A Star with Spiral Arms

Source - NASA Science News for Oct. 31, 2011

Using a Japanese telescope, NASA-supported researchers have found the first clear case of a star with spiral arms.

FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/31oct_spiralarms/

A video version of this story is available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=083fSbguKh8

Big Picture Science for 10/31/11 - Bug Off!

Big Picture Science - Bug Off!

ENCORE: What you can’t see … can make you sick. Humans have been battling viruses and bacteria since the beginning of time. The malaria parasite has been keeping deadly company with us for 500,000 years. King Tut had it and so did Julius Caesar. What’s keeping this bug going today?

Also, how disease almost halted the most ambitious engineering project in the world … how elite disease detectives puzzle out perplexing epidemics … And – could tiny bugs from spaaace, ace, ace be our ancestors?

Guests:

• Sonia Shah – Author of The Fever: How Malaria Has Ruled Humankind for 500,000 Years
• Michael Conniff – Historian, director of Global Studies at San Jose State University, and author of Black Labor on a White Canal: Panama, 1904-1981 (Pitt Latin American Series)
• Mark Pendergrast – Author of Inside the Outbreaks: The Elite Medical Detectives of the Epidemic Intelligence Service
• Robert Zubrin – President of the Mars Society

First aired August 2, 2010

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Bug_Off_

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Are We A Blog?, the companion blog to the radio show.

CME Impact on Oct. 24

Source - Space Weather News for Oct. 24, 2011: http://spaceweather.com

CME IMPACT: A coronal mass ejection (CME) hit Earth's magnetic field on Oct. 24th around 1800 UT (2 pm EDT). The impact strongly compressed our planet's magnetosphere and may have exposed geosynchronous satellites to solar wind plasma. Mild to moderate geomagnetic storms are possible in the hours ahead as Earth's magnetic field continues to reverberate from the hit. Sky watchers in Scandinavia, Canada, and northern-tier US States should be alert for auroras, especially during the hours around local midnight. Check http://spaceweather.com for updates.

WOULD YOU LIKE A CALL when geomagnetic storms are in progress? Storm alerts are available from http://spaceweathertext.com (text) and http://spaceweatherphone.com (voice).

The Sleepy Hollows of Mercury

Source - NASA Science News for Oct. 24, 2011

NASA's MESSENGER probe has discovered a surprise on Mercury: Something is digging "hollows" in the surface of the innermost planet.

FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/24oct_sleepyhollows/

A video version of this story is available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqg8PR2mVvc

Big Picture Science for 10/24/11 - Anthropocene and Heard

Big Picture Science - Anthropocene and Heard

What’s in a name? “Holocene” defines the geologic epoch we’re in. Or were in? Goodbye to “Holocene” and hello “Anthropocene!” Yes, scientists may actually re-name our geologic era as the “Age of Man” due to the profound impact we’ve had on the planet.

We’ll examine why we’ve earned this new monikor and who votes on such a thing. Plus, discover the strongest evidence for human-caused climate change.

Also, why cities should be celebrated, not reviled… a musing over the possible fate of alien civilizations … and waste not: what an unearthed latrine – and its contents – reveal about ancient Roman habit and diet.

Guests:

• William Steffen – Climate scientist and the Executive Director of the Climate Change Institute at the Australian National University, Canberra
• Simon Donner – Geographer at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver
• Edward Glaeser – Economist, Harvard University, author of Triumph of the City: How Our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Greener, Healthier, and Happier
• Douglas Vakoch – Director of Interstellar Message Composition at the SETI Institute
• Mark Robinson – Director of Environmental Archaeology at the University of Oxford
• Erica Rowan – Doctoral student, University of Oxford

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Anthropocene_and_Heard

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Are We A Blog?, the companion blog to the radio show.

Orionid Meteor Shower - 2011

Source - Space Weather News for Oct. 21, 2011: http://spaceweather.com

WEEKEND METEOR SHOWER: Today Earth is entering a stream of debris from Halley's comet, source of the annual Orionid meteor shower. Forecasters expect the shower to peak on Saturday morning, Oct. 22nd, with more than 15 meteors per hour. Check http://spaceweather.com for links to a live meteor radar, sky maps and observing tips.

MASSIVE SATELLITE NEARS RE-ENTRY: The massive ROSAT X-ray space telescope is making its final spiralling orbits around Earth. Most experts agree that re-entry will occur during the early hours of Oct. 23rd over a still-unknown region of our planet. Sky watchers report that the descending satellite can be as bright as a first magnitude star and it occasionally "flares" to even greater intensity. For last-chance sightings of ROSAT in your area, please check SpaceWeather's online satellite tracker (http://spaceweather.com/flybys) or turn your smartphone into a ROSAT tracker: http://simpleflybys.com .

Weekend Meteor Shower: October 22, 2011

Source - NASA Science News for Oct. 20, 2011

Earth is about to pass through a stream of debris from Halley's comet, source of the annual Orionid meteor shower. Forecasters expect the shower to peak on Saturday morning, Oct. 22nd, with more than 15 meteors per hour. Earth isn't the only world in the debris stream; NASA researchers will also be watching for meteoroid strikes on the Moon.

FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/20oct_orionids/

Comet Storm in a Nearby Star System

Source - NASA Science News for Oct. 19, 2011

NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected signs of icy bodies raining down in an alien solar system. The downpour resembles our own solar system several billion years ago during a period known as the "Late Heavy Bombardment."

FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/19oct_cometstorm/

600 Mysteries in the Night Sky

Source - NASA Science News for Oct. 18, 2011

The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope recently produced a map of the night sky. Out of 1873 new sources, nearly 600 were complete mysteries. In today's story from Science@NASA, researchers speculate on the nature of the mystery objects--including the possibility that they are made of dark matter.

FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/18oct_600mysteries/

A video version of this story is available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQHuF3BGZzw

Big Picture Science for 10/17/11 - Happy Daze

Big Picture Science - Happy Daze

Calling all pessimists! Your brain is wired for optimism! Yes, deep down, we’re all Pollyannas. So wipe that scowl off your face and discover the evolutionary advantage of thinking positive. Also, enjoy other smile-inducing research suggesting that if you crave happiness, you should do the opposite of what your brain tells you to do.

Plus, why a “well-being index” may replace Dow Jones as a metric for success … a Twitter study that predicts your next good mood … and whether our furry and finned animal friends can experience joy.

Guests:

• Tali Sharot – Cognitive neuroscientist at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging at the University College London and the author of The Optimism Bias: A Tour of the Irrationally Positive Brain
• Michael Macy – Sociologist at Cornell University
  
  His team’s Twitter study: http://timeu.se/
• Carol Graham – Economist at the Brookings Institution and author of The Pursuit of Happiness: An Economy of Well-Being
• David DiSalvo – Science and technology writer, author of What Makes Your Brain Happy and Why You Should Do the Opposite
• Robin Ince – U.K.-based comedian
• Jonathan Balcome – Animal behavior scientist and author of The Exultant Ark: A Pictorial Tour of Animal Pleasure

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Happy_Daze

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Are We A Blog?, the companion blog to the radio show.

Massive X-ray Satellite Set to De-orbit

Source - Space Weather News for Oct. 14, 2011: http://spaceweather.com

ROSAT RE-ENTRY: The ROSAT X-ray observatory, launched in 1990 by NASA and managed for years by the German Aerospace Center (DLR), will return to Earth within the next two weeks. Current best estimates place the re-entry between Oct. 22nd and 24th over an unknown part of Earth. ROSAT will produce a spectacular fireball when it re-enters, but not all of the satellite will disintegrate. According to the DLR, heat-resistant fragments as massive as 1.7 tons could reach Earth's surface. Check http://spaceweather.com for more information.

LAST-CHANCE SIGHTINGS: As ROSAT slowly descends it is growing brighter. During favorable passes, the satellite can now be seen shining as brightly as a first magnitude star in the night sky. Local flyby times may be found using SpaceWeather's Satellite Tracker: http://spaceweather.com/flybys . Or turn your smartphone into a ROSAT tracker using our Simple Flybys app: http://simpleflybys.com .

Big Picture Science for 10/10/11 - What's Your Poison?

Big Picture Science - What's Your Poison?

ENCORE “Aspirin and Old Lace?” Okay, it would take a bottle full of pills in a glass of elderberry wine to really harm you, but aspirin can be deadly. So can too much of anything, including water. Dose is key in toxicology, after all, but there are some poisons that can do deadly work in tiny amounts.

Hear about the chemistry of poisons … why Botox may freeze your emotions as well as your face… which animal is most lethal to humans… and how 19th-century poisoners got away with murder – until the birth of forensic science.

Guests:

• Deborah Blum – Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer, author of The Poisoner’s Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York
• Martyn Smith – Toxicologist, University of California, Berkeley
• Joshua Ian Davis – Psychologist, Barnard College, New York
• Jamie Seymour – Venom biologist, director of The Tropical Australian Stinger Research Unit, School of Marine Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/What_s_Your_Poison_

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Are We A Blog?, the companion blog to the radio show.

Draconid Meteor Shower

Source - Space Weather News for Oct. 7, 2011: http://spaceweather.com

DRACONID METEOR SHOWER: On Saturday, October 8th, Earth will pass through a network of dusty filaments shed by Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner. Forecasters expect the encounter to produce anywhere from a few dozen to a thousand meteors per hour visible mainly over Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. The meteors will stream from the northern constellation Draco--hence their name, the "Draconids." Check http://spaceweather.com for full coverage of the event including observing times and a live audio stream from a meteor radar.

Draconid Meteor Outburst

Source - NASA Science News for Oct. 4, 2011

Forecasters say Earth is heading for a stream of dust from Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner. A close encounter with the comet's fragile debris could spark a meteor outburst over parts of our planet on October 8th.

FULL STORY at

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/04oct_draconids/

Big Picture Science for 10/03/11 - Skeptic Check, Beast Of

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check, Beast Of

Zombies, aliens, Bigfoot, oh my!! We’ve covered – or rather uncovered – them all and more on Skeptic Check, our monthly look of critical thinking. And now we’ve collected enough strange encounters to assemble a sordid retrospective of sorts.

Sharpen your brain, it’s Skeptic Check, Beast Of. But don’t take our word for it!

Guests:

• Phil Plait – Skeptic and keeper of Discover Magazine’s blog, badastronomy.com
• Bruce Hood – Cognitive scientist at the University of Bristol in the U.K. and author of The Science of Superstition: How the Developing Brain Creates Supernatural Beliefs
• Susan Jacoby – Author of The Age of American Unreason
• Steve Silberman – Contributing editor, Wired Magazine, author of “The Placebo Problem” in the September 2009 issue
• Mary Pope-Handy – Estate Agent, Silicon Valley and keeper of the website hauntedrealestate.com
• Jim Underdown – Executive Director, Center for Inquiry, West – Los Angeles
• Paul Offit – Pediatrician, Chief of Infectious Diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and author of Autism’s False Prophets: Bad Science, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure
• Stephen Schneider – Climate scientist, Stanford University
• Brendan Riley – Assistant professor of English, Columbia College, Chicago

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Skeptic_Check_Beast_Of

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Are We A Blog?, the companion blog to the radio show.