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- Portrait of a Doomed Asteroid
A new study provides a possible explanation of mysterious X-ray flares detected by the Chandra K-ray Observatory for several years in the region of Sagittarius A*, or Sgr A*. The study suggests a cloud around Sgr A*, a supermassive black hole at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy, which contains hundreds of trillions of asteroids and comets that have been stripped from their parent stars. The flares occur when asteroids of six miles or larger in radius are consumed by the black hole. An asteroid that undergoes a close encounter with another object, such as a star or planet, can be thrown into an orbit headed towards Sgr A*. If the asteroid passes within about 100 million miles of the black hole, roughly the distance between the Earth and the sun, it is torn into pieces by the tidal forces from the black hole. These fragments would then be vaporized by friction as they pass through the hot, thin gas flowing onto Sgr A*, similar to a meteor heating up and glowing as it falls through Earth's atmosphere. A flare is produced and eventually the remains of the asteroid are swallowed by the black hole. Image Credit: Illustrations: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss
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Category Archives: Aviation
Body Scanners
Last night, coming out of O’Hare I had my first in person look at the new Body Scanner. To set the stage, the TSA area that I went through has about 10 checkpoints. Two were staffed and open, and one … Continue reading
Posted in Aviation, Venting
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Have You Ever Dreamed…
Have you ever dreamed about what flying with the Blue Angels would be like… Make sure you notice the control surface deflections…. amazing stuff.
Posted in Aviation
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Poseidon
Full disclosure: 1. I am a Boeing Shareholder 2. I have extended relatives that work for Boeing 3. I have been enamored of Boeing aircraft since I was 6. A proven airframe and a new mission. Very cool video. They … Continue reading
Posted in Aviation
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Voodoo
One of my earliest memories growing up is that of watching aircraft fly out of Portland International. In the 60′s we would drive north on 122nd and as you crossed Halsey you would be in just the right spot to … Continue reading
Posted in Aviation, History
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Cleverness
The cleaverness of the human never ceases to amaze me… Neil Armstrong is being hailed today on the anniversary of the moon landing. He is from Ohio. The first man to orbit, John Glenn, was from Ohio. The first man … Continue reading
Posted in Aviation, Culture
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Space
Mercury, Gemini, Apollo. The classical space program. Yet at the same time we have the U2 program being developed and executed. Amazing stuff. more about "Space", posted with vodpod
Posted in Aviation, Space
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Designed in America
This is incredible footage. It condenses the build cycle of an aircraft (Hornet) and gives you an idea of just how complicated the assembly of this fighter is. The next time you jump on a commercial aircraft, think about this … Continue reading
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Apollo 11 – Liftoff
Today was the day, 40 years ago, that Apollo 11 was launched on it’s journey to the moon. I remember the major events of the Apollo program as if it were yesterday. Just for the record, I was still just … Continue reading
Posted in Aviation, History, Space
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Have You Ever Dreamed…
Have you ever dreamed about what flying with the Blue Angels would be like… Make sure you notice the control surface deflections…. amazing stuff.
Posted in Aviation
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Space Shuttle Launch Today
Atlantis is in place, fueled and ready to go. Crew is boarding. Weather looks good. There won’t be too many more of these space shuttle flights as the platform ages, and the budgets continue to shrink. Take the time to … Continue reading
Posted in Aviation, Science, Space
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