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« South Dakota Sends a Hearty "Fuck You" to Women The RantsSouth Dakota's Bill Napoli Clinches "Asshat of the Year" Award »

Just Below the Surface
2006.03.10 (Fri) 12:02

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day was absolutely fascinating, and pointed us toward a news release on NASA's JPL site:

NASA's Cassini spacecraft may have found evidence of liquid water reservoirs that erupt in Yellowstone-like geysers on Saturn's moon Enceladus. The rare occurrence of liquid water so near the surface raises many new questions about the mysterious moon.

Dr. Andrew Ingersoll, an imaging team member, explains why this is such a novel discovery:

"Other moons in the solar system have liquid-water oceans covered by kilometers of icy crust...What's different here is that pockets of liquid water may be no more than tens of meters below the surface."
[our emphasis]

Pretty damn cool. As imaging team leader Dr. Carolyn Porco points out:

"...if we are right, we have significantly broadened the diversity of solar system environments where we might possibly have conditions suitable for living organisms."

As with all good science, new data are compared to old observations, and a hypothesis that neatly accommodates both old and new information means you're probably on the right track. Suddenly everything falls into place:

Other unexplained oddities now make sense. "As Cassini approached Saturn, we discovered that the Saturnian system is filled with oxygen atoms. At the time we had no idea where the oxygen was coming from," said Dr. Candy Hansen, Cassini scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. "Now we know that Enceladus is spewing out water molecules, which break down into oxygen and hydrogen."

Of course, new data also lead to even more questions — including the big one.

Why is Enceladus currently so active? Are other sites on Enceladus active? Might this activity have been continuous enough over the moon's history for life to have had a chance to take hold in the moon's interior?

Cassini will be doing another fly-by of Enceladus in Spring 2008, so even more data can be gathered and analyzed then. But even after Cassini's primary mission is completed, there will still be plenty of research and examination to conduct.

"There's no question that, along with the moon Titan, Enceladus should be a very high priority for us. Saturn has given us two exciting worlds to explore," said Dr. Jonathan Lunine, Cassini interdisciplinary scientist, University of Arizona, Tucson, Ariz.

We're looking forward to it!

Enceladus, Saturn's Ice Moon
It's not Hoth....

— • —
[  Filed under: % Science & Technology  ]

Comments (12)

Brian, 2006.03.10 (Fri) 14:14 [Link] »

Would it be out of line for me to with for a world where we're about to launch a manned mission to go SEE the Saturn system in person?

Drones are great, drones have their place but damnit nothing like going and finding out for yourself.



The Two Percent Company, 2006.03.10 (Fri) 15:31 [Link] »

Nowhere near out of line, Brian — we wish fervently for the same world! In fact, we'd be first in line (unless you beat us to it) for manned exploratory missions. One of the lifelong dreams we share at the Two Percent Company is the opportunity to leave the planet and check out what else is out there.

But — despite our absolute agreement with you on that score — we'll take what we can get, for now. With the anti-science bent of the current administration, a variety of critical economic and political factors will probably be required in order to make space travel and exploration (not to mention, of course, eventual colonization and industry) worth their while — and not relegated to the back seat among all the other issues facing our world today. Maybe we'll get lucky with the next two or three administrations, maybe some of the current schedules will be ramped up, and maybe...just maybe...we'll live to see a true Interplanetary Age begin. We've got plenty of hope, right now; but not quite as much confidence. Cross your fingers.



Brian, 2006.03.10 (Fri) 15:59 [Link] »

I might well be whistling in the wind past a graveyard (unless that is mixing metaphors) but it's possible the current interest in tourism, private launch companies and etc. will payoff and drag the government into a true space age.

Okay, I'm biased (see the URL I've attached to my name for details) . But. Things seem so damned promisnig now.

The current admin, while it has it's share of the blaime, isn't entirely to blame. Our system of government has _always_ been against exploration and pushing the frontier. The citizenry has historically pushed the frontier and dragged an unwilling Federal government behind it, not the other way around.



Eric Wallace, 2006.03.11 (Sat) 01:45 [Link] »

Hey, to be fair, Bush did suggest pursuing a manned mission to Mars. And he got a public drubbing for it.

It was one of the few things I agreed with him about...



Michael Bains, 2006.03.11 (Sat) 15:24 [Link] »

Wow! That pic is awesome!

I posted on this too because I'd love to get out there every bit as much you guys have admitted.

It scares me though that unmanned science seems to be getting the brunt of that short-shrift you've discussed.

There's still a LOT to learn about our solar system that can best be done via unmanned, and thus far less expensive exploration. The ISS has been a sink hole for funding and the shuttle - which thrilled me to no end for years! - has failed to evolve into an efficient means of transporting humans into near earth orbit.

Maybe the biggest current block to human colonization is the simple fact that is currently impossible for an animal to live beyond the influence of Earth's magnetic field for any great length of time. Even if they have abundant water and carboniferous resources for replication and atmospheric recycling, the cosmic radiation bombarding space off-planet is something for which NASA, or anyone eles, has yet to find a solution.

I applauded the Chimperor's call to land a man on Mars within 25 years. I still do because I think it can be done. I just hate to see the nuts-and-bolts of hard core unmanned research being shunted aside for a cause which can NOT be achieved without such.

But that pic is now my wallpaper!



Brian, 2006.03.11 (Sat) 16:29 [Link] »

There's still a LOT to learn about our solar system that can best be done via unmanned, and thus far less expensive exploration.

Exploration isn't about bottom-line cost but about what it brings back to the rest of us. There isn't - or should not be - a divide between manned and unmanned. Some missions are best done by people on site. Some are not.

Somehow we've gotten away from that with NASA - it's broken down into an office for flinging people into the air, and an office of exploration with robots. Now if we could mate the two side back together ...

Maybe the biggest current block to human colonization is the simple fact that is currently impossible for an animal to live beyond the influence of Earth's magnetic field for any great length of time.

Not colonization - that's a block to space flight. We know how to block radiation. Dig a hole, pile on dirt.

It is a problem for space flight but one that should be resolvable. You can accept the risk and just go or wait for 'someone' to come up with an effective magnetic shield. People have accepted risks like this in the past - our forebears crossed the ocean in rickety sailing ships, then pushed up against the frontier full of indians and shortened life expectancy. Risky but they weighed the costs and went. Or stayed home.

The biggest block to all of this is cost. It costs so much to lift a pound to orbit that there is no incentive to perfect a radiation shield. What would you _do_ with it? There is no incentive to develop orbital manufacturing techniques. The cost drives the commercial satellite market into weird contortions of economy.



Michael Bains, 2006.03.11 (Sat) 16:52 [Link] »
Some missions are best done by people on site. Some are not.

I'm in complete agreement there.

Ideally, as long as the the bureaucracy doesn't cut into unmanned budgets in favor of manned - when the "manned" is the only extra benefit - I'm totally in favor the "best mission wins" type of funding. And, yes I know that manned missions make for better media coverage and, thus, more popular support and thus more funding. I certainly give 'em a little xtra credit for that detail.

There is no incentive to develop orbital manufacturing techniques.

Excuse a little snark here por favor, but have ya never heard of something called Global Warming?

Even American Corporations are starting to take the factually undeniable reality of that phenomenon seriously. I think we'll start seeing quite a bit of orbital manufacturing projects in the coming decades. We really may be doomed by own short-sidedness if not.

Manned missions are still my favorites to follow. I'm just seeking compromise that leads to actual material Progress. I know that such is a tricky road to hoe, but that be politics for ya.



Ford, 2006.03.12 (Sun) 12:37 [Link] »

You know, I tend to favor the quick and dirty aproach to exploration and scientific discoveries. I like the manned missions better and would like to actually see some ground breaking manned missions in my lifetime. Not this "send a bunch of probes" shit they do all of the time now. Don't get me wrong, the unmanned missions are very important and exciting, but I don't like this "let's send probe after probe after probe and maybe, someday a few centuries from now, our great great great great grandkids will see a man go to mars". I wasn't around for the moon landings, nothing eventful other than some terrorist attacks and a war in the middle of a bunch of hot sand has ever happened in my lifetime, and those are hardly important cornerstones or big leaps for man[kind] and I would really like for my life not to be some boring transition period where humanity sat on it's ass and idled about.

It may seem selfish when I say "screw my great great great great grandkids, I wanna see some interesting shit happen in my lifetime" but really, that's what the other generations did. They worked as hard as they could so that they could see the most interesting stuff they could before they died and made real progress and let future generations work off of what they did to do all of their cool shit. We work for humanity because we are humans, not because of some nebulous "for human kind and our children" we ARE human kind, we ARE someone's children, we do our thing, the next generation takes what we learned and gained from what we did and does their own thing. Let's not be slaves working the same old mundane crap that has been done so that somebody in the future might do something interesting with it.



Brian, 2006.03.12 (Sun) 14:07 [Link] »

Let's not be slaves working the same old mundane crap that has been done so that somebody in the future might do something interesting with it.

I'm having this slogan printed on my 'handout' business cards for the next convention we take our roadshow to . . .

Liftport - Because Real Jobs Suck



The Two Percent Company, 2006.03.13 (Mon) 23:26 [Link] »

We absolutely recognize that robotic missions are usually easier to coordinate and exponentially less expensive. We also agree that in some cases, robots are better suited to a given task. But, like Ford, we just really, really want to be around to see some manned missions to other planets; and, if we're lucky, to get a chance to get off this rock ourselves, just as tourists.

We think the best bet is, of course, privatization of the space industry — we're big fans of Burt Rutan and Scaled Composites — so we were pretty excited to read about your company, Brian! To our other readers, check out the LiftPort Group and see what they're up to. Some neat stuff there.

We actually had a similar discussion regarding the push for space travel some time ago, and we agree that tourism and private industry could be just the impetus this planet needs to make its way out into the rest of the solar system. Unfortunately, that's not a 100% guarantee, and that's what worries us. Even completely dismissing the fact that Bush himself has the attention span of a gnat on a LSD, the governments of the world tend to get distracted by relatively close shiny things when shinier things (a.k.a. money) aren't immediately visible on the horizon. And yes, we do give Bush credit for his moon and Mars initiatives; but at the same time, we would like to see additional funds funneled toward NASA in order to accomplish these goals without having to slash other worthwhile programs. Maybe — and we're just spitballing here — if we weren't spending a ridiculous amount of money fucking around in Iraq, we could afford to realize some of the currently mothballed space exploration projects.



Brian, 2006.03.14 (Tue) 01:33 [Link] »

Maybe — and we're just spitballing here — if we weren't spending a ridiculous amount of money fucking around in Iraq, we could afford to realize some of the currently mothballed space exploration projects.

If it weren't Iraq it would be some other damned fool thing. We - as a society - can afford to do a lot more than we do in space. Comparisons to pizza or shoe consuption are not valid but do point this up.

Myself I have more faith in the market than in the State. Profit motive - greed if you will - is a base emtion sure but it does get things done. If you can tell yourself you're being noble _and_ making coin while doing it . . . it's a two-fer. See Liftport for an example: Space access, lower transaction cost AND a greater good? I can draw salary and profit share someday? Sign me up.

It may not be possible for the State - or at least ours - to do anything that requires a yearly budget from an executive and legislative branch wracked by partisan foofraw. An independant authority along the lines of the TVA (say an Orbital or Lunar Developement Corp) might get the job done but there are pesky concerns about jurisdiction (see the UN Outer Space Treaty) and getting even that setup might be beyond our ability.

Which really - we're ranting here right - sucks. We might be on the cusp of really great and good things. And the best we might hope for is for the government not to build the infrastructure or to survey the moon but to simply step out of the f*cking way.

so we were pretty excited to read about your company, Brian! To our other readers, check out the LiftPort Group and see what they're up to. Some neat stuff there.

We're trying. Read our blog, sign up for the newsletter. Ask questions and be skeptical - for gossakes don't take our word for anything. Public support ain't all that we need but it is a not-inconsiderable ingredient to our success.



GOD777, 2007.02.04 (Sun) 22:40 [Link] »

Why don't you call Bush and tell him there is oil on Mars. I bet you that funds will magically appear in NASA




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