Potential Spectacular light show will wow from some locales
If you always wanted to see the aurora borealis, a.k.a. the northern lights but didn’t have time to take a voyage to Iceland, Alaska or the North Pole, tonight will be your chance.
December 2020 is shaping up to be a celestial bonanza. On the 23rd we will get the “Great Conjunction” also known as the Christmas Star, while the 14th there will be a solar eclipse. And as above, tonight we get the light show of a lifetime, conditions permitting. Not to mention the best meteor shower of the year.
The Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), issued, for the nights of Wednesday, December 9, and Thursday, December 10, G1, G2, and G3 geomagnetic storm watches which indicate the possibility of the aurora borealis being visible. If these solar activity surges are as predicted, folks could have a view as far south as parts of northern Illinois and Indiana, along withPennsylvania, as well as various other locations across the nation.
In the best case scenario which is a G3 magnetic event, some light may be visible in northern Idaho, a small portion of Northern Illinois and Indiana, northern Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, northern Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, in addition to all of Alaska and Canada. No surprise on the Canada and Alaska part.
In the case that the event only reaches G1 magnitude, the list would be similar but not nearly as long.
The SWPC data corresponds to a G1-3 alert with a possible event beginning at 5 pm ET on the evening of December 9, with possible continuation until 5 am on December 10. It is safe to view with the naked eye and photograph.
The disclaimer is that these are only predictions and, naturally you would need to be in a cloud free weather setting for the lights to manifest to your view brightly enough to be seen.
Academy Award winner George Clooney has taken on the ambitious task of both producing and starring in the Netflix movie “The Midnight Sky”. The film is based and adapted off the science fiction novel by Lily Brooks-Dalton called “Good Morning, Midnight”.
The movie, which has already been delivered as a crowdpleaser among those that viewed the film early, has garnered talks that Clooney is in line for multiple Oscar category nominations; for best director and picture. Clooney’s fellow cast include: Felicity Jones and David Oyelowo.
Hope finds a way. From Academy Award® winner George Clooney, The Midnight Sky premieres on Netflix December 23rd. pic.twitter.com/BQpYn03Fpm
The film is a post-apocalyptic story about an astronomer named Augustine, played by Clooney. Set in a remote outpost in the Arctic, he receives news of a catastrophic event, forcing him and his fellow scientists to evacuate. After refusing to leave his post, he come across a mysterious child, Iris, played by newcomer actor Caoilinn Springall. Together they race to contact a group of astronauts who are making their return home from a mission to Jupiter in order to avoid the global catastrophe.
Check out “The Midnight Sky” which will be released on the streaming platform Netflix come December 23.
NBC News, Forbes and others all picked up a story relating to Alien confirmation by head of Israel’s security space program
Professor Haim Eshed served from 1981 to 2010 as the head of Israel’s security space program, as well as having rank as a former Israeli Defense force general. Eshed, an 87 year old with vast experience within the space program and reputable publications in academia broke news at an extraterrestrial level.
According to the professor’s claims, aliens are real, they have made contact with some humans and are in fact working alongside various governments, and lastly, they (meaning the aliens) will not reveal themselves to the general public until they have decided that we (humans) are ready. All this, based on an interview with The Jerusalem Post, along with another recent interview for the Tel Aviv newspaper Yediot Aharonot.
NBC, among more than a dozen news outlets that picked up the story, stuck to the facts, which is to say; the fact that these statements were made and what the detail was in the various claims. Only at the end of the article titled: Former Israeli space security chief says extraterrestrials exist, and Trump knows about it was any sort of pushback or questioning of the statements mentioned.
The equivocating comments were from Nick Pope, who, according to NBC, used to investigate UFOs for the British Ministry of Defense, described Eshed’s remarks as “extraordinary.” They also quoted him as saying “Either this is some sort of practical joke or publicity stunt to help sell his book, perhaps with something having been lost in translation, or someone in the know is breaking ranks,”
The implication is, either NBC and others are in tune with the idea that all of this (including Trump being in talks with aliens) is at least possible, if not likely, or they are writing entire articles, as if they are “The Onion“; from a perspective of total suspension of disbelief. Like a news story that is actually making fun of itself. Third option is aliens are definitely real, in contact with human governments and we need to just get used to it.
“There’s an agreement between the U.S. government and the aliens. They signed a contract with us to do experiments here. They, too, are researching and trying to understand the whole fabric of the universe, and they want us as helpers.”
Professor Haim Eshed, former head of Israel’s security space program
As if this year couldn’t get even stranger, in the last month of 2020, here comes bizarre news of the existence of aliens. What is even harder to believe is big news outlets are covering this story not to debunk or fact check, instead, seeming to acknowledge there could very well be intelligent lifeforms beyond humans and Earth. Which, of course, there could be.
This comes after other news regarding mysterious monoliths appearing in strange locations, including: Utah, California, UK and even Romania, which begun the spark of the conspiracy they were planted by aliens. Apparently in that case human “art lovers” are more likely the source.
There has been a long history of people claiming they witnessed Unidentified flying objects (UFOs). Yet a UFO doesn’t necessarily mean aliens, just that they cannot be identified, with some sitings attributed to phenomena like astroids and meteors, etc. Yet it is not out of the realm of scientific plausibility that aliens can exist, thus the ongoing coverage.
What sounds even more far-fetched than an alien- human alliance is that Eshed alleged that Trump was made aware of the aliens. According to Eshed, Trump was going to disclose their existence but the “Galactic Federation” told him to wait until humanity is further evolved and is more ready to absorb the information. If you wren’t aware, the Galactic Federation is the alien formed organization with an underground base built on Mars.
Based on Trump’s inability to censor or filter any of his thoughts, let alone something as huge as ALIENS, it is hard to believe he won’t be tempted to tweet out the revelation.
“The UFOs have asked not to publish that they are here, humanity is not ready yet. Trump was on the verge of revealing, but the aliens in the Galactic Federation are saying: ‘Wait, let people calm down first.’ They don’t want to start mass hysteria. They want to first make us sane and understanding.”
PROFESSOR HAIM ESHED, FORMER HEAD OF ISRAEL’S SECURITY SPACE PROGRAM
Naturally, the retired professor and former general isn’t the first high profile individual to make claims about aliens. Canada’s former defense minister, Paul Hellyer made public back in 2013 he believes E.T.s are present on earth and have seen a UFO. Even Edgar Mitchell, the Apollo 14 astronaut and sixth man to walk on the moon spoke out about Roswell and aliens in 2015. Many astronomers are confident there is life beyond Earth, but the actual proof or search for intelligent life, continues to be unsuccessful so far.
So the big questions still posed, “are we alone?” and “where are they?”
Coming a few days before Christmas this year, Jupiter and Saturn will appear within a hair’s breadth of one-another to the naked eye
Although most of us consider this to be one of the worst, if not the worst, year that we are aware of, it may close out with something miraculous. If you take the time to gaze heavenward on December 21st,, just after sunset, you might see it: A Christmas Star.
Already in early December the two giant orbs can be seen ever so gradually nearing each other, as if they are feeling some sort of mutual attraction, an odd couple. perhaps, Jupiter and Saturn.
And, according to celestial experts at NASA, they will continue to converge until they appear nearly co-joined: just 1/10th of a degree apart, with a barley perceptible gap in-between.
It was in 1226 that this could last have been witnessed
Though these couplings are known to occur in intervals of roughly 20 years, this year they will be the closest they have been to each other since 1623. In that year, however, they were too near the sun to look at, and because this year the event will take place on the winter solstice, you’d have to go all the way back to 1221 for a similar show.
These two spectacular giants, which are the largest in the entire solar system, each with a personality, astrologically speaking, so divergent that they are said to be more like opposites, rather than twins or lovers.
Jupiter, a king and believed to be bringer of good fortune, looks the part in a spectacular explosion of color and power, planet of miracles, hope, and opportunity.
Saturn, meanwhile appears mysterious, unpredictable, even dangerous. Saturn has an air of the impossible and the forbidden. Best known, in astrological circles, for the so-called “quarter-life crisis” and for unexpected challenges to the status-quo.
Across the USA, a view of the two planets coming into near-alignment is going to be most visible and best viewed, just after sunset, in the southwestern part of the sky.
In a glimpse into the relativity of all things in the universe, though this duo will appear to be close together — resembling a double star or a gleaming figure 8 shaped blob, the two planets will not , in reality, be that close.
They will actually be more than 400 million miles apart. It is only from our lonely vantage on this little blue planet that they will appear to be “close” to each other.
Since it will be 2080 before a similar spectacle will grace our view, and that means that all but those who are currently quite young will not likely be alive, it is imperative to search the southwestern sky (from the USA) both the day before, after and of course on December 21st: as this is a rare opportunity to witness a spectacular and special event, and a last chance to do so for a long, long time to come.
Musk expects users eventually will be able to maintain connections to satellite network no matter where they are
SpaceX’s Starlink program aims to cover the sky in a constellation of satellites and provide high speed Internet to people all across the globe. The project, which has already run successful private beta tests in rural Washington, and other areas, is just a few dozen satellites away from going public.
When it does, it will hopefully bridge the digital divide in America by bringing online information and communication to even the country’s most remote regions.
However, Starlink’s utility does not end with people living on distant pastures or isolated mountaintops. The satellites also have potential to help people who are living mobile lives.
Yeah, that will be relatively easy, as so few users out in the ocean
On Tuesday, November 3rd, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Tweeted that boats will have a “relatively easy” time connecting to Starlink, especially with so few people on open water. This means crews that spend weeks at a time at sea will be able to stay connected with their families and the world throughout.
The same logic applies to people who live in RVs or spend lots of time on the road. Whether they are near their home base or at temporary locations, they will likely be able to access the internet from multiple locations, sequentially.
Of course, these seemingly-straightforward answers require a bit of explanation. After all, even if Starlink operates primarily via satellites in space, an Internet connection still requires a return to some grounded station. Luckily, the constellation is set up for the satellites to bounce signals off of each other. Therefore, a ship in the Pacific can connect with one satellite above, which can then link up with another and another until it connects back with the ground. It may sound longwinded, but this hop-scotch-like maneuver should not jeopardize Starlink’s expected speed— 100 megabits+ per second downloads and 40 megabits per second uploads.
Starlink striving for full service to northern US and Canada by end of 2020 and near global coverage by 2021
Likewise, there are questions regarding locations and fees. Right now, Starlink’s beta price is set at $99 per month and the full price remains unknown. However, it would make most sense for SpaceX to charge differently based on location. To serve mobile users, there will likely be a roaming plan that allows them to access the satellites wherever they are.
Yes. Everything is slow to a phased array antenna.
These advancements only broaden the wide utility of Starlink. Not only will it help average people stay connected, but it will also be available to assist first-responders who might have to rescue people at sea or elsewhere off the beaten path.
Starlink is still being built, but SpaceX hopes to have the infrastructure for global coverage sometime next year. And as more and more satellites are launched (up to 12,000 ultimately) the cost could go down while the quality rises.
Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest updates directly to your inBox.
The Confusion around 5G goes far beyond the political-nonsense conspiracy theories
Most articles on 5G since the Apple iPhone 12 launch event on October 13th have been looking in the rearview mirror to predict the future: 5G will “disappoint” due to the slow buildout, technical limitations of the format, and various issues with all the competing systems and carriers, and these arguments are casting doubt on the much touted potential.
This perspective misses the point on so many levels, it’s difficult to know where to begin to unpack the myriad of misunderstandings.
Much of the technical discussion has been focused on the various flavors of 5G and the associated limitations and advantages of each. The fact that the fastest 5G, which goes by the sub-category moniker millimeter wave, is not instantly available everywhere for the 5G capable iPhones, and that they will not be in the hands of most consumers before next year, has been met with feigned shock and bewilderment.
And further, many highlight the confusion mounting over the various providers and the various flavors: 5G, 5G E, 5G UW or 5G+ as they are designated by “service indicators” on the iPhone 12 itself. Verizon Communications Inc., T-Mobile US Inc. and AT&T Inc. each have their own systems they have developed and are building out – looking for a piece of the 5G market, expected to be around $1.15 trillion by 2025.
First and foremost – since Apple and iPhone are the leader of all innovations in the marketplace – not necessarily by the sheer number of handsets sold, but by the focus on increasing technical and aesthetic quality, and appealing to the top demographic, not to mention the majority of early adopters, it is precisely the fact that, until now, the iPhone 5G handset did not yet exist, that the buildout is not further along.
The fact that, in real-world tests, it is already performing at up to 7 times the fastest previously available connections, was coupled inevitably with the caveat; physical locations where these speeds can be accomplished are currently hard to find.
Due to the technical issues with this ultra-high speed version of 5G; the inability to travel more than very short distances and the lack of ability to penetrate obstacles or walls, the possibility to get these amazing speeds are, at present, more likely to be found at outdoor locations.
This is, admittedly, an odd conundrum, but you can be sure, with the upcoming massive increase in competition for ISP customers, it is one that will find at least some viable solutions very soon. There are many billions at stake for those that can find ways to improve this issue.
“Standing in front of a camera store in South of Market, I got 5G speeds reaching 2,160 megabits a second, which was 2,900 percent faster than 4G. Even where it was a tad slower — behind the Safeway parking lot in the Marina district — the 5G iPhone drew speeds of 668 megabits a second, which was 1,052 percent faster than 4G.”
– Brian X. Chen for the New York Times
The carriers have not had the market to build for, and needed to be pushed by a huge influx of iPhone 12 owners. Then, meaning now, they will begin to compete with one another for that extremely lucrative group of users. That rising competitive battle is not the only one looming on the horizon.
Regardless of the ultimate time frame of the build-out, there is an obvious and very meaningful conclusion that we can reach here: 1 year from now things will look very different in the options available for those who want to work and play with the help of a faster internet connection (meaning, obviously, everybody).
As can be seen from the chart above in early 2020 the US ranked 13th in desktop download speed while mobile speeds ranked even worse coming in at #33 (various sources have US at #10 for fixed broadband). Liechtenstein is nearly 4x faster, on average, than the US. Also note that the highest average is one-tenth to one-twentieth of the eventual “ideal conditions” speeds of 5G.
Failure of the US Broadband infrastructure and the coming shake-up in the ISP system grid-lock
The problem is not a technological one. The US lags behind due to the pseudo-geographical monopolies held by various ISPs and the ability they have enjoyed to be able to gouge customers with high priced, bad service. Lack of competition often results in slow progress, or no progress.
That is all about to change. You don’t need to have a technician to analyze the various 5G systems, or compare carriers chances of “winning” to realize that the very fact that speeds and options are increasing exponentially is going to re-write the map when it comes to who controls the cash-cow subscription gravy train. That system is about to collapse.
In steps Elon, and his little copy-cat-side-kick Jeffy Bezos, and the landscape is about to become unrecognizable
First, 5G speeds rival or exceed the former fixed / desktop speeds which had commanded a premium for the geographically entrenched providers. 5G home systems will be available in many areas that will be competitive in speed, price and convenience.
SpaceX’s Starlink, with nearly 1,000 satellites already in orbit out of an eventual 12,000, with launches continuing almost weekly with 60 in each launch, is a serious project. This ambitious plan will eventually encircle the Earth completely with interconnected satellites that will link through intermediary “ground stations” with up to 1 million planned for USA alone. Each ground station is just under 19 inches (.48 m) across.
“It looks like a UFO on a stick,” according to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk “It’s very important that you don’t need a specialist to install. The goal is for … just two instructions and they can be done in either order: Point at sky, plug in.”
Satellite Broadband, such as SpaceX’s Starlink will not only add ubiquitous 100mbps and higher, low latency coverage, it will also cover the same areas with high population density, major cities, where both current systems and 5G are also focusing.
Exact pricing is as yet unknown, but it is very likely that there will be a high-pitched battle over customers, once the various systems go into the next phase of the rollout. And all of this is not factoring in additional players in 5G and satellite systems.
Longer term (2 years +) there will be major world-wide implications of this shift, toward more and faster options in internet connectivity
The first shift, primarily driven by the geographical independence of satellite broadband, such as Starlink, will be a decentralization of populations at massive scale. While we are looking at a world where, due to the current pandemic countermeasures, WFH a.k.a. work from home is becoming more than a temporary factor. As many as 20 major companies such as Google and Microsoft have announced extended or permanent work-from-home policies as of October 2020.
There are plenty of very serious discussions about what will be done with all the skyscrapers and office buildings once there are no workers to fill the offices. This is not idle chit-chat. A migration has already begun away from the insanely overpriced rents and home prices to take advantage of the work-from-home-anywhere approach.
Extrapolate, based on increased speed and availability of connectivity to millions of locations not currently viable, will soon have internet at minimum speeds rivaling the current world champion Liechtenstein (see above), and you see the beginnings of an exodus of epic proportions. Just in time for economic upheaval, due to the aftermath of the still ongoing global pandemic, and yes, the issues of accelerated global warming, which will, coincidentally, affect costal “elite” cities like Miami, San Francisco, New York and others around the world to a disproportionally large degree.
“The reality is that a technological utopian vision, one where the world is able to shift to sustainable energy and regenerative farming, and create economies based on prosperous and equal distribution of the wealth generated by those systems (along with AI plus robot technology (powered by sustainable clean energy), can only be realized by an acceleration of learning and positive social change. “
-DL
These changes, to be clear, are not all “bad” nor are they all the cause of negative side-effects such as the current covid-19 outbreak.
The reality is that a technological utopian vision, one where the world is able to shift to sustainable energy and regenerative farming, and create economies based on prosperous and equal distribution of the wealth generated by those systems, (along with AI, robot technology powered by sustainable clean energy), can only be realized by an acceleration of learning and positive social change.
Change is urgently needed to build out the human networked-communication-system that will enable the learning and cooperation which is the only hope for the survival of our species. 5G, the iPhone 12 and SpaceX’s Starlink Satellite Broadband are going to be huge factors, in making the first baby-steps toward that change, possible.
728 Successfully deployed satellites is one step closer to global broadband coverage
From the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk launched his twelfth Starlink Mission on Tuesday morning. With this latest launch from the company, SpaceX is now just a few dozen satellites away from providing a significant portion of North America with broadband access.
SpaceX started the Starlink project in 2019 with the goal of creating a constellation of satellites that will eventually provide the entire world with broadband Internet. After this morning’s launch— which carried 60 satellites—there are a reported 728 total satellites in orbit, just under the 800 required to achieve the goal across a moderate section of America.
With the 728 alone, however, SpaceX has already hit a milestone. According to Musk in a Tweet, Starlink is now able to run a public beta test in the northern U.S. and parts of southern Canada.
Once these satellites reach their target position, we will be able to roll out a fairly wide public beta in northern US & hopefully southern Canada. Other countries to follow as soon as we receive regulatory approval.
Eventual wide-adoption could break cable monopolies, increase decentralization and freedom
Starlink has been running private beta tests since July, allowing a handful of SpaceX employees and emergency service personnel to try out the system. Already, it has done some good in the world, as first responders in rural Washington state reportedly used Starlink to efficiently communicate during this summer’s wildfires.
Optimistically, people in rural parts of the world are the ones who stand to benefit the most from Starlink. Rather than settle for slow or outmoded forms of internet connection, Starlink will provide fast broadband to even the most remote regions. For this reason, SpaceX has applied to the Federal Communications Commission’s $16-billion Rural Digital Opportunity Fund to bridge the country’s digital divide.
In modern America—especially since COVID-19 has rendered so much remote and online—quality Internet access is nothing short of a necessity. Sadly, not all Americans have broadband, leaving troves of people without the proper tools for effective communication, information, and even education. Starlink could be the answer to this crisis of disconnection.
The project still has a ways to go, but the public beta could be a big step towards a brighter future. Already hundreds of thousands are interested in Starlink, and the public beta will better reflect its performance and utility on a broader scale.
This Monday, November 11th, will mark Mercury’s journey or transit where the planet passes between Earth and will be visible as it moves across the face of the Sun. The last transit happened in May of 2016 and will not happen again until 2032. According to NASA, this planetary event should be widely visible to most of the World and will lasts a little under six hours, making it convenient for most to be able to catch a glimpse.
Mercury will begin its trek and can be viewed starting at 7 a.m. ET and ending at around 1:45 ET, those in the west coast will have to wait until the sun rises to see anything. The tiny planet (the smallest planet in our Solar System) will be seen as a small round black sphere moving against the bright Sun. Mercury will cover an extremely small fraction 1/283 of the Sun’s diameter.
All those with interests in viewing the phenomenon that have access to a telescope (or binoculars) will have to utilize a minimum magnification of 50x and most importantly have proper solar filters to prevent damage to the eyes. Even without a telescope, it is advised to never look directly into the Sun without proper protective eyewear. The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) will be closely watching and recording video and images that can be seen safely in the comfort of any screen at nearly real time by visiting NASA’s 2019 Mercury Transit page.
On October 18th, this particular spacewalk became a monumental one because it’s “breaking the galactic glass ceiling” by being the first one conducted entirely by women.
On the 221st spacewalk in support of the space station assembly, NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir will be replacing a battery/discharge unit that failed to activate on the space station’s exterior. This particular unit is one of many that regulates the solar energy collection charge put into the new batteries that were just installed on October 11th. Thankfully, the unit’s activation failure didn’t hinder station operations or endanger the crew, but once this unit is replaced, the new batteries will be able to provide increased station power.
This milestone, along the road to bringing the first woman and next man on the moon by 2024 through NASA’s Artemis Lunar Exploration Program, is sure to inspire students everywhere, especially young girls who’ve always dreamed of becoming astronauts. Now, they could see themselves on the way to the moon, and perhaps, beyond.
More updates about the spacewalk and as well as additional information about the International Space Station can be found on NASA’s blog.
Newly Revealed Spacesuits for Artemis Moon Mission Set for 2024
Two suits were unveiled; one for transit “Orion Crew Survival Suit (OCSS),” also known as a flight or launch and entry suit, and a suit for moon-based activities (Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit), called the ‘xEMU’ variant. The Orion suit is lighter and made to be worn during take-off and landing; the suit will be depressurized when in use but can provide protection in the event of accidental depressurization, as well as thermal and radiation protection. The xEMU suit is made to withstand and survive temperatures that range from -250- and +250-degrees Fahrenheit.
The design’s greatest feature is that of increased flexibility and mobility, allowing astronauts to actually “moon walk” more easily compared to older model suits that was more of a “bunny hop” on Apollo mission with Buzz Aldrin.
Another feature is its inclusive nature, the suit is made to accommodate any sizing and body type.
Photo / NASA
Artemis and The Next Era of Space Exploration
Artemis comes from the name of the Greek sun god Apollo’s lunar twin sister, and this next mission is justly named after the Greek goddess of the moon.
The upcoming mission to the Moon represents new galactic grounds to be forged, including the first woman on the Moon and American astronauts’ first step onto the Moon’s South Pole, which is a location that no human has ever been before. The accumulated knowledge from the Artemis mission will be used to establish more sustainable missions and to be one step closer to sending humans to Mars.
NASA plans to launch two missions prior to the Moon landing to test their deep space systems. The Artemis 1 is set to launch in 2020 with no crew. The Artemis 2 with an on-board crew is targeted for 2022. And finally, the Artemis 3 is planned for 2024 with the first woman and next man on the Moon.
