2012-02-20
post/17946344092
Friendship 7 by NASA on The Commons on Flickr:
On Feb. 20, 1962 at 9:47 am EST, John Glenn launched from Cape Canaveral’s Launch Complex 14 to become the first American to orbit the Earth. In this image, Glenn enters his Friendship 7 capsule with assistance from technicians to begin his historic flight.
Ten months after Gagarin; fifty years ago today.
(Source: nasaimages.org)
2010-10-19
post/1352227388
The Map Room: Darker Than You Think
the original Light Pollution Atlas was systematically biased by the fact that snow was on the ground when the underlying satellite measurements were taken. Lorenz recalculated the light pollution for the U.S. and southern Canada based on snow-free satellite observations, and the whole northern part of the area came out roughly one full zone darker. That means that the original atlas overestimate the skyglow in this area by a factor of three.
Even so, the Bay Area sticks out as a red spot. At least there are some good dark skies within a (relatively) easy drive. (via aemkai’s ffffound)
2010-08-12
post/941042507
Since the presidential coin programme began, the US government has spent an additional $30m to promote them but they still have not taken hold.
“We have tried every major idea that we can come up with, with limited success,” US Mint Director Edmund Moy told a congressional panel last month.
”