Environment

Halloween Skies To Include Dead Comet Flyby

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This image, bearing an eerie resemblance to a skull, of asteroid 2015 TB145, a dead comet, was generated using radar data collected by the National Science Foundation’s 1,000-foot (305-meter) Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. The radar image was taken Oct. 30, 2015, and the image resolution is 25 feet (7.5 meters) per pixel. Courtesy/NAIC-Arecibo/NSF

JPL News:

The large space rock that will zip past Earth this Halloween is most likely a dead comet that, fittingly, bears an eerie resemblance to a skull.

Scientists observing asteroid 2015 TB145 with NASA’s Infrared Telescope Read More

PEEC Amateur Naturalist: Honeycomb, Dragonfly Eyes, And Lava Columns

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The eye of a dragonfly. Photo by Rudi Gunawan

 
 
PEEC Amateur Naturalist
Honeycomb, Dragonfly Eyes, and Lava Columns
By ROBERT DRYJA
 
The comb of honeybees has fascinated people for centuries. Marcus Terentius Varro, a Roman scholar, proposed in 36 BC that hexagons with equal sides would take the least total perimeter when dividing a surface into regions of equal area.
 
Stated differently, bees do not have to produce as much beeswax for storage containers when compared to square or triangular containers if the containers are hexagonal in shape.
 
Bees need to consume
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Chamisa Recycle Art Fair & Fashion Show Nov. 4

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LAPS News:
 
Los Alamos Public Schools Superintendent Kurt Steinhaus is inviting the community to come enjoy and participate in the Chamisa Elementary Recycle Art Show from 5:30-7 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 4.
 
The finalé will be a fashion show of student and family made creations. Contact Renee Mitsunaga to participant in this event.
 
Entry Deadline!
 
The deadline for entries is today. Download an entry application here.
 
Chamisa is going green!
 
Every class created projects and learned about the importance of taking care
Read More

Gray Matters: Tom Brady And The Orange Flush

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Animas River. Courtesy photo
 
GRAY MATTERS
 
By Larry Johnson
Los Alamos
 

With apologies to the non-football fans, I wish to contrast the problems of Tom Brady and the under-inflated footballs to the recent three million gallon spill into the Animas River near Silverton, Colo.

I call that spill of acid mine drainage the “Orange Flush”, not to be confused with the Denver Bronco football defense, the Orange Crush.

The purpose of this short piece is to examine the facts regarding the spill and the environmental impacts.

But first the connection between the troubles of Tom Brady

Read More

Public Astronomy Dark Night At Overlook Nov. 7

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PAJARITO ASTRONOMERS News:

The Pajarito Astronomers will be holding their final County-Sponsored Dark Night of 2015 starting at 5 p.m. (sunset) Saturday, Nov. 7 at Spirio Soccer Field in Overlook Park in White Rock.

Weather permitting, the public is invited to come out, wander among the telescopes, and star gaze. The planets Saturn, Neptune and Uranus will be visible.

There will be a tour of the summer and fall constellations, and there will be telescope views of double stars, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies. 

The public is invited and encouraged to attend. Viewing will end before Read More

WGN’s ‘Manhattan’ Viewing & Discussion On Tuesdays

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At left, a photo of the Historic Tech Area. The covered overpasses were built across what is now Trinity Drive, so that scientists could cross over from one building to the other without having to exit and then reinter the secure areas. At right, a photo of the Manhattan series set as seen on TV. Courtesy/LAHS

HISTORICAL SOCIETY News:

The season premiere for WGN’s Manhattan was Oct. 13. The Los Alamos Historical Society continues to hold weekly viewing parties for the show’s second season.

Join Historical Society members at 7 p.m., Tuesdays at Time Out Pizzeria on Central Avenue in Los Alamos, Read More

Public Talk: ‘Delivering Little Boy’ By Grandson Of Manhattan Project Physician Oct. 27

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Little Boy. Courtesy/wikipedia

 

By ROGER SNODGRASS
Los Alamos Daily Post

Jim Nolan, a professor of sociology at Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., didn’t know much about his grandfather, James F. Nolan, a physician with training in radiology who played a unique role in the early history of the atomic bomb at Los Alamos.

James L. Nolan, Jr., Professor of Sociology, Williams College

The younger Nolan had a general idea that his father had moved to Los Alamos at an early age but no detailed knowledge about his grandfather. Very few details, that is, until three years ago, when his father Read More

Robert Gibson Speaks On Future Energy Resources For Los Alamos County

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COUNTY News:

Robert Gibson, chair of the Los Alamos Future Energy Resources Committee, will present “Future Energy Resources for Los Alamos County” at a meeting of the Sierra Club, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 4 at UNM-Los Alamos, Building 2, room 203.

Los Alamos County’s Board of Public Utilities (BPU) adopted a goal in 2013 to “become a carbon-neutral electric provider by 2040.” This year, BPU appointed an ad hoc Future Energy Resources (FER) Committee to recommend a definition of “carbon-neutral,” future electrical energy resources in that context, and policy regarding distributed energy Read More

NNSA Awards Over $11 Million to Accelerate Development Of Domestic Mo-99 In U.S. Without Use Of Highly Enriched Uranium

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Workers prepare a low-enriched uranium machine for the production of Molybdenum-99 (Mo-99). Courtesy/NNSA

NNSA News:

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announced Thursday it has awarded more than $11 million in additional funding to its cooperative agreement partners, SHINE Medical Technologies and NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes, to accelerate the establishment of new, domestic sources of the medical isotope molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) produced without the use of proliferation-sensitive highly enriched Read More

Water Attorney/Activist Speaks At Nature Center

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Water attorney and activist Kyle Harwood in La Cienega. Courtesy photo

PEEC News:

How do we protect our aquifers? Action taken in La Cienega, a nearby community, is the subject of the free talk at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27 at Los Alamos Nature Center.

Kyle Harwood, water attorney and La Cienega resident, will share the challenges facing his community along with their efforts to protect their aquifers.

As dessert residents, water is a precious resource. Nearby, the La Cienega region is already seeing diminishing flow from their local springs. They are not alone. Stories of wells and springs running Read More