When we began the blog, and even at times before when the “articles” were not officially titled blog entries, I used to share and discuss a little more space news. I did this because I find space exploration exciting and interesting (and a blogger is supposed to write about things that interest them – in general) and also because some people who read the articles told me they enjoyed reading about space. Lately, we don’t blog too much about space unless there is a big headline like the meteor over Russia last month. We don’t get much feedback about space-themed entries plus there are dedicated space websites where people can get more detailed and frequent information.

Still, I wonder if the lack of interest has a strong generational component. I grew up near the end of the classic “space age”, so I still got the vibe from older generations. Today’s youth have never seen anything more exciting than astronauts hanging out in the ISS. Even potential trips to Mars or bases on the Moon don’t seem to drum up much enthusiasm. It is all the older generations still pushing more human space exploration (whether privately or through NASA).

Would the discovery of life generate a buzz? It would for me, but maybe not for many other people. This recent article asked the same question. Would the discovery of life on Mars make headlines? Probably not as much as one would think. Part of the reason is generational, but maybe part of the reason can be tied to the fact that NASA has sent several crafts/rovers to the red planet and each time (even back to the Mariner and Viking programs) they have trumpeted “signs” and “evidence” that Mars might have supported life at some time in the past.

Viking craft on Mars

It has been said so many times that perhaps is just doesn’t register on anyone’s radar screens anymore. Plus, if there were signs of past life on Mars, even as far back as the 1970s, then why have we sent so many crafts to the red planet WITHOUT the capability of directly sensing biological material – remnants of that past life? Maybe there is some frustration as well.

I know that I am frustrated about the slow pace of private space development and tourism, but I still have hope. I am grateful that some people and companies with deep pockets are thinking long term about human space travel. I will continue to update the blog with any big developments.

Have a good Thursday! Meteorologist Justin Loew

Posted under Space

I just want to start out by reminding people to keep an eye on the sky over the next couple of nights because we might have a northern lights show to view. It is no guarantee, as these things seem much harder to predict than the weather, but an active region on the sun has been emitting some X-class flares recently. I first mentioned this in yesterday’s blog post and now it appears a couple more X-class flares have erupted. Now if mother nature will cooperate with some clear skies, maybe we will have a chance to see a night-time show this week. The best chance of relatively clear skies will be Thursday night and again Friday night. If anyone would happen to see the northern lights, please let me know in the comment section here in the blog.

Picture of the recent solar flare

You can also send pictures to weather@waow.com.

On the subject of space, there a quite a few people upset about more cutting of the NASA budget, but no one should be surprised. Of all discretionary spending (a very small part of the federal budget, actually), space exploration is probably pretty low on the priority scale of voters. I am surprised the NASA budget was not slashed further considering the terrible fiscal shape of the U.S. In dealing with a smaller budget, it appears there is momentum for finishing the overbudget James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)at the expense of robotic missions to other planets. I agree with this move. The JWST is too far along, has too much investment, and too much promise (replacing the Hubble) to drop it now. For future robotic or human exploration of space we will have to increasingly turn to private industry, which is fine by me.

On the subject of those private space companies, here is a recent summary of what some of them are doing and accomplishing.

Not to be over-looked, it appears we will have Hayabusa: The Sequel coming from JAXA (in Japan). I covered the original “show” of this mishap filled asteroid mission. I was amazed that the spacecraft made it back to earth. The idea was to collect samples from an asteroid and bring them back to earth. This time around Hayabusa(2) will actually land on the asteroid and mechanically scrape up a sample.

And while your mind is mulling over the mysteries of space take a look at this fantastic time lapse video of the night sky and the Milky Way.

Have a good Wednesday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under Space

Time for a little space news update on one of the events I started reporting on 8 years ago – the Opportunity Rover. It is has just completed it’s eighth year on Mars and it is still going strong. It has developed a few small problems such as reduced fluid motion in it’s robotic arm and wheels, but as of now it seems to have a good chance of logging a lot more time on Mars. Right now it is parked at an angle for the Martian Winter season in order to conserve energy and gather more light from the sun. If it lasts through the next Martian Summer then it might break a distance record for a remotely operated unmanned device/robot on a celestial object (not earth). The old record is 23 miles set by a Soviet Lunar rover back in the 1970s. So far Opportunity has traveled 21.35 miles.

A Recent Image From Opportunity

The thought of having a robot on another planet for 8 years running, would have been heresy just a decade or two ago. This accomplishment in space exploration is truly amazing, but what might be more amazing is that it has generally passed by the public’s consciousness. Why? I tend to think that older generations were more enamored with space exploration because of the Apollo program and science fiction like Star Trek. Younger generations saw the space shuttle as the “biggest thing” in space and it wasn’t all that exciting. Technological advancements here on the planet earth in the form of computers, social networking, and gaming, have taken a lot of attention away. I am willing to bet that only one out of a hundred people know there is a robot on Mars named Opportunity and perhaps 1 in 1,000 know it is still running. I doubt there will be too much interest in coming years even after the MSL lands. The only thing that might up the interest is the discovery of life or signs of life on the Red Planet. For interest in space exploration as a whole, I think it will be up to private space tourism companies to succeed and generate more interest, otherwise the virtual worlds of the Internet and gaming will probably continue to dominate the thoughts and dreams of younger generations.

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Here is another follow-up on a topic I touched upon last week just because it was somewhat humorous. If you remember, a fellow wrote an opinion article serving as a rallying cry to ban the “Check Engine” light in cars. I shared my story about the “Check Engine” light in one of my cars, but there didn’t seem to be any other interesting stories from readers. Please feel free to share your thoughts or stories. In any case, here is an article about the most common things that cause the check engine light to illuminate and what you can do about these “problems”.

Have a good Wednesday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under Space

Yesterday I mentioned some of the science and weather themes I will be keeping track of in 2012, and I will continue with that today. But before getting into today’s themes, I want to again hearken back to the metrics of “growth” that I have been harping on. Yesterday I mentioned once again that happiness should be a part of what we consider “socio-economic growth”. For example, I would be quite happy with a new medical technology that improved the health of my aging parents or myself.

Huge U.S. Freeway

It would make me a lot more happy than seeing another strip mall and parking lot erected on the outskirts of town. I would consider better health and more happiness to be good metrics of how we are doing as a society. Some researchers have recently found the same thing in regards to happiness. Health seems to correlate most strongly with happiness. I suggest instead of building more 8-lane freeways and expansive cookie-cutter sub-divisions, we should focus more on medical technology that will extend our healthy lives. 

Now on to some other themes continue to appear in the blog.

Coal Power in China

One of the most common themes in my blog entries is the contrast between the possible threat of anthropogenic global warming (AGW) and the hopes of technological progress. This subject could be even “hotter” in 2012 as technological progress is not slowing down, and a warm start to the year, potential continuing drought in the southern U.S., and increasing carbon emissions from China and India will drive a lot of angst in the climatology and environmentalist communities. So there should be plenty to talk about. Already this holiday season, there was an record all time high temperature set at the south pole on Christmas Day. The temperature was 9.9 degrees. The records go back to 1957. Besides potential weather machinations driving angst in some quarters, the fact that India is not going to sign any new climate treaties and that China is planning to build one of the biggest coal-fired power plants in the world will give a lot of people reason to worry.

On the positive side of things, even though computing (data centers) continue to take up more of the world’s power, computing efficiency is currently following Moore’s law and we should expect more efficient computer chips to become more prevalent in 2012. Increasing computer presence in cars (while potentially having some downsides) has the potential to dramatically change transportation in the western world, making it more efficient with less pollution. In addition, my favorite alternative energy – solar power – while taking some significant lumps in 2011, is still progressing nicely. Check out the start-up Natcore and their three new technologies that could increase efficiency and reduce manufacturing costs.

No doubt the positive and negative stories will continue to arrive fast and furious in 2012.

I will also continue to follow up on some older stories that continue to evolve or are in need of updates including (but not limited to) a few exciting space exploration milestones coming up this year, LED lighting, and cloaking.

In the coolest new technology category of cloaking, a recent paper has described a way to make it more practical for large scale production. It involves joining many small tiles.

In LED lighting, I expect more $10 or less bulbs to arrive in 2012, but no new news recently in this regard.

In space exploration I will be closely watching the progress and landing of the latest Mars rover Opportunity. It is scheduled to land on Mars in August. I will also continue to provide short updates on commercial/private spaceflight. Companies such as Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, SpaceX, and Bigelow Aerospace should hit some major milestones this year. Also don’t forget that the Lunar X-prize is still in heated competition.

Have a fine Tuesday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under AGW, Alternative Energy, Climate Change, Records, Science, Space, Technology

I have been focusing quite closely on the developing El Nino in order to get a handle on upcoming winter trends in the U.S., particularly here in the Midwest. Many people could use a more accurate long term outlook in order to plan, energy bills, vacations, or major purchases.

Weak El Nino so far this year

A moderate to strong El Nino will usually give us a little more certainty. It would typically mean wetter and colder weather for the southwestern U.S. and California could really use a wetter than normal winter. Here in the upper Midwest, a moderate to strong El Nino usually means a milder and drier winter. A weak El Nino does not affect our winter weather too much. 

Mega El Nino of 1997-98

The current El Nino pattern has not yet reached a moderate level. Here is a recent discussion about this year’s El Nino, where a couple El Nino experts are hedging their bets as to whether this El Nino will grow in strength. If it does not, then it is more likely (though not guaranteed) that we will have more normal winter conditions. In the article are images comparing the strength of this year’s El Nino and the El Nino of 1997-98. The contrast is quite dramatic. The monthly El Nino discussion will arrive in a week to 10 days and we will get a better read on any strengthening.

In the short term, it will surely feel more like winter outside today. The weather has changed quickly and it looks like we will have our first hard frost of the Fall season tonight. A FREEZE WARNING is in effect for areas north of Marathon county for tonight. A FROST ADVISORY is in effect for the rest of central and southern Wisconsin. We might have a touch of frost on Wednesday night into Thursday morning as well. Overall, it looks like cooler than normal weather will continue for the next week to 10 days.

Space News:

NASA’s LCROSS probe is aiming for a different lunar crater. The original crater was judged to have too many “negatives” for getting a good result of water detection. The new crater increases the odds of a “good find”. In case you were unaware, the LCROSS mission includes sending an impactor into the lunar surface. Instruments will then analyze the ejecta (debris that flies into the air) and see if there is water. This event is planned for October 9th. Hopefully they will get some good video and pictures. There is nothing like smashing objects into one another. The Deep Impact mission was spectacular.

When it comes to humans traveling to Mars, one of the main negative factors is time. Most experts estimate it will take a little more than 500 days. Here is an old concept “the two burn” that could cut the time of the trip in half. However, it does require fueling up in space (near the moon), and then there is the matter of getting back to earth.

This story about a potential new dark matter/energy detector brought up some old question marks (in my mind anyway), about the nature and evolution of the universe. I am willing to mostly accept the standard theory of the universe and its evolution (Big bang and expansion), however, when 95% of the universe is still undetectable, even after years of searching with our most advanced instruments, it doesn’t boost my confidence very much. Lingering in the recesses of my mind is the elegant “constant creation” theory proposed by Fred Hoyle. For those who are a bit skeptical, another theory has been proposed to explain away the “95%-of-the-universe-is-undetectable-for-years-on-end” problem. This one, proposed by mathematicians, claims a large wave in space-time is making distant galaxies appear to speed up.

Have a good Tuesday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under ENSO Update, Freeze, Space