During a break from looking at planets around other stars, ESA’s CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite (Cheops) mission has observed a dwarf planet in our own Solar System and made a decisive contribution to the discovery of a dense ring of material around it.
Studying these dwarf planets is difficult because of their small sizes and extreme distances. Quaoar itself orbits the Sun at almost 44 times the Sun-Earth distance. So, occultations are particularly valuable tools. Until recently, however, it has been difficult to predict exactly when and where they will take place.
For an occultation to occur, the alignment between the occulting object (here the TNO), the star, and the observing telescope must be extremely precise. In the past, it has been almost impossible to meet the stringent accuracy requirements to be certain of seeing an event. Nevertheless, to pursue this goal the European Research Council Lucky Star project, coordinated by Bruno Sicardy, Sorbonne University & Paris Observatory – PSL (LESIA), was created to predict upcoming occultations by TNOs, and to co-ordinate the observation of these events from professional and amateur observatories around the globe.
We are Europe’s gateway to space. Our mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. Check out https://www.esa.int/ to get up to speed on everything space related.
Check out this and other cool science experiments at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiments/ Sometimes two people just have a certain “chemistry” in their relationship… what better time to explore the chemistry behind love than for Valentine’s Day? Okay, so Steve Spangler doesn’t really have a special formula for the science of relationships, but he does have some fun experiments to help celebrate the holiday and even a little love potion!
About Steve Spangler Science…
Steve Spangler is a celebrity teacher, science toy designer, speaker, author and an Emmy award-winning television personality. Spangler is probably best known for his Mentos and Diet Coke geyser experiment that went viral in 2005 and prompted more than 1,000 related YouTube videos. Spangler is the founder of www.SteveSpanglerScience.com, a Denver-based company specializing in the creation of science toys, classroom science demonstrations, teacher resources and home for Spangler’s popular science experiment archive and video collection. Spangler is a frequent guest on the Ellen DeGeneres Show where he takes classroom science experiments to the extreme. Check out his pool filled with 2,500 boxes of cornstarch!
On the education side, Spangler started his career as a science teacher in the Cherry Creek School district for 12 years. Today, Steve travels extensively training teachers in ways to make learning more engaging and fun. His hands-on science boot camps and summer institutes for teachers inspire and teach teachers how to prepare a new generation for an ever-changing work force. Over the last 15 years, he has also made more than 500 television appearances as an authority on hands-on science and inquiry-based learning.
On the business side, Spangler is the founder and CEO of Steve Spangler Science, a Denver-based company specializing in the creation of educational toys and kits and hands-on science training services for teachers. The companys unique business strategies and viral creations have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Inc. Magazine, Wired and TIME Magazine where online readers voted Steve Spangler #18 in the Top 100 Most Influential People of the Year for 2006 (what were they thinking?). You’ll find more than 140 Spangler created products available online at SteveSpanglerScience.com and distributed to toy stores and mass-market retailers worldwide.
Spangler joined NBC affiliate 9News in 2001 as the science education specialist. His weekly experiments and science segments are designed to teach viewers creative ways to make learning fun. His now famous Mentos Geyser experiment, turning 2-liter bottles of soda into erupting fountains, became an Internet sensation in September 2005 when thousands of people started posting their own Mentos explosions on YouTube.com.
As founder of SteveSpanglerScience.com, Spangler and his design team have developed more than 140 educational toys and science-related products featured by mass-market retailers like Target, Wal-Mart, Toys R’ Us, Discovery Channel Stores and over 1,400 independent specialty toy stores. His educational science catalog and on-line business offers more than a thousand science toys and unique learning resources. Recently, Spangler has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Inc. Magazine, WIRED, the History Channel, Food Network and TIME Magazine where on-line readers voted Steve Spangler #18 in the Top 100 Most Influential People of the Year for 2006.
His recent appearances on the Ellen DeGeneres Show have taught viewers how to blow up their food, shock their friends, create mountains of foam, play on a bed of nails, vanish in a cloud of smoke and how to turn 2,500 boxes of cornstarch and a garden hose into a swimming pool of fun.
