Author: Andrew

An electrical engineer, amateur astronomer, and diver, living and working on the island of Hawaiʻi.

Asteroid 1998 QE2 to Sail Past Earth

JPL press release…

On May 31, 2013, asteroid 1998 QE2 will sail serenely past Earth, getting no closer than about 3.6 million miles (5.8 million kilometers), or about 15 times the distance between Earth and the moon. And while QE2 is not of much interest to those astronomers and scientists on the lookout for hazardous asteroids, it is of interest to those who dabble in radar astronomy and have a 230-foot (70-meter) — or larger — radar telescope at their disposal.

Asteroid 1998 QE2 Orbit
The orbit for asteroid 1998 QE2 earth approach on 31 May 2013. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
“Asteroid 1998 QE2 will be an outstanding radar imaging target at Goldstone and Arecibo and we expect to obtain a series of high-resolution images that could reveal a wealth of surface features,” said radar astronomer Lance Benner, the principal investigator for the Goldstone radar observations from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. “Whenever an asteroid approaches this closely, it provides an important scientific opportunity to study it in detail to understand its size, shape, rotation, surface features, and what they can tell us about its origin. We will also use new radar measurements of the asteroid’s distance and velocity to improve our calculation of its orbit and compute its motion farther into the future than we could otherwise.”

The closest approach of the asteroid occurs on May 31 at 1:59 p.m. Pacific (4:59 p.m. Eastern / 20:59 UTC). This is the closest approach the asteroid will make to Earth for at least the next two centuries. Asteroid 1998 QE2 was discovered on Aug. 19, 1998, by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Near Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) program near Socorro, New Mexico.

The asteroid, which is believed to be about 1.7 miles (2.7 kilometers) or nine Queen Elizabeth 2 ship-lengths in size, is not named after that 12-decked, transatlantic-crossing flagship for the Cunard Line. Instead, the name is assigned by the NASA-supported Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Mass., which gives each newly discovered asteroid a provisional designation starting with the year of first detection, along with an alphanumeric code indicating the half-month it was discovered, and the sequence within that half-month.

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Kepler Mission in Jeopardy Due to Mechanical Failure

Bad news today, the Kepler Spacecraft has suffered a mechanical failure. As feared, one more of the reaction wheels that keep the spacecraft stabilized has failed. Of the set of four reaction wheels two have now failed, at least three are required to continue the mission.

Kepler
Artist’s rendition of the Kepler Spacecraft in orbit around the Sun peering at a distant solar system, press release image from the NASA Kepler website
Keck and Kepler have been a potent team in finding and confirming hundreds of exoplanets. Kepler detects alien world through the transit technique, the very slight dimming of a star as a planet passes in front. Data from an instrument such as Keck’s HIRES spectrograph is required to confirm the find through the use of radial velocity data. Using the technique Kepler has discovered 130 extrasolar planets that are now confirmed. An amazing 2,700 possible planets are awaiting confirmation. Besides the discovery of exoplanets the Kepler data set has been a bonanza to astronomers looking for other phenomena. Magnitude data on more than 100,000 stars with unprecedented precision has allowed the discovery and study of a wide range of stellar phenomena.

Engineers will continue to see if the reaction wheel can be nursed back to some level of function in an effort to salvage the mission. The prognosis is not good, it is likely the Kepler mission has ended. In any case it will take astronomers years to learn what the massive haul of Kepler data can teach us and to work through the backlog of candidate planets. In a few years the spectacular success of Kepler will be followed up by TESS, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, due for launch in 2017.

Space and Astronomy at the Kona Library

Planets, Stars, and How to Live on a Space Station

May 23rd Astronomy Program
Kailua Kona Library
3:30 PM to 4:30 PM

Allan Honey, a program engineer at Keck Observatory, will talk about the different distances in space between stars and planets. Allan’s son, Ben Honey, a flight controller for the International Space Station at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, will explain what happens when astronauts live and work in space. Allan Honey has worked at the Keck Observatory for more than 26 years, and Ben Honey grew up on the Big Island before leaving to study at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Keck Lecture

Antennae Galaxies
The Antennae Galaxies, NGC4038 & 4039 as imaged by MOSFIRE, image credit Keck Observatory
Join the W. M. Keck Observatory for an evening of astronomy presented at the Kahilu Theater.

MOSFIRE is the newest and the most advanced astronomical instrument available today. Dr. Ian McLean from UCLA will describe some of the technical challenges developing and commissioning this multi-year, multi-million dollar instrument. He will also share early science results ranging from the discovery of ultra-cool, nearby substellar mass objects, to the detection of oxygen in young galaxies only 2 billion years after the Big Bang.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Show starts at 7 p.m.
Free and Open to the Public

Postcard from the Reef – Trumpetfish

Another very common species on Hawaiian reefs, one commonly seen by snorkelers and divers alike. The trumpetfish can be either bright yellow or silver with dark markings around the tail. Either way an interesting and handsome fish…

Trumpetfish
A bright yellow trumpetfish (Aulostomus chinensis) at Eel Cove

The Moon, Venus and Jupiter

The sunset is getting crowded. This evening will see a trio of the sky’s brightest objects low in the shades of sunset. Venus is still quite low, ony 10.3° from the Sun, shining brightly at -4 magnitude and rising higher each day. Well above Venus can be seen Jupiter, somewhat dimmer at -2 magnitude and 23° from the Sun.

In between the two a pretty crescent Moon is positioned, 4.4% illuminated and about 5° below Jupiter. Tomorrow night will see the Moon above and south of Jupiter with about 7° separation.

This is just the start of a sunset dance that will play out over the coming month. Stay tuned for Mercury to join Venus and Jupiter.

Venus Appears in the Sunset

Venus is currently beginning an evening apparition. This evening the planet should be visible about 10° above the setting Sun. At magnitude -4 it should be easy to spot with a good western horizon. The bright planet will spend the remainder of 2013 in the evening sky, with maximum elongation occurring on Oct 31st.

Tonight also features a pairing with a very thin crescent Moon. The Moon will be a mere 1.3% illuminated and be located 2° south of Venus. A very nice pairing indeed!

Look forward to a number of planetary conjunctions in the coming months. With Jupiter approaching solar conjunction and Venus leaving, the two will cross paths nicely.