Asteroid Armageddon

Ah, after a long summer of computer games, D&D, time with girlfriend and general all-around laziness, It's time to come down to what really matters: how the universe is trying to kill us.


For about a year now, I've been reading the Bad Astronomy blog by Phil Plait. He is a generous, brilliant, and all-around amazing scientist and blogger. Two years ago he published a book called "Death from the Skies! These are the ways the world will end..." in which he detailed the many different ways the universe is out to get us and how likely each scenario is. First and foremost in his book is a chapter on asteroids and how they can impact (see what I did there?) our lives.


Now, Discovery channel is doing a pilot of Bad Universe: a new Mythbusters-esque show in which Phil gets to delve into the mysteries and myths of the things in outer space that can kill us and what we can do about them. Here's a trailer (there's a bit of a problem with the sound, bear with it):




The pilot episode is about none other than that mogul of movie madness, the asteroid impact. Take a peek at this preview!





I urge my girlfriend and the other 3 people who actually are still here after 3 months to watch the show this Sunday at 10:00PM on the Discovery channel. The more people that watch it, the more likely this will be a regular series!

Jupiter's Pants are Falling Down!

Okay, not really. But on May 9 of this year, Jupiter came out from the other side of the sun with its Southern Equatorial Belt mysteriously absent. 

Image from acquerra.com.au (I couldn't get permission, no contact info on website)

This has happened before. Jupiter's southern belt seems to disappear on a roughly 15-year cycle, with the last disappearance being in the early 1990s. Astronomers weren't really quite sure what was going on. Amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley from Australia was the first to catch a glimpse of the belt's disappearance as it rounded the sun. 

"It is not known why the belt periodically disappears, but it may be that it sinks lower if it cools, and then the view of it is obscured by clouds pouring in over the top of it. The clouds on Jupiter are tens of thousands of kilometers deep. Wesley said the phenomenon could be linked to storm activity that preceded the change." (Jupiter has lost one of its cloud stripes - Physorg.com)

Wow. Apparently, astronomers were suspecting that Jupiter would be going through another fading cycle as it passed behind the sun. The exact date probably never will be discovered.

Podcasting and music, oh my!

This is one of my favourite videos of all time:

Geo Video, FAR

The song is written and performed by George Hrab, an independent musician and skeptic. This is actually the theme song for the 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast, a daily 5-10 minute blurb focusing on many different areas of astronomy, from the simple to the complex. It’s a great way to learn more about astronomy. You can even make your own podcast if you feel so inclined, just book a day and send in your recording and transcript. If you’d like to see more of George (Geo) Hrab’s stuff, check him out at the Geologic Podcast.