ISS in Starry Night (February 23, 2011)

By Mike Hubbartt, © Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved.

The Russian Mir and US Skylab space stations were the first space stations used for research done away from the confines of gravity. The news, newspapers and magazine articles of that era showed a bit of what the astronauts saw in orbit, and while the quality of images was generally lacking, they were better than nothing.

Now we have the International Space Station (ISS), which is a near earth orbit (~ 250 miles above earth) space station constructed from components built by the US, Russia, Japan, and Canada over the past 10 years. The first mission to construct the ISS was launched on October 31, 2000, and the ISS is still being updated today. The next major component for the ISS is a tool to help in the search for dark matter, which is scheduled for the last scheduled flight of the space shuttle Discovery in 2011. Modern satellite and cable companies carry the NASA channel, which has live and prerecorded feeds from the space station, and the quality of this material is impressive.

A couple of days ago I looked at the ISS in Starry Night Pro (SNP) 6 and the station was on the far side of the planet away from the sun, so I couldn’t see many details of the station. I left the software running and 15 minutes later the station had returned to the sunny side of earth (makes sense as the ISS makes 18 orbits around the earth every day), so I could easily see the station as well as earth below it. The image below is how the station would appear to a visiting vessel.

By the way, so far there have been 67 Russian, 34 shuttles, 1 European, and 1 Japanese vehicles that have visited the ISS. In the screen shot above, you see the earth revolving under ISS. I like how the station goes from visible to barely seen when it leaves the sun-side of earth. This is a nice way to show students learning astronomy how our planet looks from earth orbit. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Tip: If you want to know the position of the ISS at any time so you can look at it with a telescope or binoculars, SNP has that data. Select the ISS, then select the Info tab and look at ‘Position in the Sky’ to get current position :

I looked at the ISS information in SNP and it is good, but the software also allows user to access online information about the space station from within SNP. I selected the Online Info option for the ISS, which launched Safari and took me to a page in Wikipedia. Now this choice of information surprised me, because most of my undergrad classes expressly forbid us the use Wikipedia as a source for any project or paper. I’m not knocking Wikipedia, but I’ve heard more than a few college professors express mistrust of the accuracy of some of the information.

In a future update of SNP, I’d like to have the ability to add my own links for external information, because NASA’s excellent site and Wolfram|Alpha have a ton of good information on the ISS – size, weight, missions, people that visit, – and NASA’s site also has a lot of good videos and still images, as well as blog entries and tweets by astronauts on the ISS. I’d also like to be able to jump directly to JPL’s and MIT’s sites that have ISS- and space-related content from within Starry Night.

Speaking of NASA’s site, if you’re interested in the space station, you can have a calendar with beautiful color images of the ISS. NASA has one available – click here to download the 2011 ISS calendar.

Click here for Wolfram|Alpha data on the ISS (as well as other astronomy information), including the current position of the ISS.

Uranus (June 24, 2011)

By Mike Hubbartt, © Copyright 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Uranus Facts:

• Location: 7th planet from the sun
• Size: 3rd largest planet in our solar system
• Orbit: 19.22 AU
• Orbital Period: 84.07 Julian Years *
• Average Distance from Earth: 19.2 AUs *
• Diameter: 4X that of earth
• Discovered: 1781 by William Herschel
• Atmosphere: hydrogen, helium, water, methane, ammonia
• Interesting facts: the planetary axis of rotation is titled sideways (97 degrees), which is unique for a planet in our solar system; the first planet discovered by a telescope; visited by Voyager 2.
• Total number of moons: 27 (Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Cupid, Belinda, Perdita, Puck, Mab, Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, Oberon, Francisco, Caliban, Stephano, Trinculo, Sycorax, Margaret, Prospero, Setebos, and Ferdinand)
• Click here for Wolfram|Alpha data on Uranus

* = Courtesy of Wolfram Astronomy Assistant

So far I’ve covered three gas giant planets, and now I turn my eye (and software) to Uranus, one of the dimmest and least dense planets in the solar system.

Uranus is unique for several reasons. First, it is blue to blue-green in color, due to the methane content of the atmosphere. Second, Uranus is the only planet that is titled on it’s axis – slightly over 97 degrees. Third, Uranus was the first planet discovered with a telescope. Four, astronomers were able to use Uranus to determine where to look to find Neptune.

What to know what else is interesting about Uranus today, January 18, 2011? Today the New Horizons probe to Pluto is close to passing the orbital path of Uranus and continuing on its trek past Neptune and on to Pluto. Call me an astronomy geek, but I think that is cool.

Now lets get back to our planet of choice. Uranus has 27 odd satellites, and the closest of the 5 large moons is Miranda, so I took a quick trip to look at it. Rather plain, especially compared to some of Jupiter’s moons.

I like the quality of the images of both Uranus and Miranda in Starry Night Pro. They are so much nicer than the land telescope images we had before Voyager 2 made the long trek out to Uranus. I should add that earlier astronomy programs used Voyager 2 images of Uranus and other planets in the solar system, which really enhanced the experience of using the software.

I decided I’d like to see Uranus from Miranda’s surface (a nice feature of Starry Night), and it was a real treat. Uranus is fairly large and clearly visible from Miranda, as you might expect as it is a mere 130,000 km from Uranus.

Why this perspective from the surface of Miranda? Because Miranda has some canyons that are 20 km deep! Impressive. Miranda may be the smallest of the large Uranus satellites, but it’s proximity to Uranus could make it an interesting landing site for a future probe.

Fun, then it was time to look at Uranus and Miranda as they would be seen by an approaching spacecraft. I like how easy that was to setup in Starry Night Pro.

There are a lot of people without astronomy hardware or software, and those people can take advantage of Microsoft’s free WorldWideTelescope.org site to check out some nice digital images of Uranus, as well as the other planets of the solar system:

That’s it for now. Have a safe and happy holiday season.

– Mike

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Updates

6-24-2011 – Added Orbital Period, Average Distance from Earth information.

2-14-2011 – Added names of all moons.

Neptune (June 24, 2011)

By Mike Hubbartt, © Copyright 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Neptune Facts:

• Location: 8th planet from the sun
• Size: 4th largest planet in our solar system
• Orbit: 30.06 AU
• Orbital Period: 164.79 Julian Years *
• Average Distance from Earth: 30.1 AUs *
• Diameter: 49,532 km
• Discovered: 1846 by Adams and Le Verrier
• Atmosphere: Hydrogen, helium, methane
• Moons: 13, Triton is largest (radius = 1350 km)
• Interesting facts: it has rings, internal heat source
• Total number of moons: 13 (Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Galatea, Larissa, Proteus, Triton, Nereid, Halimede, Sao, Laomedeia, Psamathe, and Neso)
• Click here for Wolfram|Alpha data on Neptune

* = Courtesy of Wolfram Astronomy Assistant

I enjoy using astronomy software to explore the universe, and lately I’ve concentrated on some of the planets in our solar system. I’ve already covered Jupiter and Saturn, so this post covers another gas giant in our solar system. Neptune is the 8th (and last) planet in our solar system. Neptune is the 4th largest planet (in diameter) and is around 30 times further out from the sun than Earth.

Neptune was discovered in 1846. It has a predominately hydrogen and helium atmosphere, with traces of methane that help give it a blue hue. Voyager 2 flew by it and took loads of pictures back in 1989.

This is a screen shot taken with Starry Night Pro 6 today:

There is a lot of data about Neptune in Starry Night, or you can select Starry Night’s “Info” tab and select “LiveSky.com” beside the “Extended Info” field to get data on Neptune from Wikipedia.

This is a screen shot of Triton (taken with Starry Night today), the largest of the 11 moons of Neptune:

Here is a picture of Neptune as it would be seen looking west on Triton – perhaps from the window of a visiting spacecraft:

This is an excellent screen shot of Neptune taken with the Red Shift 7 astronomy software:

This is a screen shot of an image of Neptune (magnified to 400%) retrieved with Mathematica 8:

There is more data available on Neptune using AstronomicalData (introduced in Mathematica 7), which returns properties on planets, moons, stars and galaxies. Check it out at the Wolfram website.

This is an image of Neptune from NASA‘s website:

There are many sources for astronomers – amateur and professional – besides telescopes. In this age of the internet, we has so much data available that formerly was only found in libraries. Take some time away from television and video games and explore the wonders of the sky. You have the ability and resources, you just need the motivation to see that space is more than Star Wars and Aliens.

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Updates

6-24-2011 – Added Orbital Period, Average Distance from Earth Information.

2-14-2011 – Added names of all moons.

Saturn (June 24, 2011)

By Mike Hubbartt, © Copyright 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Saturn Facts:

• Location: 6th planet from the sun
• Size: 2nd largest planet in our solar system
• Orbit: 9.54 AU
• Orbital Period: 29.44 Julian Years *
• Average Distance from Earth: 9.58 AUs *
• Diameter: 120,536 km
• Discovered: 1610 by Galileo
• Atmosphere: 75% Hydrogen, 25% helium
• Interesting facts: visited by Pioneer 11, Voyage 1&2, Cassini. it has rings, internal heat source.
• Total number of moons: 61 (Tarqeq, Pan, Daphnis, Atlas, Prometheus, Pandora, Epimetheus, Janus, Aegaeon, Mimas, Methone, Anthe, Pallene, Enceladus, Tethys, Calypso, Telesto, Polydeuces, Dione, Helene, Rhea, Titan, Hyperion, Iapetus, Kiviuq, Ijiraqm Phoebe, Paaliaq, Skathi, Albiorix, S/2007 S2, Bebhionn, Erriapo, Siarnaq, Skill, Tavros, Greip, S/2004 S13, Hyrrikkin, Mundilfari, S/2006 S1, Jarnsaxa, Narvi, Bergelmir, S/2004 S17, Suttungr, Hati, S/2004 S12, Bestla, Farbauti, Thrymr, S/2007 S3, Aegir, S/2004 S7, S/2006 S3, Kari, Fenrir, Surtur, Ymir, Loge, and Fornjot)

• Click here for Wolfram|Alpha data on Saturn

* = Courtesy of Wolfram Astronomy Assistant

One of my favorite hobbies is astronomy, but I’m currently without a decent telescope so I take advantage of computer software and the internet to satisfy my desire to explore the heavens.  I have two favorite astronomy packages – Starry Night and Voyager – both are loaded with features and very good for people with passing interest in the stars and planets, as well as more serious hobbyists.  Right now I am testing and reviewing Redshift 7, another astronomy package for Windows, and I’ll post my review here as soon as my evaluation is complete.

This evening I started Starry Night up after booting my Macbook and took a quick jaunt to Jupiter and Saturn. My last astronomy post dealt with Jupiter, so let me discuss Saturn tonight. Saturn is a gas giant, is the second largest planet in our solar system, and is the 6th planet from the sun. Most people know about the rings surrounding Saturn, which are made of ice and rocks.

As you see at the left of the screen, we’re looking at the Starry Night Find tab and see some data about the planet and moons. If we want more data then we need to switch to the info tab and select the More Options button.

Quite a few options. If you need more information about this gas giant, select the Extended Options button, which launches Safari and looks for information on Saturn in Wikipedia.

Now for a view of Saturn as seen from the surface of Enceladus, the sixth largest moon of Saturn and one of only three outer solar system bodies (in addition to Io and Triton) where we have been able to observe an eruption:

When I think of the first astronomy program I used on a computer (an open source program), I am amazed and pleased how far this genre of software has evolved over the years. Instead of sitting out in the cold and hunched over a textbook to glean data about dim astronomical bodies, we can learn about the planets and stars in our classrooms, homes, and as we travel.

The current generation of people in high school and college will have the opportunity to travel into space on one of the commercial space craft now being developed. I imagine that same generation will be able to travel to the moon and maybe even to Mars. If this interests you even a little, take the time to set aside time spent watching TV or playing games and see some of the wonders in the skies above you. The images of planets and stars now available to people is impressive, and what you see now may be something you see in person in the future.

I should also mention that people using iTunes should check out iTunesU. Professor Nemiroff at Michigan Technological University has posted all of his lectures for PH1600, a college-level introduction to astronomy. They are informative, easy to watch, and absolutely worth the time to download and view. There are other astronomy courses at iTunesU, so take the time to check them out.

Until then, be well.

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Updates

6-24-2011 – Added Orbital Period, Average Distance from Earth Information.

2-14-2011 – Added names of all moons.

Jupiter (June 24, 2011)

By Mike Hubbartt, © Copyright 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Jupiter Facts:

• Location: 5th planet from the sun
• Size: largest planet in our solar system
• Orbit: 5.2 AU
• Orbital Period: 11.86 Julian Years *
• Average Distance from Earth: 5.26 AUs *
• Diameter: 142,984 km
• Discovered: 1610 by Galileo
• Atmosphere: 90% Hydrogen, 10% helium
• Interesting facts: visited by Pioneer 10&11, Voyager 1&2, Ulysses
• Total Number of moons: 63 (Metis, Adrastea, Amalthea, Thebe, Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Themisto, Leda, Himalia, Lysithea, Elara, S/2000 J11, S/2003 J12, Carpo, Euporie, S/2003 J3, S/2003 J18, Orthosie, Euanthe, Harpalyke, Praxidike, Thyone, S/2003 J16, Iocaste, Mneme, Hermippe, Thelxinoe, Helike, Ananke, S/2003 J15, Eurydome, Arche, Herse, Pasithee, S/2003 J10, Chaldene, Isonoe, Erinome, Kale, Aitne, Taygete, S/2003 J9, Carme, Sponde, Megaclite, S/2003 J5, S/2003 J19, S/2003 J23, Kalyke, Kore, Pasiphae. Eukelade, S/2003 J4, Sinope, Hegemone, Aoede, Kallichore, Autonoe, Callirrhoe, Cyllene, and S/2003 J2)
• Click here for Wolfram|Alpha data on Jupiter

* = Courtesy of Wolfram Astronomy Assistant

I’ve been an amateur astronomer all my life, and I’ve been fortunate to use some of the best non-professional astronomy packages on a variety of platforms. Two of my favorite Windows/Mac astronomy applications are Starry Night Pro 6.x and Voyager 4.x. I’ve reviewed Starry Night for several UK magazines – MacWorld and Software Latest – and Ted Bade recently reviewed the Voyager 4.5.7 software.

This afternoon I ran Starry Night on my older G5 iMac and, as always, it showed the daily events for today. There were four, so I selected the first that was of Europa in transition around Jupiter. I liked it well enough to take a moment to grab an image so I could share it with you readers. Jupiter is my second favorite planet in the solar system, not because of the size but because of turbulent gases that make up the atmosphere and the many moons that surround it. Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Io, and a bunch more.

Jupiter as Seen with Software

The shadow of tiny Europa on Jupiter

After seeing the shadow of tiny Europa on Jupiter, it might be a good idea to see how Jupiter appears to someone on Europa:

Jupiter as it appears from Io, the closest of the large moons of Jupiter:

Finally, Jupiter as it is seen on Ganymede:

It is so easy to change viewing locations in Starry Night. Just use the Options/Viewing Locations menu option and select the location to use for home, then press the Go to Location button. Simple.

Now an image of Jupiter while in Starry Night’s Spaceship mode (a fun way to play space explorer), on course for Jupiter:

The keyboard shortcuts are in the upper left area of the screen, while speed/distance/acceleration are by your target. I tried the Captain Sheridan thing (diving into the Jupiter atmosphere like he did to avoid the Shadow ship in ‘Messages from Earth’ Season 3 of Babylon 5), but hitting the atmosphere of Jupiter just puts you on the other side. Bummer! I should also add that some of the shortcuts (Roll, Pitch, and Yaw) don’t do me a lot of good on my Macbook, but I still love this feature of Starry Night.

Starry Night always makes my top 10 list for students of any age, and I can’t wait until they release the next major update. Please take the time to look over the various versions of this software at the website of Imaginova. And also take time to check out Carina Software’s site – the company that developed Voyager. Carina’s mobile versions of their products were known as Carina Mobile, but are now known as SkySafari and SkyFi and are available here.

Jupiter Moons as Seen by Probes

1. IO

Check out the coolest picture ever taken from a Earth vessel: an erupting volcano on distant Io:

Image courtesy NASA

This is a new image of IO shows incredible surface details. I find it as impressive as the erupting volcano image above.

Image courtesy NASA

2. Europa – from ZDNet 5/16/2011

Europa’s surface does not look inviting, at least if one planned to explore it on foot.

Image courtesy NASA

3. Ganymede – from ZDNet 5-16-2011

When I was young, I read Robert Heinlein’s ‘Farmer in the Sky’, a novel about humanity colonizing Ganymede. Heinlein didn’t have the images and scientific knowledge we possess of Jupiter today, but he wrote an interesting tale how we might live there.  This is an image taken on the last Jupiter mission by Galileo.

Image courtesy NASA.

4. Callisto – from ZDNet 5/16/2011

The surface of Callisto appears as inviting as that of our moon, however the view of nearby Jupiter would be impressive.

Image courtesy NASA

Astronomy is interesting, and while it is fun to catch shows on the science channel, the computer is the ideal media to really get into the subject. There are a number of good open source astronomy packages like Celestina and WorldWideTelescope.org that are available for cash-strapped people that are interested but unable to afford the cash outlay for more software.

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Updates

6-24-2011 – Added Orbital Period, Average Distance from Earth information.

5-16-2011 – Added 3 new images of Jupiter moons taken by Galileo.

2-14-2011  – Added names of all moons.

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And for something completely different…

On an aside, I first tried the Starry Night software because my favorite painting of all time is Van Gogh’s Starry Night, which was the inspiration for Don McLean’s song called “Vincent”, which can be seen below:

Take care and be well.
Mike