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The Juno spacecraft is currently making a 35 minute engine burn to slow the craft for orbital insertion around Jupiter. If our Puna sky clears, Jupiter. can be seen in the western sky until 11:05 tonight. Pretty amazing to know we'll have another interplanetary mission around one of the brightest lights in our night sky for the next few months.
“There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them.”
-Joseph Brodsky
"I'm at that stage in life where I stay out of discussions. Even if you say 1+1=5, you're right - have fun." - Keanu Reeves
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The raw enthusiasm of a young astronomer visiting Mauna Kea and making new discoveries:
http://staffblogs.le.ac.uk/leicester-to-...a-volcano/
I was like this once!
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Hrm... all of Jupiter's moons are named after his lovers.
The spacecraft NASA is sending to spy on Jupiter is Juno... Jupiter's wife.
So... it seems that NASA is sending Jupiter's wife to spy on him and his lovers?
Can't a man have any fun without the government stepping it!!!!
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Thanks TomK, for the link to Rosie's post about Mauna Kea, Jupiter, and Juno. I enjoyed reading her comments about the visit she made to Hawaii and her work here. Nice to see there's a connection between the Big Island and our latest successful interplanetary mission. Big Island, Big Planet.
“There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them.”
-Joseph Brodsky
"I'm at that stage in life where I stay out of discussions. Even if you say 1+1=5, you're right - have fun." - Keanu Reeves
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Juno gravity assisted orbital probe, courtesy of the US Government, NASA and US tax dollars. Junocam Peoples' Camera to be turned back on in a few days. Launched five years ago, to where Jupiter would be, to go into orbit on July 4th. Data provided almost real time and freely to the entire planet.
There must be a sinister conspiracy in there. After all, it involves a corrupt government and sinister conspiracies to keep people prisoners and slaves.
"Aloha also means goodbye. Aloha!"
*Japanese tourist on bus through Pahoa, "Is this still America?*
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This is a blog post from a friend and colleague of mine. Not only does he mention the intense radiation field Juno has to handle, he makes it clear how incredibly fast NASA got this probe to go.
https://supernovacondensate.net/2016/07/...ous-speed/
And yet it was launched five years ago. It makes you realize that even our local neighbors in the solar system are a long way away.
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Just for more perspective, although I think this is the fastest object that humans have made, it still only got to about 0.02% of the speed of light. Star Trek is still a long way off...
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Nice GIF showing how Juno used a "gravity assist" from the Earth (although it still sort of looks like it returned because they forgot to take the lens cap off the camera or something)
https://www.reddit.com/r/gifs/comments/4...rajectory/
PS: On a related note: Rich Purnell is a steely-eyed missile man! (for all you fellow sci-fi nerds out there)
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Somewhat related, but today I had the pleasure of giving an astronaut and his family a tour of Mauna Kea plus a visit to both the JCMT and UKIRT. In return, the favor was returned in the afternoon when he gave a great talk to staff.
Although I can't find the particular video he presented during the talk, there are other videos of the same thing: what happens in a weightless environment with charged knitting needles and water droplets? You get to see physics work in an environment few of us have the chance to experience. And learn a little physics...
https://youtu.be/UyRv8bNDvq4
