| Piú viste - Artistic Views of the Solar System |
Titan_s Rain~0.jpgTitan's "Rain"...88 visiteDa "NASA - Picture of the Day" del 2 Agosto 2006:"Might it rain cold methane on Saturn's Titan? Recent analyses of measurements taken by the Huygen's probe that landed on Titan in 2005, January, indicate that the atmosphere is actually saturated with methane at a height of about 8 Km. Combined with observations of a damp surface and lakes near the Poles, some astrobiologists conclude that at least a methane drizzle is common on parts of Titan. Other astrobiologists reported computer models of the clouded moon that indicate that violent methane storms might even occur, complete with flash floods carving channels in the landscape. The later scenario is depicted in the above drawing of Titan. Lighting, as also depicted above, might well exist on Titan but has not been proven. The findings increase speculation that a wet Titanian surface might be hospitable to unusual forms of life".
Attenzione all'ultima frase: "Queste scoperte fanno crescere (la validità) di una ipotesi speculativa secondo cui la superficie di Titano, laddove effettivamente umida, potrebbe essere idonea ad ospitare "inusuali" forme di Vita".
Il significato e la portata di questa frase sono evidenti e di valore storico, ma c'è una domanda che ci incuriosisce e, in fondo, un pò ci turba: cosa intende la NASA quando parla di "unusual life forms"?...
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WW31.jpg1998-WW3187 visiteThis is an artist's view of a Kuiper Belt binary object, called 1998 WW31. These icy bodies orbit each other at the fringe of our Solar System.
The illustration depicts one member of the duo in the foreground; its companion - the dark, round object - is in the background. The objects are about the same size. Both are illuminated from behind by the Sun [the white dot at upper left]. Like other Kuiper Belt objects, this duo orbits the Sun, completing a circuit every 301 years while Pluto orbits the Sun every 248 years.
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Mars-C.jpgMars, NOW...87 visitenessun commento
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Voyagers-Heliosphere4b.jpgThe Voyagers at the "Final Frontier"85 visiteOriginal caption:"In the summer of 1989, NASA's Voyager 2 became the first spacecraft to observe the planet Neptune, its final planetary target. Passing about 4.950 Km (about 3.000 miles) above Neptune's North Pole, Voyager 2 made its closest approach to any planet since leaving Earth 12 years before. Five hours later, Voyager 2 passed about 40.000 Km (about 25.000 miles) from Neptune's largest moon, Triton, the last solid body the spacecraft had an opportunity to study".
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Saturn-Orbit-ins-PIA03883_modest.jpgCassini's Orbital Insertion83 visitenessun commento
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s going to Titan-IMG000616-br500.jpgDown to Titan!82 visiteCaption NASA originale:"This artist's conception of the Cassini orbiter shows the Huygens probe separating to enter Titan's atmosphere. After separation, the probe drifts for about 3 weeks until reaching its destination, Titan. Equipped with a variety of scientific sensors, the Huygens probe will spend 2-2,5 hours (maybe more) descending through Titan's dense, murky atmosphere of nitrogen and carbon-based molecules, beaming its findings to the distant Cassini orbiter overhead. The probe could continue to relay information for up to 30 minutes after it lands on Titan's frigid surface, after which the orbiter passes beneath the horizon as seen from the probe".
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Spirit2-19-DDM-04-Rover-A113R1.jpgI like to "roll" on Mars!!!78 visiteUn'interpretazione "artistica" (ma fortemente legata alla realtà fattuale) del Rover Spirit mentre cammina (anzi: rolls...) sulla superficie di Gusaev Crater - Marte.
E' un disegno, naturalmente, ma estremamente bello e suggestivo il quale ci ricorda, come d'altronde noi abbiamo già fatto tantissime volte, che la Scienza non è solo calcolo e razionalità: la Scienza, in quanto tale, è Arte!...
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Venus fly-by.jpgCassini-Huygens during the Venus fly-by76 visitenessun commento
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UB-313.jpgUB 313: is this the "10th Planet"?76 visiteWhat do you call an outer Solar System object that is larger than Pluto? Nobody is yet sure, but the question arose recently when 2003 UB313, an object currently twice as far out as Pluto and not in the plane with the rest of the Planets, was verified recently to be 30% wider than Pluto. UB313's size was estimated (of course in a VERY approximate way!) by measuring how much infrared light this celestial body emits. Previous size estimates were based only on visible light and greatly affected by how reflective the object is.
Whether 2003 UB313 is officially declared a planet will be answered shortly by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
In the above picture, a scientific artist has imagined UB313 in its distant orbit around the Sun, coupled with a hypothetical moon.
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030-OPP-SOL209.jpgOver the Walls of Endurance (1)...75 visiteIpotesi di alba Marziana con il Sole capace di esprimere la stessa luminosità che è percepibile dalla Terra.
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Unknown_Centaur.JPGUnknown Centaur75 visitenessun commentoMareKromium
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SchiaparelliCrater-processed.jpgA thick layer of dust over Schiaparelli Crater74 visitenessun commentoMareKromium
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