Magazine Posts

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

What are these Earthlings trying to tell us? The featured message was broadcast from Earth towards the globular star cluster M13 in 1974. During the dedication of the Arecibo Observatory - still one of the largest single radio telescopes in the world - a string of 1's and 0's representing the diagram was sent. This attempt at extraterrestrial communication was mostly ceremonial - humanity regularly broadcasts radio and television signals out into space accidentally. Even were this message received, M13 is so far away we would have to wait almost 50,000 years to hear an answer. The featured message gives a few simple facts about humanity and its knowledge: from left to right are numbers from one to ten, atoms including hydrogen and carbon, some interesting molecules, DNA, a human with description, basics of our Solar System, and basics of the sending telescope. Several searches for extraterrestrial intelligence are currently underway, including one where you can use your own home computer. Experts Debate: How will humanity first discover ET life?

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Off in the distance,
I heard a Cock crow,
for it is Sunday
and to worship we go.
Not to church of mine
at this situation time.
We go on line to pray
asking for forgiveness, so,
Thanks be to God
of this much I know.

Bluebells growing in clumps together
are looking good
in spite of the weather.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Since the early days of radio and television we have been freely broadcasting signals into space. For some time now, we have been listening too. A large radio telescope at Ohio State University known as affectionately The Big Ear was one of the first listeners. The Big Ear was about the size of three football fields and consisted of an immense metal ground plane with two fence-like reflectors, one fixed and one tiltable. It relied on the Earth's rotation to help scan the sky. This photo, taken by former Big Ear student volunteer Rick Scott, looks out across the ground plane toward the fixed reflector with the radio frequency receiver horns in the foreground. Starting in 1965, the Big Ear was used in an ambitious survey of the radio sky. In the 1970s, it became the first telescope to continuously listen for signals from extraterrestrial civilizations. For an exciting moment during August 1977 a very strong, unexpected signal, dubbed the Wow! Signal, was detected by the Big Ear. But alas, heard only once, the source of the signal could not be determined. In May 1998 the final pieces of the Big Ear were torn down. Experts Debate: How will humanity first discover extraterrestrial life?

Photo by Rick Scott

New plants, push through the soil,
because of last Fall's planting toil.

Canada-based musician/composer Tom Van Dorn created this musical - photo slide show with images taken by Don Smith and his original song "Time Slips Away" which he wrote in 2002.

www.donsmithphotography.com  

The moonlight, seen through eyes of glass,
lighten the dark as we look past
the trying times, in this life ours
of love, fear and joyless sorrows.

Life can be a pit.
A deep dark hole,
filled with hate
and loves hyperbole.