New and Noteworthy

Sharing Resources

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:40:36 GMT

Can't get to the LPI to borrow that unique resource you found in our library catalog? Borrow it through your local library, using interlibrary loan (ILL). We are part of OCLC, a 9,100-library network of libraries that share resources. Simply bring the citation to your library and request an ILL. The code for the Lunar and Planetary Institute in OCLC is LPZ.

Astronomy, God, and the Search for Elegance

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:39:54 GMT

Inquisitive adults are invited to attend the presentation Astronomy, God, and the Search for Elegance by Guy Consolmagno, S.J. This free public presentation on November 19 is part of the Cosmic Exploration Speaker Series at the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI). Consolmagno's presentation is the first in this year's theme, "The search for meaning, for planets, for life."

LPI's Cosmic Exploration presentation begins at 7:30 p.m., and will be followed by a light reception. No reservation is necessary.

LPI Earth and Space Science News

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:39:32 GMT

The LPI Earth and Space Science News is now available both on our website, and also through a regularly updated RSS feed to which you can subscribe.

This newsletter briefly highlights Earth and space science education workshops, opportunities, events, resources, and news.

Included in this issue:

Link to the upcoming launch of an infrared telescope, a meteor shower, and winter solstice in Calendar
Learn about Earth science and astronomy educator workshops online, at conferences, at McDonald Observatory, and in select cities nationally at Workshops and Courses
Find out about this week's MyMoon Webcast with a poet, an online climate change seminar, a public lecture at LPI in Houston, a national conference on climate literacy, and the Cosmic Reflection concert in Events
Discover student competitions, teacher grants, nominations for awards, and NOAA Teacher at Sea program in Opportunities
Connect to new constellation posters, an online space calendar, an article on the 2012 doomsday hoax, online books and classroom magazines in Resources
Read about new planets discovered and the chemistry for life, a band of energized atoms at the edge of the solar system, the LCROSS impact, and a supersized ring around Saturn in Mission News and Science

LPI's Now on Facebook

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:52:47 GMT

The Lunar and Planetary Institute now has a Facebook page. Some recent messages include:

Lunar Intern application deadline is January 22, 2010
Lunar and Planetary Institute Paul Schenk releases video of Tohil Mons, Io
Weekend of fun takes place at NASA Johnson Space Center October 23 through October 25. NASA Open House on Saturday October 24.
Lunar and Planetary Institute is looking for Post Doctoral Fellows in Planetary Mapping, Planetary Petrology, and Lunar Surface Geology.

We also have one for the 41st Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.

Videos of Scientists

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:52:26 GMT

Make Magazine has made available video discussions with scientists about their fascination with science.

MAKE magazine announces a new series of educational and inspirational video interviews that are available at ElementsOfHumanity.com. These interviews of working scientists and technologists were recorded at SciFoo, an unstructured conference on Science and Technology organized this past summer by O'Reilly Media along with Nature Magazine and Google.
In an ongoing effort to get more students interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), Dale Dougherty, founding editor and publisher of MAKE, sought to uncover each person's own fascination with science and how that has shaped their life's work. "It is important to see that scientists are human and they have lots of passion for what they do. They connect their own personal interests to work they enjoy doing and which benefits others," says Dougherty.

Augustine Report

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:51:59 GMT

NASA has announced the Augustine Report is now available.

The Review of U.S. Human Space Flight Plans Committee, headed by Norman Augustine, has provided its final report to NASA and Dr. John Holdren, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). The report is available on the committee's Web site.
The report provides the nation and Administration with a thoughtful and comprehensive review of where the nation has been and where we could be headed in low Earth orbit and beyond. The report will assist NASA and America as we move forward with human exploration of space.
NASA is working with OSTP, the Office of Management and Budget, and other offices from the Executive Office of the President on its strategy to review and evaluate the options put forth by the committee. Ultimately, the President will make the final decision for the direction of NASA and human space flight activities.
NASA will be engaged in extensive and deliberate discussions on the work of the Augustine Committee and the ultimate recommendations to be made to the President. In the meantime, NASA remains focused on its most important current challenge -- safely flying out the remaining shuttle manifest so that we can make as smooth as possible a transition to our follow-on program.

NASA App for the iPhone

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:51:35 GMT

NASA has released an application for the iPhone.

The New Media Team at NASA Ames Research Center has developed the first NASA iPhone application to deliver up-to-the-minute NASA content directly from Agency sources in one easy-to-use mobile platform. The software makes extensive use of built-in iPhone features and usability to offer NASA information in a clear and intuitive way. The application aggregates and delivers a compelling range of dynamically updated information, images and video links. The NASA App is available free of charge on the App Store from Apple directly to the iPhone and iPod Touch or within iTunes.

MyMoon

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:38:23 GMT

MyMoon is created for (and with) the Net Generation; lunar scientists, educators, engineers, artists, storytellers, and others provide interactive information about the Moon and opportunities for you to be involved. Keep checking back to see what's new; we'll update the site regularly with your help. Join us through on-line and Web-conferenced discussions, submit video, art, stories, and more in competitions, vote on your favorites, and share your thoughts.

Contests
We frequently have fun contests; occasionally, prizes are involved. If you don't like the contest, suggest a new one.

Famous Last Words
New MyMoon contest. What were LCROSS's last words? Click on the yellow poster with the yellow moon. What were LCROSS's last words just before it slammed into the Moon on October 9th? Tell us what LCROSS would have said just before its demise and you could win a miniature Moon globe. Submissions accepted until October 23, 2009, and will be posted on the MyMoon Facebook group.
Voting Open for LCROSS Crater Name
Last contest was to submit names for the newly-created LCROSS crater; submissions are closed and now everyone's welcome to vote on their favorite. The polls are open. Let's be democratic people.

Free Public Webcasts
Join us every other week at 8 pm Eastern (5 pm Pacific) as MyMoon hosts webcasts featuring lunar scientists, authors, and artists. Each presenter speaks about themselves for a few minutes then the rest of the conversation is up to you. Check the MyMoon website for more information on connecting to webcasts.

Schedule of Upcoming MyMoon Webcast Speakers:

October 21, 2009 8 - 9 pm EDT: Dr. Tony Colaprete, Principal Investigator of the LCROSS mission. Tony will give us an update on the latest results from the LCROSS impact of the Moon.

November 4, 2009 8 - 9 pm EDT: Marjory Wentworth, Poet Laureate of South Carolina. Marjory will discuss the influence the Moon has had on her poetry.

November 18, 2009 8 - 9 pm EDT: Dr. Sarah Noble, lunar geologist. Our first scientist-artist. Sarah will discuss the relationship between science and art in general and how her science affects her art in particular.

December 2, 2009 8 - 9 pm EDT: Dr. Mark Sykes, planetary scientist/space policy expert. Mark will discuss an often over-looked option for the direction of the future of the U.S. Space program.

Cassini Data Release

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:37:58 GMT

Cassini Release 19 data is available from the NASA Planetary Data System (PDS) on the Imaging Node website. The delivery covers the period October 1, 2008 through December 31, 2008 and includes the Imaging Science System (ISS) volumes coiss_2049, coiss_2050 and coiss_2051; Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) volumes covims_0031 and covims_0032; and Radar volumes CORADR_168 - CORADA_0178.

Omeka

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:37:38 GMT

Okema 1.1 has been released.

Omeka is a free and open source collections based web-based publishing platform for scholars, librarians, archivists, museum professionals, educators, and cultural enthusiasts. Its “five-minute setup” makes launching an online exhibition as easy as launching a blog. Omeka is designed with non-IT specialists in mind, allowing users to focus on content and interpretation rather than programming. It brings Web 2.0 technologies and approaches to academic and cultural websites to foster user interaction and participation. It makes top-shelf design easy with a simple and flexible templating system. Its robust open-source developer and user communities underwrite Omeka’s stability and sustainability.

LowFlyingRocks

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:37:13 GMT

LowFlyingRocks is a Twitter account that mentions every near earth object that passes within 0.2AU of Earth.

iPhone Applications

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:19:54 GMT

Keep the Moon on your iPhone with the Moon Globe application,

Discover Earth's Moon with amazing 3D graphics and touch navigation. Moon Globe shows you how the Moon appears today, and lets you zoom in like a telescope with up to 500x magnification. Switch to globe mode, and you can spin above the surface, taking in the hidden far side, and look over the limb to see Earth in the distance. Surface features and landed spacecraft are labelled in an elegant 3D tag cloud. Adjust the time dynamically with on screen controls, and watch the sunlight move over the terrain. It even shows you where the Moon and Sun are in the sky at your location, with its dynamic sky compass.

It received a 5 star rating on the The Planetary Society Blog.

AIP has announced an application, iResearch, to search, display and save articles from their publications.

iResearch is an offline e-reader that enables users to save PDF files locally to their device and view them offline without a Wifi or cellular connection. Users navigate through the journals, the volumes and issues to select an article they wish to read. A user will be automatically logged in with their institutional IP Address if they are online within a qualifying address range, or he/she can enter their username/password to obtain access. When the PDF has been loaded to the device the user can select to save the file locally onto the iPhone/iPod touch. Once the PDF is saved locally the user can read the article off-line.

Lava Flows in Daedalia Planum

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:19:25 GMT

Newly released Mars images taken by the HRSC on Mars Express, Lava flows in Daedalia Planum.The High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) operated by the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) on board the European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter imaged Daedalia Planum, a sparsely cratered, untextured plain on the Red Planet, featuring solidified lava flows of varying ages.

Space Science Books for Children

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:18:52 GMT

NASA's Space Place offers five online children's books with animated page turning. PDF versions are also available for download.

Professor Starr's Dream Trip: Or, How a Little Technology Goes a Long Way
Lucy's Planet Hunt: Or, how to see things in a different light
What's in Space?
Supercool Space Tools!
The First Annual Planet Awards