Oh, would it not be absurd if there was no objective state?
What if the unobserved always waits, insubstantial,
till our eyes give it shape?

— Peter Hammill

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Total solar eclipse 2024: Live updates

Space.com - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:27am
Stay up-to-date with the latest news on the total solar eclipse that will be visible across North America on April 8, 2024.
Categories: Astronomy

AI chatbots are improving at an even faster rate than computer chips

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:00am
The large language models behind AI chatbots are developing so rapidly that after eight months, a model only needs half the computing power to hit the same benchmark score - which is much faster than the rate at which computer chips improve
Categories: Astronomy

AI chatbots are improving at an even faster rate than computer chips

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:00am
The large language models behind AI chatbots are developing so rapidly that after eight months, a model only needs half the computing power to hit the same benchmark score - which is much faster than the rate at which computer chips improve
Categories: Astronomy

Will the total solar eclipse on April 8 be the most watched ever?

Space.com - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:00am
With over 43 million people living in the path of totality, we look at how this eclipse measures up compared to previous years and the upcoming 'eclipse of the century'.
Categories: Astronomy

Mars Express celebrates 25 000 orbits

ESO Top News - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:00am

ESA’s Mars Express recently looped around Mars for the 25 000th time – and the orbiter has captured yet another spectacular view of the Red Planet to mark the occasion.

Categories: Astronomy

Mucus Saves Your Life Every Day

Scientific American.com - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:00am

The slimy substance is so powerful that doctors once made hog stomach mucus milkshakes to treat ulcers.

Categories: Astronomy

Vegetation gets a boost with data from space

ESO Top News - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:40am

When it comes to predicting what our climate will be like in the future, vegetation matters. Plants and trees exert a powerful influence over both the energy cycle and the water cycle. And, crucially, it is estimated that vegetation draws down well over three billion tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere each year – this is equivalent to a third of greenhouse-gas emissions from human activity.

Accounting for vegetation growth is clearly important in the complex climate puzzle – and the release of a new satellite dataset is set to help climate modellers with the challenge of evaluating the impacts of climate change.

Categories: Astronomy

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APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

Comet Pons-Brooks has quite a tail to tell.


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

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APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

What does a supernova remnant sound like?


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

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APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

Here is what the Earth looks like during a


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

Ares 3 Landing Site: The Martian Revisited

APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

Ares 3 Landing Site: The Martian Revisited


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

Phobos: Moon over Mars

APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

Phobos: Moon over Mars


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

The Leo Trio

APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

This popular group leaps into the early evening sky around the March


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

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APOD - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 4:00am

Almost every object in the


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

Horses used in therapy often avoid people if they are given a choice

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 2:00am
Horses show signs of stress if people touch them while they are tethered, but they appear much less anxious if they are able to walk away
Categories: Astronomy

Horses used in therapy often avoid people if they are given a choice

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 03/27/2024 - 2:00am
Horses show signs of stress if people touch them while they are tethered, but they appear much less anxious if they are able to walk away
Categories: Astronomy

Watch a Real-Time Map of Starlinks Orbiting Earth

Universe Today - Tue, 03/26/2024 - 11:07pm

In an effort to enhance the educational outreach of their Starlink constellation, SpaceX has an interactive global map of their Starlink internet satellites, which provides live coverage of every satellite in orbit around the Earth. This interactive map comes as SpaceX continues to launch Starlink satellites into orbit on a near-weekly basis with the goal of providing customers around the world with high-speed internet while specifically targeting rural regions of the globe. In 2022, Starlink officially reached all seven continents after Starlink service became available in Antarctica. Additionally, SpaceX announced in 2023 a partnership with T-Mobiel for Starlink to provide mobile coverage, as well.

2021 video showing an early attempt at Starlink tracking

Within this interactive map, users can opt to see live satellite coverage or rewind and fast forward their respective orbital speeds. Scrolling your mouse will highlight each satellite, and clicking on them will produce their individual satellite information and orbital trajectory, enabling the user to see if a particular satellite will pass over their location. Additionally, users can rotate the Earth and zoom in to anywhere on the planet. All in all, this interactive map gives users near-total control over identifying Starlink satellites currently orbiting the Earth.

To complement the interactive map, users can find data on the number of satellites both launched and currently in orbit, noting a few hundred of the several thousand satellites have been deorbited to burn up on re-entry. As of this writing, 5,977 satellites have been launched with 5,601 satellites currently in operation, and the remaining 376 having been deorbited for a variety of reasons, including failing to reach their target orbit or containing design flaws, as Elon Musk recently announced he plans to deorbit 100 Starlink satellites slowly degrading their orbits over the next five years.

Scrolling down the left menu provides users with information pertaining to the running gigabytes and terabytes having been sent to Earth, along with the most recent and next Starlink launch by SpaceX. Additionally, this menu provides the average time between Starlink launches, along with the number of satellites in orbit by SpaceX’s competition and how many Starlinks jobs are presently available at SpaceX.

As noted, the goal of Starlink is to provide worldwide high-speed internet, with the interactive map noting “The Starlink constellation could serve up to 188,180 MB/sec to Earth.” Despite the more than 5,500 Starlink satellites currently in orbit, SpaceX hopes to launch up to 12,000 satellites during this phase and possibly 42,000, someday.

Despite its impressive numbers and credentials, Starlink has been met with its share of backlash and controversy, including its negative impacts on astronomy, as reports have indicated the streaks from Starlink satellites caused by prolonged camera exposures result in obscuring optical images of the night sky from ground-based telescopes. Most recently, a 2023 study discussed both deliberate and accidental radio signals emanating from Starlink satellites that could interfere with radio astronomy. Additionally, there is growing concern over the increasing number of Starlink satellites could result in unavoidable collisions, leading to increasing space debris in Earth orbit.

With thousands of Starlink satellites still scheduled to be launched into orbit, this Starlink interactive map is going to get busier, and hopefully along with the worldwide high-speed internet access it provides across the globe.

How will Starlink contribute to internet availability in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!

As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!

The post Watch a Real-Time Map of Starlinks Orbiting Earth appeared first on Universe Today.

Categories: Astronomy

Some bamboo toilet paper contains only tiny amounts of bamboo

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Tue, 03/26/2024 - 8:01pm
Toilet paper made from bamboo is supposed to be more eco-friendly than traditional paper made from virgin wood pulp. But new tests suggest some products contain as little as 3 per cent bamboo
Categories: Astronomy

Some bamboo toilet paper contains only tiny amounts of bamboo

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Tue, 03/26/2024 - 8:01pm
Toilet paper made from bamboo is supposed to be more eco-friendly than traditional paper made from virgin wood pulp. But new tests suggest some products contain as little as 3 per cent bamboo
Categories: Astronomy

Not getting enough sleep may make you feel years older

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Tue, 03/26/2024 - 8:01pm
Insufficient sleep seems to result in people feeling older than they are, with a higher "subjective age" previously being linked to depression
Categories: Astronomy