Space News Update- April 1, 2011 -

In the News

Story 1: Forensic Sleuthing Ties Ring Ripples to Impacts

Story 2: New Results from GOCE: Earth is a Rotating Potato

Story 3: New Images from Mercury: Just the Beginning for MESSENGER in Orbit

 Departments

The Night SkyISS Sighting Opportunities

Space CalendarNASA-TV Highlights

Food for ThoughtSpace Image of the Week

Forensic Sleuthing Ties Ring Ripples to Impacts

Click image to view animation

Alternating light and dark bands, extending a great distance across Saturn's D and C rings, are shown here

These images show the subtle ripples in the ring of Jupiter that scientists have been able to trace back to the impact of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 in July 1994.

New Results from GOCE: Earth is a Rotating Potato

New Images from Mercury: Just the Beginning for MESSENGER in

Orbit

The Night Sky

Friday, March 11 · Look lower left of the Moon this evening for Aldebaran, an orange giant star 65 light-years away. About three times farther to the Moon's upper right shines brighter Capella, 42 light-years distant. Saturday, March 12 · This evening until next Friday, Mercury is within 5° of brighter Jupiter very low in the western twilight — your easiest opportunity to spot Mercury all year. Mercury passes Jupiter on Tuesday, as shown below. Watch their changing configuration. Although they look close together, Jupiter is more than five times farther than Mercury; see article. · First-quarter Moon (exact at 6:45 p.m. Eastern Standard Time). The Moon is between the horn stars of Taurus: Beta (β) and Zeta (ζ) Tauri.  · Daylight saving time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday morning for most of the U.S. and Canada.  

The Night SkyFriday, April 1 · Early spring is when Orion tilts downward in the southwest after dark, with his three-star belt horizontal as seen from north temperate latitudes. Orion's Belt points left toward bright Sirius (out of the frame here), and to the right more or less toward orange Aldebaran (also outside the frame). Right of Aldebaran are the Pleiades. Saturday, April 2 · Sirius, the Dog Star, is the brightest star shining in the south-southwest after dusk. At a distance of only 8.6 light-years, it's the nearest thing outside our solar system that's visible to the naked eye from Earth's mid-northern latitudes. Look high above Sirius for Procyon, the Little Dog Star, not much farther away at 11 light-years. Sunday, April 3 · Saturn is at opposition tonight, opposite the Sun in Earth's sky. Look for the brightening of Saturn's rings this week due to the Seeliger effect, described in "This Week's Planet Roundup" below. · New Moon (exact at 10:32 a.m. EDT). Monday, April 4 · Look very high in the northeast after dark this week for the Big Dipper starting to tip over to the left, after standing straight up on its handle when winter was nearing its end.

ISS Sighting Opportunities

SATELLITE LOCAL DURATIONMAX ELEV

APPROACH DEPARTURE

DATE/TIME (MIN) (DEG) (DEG-DIR) (DEG-DIR)

Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

For Denver:

ISS Sat Apr 02/05:27 AM 2 13 11 above NW 10 above N

ISS Sun Apr 03/04:20 AM < 1 13 13 above NNE 11 above NNE

ISS Mon Apr 04/04:45 AM 1 12 12 above N 10 above N

ISS Sat Apr 02/05:27 AM 2 13 11 above NW 10 above N

NASA-TV Highlights

April 1, Friday9 p.m. - Interviews with Participants of the Great Moonbuggy Race - HQ (Education and Media Channels)12 - 8 p.m., 4 – 8 p.m. - The FIRST/Silicon Valley Regional Broadcast - AMES (Education Channel)8 p.m. - Replay of Video File of the ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Rocket Mating and Crew Activities in Baikonur, Kazakhstan - HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)

April 2, Saturday6 a.m. - Replay of Video File of the ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Rocket Mating and Crew Activities in Baikonur, Kazakhstan - HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)9 - 11 a.m., 1 – 3 p.m., 5 – 6 p.m., 9 p.m. - Interviews with Participants of the Great Moonbuggy Race - HQ (Education and Media Channels)12 - 8 p.m., 4 – 8 p.m. - The FIRST/Silicon Valley Regional Broadcast - AMES (Education Channel)12 - 1 p.m. - Video File of the ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Rocket Rollout to the Launch Pad in Baikonur, Kazakhstan - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)3 p.m., 8 p.m. - Replay of Video File of the ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Rocket Rollout to the Launch Pad in Baikonur, Kazakhstan - HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)6 p.m., 7 p.m., 8 p.m., 11 p.m. - Replay of Video File of the ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Rocket Rollout to the Launch Pad in Baikonur, Kazakhstan - HQ (Media Channel)

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website

NASA-TV HighlightsApril 3, Sunday5 a.m., 11:10 a.m. – Replay of Video File of the ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Rocket Rollout to the Launch Pad in Baikonur, Kazakhstan – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)6 a.m., 6:20 a.m., 6:40 a.m.  – Replay of STS-134 Crew Question and Answer Session for Countdown Dress Rehearsal – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)7 a.m. – Interview with STS-134 Commander, Mark E. Kelly (Captain, United States Navy) (28:01) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)7:30 a.m. – Interview with STS-134 Pilot, Gregory H. Johnson (Lt. Col., United States Air Force) (37:27) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)8:10 a.m – Interview with STS-134 Mission Specialist 4, Gregory E. Chamitoff, Ph.D. (49:39) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels) 9 a.m. – Interview with STS-134 Mission Specialist 1, Edward M. Fincke (Colonel, United States Air Force) (53:15) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)9:55 a.m. – Interview with STS-134 Mission Specialist 3, Andrew J. Feustel, Ph.D. (43:25) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)10:40 a.m. – Interview with STS-134 Mission Specialist 2, ESA Astronaut Roberto Vittori (Colonel, Italian Air Force) (25:41) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)12:10 p.m. – NASA TV Video File – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)1 p.m. – STS-134 Crew Training Resource Reel – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)2 p.m. – Replay of ISS Update (3/28/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)3 p.m. – Replay of ISS Update (3/29/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)4 p.m. – Replay of ISS Update (3/30/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)6 p.m. – Replay of ISS Update (3/31/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)7 p.m. – Replay of ISS Update (4/1/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)8 p.m. – NASA Education Special “NASA Challenges New York Student to Reach for the Stars” (3/22/11) – HQ (Education Channel)8 p.m. – Replay of Video File of the ISS Expedition 27 Final Pre-Launch Crew News Conference and Russian State Commission Meeting in Baikonur, Kazakhstan – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)9 p.m. – Replay of STS-134 Crew News Conference (3/24/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)9:40 p.m. - Replay of STS-134 Spacewalk Overview Briefing (3/24/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)10:30 p.m. - Replay of STS-134 Program Overview Briefing (3/24/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website

NASA-TV Highlights

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website

April 4, Monday11:05 a.m. - ISS Expedition 27 ESA News Conference for Flight Engineer Paolo Nespoli (in native language) - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)4:45 p.m. - Video Feed of the ISS Expedition 27 Crew Pre-Launch Activities in Baikonur, Kazakhstan - JSC via Baikonur, Kazakhstan (Public, HD and Media Channels)5:30 p.m. - ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Launch Coverage (Launch scheduled at 6:18 p.m. ET) - JSC via Baikonur, Kazakhstan (Public, Media and HD Channels)9 p.m. - Video File of ISS Expedition 27/Soyuz TMA-21 Pre-Launch, Launch and Post-Launch Interviews - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)

Space Calendar

· Apr 01 - Asteroid 1582 Martir Occults HIP 64445 (5.8 Magnitude Star) · Apr 01 - [Mar 30] Asteroid 2011 FT9 Near-Earth Flyby (0.019 AU) · Apr 01 - [Mar 27] Asteroid 2011 FR2 Near-Earth Flyby (0.093 AU) · Apr 01 - Asteroid 7231 Porco Closest Approach To Earth (2.375 AU) · Apr 02 - [Mar 29] Asteroid 2009 UD Near-Earth Flyby (0.096 AU) · Apr 03 - Saturn At Opposition · Apr 03 - Asteroid 9661 Hohmann Closest Approach To Earth (3.775 AU) · Apr 03 - 45th Anniversary (1966), Luna 10, Moon Orbit Insertion (USSR) · Apr 04 - [Mar 28] Soyuz TMA-21 Soyuz FG Launch (International Space Station 26S) · Apr 04 - [Mar 29] Comet C/2011 A2 (Scotti) Closest Approach To Earth (0.886 AU) · Apr 04 - Asteroid 11714 Mikebrown Closest Approach To Earth (1.948 AU)

Food for ThoughtSpace Will Make You Cranky and Euphoric

Space Image of the WeekSun Fades Away in Spectacular Eclipse Photo

CREDIT: NASA/GSFC/SDO