nOt jUst debRis

'tis the season to be jolly

yeah! 'tis the season to be jolly. 'tis the season to be happie!! happy birthday to me! God's gift is the heavens... on the night of my 'day', the skies celebrate too. Time to watch for the night sky on show..

The Geminids Meet Mars…

Written by Tammy Plotner

The evening of December 13th and dawn December 14th of will bring one of the most hauntingly beautiful and mysterious displays of celestial fireworks all year - the Geminid meteor shower crowned by Mars.

The Geminid meteor shower was first noted in 1862 by Robert P. Greg in England, and B. V. Marsh and Prof. Alex C. Twining of the United States in independent studies. The annual appearance of the Geminid stream was weak initially, producing no more than a few per hour, but it has grown in intensity during the last century and a half. By 1877, astronomers had realized this was a new annual shower - producing about 14 meteors per hour. At the turn of the last century, the rate had increased to over 20; and by the 1930s, up to 70 per hour. Only ten years ago observers recorded an outstanding 110 per hour during a moonless night… And the Moon on this night will soon set leaving brilliant Mars to lead the way!

So why are the Geminids such a mystery? Most meteor showers are historic - documented and recorded for hundreds of years - and we know them as originating with cometary debris. But when astronomers began looking for the Geminids' parent comet, they found none. It wasn't until October 11, 1983 that Simon Green and John K. Davies, using data from NASA's Infrared Astronomical Satellite, detected an object (confirmed the next night by Charles Kowal) that matched the orbit of the Geminid meteoroid stream. But this was no comet, it was an asteroid - in fact, a 14th magnitude asteroid which is passing Earth tonight from a distance of less than 18 million kilometers! Now considered a Potential Hazardous Asteroid (PHA), 3200 Phaeton comes within 3.2 million kilometers of Earth's orbit about every 17 months. You can locate Phaeton on the night of the 13/14th about 02:00:00 UT using this finderchart!

Originally designated as 1983 TB, but later renamed 3200 Phaethon, this apparently rocky solar system member has a highly elliptical orbit that places it within 0.15 AU of the Sun during every solar system tour. But asteroids can't fragment like a comet - or can they? The original hypothesis was that since Phaethon's orbit passes through the asteroid belt, it may have collided with one or more asteroids, creating rocky debris. This sounded good, but the more we studied the more we realized the meteoroid "path" occurred when Phaethon neared the Sun. So now our asteroid is behaving like a comet, yet it doesn't develop a tail.

So what exactly is this "thing?" Well, we do know that 5.1 kilometer diameter Phaethon orbits like a comet, yet has the spectral signature of an asteroid. By studying photographs of the meteor showers, scientists have determined that the meteors are denser than cometary material, yet not as dense as asteroid fragments. This leads them to believe Phaethon is probably an extinct comet which has gathered a thick layer of interplanetary dust during its travels, yet retains the ice-like nucleus. Until we are able to take physical samples of this "mystery," we may never fully understand what Phaethon is, but we can fully appreciate the annual display it produces!

Thanks to the wide path of the stream, folks the world over get an opportunity to enjoy the show of the Geminids and Mars. The traditional peak time is tonight as soon as the constellation of Gemini appears, around mid-evening. The radiant for the shower is near the bright star Castor - less than a handspan northeast of Mars - but meteors can originate from many points in the sky. From around 2 AM tonight until dawn (when our local sky window is aimed directly into the stream) it is possible to see about one "shooting star" every 30 seconds. The most successful of observing nights are ones where you are comfortable, so be sure to use a reclining chair or pad on the ground while looking up… And dress warmly! Please get away from light sources when possible - it will triple the amount of meteors you see. Enjoy the incredible and mysterious Geminids and Mars!

www.universetoday.com

things iMiss

for just the two months that i had a job, there were things that i missed. lots of 'em, even way before i had my thesis, there were already lots of changes, there were already lots of things that i missed.

spending time with just strumming the guitar the whole day on a weekend and learning to play a new song; staying up the roof do sky scanning, locating stars, planets, constellation, whenever i wanted to; jamming with buns and melmel in school, the 'underneath it all' and the 'to love somebody' days; the concerts and jamming in the apartment with master chucky, the recordings (whehe!); jammings with joseph on flute, anto on keyboards, me on guitar -- doing medleys on Canon; anto's classical plays (bwehehe); the sleepless nights doing paperworks for the documentation, "making the project work"; getting electrocuted/grounded with the circuitries; busting expensive PICs; having breakfasts without sleep -- "patay" days. in short i missed the thesis days, i missed everything about school... i missed everybody in college --my friends, esp the AGTA people. haaayy!i missed the megaphone, chatterine(pish!),  chicken feet, the black book days and all...

i just couldn't help but smile on all these. these mem'ries are all worth keeping, though not all are pleasant, though some brought heartaches, yet, they're still worthwhile since the heart-breaking parts are the ones that makes all these worth remembering. these are the ones that taught me lessons. taught me to be me. taught me to be stronger.

people do miss 'things' because there are already changes. people do miss 'things' because they are already into "new situations/routine". miss 'things' because of the change that they are already into. probably something that they've always wanted or probably, not.. Either way, they miss 'things' because they have to move on...

i dont socialize?

just this one night, i took the Multiple Intellegence Test of Tickle.com...
Just as i expected, I'm high on Spatial Intellegence but i haven't realized that I'm very very very low on Social Intellegence.

Since the start of vacation, I've always been thinking what im gonna do with my time, and always telling my self to watch series --HEROES, LOST, BLEACH, PRINCESS HOURS, etc... but i didn't maybe because i didn't have my PC repaired. But maybe more on --i'm not into series. See, i borrowed from my boyfriend (uuyyy!hehe..) a Korean Series, FullHouse, but i havent finished it -yet.  Surprisingly, my mom and my aunt did finished ahead of me.whew!

Well, I've got other plans in my head and tis im gonna do, as suggested by Tickle: (wakokokok)

1. jot down my dreams
2. go into photography as hobby
3. learn to disagree when my instincts say so
4. practice more on programming, specifically, C  ;)
5. land on eTelecare! hehehe...

the day i learned -->demoted pluto

the start of my weekend is really s**tty!! i would go urrrgghhh!! i can't talk to anybody and blog come in handy. since yesterday, i've been teary with anger.. it would just happen that no matter how you do all your best, things could still go messy. no not just messy --filthier you can't imagine.  Times really would come when there are plenty of people that surrounds you yet no one can remind you that "all these shall pass".. my feet sores, i can't go home, i can't eat, i can't go somewhere else til i realized, i'm trapped. im bursting, i can feel.i would just cry and just call to God to ask for his wisdom to go through all these. i couldn't imagine myself, what might happen if not for Him. i could have gone crazy... still, life goes on outside...

buns told me today that no more pluto. been quite a while since i visited the net =( missed blog-blogging. was checking and it really is. thought its going to turn out to keep a dozen planets. so it was decided by the IAU last August 24 to demote Pluto as a planet and just simply name it as dwarf planet. So little children of today will only memorize 8 planets. My Very Elusive MJ Sat Under Nine. hahaha.. such a fool!

tenth planet??

with advancement in technologies, astronomical orgs are able to send missions to destinations even outside the solar system, though, recently these missions are still on their way.

but anyway (hehe..), it has been declared that Pluto is our ninth planet, and been discovered that it has 2 'moons' and were named nix and hydra. (they are goddessess in greek myth, surely). But then Xena's discovery doubted the planethood of Pluto. Xena is said to be more bigger than Pluto, so, it is now being debated by astronomers and astronomy entusiasts alike wether to add Xena to the list or drop pluto to just simply an asteroid/planetoid. It is said that it'll be decided by the IAU(international astronomical union)this August and by September, lil children will have to memorize just 8 planets or maybe 1 more to the present nines.

some debators suggest to just define what a PLANET really is. well, drawing a line in the sand is a pretty proper thing to be done. but further then, defining "these heavenly bodies" would lead a perfectly infinite names if they were to be named. hhuhu. taxonomy in astronomy. another suggestment, which to me would be just right. according to him, we are in a premature period to decide on this, that, we should wait for further facts. a mission is on its way, although it will take decades for it to reach the area but it would definitely hard facts that are there. why decide when we dont have all the facts?, he says.. and i think he's practically right. why decide now and redo everything later... ?

that thing they called CONSTANT CHANGE

CHANGE, they say, the only constant. i agree. it's ceaseles, in addition. seen several of one kind of it today. the kind I never expected i see from these people. of course, these people aren't related. they are different people i met from different times in my life. i cherished them all in different ways. and these changes..  the change i believed that would never ever happen. the change i hate to believe. damn! i just couldn't believe because i never seen/judged them as such persons. would make me wonder of what i've done or of what i didn't do to make these people change as such...

I'm not new to this one kind of change. it happens all the time. it happens to everyone. it's common, so to speak. beyond doubt. it's just that it's too much change for one day...it's stunning, really. and very odd, indeed! but there's nothing more i could do. for now, all i could do is wonder and hope that i would bother to ask them why.. it's either this or, just let it be, anyways, it's their decision. there are reasons and there could be none.  somehow, all i could do is respect... and it wouldn't hurt any longer.. maybe.

i am jittery

this is it! this gonna be my last year, God help me... I'll be having my thesis, and this is the highlight of being a Computer Engineering student. I'm kind of anxious of what awaits. inevitable.

space race to space city

willing to lose $20million dollars for a space adventure? wait..wait.. wait.. SPACE ADVENTURE?!#$%^&*(#@@%$ 20million dollar? huwwaahh! walay ma-lost kay wala ta ana! wala gni ta dinhi maski 20dollar(4get the "million")!hikhikhik...btw, kidding aside, sounds impossible, aight? really sounds like a sci-fic film.. but heck, no! not anymore.. since 2001, there were already several trips to the International Space Station made by the wickedly wealthy. With Dennis Tito as the first one, he was aboard the antari X-prize winner, spaceship one(virgin galactic's entry) last 2004. Lance ????(that lance from N'Sync) could have been the 3rd space tourist but he failed to shell out the amount of money needed for the 1-week visit to ISS. really luxurious... can't imagine where they get the money. anyway, most of these people are businessmen. so, i should forget the wondering!hehhe... =)

I could imagine, 20 years from now, people will be travelling earth to mars, or maybe earth to the moon.. well, these are the probable space tourist destinations, not only the ISS. more feasibly, the moon would have the most frequent visits. i heard that there's this research or sumthing that oxygen can be extracted from the moon's 'soil'.. amazingly amazing people! there'll be solar system cruise, other space destinations will rise, orbital cities will be built, and there'll be spaceports around, spacewalk would be a popular sport and maybe some zero-G sports will replace football.hehehe... It's been reported that Hilton Hotels have interests in this space tourism, and whoohooo! there'll be space hotels! There'll be space-passports, then fashion accessories would include oxygen tanks, and space googles. There's even this planned space elevator, with a cable as its heart. just imagine, a cable from earth runs to somewhere in space..???!@# [pips, try reading that article from SPECTRUM magazine, august 2005 edition, available at the eng'g library sa school... you'll be more than amazed!] then one would say! "oh, i left my purse on earth" wild na kaau! hehheehehe.. =)  hope i could go too.. nah! in my dreams.. but who knows? i'll get the chance... hehhe... if certain brand ads states "...get the chance to win a trip to Disneyland Hongkong".  "...get the chance to win a trip to space city" isn't that close, but isn't impossible either.waaaa.. wala man gni diay ko kadaog og trip to disneyland, to space pa! waaaa... bad! bad! bad!hehehe... here i go again. but let's just wait and see how this space travel commercialization will go..

BROKEN COMET: 73P disintegrated

Comets are the snow-birds of the solar system; living most of their lives in the dark outer reaches then taking a notion, due to a variety of gravitational influences, to visit the warmer climes near the Sun, which they also eccentrically orbit. In the process of drawing near the inner solar system, they let their hair down to blow in the solar wind (the word comet means "hairy star" in many languishes) like many pleasure-seeking tourists. In the past, they were regarded as harbingers of misfortune and, in fact, our word "disaster" comes from the ancient belief in the calamitous influence of evil ("dis") stars ("astra"). Until slightly more than one hundred years ago, mankind lit their nights by burning wax, oils and gases so that the sky was very black after sunset except, as today, in large cities. Therefore, comets that suddenly erupted in the heavens appeared much more dazzling than they do now - beautiful, mysterious and, to some, terrifying!

More than 10 years ago, Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 unexpectedly split apart into 3 separate pieces. Now these cometary fragments are going to fly past the Earth, and astronomers will get a closer view than they've had in 20 years - back when the fragments were a single object. The fragments will get relatively close, passing within 10 million km (6 million miles), but they won't get very bright, unfortunately. It'll take dark skies and binoculars to see much more than a blurry smudge in the sky. Recently, the comet had ejected a new fragment just a few days ago, and now this fragment has broken into multiple pieces too. Astronomers aren't sure just how many pieces the comet will eventually break into.

UNIVERSE TODAY

SUMMER 2006

the beginning of my summer is really fun. although (unfortunately) wala ko nkakuyog sa tour, nalingaw ra sad ko...=)  With taz around, the family's complete again. we were always laffin', mura mi'g nkig kuyog og 5-year old kid! always kidding. always fooling. always joking. hahaaayy!

that's the start of it, i just can't scribble everything that went.  the 1 week was a very long one.  surely, my summer will be spent in school.. so what follows in the so-called "summer vacation" wouldn't be fun at the beach! waaaa... poor me. my family might go for a vacation, and i will be left at home --alone! again...