Space In General

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropomorphism

Usually the images are real, but the interpretation is highly suspect. Humans have evolved to recognize human characteristics, and can often interpret inanimate objects as if they have some sort of relation to the human body or living things. But to my knowledge there is nothing more to these images to that.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/homes-that-look-like-faces_n_3179826.html
http://www.themarysue.com/things-that-look-like-faces-pareidolia/
 
Touring Mars
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropomorphism

Usually the images are real, but the interpretation is highly suspect. Humans have evolved to recognize human characteristics, and can often interpret inanimate objects as if they have some sort of relation to the human body or living things. But to my knowledge there is nothing more to these images to that.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/homes-that-look-like-faces_n_3179826.html
http://www.themarysue.com/things-that-look-like-faces-pareidolia/
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Had a good laugh at #27 in the last link.
 
I'm interested in buying a small telescope, one that allows to see at least some details on our planets. Are modern telescopes usually equipped with a decent camera and can they be connected to a PC (via WiFi)? I'm willing to spend a few hundred Euro. And maybe a bit more, depending on the features. Any advice?
 
Denur
I'm interested in buying a small telescope, one that allows to see at least some details on our planets. Are modern telescopes usually equipped with a decent camera and can they be connected to a PC (via WiFi)? I'm willing to spend a few hundred Euro. And maybe a bit more, depending on the features. Any advice?
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I can say start with a mirror of at least 15cm, a decent tracking system and a DSLR with mirror lock up.

Also, check for second hand ones, on Marktplaats.
 
Yeh, you're wasting your time with anything under 6 inches...

A reflector, that is...

CAMAROBOY69
If you have a telescope you might be able to see this event next week.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/science/giant-asteroid-heading-towards-earth-6658823
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At least we hope we will need a telescope to see it :ill:

Nice to know something the size of Yankee stadium traveling at over 70,000 mph can go unnoticed until less than a month before it narrowly misses wiping out civilization as we know it.
 
Was looking at getting a reflector myself. My old refractor is long gone, but I want a really good reflector, Celestron possibly. Probably won't get one in time for this asteroid but hope to get one soon!
 
Touring Mars
Actually, finding evidence of life in our solar system is a lot harder and considerably more expensive and possibly less convincing (see below) than searching for extraterrestrial communications. The latter is a pretty passive thing that can be done pretty easily, if not for the fact that there are arguably better things to do with valuable telescopes and expensive astronomers. Even the data analysis can be outsourced, such as the SETI project that relies on volunteers donating their PCs idle time to process the data.

Going to other planets/moons to look for physical evidence of extraterrestrial life forms is unbelievably expensive, and it would almost certainly not involve sending people there - OK, it might involve people manning a mothership while various probes were deployed to explore the planet/moon/asteroid in question, but I doubt it. If anything, sending people anywhere near these pristine environments would risk contamination, thus defeating the entire purpose of the trip.

There also remains the question of whether it is possible that life from Earth could have reached other places i.e. a meteor strike could send biological material into space where it could eventually end up somewhere where it might survive... however incredibly unlikely that might be. But it's not that unheard of... there are thousands of Martian meteors on Earth, and we know for certain that there is some exchange of material between Mars and here... Titan or Europa, however, is maybe pushing it a bit.
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Could I just ask you, if aliens suddenly started appearing on Mars or the moon with their UFO's, would you believe it to be true, considering what you have stated above? I mean, man would need to detect a signal long before they would just start showing up, unless they are so smart, that their signals are undetected.
 
DCP
Could I just ask you, if aliens suddenly started appearing on Mars or the moon with their UFO's, would you believe it to be true, considering what you have stated above? I mean, man would need to detect a signal long before they would just start showing up, unless they are so smart, that their signals are undetected.
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Yes. I can't speak for @Touring Mars but I guess he takes the position he does based on the current, very detailed observations that have been made.
 
DCP
I mean, man would need to detect a signal long before they would just start showing up
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I'm not sure I follow you there... why would that be?

Mars is easily within direct observational range, and any alien 'signals' from around that distance would only take 13 minutes to reach Earth - from the Moon it's only 1.3 seconds.

It would probably be easy enough for alien explorers to avoid detection if they really wanted to, though.
 
Touring Mars
I'm not sure I follow you there... why would that be?

Mars is easily within direct observational range, and any alien 'signals' from around that distance would only take 13 minutes to reach Earth - from the Moon it's only 1.3 seconds.

It would probably be easy enough for alien explorers to avoid detection if they really wanted to, though.
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Exactly that, that they would be in range. I see though that you would think they would have the means to be undetected.

So it's all possible for them to just show up without any warning. Correct?
 
DCP
So it's all possible for them to just show up without any warning. Correct?
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Our radars aren't even deployed to get a passing coverage about objects in space, which was recently demonstrated by the huge asteroid going past the Moon (edit: October 31st). So right now not being detected wouldn't even need intent. We wouldn't necessarily know if any ship used the Earth for a gravity assist course change.

If you take a look at the night sky, you might see a satellite in low earth orbit (few hundred km). Those are basically noticeable because of the quite high angular velocity. A somewhat larger object a thousand times farther requires some intensive gazing. Spew a lot of plasma around, for example, and you do get noticed.
 
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Thematic
If you take a look at the night sky, you might see a satellite in low earth orbit (few hundred km). Those are basically noticeable because of the quite high angular velocity. A somewhat larger object a thousand times farther requires some intensive gazing. Spew a lot of plasma around, for example, and you do get noticed.
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Outside of the city, where there's no light pollution, the sky really opens up. You can see the edge of the galaxy and satellites- very small and fast lights! That's so awesome!
 
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Was watching the evening news and they said with a serious voice "We're just getting in these pictures of the Sun from NASA...."

I thought HOLY 🤬 is it about to explode or something?! :scared:

Talk about using the wrong tone! :lol:
 
.
6a593272f0905ba08d02046bf0e5181a


This photo shows forks of lighting striking a plume of volcanic ash in Hawaii, turning the sky incredible shades of pink and purple.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/lighting-struck-a-cloud-of-volcanic-ash-and-it-was-114218144.html
 
TenEightyOne
What an amazing picture! Isn't it more likely though that this is actually volcanic lightning rather than (as Yahoo seem to suggest) a lightning storm in "the right place at the right time"?
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Good thought. But volcano lightning appears to be discharges wholly within a volcanic ash column.

The basic reason for conventional lightning is the electrical imbalance between the Earth's atmosphere and the surface.
In a typical thunderstorm, negative charge is being lowered to Earth by lightning. In the post #1550 photo, perhaps we might imagine this ash cloud as strongly positively charged.
 
Ultimate nerdgasm

A serendipitous observation of a distant supernova by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is providing astronomers with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to definitively test their understanding of massive clusters of galaxies.

In November 2014 astronomers spotted a strange and rare sight. The huge mass of the galaxy cluster MACS J1149+2223 was magnifying the light from a much more distant supernova behind it, nicknamed Refsdal.

The light from Refsdal was magnified and distorted due togravitational lensing, creating four separate images of the supernova arranged in a formation known as an Einstein Cross. Although astronomers have discovered dozens of multiply imaged galaxies, they had never before seen multiple images of a supernova (heic1505).

The four supernova images have been slowly fading away as the explosion dies down, but astronomers now have the unique chance to catch a rerun of Refsdal: The supernova images do not arrive on Earth at the same time because, for each image produced, the light takes a different route. For some of these routes, the light takes longer to reach us than for others.

Using various models of the cluster acting as a lens, astronomers have made a consistent set of predictions for when the next image will appear. Hubble’s gaze will now periodically be fixed on the skies in anticipation of once again observing Refsdal. The next image of this extraordinary event is expected to peak in the first third of 2016.
 
If we were to colonize the moon, how long do you all think it would take for the moon to develop its own culture and demand independence from their home country on Earth?
 
Eh, I wouldn't say they've passed Space X up quite yet. When they can get a rocket almost to orbit and land it, then we'll talk. Not to mention that if Space X hadn't been grounded for the last 4 months, they probably would have landed one already.
 
wareric11
If we were to colonize the moon, how long do you all think it would take for the moon to develop its own culture and demand independence from their home country on Earth?
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About 150 years. That's presuming there aren't also similar factional disputes in the lunar colonies themselves, of course.
 
TenEightyOne
About 150 years. That's presuming there aren't also similar factional disputes in the lunar colonies themselves, of course.
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I don't see separation as something inherent. While the Moon provides a lot of opportunity for cultures to diverge, living there requires constant contact with Earth. The earlier in the colonization period, the stronger the dependence. 150 years might not be enough time to allow for the development of self sufficiency.
 

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