| Piú votate - The Universe Inside |
CosmicRays.jpgCosmic Rays57 visiteWhere do Cosmic Rays come from? A major step toward answering this century old question may have just come in from the Auger Observatory Project, the world's premier Cosmic Ray Observatory. That high energy fundamental particles are barreling through the Universe has been known for about a century.
Because ultra high energy cosmic rays are so rare and because their extrapolated directions are so imprecise, no progenitor objects have ever been unambiguously implied. New results from Auger, however, indicate that 12 of 15 ultra high energy cosmic rays have sky directions statistically consistent with the positions of nearby active galactic nuclei. These galactic centers are already known to emit great amounts of light and are likely powered by large Black Holes. The Auger results also indicate that the highest energy cosmic rays are protons, since the electric charge of higher energy nuclei would force the Milky Way Galaxy's magnetic field to deflect and effectively erase progenitor source direction. MareKromium
(11 voti)
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LonelyQuasar.gifLonely Quasar...92 visite"...It was just before dawn,
One miserable morning in black, '44,
When the forward commander was told to sit tight
When he asked that his men be withdrawn,
And the generals gave thanks
As the other ranks
Held back the enemy tanks for a while,
And the Anzio bridgehead was held for the price
Of a few hundred ordinary lives..."
Pink Floyd - "When The Tigers Broke Free"MareKromium
(11 voti)
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Eternity.jpgBeyond...54 visite"...A well-written Life is almost as rare as a well-spent one..."
Thomas Carlyle (1795 - 1881) - "Critical and Miscellaneous Essays" (1838) MareKromium
(11 voti)
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Peace_of_mind.jpgPeace of Mind56 visiteMareKromium
(11 voti)
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FL-Anticrepuscolar Rays.jpgInfinite55 visiteCaption NASA originale:"(...) Pictured above are anticrepuscular rays.
To understand them, start by picturing common crepuscular rays that are seen any time that Sunlight pours though scattered clouds. Now although Sunlight indeed travels along straight lines, the projections of these lines onto the spherical sky are great circles. Therefore, the crepuscular rays from a setting (or rising) Sun will appear to re-converge on the other side of the sky.
At the anti-solar point 180° around from the Sun, they are referred to as anticrepuscular rays (...)".
(11 voti)
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Dreaming Together.jpgFirst Dream and Today's Reality71 visitenessun commento
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M 31 and Hale Bopp.jpgTemporary Sky...57 visiteDa "NASA - Picture of the Day" del 13 Agosto 2006:"The Moon almost ruined this photograph. During late March and early April 1997, Comet Hale-Bopp passed nearly in front of the Andromeda Galaxy.
Here the Great Comet of 1997 and the Great Galaxy in Andromeda were photographed together on 1997 March 24th. The problem was the brightness of the Moon. The Moon was full that night and so bright that long exposures meant to capture the tails of Hale-Bopp and the disk of M31 would capture instead only moonlight reflected off the Earth's atmosphere. By the time the Moon would set, this opportunity would be gone. That's why this picture was taken during a total lunar eclipse".
(11 voti)
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Perseid-1.jpgShooting Star (1)63 visiteL'immagine è sicuramente bella, ma quello che vorremmo farVi notare è la tessitura della striscia lasciata dalla "stella cadente" la quale, come ben si vede (anche senza operare ingrandimenti), contiene "nodi" (modesti rigonfiamenti dovuti, probabilmente, a perdita/consunzione di materiale a seguito dell'attrito durante la caduta del frammento di Corpo Celeste attraverso l'atmosfera) e "brillamenti" (delle vere e proprie "fiammate" che si avviano, di regola, in corrispondenza dei "nodi" e che indicano cambi di temperatura - ergo di luminosità - del Corpo in questione).
(11 voti)
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Autumn_s Moon.jpgLuna d'Autunno61 visitenessun commento
(11 voti)
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Sun Halo-2.jpgBright Sun, Dark Sky59 visiteCaption originale:"Have you ever seen a halo around the Sun? This fairly common sight occurs when high thin clouds containing millions of tiny ice crystals cover much of the sky. Each ice crystal acts like a miniature lens. Because most of the crystals have a similar elongated hexagonal shape, light entering one crystal face and exiting through the opposing face refracts 22 degrees, which corresponds to the radius of the Sun Halo. A similar Moon Halo may be visible during the night. The picture was taken in Gunlock, Utah, USA. A flock of birds was caught by chance in the foreground. Exactly how ice-crystals form in clouds remains under investigation".
Nota: si tratta di un'immagine molto bella, senza alcun dubbio, ma una piccola annotazione va fatta. Vedete il colore del cielo attorno al Sole? Vi sembra naturale? No, ovviamente: non è affatto naturale.
Esso è molto scuro, di colore incerto (grigio), molto simile al cielo di Marte (come si vede nei frames NASA). Ma perchè questo "strano cielo" anche sulla Terra? Diciamo che si tratta di una combinazione di fattori (su tutti il - probabile - filtro/colore usato e la circostanza per cui, scattando foto come questa e quindi sovraesponendo il Sole, automaticamente si rende più scuro tutto il resto del paesaggio).
Morale: se non si vedessero degli uccelli in transito, questa bella immagine potrebbe tranquillamente rappresentare un tramonto (o un'alba) su Marte.
La nostra deduzione è che il fatto di credere a quello che si vede in una fotografia (terrestre, marziana o lunare) e commentarlo, sta diventando sempre più una questione di "Fede" e non - purtroppo - di effettiva oggettività.
(11 voti)
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ALANBEAN-FANTASY.jpg"Buddies" forever88 visitePete Conrad, Dick Gordon and I were assigned by head astronaut Deke Slayton as the backup crew for Apollo 9. This was super news because this meant we would fly three missions subsequent and make one of the first Moon landings.
The most experienced astronaut was designated commander, in charge of all aspects of the mission including flying the lunar module. Prudent thinking suggested that the next most experienced crew member be assigned to take care of the command module since it had a heat shield and was our only way back home. This left the least experienced to accompany the commander. Pete Conrad had flown two Gemini flights, the second with Dick Gordon as his crew mate. I had not flown at all.
During training, Pete and I frequently practiced our lunar surface activities such as emplacing experiments, gathering rock samples, or making observations. We were excited. We were going to have the ultimative adventure someone in our profession could experience. But while we did, Dick Gordon would be orbiting 60 miles above us. We often fantasized Dick joining us on the Moon for all the fun, but we could never really find a way. But now I'm an artist and in my paintings I can have it my way. Now, at last, our best friend has come the last 60 miles.
One last story. Dick was the more experienced astronaut, yet I got the prize assignment. In the three years of training preceding our mission, he never once said: "It's not fair, I wish I could walk on the Moon too." I do not have his unwavering discipline or strength of character.
(11 voti)
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Soviet-LTP-Map1.jpgThe Moon over Moscow...90 visiteI suoi occhi erano chiari e belli
Brillanti, come le notti di Luna piena
E le sue labbra, amaramente dolci
Come uno spicchio di arancio verde
Come una lacrima caduta nello zucchero ...
Le sue mani erano fresche e sicure
Mi stringevano, ma senza farmi male
E la sua pelle, così liscia e calda
Come la sabbia di un vicino deserto
Come le onde di un prossimo mare ...
Quante menzogne, per salvare i ricordi
La voglia di partire e di cercarla
Sapendo che è laggiù, da qualche parte
E lei non sa che io le penso ancora
Ed io non so che lei è andata via ...
Ed è bello pensare a quello che accade
Quando tutto sembra definito, ecco
Il Destino ci viene incontro
E ci prende per mano, leggermente
E ci accompagna, laggiù, dove vorremmo andare ...
Ed è bello pensare a quello che accade
Quando tutto sembra ormai deciso, ecco
Il Destino ci viene incontro
E ci prende per mano, leggermente
E ci porta via, laggiù, dove dobbiamo tornare...
Paolo C. Fienga – “Poesie”
(11 voti)
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