The Fallen

The end of January and beginning of February is always a solemn occasion for the space industry, in that three major NASA tragedies all occurred in different years but in the same week, and it’s important to remember the contributions of the astronauts who risked their lives for our efforts in space exploration:

January 27, 1967... Apollo 1 lost
January 28, 1986... Challenger STS-51L lost
February 1, 2003... Columbia STS-107 lost

Houston, Texas

"They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths. We've grown used to wonders in this century. It's hard to dazzle us. We've grown used to the idea of space, and perhaps we forget we've only just begun. We're still pioneers.

And I want to say to the schoolchildren of America who were watching the coverage of the shuttle's takeoff. I know it is hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery. The future doesn't belong to the faint-hearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we'll continue to follow them.

I've always had great respect for our space program, and what happened today does nothing to diminish it. We'll continue our quest in space. There will be more shuttle flights, more crews and, yes, more volunteers, more civilians, more teachers in space. Nothing ends here; our hopes and journeys continue. I wish I could talk to every man and woman who works for NASA and tell them: "Your dedication and professionalism have moved and impressed us for decades. And we know of your anguish. We share it."

~ President Ronald Reagan
January 28, 1986

Challenger Memorial Park
(Click for entire Gallery)

"In an age when space flight has come to seem almost routine, it is easy to overlook the dangers of travel by rocket, and the difficulties of navigating the fierce outer atmosphere of the Earth. These astronauts knew the dangers, and they faced them willingly, knowing they had a high and noble purpose in life. Because of their courage, and daring, and idealism, we will miss them all the more.

All Americans today are thinking, as well, of the families of these men and women who have been given this sudden shock and grief. You're not alone. Our entire nation grieves with you. And those you loved will always have the respect and gratitude of this country. The cause in which they died will continue. Mankind is led into the darkness beyond our world by the inspiration of discovery and the longing to understand.

Our journey into space will go on."

~ President George W. Bush
February 1, 2003

Columbia Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery

Please take a moment of silence today to remember all those pioneers who have given their lives to science and space exploration. See Pillownaut.com for a complete list of all fallen astronauts and cosmonauts.

Pluto & Friends

Research time! So it started bothering me that I'm fuzzy on the differences, chocolate or otherwise, between Dwarf Planets, Trans-Neptunian Objects, Plutoids, Plutinos, Scattered Disc Objects (SDO), Kuiper Belt Objects (KBO) and Oort Cloud bodies.

I've seen these terms bandied about, but not even the schmoes who coined them can decide what's what. Occasionally, the International Astronomical Union tries to set definitions in stone, but no one ever agrees... so it's like a high-IQ version of Congress without all the fancy neckties and sex scandals.

I initially planned this post as a learning experience for myself, whereby I might clear up confusion for others while researching and writing... alas, all I accomplished was confusing myself more. So, I encourage those interested to examine the linked definitions, and try not to start any fights. I settled for familiarizing myself with the most prominently debated objects, here listed smallest to largest:

1) Ceres
Classification = Former planet, Dwarf Planet, "largest asteroid"??
Approximate Diameter = 950 km
Ceres is the smallest identified "dwarf planet" in the Solar System and the only one in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, accounting for about a third of the belt's overall mass. Discovered in 1801, it was classified as the 8th planet for half a century. The surface of Ceres is a mixture of water, ice, and various minerals, with the possibility of sub-surface liquid oceans. NASA's Dawn space probe, launched in 2007, will reach and explore Ceres in 2015. Ceres was the Roman goddess of growing plants, harvest-time, and maternal love.


2) Quaoar
Classification = Dwarf Planet, TNO (plutoid)
Approximate Diameter = 1260 ± 190 km
Quaoar is a binary system orbiting the Sun in the Kuiper belt, and the very first TNO to be measured directly from pictures taken by the Hubble Space Telescope! It orbits 3.7 billion miles from the Sun with an orbital period of 287 years. Quaoar is named for the creator god of the Tongva, the native peoples from what is now Los Angeles. It has one satellite, Weywot, which may be a collisional ice fragment, though details about its orbit are unknown. The sky god Weywot was the son of Quaoar in Tongva lore.

3) 2007 OR10
Classification = Dwarf Planet "candidate," TNO (plutoid), SDO
Approximate Diameter = 875–1400km
2007 OR10 is currently the largest known Solar System object without an official name, though its discovery team nicknamed it Snow White, as it would have to be very bright to be detected by their survey. 2007 OR10 is on an orbit similar to that of Eris, circling the Sun every 552 years.

4) Orcus
Classification = Dwarf Planet "candidate," Plutino, TNO (plutoid), KBO
Approximate Dimensions = 946.3 +74.1−72.3km
Because their mutual resonance with Neptune constrains Orcus and Pluto to remain on opposite sides of the Sun in otherwise similar motions, Orcus is oft described as the "anti-Pluto." Orcus was a Roman underworld god and punisher of broken oaths, likely adapted from the Greek demon Horkos, the personification of Oaths and son of Eris. Using observations with the Hubble, astronomers detected a satellite, as yet unnamed and circling every 9 days. Scientists suspect that like the Pluto-Charon system, Orcus and its moon are likely tidally locked.

5) Sedna
Classification = Dwarf Planet "candidate," TNO (plutoid), SDO, new DDO?
Approximate Diameter = 1600 – 1800km
Sedna's precise orbital period is unknown, but calculated at between 10-12 thousand years. At the time of its discovery, it was the largest object found since Pluto in 1930, and also the furthest from the Sun. (Eris would prove further, though Sedna's elliptical orbit will overtake it around 2114). Observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope indicate it is nearly as red as Mars. In Inuit mythology, Sedna is goddess of marine animals, who rules the underworld (Adlivun), where souls prepare for travel to the Land of the Moon (Quidlivun).


6) Haumea
Classification = Dwarf Planet, TNO(plutoid)
Calculated ellipsoid shape = 1,960×1,518×996 km
Haumea is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt which orbits the sun every 283 years. Calculations from its light curve suggest elongated ellipsoid shape, with its greatest axis twice as long as its shortest axis. Other indicators show unusually rapid rotation and a surface of crystalline ice. In Polynesian lore, Haumea is the Hawaiian goddess of fertility. Known moons are named after two of her daughters, Hi’iaka, patron goddess of the Orchid Isle, and Namaka, a water spirit.

7) Makemake
Classification = Dwarf Planet, TNO (plutoid), KBO
Approximate Diameter = 1800km
Makemake's discovery team used the codename Easterbunny for the object, because of its discovery shortly after Easter. In accordance with rules for Kuiper Belt Objects, it was named for a creator deity: Makemake was the creator of humanity and god of fertility in the folklore of the Rapanui, natives of Easter Island. Its low average temperature, about −243.2 °C, means its surface is covered with methane, ethane, and possibly nitrogen ices. Makemake orbits the sun every 310 years.

8) Pluto
Classification = Former planet, Dwarf Planet, TNO(plutoid)
Approximate Diameter = 2,390 km
Pluto, the most controversial due to its demotion from planet status, is about one-fifth the mass of Earth's moon. Like other members of the Kuiper Belt, Pluto is composed primarily of rock and ice. It has an eccentric orbit that causes it to periodically to come closer to the Sun than Neptune. Pluto was the Roman God of the underworld, derived from the Greek Ploutōn, another name for Hades. Pluto orbits the sun every 248 years, and has three moons: Charon (the ferryman who carried deceased souls across the River Acheron in Hades), Hydra (the multi-headed serpent who guarded Acheron) and Nix, (after "Nyx," the Greek goddess of darkness and night).

9) Eris
Classification = Dwarf Planet, TNO (plutoid), SDO
Approximate Diameter = 2,500 kmhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Eris is about 27% more massive than Pluto, making it the largest known "dwarf planet" in the Solar System, and the ninth-largest body known to orbit the Sun. Eris has an orbital period of 557 years. Discoverers originally called the object Xena, but the official name became Eris, after the Greek goddess of strife. There is one Eridian moon, Dysnomia, the demon of "lawlessness" … a humorous slant toward the first informal name, as portrayed by Lucy Lawless.

And for an absolutely brain-bending list of all the known TNOs, click here. I want all of these to be represented by chocolate!

Chocolate Planets

Chocolate. Planets. Two of my favorite things. Together. My brain might explode any moment. How did it take someone so long to think of a chocolate solar system? And why isn't it sold in every grocery store?

This beautiful edible set of Chocolate Planets is available in Japan, though created by L'Eclat, a very French-sounding company which actually isn't French; it's a minor confection subsidiary of a Japanese chain of luxury hotels. So, if you want to eat these, you need to win the lottery and go stay in Osaka.

Chocolate Solar System

And, if Google translations are to be trusted, you can read their best guesses in English to review the flavor of each planet. For those of you averse to clicking around through foreign languages other than English, they are:
Mango coconut Mercury, lemon creme Venus, cocoa Earth, orange praline Mars, vanilla Jupiter, rum raisin Saturn, milk Uranus, and cappuccino Neptune.

The flavors have changed for the year 2012, and the site also noted the previous flavors. Somehow, I expected Jupiter to be a cherry swirl.

Chocolate Planets. And it's about time.

Also in 2012, L'Eclat has introduced a brand new line of Chocolate Meteorites! So very clever. Again, Google Translator is a fine tool for reading the entire meteorite page, and the accompanying flavors of the extra-terrestrial space rocks.

These confections are modeled after genuine meteorites found on various continents through the last two centuries. Because we needed chocolates shaped as chondrites. This truly opens up tremendous possibilities, both for culinary novelties and for education. Up to now the cleverest thing I think I've seen are gummy space shuttles, which are sold in various spots in Houston. We need more space foods!

Chocolate Meteorites

However... poor Pluto, utterly unrepresented. Demoted to the kiddie table once again. Perhaps someday we'll see another set with Eris, Pluto, Makemake, Ceres, Sedna and all the other potential dwarf planets! Wouldn't that be a more fun way to learn them?

Space Obameter 2012

It's that time of year again! Today marks the three-year point of Barack Obama's presidency. Since he was sworn in, I have depended upon the dedicated folks at PolitiFact.com to update their Truth-O-Meter with his initial campaign promises.


This subsidiary website of the St. Petersburg Times published a compilation of over 500 statements of intent made by Obama, and is still tracking process on their "Obameter" by rating status as Promise Kept, Promise Broken, Compromise or In The Works. There's good news and bad news for us space enthusiasts…

#150: Code of Conduct for space-faring nations
Stalled in 2009, Compromise in 2010

#331: Re-establish National Aeronautics & Space Council
Stalled in 2009, Promise broken in 2010, No new status in 2011 or 2012

#332: Additional Space Shuttle flight
DONE in 2009, added flight STS-135 flew in 2011

#333: Speed development of next-gen space vehicle
In the Works in 2009 and 2010, still has same status throughout 2011
(So there appears to be some misunderstanding of the word SPEED, here ;)

#334: Use private sector to improve space flight
DONE in 2009, proven in a big way by SpaceX in 2010! Next SpaceX launch set for March 2012.

#335: Work with international allies on ISS
DONE in 2010

#336: Partner to enhance potential of ISS
DONE in 2009

#337: Use ISS for biological + physical research
DONE in 2009

#338: Explore whether ISS can operate after 2016
DONE in 2009. ISS now expected to remain in operation until at least 2020, and potentially to 2028

#339: Support human mission to moon by 2020
Stalled in 2009, Promise broken in 2011... o don't get me started on this one.

#340: Robust R&D on future human/robotic missions
Stalled in 2009, DONE in 2010

#341: Increase spending for long missions [Mars, asteroids]
Stalled in 2009, DONE in 2010

#342: Deploy global climate change monitoring system
DONE in 2009

#343: Improve climate change data records
In the Works in 2009, same status in 2010 and 2011...

#345: Enhance Earth mapping
DONE in 2009

#349: Support commercial access to space
DONE in 2010

#350: Revise regulations for export of aerospace technology
In the Works in 2009, same status in 2010 and 2011...

#351: School programs to highlight space science achievement
DONE in 2010

In 2009, I introduced their initial report card for all space-related promises. In 2010, the first update showed 7 promises kept, 7 in the works and 4 in a holding pattern due to budget restrictions or administrative debates. In 2011 we saw the most change, with nothing in "Stalled" status, and an increase in completions.

On this third annual update, we see 13 space promises kept (with one being considered as a "compromise"), 4 in the works and 2 promises broken. The overall picture has a track record similarly in the green:


Given the state of our government, the state of the economy, the nature of bureaucracy and the massive amount of sabotage this President has withstood in his first term, I wouldn't be at all ashamed to have the same track record!