2009 Moon Phases & Lunar Moon Calendar

We have 2009 Moon Phases & Lunar Moon Calendar here at KeepandShare, ready for you. Looking for online moon phases or full moon websites? Or perhaps phases of the moon for work or family full moon?

Lunar phase refers to the regular appearance of the illuminated portion of the Moon as seen by an person, usually on Earth. The lunar phases vary as the Moon orbits the Earth, according to the changing geometry of the Earth, Moon, and Sun. One half of the lunar surface is always illuminated by the Sun (except during lunar eclipses), and is hence bright, but the portion of the illuminated hemisphere that is visible to an observer can vary from 100% (full moon) to 0% (new moon). The boundary between the illuminated and unilluminated hemispheres is called by a cool name, 'the terminator.'

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02/08/2010 3-2-1 Launch... Only 4 To Go!

The Space Shuttle Endeavour left the launch pad early this morning and is now in orbit on its way to the International Space Station (ISS). This is the first shuttle flight of the year, and represents the beginning of the end for the aging shuttle fleet.

The focus of this mission is to deliver a module to the ISS that will increase the interior space and provide additional living quarters. While the crew will not arrive to the space station until Wednesday, they are busy testing equipment and preparing for the space walks that will be needed to install the new node and research facility.

Image Credit: NASA

3-2-1 Launch... Only 4 To Go! originally appeared on About.com Space / Astronomy on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 22:56:08.

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02/04/2010 Update on NASA Budget

Last week I noted that the Obama administration had cut the Constellation Program from the budget, effectively killing the proposed return mission to the Moon and future manned Mars missions. An ancillary effect being that we would not need to rely on our Russian counterparts to complete our obligations to the International Space Station. This news initially angered proponents of the space program, including myself, because of the administration's demolition of our manned space program.

However, once President Obama officially released the complete budget and vision for the future of our space program things began to come into focus. The Constellation Program was behind schedule and over budget. It may turn out to be that canceling the program is the best long term solution. However, this does mean that we will effectively outsourcing our manned space program for the next several years at least.

There is another side to the story however, one that I overlooked in my haste to criticize the extermination of the Constellation Program. The government is actually getting behind NASA and the space program. President Obama has committed $6 billion more to NASA's budget over the next five years than expected. The new focus is going to be on developing new technologies to advance our ability to do space research as well as lower future costs of space exploration. And, while the Constellation Program is dead, the future of manned space exploration is not.

The president is laying the ground work for what NASA calls "A bold new effort that invests in American ingenuity for developing more capable and innovative technologies for future space exploration". This exploration will also rely more heavily on private industry and other nations to develop new technology and take on some of the manufacturing burden for large scale projects. It may be slow going -- forget about the 2020 and 2030 time tables for landing men on other worlds -- but this new program promises to be better and more cost effective in the long run.

The International Space Station (ISS) will also see its life extended, at least through 2020. This will allow the ISS to reach its full potential.

So, I must admit, I may have been too quick to judge. After looking more deeply at the plan that has been laid out for NASA, I think we are heading in the right direction, it will just take some time to see it through to fruition. The new plan is immense and complex, and I will outline the details in a forthcoming article, but until then I just want to make clear that there is a future for the space program. And the details of that program are beginning to come sharply into focus. Stay tuned.

Image Credit: NASA

Update on NASA Budget originally appeared on About.com Space / Astronomy on Thursday, February 4th, 2010 at 14:22:06.

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02/03/2010 The Future of the International Space Station

As part of the re-invisioning of NASA (more on this tomorrow), the work of the International Space Station will be extended through at least 2020. This will allow scientists to expand the experiments being conducted and, according to NASA, enable "this vital orbiting laboratory to reach its full potential."

Sounds good to me. Personally though, I was just psyched about this image that was released along with the announcement. Pretty spectacular, huh? Telll me what you think!

Image Credit: NASA

The Future of the International Space Station originally appeared on About.com Space / Astronomy on Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010 at 15:29:36.

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02/01/2010 NASA Has Given Up on Getting Spirit Free

NASA has announced that it has officially given up trying to free the Spirit Rover from the bed of sand that has been holding it captive. (For a rather funny portrayal of these events, go here.) This does not mean however that it will no longer provide scientific data. Rather, it will study the surrounding martian surface and what lay beneath it.

The coming Martian winter is of concern, but NASA hopes that the little trooper will survive. Should the rover live on, scientists hope that it can help answer a question that has plagued them for years: is the Martian core completely solid, or does it contain a liquid outer shell like Earth?

So, it's not a particularly sexy question, but it is of considerable importance. You see, the origin of our solar system is still something of a mystery. The solar nebula hypothesis -- the theory that our solar system evolved from a large cloud of gas and dust -- has gone a long way in explaining the data we have collected about our solar system. However, as we have begun to study other solar systems we have noticed that they have significantly different characteristics than our own. So, at the very least, assumptions that we made about the origin and evolution of our solar system don't seem to apply to solar systems in general.

The hope is that the more that we study other worlds we can get a clearer picture of how our solar system formed, and perhaps shed some light on a rather significant hole in our scientific understanding.

Image Credit: NASA

NASA Has Given Up on Getting Spirit Free originally appeared on About.com Space / Astronomy on Monday, February 1st, 2010 at 17:04:53.

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01/29/2010 Amazing Full Moon in Store Tonight

Those of you lucky enough to be around clear skies tonight -- I live in the midwest so I haven't seen a clear sky for weeks -- then check out the Moon. It is only the end of January, but the Moon will be on its closest approach of 2010, making it appear bigger and brighter than it will ever appear again this year.

For simplicity we usually discuss the orbit around the Earth as having a circular path, but in fact it is slightly elliptical. Tonight, the Moon will be more than 15,000 miles closer to Earth than average, making it appear about 30% larger and brighter.

You should be able to see good detail, even with the naked eye. If you live near an observatory though, you might want to consider venturing out to see some of the cool features on the surface.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/USGS

Amazing Full Moon in Store Tonight originally appeared on About.com Space / Astronomy on Friday, January 29th, 2010 at 14:23:43.

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