Space News Update- September 23, 2011 -

In the News

Story 1: Roll over Einstein: Law of Physics Challenged

Story 2: UARS Re-Entry Overview

Story 3: Saturn's Moon Enceladus Spreads its Influence

 Departments

The Night SkyISS Sighting Opportunities

Space CalendarNASA-TV Highlights

Food for ThoughtSpace Image of the Week

Roll over Einstein: Law of Physics Challenged

UARS Re-Entry Overview

Saturn's Moon Enceladus Spreads its Influence

The Night Sky

The M101 supernova is starting to fade. Supernova 2011fe, which erupted in the nearby galaxy M101 a month ago, peaked out at about magnitude 9.9 for a week and is now starting to dim; it was about 10.4 on the evening of September 22nd. See an up-to-date light curve. Friday, Sept. 23 · As summer turns to fall, the Sagittarius Teapot moves west of due south right after dark and tips steeply, as if pouring away the last of summer. · The September equinox was at 5:05 a.m. EDT this morning, when the Sun crossed the equator heading south for the season. Fall began in the Northern Hemisphere, spring in the Southern Hemisphere. Saturday, Sept. 24 · Jupiter's Great Red Spot should cross Jupiter's central meridian around 2:02 a.m. Sunday morning EDT; 11:02 p.m. Saturday evening PDT.

The Night Sky

Sunday, Sept. 25 · Uranus is at opposition tonight: opposite the Sun in the sky. It's in Pisces shining dimly at magnitude 5.7. Use our printable finder chart, or see the September Sky & Telescope, page 53. · About a half hour before sunrise Monday morning, North Americans have an unusually good chance to catch an extremely thin (old) waning crescent Moon. Scan for it with binoculars just above the eastern horizon. Monday, Sept. 26 · With even a small telescope, you can watch Jupiter's moon Io disappear into eclipse by Jupiter's shadow around 12:04 a.m. Tuesday morning Eastern Daylight Time. Io will be barely off the planet's western limb.

The Night Sky

Sunday, Sept. 4· First-quarter Moon (exact at 1:39 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time). Look for Antares and other stars of Scorpius to the Moon's lower right, as shown above.Monday, Sept. 5· Jupiter's Great Red Spot should cross Jupiter's central meridian (the imaginary line down the center of the planet's disk from pole to pole) around 1:24 a.m. Tuesday morning Eastern Daylight Time. The "red" spot is actually pale orange. It's embedded in the south edge of the South Equatorial Belt, and should be visible for about an hour before and after in a good 4-inch telescope if the atmospheric seeing is sharp and steady. A light blue or green filter helps improve contrast on Jupiter.

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:

For Denver: No ISS Sighting OpportunitiesFor Denver: No ISS Sighting Opportunities

ISS Fri Sep 23/04:47 AM < 1 30 30 above E 21 above EISS Fri Sep 23/06:19 AM 5 25 11 above W 11 above NNEISS Sat Sep 24/05:22 AM 3 47 44 above WNW 13 above NEISS Sun Sep 25/04:26 AM < 1 17 17 above ENE 17 above ENEISS Sun Sep 25/05:58 AM 4 18 11 above WNW 11 above NNEISS Mon Sep 26/05:02 AM 2 26 26 above N 10 above NE

NASA-TV Highlights(all times Eastern Daylight Time)

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website

September 24, Saturday6 a.m. - NASA Television Video File News Feed – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)7 a.m., 3 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/19/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)8 a.m., 4 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/20/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)9 a.m., 5 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/21/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)10 a.m., 8 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/22/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)11 a.m., 9 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/23/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)12 p.m. - NASA Television Video File News Feed – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)1 p.m. - Replay of ISS Expedition 29 In-Flight Interview with Dr. Jane Goodall - HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)2 p.m., 7 p.m. - Replay of Expedition 30 Crew News Conference (Oleg Kononenko, Andre Kuipers and Don Pettit 9/21/11) – JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)- Replay of ISS Update (9/19/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)6 p.m. - NASA Television Video File News Feed – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)

NASA-TV Highlights(all times Eastern Daylight Time)

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website

September 25, Sunday6 a.m. - NASA Television Video File News Feed – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)7 a.m. - Replay of Expedition 30 Crew News Conference (Oleg Kononenko, Andre Kuipers and Don Pettit 9/21/11) – JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)8 a.m., 4 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/19/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)9 a.m., 5 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/20/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)10 a.m., 6 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/21/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)11 a.m., 9 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/22/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)12 p.m. - NASA Television Video File News Feed – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)1 p.m., 10 p.m. - Replay of ISS Update (9/23/11) – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)2 p.m. - Replay of ISS Expedition 29 In-Flight Interview with Dr. Jane Goodall - HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)3 p.m., 8 p.m. - Replay of Expedition 30 Crew News Conference (Oleg Kononenko, Andre Kuipers and Don Pettit 9/21/11) – JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)7 p.m. - NASA Television Video File News Feed – HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels)

Space Calendar

Sep 23 - [Sep 23] UARS Reenters Earth's Atmosphere Sep 23 - [Sep 22] IGS-5 H-2A Launch (Japan) Sep 23 - [Sep 22] Atlantic Bird 7 Zenit 3SL Launch Sep 23 - Autumnal Equinox, 09:04 UT Sep 23 - Asteroid 21 Lutetia Occults 2UCAC 21409782 (13.0 Magnitude Star) Sep 23 - Asteroid 2007 TD Near-Earth Flyby (0.010 AU) Sep 23 - Asteroid 9133 d'Arrest Closest Approach To Earth (1.184 AU) Sep 23 - 165th Anniversary (1846), Johann Galle's Discovery of Neptune Sep 23 - Johann Franz Encke's 220th Birthday (1791) Sep 24 - Asteroid 13801 Kohlhase Closest Approach To Earth (1.986 AU) Sep 24 - Sally Ride Science Festival, Baton Rouge, Louisiana Sep 25 - Uranus At Opposition Sep 25 - [Sep 21] Asteroid 2011 SR5 Near-Earth Flyby (0.059 AU) Sep 25 - Asteroid 9769 Nautilus Closest Approach To Earth (1.495 AU) Sep 26 - Asteroid 5029 Ireland Closest Approach To Earth (1.683 AU)

Johann Gottfried Galle

Johann Gottfried Galle was a German astronomer at the Berlin Observatory who was the first person to view the planet Neptune

Food for Thought

Finding NEEMO: NASA’s Underwater Simulations Focus on Human Asteroid Mission

Space Image of the Week

Earth’s Moon 

Image Credit: NASA