Posts

michael_w_busch, 16 hours ago to random

Today on the arXiv:

Ren et al. 2022, "Background Contamination of the Project Hephaistos Dyson Spheres Candidates" - https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.14921

Cool science. Not aliens.

To be specific: Infrared sources that were suggested to look like Dyson swarms around stars turned out to be confusion with background galaxies.

michael_w_busch, 1 day ago to random

Today in the Planetary Science Journal:

Cheng et al. 2024, "DART Impact Ejecta Plume Evolution: Implications for Dimorphos" - https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/PSJ/ad4153

Describing how the asteroid has very low cohesion.

#DARTMission and also #HeraMIssion, since that will be launching soon now.

michael_w_busch, 3 days ago to random

Article: "This paper is about water management for human habitats on the Moon."

Me: Okay.

Article: Ignores things like the mixture of volatiles at the lunar poles; but spends a page insisting human lunar missions must be military.

Me: Nope.

And the arXiv does not need to host everything submitted to it...

michael_w_busch, 11 days ago to random

twitter.com/?mx=1 is currently useable.

twitter.com is not.

Under Elon Musk's management Twitter evidently cannot even manage to consistently redirect a URL.

Addendum:

When I wrote this over on Twitter, it apparently automatically changed the links in my tweet to the non-functional "x . com" URLs: https://twitter.com/michael_w_busch/status/1791342757883109855

Which is not what I wrote.

If Twitter is going to change what I write without my consent and without cause; this may be it for me posting over there.

michael_w_busch, 12 days ago to northcarolina

Do not allow this or anything remotely like it, #NorthCarolina.

For so many reasons.

Roey Hadar @roeyhadar
2024 May 15

NC #HB237, a BAN ON WEARING MASKS IN PUBLIC, passes Senate 30-15.

The bill removes an exemption allowing masking for medical reasons.

Republican supporters say it will not criminalize mask wearing for health reasons but Democrats and the state's legislative analyst say it does.

michael_w_busch, 15 days ago to Minnesota

Looking out the window at the sunset:

Check your masks and run the air filters, #Minnesota.

(A side effect of having lived in California: Telling the air quality by the color of the Sun).

QT MN Air Quality Index @mpca_aqi
2024 May 12

An air quality alert for Red/Unhealthy for All continues for all of Minnesota. Smoke has reached St Cloud/ Marshall, and will soon reach the Twin Cities. The smoke is following a cold front moving from north to south and will linger overnight. #mnwx #aqi

michael_w_busch, 16 days ago to random

I have come across multiple instances today of people presenting old aurora photos as if they were from the current solar storm.

That is disappointing.

It is also no longer surprising to me, given what happens whenever there is a large meteor bolide.

michael_w_busch, 17 days ago to random

"SpaceX launches a flock of Starlinks it is likely to lose because somebody apparently did not check the weather report."

QT Jonathan McDowell @planet4589
2024 May 10

Launch of @SpaceX Starlink Group 8-2 from Vandenberg at 0430 UTC May 10

michael_w_busch, 18 days ago to random

Busy Saturday coming up on the space weather report: https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ .

michael_w_busch, 19 days ago to Minnesota

A group of Republican state legislators here in #Minnesota want to legalize vehicular homicide: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=senate&f=SF5500&ssn=0&y=2024.

Do not let them remain in government, Minnesotans.

And the MNGOP is now explicitly a pro-murder party.

michael_w_busch, 20 days ago to random

Last chance to suggest a name for a certain rock pile: https://www.hayabusa2.jaxa.jp/en/topics/20231206_CC21Camp_e/

QT 小惑星探査機「はやぶさ２」
@haya2_jaxa
小惑星2001 CC21命名キャンペーンですが、いよいよ明日（5月9日＝2003年に「はやぶさ」が打ち上げられた日）が名前の応募の締め切りになります。この小惑星にふさわしい名前を是非、ご提案ください！

https://www.hayabusa2.jaxa.jp/topics/20231206_CC21Camp/
https://twitter.com/haya2_jaxa/status/1787998846158885254

michael_w_busch, 24 days ago to random

#Chang_e6 is on the way to the Moon.

QT @AndrewJonesSpace
2024 May 3
"China launches Chang’e-6 mission to collect first samples from the moon’s far side" - https://spacenews.com/china-launches-change-6-mission-to-collect-first-samples-from-the-moons-far-side/

michael_w_busch, 29 days ago to random

Some good news.

(Carbon capture is not a thing at scale, so this rule would appear to be the US government finally working to shut down all coal power plants.)

QT PBS NewsHour @NewsHour
2024 April 28

Coal-fired power plants would be forced to capture smokestack emissions or shut down under a rule issued Thursday by the Environmental Protection Agency.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/coal-fired-plants-will-have-to-capture-emissions-or-shut-down-says-strict-new-epa-rule

michael_w_busch, 1 month ago to random

At the #HeraMission workshop today; Ian Carnelli confirms that the mission is on schedule for launch in October: https://www.cosmos.esa.int/documents/11661626/11661645/Hera_April2024_Schedule_V5.pdf/

It is then five months out to fly by Mars before going on to #Didymos & #Dimorphos to follow up on the #DARTMission deflection demonstration.

michael_w_busch, 1 month ago to random

Today in bad science reporting:

Research study: "At high concentrations in a lab vial; polyphenols can deactivate SARS-CoV-2."

Popular news article: Pretends that drinking tea helps with COVID.

Me: "Those are not at all the same thing."

And no excuse is needed to drink tea.