Astronomical Discoveries Research Articles

From the Atom to the Universe: Recent Astronomical Discoveries

JEREMIAHP. OSTRIKER, a Fellow of the American Academy since 1975, is the Charles A. Young Pro fes sor Emeritus of Astrophysics at Prince ton University and Professor of As tronomy at Columbia Univer sity. His research interests concern dark matter and dark energy, gal axy formation, and quasars. His publications include Heart of Dark ness: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Invisible Universe (with Simon Mitton, 2013) and the volumes Formation of Structure in the Universe (edited with Avishai Dekel, 1990) and Un solved Problems in Astrophysics (edited with John Bahcall, 1997). He was the recipient of the U.S. National Med al of Science in 2000. Astronomy starts at the point to which chemistry has brought us: atoms. The basic stuff of which the planets and stars are made is the same as the terrestrial material discussed and analyzed in the 1⁄2rst set of essays in this volume. These are the chemical ele ments, from hydrogen to uranium. Hydrogen, found with oxygen in our plentiful oceanic water, is by far the most abundant element in the universe; iron is the most common of the heavier elements. All the combinations of atoms in the complex chem ical com pounds studied by chemists on Earth are also possible components of the objects that we see in the cos mos. Although almost all of the regions that we astronomers study are so hot that the more com pli cated compounds would be torn apart by the heat, some surprisingly unstable organic molecules, such as cyanopolyynes, have been detected in cold re gions of space with very low density of matter. Nev ertheless, the astronomical world is simpler than the chemical world of the laboratory or the real bio log ical world. But the enormous spatial and temporal extent of the cosmos allows us–and in fact forces us–to ask questions that would seem offbeat to a chemist. Where do the chemical elements come from? Precisely how, where, and when were they made? Do the abundances of the elements change with time? Does alternative “matter” that is not made of the or dinary chemical elements exist and exert gravity in the universe? We in the trades of astronomy and as trophysics must ask ourselves these ques tions–and they are only the beginning.

Benefits of diversity

Discoveries in astronomy — or, in fact, any branch of science — can only happen when people are open-minded and willing to take risks.

Classification in Astronomy

CLASSIFICATION IN ASTRONOMY Discovery and Classification in Astronomy: Controversy and Consensus. Steven J. Dick (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2013). Pp. xvi + 458. £30. ISBN 978-1107-03361-0.Steven Dick has written a thought-provoking book on the relationship between astronomical discovery and classification - a carefully documented historical, sociological, and philosophical study with an abundance of useful references and notes on where to find them. His chronologically ordered classification of discoveries and loosely defined pre-discoveries ranges from Tycho Brahe's pre-discovery that comets are extra-terrestrial to the modem era and its fragmentary findings on protogalactic clouds.Although the author does not summarize it in just this way, classification has three purposes. It distinguishes one discovery from all others, it endows it with a name, and it attempts to fit the discovery into some organizational scheme.The first task of classification thus is the mapping of the parameters over which a discovery ranges, in order to differentiate it from all previous findings. Most scientists recognize that the many implications of a major discovery seldom are self-evident. Further work is needed to gain greater insight. Regardless of whether a discovery is observational or theoretical, astronomical or astrophysical, some sorting and sifting must take place, so that all concerned may understand, and agree on, what the discovery entails. This process seldom provides explanations; it only prepares the ground for explanations to emerge.The second aspect of classification, involving nomenclature, may appear more trivial; but this is where the word 'controversy' in the book's title surfaces. Dick's narrative repeatedly returns to the controversy that surrounded the reclassification of the planet Pluto to a newly minted class of dwarf planets. As far as astronomers and astrophysicists were concerned, this change had no effect on Pluto's well-defined physical characteristics, which had led to its original classification. The change arose solely because a number of new Solar System bodies resembling Pluto had been found at the turn of the millennium and many more were expected to emerge as the search for them intensified. Should a flood of these new objects now be permitted to add many more names to our long-standing list of planets? For half a century school books worldwide had declared that our Solar System has nine planets. …

Dr Katterfelto and the Prehistory of Astronomical Ballooning1

Regular telescopic astronomical observations made from balloons began after World War II, though scientific, particularly meteorological, ballooning dates from the mid-nineteenth century. However, astronomical ballooning has a curious prehistory at the dawn of lighter-than-air travel in the 1780s. The self-styled Dr Katterfelto (c.1743?-99) was a German-born travelling showman, lecturer and considerable self-publicist who in 1784-85 claimed to have made important astronomical discoveries from observations made from a balloon. It is unlikely that he made any such observations, or, indeed, any balloon flights. However, the episode throws some light on the world of the itinerant, eighteenth-century astronomical lecturer and the diffusion of contemporary astronomical and scientific knowledge.

Galileo as Gemmologist: The First Attempt in Europe at Scientifically Testing Gemstones

Galileo Galilei is credited with being one of the greatest contributors to the ‘scientific revolution’, particularly because of his discoveries in astronomy. He also introduced into European gemmology his ‘language of mathematics’ (i.e. experimental science) with the invention of the bilancetta (little [hydrostatic] balance). He conceived it to recheck Archimedes’ determination of the gold content of a royal crown, and also used this balance to measure the mass of 23 gem samples in air and in water. However, much of his data was inconsistent with the inferred identity of his samples, since many were simulants. The results of his investigations did not circulate, and only after three centuries was Galileo’s handwritten tavola (table) of gem data discovered.

C.F. Gauss and the method of least squares

Gauss introduced the MLSq and Helmert completed its development whereas Bessel made important discoveries in astronomy and geodesy but was often extremely inattentive. Gauss’ final condition of least variance led to effective estimators of the unknowns sought, jointly effective in case of the normal distribution of the observational errors. Gauss’ memoire of 1823 leads to the principle of least squares much easier than generally thought (abstrakt oryginalny)

SkyQuery: Federating Astronomy Archives

Astronomical discoveries often happen at the edge of our observational capabilities. To fully analyze telescopic images, researchers must combine data from separate telescopes, but large volumes of data with intrinsic differences make this difficult. SkyQuery, a scalable query engine, helps with this process.

Astroinformatics, data mining and the future of astronomical research

Astronomy, as many other scientific disciplines, is facing a true data deluge which is bound to change both the praxis and the methodology of every day research work. The emerging field of astroinformatics, while on the one end appears crucial to face the technological challenges, on the other is opening new exciting perspectives for new astronomical discoveries through the implementation of advanced data mining procedures. The complexity of astronomical data and the variety of scientific problems, however, call for innovative algorithms and methods as well as for an extreme usage of ICT technologies.

Music Inspired by Astronomy: A Resource Guide Organized by Topic

This annotated resource guide presents 133 pieces of music inspired by astronomical ideas, discoveries, or history, organized in 22 subject categories. Both classical and popular music are included, but only when a clear connection to astronomy could be established. Depending on your musical tastes, you are likely to find some pieces resonating with you and others like the squeaking noise on a blackboard when chalk is held at the wrong angle. But some of the ideas and analogies the pieces represent may intrigue you and your students. Only music available on CD is included, so that educators who want to use some of these in the classroom can purchase a legal copy. A short appendix lists a number of astronomers who have recorded songs and self-published them.

The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope project and its early science opportunities

AbstractThe National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Science (NAOC), has started building the largest antenna in the world. Known as FAST, the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope is a Chinese mega-science project funded by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). FAST also represents part of Chinese contribution to the international efforts to build the square kilometer array (SKA). Upon its finishing around September of 2016, FAST will be the most sensitive single-dish radio telescope in the low frequency radio bands between 70 MHz and 3 GHz. The design specifications of FAST, its expected capabilities, and its main scientific aspirations were described in an overview paper by Nan et al. (2011). In this paper, we briefly review the design and the key science goals of FAST, speculate the likely limitations at the initial stages of FAST operation, and discuss the opportunities for astronomical discoveries in the so-called early science phase.

Review of Antarctic astronomy

AbstractAstronomers have always sought the best sites for their telescopes. Antarctica, with its high plateau reaching to above 4,000 metres, intense cold, exceptionally low humidity and stable atmosphere, offers what for many forms of astronomy is the ultimate observing location on this planet. While optical, infrared and millimetre astronomers are building their observatories on the ice, particle physicists are using the ice itself as a detector and exploration of the terahertz region is being conducted from circumpolar long-duration balloons. Remarkable astronomical discoveries are already coming out of Antarctica, and much, much more is just around the corner.

Kalendarz Polityczny Wileński księdza Franciszka Paprockiego

W Wilnie w połowie lat 30. XVIII wieku jezuita ks. Jan Antoni Poszakowski (1684–1757) wydał pierwszy kalendarz, który zapoczątkował nową serię druków w Wielkim Księstwie Litewskim. Druki te stały się jedną z najpoczytniejszych form czytelnictwa w XVIII wieku w WKL1. W 2 połowie XVIII wieku wydawanie jezuickich kalendarzy w Wilnie odnowił historyk ks. Franciszek Paprocki (1723–1805)....Regina JakubėnasThe Political Vilnius Calendar of the priest Franciszek PaprockiThe article is devoted to the publishing of calendars – a permanent publishing initiative, launched in the first half of the 18th century and continued by the Jesuit priest Franciszek Paprocki (1723–1805) in the University Printing House in the second half of the 18th century. Calendars were among the most widely read publications of those times. Kalendarz Polityczny Wileński (the Political Vilnius Calendar), which was being published for more than 25 years, is presented here. It was regularly advertised in the Vilnius press. News about scientific, geographical and astronomical discoveries, statistical data, information about the socio-political system of the European countries, its rulers, the structure of authorities, constitutions, regulations, the decisions of the Parliament, as well as curiosities, pieces of practical advice and gossip were published in the calendar.The calendar became a valuable source of knowledge which reflected cultural changes on the territory of the Great Duchy of Lithuania in the Age of Enlightenment.Keywords: Franciszek Paprocki, calendars of the 18th century, Kalendarz Polityczny Wileński, Great Duchy of Lithuania.

Astronomy at Stowey: The Wordsworths and Coleridge

As part of their daily activities in Stowey, the Word-worths and practiced astronomy. In Alfoxden journal, Dorothy records the appearance of The crescent moon, Jupiter, and (Woof 141) On late-night winter walks, often accompanied by William, Coleridge, Torn Poole and little Basil .Montagu. A storm on January 31, 1798, cleared to reveal first showing herself between the struggling clouds; afterwards Jupiter appeared (Woof 143); February 18, was sharp and cold upon which Dorothy observed the crescent moon, silvery line and thready bow, attended by Jupiter and Venus in their palest hues (Woof 146); and on the evening of March 6, she saw the shapes of the Central Stars (Woof 148). Her delight in celestial observation found its way into William's and Coleridge's poems. narrator of The Thorn carries his telescope up the mountain, while Coleridge's Mariner uses his spy-glass to make astronomical sightings that he had recently read about in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Reading the latest astronomical discoveries in learned journals and periodicals, together with closely watching-the heavens, ensured that some of the shared experience celebrated in Lyrical Ballads and Alfoxdert journal had its roots in collaborative star-gazing. On March 23, 1798, Dorothy records that came for dinner: Coleridge dined with us. brought his ballad finished. We walked with him to the miner's house. A beautiful evening, starry, the horned (Woof 150). Dorothy's language is strikingly imitative of The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere at precisely the point that it. owes most to professional astronomy. In that poem, depicts singular lunar phenomenon that was being debated in the 1790s: While clombe above the Eastern bar I horned Moon, with one bright Star I the tips (Butler and Green, 11. 201-03). _John Livingston Lowes has suggested that first got the idea of star atween or the tip of the moon from volume five of Henry Jones' two volume abridgement of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society (1700-1720), first published in 1721 (Cowes 41). sentence in question is in an article entitled An Extract of letters from Dr. C Mather, from New England, to Mr. Waller of the Royal Society, dated 1712: He says, there is Tradition among them, that in November 1668, Star appear'd below the Body of the Moon within the Horns of it (Jones V. ii. 161). Bristol Library Society, of which was member between 1795-98, had an edition of Jones' abridged volumes, which may well have consulted in the reading rooms (Bristol 65). Another likely source is the Philosophical Transactions for 1787 (vol. 77) that borrowed from the Bristol Library in 1795 (Wu 182-83). This contained William Herschel's account of viewing three volcanoes in the moon, one of which chews an actual eruption of fire, or luminous matter (Herschel 230), which would have stuck in Coleridge's mind. On the evening of March 23, 1798, the moon was beautifully horned, waxing crescent with 31% of its visible disk illuminated.' It was very starry night, and everyone will have been looking for star Almost the tips of the moon to attest to the Mariner's description, or at least for a star or two beside (258) it. This hunt might have gone on, appropriately, with the sea murmuring in the background, since Dorothy noted January 23. 1798, that sound of the Sea was distinctly heard on the tops of the hills at all seasons excluding summer (Woof 141). Even if, did not divulge the specific scientific material behind the lines (which is hard to believe considering they had perfectly. homed noon from of them) sharing their poems on walks over the Quantocks places poetry in dialogue with Herschelian astronomy. Herschel may modify or corroborate their sightings. …

Atlas of astronomical discoveries

Atlas of astronomical discoveries

A Universe of Galaxies

![Figure][1] CREDIT: NASA/JPL-CALTECH It wasn't until the 1920s that astronomers realized that there were other galaxies in the universe besides our own. Using the 100-inch telescope at Mount Wilson in California, Edwin Hubble determined the distance to Andromeda (M31) and to the Triangulum (M33) and concluded that each was an “isolated system of stars and nebulae, lying far outside the limits of the galactic system.” Before that, these and other galaxies were classified as nebulae, extended objects other than planets or comets; although their location was a matter of great debate, they were generally thought to be within our galaxy. Nowadays there is no doubt that the universe extends well beyond the confines of the Milky Way and that our galaxy is just one among many. Telescopes much more powerful than those used by Hubble have produced ever-larger and more comprehensive surveys of galaxies. The detailed understanding of our galaxy has also evolved dramatically. As explained by Tolstoy (p. 176), the study of individual stars in the Milky Way can help us understand the history of our galaxy and the physical processes that happened when the first stars and galaxies formed. More generally, the history of star formation in galaxies tells us how the structure and average chemical composition of the universe have changed over its 14-billion-year history. On page [178][2], Dunlop discusses the different methods used to quantify this history back to about 500 million years after the big bang. The biggest surprise in recent years may be the discovery that the life cycles of galaxies and those of the black holes that reside in their centers are intimately linked. To understand how galaxies formed and evolved, it is necessary to understand the role black holes play in the evolution of galaxies. Heckman and Kauffmann (p. [182][3]) summarize the progress made in the past decade by studying the interplay between galaxies and their central black holes. Researchers studying galactic evolution work on a wide range of scales. Some scrutinize the structures of individual galaxies; others analyze statistical patterns from huge data sets. In a pair of News stories, Bhattacharjee (p. [170][4]) describes insights being gleaned from Andromeda, a nearby spiral galaxy similar in many ways to the Milky Way. Clery (p. [173][5]) tells the story of the Galaxy Zoo, an online project that enlisted more than 100,000 volunteers to classify galaxies recorded by automated sky surveys. Much of the progress described in this special section rests on the availability of state-of-the-art space telescopes, such as the Hubble Space Telescope. In a Policy Forum, Bonnet and Bleeker (p. [161][6]) propose that the far-future, large-scale space facilities required to make groundbreaking discoveries in astronomy should be globally shared, and they suggest ways to improve international planning and cooperation. Although we need to start planning for those facilities now, we do not need to wait for them to make further progress. Some of the telescopes nearing completion, or in planning, both on Earth and in space, can potentially address some of the most pressing questions. Hopefully, they will surprise us again. [1]: pending:yes [2]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.1200644 [3]: /lookup/volpage/333/182?iss=6039 [4]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.333.6039.170 [5]: /lookup/volpage/333/173?iss=6039 [6]: /lookup/volpage/333/161?iss=6039

A grand and bold thing: an extraordinary new map of the universe ushering in a new era of discovery

LATE IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, what had been a fevered pace of discovery in astronomy for many years had slowed. The Hubble Space Telescope continued to produce an astonishing array of images, but the study of the universe was still fractured into domains: measuring the universe's expansion rate, the evolution of galaxies in the early universe, the life and death of stars, the search for extrasolar planets, the quest to understand the nature of the elusive dark matter. So little was understood, still, about so many of the most fundamental questions, foremost among them: What was the overall structure of the universe? Why had stars formed into galaxies, and galaxies into massive clusters? What was needed, thought visionary astronomer Jim Gunn, recently awarded the National Medal of Science, was a massive survey of the sky, a kind of new map of the universe that would be so rich in detail and cover such a wide swath of space, be so grand and bold, that it would allow astronomers to see the big picture in a whole new way. So was born the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, a remarkable undertaking bringing together hundreds of astronomers and launching a new era of supercharged astronomical discovery, an era of e-science that has taken astronomy from the lonely mountaintop observatory to the touch of your fingertips. Critically acclaimed science writer Ann Finkbeiner tells the inside story of the Sloan and how it revolutionizing astronomy. The Sloan stitched together images of deep space taken over the course of five years, providing a remarkably detailed, three-dimensional map of a vast territory of the universe, all digitized and downloadable for easy searching on a personal computer, and available not only to professional astronomers but to the public as well. Bringing together for the first time images of many millions of galaxies--including the massive structure known as the Sloan Great Wall of galaxies, never seen before--the Sloan allowing astronomers and armchair enthusiasts alike to watch the universe grow up, providing so many discoveries at such a fast pace that, as one astronomer said, it's like drinking out of a fire hose. They are watching galaxies forming and galaxies merging with other galaxies, seeing streams of stars swirling out from galaxies, and forming a new understanding of how the smooth soup of matter that emerged from the Big Bang evolved into the universe as we know it. Ann Finkbeiner brings the excitement and the extraordinary potential of this new era of astronomy vividly to life and allows all readers to understand how they, too, can become part of the discovery process. A Grand and Bold Thing is vital reading for all.

The Pulsar Search Collaboratory

The Pulsar Search Collaboratory [PSC, NSF #0737641] is a joint project between the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) and West Virginia University (WVU) designed to interest high school students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics [STEM] related career paths by helping them to conduct authentic scientific research. The 3- year PSC program, which began in summer 2008, teaches students to analyze astronomical radio data acquired with the 100-m Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope for the purpose of discovering new pulsars. We present the results of the first complete year of the PSC, which includes two astronomical discoveries.

First Principles Quantum Dynamical Investigation Provides Evidence for the Role of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Radical Cations in Interstellar Physics

Inspired by the recent astronomical discovery of new diffused interstellar bands (DIBs) assigned to the electronic transitions in the naphthalene radical cation based on complementary laboratory measurements, we attempt here an ab initio quantum dynamical study to validate this assignment. In addition, the existence and mechanistic details of nonradiative deactivation of electronically excited polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) radical cations in the interstellar medium and their identity as carriers of DIBs are established here focusing on the prototypical naphthalene and anthracene radical cations of the PAH family.

The Last Minutes of Our Earth

The article seeks to compare popular omens of the end of the world with the auguries of prophets. Both traditions reflect societal and cultural changes, the fears for doomsday tend to integrate new interpretations and causes for destruction. Astronomic celestial phenomena retain their relevance whereas the recent discoveries in astronomy, physics, genetics and other sciences have remarkably complemented the list omens for the end of the world. Latter-day prophecies leashed by human behaviour and intellect, alien civilisations and other relevant motifs have come to the forefront during the last century. Pro- phetic predictions propose fixed dates, represent certain political or ideological trends, associated with social norms and evoked as a result of changes therein. Among the prophetic messages there are stereotypical expressions and omens which have been adapted and attributed to different persons. Karl Tonisson's leaflet Meie maakera viimased minutid 'The Last Minutes of Our Earth', printed in 1907, is a political-apocalyptic contemplation based on scriptural passages substantiated by references to scholarly works, illustrated with five woodcuts. The omens of the end of the world, listed by the author, comprise an earthquake in Lisbon in 1795, a dark day in New England in 1780 and the 1833 meteor storm in America. The discussions presented in the leaflet differ from Tonisson's later self-centred political fantasies on Pan-Baltonia, and the ideology and rheto- ric of the booklets endeavouring to create a native religion merged with Bud- dhism.

A new Physics to support the Copernican system. Gleanings from Galileo's works

AbstractGalileo's support to the Copernican theory was decisive for the revolutionary astronomical discoveries he achieved in 1610. We trace the origins of Galileo's conversion to the Copernican theory, discussing in particular the Dialogo de Cecco di Ronchitti da Bruzene in perpuosito de La Stella Nuova. Later developments of Galileo's works are briefly treated.