Mickey Gubas' Blog: November 2015

Monday, November 30, 2015

In the Center of Spiral Galaxy NGC 3521

This huge swirling mass of stars, gas, and dust occurs near the center of a nearby spiral galaxy. Gorgeous spiral NGC 3521 is a mere 35 million light-years distant, toward the constellation Leo. Spanning some 50,000 light-years, its central region is shown in this dramatic image, constructed from data from the Hubble Space Telescope. The close-up view highlights this galaxy’s characteristic multiple, patchy, irregular spiral arms laced with dust and clusters of young, blue stars. In contrast, many other spirals exhibit grand, sweeping arms. A relatively bright galaxy in planet Earth’s sky, NGC 3521 is easily visible in small telescopes, but often overlooked by amateur imagers in favor of other Leo spiral galaxies, like M65 and M66. via NASA http://ift.tt/1YDaWkq

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U.N. Chief Aims to Build Defenses of Poor Against Climate Change by REUTERS

By REUTERS

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned that climate-related disasters are taking an ever greater toll on the poor and can wipe out decades of development gains, as he launched a global partnership to boost the resilience of vulnerable communities.

Published: November 30, 2015 at 09:19AM

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South Korea Parliament Ratifies Free Trade Pact With China by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

South Korea’s parliament on Monday approved a free trade pact with China after opposition lawmakers secured a $1.4 billion relief package for farmers.

Published: November 29, 2015 at 10:21PM

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Sunday, November 29, 2015

AP PHOTOS: Brazil Mine Disaster Leaves Swath of Destruction by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

This village used to be home for about 600 people. Then on Nov. 5, a dam at a nearby iron ore mine burst, unleashing a tsunami of mud that swept away nearly everything in its path, flattening houses, uprooting trees and tossing cars.

Published: November 29, 2015 at 07:10PM

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Dark Sand Cascades on Mars

They might look like trees on Mars, but they’re not. Groups of dark brown streaks have been photographed by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on melting pinkish sand dunes covered with light frost. The above image was taken in 2008 April near the North Pole of Mars. At that time, dark sand on the interior of Martian sand dunes became more and more visible as the spring Sun melted the lighter carbon dioxide ice. When occurring near the top of a dune, dark sand may cascade down the dune leaving dark surface streaks — streaks that might appear at first to be trees standing in front of the lighter regions, but cast no shadows. Objects about 25 centimeters across are resolved on this image spanning about one kilometer. Close ups of some parts of this image show billowing plumes indicating that the sand slides were occurring even while the image was being taken. via NASA http://ift.tt/1Oo0Vot

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‘Sting Trailers’ Offer Glimpse Into World of Cargo Thieves by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Somewhere in America, a tractor-trailer loaded with hidden surveillance equipment is parked at a truck stop or warehouse while authorities wait for thieves to steal it.

Published: November 29, 2015 at 07:11AM

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Hull-Aballoo: New Navy Destroyer’s Seaworthiness Questioned by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

The largest destroyer built for the U.S. Navy cuts an imposing figure: massive, with an angular shape, hidden weapons and antennas, and electric-drive propulsion. But underneath the stealthy exterior resides a style of hull that fell out of favor a…

Published: November 29, 2015 at 06:28AM

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Better In or Out? England’s Former Fishing Hub Faces EU Dilemma by REUTERS

By REUTERS

The European Union is not an abstract concept in Grimsby, an English port where many blame EU fishing quotas for destroying livelihoods, but views on whether Britain should quit the club are more nuanced than the decaying fish docks suggest.

Published: November 29, 2015 at 01:22AM

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Saturday, November 28, 2015

Rosetta and Comet Outbound

Not a bright comet, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko now sweeps slowly through planet Earth’s predawn skies near the line-up of planets along the ecliptic. Still, this composite of telescopic images follows the comet’s progress as it moves away from the Sun beyond the orbit of Mars, from late September (left) through late November (far right). Its faint but extensive coma and tails are viewed against the colorful background of stars near the eastern edge of the constellation Leo. A year ago, before its perihelion passage, the comet was less active, though. Then the Rosetta mission’s lander Philae made it’s historic landing, touching down on the surface of the comet’s nucleus. via NASA http://ift.tt/1kYXBok

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Nudging the Boss for Your Performance Review by ROB WALKER

By ROB WALKER

An employee who is supposed to have a performance review every six months hasn’t had one in a year and seeks advice on how to request and prepare for one.

Published: November 28, 2015 at 07:00PM

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Anonymous Hackers Target Iceland Sites in Whaling Protest by REUTERS

By REUTERS

Activist hackers from the Anonymous collective have claimed responsibility for bringing down five government websites in Iceland in a protest against whale-hunting by the North Atlantic nation.

Published: November 28, 2015 at 05:15AM

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Friday, November 27, 2015

Gravity’s Grin

Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity, published 100 years ago this month, predicted the phenomenon of gravitational lensing. And that’s what gives these distant galaxies such a whimsical appearance, seen through the looking glass of X-ray and optical image data from the Chandra and Hubble space telescopes. Nicknamed the Cheshire Cat galaxy group, the group’s two large elliptical galaxies are suggestively framed by arcs. The arcs are optical images of distant background galaxies lensed by the foreground group’s total distribution of gravitational mass dominated by dark matter. In fact the two large elliptical “eye” galaxies represent the brightest members of their own galaxy groups which are merging. Their relative collisional speed of nearly 1,350 kilometers/second heats gas to millions of degrees producing the X-ray glow shown in purple hues. Curiouser about galaxy group mergers? The Cheshire Cat group grins in the constellation Ursa Major, some 4.6 billion light-years away. via NASA http://ift.tt/1HskNFu

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Hawaii-Based Longline Fishermen Allowed to Keep Catching Ahi by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Hawaii-based longline fishermen have exhausted multiple catch limits for ahi this year, but federal regulators said Friday a new agreement will ensure the fish will be available in the state through the holidays.

Published: November 27, 2015 at 05:51PM

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