The Institute of Space and Planetary Astrophysics (ISPA), University of Karachi, on Monday installed a new 16-inch telescope at ISPA Observatory. The Chairman, Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), Major General Amer Nadeem and the KU Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Khalid Mahmood Iraqi jointly inaugurate the project.
Inaugural Ceremony
An inaugural ceremony was also attended by the members SUPARCO and ISPA, Dean Faculty Sciences Professor Dr. Tabassum Mehboob, Dean Faculty Pharmacy Professor Dr. Raheela Ikram, faculty members of various departments, the Founding Director ISPA Professor Dr. Javed Qamar, students and field experts.
The up-gradation work, automation of dome and fixation of 16-inch diameter computerized Meade telescope, and renovation of the observatory building have been completed by SUPARCO. The project was completed with Rs6 million and it has the ability to keep records of 65, 000 astronomical objects while with the help of its ‘go-to technology’ certain astronomic object could be focus immediately.
The Chairman, Suparco, Maj General Amer Nadeem, said that once he took over the charge last year, this was one of the projects, which he thought needed to be done on priority. “We took up several steps and eventually we completed the task and now jointly inaugurated the project.”
An inaugural ceremony was also attended by the members SUPARCO and ISPA, Dean Faculty Sciences Professor Dr. Tabassum Mehboob, Dean Faculty Pharmacy Professor Dr. Raheela Ikram, faculty members of various departments, and the Founding Director ISPA Professor Dr. Javed Qamar
Maj General Amer Nadeem shared that in his opinion, the research work would be as good as the equipment which is available for students and faculty and therefore with the installation and commissioning of this telescope quality of research at ISPA would further increase.
“Suparco will continue to assist ISPA and other departments of the University of Karachi. We can further support research work in the domain in space sciences and other fields which then eventually contributes to the space program.”
Meanwhile,
the KU VC Professor Dr Khalid Iraqi, while expressing his gratitude to the
Chairman of Suparco, Major General Amer Nadeem, member of Suparco Amir Iqbal
for participating in the inauguration ceremony of the installation of this new
telescope at ISPA observatory, said that he was grateful to Suparco for their
financial support to upgrade the existing ISPA Observatory.
“I am pleased to know that ISPA and SUPARCO are collaborating for promoting space science education. We would like to see ISPA reaching new heights in the upcoming future.”
Chairman SUPARCO Maj Gen Amir Nadeem presenting a shield to Pro Dr. Khalid Mehmood in inaugural ceremony
He expressed that development in space research during the past decades has been responsible to bring about revolutionary concepts and advances in long-distance reliable communications, remote sensing of earth’s resources and environment, planetary science, astronomy, and cosmology.
He
shared that ISPA is providing education of space science to undergraduate
students and conducting research programs for the graduates.
The KU VC Professor Dr. Khalid Iraqi mentioned that up-gradation of the Observatory is a notable achievement of ISPA. This new telescope having 16-inch diameter will provide an excellent opportunity for our students and faculty members for observing astronomical events and carrying out research in the field of Observational Astronomy.
Earlier, the Director ISPA Professor Dr. Muhammad Jawed Iqbal informed the audience that SUPARCO and ISPA signed the MOU for upgrading the existing astronomical observatory with a larger modern telescope in comparison with the existing one.
“We can observe planets of our solar system including Mars, Saturn, moons of Jupiter and astronomical events like the transit of Venus, eclipse Nebula like ring nebula, Orion nebula nearby Galaxies Andromeda Large Magellanic Cloud and Small Magellanic Cloud.”
He said that the main objective of this project is to undertake collaborative research studies and students projects between Suparco and ISPA. The upgraded astronomical observatory would also support space awareness and education programs for students, the general public and media.
He expressed that the automation of dome, fixation of 16 inch Meade telescope and renovation of the observatory building has been completed successfully while all costs associated with this project was provided by SUPARCO.
Professor Dr. Muhammad Jawed Iqbal mentioned that the former Chairman Suparco Maj Gen Bilal Ahmed had played a significant role in this project. We have signed MoU during his tenure and it was Maj General Bilal who had initiated collaboration of Suparco with ISPA.
The Director ISPA Dr. Jawed said that Maj General Bilal had appreciated the efforts of ISPA for promoting education and research in the fields of space science. He termed that the installation of this 16-inch telescope is a milestone for the University of Karachi.
He
told the participants that it is an optical telescope which is used to observe
light wave portion of the spectrum coming from the astronomical objects, while
a radio telescope studies portion of the electromagnetic spectrum emitted by
astronomical objects.
He added that ISPA is also planning to install a small radio telescope as Higher Education Commission release the grant of our approved project. He informed that one of his Ph.D. students is doing research on dark matter and ISPA has recently published an article on accelerated expansion of the universe in European journal of physics.
Later, the chief guest, Chairman Suparco Maj General Amer Nadeem and KU VC Professor Dr. Khalid Iraqi unveil the plaque and planted a sapling at the ISPA Observatory.
In 1921, The New York Times discredited a discovery made by the father of modern rocketry, Robert H Goddard. This is a tale of how an innovator was lambasted, shunned and embarrassed … only to be proven right 24 years after his death
Robert H Goddard
In the early 20th century, American physicist Robert H Goddard came across the idea of liquid fuel propellant while he was conducting a series of practical experiments in rocketry. Goddard, at least figuratively, was over the moon.
Goddard’s fascination with space flight tracked back to his college days at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. He was actually interested in achieving higher altitude but it was a daunting task to build a liquid fuel rocket than solid –propellant rockets. Despite a lack of resources and sufficient funding, Goddard was able to build a liquid-propellant rocket by 1926. This was game-changing.
But the euphoria of Goddard’s discovery did not leave everyone in awe.
Some thought he was a charlatan, others believed science could not have such a leap of discovery in the 1920s. Such was the disbelief in Goddard’s work that the New York Times in an editorial not just ridiculed Goddard’s intellect and integrity but, also accused him of not understanding Newton’s third law of motion.
“Professor Goddard with his chair at Clark College and countenancing of Smithsonian Institution [from where he held the grant to continue his research independently] does not know Newton’s third law of motion,” read the editorial, “and the relationship between action and reaction, and of a need of something better than a vacuum against which to react. Of course, he only seems to lack the knowledge ladled out daily in high schools.”
In the same year, a similar campaign simultaneously sparked out another controversy when Goddard published one of his research works in Scientific American that intensified the prevailing wave of harsh criticism. This propelled other science outlets also arguing that space travel is nearly impossible. Some even claimed that rocketry can be traced back to more than 2,000 years and never had anyone been able to do the unthinkable: travel to space.
But Goddard was a scientist and such criticism by non-scientists was mere noise to him.
Perhaps the greatest influence and the lifelong gift of Goddard to humanity was his deep understanding of rocketry, inspiration, and celebration that space travel would be a reality in a few decades or so later. It was actually Goddard who initially outlined an uncrewed mission to the moon. Little did he realize that this work would become instrumental in American foreign and defense policy. Goddard’s legacy has arguably quietly been absorbed by engineers and scientists at NASA and the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, who worked frantically on Vostok, Gemini, and Apollo space programs.
According to Goddard’s works, a rocket should essentially be a heat engine that can able to convert the heat energy or chemical energy of fuel into mechanical energy. The critical component in this energy conversation was the nozzle from which the jet blew onto the wheels. Goddard along with his counterpart De Laval found that the best conversation takes place when the nozzle initially narrowed and eventually gives rise in the speed of jet to the speed of sound. Using a De Laval nozzle, Goddard was succeeded to attain the real jet velocities between 7000 and 800ft/sec. Later with a specially designated compact device, he showed that rocket can work in a vacuum as well.
By then, NASA and several other space agencies were also working on the same principle of rocket propulsion but the only way they followed to learn was projecting heavy objects into the other planets of our solar system. At that time, it was widely assumed that when rockets acquired a certain escape velocity they are still in a thin layer of earth’s atmosphere and it’s almost impossible to survive for a rocket from the heat of reentry. Goddard was ahead of them in some ways and one of his rockets with explosive payload would successfully crash into the moon.
In 1919, Goddard published his research work entitled “A method of reaching high extreme altitude”, condensation February 1920, Scientific American and Nature August 1920. The paper thoroughly explained the method of attaining high altitude around 20 miles, beyond the range for surrounding balloons and developed a theory of rocket propulsion taking into account the air resistance and gravity.
Goddard concluded with the statement that if most of the mass of the rocket consists of propellant, its superiority will increase enormously.
Fifty years after, when NASA’s mission “Apollo 11” successfully landed on the moon with Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins on July 1969, those who doubted that space travel was a possibility were left stunned. Those in scientific communities who had belligerently opposed the idea of a small capsule being able to land on the moon could not believe the images.
But it was the New York Times who first came to realize its biggest mistake — dismissing the notion of rocket propulsion and the scientist behind it.
“Further investigation and experimentation have confirmed the findings of Isaac Newton in the 17th century and it is now definitely established that a rocket can function in a vacuum as well as in an atmosphere. The Times regrets the error.”
Though this correction was made 24 years after Goddard’s death, history absolved him.
Mansoor “Moonie” Ahmed, was brought up in Peshawar, Pakistan in the northwest region on the fringe with Afghanistan. He retired from NASA where he worked as an Associate Director of Astrophysics. He anticipated Division and Program Manager for the Physics of Cosmos and Cosmic Origin Programs.
Mansoor Ahmad
Mansoor has a B.S degree from the University of Maryland and M.S. from George Washington University, both in the mechanical building. He received a couple of prestigious awards like NASA Exceptional Service Medal. Mansoor has worked as a part of the US government Senior Executive Service (SES) in 2007.
Mansoor is at present filling in as the Associate Director of the Astrophysics Projects Division just as the Program Manager for the Physics of the Cosmos program and the Cosmic Origins program at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
Mansoor Ahmed has spent the majority of his vocation in serving the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) program in various limits, including the Flight Operations Manager and the Project Manager for HST tasks. He has taken an interest in everything except one Hubble adjusting missions. During a short spell far from HST, Mansoor has filled in as the Mission Manager for the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory Orbit mission and afterward as the appointee venture administrator for the James Web Space Telescope.
Here are some excerpts of his conversation with Team Scientia.
While addressing the national space symposim
You were born and grew up in Peshawar, let us know about your family background? Do you recall any interesting story regarding your childhood/teenage or by any of your elder relatives that you think worth talking?
My father was a Subedar-Major in the army. We lived in Peshawar city, near Fort Balahisar. For the first 5 years of education, I went to a Christian mission school and from sixth grade onwards, I went to the Government High School # 1in Peshawar city. Our house was across the street from Naaz cinema, the only cinema in the city that played English language films. This is where I got my very first exposure to films. My father took me to see the film “The Vikings” and I was hooked from then on.
Even though I didn’t really understand any English. My answer to the question “what do you want to be when you grow up?” was; I want to become the ticket collector for Naaz cinema so that I can see every film playing there. After watching a film, I would tell the story, scene by scene, in detail to my cousins. I guess that is where I picked up the art of storytelling that is coming in handy now in my filmmaking endeavor.
Then one day, I was visiting some relatives who lived right next to the Pakistan Airforce base in Peshawar and I witnessed an F-86 land on its runway. As the plane taxied right by me, I could see that the cockpit was open and the pilot in it. The pilot waved at me as he passed by and right then my career goals changed. I wanted to be a fighter pilot.
In the Government, High School, a close friend of mine, Ayub told me about the Airforce cadet academy in Lower Topa, a tiny town near Murree. A boarding school that selects 60 children each year as pre-cadets to prepare to enter the air force flying academy after FSc. Ayub said he was applying for it and encouraged me to apply as well. Fortunately, both of us got selected and we entered Lower Topa in May of 1966, at the age of 13.
Who was the most influential person to you as a child? Is there a teacher that you remember having been particularly influential?
I attended the air force pre-cadet academy in Lower Topa from 8th grade to FSc first year. These were the most impressionable years of my life. The academy taught us discipline, comradery, leadership, and sportsmanship together with an excellent education. The best part about this academy was the teachers. They really cared about the students, did everything to engage us directly in the lessons instead of just giving lectures.
They made us interested in science and math as well as literature and poetry. Even though I have been away from Pakistan for more than 40 years, my interest and taste in good poetry go back to the good old days of Lower Topa. We all made a very close bond with a lot of our teachers. Even though most of us have dispersed all across the world, we still keep in touch with a lot of our teachers.
In an experiment
You had been a BS from the University of Maryland & MS George Washington University in mechanical engineering, If you could do it again, would you take a different academic path or you satisfied with the route you followed?
This is a very interesting question to answer. First, I must admit, there is no direct path connecting my current career at NASA to my educational goals when I was a student. As I mentioned earlier, my career goal was to become a fighter pilot. I was happily pursuing it in Lower Topa when I became unfit for flying due to my eyesight. My parents had already migrated to America while I was still in Lower Topa, and once unfit to fly, I was given the option to join my parents in the US. I exercised this option.
When deciding my educational path, I was still driven by the love of flying and figured I should study aeronautical engineering so that I can still work with jet planes. As I started my BS degree, it became apparent that job opportunities in aeronautical and aerospace engineering were diminishing. The Apollo program was coming to an end and there was no real vision NASA was pursuing. So, my advisor advised me to change my major to mechanical engineering. Out of all my courses, I enjoyed thermodynamics and heat transfer the best.
America was entering the energy crisis era and the government was focusing on commercializing alternate, renewable energy resources, such as solar and wind energy. These needs were in line with my BS training and I was encouraged to continue my master’s degree in the area of energy resources. It is by chance that NASA was in need of someone with heat transfer experience, which opened the door for me into NASA.
The point I am trying to make is that where I am today is because of the circumstances that ended up in my favor. There were several opportunities where I could have gone astray, making wrong friends, making wrong choices and pursuing a course of studies resulting in a different career. Who knows if that career would have been as exciting as the one I have now. So personally, I would not want to go back to my student’s days with the risk of making a wrong choice and not end up where I am today.
In Pakistan, only specific mindset have interest in Astronomy and commonly parents do not support their kids in astronomy as a profession, let us know how much you had been encouraged by your family during the early years of your career? Would you encourage your own child if he/she do prefer astronomy/astrophysics as a profession?
I think there are two aspects to this question. Parents are concerned about the livelihood of their children when they grow up. They are concerned whether their children will be able to earn a living and support a family. So, their tendency is to push their kids towards careers that are known to provide a good living. Unfortunately, most often their preferences are also tainted by the apparent status of certain careers in our society and ignore the interest and aptitudes of the children in areas that may not rank high in the status hierarchy in Pakistan.
It is very likely that if allowed to pursue their own interests, the children would really thrive in any careers, whether it be engineering, medicine, music, business, sports, etc. Taking astronomy as an example, even though there may not be too many job opportunities in astronomy in Pakistan, if a child is genuinely interested and has the right aptitude in the subject, encouraging him/her to pursue their passion may result in an illustrious career that might answer the most profound mysteries of the universe, possibly getting worldwide recognition. I recognize it is a tough choice for a parent. Especially in Pakistan where there is a stigma attached to certain careers and are discouraged by parents.
In my situation, I am not sure if my parents would have encouraged me to become the ticket collector for Naaz cinema but they definitely did not discourage me in pursuing my career in the air force. In the case of my children, I believe in allowing them to pursue their passion, be it astronomy, plumbing or driving a taxi. It is easy for me to say because in the US, there is generally no stigma attached to any career and a person can make a decent living in any job, as long as they are willing to work hard at it. And if one is in a career following their passion, it is easy to work hard at it.
With colleagues
Do you think science could be made more popular and accessible in Pakistan if more scientific literature was available to the masses in Urdu?
I’m not sure if that will help any but it’s worth a try. In my opinion, the first step required is to create an environment where the population is trained to question everything before believing anything. My experience has been that our folks are very quick to accept any rumors, tales and conspiracy theories without logically analyzing it. In the current situation, unless you control scientific knowledge that is disseminated to the public, anyone can post erroneous scientific information and folks will believe it. Having an Urdu based outlet of science information would have to be carefully controlled to avoid misinformation.
JWT is infrared while Hubble is an optical telescope. What do you feel about the future of Hubble? Is it true that JWT got more importance than Hubble?
Hubble and JWST are equally important tools for answering astrophysics questions. Just like Hubble cannot see infrared light, JWST cannot see optical and ultraviolet light. Together they can solve more mysteries than either one can by itself. Hubble continues to be in perfect health. We predict that all its systems will still be functional until 2022 and most likely beyond. JWST will be launching in early 2019. The scientific community is eagerly awaiting when both of these amazing observatories will work for hand in hand.
How our knowledge has expanded via space-based astronomy with observations like Hubble & JWT?
Hubble has made amazing discoveries up to now. It has determined the exact age of the universe, it has proved the existence of black holes that were only theoretical before Hubble, it has observed gravitational lensing as predicted by Einstein and so much more. As it has answered so many questions, it has also introduced us to so many more mysteries that we didn’t know existed.
Dark matter and dark energy for example. Being an optical telescope, Hubble’s eyes reach a limit when looking for the oldest galaxies and stars. The older the galaxies, the faster they are moving away from us so their light reaches us in infrared (due to Doppler shift) and Hubble cannot see them. With James Web, we will be able to see those galaxies and determine how and when the very first stars in the universe were born.
Let us know about your services as a project manager for LISA, the mission that was a collaborative endeavor between NASA & ESA? What do Gravitational waves tell us & how would LISA implement our knowledge about the beginning, evolution & structure of the universe?
Up to now, all of our astrophysical discoveries have been done with analyzing the electromagnetic spectrum. The visible light, which human eye can see, and Hubble is optimized to see in this wavelength, is just a small subset of this spectrum. The spectrum ranges from radio waves at one end and very energetic gamma rays on the other end. We have satellites in space observing in most of these wavelengths and together they have informed our knowledge of the universe to date. But the electromagnetic spectrum is generated by the stars when they are born and start to emit electromagnetic radiation.
There were no stars at the time of the big band. Only elementary particles that coalesced together for form electrons and protons which in turn formed hydrogen. The hydrogen atoms started to coalesce to form blobs of hydrogen, eventually forming a mass large enough to have enough gravitational force to initiate hydrogen fusion in the core of this blog, thus igniting the blob into becoming a star that started to emit electromagnetic waves. This process took hundreds of thousands of years. So, there were no electromagnetic waves during this time. We call it the dark period because there was not light and as a result, we can only predict theoretically what happened during that period.
Gravitational waves, on the other hand, were generated right at the start of the big bang because mass always existed and mass creates gravity. LISA mission is being designed so that we can see the universe with gravitational waves. A completely new way of looking at the universe. With LISA, we will be able to look at the dark period from the very beginning of the big bang. We would also be able to see deep inside black holes where electromagnetic light cannot escape from. While we are in the process of building LISA, there are several grounds based gravitational observatories now coming into action already.
How long have you been serving for NASA? What advice do you have for your countrymen regarding your type of services?
I have been with NASA for almost 35 years. NASA is a government agency so I am a civil servant, doing this work on behalf of the American public. As a civil servant, one has to always keep in mind that we serve at the pleasure our population, who have contributed their hard-earned money to the government so that the entire nation can benefit from the work of the government. As a civil servant, it is an honor to be given this responsibility and we should do our utmost to work hard and honestly to fulfill our obligations to our public.
Have you encountered obstacles during your career, what is the most interesting thing about your job at Goddard Space Flight Centre, NASA, & what is the least?
I don’t think I can imagine a single dull moment during my career at Goddard. It has been amazing to be working on so many interesting and challenging projects with so many amazing scientists and engineers who are motivated and hard-working to meet the mission objectives.
We found an apparent dichotomy in Mansoor Ahmad, besides your arduous services for NASA, you have been directed sixteen short films and a movie. Let us know about your experience as Technical Director of the television show ‘Pakistan vision’. What’s harder getting started or being able to keep going?
I don’t see it as a dichotomy. My work at NASA is my career. Filmmaking is my hobby and not intended for earning a livelihood. It is very important for one to follow one’s passion. And it is not necessary that one should have only one passion. We should pursue all our passions. It is important to do that to feel complete. Pakistan Vision was a passion of a friend of mine, Mr. Saleem who was a pharmaceutical representative during the day and in his spare time wanted to develop a news and entertainment program for the Pakistani population in the Washington DC area.
My interest in the technical side of filmmaking and figuring out the right equipment for developing, editing and airing the show went hand in hand with Mr. Saleem. It was a great learning experience for both of us. This partnership evolved into us launching into the production of our feature-length film Bhool.
Do you think that cinema has the power to influence the minds, if so what should be the role of a filmmaker in a society like Pakistan?
I believe so. Cinema remains to be the most popular form of entertainment worldwide and especially in our country. So, I do believe the filmmakers have the moral obligation to honestly expose the issues facing the country as well as create material that minimizes the divide among us, whether it is political, religious, status, and gender. The filmmakers can help eliminate all kinds of stereotypes existing in our society.
As a filmmaker, how much did you compromise because of financial restrictions, how did you & your fellows manage time during the making of BHOOL besides professional responsibilities?
As I said earlier, filmmaking is my hobby and not a money-making endeavor. We took on this venture as a learning process. Other than buying the necessary equipment, there was no other expense. All the cast and crew were volunteers, following their own passions. The locations were obtained through favors by our friends and families. And frankly, we didn’t really know enough to know if we were compromising anything. And since we are our own customers, following our own schedule, we were free to mold the storyline based upon the available resources. It was only after we finished the film that we realized all our shortcomings.
Do you think that Pakistani University students are different from any American or other country students in capabilities and core skills like mathematics, reasoning, research, and analytical approach? What would you suggest to the new generation in order to cope with the challenges of time regarding space-based astronomy?
I had the privilege of meeting young students in several institutions in Pakistan. I must say I was very impressed by their curiosity, their intelligence and their interest in astronomy and astrophysics, even with the limited resources available to them in Pakistan. I was very encouraged to see that there was almost an equal number of girls as boys attending the talks. A lot of them were enrolled in Ph.D. programs in physics, which is not an easy subject. Some of them have found their own ways to continue research in astrophysics, especially in finding planets around other stars, which is the first step in finding life elsewhere in the universe.
I have made commitments to the leadership of these institutions that I will do my best in connecting these students with the scientists and engineers at NASA who can provide guidance to these young students in pursuing careers in space-based astronomy. I have already obtained commitments from NASA scientist to give periodic lectures by skype to the interested students in Pakistan.
Note A few parts of this interview published on Dawn.com in Jan 2018.
Scientists hypothesize that the moon is over 4.51 billion years old, formed soon after earth’s creation. Yet it’s physique and texture have remained a mystery for thousands of years, leading to much speculation and myths throughout history. To this day, much of the moon’s geography is still a mystery but scientists have managed to uncover some of its unique traits.
Credits: Peter Frieman, Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0. license
Craters
Moon craters or lunar craters are simply bowl-shaped depressions or pits on the surface of Earth’s moon. They were mostly caused by the impact due to volcanism and cratering.
How are impact craters formed from collisions?
Impact craters are formed when certain objects collide with the surface, resulting in a deep circular hole or depression known as impact craters. These extra-terrestrial objects are in most instances either meteors or asteroids. In order to form craters, these objects must be moving at extremely high speeds; more than thousands of miles per hour! Since these objects are moving through space so fast, that upon hitting the surface (i,e. of the moon) they instantly vaporize, leaving behind depressions.
Astronaut’s footprint on the moon’s surface
Why do the impacts on the moon stay?
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong placed his left foot on the moon for the first time, during the Apollo 11 mission. It is recorded as the first time in history for anyone to have set foot on the moon. However, surprisingly as of now, years later the footprint still exist and will for millions of years! This brings_____ the question, how is such a feat possible? This feat/phenomena occurred because of the moon’s unique atmosphere/geography that enables any impression on the moon’s surface (regardless of its size) to permanently stay on the moon.
Although, both the Earth and the moon have been repeatedly hit with impact over their billions of years of shared history, the moon has faced far more permanent impact.
Unlike the earth, all craters that result because of collusion the impact craters on the moon last. This is because unlike the moon, over the Earth’s billions of years of history it’s features have constantly changed and adapted. This is due to a variety of reasons, including but not limited to the existent life on earth that aids the process of erosion, washing away and fading any remnants/evidence of the collision. Apart from this, Earth’s atmosphere and tectonics (or shifting of tectonic plates) aid in smoothing its landscape from the impact craters. Lastly, the active volcanic activities (ie.explosions) on earth cover depressions by the spread of lava in volcanic explosions. Hence, Earth’s surface contains very few craters, though similar to the moon it has had its fair share of collisions.
In contrast, the moon possesses no known life on its surface and has no atmosphere. As a result, it has no weather. The lack of weather or life on the moon results in the inability to erode. Apart from this, the moon has no tectonic plates and therefore cannot rely upon tectonics to remove imprints or change its features. Lastly, the moon has no active volcanoes, in fact, scientists report that the last active volcano was 3 billion years ago! Therefore, unlike Earth, the moon has no means to remove the imprint of craters on its surface. Therefore, any impression on the moon will almost certainly remain there forever.
What are the different types of craters?
Scientists have largely categorized craters into four different types including; complex craters, multi-ring basins, irregular craters, degraded craters. An example of a more specific crater is the “impact basin”.
Complex craters are large-sized craters with intricate and complicated characteristics and traits, such as terraces, central peaks, and multiple rings.
Multi-ring basins are large craters with a basin-like deep depression that typically consists as much as 5 to 6 rings of ‘mountain chains’. In addition, it usually includes a main basin/crater rim.
Irregular Craters are craters that form irregular shapes instead of a standard circle. This can also include multiple craters which were formed simultaneously. These also include ‘oblong craters’ which are formed when the impact is created by hitting the surface at a short/low distance.
Degraded Craters are craters that have been changed from their original form due to erosion. This can happen by any means including lava flows (the last of which happened on the moon billions of years ago!).
Lastly, Impact Basins are craters that are longer than 185 miles (300 kilometers) wide in diameter. Records show that the largest ‘impact basin’ on the moon is 1550 miles (2500 kilometers) wide and deeper than 7 miles (12 kilometers)!
PhotoCredits: Wired
The Moon’s Seas, Maria
The Sea of Nectar, the Sea of Serenity, the Known Sea; the Lake of Time and Lake of Luxury; the Marsh of Rot, Bay of Roughness and Ocean of Storms are all intriguing names of lunar seas.
In fact, these lunar seas were formed about 3.8 million years ago! And yet, they don’t have a single drop of water on them. How is this possible?
When asteroids bombarded the moon, they left behind many craters. During this time, the moon’s interior was still molten due to its relatively young age. Thus, the lava within the moon would consequently, often erupt exposing it to the surface of the moon. Though now, all volcanic activities on the moon are dormant, this was not the case 3.8 million years ago. This lava flowed over the surface of the moon, falling into its many depressions. These basins of lava were named the moon’s seas or “Maria” by early astronomers who mistakenly thought these were bodies of water. To this day the name remains, reminding us of the moon’s mysterious nature.
Conclusion
It was only after humans explored the moon that they uncovered it’s many hidden features and mysteries. Perhaps now it suffices to say that our fascination or obsession with it is over. But it’s a gift to us will never go away, our curiosity over its mysterious nature compelled us to go further motivating us to discover more.
There is a moment, towards the end of First Man, Oscar-Winning director Damien Chazelle’s Neil Armstrong biopic, where the astronaut, after having immortalized himself by becoming the first human to set foot on an alien world and of course delivering the iconic lines ‘One small step…’ is poised over a crater in the Sea of Tranquility, reflecting. As private a man as Neil Armstrong was, it seems almost characteristic for him to seek solitude from the only other human on the moon, fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin. But the moment isn’t one of seclusion; Armstrong has a burden to bear. In his gloved hands, he holds his erstwhile daughter, Karen’s bracelet, a memento of the child to whom he was so devoted. Standing there, earth’s envoy, he is not an astronaut but a grieving father. The scene ends with the bracelet committed to the deep, the moon’s gravity gently planting it in the Little West Crater.
Whether this episode is apocryphal or not is anyone’s guess – Armstrong’s enduring privateness revealed little and he remains as much of an enigma today as he was then. Shortly after the announcement that Armstrong would be the commander of Apollo 11, the press tried desperately to get to know him, to know who this man was but as writer Andrew Chaikin put it, “Armstrong was beyond their reach” a fact that friends and colleagues could testify to. For someone so lauded, so identified, it is peculiar that we know the astronaut but not the man.
Born in Ohio, 1930, Neil Alden Armstrong cut his teeth as a naval aviator and test pilot before joining NASA and the Gemini Project. A crew cut, corn-fed Boy Scout, Armstrong may have been an All American poster boy but beyond the picture-perfect look, he had ‘The Right Stuff’ – that particular quality that separated him from us mere mortals. A childhood interest in flying and a head for numbers set him on the path for a career in flight, one that reached its apogee quite literally in the heavens.
In telling his story, there are moments throughout his career that build towards the legend –trials by fire that shaped the astronaut to be but then there are also moments, anecdotes if you will, that lend to his own mystique, revealing glimpses of the man.
Soon after graduating from college, he returned to flying but instead of reenlisting in the navy, decided on a career as a test pilot. While this period of his life, the preamble that is, is most noted by ‘incidents’ such as his X-15 ‘bouncing’ off the atmosphere it is perhaps more telling of the man by where he lived.
Though assigned to Edwards Air Force Base in Southern California, Armstrong and family lived quite off the beaten path, in a remote, spartan cabin in Juniper Hills which apparently had no electricity or plumbing. This ascetic, isolated abode typified Armstrong who as time would tell came to be one of the most famous people in the world yet for all that chose obscurity and a farm.
This idyll, one that he would often fondly look back to, was soon to be irrevocably changed by events both foreign and domestic. In 1957, the Soviet Union shot Sputnik into space, announcing to the world that the Space Race had begun. The bi-polar world of the 50s had the US and the USSR locked in a game of one-upmanship and with Sputnik, this contest took to the stars. Scrambling to come to terms with the Soviet Union’s feat, the US, with all urgency, sought to do them one better. Armstrong, perhaps with some foresight, was eager to get in on the action, remarking to a colleague “Space is the frontier and I intend to go”.
Though missing out on Project Mercury, the earliest human spaceflight program by NASA because he was a civilian, Armstong later qualified for Project Gemini in late 1962. However, the year had already been ‘marked’ for the astronaut and his family, and if First Man and the biography of the same name are anything to go by, it is something that dogged him his entire life. Earlier that year, his daughter Karen, aged 2 ½, died, having been diagnosed with a brain tumor.
Armstrong playing with his daughter, a scene from First Man
Again this is the kind of Apocryphal that may never be confirmed (James Hanson, Armstrong’s biographer ‘suspected’ that the astronaut left his daughter’s bracelet on the moon) but one would like to chalk this down to creative license for the morose, somber character Ryan Gosling plays is only one side of the picture. There was a side to Armstrong that was rarely seen, only putting in brief appearances but when it did, like the sunrises that he so cherished in the Californian desert, it was warm and lasting. You can see this in pictures, particularly that megawatt smile he has posing in a spacesuit with the Apollo 11 crew – this is, after all, a man about to embark on a voyage like no other, it’s hard not to smile.
Of course, his professionalism and sangfroid never failed him as during the Gemini Project, the Gemini 8 spacecraft, performing rendezvous and docking in earth’s orbit, malfunctioned, leading to a deadly roll which was only averted thanks to Armstrong’s quick thinking. Though coined much later, Armstrong embodied the ‘Steely-eyed Missile Man’ – a quality in an astronaut to problem solve under great pressure. His landing of Eagle on the moon is a classic example. As the Lunar Module was descending to the satellite, Aldrin, and Armstrong aboard, a sudden computer error led to the LEM’s navigation system being thrown off, jeopardizing the landing. At that moment, Armstrong took manual control of Eagle and with only seconds of fuel left to spare, landed on the lunar surface – “The Eagle has landed.” And though seemingly calm during the descent, Armstrong’s EKG, being monitored back in Houston, showed that his heart rate had soared to 160 BPM.
This restraint and reserve that he exuded were felt by all, as Michael Collins said of him “He has his own barriers erected” and it was something of an ethos for him. When he was informed by NASA flight director Deke Slayton that his crew had been selected for Apollo 11, he would say later that he was ”very pleased but not wildly elated” – that signature restraint in play. When it was being discussed who was to be first to exit the LEM and thus become the first human to set foot on the moon, he remarked at the time that this was something “not based on individual desire” knowing that Aldrin was pushing for the privilege but would add years later, that he didn’t care either way. Of course, Armstrong was selected as he was a commander of the mission and the senior astronaut.
There has been much speculation, both at the time and to this day, about the words spoken at the time he first set foot on the moon. Prior to the launch, he was bombarded with suggestions, constantly being quizzed by the press but as always he kept his own counsel. Even en route to the moon, his crew asked him the same question, but he declined from answering. What was the inspiration for this epigram and when did he come up with it? Again another of those Armstrong mysteries but it is likely that it was conceived on the way, the sheer wonder of it all serving as some muse.
Armstrong’s post-Apollo 11 career was expectedly quiet, retiring from NASA to go on to teach. He remained very active advocating space flight but stayed out of the limelight as much as he could. Following complications after heart surgery, he died at the age of 82. In eulogizing his colleague and friend, Buzz Aldrin’s words are perhaps the most fitting, “My friend Neil took the small step but giant leap that changed the world and will forever be remembered as a historic moment in human history. May he Rest in Peace, and may his vision for our human destiny in space be his legacy.”
Cloud burst is a natural meteorological phenomenon, occurs when sudden extremely heavy rainfall falls within a very short interval of time. These incidents usually occur in localized areas, especially in mountainous areas, and most often are accompanied by thunderstorms.
A cloud Burst
The hottest air currents carrying large amounts of water vapor tend to rise on the mountainside while violent up rushing air currents prevent condensed raindrops from falling on the ground and thus accumulate extremely high levels of vapor which ultimately burst in the form of heavy rainfall wreaking havoc and destruction. The destructive power of nature is most visible on mountain slopes, valleys, and gullies which are instantly filled with water due to heavy downpour.
The intensity of the cloud burst in the most severe cases can only be conjectured. On 29th November 1911, a rainfall of 63mm (2.47 inches) was recorded in just three minutes in Porto Bello Panama. In other cases, excavations made into the ground by the falling water of cloud burst have indicated the extreme intensity of this powerful natural phenomenon.
Last week at least two dozen people were feared dead and several others reported missing on Monday after flash floods, due to a cloudburst, wreaked havoc within minutes in Neelum Valley, Azad Kashmir.
The world witnessed a partial lunar eclipse which began on 16 July 2019 at 23:43 pm (PST) or 8 pm (UTC) and was maximum at 02:30 pm (PST) on 17 July 2019.
Mirzakhani was born in Iran and won the World Mathematics Olympiad twice at the age of 17 and 18. She received a field’s medal at the age of 37 — an honor considers as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in Mathematics.
Maryam Mirzakhani
Maryam’s research basically covers some of the specific branches of mathematics and complex geometry, the most exciting queries like the movements of planets, the discovery of other universes, and other complicated problems related to space exploration could be better understood and solved through her ground-breaking research in mathematics.
A year after her death, remembering her makes me wonder why Pakistani students are still lagging behind their counterparts in neighboring countries, specifically in subjects such as math.
Because Maryam was a foreigner she did not speak English properly, but instead of feeling guilty or embarrassed she used to put down her lecture notes into Persian. However, in Pakistan, our educational system is obsessed with fluency in English.
Once in an interview, Maryam Mirzakhani unveiled that when she just enrolled in Harvard University, because she was a foreigner she did not speak English properly, but instead of feeling guilty or embarrassed she used to put down her lecture notes into Persian for quite some time. However, in Pakistan, our educational system is obsessed with fluency in English rather than excellence in mathematics or other science subjects.
Note: The article is originally published on 15th July 2018 in Daily Times Lahore
The Horse Nebula is a small dark Nebula in the constellation Orion. This is just located in South Alnitak, which is an Eastern star of Orion belt. The horse Nebula is categorized as dark nebula those are clouds of dust in space, commonly they obscure behind them. Here is a collection of some stunning astrophotographs of Horse Nebula captured worldwide.
Asteroids are the rocks have been drifting through space and spending a lonely life since the formation of our solar system. But last week asteroid Ryugu was visited by a special visitor: Hayabusa-2, Japan’s spacecraft, which landed successfully on the distant icy world.
The images released by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency are remarkable and show the image of the asteroid just before it took off from the surface of the distant world.
A stunning image of Asteroid Ryugu
The first photo was taken at 10:06:32 JST (onboard time) and you can see the gravel flying upwards. The second shot was at 10:08:53 where the darker region near the center is due to touchdown,” JAXA tweeted.
Hayabusa-2 launched in December 2014 by JAXA. Its mission was to visit the distant, lonely and icy world of Ryugu―a half-mile wide-body― study its surface and collect samples of soil and debris. Asteroid Ryugu is a primitive asteroid that orbits the sun at a distance of up to 131 million miles (211 million kilometers).
Source JAXA
The probe reached the distant world in June 2018 and carried out observations of the surface, gravitational studies, and rehearsals before a complicated touchdown last week. It also collected shallow samples from the surface. In April 2019, the probe blasted a copper plate and an explosive box to study the layers of the soil underneath the surface of the asteroid. The probe also collected samples from the asteroid.
A stunning image of Asteroid Ryugu
The Japanese exploration program will provide insights into the chemical nature of asteroids and probably unveil secrets of the solar system.
