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The Planetary Society Blog
Archive
Archived posts are listed in reverse chronological order.
Jan. 5, 2009 | 09:59 PST | 17:59 UTC
Astronomy Cast is broadcasting press conferences from the AAS meeting
I just found out that the good people of Astronomy Cast are broadcasting the press briefings at this week's meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Long Beach via Ustream. Go here to watch the live press briefings; today's schedule is... More»
Jan. 5, 2009 | 09:10 PST | 17:10 UTC
Dawn Journal: Conjunction junction
Here's our monthly checkup with the Dawn mission, contributed by Marc Rayman, the mission's Project System Engineer. Thanks Marc! --ESL
by Dr. Marc D. Rayman
Dear Dawncember30ths,
Having fulfilled all of its assignments for 2008, the Dawn... More»
Jan. 2, 2009 | 20:15 PST | Jan. 3 04:15 UTC
Five Years of Spirit on Mars
On January 3, 2004, the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit landed on Mars, and I was with the science team at JPL when it happened! I can't believe it's been five years since the successful landing. I chose the anniversary as the topic of my first... More»
Dec. 31, 2008 | 17:17 PST | Jan. 1 01:17 UTC
A Moon Among Stars
I just walked outside and looked up -- it's now dusk in Los Angeles -- and saw a crescent Moon above a brilliant Venus in a lavender sky. Utterly beautiful. I managed to find Jupiter in a part of the sky that was still yellow with sunset, but... More»
Dec. 31, 2008 | 17:08 PST | Jan. 1 01:08 UTC
The Year in Pictures: 2008
I have, at long last, posted my annual roundup of some of the most significant images from 2008. This year's selection process was interesting; I wound up with an unusual number of pictures that were actually pretty low resoluion -- not so suitable... More»
Dec. 30, 2008 | 10:35 PST | 18:35 UTC
I spotted Mercury last night!
Last night -- actually I guess it was the night before -- I was wheeling out of the grocery store with my daughter and my mother, and I looked up and pointed out the brilliant beacon of Venus to both of them. The skies in Los Angeles are too bright... More»
Dec. 29, 2008 | 16:03 PST | Dec. 30 00:03 UTC
Another longevity milestone for Spirit and Opportunity
We're getting close to the fifth anniversary of the landings of Spirit and Opportunity, but was we approach that milestone, we're passing another. I've been told that as of yesterday, Spirit and Opportunity have operated on Mars for a combined... More»
Dec. 29, 2008 | 14:57 PST | 22:57 UTC
ANSMET Blogs: Finally in the field and bagging lots of meteorites
Over the holidays I've been lax in posting the Antarctic Search for Meteorites blogs, so today I caught up on nearly two weeks' worth. My delay turned out to be beneficial, as there were still several days of waiting around McMurdo for most of the... More»
Dec. 29, 2008 | 09:38 PST | 17:38 UTC
From the "playing with particle accelerators" department
Thanks to ilbasso over at unmannedspaceflight.com for posting a link to this cool video showing what happens when you point a particle beam (a small one) at a Webcam. And before you get too excited, the Webcam doesn't blow up or anything -- but... More»
Dec. 26, 2008 | 15:34 PST | 23:34 UTC
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is a BIG step closer to launch
Here's another odd-or-end: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has successfully completed its thermal vacuum testing. That's the step in the development of a space mission after they've completed the spacecraft's assembly, when they run the whole thing... More»
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