LIGO: A Quest for Gravity Waves.

LIGO, Livingston. (All Photos by Author).

  We had to go there… last month’s NASA Tweetup at the Johnson Spaceflight Center saw us undertake the great American road trip from Astroguyz HQ north of Tampa, Florida, to Houston on the other side of the Gulf of Mexico and back. Ever the opportunists, we scoured the route for [...]

In Defense of the Farmer’s Almanac.

 
    Sometimes, astronomical information comes from the most unlikely of sources. I first started into a lifelong interest of astronomy as a kid, growing up in the backwoods of northern Maine. There, a pristine sky that would be the envy of any backyard astronomer awaited almost every night, right beyond my doorstep. But I soon [...]

Astro-Challenge: Spotting Two-Faced Iapetus.

 The wacky orbit of Iapetus. (Created in Starry Night & Paint).
As the majestic planet Saturn approaches opposition on March 21st, I’d like to turn your telescopic attention to one of the most bizarre moons in the solar system; Iapetus. It was way back when in the 17th century that Italian astronomer Giovanni Cassini noted that he [...]

Attack of the Smartphones: A NASATweetup at the Johnson Space Flight Center!

Smartphones out… (Credit: NASA/JSC).

 We came, we saw, we tweeted profusely… last month’s Tweetup at the Johnson Spaceflight Center  was a resounding success. Only the fourth official NASA tweetup ever held, this was the first at the JSC and the first attended by Astroguyz. What follows is a sort of after-action report, both of the JSC [...]

04.03.10: A Close Flyby of Phobos.

Phobos on a pass of Mars Express last July. (Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/G. Neukum).

  
 The European Space Agencies’ (ESA) Mars Express orbiter completed the closest ever flyby of the misshapen Martian moon, Phobos, but don’t expect to see any mind blowing pictures…yet. Part of a series of 12 flybys, last nights’ pass skimmed to worldlet by 67 [...]

04.03.10- The Edgar Wilson Award: A Look at Last Year’s Winners.

 
   In this age of astronomical automation and ever increasingly deeper sky surveys, many believe the era of the amateur comet discoveries to be over. A look at last year’s Edgar Wilson Award winners, however, tells a different tale. Established in 1998, this award has historically split a $20,000 purse among 2 to 6 individuals [...]

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