Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Winter Solstice 2015

Enjoyed a beautiful warm bonfire on a cold Saturday evening. Then on Sunday evening we stoked up the brazier and enjoyed a nice fire (and marshmallows!) in the front yard.
The Moon, Venus and Jupiter put on a nice show in a clear sky on both nights, and on Sunday I dragged out Dobby for a look at them. Beautiful craters on the terminator on the crescent moon, Venus showed a strong crescent, and Jupiter was just great as always - all four moons visible in a clear line.
Saturn came over the trees later in the evening (after marshmallows) and looked very pretty. Tried to take a few photos but didn't have much success this time.



Sunday, June 14, 2015

Wakey Wakey!

Yay! Philae has woken up!



Yesterday ESA was able to contact Philae and download data and status information via Rosetta.

Sounds like Philae is in good shape to do more comet science (after a 7 month nap, it should!) So excited to learn more about 67P from ground level.

What is it about this 'little' 100kg cubic robot that provokes such warmth and affection?



Probably the adorable cartoons.