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Haleakal'ā
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The University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy has managed this site for over 4 decades as a location for conducting dedicated astrophysical experiments. In most cases these are programs that could not be conducted anywhere else on Earth. Currently they have partners from the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Pan-STARRS consortium, Space Telescope Science Institute, Tohoku University in Japan, the Air Force and others working up on the summit. The observatories boast a number of ongoing research projects, such as exoplanets, astrobiology, cosmology, and galaxy clustering, alongside the more specific study of planetary atmospheres, pluto and its moons, solar eclipses, and brown dwarf stars; but above all, near-Earth asteroids. In fact, on the night of January 29 of last year, Haleakala set a new asteroid-hunting record: 19 space rocks discovered in one night, the most ever by a single telescope, astronomers say. Actually, Pan-STARRS astronomers picked up 30 potential asteroids that night. Using telescopes at Mauna Kea Observatories in Hawaii, they were able to confirm 12 of the space rocks, and other telescopes around the world confirmed another seven, bringing the total to 19. The other 11 candidates got away, moving too far to be found, researchers said.
The Pan-STARRS PS1 telescope, ("PanSTARRS" being short for Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System) was designed specifically to hunt for potentially threatening asteroids. It has a main mirror 60 inches (1.8 meters) wide and a powerful digital imaging system that includes a 1,400-megapixel camera. Speaking of cameras, I hope that you’ve been checking out my Hawai’i Photo Gallery. Coming up next: sails, swales, and a whole lot of tails. Malama pono. Take care.
The Pan-STARRS PS1 telescope, ("PanSTARRS" being short for Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System) was designed specifically to hunt for potentially threatening asteroids. It has a main mirror 60 inches (1.8 meters) wide and a powerful digital imaging system that includes a 1,400-megapixel camera. Speaking of cameras, I hope that you’ve been checking out my Hawai’i Photo Gallery. Coming up next: sails, swales, and a whole lot of tails. Malama pono. Take care.
Does this scream "fallacy" to you?I recently read an article from space.com detailing Haleakalā's record-breaking status including the comment made by Nick Kaiser—the head of the Pan-STARRS project:
A telescope on top of Haleakala, Maui, made a record on the starry night of Jan. 29, when it discovered 19 asteroids close to Earth. |
Does it "beg the question?"Or am I committing "the fallacy" fallacy? |
In honor of Haleakal'ā, The House of the Sun or The House of the Rising Sun, I have posted recent solar projects undertaken by research teams from the observatories. For more information, visit the research webpage for The University of Hawaii: Institute for Astronomy.
Fluctuations in the Solar Radius
"Jeff Kuhn is a member of an international team which has recently measured the diameter of the Sun with unprecedented accuracy. They used the SOHO spacecraft to time the transits of the planet Mercury across the face of the Sun in 2003 and 2006.
They measured the Sun’s radius as 696,342 km (432,687 miles) with an uncertainty of only 65 km (40 miles).
Transits of Mercury occur 12-13 times per century providing astronomers with the opportunity to look for very small changes in the Sun's diameter over the next few decades."
They measured the Sun’s radius as 696,342 km (432,687 miles) with an uncertainty of only 65 km (40 miles).
Transits of Mercury occur 12-13 times per century providing astronomers with the opportunity to look for very small changes in the Sun's diameter over the next few decades."
The Solar Eclipse and the Solar Corona
"During the last few years Shadia Habbal has organized several expeditions to observe total solar eclipses. These events offer rare opportunities to study the solar corona — the region of hot gas that is the source of the solar wind that strongly affectsconditions in the upper atmosphere of the Earth."
Pictured: An overlay of white light, Fe XIV 530.3 nm (green), and Fe XI 789.2 nm (red) emission from observations taken during the total solar eclipse of 1 August 2008.
References
The sun. (2012). Institute for Astronomy. Retrieved from http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/research/Sun.shtml.