Saturday Morning Films - Mar 5

Saturday Morning Films features educational film reels of the past for you to wake up to, on your Saturday morning. Typically there is a combined running length of roughly one hour and usually focus on a single broad topic.

This Saturday: Plastics

Synthetic Fibers - 1949

Archive.org - Synthetic Fibers: Reveals how modern science and technology have made possible the development of new artificial fibers for making textiles -- specifically rayon and nylon. Portrays some of the processes used in making these fibers, ways in which they are useful to man and characteristic of the textiles made from them. - Encyclopedia Britannica Films

Origin & Synthesis of Plastics Materials - 1945

Archive.org - Origin And Synthetis of Plastics Materials: Shows the organic origins of plastics and natural substances; synthesis of plastics from natural substances; differences between thermosetting and thermoplastic materials; compounding platics to provide desired properties in products forms in which plastics are produced and typical plastics products.- U.S. Office of Education

Kingdom of Plastics - 1945

Archive.org - The Kingdom of Plastics: This early Technicolor presentation, sponsored by General Electric, opens with a group of children playing blindman's bluff. Little Susie is stumped because the object she's trying to guess is not from the animal, vegetable or mineral kindoms, but her dad (an engineer) soon sets her straight. It's from the "fourth kingdom," he explains -- the kingdom of plastics. After reviewing the role of thermoplastic and thermosetting compounds in history and World War II, this film ends on a note of postwar positivism, as the narrator speculates about plastic fabrics, shoes-of-the-future, and other man-made wonders of the world of tomorrow. - General Electric / Handy (Jam) Organization

Plastics - 1944

Archive.org - Plastics: Surveys the growth of the plastic industry, stressing the new materials developed during World War II. Shows the manufacture and fabrication of articles from plastic materials. - Young America Films

 

LAMO 40

LAMO image 40 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 40 features the southern portion of Ikapati crater. An interesting hummocky surface is present within a feature in the lower left of the image, somewhat reminiscent of areas of Charon, the major moon of Pluto. Much of the terrain in the imaged region reflects strongly in the blue spectrum and is quite smooth overall, suggesting the area was recently impacted, casting ejected material across the landscape.

LAMO 40 - PIA20394

Imaging Map (2016-03-04)

LAMO 39

LAMO image 39 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 39 features the western rim and interior basin of Ikapati crater. The central peak of the crater is very prominent and broad in coverage. Several fractures are also scattered on the northern and eastern portions of the crater, possibly a result of the crater rapidly cooling shortly after impact. The entire northern portion of the crater appears to have collapsed inward, toward the central peak. Looking at the topographic map reveals that the area directly north of the crater, is much higher in elevation than the surrounding areas, likely making the original northern rim quite high and unstable with the soft soil. The crater floor is overall very smooth. The color map shows Ikapati crater to be very reflective in blue wavelengths, suggesting the crater is likely the result of a recent impact.

As noted in the Photojournal entry, the imaged region is centered at approximately 45 degrees north longitude, 50 degrees east latitude.

LAMO 39 - PIA20393

Imaging Map (2016-03-03)

LAMO 38

LAMO image 38 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 38 features the northwestern rim and interior basin of Azacca crater near the Cerian equater, in the Occator quadrangle. A large system of fractures is present across the eastern portion of the interior basin. These fractures are possibly due to the rapid cooling of the surface shortly after the impact. The rim of Azacca exhibits a great deal of mass wasting, leading to the terraced appearance. Much of the crater floor also appears rather smooth. In the color map, Azacca crater also has a strong blue signature, further suggesting it is likely a result of a recent impact.

As noted in the Photojournal entry, the imaged region is centered at approximately 5.3 degrees south latitude, 217.4 degrees east longitude.

LAMO 38 - PIA20392

Imaging Map (2016-03-02)

LAMO 37

LAMO image 37 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 37 features the southwestern portion of Sintana crater in the southern hemisphere. The imaged region appears mostly saturated with impacts, suggesting much of the terrain is very ancient. In contrast, the small crater on the rim of Sintana, appears quite recent and reflects a very strong blue signature on the color map. Ejected material from this small crater has been blown into the interior basin of Sintana crater. A nearby landslide event also appears next to the crater, possibly a result of the nearby impact shaking the soil. As noted in the Photojournal entry, the imaged region is centered at approximately 51 degrees south latitude, 46.1 degrees east longitude.

LAMO 37 - PIA20391

Imaging Map (2016-03-01)

LAMO 36

LAMO image 36 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 36 prominently features Sekhet crater in far southern hemisphere, near the south Cerian pole. A high amount of mass-wasting has occurred within Sekhet crater, completely obscuring the crater floor. Numerous minor impacts dot the terrain and a second large impact is present in the upper left of the region. Surrounding this smaller crater is much smoother terrain which is likely a result of the impact and the ejected material from the location of crater. Very large boulders can also be spotted surrounding the crater, some as large as 300 meters across. When looking at the color map, this smaller crater only has a very minor signiture, barely coloring the surrounding area with a slight green tint. This is most due to the low resolution of the available color map at this time. As noted in the Photojournal entry, the imaged region is centered at approximately 67.3 degrees south latitude, 251.5 degrees east longitude.

LAMO 36 - PIA20390

Imaging Map (2016-02-29)

Juling and Fluusa craters, an Oblique Mosaic

 

Juling and Fluusa craters, an Oblique Mosaic

LAMO 32 - LAMO 33

Weekly Read & Watch List - Week of Feb 28

Week of February 28, 2016

This section is a curated list of articles, white papers, concepts, events, videos, and data releases. Some listed items may not be current but are nonetheless quite interesting.

Articles & Sites of Interest

• NASA: NASA Aeronautics Budget Proposes Return of X-Planes
• ESA: Schiaparelli: the ExoMars Entry, Descent and Landing Demonstrator Module
• Centauri Dreams: An Exoplanet Changing Over Time 
• Elsevier: Why Science Needs to Publish Negative Results 
• BBC: What would happen if aliens contacted Earth 
• In a Hubble first, UA astronomers take images of an exoplanet changing over time 
• NASA: Pulsar Web Could Detect Low-Frequency Gravitational Waves
• NASA: Tools and Talent at Michoud to Complete SLS Core Stage Welding in 2016
• SKA: New Fast Radio Burst discovery finds ‘missing matter’ in the Universe
• AstroSociety: Science Fiction Stories with Good Astronomy & Physics - A Topical Index
• ESA: Fuelling the Trace Gas Orbiter
• NASA: Orion Test Hardware in Position for Solar Array Test
• ESO: ATLASGAL Survey of Milky Way Completed
• Discovery: 'Space Men' - Ascending to Earth's Deadliest Frontier
• Slate: Astronomers Find Another Small Icy Body Out Past Pluto
• Space Policy Online: House SS&T Lays Out Work Plan for 2016, Including NASA and NOAA
• PRD: The Hunt for Free Floating Planets in Our Galaxy
• NASA: Where’s My Data? Keeping Track of New Horizons’ Treasure of Information

Concepts & White Papers

• arxiv: Constraints on the location of a possible 9th planet derived from the Cassini data
• arxiv: Cosmologists in Search of Planet Nine: the Case for CMB Experiments 
• arxiv: Discovery of Rotational Modulations in the Planetary-Mass Companion 2M1207b: Intermediate Rotation Period and Heterogeneous Clouds in a Low Gravity Atmosphere 
• NASA: Project Mercury Drawings and Technical Diagrams
• arxiv: Neptune's Orbital Migration Was Grainy, Not Smooth
• NTRS: The Pioneer mission to Jupiter
• NTRS: Objectives and goals in space science and applications 1968
• NTRS: Planetary exploration: Space in the seventies
• JGR: Cryovolcanism on Titan - New results from Cassini RADAR and VIMS (sci-hub)
• arxiv: Evolution and Magnitudes of Candidate Planet Nine
• arxiv: Transiting Planet Candidates Beyond the Snow Line Detected by Visual Inspection of 7557 Kepler Objects of Interest

Events & Involvement

• Mar 1 - PBS: Space Men @ 9PM-EST

Videos

• James Webb Space Telescope Deployment In Detail
• Discovery: Telescope 
• NASA: Preparing America for Deep Space Exploration Episode 12 - Built for Exploration 
• USGov Hearing: Unlocking the Secrets of the Universe - Gravitational Waves
• USGov Hearing: The Space Leadership Preservation Act and the Need for Stability at NASA 
• ESO: ESOcast 81 - Red Sprites
• SETI: Exoplanets spectroscopy with diffraction primary objective telescopes 
• Feb 28, 1885: The American Telephone and Telegraph Company is incorporated in New York as the subsidiary of American Bell Telephone.
• Feb 28, 1935: Nylon invented by Wallace Carothers of Dupont
• Feb 28, 1953: The chemical structure of DNA is determined in a laboratory by James Watson and Francis Crick
• Feb 28, 1959: Launch of Discoverer 1, a Corona Key Hole class spy satellite prototype, failing to enter the intended polar orbit, crashing near the south pole
• Mar 1, 1872: Yellowstone National Park is established as the world's first national park by President Ulysses S. Grant and the sitting U.S. congress 
• Mar 1, 1936: Hoover Dam is completed 
• Mar 1, 1954: Detonation of Castle Bravo dry hydrogen bomb over Bikini Atoll, resulting in the worst radioactive contamination zone caused by the U.S.
• Mar 1, 1961: President John F. Kennedy establishes the Peace Corps
• Mar 3, 1915: NACA, predecessor to NASA, established after William Howard Taft and the sitting U.S. congress passed the act
• Mar 3, 1938: LNER A4 locomotive, 'The Mallard', becomes fastest steam locomotive in production, capable of speeds greater than 120mph
• Mar 3, 1969: Launch of Apollo CSM-104 & Apollo LM-3 aboard a Saturn V on mission Apollo 9 to perform an inflight test in docking the CSM with the LM
• Mar 4, 1890: The Forth Bridge in Scotland becomes the longest in Great Britain, measuring 520-meters long
• Mar 4, 1913: The U.S. Department of Labor is established by President William Howard Taft and the sitting U.S. congress
• Mar 4, 1986: USSR Vega 1 begins returning image from Halley's Comet
• Mar 5, 1943: UK jet fighter, Gloster Meteor, takes first flight
• Mar 5, 1979: Voyager 1 encounters Jupiter at nearest distance of 276,800-kilometers
• Mar 5, 1981: Sinclair Research launches ZX81, later selling 1.5 million units

Data

• Mar 1: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) Release #36

Activities

• OSIRIS-REx paper model

Spacecraft Updates

• Feb 28: Juno - 799,917,000 km from Sol, 69,939,000 km to Jupiter @ 26,044-km/h
• Feb 28: New Horizons - 5,206,153,000 km from Sol, 286,555,000 km from Pluto, 1,281,132,000 km to KBO-JimGreene @ 51,998-km/h
  
• Feb 28: Voyager 1 - 20,070,061,000 km from Sol @ 61,233-km/h
  
• Feb 28: Voyager 2 - 16,530,316,000 km from Sol @ 55,419-km/h

Blog Entries

• Weekly Read & Watch List - Week of Feb 21  
• LAMO 31
• LAMO 32 
• LAMO 32 - Reoriented 
• Juling Crater - H39-L32 
• LAMO 33 
• LAMO 33 - Reoriented
• LAMO 34 
• LAMO 35 
• Saturday Morning Films - Feb 27  

LAMO 35

LAMO image 35 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 35 features an unnamed region east of Guaue crater, in the northern hemisphere. Much of the area is saturated with small impacts. The crater rim to the north appears to be quite old due to its heavily impacted and worn state. However, interestingly, the area appears to return a strong blue signature which would typically suggest a recent impact in the area. Such an impact is not present in this image. The source of the ejected, blue material is likely to be from nearby Guaue crater. As noted on the Photojournal entry, the imaged region is centered at approximately 30.8 degrees north latitude, 95.9 degrees east longitude.

LAMO 35 - PIA20389

Imaging Map (2016-02-26)

Saturday Morning Films - Feb 27

Saturday Morning Films feature approximately one hour worth of old film reel videos, sometimes with a theme, but often without.

This Saturday: 1964-65 New York Worlds Fair

World's Fair Report with Lowell Thomas - 1961

Unisphere: Biggest World on Earth - 1964

To The Fair - 1964

LAMO 34

LAMO image 34 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 34 shares many features with LAMO 29 and others that are just to the northwest. Ejected material from a crater just out of the imaged region, on the right, appears to be draped over much of the lower portion of the imaged region, giving an overall, smooth appearance to the terrain. The visible crater on the right appears to be rather old, due to the presence of a high number of regionally large interior basin impacts, and the degree of mass-wasting around the rim.

LAMO 34 - PIA20388

Imaging Map (2016-02-25)

LAMO 29 / LAMO 34 comparison

LAMO 33 - Reoriented

Here is an orientation corrected version of LAMO 33, as if you were looking obliquely across the surface from an orbiting platform. Fluusa crater is at the left most point.

Orientation Corrected LAMO 32

LAMO 33

LAMO image 33 has been released to the JPL Photojournal.

LAMO 33 is an extreme oblique view, looking over the craters Fluusa at top center and the northern expanse of Meanderi, in the bottom right. The landscape in the imaged region is heavily cratered to the point of saturation, and incredibly varied in altitude. The topographic map shows this region is be a portion of a long section of terrain which is highly varied in elevation, from the far southern hemisphere stretching northward above 40 degrees northern latitudes. Much of the imaged region is quite old. This is correlated with the color map, with exception to a portion of the ejecta blanket from Juling crater, which is located just outside of the imaged region on the left.

LAMO 33 - PIA20387

Imaging map (2016-02-24)

Updated 2016-02-25 - Fixed links to pictures. Sorry folks.

Juling Crater - H39-L32

Juling crater from HAMO 39 to LAMO 32

This is a synthetic animation, created from morphing HAMO image 39 to LAMO 32. This is done by placing a point cloud over each image, designating locations from one image to the other. 

LAMO 32 - Reoriented

Here is a orientation corrected version of LAMO 32, as if you were looking obliquely across the surface from an orbiting platform.

Orientation Corrected LAMO 32