Derrick Pitts
A weekly discussion of what's new and interesting in astronomy with astronomer Derrick Pitts and WHYY FM's Dave Heller every Monday evening at 6:20 p.m.
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This Week's Show 
Getting closer to the "Big Bang"November 16, 2009 Astronomers discover some of the oldest galaxies to date, a mere 787 million years after the "Big Bang." But remember distance is time, so astronomers may only be seeing remnants of what once was. Much like the classic sci-fi movie Star Wars when Luke looks out at the two setting suns, more clues have been discovered about a binary system, thus indicating somewhere in the galaxy there might be a pair of stars with their own set of planets. Also Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter gives us a glimpse of the Apollo 11 landing site - a remarkable image to see. Image credit: Hubblesite.org Previously
Could your next vacation be in space?November 9, 2009 It wasn't long ago that commercial space exploration was considered out of reach, but now companies like Google are upping the ante. Google is offering a $30 million dollar prize for the first company to come up with a launch vehicle that can go to the moon, traverse the surface, and send back pictures of the experience. There is even a space hotel scheduled to open in 2012, but it will cost a lot more than your average getaway. Also, the Messenger mission gleans new information from Mercury. Image credit: Reuters 
Ares I launch a success!November 2, 2009 It's finally time to push the clocks back an hour and grab an extra hour of sleep, but what's behind this change in daylight? It has to do with being in the northern part of the Earth. Those living nearer to the equator won't see so much change in daylight. After a couple of weather delays Ares I launched on Wednesday successfully. Although this fight was only 5 minutes long the successful launch means we can look forward to the launch vehicle serving as a booster system in the future for cargo or astronauts to get to International Space Station, the moon or even Mars. Also, take a look at many planets in the night sky this week and on Tuesday night the moon will be passing in front of the star cluster Pleiades, also known as Seven Sisters. Image Credit: NASA Don't forget to check out "No Night without a Telescope" going on at area universities. For more information visit: haverford.edu/iya2009/ 
32 Exoplanets DiscoveredOctober 26, 2009 Thirty-two planets have been discovered beyond our solar system, which is a step forward in the search for planets like earth. Don't forget to join a planet party near you to view the many planets in the night sky this week. Derrick Pitts gives you tips on how to view these objects burning brighter than anything else in the night sky. Also this week will be the first launch of the Ares I-X launch vehicle, a critical test due to how the launch components have been integrated. 
Enormous new ring discovered around SaturnOctober 19, 2009 An enormous ring has been discovered around Saturn by the Spitzer space telescope. The discovery helped solve a long standing mystery about one of Saturn's moons. Also, a near miss for earth as an asteroid once thought to be on a collision coarse with earth in 2029 will now have at least an 18,000 mile gap between its passage and earth. 18,000 miles is still a small distance in celestial terms, but the concern seems to be lessening. See images of Saturn's Ring from the Spitzer space telescope at spitzer.caltech.edu |
Podcast Interview
Award-winning science journalist and space historian Andrew Chaikin talks with Derrick Pitts, Chief Astronomer at the Franklin Institute and WHYY's Dave Heller about the moon, mars and space exploration. Astronomy ClubsCheck out these local area astronomy clubs for a star party near you: |
