Arecibo Observatory Back to Work

     I visited the Arecibo Radio Observatory in Puerto Rico when I was six years old and it was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. However, soon after, it was decided that funding for the observatory would slowly be cut off until it shut down...the biggest single telescope in the world was being shut down! This bums me out still today.
     However, a recent advancement made be scientists at the ARO may change the current pattern of funding towards the telescope. Until now, estimates of mass for asteroids and other orbiting bodies were close but could have been off by quite a bit, making understanding them completely very difficult. Scientists at the Arecibo dish have determined a way to measure the mass of an orbiting body using the radio dish. This new technology may be just enough to keep the institution alive and functioning as the world's biggest and most famous telescope.

     I chose this article because the Arecibo Observatory is very importtant to me and my choice to follow my interest in Astronomy. I am personally very glad that the ARO is being kept alive because I believe that, despite its age, it is one of the best radio observatories the world has ever and will ever see. I loved the news from this article.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/asteroids/news/asteroid20120524.html

Radio Observatory Receives More Money

     For astronomers and other scientists, it is important to use as much of what is available to get information. That is why astronomers, often thought about only using visible-light telescopes, seek to use other wavelengths of light that we cannot see. Radio Astronomy is one of the biggest alternative wavelengths that is used. Radio telescopes are huge radio dishes that are used to gather large amounts of low-energy light that can help us learn about how the universe and specifically the galaxies formed. Radio lets us see through dust and gas that visible light cant pass through.
     Interferometry, or the combining of collected signals from multiple radio dishes, is used to peer farther and deeper into space. The ESA has been working on getting an African observatory set up to become part of an Atlantic-wide interferometer. Money for the SKA, or the Square Kilometer Array, was finally approved, so the costruction of the system will begin in South Africa soon. This will become part of the largest telescope ever built...letting us see more than ever before.
     The Radio Observatory is very important to me because of the role it has played in my life, so I chose this article to show that. It sounds weird, but my experiences around radio observatories have pointed me in the direction I am currently going in life. The creation of this radio interferometer specifically is very exciting for people like me because it foreshaddows great discoveries in the future. We cant even imagine what understanding this will bring us!

http://cordis.europa.eu/wire/index.cfm?fuseaction=article.Detail&rcn=30612&rev=0

Cool...Quantum Dots

Here is one of those random posts...A fairly new and very potential-filled technology that has come onto the scene recently is the quantum dot. A quantum dot is a piece of semi-conductor material that is extremely small. In this form they have special powers that I am not going to try to explain. However they can be used in very cool ways. They have the potential to increase the efficiency of solar panels, photodetectors and even TV's. One group used this technology to create a camera chip that is almost a Billion times more sensative than the average CCD chip. This has potential applications in astronomy observations to cell phones. It is expensive now but will become cheaper so it is very cool!

I chose this article because I am quite interested in the use of quantum dots to improve current technologies. I even included them in the product that I am developing and might be receiving a patent for. I find it exciting that we can now use the things that we were unaware of just a few decades ago!

http://nextbigfuture.com/2012/06/quantum-dot-graphene-photodetector-is.html

Senior Year...How has it been?

     Senior year is almost over...just a few more days. I am very glad this is the case, and senior year wasn't my best (I mean, being 5 years old is awesome). But there were plenty of great things about senior year. Most of my classes were acceptable...most. I met great new people, kept in touch with great friends, saw great places and great things...These things all happened in my other years of high school, so what made senior year special? I dont know...maybe it was just knowing that it was almost over, or knowing that I was the top of the food chain...I just dont know for sure...but it was great!

Tech Next Year...Plans?

I am going to Virginia Tech Polytechnic Institute and State University next year and I am very excited. And although I am going as a Physics major my future is still quite unsure to me. I took AP Physics this year and I thought I would do well at the start, but I soon found that this was not the truth. My failure in AP Physics made me question my 10 year long plan to major in the subject. I am also planning on double majoring, completing a geology degree as well. This I am not worried about because rocks don't come with formulas to explain them. But I must say I am nervous about the future...but mainly excited! Go Tech!

How Senioritis Can Hurt Not Only You, But The Ones Around You

     I gotta be honest...I hate school now. Its not the teachers or anything, because I dont think they want to be there either. However, the work is turning into more of a pain than ever before. Yes, as of now I only have four or five more days left but, that seems like such a long time. I'm not saying anything new here...I would guess that most Seniors agree that senioritis is a terrible but unavoidable disease. What I was unaware of is that Senioritis is highly contageous...even to lower classmen!
     I am affraid to say that I have inadvertently poisoned some children...I probably gave them senioritis...and I want to say I am very, very very sorry because this might lead to their downfall, early downfall.

Transit of Venus! Woooo!

Today, June 5th, 2012, is a very special date to astronomers around the world. An event, which has been known about by the Maya since before it was even visible, is happening that will not happen again for about 105 years! Ah! It is the transit of Venus...what this means is that Venus, for about seven hours, will be seen moving across the disc of the sun in the sky. Now Venus is about the size of the earth and is very far away. The sun is more than 100 times the diameter of the sun so...Venus's shaddowy image will be very small against the bright sun...in fact to small to see without a telescope (make sure it is a solar telescope or you will die). It only occurs every once in a long time because of the nature of our solar system. We orbit around the sun at 93million miles and to us our orbit is flat, but Venus is tilted at about 3.5 degrees and is closer to the sun. Venus's year is shorter than ours as well. The only time we will see the sun and Venus align is when we are at a node, where the orbits of earth and Venus cross the orbital plane. We have to be at the node the same time Venus is in order to see Venus transit...doesnt happen often!
    I love astronomy and I have for over 10 years, so I chose this article to express that. I really believe that too few people know what they should about the things beyond our own tiny world, and I feel like I can and need to help them learn. This article provides the information, but not enough people are seeing it. Luckily, because this event is so rare, many news outlets let people know that it was happening...we are on our way to the goal...

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2012/0605/Venus-transit-2012-a-chance-to-test-Earth-hunting-techniques