So, it turns out there are remarkably fewer red giants within 1.6 light years of the Milky Way's central black hole.
The theory is that the black hole likes to give off jets of gas from its accretion disc, which then ripped outer layers from nearby red giants, turning them blue.
But not everyone buys it. There's another theory that the black hole had a large disc of gas around it which also did the same thing.
Either way, black holes and red giants don't seem to get on...
Wooden spaceships is like an old pulp joke at this point.
Unless you're Japanese, in which case they're a serious proposition.
No, I am not making this up.
Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry are working towards making wooden cubesats. The point is that they will result in less space junk falling to earth or hanging out in the upper atmosphere.
The research could also lead to an understanding of how trees might grow in low gravity, essential for permanent settlements in space.
But I just can't quite take wooden satellites seriously, even as I see the point and hope they work.
So, I get it...a lot of people are really worried about the new COVID-19 strain that appears (and I stress appears) to be more transmissible.
Here's one reassuring fact: Although tests are incomplete, it does appear that existing vaccines will still work on the new variant.
The new variant may be more transmissible, but we can't be 100% sure. However, it is not more virulent (it doesn't cause more severe disease). Sadly, it does not appear to be less virulent.
It's also a variant, not a strain.
It does mean we should be even more careful, but it probably won't have a huge impact on the course of the pandemic in the grand scheme of things.
So try not to worry too much. But please wear a mask.
ISS astronauts get a personal weight allowance, which they've used to take all kinds of things up...including a Star Trek uniform.
But what about a Star Trek actor?
In 2008, Richard Garriott smuggled some of James Doohan's ashes onto the space station and hid them under the floor of the Columbus module. And yes, they're still there, along with a picture.
Which means that James Doohan is the first human being to be officially buried in space.
Humans some days. I love it.
Here's a few links to amazing images of the conjunction.
This one includes the ISS (it's the streak, because of the exposure).
And this article includes nine incredible images.
This one includes some of Jupiter's moons! And also has shots which show Saturn's rings.
It was still pretty clear last night, albeit not at closest approach and there were no asshole clouds this time, so I did get to see it, but I don't have the gear for astronomical photography.
Let it be an omen that things are about to change for the better.
Her name is Zhur, and she died when the den she was raised in collapsed about 56,000 years ago...leaving us with a well-preserved wolf pup to study (and ooh over).
We know that she was closely related to the ancestors of all wolves, but not as closely related to modern wolves in the Klondike (there appears to have been migration).
She had a stomach full of fish, likely from salmon running in the Klondike river. Modern wolves don't eat that much fish, but who doesn't enjoy the bounty of the salmon run?
Whether she had siblings and what happened to them is unknown...perhaps mama wolf was able to rescue most of the litter from the collapse, leaving poor Zhur buried.
Zhur will be displayed at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Center in Whitehorse, if you're ever up there.
Radio astronomers have picked up a signal from Proxima Centauri that may be aliens.
Or it might be a comet (comets do weird shit with radio waves), or something going on in the atmosphere of the known gas giant in the system.
Details of the signal haven't been released yet, perhaps to avoid too much speculation.
Maybe it's that invite to join the Galactic Federation, although right now I'd rather they sent us a cure for COVID...
So, first of all, the Ravencon kickstarter!
Scheduled in April, Ravencon was one of the first regional cons forced to cancel in 2020. This week the decision was made to cancel 2021 as well.
This put the con in the hole. Vendors and attendees had to be refunded, and the con still needs to pay a deposit to the hotel for 2022. Thus, the kickstarter.
The primary reward is the CORVID-19 anthology, which contains 19 stories that somehow involve birds in the corvidae family.
But we also have some other rewards...quite a few are now taken, but if you want a bridge officer or diplomatic aide named after you in my upcoming novel Kyx, that Tuckerization is still available as of right now (the female character restriction is from April and I can do any gender now).
We also have CDs from some of Ravencon's past music guests, an appearance on an RPG podcast, Tuckerizations from C. McDonnell, Patrick Dugan, Lawrence M. Schoen, Christopher Nuttall, L. Jagi Lamplighter. We're going to add more rewards and are now starting to put together CORVID-19: The Second Wave (any writers who might have crow or raven-related stories? We're taking donations and yes, they can be reprints).
The initial goal is funded, but Ravencon can still use funds to improve future cons or help with charitable initiatives.
Second of all, I just got The Secret History of Victor Prince back from my editor, so expect an early to mid January release on that. It's a prequel of sorts to the Lost Guardians series and sees the return of Victor, Tag, and the addition of an all new character that I happen to love.
Well, more accurately it's the Solstice Star as the conjunction occurs on December 21.
Jupiter and Saturn are going to appear to merge, which happens every few hundred years.
Look to the southwest just after sunset to see this particular dance.
The last time this happened was 400 years ago, but that was during the day, so it wasn't visible. The most recent opportunity to see this was 800 years ago.
It's probably some kind of omen. Let's hope it's a good one.
The Japanese asteroid sampling mission keeps getting better. They were hoping for dust.
They got pebbles.
And they got gas. This is the first time we've managed to return a sample of matter in a gaseous state from space. I can't wait to see what the analysis shows on this one. Kind of envy those scientists.
A company called Moon Mark has decided that it would be fun to...
...stage a car race on the moon.
Specifically, teams of high school students will compete to design small rovers through a tournament with the final round launched to the moon. The remote-controlled cars will race around a predetermined track.
They're pretty small cars; the weight limit is 11 pounds.
The cars will launch on the Nova-C Lunar Lander, which is designed to provide commercial payload to the moon, likely along with other payloads, some of which are going to support the Artemis program.
On the one hand, it's a gimmick. On the other hand, I'm mad all the baby roboticists I know are in college.
...you know the silly highways in space science fiction trope that's clearly not...
...except it is.
Because apparently gravity affects space in such a way that you can use gravity assist by following a specific route, rather than just through the more standard "slingshot" maneuver.
Which may help us get probes to the outer system faster. No, they aren't "hyperspace lanes," but one might think that if FTL is possible, then depending on how it works, there might be gravity pathways that a ship could follow.
Hrm.
NASA has announced that 18 astronauts, 9 men and 9 women, will begin training for the Artemis program, America's planned return to the moon.
The 18 astronauts reflect diversity in demographics and backgrounds, including test pilots, systems engineers, flight surgeons and a submariner with a degree in nuclear engineering. The last choice is particularly interesting, as any manned Mars mission is probably going to involve a ship equipped with a small nuclear reactor for power...
Here's the full list with little blurbs about each one. Obviously we aren't going to be talking mission assignments for a while, but there's a good chance one of these people will be the next American...and one of them the first woman and/or the first Black person to set foot on the moon.
Well, not quite, but researchers have written a smartphone app (so far iPhone only, but presumably higher end androids will get their turn) that pairs with a small handheld device to....sequence your DNA.
The idea is that researchers in remote locations won't need to ship in laptops to do the sequencing. The device may also be used to sequence the DNA of astronauts and experimental plants in space.
One day we will have that tricorder! One day...
Chuck Yeager, the man who was the first to fly faster than the speed of town, died this morning at the age of 97.
Not only was he a great pilot, but he was America's first astronaut trainer; teaching men to do what he never did himself. In fact, what he was never allowed to do because he didn't have a college education.
Yeager never went into space, but he launched others and is the spiritual ancestor of everyone who demonstrates "The Right Stuff."
Japan's Hayabusa probe landed safely in the Australian outback with a cargo of asteroid sample.
This is our first subsurface asteroid sample and may reveal things about the origins of planets or even of life. The capsule has now been shipped to Japan where it can be opened in clean room conditions.
Meanwhile, the Chang'e ascender safely reached orbit with samples from the lunar surface...the first since the Apollo program.
We have boxes to open and I, for one, can't wait to find out what might be inside.
So, again, not much in the way of news.
The holiday season is coming up...please be careful and try not to catch the roni, okay?
(Yes, I know we all want to celebrate, but the best thing to do is stay home with a good book).
The Pfizer vaccine has been approved for emergency use in the UK and vaccinations of healthcare workers and those at extreme risk will begin soon.
An EUA is likely in the US by the end of the month.
Which means now we need to start thinking about how we're going to get everyone vaccinated.
Ideally, more vaccines will also be approved (the more the better), and manufacturing capacity is being increased.
Still, vaccinating everyone is a challenge. So, how are we going to get the vaccine?
For most Americans, the answer is likely to be "at a pharmacy." Pharmacists routinely give other adult vaccinations and some have nurses who can also give pediatric shots.
In rural America, though, there may be more challenges. Some out of the box thinking is already happening.
Last year, Oregon passed a law allowing dentists to give vaccinations. This makes more sense than you think. Dental nurses are trained to give local anesthesia shots in the mouth. This is much harder than administering a vaccination. However, dentists aren't going to have the storage facilities for the mRNA vaccine. They may, however, be able to give the Astra-Zeneca shot if it's approved.
Another out of the box possibility: Veterinarians, who are used to giving shots to far less cooperative patients.
And, obviously, there's also been a lot of discussion of sending nurses to workplaces to do clinics. This will probably work well for critical infrastructure workers. For example, it would be cost effective to send a nurse and a special cooler to a meat packing plant and vaccinate workers as they leave at the end of their shifts.
And when it comes to delivering the vaccine to the pharmacist, there's some fun stuff going on there.
In the UK, the relatively remote Isles of Scilly may receive their vaccine doses by...drone.
(I've been to the Isles of Scilly. It was not a fun trip. I am never getting on that ferry again).
Drone delivery might also be considered in other parts of the world.
Most vaccine supplies are going to be delivered by plane; and it's entirely likely passenger planes idled by the reduced travel demand will be used.
Please get vaccinated when it's offered to you. Despite the unprecedented speed, the science is solid.
I'm just glad I can walk to a pharmacist.
I'm sorry, but ESA's experimental space junk capturing drone looks like a four-armed version of those fairground/arcade grab a prize things that never actually work.
Sorry not sorry.
Here's the full article from Science. It's actually pretty neat.
2020 has been a year of loss, of mourning. Sooner or later it was bound to hit the SF community as a whole.
Yesterday, Ben Bova, one of the greatest writers and editors of all time passed away from COVID-19. He was an influence on influences, and one of the few big names to never have anything bad said about him. Instead, by every account (although I personally never had the pleasure), Bova was a true gentleman who treated everyone with professionalism and kindness.
Perhaps one death is not more important than another, but this one is touching a lot of people.
