Prior to Comet 2019 LD2, discovered last year, astronomers had never witnessed a comet in the process of orbiting from being between Jupiter and Neptune to orbiting inside Jupiter’s orbit. Now … witness the power of gravity! Source: https://earthsky.org/space/comet-2019-ld2-transitioning-orbit-hopping-jupiter-family…
Tag: University of Hawaii
Curiosity rover spots signs of ancient megafloods on Mars
We already know that Gale Crater on Mars used to hold a lake or series of lakes a few billion years ago. Now, NASA’s Curiosity rover has found evidence for ancient giant floods that washed through the region as well. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/megafloods-gale-crater-mars-life-curiosity-rover…
Field geology at Mars’ equator points to ancient megaflood
Floods of unimaginable magnitude once washed through Gale Crater on Mars’ equator around 4 billion years ago—a finding that hints at the possibility that life may have existed there, according to data collected by NASA’s Curiosity rover and analyzed in joint project by scientists from Jackson State University, Cornell University, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of Hawaii. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-11-field-geology-mars-equator-ancient.html…
Apophis asteroid might be more likely to strike Earth in 2068 than thought
David Tholen, an astronomer at the University of Hawaii, recently reported on the status of asteroid Apophis during a virtual meeting of the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences. During his presentation, he outlined research he and his team conducted regarding the path of the asteroid and the likelihood that it will strike Earth. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-11-apophis-asteroid-earth-thought.html…
Comet C/2020 M3 (Atlas) drawing nearer, in a great place to spot Wednesday night
The comet is headed for its closest approach to Earth on Saturday, November 14, 2020. It can’t be seen with the eye, but astrophotographers are capturing glorious images. Charts and photos in this post. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/comet-c-2020-m3-atlas-closest-to-earth-nov-14-2020…
Astronomers measure a change in orbit for infamous asteroid Apophis
Astronomers in Hawaii have detected the Yarkovsky effect – a minuscule push imparted by sunlight – for asteroid Apophis. The effect is particularly important for Apophis, because it relates to the possibility of an Earth impact in 2068. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/asteroid-99942-apophis-encounters-2029-2036-2068…
Update on 2I/Borisov, the first known interstellar comet
The first known interstellar comet – 21/Borisov – probably came here from a red dwarf star, according to a new study of data from the Hubble Space Telescope. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/comet-21-borisov-comets-red-dwarf-stars-hubble-space-telescope…
A new theory to explain how the dunes on Titan formed
A trio of researchers with the University of Hawaii has developed a new theory to explain how the dunes on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, may have formed. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, Matthew Abplanalp, Robert Frigge and Ralf Kaiser suggest that rather than forming from rainfall, the dunes have formed on the moon’s surface. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-10-theory-dunes-titan.html…
Python Code Glitch May Have Caused Errors In Over 100 Published Studies
Over 100 published studies may have incorrect results thanks to a glitchy piece of Python code discovered by researchers at the University of Hawaii. An anonymous reader quotes Motherboard:
The glitch caused results of a common chemistry computation to vary depending on the operating system used, causing discrepancies among Mac, Windows, and Linux systems. The researchers published the revelation and a debugged…
Astronomers spy a 2nd interstellar visitor
Astronomers think the object they’ve labeled C/2019 Q4 – discovered August 30 – came from a place far, far away. If confirmed, it’s only the 2nd interstellar object ever detected, after ‘Oumuamua in 2017. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/astronomers-find-2nd-interstellar-object-c-2019-q4…