official science and technology thread

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:57 pm

ghostwhitehorse wrote:

Did you know the initial research done with Alex was at UofA? One of my friends got to work with him back in the early '90s.

https://spectrum.mit.edu/winter-2001/smart-talk/

ghostwhitehorse · Post by **ghostwhitehorse** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 10:18 am

UAEebs86 wrote:
ghostwhitehorse wrote:

Did you know the initial research done with Alex was at UofA? One of my friends got to work with him back in the early '90s.

https://spectrum.mit.edu/winter-2001/smart-talk/

Yep. There was a whole thread (if I remember correctly) back at TOS.

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Sat Aug 01, 2020 8:06 pm

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:39 am

Crew Dragon re-entry and splashdown happening now

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:49 am

Splashdown!

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:49 am

Splashdown complete! That was badass

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Sun Aug 02, 2020 1:17 pm

I thought the same thing!

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Sun Aug 02, 2020 1:49 pm

Dragon also had two drogue chutes just like Apollo before the 4 main chutes deployed.

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Wed Aug 19, 2020 6:05 pm

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Thu Aug 20, 2020 5:51 pm

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Fri Aug 21, 2020 12:46 pm

azgreg · Post by **azgreg** » Wed Aug 26, 2020 4:33 pm

Just got off the phone with my niece who works with NASA. She used to be on the shuttle project and now is on the IXPE project.

https://ixpe.msfc.nasa.gov/?fbclid=IwAR ... vWrYN9dBLE" target="_blank

The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) exploits the polarization state of light from astrophysical sources to provide insight into our understanding of X-ray production in objects such as neutron stars and pulsar wind nebulae, as well as stellar and supermassive black holes.

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Fri Sep 04, 2020 9:48 am

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Wed Sep 09, 2020 7:55 pm

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 3:57 pm

Potentially a massive discovery. Phosphine has been discovered in the atmosphere of Venus, which as far as we're aware, can be only created through biological processes or industrial man made settings.

Phosphine (PH3)only exists on Earth through biological processes (specific microbes in oxygen-free environments can generate it) or through industrial processes where it is made by people. In the astronomy/astrobiology community there are no other known sources for phosphine except in conditions of very extreme temperatures like that in the hot dense inner atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn (where phosphine is seen) or stars. Phosphine, once created, is destroyed over time by various processes, such as reactions with oxygen and hydrogen or by ultraviolet radiation reactions. What this means is that without a source generating phosphine, it should slowly disappear over time and not be detectable. Seeing phosphine in a temperate rocky planet’s atmosphere is therefore considered a very probably biosignature (see this paper, which makes the case for phosphine as a biosignature, but for exoplanets in other solar systems).

https://medium.com/@jamesmason_97462/ph ... 625e0a992e" target="_blank

azcat49 · Post by **azcat49** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 12:29 pm

This project led by our own UofA, will be front and center at 2:00pm AZ time and you can watch it live. Seeing them land on a rock going 63k mph just amazes me.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.scienc ... amples/amp" target="_blank

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 1:31 pm

Wow that should be cool thanks! 2 years to get it back here haha

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 2:05 pm

Should be touching down on the asteroid at like 3 Arizona time. Live stream

https://youtu.be/A6K2dqCoin8" target="_blank

azcat49 · Post by **azcat49** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 2:37 pm

Amazing information. Things are all going to.plan and right now the only problem the team seems to have is with their masks which keep slipping down on their faces.

This will be a decade long project for some of these people. They also think this asteroid could be an earth hitter in about 150 years so they are very interested in it specifically

azcat49 · Post by **azcat49** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 3:16 pm

So from 280m miles away they sent signals and the craft landed, took a sample and fired its rockets to lift off. Just amazing. Lots of love for the university of Arizona.

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Tue Oct 20, 2020 3:16 pm

Touchdown successful and samples are being gathered as we speak

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Sun Oct 25, 2020 1:55 pm

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Mon Oct 26, 2020 10:14 am

https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2020/10 ... dow-future" target="_blank

Could looking through trees be the view to a greener future? Trees replacing the clear pane glass in your windows is not a work of science fiction. It’s happening now. Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) researcher Junyong Zhu in co-collaboration with colleagues from the University of Maryland and University of Colorado, have developed a transparent wood material that may be the window of tomorrow. Researchers found that transparent wood has the potential to outperform glass currently used in construction in nearly every way.

Their findings were published in the Journal of Advanced Functional Materials in their paper, “A Clear, Strong, and Thermally Insulated Transparent Wood for Energy Efficient Windows.”

While glass is the most common material used in window construction it comes with a costly economic and ecological price.Heat easily transfers through glass, especially single pane, and amounts to higher energy bills when it escapes during cold weather and pours in when it’s warm. Glass production in construction also comes with a heavy carbon footprint. Manufacturing emissions are approximately 25,000 metric tons per year.

Now, transparent wood is emerging as one of the most promising materials of the future. Transparent wood is created when wood from the fast-growing, low-density balsa tree is treated to a room temperature, oxidizing bath that bleaches it of nearly all visibility. The wood is then penetrated with a synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), creating a product that is virtually transparent.

The natural cellulose in its wood structure and energy-absorbing polymer filler in transparent wood means that it is far more durable and lighter than glass. It can withstand much stronger impacts than glass and, unlike glass, it bends or splinters instead of shattering.

Switching to transparent wood could prove to be cost efficient as well. It is approximately five times more thermally efficient than glass, cutting energy costs. It is made from a sustainable, renewable resource with low carbon emissions. It’s also compatible with existing industrial processing equipment, making the transition into manufacturing an easy prospect.With all of these potential benefits for consumers, manufacturing and the environment, the case for transparent wood couldn’t be…clearer.

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Mon Oct 26, 2020 10:18 am

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Tue Dec 01, 2020 10:43 am

azgreg · Post by **azgreg** » Wed Dec 09, 2020 3:57 pm

Well, other than the actual landing that was a pretty good test flight.

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Wed Dec 09, 2020 3:59 pm

azgreg wrote: ↑Wed Dec 09, 2020 3:57 pm Well, other than the actual landing that was a pretty good test flight.

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Wed Dec 09, 2020 4:02 pm

Phylek · Post by **Phylek** » Wed Dec 23, 2020 3:14 pm

Surprised there was no talk of the conjunction. Got a few pics through my little scope with my phone.

This was with a camera

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Wed Dec 23, 2020 3:32 pm

Nice pics. I saw better images from people streaming online than I could see with my own eyes.

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Wed Dec 23, 2020 3:33 pm

Phylek wrote: ↑Wed Dec 23, 2020 3:14 pm Surprised there was no talk of the conjunction. Got a few pics through my little scope with my phone.

Nice you got the ring! I just watched it through my binoculars.

What phone/camera did you use?

RichardCranium · Post by **RichardCranium** » Wed Dec 23, 2020 4:39 pm

Good pics.

Its been cloudy in Melbourne every night of the meteor shower and the conjunction.

Its frustrating dammit.

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Wed Dec 23, 2020 4:50 pm

RichardCranium wrote: ↑Wed Dec 23, 2020 4:39 pm Good pics.

Its been cloudy in Melbourne every night of the meteor shower and the conjunction.

Its frustrating dammit.

I have the exact same issue in coastal California in the summer, where every event is fogged in.

Phylek · Post by **Phylek** » Wed Dec 23, 2020 5:02 pm

RichardCranium wrote: ↑Wed Dec 23, 2020 4:39 pm Good pics.

Its been cloudy in Melbourne every night of the meteor shower and the conjunction.

Its frustrating dammit.

Thanks. It's just a little Celestron Nexstar 5SE. I used to have a much larger scope, but have found that I get much more use out of this small portable scope. Lighter, easier setup, and easier storage. Bigger scope doesn't do much if you don't use it. Lol

Camera was an old galaxy S6 for the first three through a 21mm eyepiece and the nebulae shot was a Canon EOS70 using the scope as a telephoto lens.

I also shot some video. Haven't processed that, yet.

azgreg · Post by **azgreg** » Tue Dec 29, 2020 7:07 pm

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Wed Dec 30, 2020 11:53 am

Chicat · Post by **Chicat** » Fri Jan 01, 2021 6:55 am

ghostwhitehorse · Post by **ghostwhitehorse** » Wed Jan 27, 2021 5:00 pm

Hard SF catnip is what that is.

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Wed Jan 27, 2021 5:16 pm

It is theorized that even 7 or 8 star systems could exist as well

Chicat · Post by **Chicat** » Wed Jan 27, 2021 7:03 pm

So a Tatooine sunset is actually possible.

Chicat · Post by **Chicat** » Wed Feb 03, 2021 2:22 pm

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Sat Feb 06, 2021 4:34 pm

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Tue Feb 09, 2021 7:59 am

You can finally watch how the continents drifted into plates in 40 seconds

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Thu Feb 18, 2021 1:50 pm

Perseverance rover is landing on Mars as we speak

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Thu Feb 18, 2021 1:52 pm

ASUHATER! wrote: ↑Thu Feb 18, 2021 1:50 pm Perseverance rover is landing on Mars as we speak

Live right now

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Thu Feb 18, 2021 1:59 pm

Touchdown confirmed, seems like it worked!

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Thu Feb 18, 2021 2:02 pm

Awesome

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Thu Feb 18, 2021 2:07 pm

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Thu Feb 18, 2021 2:17 pm

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