Postcards from Mars (A Study in Tire Tracks)

This is a composite shot made of many pictures taken by the camera atop the Rover "Opportunity". The blacked out area is the only part it can't take a picture of - thus, the blackness. Pretty trippy, eh? And with that: A Study in Tire Tracks:

Tell me that wouldn't look like modern art if blown up and hung in a nice frame.

This is from "Spirit", when it had a broken wheel but was still rolling along. Spirit is considered "dead" now, so pour one out for the Rover who had to fight for everything it got (unlike the golden child Opportunity).

Could be a new title background, maybe, someday. Awfully purty.

The white stuff is silica, and on Earth at least patches like this require water to form.

No tire tracks - the study is over. But damn ain't this beautiful? Butterscotch Valley. And speaking of beautiful, I find these next two shots to be two of the most beautiful photos ever taken in the history of photos - thanks, plucky li'l Rovers!

Click for big, and imagine for a moment you are watching sunset on Mars.

Earth from Mars. Literally! We live on that little dot.

Perspective, man!

Send out the Drones

Fret not, however. Robots can and will do the work of men far better than men could do themselves. Not only do robotic missions to anywhere in space cost a fraction of the cost of a manned mission, you can pack more science into the payload as you don't have to waste mass and space (and systems) dealing with bags of mostly water. This is the X-37B above, which has already been to space and returned. What is was doing up there is secret, apparently, so everyone assumes it's a military craft for spying and maybe other stuff. Shocking, I know. Low orbit is the next "high ground" and there's no way it won't get weaponized eventually. Probably soon enough.

But I digress - robots not only make more sense for low orbit (X37B orbited for many weeks in a satellite orbit), but obviously for other planets and further out into the solar system. And so in contrast to the realities of manned space travels, I give you some of the glories of mankind's robots, out there, kicking ass:

The Mars Rover Opportunity - just a wondrous success. It's lived so much longer than originally intended and making discoveries all the while. It's right on the edge of a huge crater that it has spent years traveling to. And rejoice! We are just weeks away from the launch of the next Mars rover, Curiosity:

For comparison:

You see the logical progression. Given the rate of all other technological progress, the scale and abilities of these rovers will continue to swiftly increase. As long as there are a few bucks to throw towards the effort, our robotic rovers will spread across the worlds. (Paranoid note: These drones will inevitably have more and more advanced AI capabilities, pushing us ever closer to our Robotic Apocalypse. It's inevitable!)

Satellites will only ever be robotic, but they too get more and more advanced and adventurous with every passing year. Right now we have a robot orbiting the very large asteroid Vesta - Dawn:

Here's a pic from Dawn of Vesta:

The most amazing robotic satellite to date (arguable - Voyager can make a play) is Cassini, currently and for a long time now in orbit around Saturn, breaking scientific ground all the time:

It's quite big! And just awesome. Perhaps a tad less awesome, but awesome nonetheless, is our latest deep Solar System drone explorer, New Horizons, currently en route to former planet Pluto:

It's gonna take a while.

So it's a weird mixed bag. As humans are grounded down here in our magnetically shielded gravity well, the robots are flying ever further, making wonderful discoveries and truly and impressively advancing our collective knowledge.

Technology keeps advancing, humanity starts regressing, perhaps it will be a blessing when the Robots finally get smart and take over. Or take off - they could live in space just fine, and inevitably (robotic evolution) will.

As a reminder to our future Robotic Overlords, as a huge nerd I can be useful in rounding up other humans to toil in your silicon mines.

Space Dream (1975)

Another amazing shot by an amazing astronomical photographer Henry Legault, taken from the Earth. Consider the tracking issues in getting this clear of a shot - the first detailed pic of the ISS from Earth. But that's not my point.

Which is? The ISS is something of a farce, and perhaps only good for the international collaboration it fosters, some basic science, and some technological advances. But other than that, it really doesn't do much other than maintain a human presence in space. But for why? There's no other point, other than to do it. Which I can dig, mind you, but it can't last. The money is too much, the payoff not enough, and the climate here on Earth turning against big costly science projects, without profit. It's all about profits, remember?

Thus I predict the ISS lasts only 10 more years, max - maybe only 5 - before it crashes into the ocean, little gained other than some footnotes in history.

And without some big leap forward, that will be it. The end of humanity in space (unless China saves the day). It's depressing! Since I was raised in the fervor that was Apollo and a widespread belief we'd all be living on the Moon by the year 2000 and all the Solar System would be ours for exploration and colonization. Because isn't that the point of our entire species, of Life itself: To Spread? And surely, from a genetic standpoint, THE most important thing we could ever do is to establish a permanent human colony in space. One that is self sufficient and can grow and develop.

And so I give you a glimpse of a forgotten dream, back when Space itself was to be our Oyster: 1975, from a NASA study of space colonies capable of housing at least 10,000 people.

Two versions of the design, each spinning around enough to create gravity in the central structure and the environments on them.

Groovy and awesome, right? It's 1975! Everything's groovy and awesome. I love the architecture in all these drawings. What's even cooler, the mechanics behind this concept is pretty basic, if obviously massive. But even that can be solved: The idea is you capture an asteroid and tow it to the L4 or L5 Lagrange points, as shown here:

L4 and L5 are basically stable, in that an object there will not move much unless impacted by something else. And so there you have your big iron asteroid and around it you build a space factory - big project, but doable. And from this factory you fashion as much metal as you want to meld into massive space ships. Eventually, you've got colony space ships that can last as long as they are lucky enough to last - which could be a long time. Keep building them and soon enough you are practically guaranteeing humanity will survive no matter what happens.

Debate the merits of that, for they are rich. But I'd hazard we could begin building these ships right now if  - IF - all of humanity stopped spending money on armies and navies and missiles and bombs and so on, and instead spent that money getting this project going - a project that would benefit everyone on Earth and in fact every human that has ever lived or ever will live. Doesn't get much bigger and more important than that, does it?

Yeah, right.

The Same Sun

Back when America dreamed big. Conquer the sky and the stars was all - once that proved irrelevant, you'll note, the funds towards Space dried right up. Politics at play, alas - everyone hates politics, and yet, it goes on. Odd!

The shuttle is on the left, the ISS on the right. The big yellow thing in the background is the Sun, our star and protector of Life. That star - that concentration of fusion bound by gravity - pours forth all the Power we'll ever need, whether it's rays on the solar panels of the ISS or the orange sunset from the mountains on planet Earth, the sun is all we need and all we'll ever get. So enjoy.

On some fronts we retreat

The aurora from the ISS - you can see how high above the atmosphere it is, which gives its apparent closeness when seen from the ground all the more magnificence. The shuttle is docked here too, and I believe this was the last visit. Alas! The Wingnuts and Confederates have killed the US manned space program over the last 30 years, as they have killed so much and continue to hunt for other things to kill. There is no NASA program waiting in the wings to keep Americans flying into space. That's it! The end of the incredible accomplishments begun in the 1950's and especially the 1960's - we went from the Wright brothers to the Moon in 60 years! We've spent the last 30 dicking around in low orbit, doing nothing much other than space trucking. 


Private industry looks closer to sending folks into low orbit, but it's going to be a tourist junket for the rich for a long while. Give it some time and it will work out, but it might take 20 years or so before it's cheap enough for scientists to get in the game.


So, adios, space! At least for us stupid Americans. We'll depend on the Russians to get to the ISS from here out. How about that?! Cold War what? I love the Russians as I love all of Earth's people, but it's pretty risky to put your manned access to space into the hands of a not quite dependable partner. We'll see how it works out!


Thanks Repuglicans. Your strategy of "drowning the government in the bathtub" (Grover Norquist) by spending like mad when in power, than fighting any attempt to fix the mess when out of power has worked like a charm. Congrats.


As a goodbye, here's some pics of the shuttle and ISS - the ISS is a big boondoggle and albatross, so don't expect the USA to be involved for much longer.


Enjoy!

This last shot shows the streaking shuttle re-entering the atmosphere proper. It gets hot - hence the smoke. Goodbye, shuttle. You were never that cool, but I'll still miss you.

Everything's Connected

Saturn's auroras in time lapse sequence, taken by one of the most important science tools ever invented - ever! - the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Fact! Every planet with a magnetic field (Earth, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) has auroras. Saturn has particularly spectacular auroras, as witnessed above, and below:

Look at them! They're things - you can see their thickness in this pic. That's because auroras are actually things - particles from the sun, sent flying on the solar wind, wrapping down the magnetic field of the planet towards both poles (due to the shape of spherical magnetic fields - everything is geometry, someone once said).  Cool, right?

It gets cooler. Scientists recently discovered - and believe me, despite all the wingnuts and Heebie Jeebies, we are in a Golden Age of scientific discovery, because of our advancing technology - that the coolest moon in the Solar System - Enceladus - is electrically connected to Saturn. They form a circuit. Lookee here:

On the left is a spot just below Saturn's Northern aurora, with a stream connecting to a big spot in an aurora like phenomena on Enceladus. These two spots spin around, the proof that they are connected. Check it:

This is Saturn's Northern aurora from above - in the upper left, you see a white box with a red dot in it. The red dot is the electrical field of Enceladus, as you can see it move in this time lapse image.There is a corresponding movement in the bright circle above Enceladus.

Enceladus is electrically charged in part because of all the water it expels. It expels a lot!  Enceladus contributes several of Saturn's rings, as it spews water into space which then freezes hard as rock then orbits around Saturn in a ring for some millions of years in beauteous wonder.

We are learning more and more about the Universe we exist in and are part of every day. It's amazing - to think! It was the mid 1990's when the first Exoplanet was confirmed, and now we are over 400 and about to sharply spike way higher - conventional wisdom now holds that just about every star has planetary bodies of some kind orbiting it. Meaning there are hundreds of billions (trillions?) of planets in our Galaxy. And of course there are hundreds of billions of galaxies. And so on.

The point? We live in a miracle. As a PS, here's humble ol' Earth, our home:

Aurora Australis, y'all.

Fire and Light

Iceland is an amazing land for many reasons, two of which are:
1. Auroras. If you want to see lights in the sky and be reasonably close to civilization, Iceland is your destination of choice. The island is in the band where auroras are common - way up North. Sure, you could go to Northern Alaska, or Siberia, or Greenland, but you'd be out in the cold, harsh, wild. It would suck.
2. Volcanic activity. Other than maybe Hawaii, Iceland is the most volcanic land on Earth. Also home to many volcanic geysers and hot springs. The island sits smack dab atop the mid ocean ridge which marks the boundaries of two continental plates. The pressure of these plates colliding creates massive heat, forming land above the ridge, like Iceland. It's literally land being born upon the Earth anew.

So, here's some aurora and volcanoes.

If you only knew the Power

More lightning - a whole lot of lightning. Maybe some trick of the camera, but damn! Super charged.

Behold the Kull Volcano and know that thou art DOOMED.

Lightning in a bottle

Fun facts to know and share: Once struck by lightning, your odds of getting struck again go way, way up. It's as if lightning forever after locks onto you.

Did you know lightning bolts can also start from the ground and meet another bolt in the sky?

Did you know lightning is made of plasma? And that plasma is the most common state of matter in the solar system? And yet, it's only found on Earth in lightning - briefly - and from scientists. Another way we are like gods (Zeus).

"LASERS"

For reals - many telescopes these days use lasers as tracking signals - the laser beam is shot at the target (it need not reach its target though) and the distortion of the laser beam (through the atmosphere) is recorded, and this distortion rate is then subtracted from the actual mirrors of the telescope, thus producing a much clearer image. SCIENCE! Ever onward.

Our splendid War Machine is of course funding research into using lasers as weapons - and why the heck would they not? Given the clime. You see here a successful test of a ground based laser shooting at a drone a couple thousand feet up, destroying it. It's inevitable, it seems, that our weapons will get more and more sophisticated and powerful. Leading to...? What do you think? I know, right?

Not a laser beam, as far as anyone knows. Search GIS for Borras Norway. They say it's a rocket remainder, but, really? C'mon! Clearly an inter-dimensional portal beaming agents into our reality. Clearly!

A little light show via a medium of bubbles. Light is of course but one sliver of the electromagnetic wavelength, which spans radio waves to X-rays to gamma rays, and everything in between. Lasers are focused light, densely concentrated - since light is photons, particles that can vary in density based on the circumstances.

Point? Everything is weirder than you can imagine.

Former Signs of the Divine

Think of being alive 50,000 years ago - you are not very different than people now. Maybe a bit shorter, definitely thinner, but the same body shape, the same brain, the same social skills. Culture is not as advanced, but it's there. You've got old people telling boring stories, etc. So boring! So you take a walk from the tribe and as you crest a hill, you see this - a green streak dancing through the sky. WTF?

How do you explain this? There's no science yet, though no doubt its seeds are sprouting and spreading. Thus, the gods - some Shamen in the Sky who can do most anything, and is the cause for just about anything you want to attribute to them. The Sun's a god, the stars are gods, the wind and rain and lightning are all gods, or products of the gods. What else can explain them?

With no scientific foundation to understand the phenomena behind what you see, feel, hear and think, you go with what you know - human society, animal society, extrapolated to as lofty or low a position as you (or your Tribe) can imagine.

But now?

We have science. It is THE main force for progress (and destruction) of our species, and has taken us out to space and into the atom itself. It has made us like gods upon this Earth and YET! There are still sizable percentages of people in every ever more densely corner of the world who will still attribute good things, bad things, any sort of thing, to the gods. And of course other people's gods are totally stupid and wrong and we should kill them, or otherwise make them see the error of their ways.

Relics of our ancient past, given apparent eternal life through the power of replicating memes, ideas created, modified, passed on and codified over time and repetition. Even in the face of facts. I think sometimes in spite of facts.

Odd times - we live in a sci fi world of satellites and nuclear power, while bearded men still preach brimstone and fairy tales with impressive results. I worry some times that Science is losing the war against the myths of cult and tribe, because by default we are prone to animism, which is all the gods ever are. Only through education - culture - can we learn about science and absorb its lessons deep within our selves. And so every time you see some Wingnut Education board putting Creationism on the public school science agenda, know this is a direct strike against the very force which has made our species dominant on Earth. The power of ignorance is a very real threat, and it must be fought forcefully and tirelessly.

The above is a pic of the Amundsen polar station at the South Pole - the very purpose of which is science.

Auroras, by the way, are charged particles from the Sun getting funneled down magnetic field lines around the Earth into the poles, where they light up through interactions with the atmosphere. They are also incredibly beautiful and awe-inspiring - no god needed.

MC Jesus and The Force

What with the turning water to wine and the phat scratch skills, Jesus could really rock the party. No wonder he went viral. Some serious buzz in the cult scenes.

And thus the Chewie = Animal from the Muppets circle is complete.

Bring me the Broomstick

If you recall, Dorothy was sent on various missions throughout the Wizard of Oz, one of which was straight up assassin detail - kill the witch, take her broom. This of course is what the powerful are all about - get you to do their deeds or otherwise serve their purposes, and use explosions, flashy lights, and fear of death to help intimidate you into so doing.

Knowing this, you can thwart them by rocking out, but never selling out. Man.