Blogs
Blog Archive
First Planet Discovered in Alpha Centauri System
Information on the Discovery, and also Insights from Debra Fischer
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/10/17 07:22 CDT | 12 comments
European astronomers have made the first planetary discovery in the closest-to-Earth Alpha Centauri star system. Here is some information about the discovery, and insights from Yale Astronomer Debra Fischer, who leads another Alpha Centauri planet search partially supported by The Planetary Society.
Saving the World: Established 1997
The Shoemaker NEO Grants at 15
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/09/21 01:00 CDT | 2 comments
The Planetary Society Shoemaker NEO grants celebrate their 15th anniversary of helping to find and track near Earth asteroids. Here's a quick review of the program, and updates on our four multiple-grant winners.
Optical SETI Gets a Major Upgrade
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/08/30 03:57 CDT | 5 comments
The Planetary Society Optical SETI Telescope in Harvard, Massachusetts just got a major upgrade of its electronics. The telescope, which has been operating the only all-sky optical SETI survey since its opening in 2006, is run by Harvard University Professor Paul Horowitz and his team. The telescope scans the sky every clear night with a 72-inch primary mirror, looking for laser pulses as short as one billionth of a second that could be transmitted by distant extraterrestrials. When observing, it has been able to process 1 terabit (trillion bits) of data every second, that’s as much as in all the books in print every second.
Zapping Rocks with Lasers to Save the World
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/06/25 05:59 CDT | 8 comments
The Planetary Society Laser Bees project in Scotland is studying in the lab a potential new technique for deflecting dangerous asteroids: laser ablation.
Hunting Asteroids from a Field in Kansas
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/06/15 06:33 CDT
TPS Shoemaker NEO Grant Winner Gary Hug hunts near Earth objects from his back yard in Kansas. NPR's Morning Edition picked up on this fascinating story.
LightSail presented at Aerospace Mechanisms Symposium
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/05/31 03:10 CDT | 13 comments
Chris Biddy from Stellar Exploration Inc. presented information about our LightSail project at the 2012 Aerospace Mechanisms Symposium
Third Martian Anniversary for Mars Climate Sounder
Posted by David Kass on 2012/05/16 11:35 CDT | 2 comments
May 16, 2012 is the third martian anniversary of the start of Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) observations from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. MCS started measuring the atmosphere of Mars three Mars years ago, on September 24, 2006. We can now compare the weather and behavior of the atmosphere in three different years, and find the temperature differences to be surprisingly large.
More Evidence for Impact Origin for Colombia’s Vichada Structure
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/05/08 03:43 CDT
Evidence continues to pile up that the Rio Vichada structure in Colombia is indeed the largest impact structure in South America.
Planets around Alpha Centauri?
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/04/24 12:03 CDT | 2 comments
Do planets circle our closest stellar neighbors, the system loved by science fiction: Alpha Centauri? We don’t know. But, Debra Fischer, Julien Spronck, and their colleagues at Yale University, in part with Planetary Society support, are trying to find out.
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/04/19 11:00 CDT | 7 comments
With the latest piece of the puzzle just published in a scientific journal, a solar system mystery that has perplexed people for more than 20 years has been solved, truly thanks to the support of Planetary Society members.
The Quest for the "WOW!": one man's search for SETI's most promising signal
Posted by Amir Alexander on 2012/01/27 11:00 CST
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/01/13 10:35 CST
We explore space for the noblest goals of science and exploration, and we often persevere in spite of challenges. But space exploration is fraught with bad things happening, or, to use the technical term, ouchies. The Planetary Society's Phobos LIFE biomodule will re-enter the Earth's atmosphere in the next few days with the rest of the Phobos-Grunt mission.
Nighttime Water Ice Clouds Predicted by Models are Confirmed by MCS Observations
Posted by Jim Shirley on 2011/10/25 12:00 CDT
A daily cycle of cloud formation in the Martian tropics during northern summer is driven largely by solar radiation and the associated solar thermal tide. Models predict a striking pattern of cloud formation above the high altitude volcanoes of the Tharsis region. At mid-day, the atmosphere is typically free of clouds due to elevated temperatures. Beginning in the early evening hours, atmospheric cooling at altitudes above 20 kilometers begins to foster water ice cloud formation. During the night, the altitude of cloud formation descends closer to the surface.
Shuttle LIFE Organisms Return from Space
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2011/06/09 05:40 CDT
Shuttle LIFE Organisms Return from Space
SETI@home Following Up on Kepler Discoveries
Posted by Charlene Anderson on 2011/05/13 06:15 CDT
Remember SETI@home? The ground-breaking computing project is now taking a look at candidate Earth-like planets that have been detected by NASA's Kepler space telescope.
Citizen Science projects for Planetary Science: Get Involved! Do Science!
Posted by Mike Malaska on 2011/05/12 05:13 CDT
Citizen Science projects let volunteers easily contribute to active science programs. They're useful when there is so much data it overwhelms computing algorithms (if they exist) or the scientific research team attempting to process it.
Bruce Betts reports from the Planetary Defense Conference in Romania
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2011/05/09 05:00 CDT
It's time once again to hang out with a bunch of professionals in a foreign land and talk about saving the world.
FINDS: One Step Closer to Faraway Earths
Posted by Amir Alexander on 2011/04/01 12:00 CDT
Amir Alexander explains more about the FINDS Exo-Earths project and how it will help planet hunters detect distant Earths in the depths of space.
Featured Images
Featured Video
Connect With Us
Facebook! Twitter! Google+ and more…
Continue the conversation with our online community!
