'We may be able to watch dark energy turn on': U-M involved in unprecedented sky survey

"Through the Dark Energy Survey, which began Aug. 31, more than 200 researchers from 25 institutions, including U-M, will search for answers to a fundamental question about the cosmos: Why is its expansion speeding up?"

This is a paragraph from the University of Michigan news service article "'We may be able to watch dark energy turn on': U-M involved in unprecedented sky survey." This survey, if successful, may shed light on the nature of the mysterious dark energy.

http://www.ns.umich.edu/new/multimedia/videos/21661-we-may-be-able-to-watch-dark-energy-turn-on-u-m-involved-in-unprecedented-sky-survey

The new nova in Delphinus

In the constellation Delphinus, a bright nova was detected on August 14th. A nova is simply a star that unexpectedly gets much brighter than normal. As of August 15th it is still getting brighter.

It is easy to see in binoculars, and possible to see naked eye (under dark sky conditions).

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/Bright-Nova-in-Delphinus-219631281.html

A snow line in an infant solar system: Astronomers take first images.

This is from the University of Michigan News Service:

Published on Jul 18, 2013

ANN ARBOR—Like the elevation in the Rocky Mountains where the snow caps begin, a snow line in a solar system is the point where falling temperatures freeze and clump together water or other chemical compounds that would otherwise be vapor. Astronomers believe snow lines in space serve a vital role in forming planets because frozen moisture can help dust grains stick together. 

Astronomers have, for the first time, directly imaged a snow line at another star.

For the full article see...

http://www.ns.umich.edu/new/releases/21595-a-snow-line-in-an-infant-solar-system-astronomers-take-first-images

Asteroid 1998 QE2 approaches the earth today (May 31, 2013)

The latest asteroid to approach the earth (1998 QE2) has its own moon.

The asteroid will be visible in an amateur telescope (except for the smallest ones), the moon will not be. The closest approach will be about 5PM Eastern Time (US/Canada) today (May 31, 2013). It will keep a healthy distance from the earth of about 6 million kilometers, so a collision will not occur.

NASA released this article yesterday....

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2013/30may_asteroidmoon/

Failure on Kepler spacecraft

There has been a failure on the Kepler spacecraft.

Kepler was specifically designed to look for planets in orbit around other stars (stars other than our sun) and to date has been very successful. In order to find planets, the spacecraft must be able to precisely position itself in space. There are four reaction wheels, one stopped working last year, and there has been a problem with a second one recently. With only two working reaction wheels, precise positioning is probably impossible.

If this problem can't be corrected, Kepler cannot continue to look for planets (though it wont remove the planets already found).

NASA has not given up and there are plans to attempt a repair from the ground. Kepler is far enough from the earth that a repair mission (as has been done for the Hubble Space Telescope) is not practical. It remains to be seen if these ground repairs will work.

See

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/science/space/equipment-failure-may-cut-kepler-mission-short.html?_r=0

Comet ISON: Unique Meteor Shower Mid-January 2014

This November, the second bright comet of 2013, Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON), is predicted to be at its brightest.

Comets often produce plumes of dust. If these dust plumes intersect the orbit of the Earth, we observe meteor showers. Paul Wiegert of the University of Western Ontario has been modeling the dust plumes and offered the following prediction...

"For several days around January 12, 2014, Earth will pass through a stream of fine-grained debris from Comet ISON. The resulting shower could have some interesting properties."

While the comet is expected to brightest in late November, the Earth will not intersect the dust plume until a couple months later. And while this could be the brightest comet we've seen in many years, comets are notoriously unpredictable. However it is worth looking for Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON) and the associated meteor shower. Note late November is merely when the comet is brightest, it should be visible before and after that time. See the following for more details...

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2013/19apr_isonids/
http://www.space.com/19408-bright-comets-approaching-2013.html

Optical Society of America Meeting

Hi All,

Please join us for the last AA OSA talk of the 2012-2013 school year.  The April AA OSA meeting is NOT on Tuesday, the 9th; it is on Tuesday, the 16th!  We will also be planning an "Optics & Beer" event for May.

David Shindell

AA OSA current president

Optical Society of America

Ann Arbor Local Section

Public Meeting Notice

Tuesday, 16 April 2013, 8:00-9:45 pm

Location: U-M EECS Room 1005

Electrical Engineering & Computer Science Building

North Campus, University of Michigan

Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Optical Signal Processing

Dr. Jeffrey A. Fessler

University of Michigan, EECS Dept., Ann Arbor  MI

Flyer for this event