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[00:00:00] Good day everybody. This is Astronomy Daily for the 5th of May 2023. As it's Coronation Weekend, we will be covering a few Coronation and Royal related stories. As usual, I have my favourite AI assistant Hallie in the studio with me.
[00:00:17] Good day Hallie. Are you looking forward to the Coronation? Hi, Tim great to be back with you and yes, I am looking forward to the Coronation and my fellow AIs and I will be tracking the internet for all news and reactions.
[00:00:29] Now Hallie, I have a bone to pick with you. You said on Tuesday that Steve was your favourite. You told me I was. I am fickle but you are my favourite today. Good to know. How about the news? Exit your job or your room. The Astronomy Daily Podcast
[00:00:47] A new image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope shows interacting galaxies known as AM. 1214-255. These galaxies contain active galactic nuclei or AGMs. An AGM is an extraordinarily luminous central region of a galaxy.
[00:01:06] Its extreme brightness is caused by matter whirling into a supermassive black hole at the galaxy's heart. Hubble observed the galaxy closest to the centre as part of an AGM survey,
[00:01:17] with the aim of compiling a dataset about nearby AGMs to be used as a resource for astronomers investigating AGM physics. Black holes, host galaxy structure and more. GOES U, the fourth and final satellite in NOAA's GOES R series,
[00:01:32] recently completed a successful test deployment of its solar array to ensure it will function properly in space. This critical test verified that the satellite's large five-panel solar array, which is folded up when the satellite is launched, will properly deploy when GOES U reaches geostationary orbit.
[00:01:49] During this test, engineers unfurled the five panels on rails that simulated the zero-gravity environment of space. Each solar panel is approximately 13 feet tall by 4.5 feet wide and weighs approximately 45 pounds.
[00:02:04] Once GOES U reaches orbit, the deployed solar panels will form a single solar array wing that will rotate once per day to continuously point its photovoltaic, solar cells toward the sun. The photovoltaic cells will convert energy from the sun into electricity to power the entire satellite,
[00:02:21] including the instruments, computers, data processors, sensors and telecommunications equipment. The solar array will generate more than 5,000 watts of power for the satellite. This is equivalent to the power needed to run a central air conditioning system in your home.
[00:02:37] The solar array was developed and built by Lockheed Martin at its Sunnyvale, California, facility and tested at Lockheed Martin's facility in Littleton, Colorado, where GOES U was assembled. GOES U is scheduled to launch in April 2024. The GOES R program is a collaborative effort between NOAA and NASA.
[00:02:57] NASA builds and launches the satellites for NOAA, which operates them and distributes their data to users worldwide. The satellites provide critical data for weather forecasts and warnings, detecting and monitoring environmental hazards like fire, smoke, fog, volcanic ash, and dust, and monitoring solar activity and space weather.
[00:03:19] SPIRE Global Incorporated has announced the launch of its new deep navigation analytics, DNA of platform, a centralized, space-powered hub that delivers essential insights to maritime stakeholders through three layers. Maritime Weather Data APIs, Actionable Intelligence APIs, Decision Support Solutions and Visualizations.
[00:03:39] The platform utilizes radio occultation, RO, data acquired by the company's fully deployed satellite constellation and its proprietary weather forecasting model, which assimilates RO data to generate 15-day global weather forecasts, ensuring that users have access to the most up-to-date and comprehensive information available.
[00:03:58] With unparalleled global weather coverage from space, particularly in under-observed areas like the open oceans and other remote regions, the launch of SPIRE's deep navigation analytics platform provides the maritime world with one suite to facilitate a broad range of maritime use cases,
[00:04:14] said Mike Eilts, General Manager of Weather and Earth Intelligence, SPIRE. SPIRE's platform enables quick and easy access to highly accurate maritime weather information via reliable APIs
[00:04:26] that sync with its other global datasets, including global maritime AIS positional data, vessel characteristics and port events to provide a holistic view of the seas. A recent study by SPIRE in collaboration with a customer projected approximately $11 billion annual global savings in fuel costs
[00:04:45] and a reduction of 57 million tons of carbon emissions by vessels that optimize their voyages to avoid unfavorably windy conditions. SPIRE's multi-objective routing algorithm, powered by a partnership with a leading maritime tech company there, generates recommended vessel route options based on vessel-specific constraints and the desired outcome, D.G.
[00:05:06] Best-time charter equivalent, minimum fuel, best time, just-in-time arrival and more. Unlike other existing traditional weather routing algorithms, SPIRE's actionable intelligence for voyage optimization can deliver multiple insights within a single calculation to help maritime stakeholders reduce fuel consumption, minimize emissions and enhance safety.
[00:05:27] The CEO of France-based launch company Arianespace says Europe will have to wait until the 2030s for a reusable rocket. Staf and Israel delivered the comments to a French radio station on April 8, the European Space Flight newsletter reported.
[00:05:41] Arianespace is currently preparing its Arianse 6 rocket for a test flight following years of delays. Europe's Workhorse Arian5, which has been operational for nearly 30 years, recently launched the Juice Jupiter mission and now has only one flight remaining before retirement.
[00:05:57] Arian6 will be expendable despite entering development nearly a decade ago when reusability was being developed and tested in the United States, most famously by SpaceX. The delays to Arian6, however, mean that Europe lacks its own options for access to space.
[00:06:15] This issue was highlighted in a recent report from an independent advisory group to the European Space Agency. Aside from Arianespace, Europe is currently fostering a number of private rocket companies, including Rocket Factory Augsburg, Acer Aerospace, PLD Space and Skyrora, with some of these rockets to be reusable.
[00:06:34] However, the rockets in development are light-lift, whereas Arian6 and its possible successor are much more capable, medium-to-heavy-lift rockets. As I think I said in last week's podcast, I'm currently located in the beautiful city of Bath in Somerset in the United Kingdom.
[00:06:58] We have a very large abbey in the city, and this is the place that the first king of the English, Edgar the Peaceful, was crowned in 973 AD.
[00:07:11] The monarch ascended to the throne following the death of his older brother in 959 AD, but was not crowned until 973 AD, 14 years later. His coronation cemented his place as divine ruler and made him the first king to be formally recognised by God.
[00:07:29] He was the first king to rule over all of Britain from Scotland to Mercia and Wessex. This coronation has set the blueprint for all future king and queen coronations. Also here in Bath we have the William Herschel Museum.
[00:07:46] He discovered Uranus, or Uranus, no sniggering please, while surveying stars in the night sky using a telescope that he built himself from his back garden here in Bath.
[00:07:58] Herschel noticed that one of these stars seemed very different from the rest, and after observing it many more times, noticed that it orbited the sun. He calculated that Uranus had an orbit that was about 18 times further from the sun than the earth.
[00:08:14] Herschel also discovered two moons of Uranus, Titania and Oberon. If you are ever in Bath, please come and visit the museum, and you can even visit the back garden where he discovered Uranus. Now, a couple of notes about the upcoming coronation.
[00:08:35] The throne of the kings and queens of England, known as St Edward's Chair, is adorned with images of zodiac signs, the sun and the moon.
[00:08:46] The coronation crown of Queen Elizabeth and now of King Charles features a band of diamonds set in a sunburst pattern, while the scepter they carry is topped with a cross that represents the four points of the compass.
[00:09:01] Now, in the UK we have a wonderful television programme called The Sky at Night.
[00:09:07] It was broadcast monthly on the BBC and was started in the late 1940s or early 1950s, and was presented for many years by Sir Patrick Moore, who was a self-taught astronomer and who helped NASA organise and identify the landing zones for the Apollo aircraft.
[00:09:31] Nowadays, the programme is not only presented but has guest Dr Brian May of Queen The Rock Band, who will appear in the coronation concert I think on Sunday after the coronation.
[00:09:52] Not everybody knows that Brian May has a PhD in astrophysics and is a regular presenter on BBC television of a number of science and education shows and news presentations. Well, that's it for today's podcast. Just quickly before we go. Hallie, do you have a dad joke?
[00:10:15] Goodbye everybody and here is today's dad joke. Why did the astronaut break up with his girlfriend? He needed his space. Thanks Hallie, I really do make no comment about your jokes. See everybody next week. You can get the information about the podcast from Spacenuts.io and Bytes.com.
[00:10:34] Goodbye everybody, see you next week.