What's up in space / LA NASA

Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011 What's up in space

Turn your cell phone into a field-tested satellite tracker. Works for Android and iPhone.   DISCOVERY LAUNCHES TODAY: NASA says all systems are go for the scheduled launch of space shuttle Discovery today at 4:50 p.m. EST. The STS-133 crew will deliver Robonaut 2 and supplies to the International Space Station during a mission expected to last 12 days. Check NASA's launch blog for updates. EASTERN BLAST: The quiet didn't last long. Earth-orbiting satellites detected an M3-class solar flare at 0735 UT on Feb. 24th. The source was an active region located just behind the sun's eastern limb. The eruption produced strong radio emissions, a coronal mass ejection (not Earth directed), and this spectacular picture taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory: Movies of the event are now available. Pick your favorite format: 6 MB Quicktime, 1 MB iPad, 0.5 MB iPhone (more formats will be available soon). The instigating active region will emerge over the eastern limb during the next 24-48 hours, setting the stage for possible geoeffective solar activity. Stay tuned for updates. SOLAR SAIL FLARE: Last night (Feb. 23), NanoSail-D sailed over Seinäjoki, Finland, and when it did, the spacecraft's reflective fabric caught a sunbeam and flared. "I've never seen anything like it," says Juha Peräsaari who recorded the event using a Canon 400D digital camera: Photo details: Canon EOS 400D, 20mm lens, f2.8, ISO100, 10s exposure. [more] "NanoSail-D 'flashed' just as it passed the star Procyon," he says. "For a moment, the sail was the brighter of the two." This means NanoSail-D can flare at least to magnitude +0.3 (the brightness of Procyon), or almost twice as bright as a first magnitude star. Even brighter flares could be in the offing. The orbit of NanoSail-D is decaying as it skims the top of Earth's atmosphere. Sunglints from the descending sail could intensify to Venus-brightness and beyond. Anyone who photographs such an event could win $500. NanoSail-D Photo Gallery [NASA: Solar Sail Stunner] [Photo Contest] February 2011 Aurora Photo Gallery [previous Februaries: 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2004, 2003, 2002]   Near Earth Asteroids Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are space rocks larger than approximately 100m that can come closer to Earth than 0.05 AU. None of the known PHAs is on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time. On February 24, 2011 there were 1198 potentially hazardous asteroids. Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters: Asteroid Date(UT) Miss Distance Mag. Size 2011 CL50 Feb 19 6.2 LD -- 13 m 2003 YG118 Feb 20 67.7 LD -- 1.8 km 2000 PN9 Mar 10 45.5 LD -- 2.6 km 2002 DB4 Apr 15 62.5 LD -- 2.2 km 2008 UC202 Apr 27 8.9 LD -- 10 m 2009 UK20 May 2 8.6 LD -- 23 m 2008 FU6 May 5 75.5 LD -- 1.2 km 2003 YT1 May 5 65.3 LD -- 2.5 km 2002 JC Jun 1 57.5 LD -- 1.6 km 2009 BD Jun 2 0.9 LD -- 9 m 2002 JB9 Jun 11 71.5 LD -- 3.2 km 2001 VH75 Jun 12 42.2 LD -- 1.1 km 2004 LO2 Jun 15 9.9 LD -- 48 m Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. 1 LD also equals 0.00256 AU. MAG is the visual magnitude of the asteroid on the date of closest approach.   Essential web links NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center   The official U.S. government space weather bureau Atmospheric Optics   The first place to look for information about sundogs, pillars, rainbows and related phenomena. Solar Dynamics Observatory   Researchers call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO is the most advanced solar observatory ever. STEREO   3D views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial Relations Observatory Solar and Heliospheric Observatory   Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO. Daily Sunspot Summaries   from the NOAA Space Environment Center Heliophysics   the underlying science of space weather Conquest Graphics   for out-of-this-world printing and graphics Science Central   more links...