the solar system of a comet or asteroid, sometimes centuries in the past.  The tail of a comet is astronomical scale pollution but the resulting meteors can contribute some very useful data for scientists to analyse and of course they can produce a spectacular natural firework show.      

LRO's Closer Look at the Apollo 12 Landing Site

Wow! Just look at the detail visible in this image of the Apollo 12 landing site taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter from its lower mapping orbit of 50 km above the surface. Compared to earlier images taken in September when LRO was in a higher orbit, the Lunar Module descent stage really stands out, as well as the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package (ALSEP). Also visible are the trails left by spacewalking astronauts.

From this and other LROC landing site images, it is clear that astronaut activity lowers the albedo, or reflectivity of the surface. Areas of heaviest activity have the lowest albedo, especially around the LM.

ASA says this effect is most likely due to compaction of a very loose surface powder by the astronauts just walking around. 

(Right) Here is a slightly more zoomed out version that includes the Surveyor 3 spacecraft. The Sun is very high in the sky (incidence angle 4°) for these images and shadows are minimized.  (Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University)

Universe Today

Telescope network 'to lead to big discoveries'  

Astronomers at the Australian National University (ANU) expect to make big discoveries using a series of new telescopes. The wide field telescopes installed at the ANU's Siding Spring observatory near Coonabarabran in New South Wales, are part of the largest network of interconnected telescopes in the Southern Hemisphere.

ABC News 

Blind astronomer builds backyard observatory

By day Tim Doucette is legally blind and can barely see across the street, but when darkness falls he can see far into space. The Moncton, N.B.-based computer programmer was born with cataracts, and surgeons removed the lenses in his eyes when he was an infant.

The procedure left his eyes overly sensitive to light, but also gave him superior night vision. "Most of my seeing is enhanced for dimmer objects, dark sky objects, deep space-type objects," Doucette said.

Before he turned his focus to the stars, Doucette said, his wife had been urging him to take up a hobby. So he bought an inexpensive telescope from a nearby store and started looking at the night skies. "I realized how much fun I had in being able to see Mars and see features on Mars with a cheap, cheap telescope [and it] sort of opened up Pandora's box," Doucette said.

Backyard observatory From that starter telescope, Doucette has gone on to construct an amateur observatory just outside of his back door. His new telescope has lens and camera attachments that allow him to photograph what he sees. "As far as the astronomy shed — the observatory — after setting up and tearing down the equipment 147 times taking 45 minutes each time to set up … it got pretty obvious that we needed something more permanent if I wanted to get serious about astro-photography," he said.

Legally blind Doucette said he has 20/200 vision and has never been able to see much except lights. As a child, Doucette said, he loved going for drives with his family looking at Christmas lights. Now with the assistance of some magnification by his telescope, he can see objects far off in space.

Doucette is a member of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada and has had one of his photographs published in the organization's magazine. "I was pretty excited the first time, they don't tell you, so the first time you open up the magazine it's like, 'There's my picture and my name and everything,'" he said. "It was pretty rewarding actually."

Doucette said he's helping the local astronomy club organize a photo contest for people across New Brunswick 

  NEWS SNIPPETS

 NASA: Booster rocket damaged in test flight
NASA says the booster rocket used in a test flight was badly dented when it fell into the Atlantic.

Masten Space Systems takes lead in Lunar Lander Challenge
NASA sees private space companies playing a role in future missions.

Parachute failure only blemish in successful Ares test flight A preliminary look at data from NASA's Ares IX test flight Wednesday shows the towering rocket performed as expected.

Blast from the Past Gives Clues About Early Universe
Dale Frail of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. "The primal cosmic darkness was being pierced by the light of the first stars and the first galaxies.

Rosetta approach on schedule
After the trajectory correction maneouvre on 22 October, Rosetta has lined up on a near-perfect Earth approach path.

NASA to launch space shuttle Atlantis on Nov. 16
US space shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to be launched on Nov. 16 from the Kennedy Space Center

 Fire thwarts rocket in lunar lander competition
Masten Space Systems' Xoie, a robotic rocket, took off from a launch pad at Mojave Air & Space Port and flew to another pad where it set down on its legs.

Space junk threat delays spaceship's departure
A piece of space junk orbiting Earth has forced NASA to tweak upcoming plans for the departure of Japan's first cargo ship.

Starring Intelligent Aliens
The most probable place to find intelligent life in the galaxy is around stars very similar to our sun, a new study has found.

Sixty-Billion Stars: SuperComputing the Universe

Can the Human Mind Be Uploaded for Space Exploration?

The 7.3 Billion Year Race Through the Milky Way! A Dead-heat Finish

China says space plans peaceful

Ares I-X Launch Image Gallery

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 FEATURE STORY

Can scientists make a space elevator?

 "The question Artsutanov asked himself had the childlike brilliance of true genius.  A merely clever man could never have thought of it — or would have dismissed it instantly as absurd.  If the laws of celestial mechanics make it possible for an object to stay fixed in the sky, might it not be possible to lower a cable down to the surface, and so to establish an elevator system linking earth to space?" — Arthur C.  Clarke, 1979, "The Fountains of Paradise"

It sounds like science fiction.  And it was. Now, 30 years after "2001" author Arthur C.  Clarke wrote about an elevator that rises into outer space, serious research is happening all over the world in an effort to make the far-fetched-sounding idea a reality. The benefits of a fully realized elevator would make carrying people and goods into space cheaper, easier and safer than with rocket launches, proponents say, opening up a host of possibilities.

Restaurants and hotels for space tourists.  Wind turbines that provide energy by spinning 24 hours a day.  A cheaper, easier and more environmentally friendly way to launch rockets. Scientists envision all of the above — possibly within our lifetimes. "Space elevator-related research is valid, but there are hurdles to overcome," said David Smitherman, a space architect at NASA's George C. Marshall Space Flight Center.

This week in the Mojave Desert, three teams of engineers are competing for $2 million offered up by NASA for anyone who can build a prototype of an elevator able to crawl up a kilometer-high tether while hauling a heavy payload. "We haven't had any winners yet, but we truly do expect to have at least one winner, probably more [this year]," said Ted Semon, spokesman for The Spaceward Foundation, which has run the competition for the past several years.

Most models for an elevator into space involve attaching a cable from a satellite, space station or other counterweight to a base on Earth's surface. Scientists say inertia would keep the cable tight enough to allow an elevator to climb it. The inspiration for researchers to pursue a space elevator started, as many scientific advances have, in the fantastical world of science fiction.

In Clarke's 1979 novel "The Fountains of Paradise," he writes about a scientist battling technological, political and ethical difficulties involved in creating a space elevator. In the years that followed, Clarke, who died last year, remained an outspoken advocate for researching and funding the elevator. Others are now carrying the torch.

"Space elevator research is important because it is a way to build a bridge to space instead of ferrying everything by rocket," said Smitherman, who has conducted research and published findings on the effort. "Look at the cost and efficiency of a bridge versus a ferry on Earth and then look at the cost and inefficiency of the rocket ferries we use today and you will see why so many people are looking for a 'bridge' solution like the space elevator."

Microsoft is among the sponsors an annual space elevator conference, and teams in Japan and Russia are among those working to turn the theory into reality — even if they all admit they have a long way to go. Even the most avid proponents of the research admit there are big hurdles that need to be overcome. 

The first, scientists say, is that there's currently not a viable material strong enough to make the cables that will support heavy loads of passengers or cargo into orbit.  According to NASA research, the space elevator cable would need to be about 22,000 miles long.  That's how far away a satellite must be to maintain orbit above a fixed spot on the Earth's equator.

"Right now, if you use the strongest material in the world, the weight of the tether would be so much that it would actually snap," said Semon, a retired software engineer.  He said the super-light material would probably need to be about 25 times stronger than what's now commercially available. In a separate competition, his group offers a prize to any team that can build a tether that's at least twice as strong as what's currently on the market.

Another issue, scientists say, is how to keep the cable, or the elevator itself, from getting clobbered by meteorites or space junk floating around in space.  Some suggest a massive cleanup of Earth's near orbit would be required. And then there's the cost.  Estimates are as high as $20 billion for a working system that would stretch into orbit. Many think it would be private enterprise, not a government, that would spring for the earliest versions of the elevator.

Professor Brendan Quine and his team at York University in Toronto, Canada, think they have the answers to at least some of those problems.They've built a three-story high prototype of an elevator tower that would rise roughly 13 miles (20 kilometers) — high enough to escape most of the earth's atmosphere. "At 20 kilometers, you still have gravity; you're not in orbit," Quine said.  "But for a tourist, you can see basically the same things an astronaut sees — the blackness of space, the horizon of the Earth."

In the stratosphere, the tower also could potentially be used to launch rockets, he said.  The most expensive and energy-sucking part of any space launch now is blasting from the ground out of the atmosphere. Constructed from Kevlar, the free-standing structure would use pneumatically inflated sections pressurized with a lightweight gas, such as hydrogen or helium, to actively stabilize itself and allow for flexibility.  A series of platforms or pods, supported by the elevator, would be used to launch payloads into Earth's orbit.

Quine acknowledged that the prototype is just a first step toward realizing the elevator and that several more prototypes are needed to fine-tune details. He estimated that the cost of the basic tower would be about $2 billion — the equivalent of a massive skyscraper in places like New York — and that the technology to build it could be ready in less than 10 years.

He said a more advanced — and expensive — elevator tower could be built to go higher into the stratosphere. But for the purposes of actually ferrying everyday people into space, 20 kilometers makes the most sense, Quine said.

"The tower might be economically viable if you're able to transport 1,000 people a day to the to of it for about $1,000 a ticket," he said.  "At the top, you'd probably want amenities — hotels, restaurants.  It could be a very pleasant experience, in contrast to zero gravity, which makes many people sick."

For now, advocates of making the elevator a reality say they'll keep at it.  They'll continue reminding themselves that they wouldn't be the first to turn what started as an outlandish idea into good science.

CNN_

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   ASTRO PIC OF THE WEEK

The spectacular new camera installed on NASA's Hubble Space Telescope during Servicing Mission 4 in May has delivered the most detailed view of star birth in the graceful, curving arms of the nearby spiral galaxy M83.

Nicknamed the Southern Pinwheel, M83 is undergoing more rapid star formation than our own Milky Way galaxy, especially in its nucleus. The sharp "eye" of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) has captured hundreds of young star clusters, ancient swarms of globular star clusters, and hundreds of thousands of individual stars, mostly blue supergiants and red supergiants.

NASA   

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 == IN THE SKY THIS WEEK ==

 The last quarter Moon is Tuesday November 10. In the morning Mars is readily visible in the eastern sky. Red Mars is in the constellation of Cancer and starts the week near the Beehive cluster. This will be readily visible to the unaided eye under dark skies, and will look quite nice in binoculars.

On Monday November 9 the waning Moon is close to Mars, with the Beehive in between. Saturn is low in the morning sky this week. Bright white Venus is invisible the twilight glow and will not reappear until February. Jupiter is easily seen as the brightest object in the evening sky and is big enough to be appreciated in even the smallest telescope. Jupiter's moons are readily visible in binoculars or a small telescope.

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       ASTRONOMY – SPACE PODCASTS   

The Evening Sky Map (PDF) is a 2-page monthly guide to the night sky suitable for all sky watchers including newcomers to Astronomy. AND its entirely FREE. Designed to print clearly on all printers.

The Evening Sky Map is ready-to-use and will help you to: Identify planets, stars and major constellations – Find sparkling star clusters, wispy nebulae & distant galaxies – Locate and follow bright comets across the sky – Learn about the night sky and Astronomy. 

The Evening Sky Map is free for personal non-commercial educational use. Receive news of updated sky maps, reminders of Sky Calendar events, and other noteworthy news for sky watchers. And it's FREE! Sky Map Download

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 Southern Galactic and Northern Galactic International

Northern Galactic and Southern Galactic are an International Astronomy Community. A global membership of professional and advanced astronomers, scientists, astrophotographers and science writers. I am proud to be one of their members.

This organisation was established to commemorate the United Nations International Year of Astronomy in 2009 and was officially launched in November 2008.

In partnership with scientists, professional and advanced astronomers and science writers from many countries, Southern Galactic and Northern Galactic International aims to gather together research and discoveries in the areas of optical and radio astronomy, astrophotography, planetary studies, and space atmospheric sciences as a service to the interested public. We achieve this by providing a globally themed internet presence with data storage and logistical support to astronomers both professional and amateur working in either hemispheres.

Founder and administrator Bert Candusio (right)  said their service is available to all astronomers and scientists throughout the world so they may freely share their findings, news, images and discoveries in all areas of astronomy and their related sciences. Southern Galactic and Northern Galactic International also supports and contributes to the general understanding and appreciation of astronomy by initiating and participating in public education and outreach programs. This may include live broadcasts or video feeds of special or unusual astronomical events, or interactive live conferences between high profile members and the general public.

Both sites contain up-to-date weather data pertaining to either hemisphere as a service to Members and Users as well as other helpful astronomy based content.

News RSS Feeds from numerous Official Government sources on all aspects of astronomy are also made available to both NG and SG sites and are updated 4 times per day. This assists the reader in keeping up to date with the latest Astronomy News and Developments all from the one internet location.

 Winners for For each Month Have Been Announced

 Please visit our NEWS Page here: http://www.northerngalactic.com/forum/news.php to view the winning entries. As usual, you will need to Log On in order to see the Full Res Version.   If you are not Registered at Northerngalactic, you will need to register order to view the Winning Entry in Full Resoloution. (Please use First Name – Surname Format)

Northern Galactic is now the home to many of the worlds most capable astrophotographers and this can be clearly seen in the quality of the imaging projects submitted each day. Although this makes it more challenging each month for our judges, they are always excited at seeing all submitted works… so keep them coming… More added Features and Content will be comming On-Line each day as we continue to develop the Southern Galactic and Northern Galactic Sites.    Go to website:                     

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  THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ASTRONOMY 2009

INVITING THE WORLD TO DISCOVER OUR UNIVERSE

 Opening: From Earth to the Universe

The international IYA exhibition, From Earth to the Universe, has opened at Sydney's Powerhouse Museum. For an eye-witness account of the launch, see the blog entry by Nick Lomb on the Sydney Observatory website. Nick modestly fails to mention that he was the co-curator for this exhibition, the other co-curator being astrophotographer David Malinhttp://www.sydneyobservatory.com.au/blog/?p=2500. .

In her opening remarks, CSIRO astronomer Ilana Feain, in talking about the beauty and meaning of these images, quoted the poet John Keats: "Beauty is truth, and truth beauty". As Keats also said, "a thing of beauty is a joy forever" – or, in the case of this exhibition, until it closes in July next year. See it if you can. 

 "Stargazing the Southern Skies" stamp and coin cover

Perth Mint and Australia Post have joined forces to offer sets of stamp and coin covers for IYA.  They feature a $1 coin struck by the mint and three stamps featuring astronomical images chosen by astrophotographer David Malin.

The stamp and coin cover is available for $14.95 from the Perth Mint: http://www.perthmint.com.au/catalogue/stargazing-the-southern-skies-stamp-and-coin-cover-pnc.aspx.  Australia Post is offering the same set; a set of stamps alone under another cover; and other related products: http://www.stamps.com.au/shop/stamps/stargazing

                 Uni Galactic 

                                                                  Space Travel Magazine   

 UniGalactic Space Travel Magazine was launched with the first issue published on May 29, 2009. You'll find articles on a variety of topics including but not limited to SpaceX's and Virgin Galactic’s NEW space tourism developments, international space station, Mars missions, future space launches, as well as outer space news. Amazon will ship ANYWHERE in the Globe.

Footnote from Dave: I'm so impressed with this magazine and it's contents that I've asked to write for them and have been accepted. I highly recommend this publication for it's different slant and content we don't normally get a chance to hear about in Oz.

Subscribe to UniGalactic Space Travel Magazine Website: Click here

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What is Amateur Astronomy Magazine About?

Amateur Astronomy Magazine is a printed forum of the activities relating to Amateur Astronomers around the world. Our magazine is written by amateur astronomers, for amateur astronomers.

Over the course of the past 15 years, we have covered telescopes, large and small, amateur telescope making, mirror grinding, collimating tips, observing techniques, astronomical equipment reviews, home observatories, professional observatories, observing lists, profiles of amateur astronomers, star parties, dark sites, imaging tips and techniques, observing logs, astronomical travel logs, astronomy businesses and their owners, DIY astronomical projects, cosmology, science and astronomy outreach. In short,we are about all the things and people that make this hobby special. www.amateurastronomy.com/

Southern Cross Observatory – Tasmania, Australia.

If you are interested in Astro-Photography, at any level, then this is the site for you. Take note and learn from the experts!

Shevill Mathers is recognized as one of the world’se leading amateur astronomers and is a specialist in his field. His regular columns and newspaper articles are now augmented by a wide range of articles including ATM articles, Astro News items and Activities from Tasmania as well as reviewing a wide range of astronomical equipment.

Shevill is a regular contributor to many various magazines including the Tasmania 40 Degrees South magazine, Leatherwood On-Line, Discover Tasmania, Quasar Publishing ‘Astronomy Yearbook’, Universe Today and various overseas scientific forums. He is a local media source for TV, radio and the print media.

Shevill Mathers has been a keen amateur astronomer / telescope and camera builder in the UK since the early 60’s, with a special interest in astrophotography. A member of the BAA, London (Lunar Section), his photographic expertise was greatly encouraged by Patrick Moore, with whom he has maintained a lasting friendship. Elected a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1968. During the IYA 2009, in recognition of his contributions to Astronomy; public outreach, teaching & research, Shevill was appointed an Honorary Associate, Dept. Maths & Physics UTAS – (University of Tasmania), with all rights & privileges of full time academic staff. Congratulations Shevill!!

Southern Cross Observatory – IYA – Two special sites have been established at the International ’Macedon Ranges Observatory’, in Victoria, to coordinate and share images, experiences and events around the world, the links are:http://www.southerngalactic.com/andhttp://www.northerngalactic.com/

Contact details:shevill.mathers@southernphone.com.au Shevillm@gmail.com Web:www.shevillmathers.id.au

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