Smartphone fired into space for test

Summary: UK scientists have fired a smartphone into space to prove once and for all if you can be heard screaming in space. One smartphone will play a sound clip of a scream while another phone will record during that time to see if a noise registers.

The mission will also test two new propelling methods. The Warp drive, an water and alcohol based system, and plasma based system. Not many details are known about these but I expect it to be released in due time.

BBC News

Inside of Mars

Summary: The Curiosity rover has successfully drilled a sample of Mars rock which it will analyze in the near future. For details on the chosen sample, click the link below.



NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/news/msl20130220b.html

Smallest planet found

Summary: Scientists have set the record again for smallest exoplanet found.
I don't understand the exact process but they found it using sound waves generated by the planet.


BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21471908

Vulcan moon

Summary: Recently discovered moons of Pluto are currently undergoing the naming process. There has been a public vote that will be taken into account when the official name is chosen. The current leader in the poll is Vulcan, the name of Spock's home planet in the popular "Star Trek" series. The vote for this name is being lead by William Shatner who played Captain Kirk in the same show.
Personally, I am keeping my fingers crossed and am very hopeful that it will be chosen.


BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21526436

Cosmic ray origin confirmed

Summary: The Fermi telescope has confirmed that cosmic rays originate from the star explosions known as supernovae. They actually get accelerated toward Earth not by the explosion itself, but rather by the shock wave created after the explosion. (That's the part that looks beautiful in images!)
Scientists determined this by looking at characteristic particle decays. They know that pions decay into gamma rays which then travel toward Earth. Studying the gamma rays are ideal since they are not affected by magnetic fields and thus will point directly back to their source after being detected by Fermi.



BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21421449

Wonders of Life

If any of you are interested in cool science programs, BBC just began a new series called "Wonders of Life" hosted by Prof. Brian Cox. Even if you are not a biology person, I encourage you to check it out since the host is a particle physicist at CERN. Because of this he continues to sneak in astronomy and physics.

You can find the first three episodes on the BBC iPlayer website.

LHC Shut down

Summary: The LHC has begun its two year shut down for repairs. But don't panic! They still have plenty of data to sort through.



BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21421460
CERN Courier: http://cerncourier.com/cws/article/cern/52361

Asteroid fly-by

Summary: An asteroid is predicted to pass extremely close to Earth. It will actually pass inside our geosynchronous orbit. There a very slim chance that it will cause any harm, though personally I am worried about our satellites.
This is not related to the meteor that landed in Russia today, though it is a curious coincidence.


BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21442863

Meteor crash in Russia

Super quick summary: A large meteor plummeted to the ground in Russia. From what I heard it did not kill anyone though it injured 950 people due to shock waves. Many people described it as a flare of light that was light staring into headlights.

BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21468116

Mass of a black hole

Summary: I should have posted this before but I was trying to come up with a good way to explain this. Instead I will attempt an explanation and you can leave a comment with any questions you have.
Scientists are now using the principles of centripetal motion to calculate the mass of a black hole. Though its not stated in the article the basic equations are F=(Gm1m2)/r^2=(mv^2)/r
I'm assuming that these will be used to find the mass.




BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21259221

Moon base plans

Summary: Architects are working on an inflatable moon base to be assembled on the surface. A space ship will bring the inflatable structure up to the surface where it will be assembled with robots. Then, using the lunar surface, the robots will create a shell using a 3D printer. (Not sure how that will get up there, but that's besides the point.) Im excited to see how these plans progress in the future.


BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21293258