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Current happenings in astronomy

Astronomy is something too many people ignore, but those who keep their eyes on current happenings in astronomy find a wealth of fascinating information. Astronomy has been with the human race as long as we can remember.  In the beginning it was very connected to astrology, but as time went by astronomy became more and more scientific, relying on observation, measurement and the scientific theory to develop a knowledge of the universe outside our own planet and solar system. 

In early November of 2008 NASA nearly bombed Australia with a 1400LB Ammonia tank jettisoned from the International Space Station.  It was tossed into space when it was deemed too perilous to carry down to Earth on a shuttle.  Since most of the Earth is water, the chances were much greater the chunks would land in the ocean than on land.  Australians were told that ammonia vapor could make their windows cleaner, but advised them to remove the residue with newspapers and some elbow grease.  Paul Hogan, the well-known actor who played Crocodile Dundee, was unharmed.  Unfortunately, according to the Daily Mail in the UK, Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, remained deceased after this incident.

Chinese astronauts were set to take the first space walk in that country’s history, launching in September 2008.  Unfortunately for China it was revealed that “live video” of the successful launch and flight into orbit had really been released before the craft left the ground.  It wasn’t a hoax.  It was just a case of overzealous PR people.

Near Beijing, a large telescope is being built.  The whole telescope doesn’t rotate to track through the sky.  Instead that’s left up to a pair of rotating mirrors.  As a result this telescope doesn’t look like others.  It’s not a dome but rather something like a an uneven arch or pi symbol.  Leave it to the Chinese to come up with something out of the ordinary.

A new satellite launched, from Kazakhstan, in November 2008.  Astra-1M as it’s called is set to help with telecommunications.  The launch vehicle was called Proton-M.  The satellite was designed and built in Europe.

Astronomy hobbyists will like Worldwide Telescope.  The software comes from Microsoft.  It works in windows to call images from all over the world, delivered to the user.  It’s like an observatory on a desktop.  The only downfall is that no new discoveries can be made, because it’s all pre-compiled astrological data and images.

Now you know some of the current happenings in astronomy.

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