I gave an update on the Vera Rubin Observatory. Undeniably, VRO is (will be…) a game changer. Also noteworthy but less newsworthy: the SPHEREx spacecraft is built: spherex.caltech.edu SPHEREx, for Spectro-PHotometric ices and Epoch of Reionization Explorer, is a NASA… Read More »First Light (Flight) in Sight…
Planetary Science Journal is very new. Yet, it’s highly pertinent to this blog, as the title indicates (truth in advertizing!). This paper in PSJ vol. 5 is, umm, important: Sanchez, J. A. Reddy, V. Thirouin, A. The Population of Small… Read More »Note, Paper: PSJ P. S. N.s
JUICE is running, Europa Clipper is built and in checkout for launch this year… and the small-body community is onboard. Space Science Reviews- no lightweights- had been running a “collection” (articles aligned in theme, but not date like in the… Read More »Note, Paper: E-Ticket!
Not well shared: The Vera Rubin camera is in Chile, on-mountain. There was a fair amount of coverage of the LSSTCam’s completion, at Stanford’s SLAC lab, in April. But with little fanfare, the pre-ship review passed, the camera was packed… Read More »First Light in Sight…
I held out, but ultimately May is not a rich month for Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (vol. 530, #1): Aravind, K. et al. Optical spectroscopy of comets using Hanle Echelle Spectrograph (HESP) p. 393–404 stae666 We don’t… Read More »Note, Paper: Monthly, comet-y
I covered ApJ, here’s ApJL: …vol. 967, #1, May 20: Kareta, T. Noonan, J. W. Volk, K. et al. Jupiter Co-Orbital Comet P/2023 V6 (PANSTARRS): Orbital… L5 ad3dea Gomez Barrientos, J. de Kleer, K. Ehlmann, B. L. et al. Detection… Read More »Note, Paper: …more than a bit
In the May 20 issue of Astrophysical Journal (vol. 967 #1): S. Liu, W. M. Wood-Vasey, R. Armstrong et al. Testing the LSST Difference Image Analysis Pi… a10 ad3635Huang, Z. Toth, G. Gombosi, T. I. et al. Interaction between a… Read More »Note, Paper: bits and Bits
Our (consumer, off-the-shelf) telescopes are now made in China; what about the scientific-grade ones? The Chinese science program is no longer the world’s also-ran. You just need to look at author lists to see the obvious Chinese (including expat-Chinese) representation.… Read More »Note, Juan Zhu: CAA WA
Oddly coherent, this issue (May 2024, vol. 685) of Astronomy & Astrophysics: Poggiali, G. Fossi, L. Wargnier, A. et al. Grain size effects on the infrared spectrum of mineral mixt… A14 202347681 Alvarez-Candal, A. The multiwavelength phase curves of small… Read More »Note, Paper: A ‘n’ A- Grain Papers
Apollo Applications Program “asteroid mission” “NASA Halley Mission” [further Shuttle-era cancellations] Piazzi Vesta CRAF (Comet Rendezvous Asteroid Flyby) Clementine (…technically) Clementine II NEAP/NEAF (Near-Earth Asteroid Prospector/Flyby) CONTOUR (Comet Nucleus Tour- yes, I know the case doesn’t work out) SOCCER (initial… Read More »Numquam Obliviscendi