Space News Update- August 8, 2014 -

In the News

Story 1: Rosetta Arrives at Target Comet

Story 2: Still Hot Inside the Moon - Tidal Heating in Deep Mantle

Story 3: Planet-like Object May Have Spent Its Youth as Hot as a Star

 Departments

The Night SkyISS Sighting Opportunities

Space CalendarNASA-TV Highlights

Food for ThoughtSpace Image of the Week

Rosetta Arrives at Target Comet

Still Hot Inside the Moon - Tidal Heating in Deep Mantle

National Astronomical Observatory of Japan

Planet-like Object May Have Spent Its Youth as Hot as a Star

Monday, August 11Mars is pulling a little closer to Saturn every day. Spot them in the southwest at dusk; Mars is the one on the lower right. Tonight they're still 8° apart. Look farther to the lower right of Mars for twinkly Spica.

Tuesday, August 12Peak Perseid meteor night late tonight. But the Moon, just two days after full, compromises the view. See our article, Perseids vs. Moonlight: Which Will Prevail? 

The Night Sky

Sky & Telescope

Friday, August 8Already you may see an occasional Perseid meteor if you keep an eye on the night sky. The shower's peak night is predicted for next Tuesday (August 12–13), but moonlight will compromise the view all week. Look northeast as the stars come out for W-shaped Cassiopeia. It's still not quite as high as the Big Dipper is in the northwest, but the two are on their way to their dusk balance point week by week. Get a preview of this by checking on them around 11 p.m. (depending on your location).

Saturday, August 9If you're in the Earth's mid-northern latitudes, bright Vega passes close by your zenith around 10 or 11 p.m. (depending on where you live east-west in your time zone). Wherever you are, Deneb always passes the zenith two hours after Vega.

Sunday, August 10Largest full Moon of the year, but not by much. Can you really detect any difference? See our article, The Not Very SuperMoon.

ISS Sighting Opportunities

Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

ISS For Denver:

Date VisibleMax

Height Appears Disappears

Fri Aug 8, 9:35 PM 2 min 15° 15 above NNW 11 above NNE

Fri Aug 8, 11:12 PM 1 min 10° 10 above N 10 above NNE

Sat Aug 9, 8:45 PM 2 min 19° 19 above NNW 11 above NNE

Sat Aug 9, 10:23 PM 1 min 10° 10 above N 10 above NNE

Sun Aug 10, 9:34 PM 1 min 11° 11 above N 10 above NNE

Sun Aug 10, 11:11 PM < 1 min 12° 12 above N 12 above N

Mon Aug 11, 8:44 PM 2 min 13° 13 above NNW 10 above NNE

Mon Aug 11, 10:21 PM 2 min 11° 10 above N 10 above NNE

NASA-TV Highlights

(all times Eastern Daylight Time)

Monday, August 11 9:10 a.m., ISS Expedition 40 In-Flight Event with WJLA-TV, Washington, D.C. and Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman (all channels) Tuesday, August 12 8 a.m., Docking of the European Space Agency’s “Georges Lemaitre” Automated Transfer Vehicle to the ISS (all channels)

Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

Space Calendar

JPL Space Calendar

Aug 08 - Comet 289P/Blanpain Closest Approach To Earth (1.512 AU) Aug 08 - Comet 174P/Echeclus At Opposition (4.934 AU) Aug 08 - 25th Anniversary (1989), STS-28 Launch (Space Shuttle Columbia, DOD Mission) Aug 08 - 45th Anniversary (1969), Zond 7 Launch (Soviet Moon Mission) Aug 09 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #387 (OTM-387) Aug 09 - Comet C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) At Opposition (1.773 AU) Aug 09 - Asteroid 4 Vesta Occults TYC 5555-00069-1 (11.9 Magnitude Star) Aug 09 - Asteroid 246913 Slocum Closest Approach To Earth (1.226 AU) Aug 09 - Asteroid 8734 Warner Closest Approach To Earth (1.801 AU) Aug 09 - Asteroid 11548 Jerrylewis Closest Approach To Earth (2.024 AU) Aug 10 - ISEE-3, Earth Flyby Aug 10 - Comet P/2013 G1 (Kowalski) At Opposition (2.707 AU) Aug 10 - Comet 174P/Echeclus Closest Approach To Earth (4.933 AU) Aug 10 - Asteroid 2000 PN8 Near-Earth Flyby (0.080 AU) Aug 10 - Asteroid 1776 Kuiper Closest Approach To Earth (2.138 AU) Aug 10 - Asteroid 65675 Mohr-Gruber Closest Approach To Earth (2.482 AU) Aug 11 - Comet P/2008 WZ96 (LINEAR) Closest Approach To Earth (1.599 AU) Aug 11 - Comet P/2007 S1 (Zhao) At Opposition (1.977 AU) Aug 11 - Asteroid 8088 Australia Closest Approach To Earth (1.091 AU) Aug 11 - Asteroid 5011 Ptah Closest Approach To Earth (1.362 AU) Aug 11 - Asteroid 3623 Chaplin Closest Approach To Earth (1.631 AU)

Food for Thought

China Is Taking Lunar Mining Seriously

Space Image of the Week

Saturn's Swirling Cloudscape