Mickey Gubas' Blog: December 2015

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Solstice Sun at Lulworth Cove

A southern exposure and striking symmetry made Lulworth Cove, along the Jurassic Coast of England, planet Earth a beautiful setting during December’s Solstice. Five frames in this dramatic composite view follow the lowest arc of the Sun, from sunrise to sunset, during the shortest day of the year. The solstice arc spans about 103 degrees at this northern latitude. Of course, erosion by wave action has produced the cove’s remarkable shape in the coastal limestone layers. The cove’s narrow entrance is responsible, creating a circular wave diffraction pattern. The wave pattern is made clearer by the low solstice Sun. via NASA http://ift.tt/1OuqcZp

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China Says It Is Building Its Second Aircraft Carrier by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

China is building its second aircraft carrier, this time entirely with domestic technology, its Defense Ministry said Thursday.

Published: December 30, 2015 at 10:18PM

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Wednesday, December 30, 2015

The Fox Fur Nebula

This interstellar canine is formed of cosmic dust and gas interacting with the energetic light and winds from hot young stars. The shape, visual texture, and color, combine to give the region the popular name Fox Fur Nebula. The characteristic blue glow on the left is dust reflecting light from the bright star S Mon, the bright star just below the top edge of the featured image. Textured red and black areas are a combination of the cosmic dust and reddish emission from ionized hydrogen gas. S Mon is part of a young open cluster of stars, NGC 2264, located about 2,500 light years away toward the constellation of the Unicorn (Monoceros). via NASA http://ift.tt/1RRhE5q

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At St. Patrick’s, Sending Off a Fallen Detective, Soldier and Friend by RICK ROJAS

By RICK ROJAS

Crowds gathered for the funeral of Detective Joseph G. Lemm, a member of the New York Police Department killed in a terrorist attack in Afghanistan while on duty with the Air National Guard.

Published: December 30, 2015 at 07:00PM

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How Much Is This Old Thing Worth? by HELEN ROGAN

By HELEN ROGAN

Not as much as my memories.

Published: December 30, 2015 at 08:16AM

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Funeral for Soldier and NYPD Officer Killed in Afghanistan by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Joseph Lemm, a Nebraska country boy turned New York City police detective and U.S. soldier, had Superman’s good looks and superhero bravery, mourners were told Wednesday at the married father of two’s Manhattan funeral, more than a week after he was…

Published: December 30, 2015 at 02:29AM

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A Hawaiian Island Where Everybody Knows Your Name by LYNN ZINSER

By LYNN ZINSER

Molokai more than compensates for a scarcity of swimmable beaches with natural beauty and residents who treat one another like family.

Published: January 2, 2016 at 07:00PM

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Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Dust of the Orion Nebula

What surrounds a hotbed of star formation? In the case of the Orion Nebula — dust. The entire Orion field, located about 1600 light years away, is inundated with intricate and picturesque filaments of dust. Opaque to visible light, dust is created in the outer atmosphere of massive cool stars and expelled by a strong outer wind of particles. The Trapezium and other forming star clusters are embedded in the nebula. The intricate filaments of dust surrounding M42 and M43 appear brown in the featured image, while central glowing gas is highlighted in red. Over the next few million years much of Orion’s dust will be slowly destroyed by the very stars now being formed, or dispersed into the Galaxy. via NASA http://ift.tt/1PuLd9H

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Suicide Claims Another Marine as Holes in Safety Net Persist by DAVE PHILIPPS

By DAVE PHILIPPS

The suicide rate in one Marine regiment is 14 times as high as that for all Americans, but the government’s ability to monitor and treat veterans are halting and incomplete.

Published: December 29, 2015 at 07:00PM

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Historic Town’s Lobster Trap Christmas Tree Is Vandalized by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

A historic Massachusetts fishing city’s popular Christmas tree made of lobster traps has been vandalized.

Published: December 29, 2015 at 12:49PM

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Morocco’s Other Coast Emerges as a Destination by ELAINE GLUSAC

By ELAINE GLUSAC

Morocco’s west coast, a blustery stretch of North Africa, testifies to its colonial past and trading heritage in a series of historic forts and emerging ports.

Published: January 2, 2016 at 07:00PM

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Monday, December 28, 2015

Maritime ‘Repo Men’: A Last Resort for Stolen Ships by IAN URBINA

By IAN URBINA

Thousands of boats are stolen each year, and some are recovered using alcohol, prostitutes, witch doctors and other forms of guile.

Published: December 28, 2015 at 07:00PM

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New England Lobstermen Still Fishing Thanks to Mild Winter by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Many New England lobstermen are still fishing deep into December this year because of unseasonably warm weather and an abundance of the critters, and Maine’s beloved scallops are a little harder to come by as a result.

Published: December 28, 2015 at 05:19AM

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Sunday, December 27, 2015

Doomed Star Eta Carinae

Eta Carinae may be about to explode. But no one knows when – it may be next year, it may be one million years from now. Eta Carinae’s mass – about 100 times greater than our Sun – makes it an excellent candidate for a full blown supernova. Historical records do show that about 150 years ago Eta Carinae underwent an unusual outburst that made it one of the brightest stars in the southern sky. Eta Carinae, in the Keyhole Nebula, is the only star currently thought to emit natural LASER light. This featured image, taken in 1996, brought out new details in the unusual nebula that surrounds this rogue star. Now clearly visible are two distinct lobes, a hot central region, and strange radial streaks. The lobes are filled with lanes of gas and dust which absorb the blue and ultraviolet light emitted near the center. The streaks remain unexplained. via NASA http://ift.tt/1On0iH4

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Saturday, December 26, 2015

Southern Craters and Galaxies

The Henbury craters in the Northern Territory, Australia, planet Earth, are the scars of an impact over 4,000 years old. When an ancient meteorite fragmented into dozens of pieces, the largest made the 180 meter diameter crater whose weathered walls and floor are lit in the foreground of this southern hemisphere nightscape. The vertical panoramic view follows our magnificent Milky Way galaxy stretching above horizon, its rich central starfields cut by obscuring dust clouds. A glance along the galactic plane also reveals Alpha and Beta Centauri and the stars of the Southern Cross. Captured in the region’s spectacular, dark skies, the Small Magellanic Cloud, satellite of the Milky Way, is the bright galaxy to the left. Not the lights of a nearby town, the visible glow on the horizon below it is the Large Magellanic Cloud rising. via NASA http://ift.tt/1OrZQgI