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Pictured is a Delta IV rocket launch from Cape Canaveral on November 21st, 2010. The image is a 20 second exposure taken at dusk, shot from about 100 miles west of the launch site. The launch placed a classified payload in orbit for the United States Air Force.
Difficult but not impossible to catch against the dawn or dusk sky, spotting an extreme crescent moon can be a challenge. The slender crescent pictured was shot 30 minutes before sunrise when the Moon was less than 20 hours away from New.� A true feat of visual athletics to catch, a good pair of binoculars or a well aimed wide field telescopic view can help with the hunt.
The Sun is our nearest star, and goes through an 11-year cycle of activity. This image was taken via a properly filtered telescope, and shows the Sun as it appeared during its last maximum peak in 2003. This was during solar cycle #23, a period during which the Sun hurled several large flares Earthward. The next solar cycle is due to peak around 2013-14.
Located in the belt of the constellation Orion, Messier 42, also known as the Orion Nebula is one of the finest deep sky objects in the northern hemisphere sky. Just visible as a faint smudge to the naked eye on a clear dark night, the Orion Nebula is a sure star party favorite, as it shows tendrils of gas contrasted with bright stars. M42 is a large stellar nursery, a star forming region about 1,000 light years distant.
Orbiting the planet in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) every 90 minutes, many people fail to realize that you can see the International Space Station (ISS) from most of the planet on a near-weekly basis. In fact, the ISS has been known to make up to four visible passes over the same location in one night. The image pictured is from the Fourth of July, 2011 and is a 20 second exposure of a bright ISS pass.
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Next to the Sun, the two brightest objects in the sky are the Moon and the planet Venus. In fact, when Venus is favorably placed next to the Moon, it might just be possible to spot the two in the daytime. Another intriguing effect known as earthshine or ashen light is also seen in the image on the night side of the Moon; this is caused by sunlight reflected back off of the Earth towards our only satellite.
A mosaic of three images taken during the total lunar eclipse of December 21st, 2010. The eclipse occurred the same day as the winter solstice. The curve and size of the Earth�s shadow is apparent in the image.
Review: Alien Pregnant by Elvis Edited by Ester M. Friesner and Martin H. Greenberg.
It has gotta be true, it�s in print, right? This week, we dig back into the Astroguyz science fiction library of the strange and curious to bring you Alien Pregnant by Elvis, an anthology of 36 tabloid inspired tales that could have sprung right from the supermarket checkout line. From a Martian memorial to Elvis to 2,437 (who counted �em?) UFOs sighted over New Hampshire, it�s all here in tales woven in a stranger-than-fiction fashion.
The collection itself is a great idea; after all, why should the tabloid journalism mills get a corner market on what science fiction writers have been doing for decades? And of course, the tabloids of the 80�s and 90�s were but mere harbingers of the modern internet era, where any back-woods conspiracy theorist with access to broadband and a free AOL disk can hang out their cyber-shingle and explain to you how the government bounces thought-control rays off of the International Space Station; hey, its only a matter of time. Some top-notch science fiction names grace these tales, from Alan Dean Foster to Mike Resnick to David Brin�a quick pick of some of our tabloid faves are as follows;
Is Your Coworker a Space Alien? By �Bob� bes Shahar: just because you�re not paranoid doesn�t mean that they�re Not Here�A test for that guy in the cubicle next door that seems a little �off��
Rock Band Conjures Satan As Manager- Group Claims �Good Business Move� by Deborah J. Wunder; Hasn�t this already occurred? The world famous rock band Kill the Smurfs teaches Old Nick a thing or two about Evil.
Elvis at the White House by Kristine Kathryn Rusch; the author Diving into the Wreck and the soon to be released (and reviewed in this space next week!) City of Ruins tackles that perennial tabloid topic, the King himself.
Do search out this unique collection of made for the tabloid science fiction tales; the title alone is just plain cool!
Not enough weirdness? This week, I also wanted to give a brief shout out to a recent episode of Escape Pod: Episode #286 The �76 Goldwater Dime by John Medaille and read by Norm Sherman. This is pure vintage Twilight Zone and one of the best episodes to grace our IPod this year thus far, so good I had to listen to it an unprecedented three times. Its great to think that unexplained absurdity may lurk in mundane places� but just where are those coins with alternate presidential fa�ades coming from?
Next Week: As promised above, we�re off Dignity Vessel-diving with Boss and the crew with our review of City of Ruins!
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