Phoenix Astronomical Society Blog: 2011-05-22

Friday, May 27, 2011

Solar Sail

Space Weather News for May 27, 2011
http://spaceweather.com

SOLAR SAIL FLASHES: NASA's Nanosail-D, the first solar sail to orbit Earth, is flashing as it glides through the night sky. Observers in Europe report luminous peaks as bright as a 1st magnitude star. The irregular period of the flashes suggests that the sail might be tumbling, although no one is certain at this moment what is causing the phenomenon. Sky watchers are encouraged to check the Simple Satellite Tracker for local flyby times and watch this unique spacecraft strobe overhead: http://spaceweather.com/flybys

DON'T FORGET THE SPACE SHUTTLE: Meanwhile, space shuttle Endeavour and the ISS are putting on a show of their own. The docked spacecraft are making a series of brilliant dawn flybys over North America and Europe, providing early risers with a chance to see Endeavour one last time before it returns to Earth for retirement. Tracking them is easy; just use your cell phone: http://simpleflybys.com.

Terri, Events Coordinator
Email: Events@PASAz.org
Phoenix Astronomical Society

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Comet Fireball & Meteorites

Space Weather News for May 24, 2011
http://spaceweather.com

COMET FIREBALL: Bright fireballs appear somewhere on Earth every day. Most are caused by rocky asteroids. On Friday, May 20th, however, a less common object struck. Sky watchers in the southeastern USA watched a big but fragile piece of comet break apart in Earth's atmosphere. The resulting fireball was the brightest meteor observed in nearly 3 years by NASA's all-sky network of meteor cameras. Videos and more information are featured on today's edition of http://spaceweather.com

HOLD A METEORITE IN YOUR HAND: Certified authentic meteorites are now available in the Space Weather Store. Details at http://www.shopspaceweather.com/meteorite-sets.aspx

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Along the lines of holding a meteorite in your hand, you can do that at any of our events that PAS"s own Meteorite Man is attending. He has many different types of meteorites for you to hold, touch, feel, compare, and he has info to tell you about each one. He is worth checking out.. Mike is our Meteorite Man. Come to a PAS event and experience METEORITES! The experience is free, but the memories will last a lifetime!

Terri, Events Coordinator
Email: Events@PASAz.org
Phoenix Astronomical Society