http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. For the past 8 years, NASA astronomers have been monitoring the Moon for signs of explosions caused by meteoroids hitting the lunar surface. "Lunar meteor showers" have turned out to be more common than anyone expected, with hundreds of detectable impacts occurring every year. http://phys.org/news287995775.html Space & Earth Fri, 17 May 2013 07:49:49 EST news287995775 (Phys.org) —Andrei Zlobin of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Vernadsky State Geological Museum, claims in a paper he's uploaded to the preprint server arXiv, that he's found rocks he believe to be from the object that caused the Tunguska explosion over Siberia in 1908. If further analysis of the rocks confirms them to be from space, it will mark the discovery of the first physical evidence of the source of the famous blast. http://phys.org/news286789579.html Space & Earth Fri, 03 May 2013 09:00:02 EST news286789579 (Phys.org) —NASA's Cassini spacecraft has provided the first direct evidence of small meteoroids breaking into streams of rubble and crashing into Saturn's rings. These observations make Saturn's rings the only location besides Earth, the moon, and Jupiter where scientists and amateur astronomers have been able to observe impacts as they occur. Studying the impact rate of meteoroids from outside the Saturn system helps scientists understand how different planet systems in the solar system formed. http://phys.org/news286129786.html Space & Earth Thu, 25 Apr 2013 17:29:54 EST news286129786 (Phys.org) —Following its last close flyby of Saturn's moon Rhea, NASA's Cassini spacecraft captured these raw, unprocessed images of the battered icy moon. They show an ancient, cratered surface bearing the scars of collisions with many space rocks. Scientists are still trying to understand some of the curious features they see in these Rhea images, including a curving, narrow fracture or a graben, which is a block of ground lower than its surroundings and bordered by cliffs on either side. This feature looks remarkably recent, cutting most of the craters it crosses, with only a few small craters superimposed. http://phys.org/news282299955.html Space & Earth Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:39:28 EST news282299955 When the sun rose over Russia's Ural Mountains on Friday, Feb. 15th, many residents of nearby Chelyabinsk already knew that a space rock was coming. Later that day, an asteroid named 2012 DA14 would pass by Earth only 17,200 miles above Indonesia. There was no danger of a collision, NASA assured the public. http://phys.org/news281178724.html Space & Earth Wed, 27 Feb 2013 09:12:35 EST news281178724 Just a week after a huge fireball streaked across the skies of the Chelyabinsk region of Russia, astronomers published a paper that reconstructs the orbit and determines the origins of the space rock that exploded about 20-14 km (12-15 miles) above Earth's surface, producing a shockwave that damaged buildings and broke windows. http://phys.org/news281087995.html Space & Earth Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:10:01 EST news281087995 Usually, waking up before sunrise is a good way to get a head start on the day. On Oct. 21st, waking up early could stop you in your tracks. http://phys.org/news269505042.html Space & Earth Mon, 15 Oct 2012 07:30:51 EST news269505042 (Phys.org) -- Early on the morning of June 30th, 1908, a huge explosion occurred in a remote part of Siberia near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River. So great was the blast that trees were knocked down in neat rows for nearly a thousand square miles and the sky lit up from parts of Asia to Great Britain. What caused that explosion has never been firmly settled. Most researchers agree that it was the result of either a comet or meteoroid, with most leaning towards the former due to the lack of both an impact crater and meteoroid fragments. Now however, a research team from Italy says that they have found proof that it was in fact a meteorite that struck the Earth and that a nearby lake is the impact crater. They have published the results of their findings in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems. http://phys.org/news256806473.html Space & Earth Mon, 21 May 2012 08:40:02 EST news256806473 This weekend, NASA scientists, amateur astronomers, and an astronaut on board the International Space Station will attempt the first-ever 3D photography of meteors from Earth and space. http://phys.org/news254044364.html Space & Earth Thu, 19 Apr 2012 08:53:04 EST news254044364 In the middle of the night on February 13th, something disturbed the animal population of rural Portal, Georgia. Cows started mooing anxiously and local dogs howled at the sky. The cause of the commotion was a rock from space. http://phys.org/news249203167.html Space & Earth Thu, 23 Feb 2012 07:06:32 EST news249203167 Surprising but true: Every day, on average, more than 40 tons of meteoroids strike our planet. Most are tiny specks of comet dust that disintegrate harmlessly high up in Earth's atmosphere, producing a slow drizzle of meteors in the night sky. Bigger chunks of asteroid and comet debris yield dozens of nightly fireballs around the globe. Some are large enough to pepper the ground with actual meteorites. http://phys.org/news243160536.html Space & Earth Thu, 15 Dec 2011 08:36:29 EST news243160536 The 2011 Geminid meteor shower peaks on the night of Dec. 13-14, and despite the glare of a nearly-full Moon, it might be a good show. http://phys.org/news242998401.html Space & Earth Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:33:50 EST news242998401 A new NASA handheld device application for mobile devices enables skywatchers to better track, count and record data about sporadic meteors and meteor showers anywhere in the world. http://phys.org/news242634896.html Space & Earth Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:35:03 EST news242634896 Earth is about to pass through a stream of debris from Halley's comet, source of the annual Orionid meteor shower. Forecasters expect more than 15 meteors per hour to fly across the sky on Saturday morning, Oct. 22nd, when the shower peaks. http://phys.org/news238405588.html Space & Earth Fri, 21 Oct 2011 08:47:58 EST news238405588 (AP) -- Heads-up, meteor fans. As many as 750 meteors an hour are expected Saturday, as Earth travels through streams of dust and ice from Comet Giacobini-Zinner. The comet passes through the inner solar system every seven years. http://phys.org/news237041825.html Space & Earth Wed, 05 Oct 2011 13:57:25 EST news237041825 On October 8th Earth is going to plow through a stream of dust from Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, and the result could be an outburst of Draconid meteors. http://phys.org/news237029869.html Space & Earth Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:38:27 EST news237029869 What are the signs of spring? They are as familiar as a blooming Daffodil, a songbird at dawn, a surprising shaft of warmth from the afternoon sun. And, oh yes, don't forget the meteors. http://phys.org/news220862785.html Space & Earth Fri, 01 Apr 2011 08:10:01 EST news220862785 Every day about 100 tons of meteoroids -- fragments of dust and gravel and sometimes even big rocks – enter the Earth's atmosphere. Stand out under the stars for more than a half an hour on a clear night and you'll likely see a few of the meteors produced by the onslaught. But where does all this stuff come from? Surprisingly, the answer is not well known. http://phys.org/news218218067.html Space & Earth Tue, 01 Mar 2011 16:08:07 EST news218218067 (PhysOrg.com) -- Saturn's icy moon Rhea might seem a strange place to look for clues to understanding the vast majestic rings encircling Saturn. But that's what NASA's Cassini spacecraft plans to do on its next flyby of Rhea. At closest approach, Cassini will pass within about 69 kilometers (43 miles) of the surface at 4:53 AM UTC on Tuesday, Jan. 11, which is 10:53 PM Pacific Time on Monday, Jan. 10. This flyby is the closest Cassini will get to the icy moon's surface. http://phys.org/news213957777.html Space & Earth Tue, 11 Jan 2011 09:10:01 EST news213957777 This month, Comet Hartley 2 has put on a good show for backyard astronomers. The comet's vivid green atmosphere and auburn tail of dust look great through small telescopes, and NASA's Deep Impact/EPOXI probe is about to return even more dramatic pictures when it flies past the comet's nucleus on Nov. 4th. http://phys.org/news207395450.html Space & Earth Wed, 27 Oct 2010 10:51:20 EST news207395450 Flight Dynamics data from THEMIS-B (one of the two ARTEMIS spacecraft) indicated that one of the EFI (electric field instrument)spherical tip masses may have been struck by a meteoroid at 0605 UT on October 14. All science instruments continue to collect data. The probe and science instruments aboard the spacecraft continue to operate nominally. The upcoming insertion into Lissajous orbit will not be interrupted. http://phys.org/news207218278.html Space & Earth Mon, 25 Oct 2010 09:38:09 EST news207218278 On the evening of May 18, NASA all-sky meteor cameras located at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and at the Walker County Science Center near Chickamauga, Ga. tracked the entry of a large meteor estimated to weigh some 60 pounds over northeastern Alabama. http://phys.org/news194800291.html Space & Earth Thu, 03 Jun 2010 16:50:02 EST news194800291 University of Maryland Astronomy Professor Michael A'Hearn, leader of NASA's Deep Impact and EPOXI comet missions is vice-chair of a new report from the National Academy of Sciences on detecting and protecting Earth from collisions with comets and asteroids. In the report, "Defending Planet Earth: Near-Earth Object Surveys and Hazard Mitigation Strategies," the panel says NASA cannot meet a Congressional requirement to find 90 percent of Earth-threatening asteroids 155 yards in diameter or larger, unless money is appropriated for the task. http://phys.org/news183663524.html Space & Earth Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:50:02 EST news183663524 Make hot cocoa. Bundle up. Tell your friends. The best meteor shower of 2009 is about to fall over North America on a long, cold December night. http://phys.org/news179519603.html Space & Earth Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:50:01 EST news179519603 Homer's Iliad tells the story of Troy, a city besieged by the Greeks in the Trojan War. Today, a lone robot sits besieged in the sands of Troy while engineers and scientists plot its escape. http://phys.org/news179081243.html Space & Earth Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:48:31 EST news179081243 (AP) -- Thousands of stargazers across Asia stayed awake overnight to catch a glimpse of what was advertised as an intense Leonid meteor shower, but the show fizzled rather than sizzled for many because of cloudy conditions. http://phys.org/news177754664.html Space & Earth Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:18:19 EST news177754664 This year's Leonid meteor shower peaks on Tuesday, Nov. 17th. If forecasters are correct, the shower should produce a mild but pretty sprinkling of meteors over North America followed by a more intense outburst over Asia. The phase of the Moon will be new, setting the stage for what could be one of the best Leonid showers in years. http://phys.org/news177093817.html Space & Earth Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:46:47 EST news177093817 Earth is currently passing through a stream of debris from Halley's Comet, lighting up the night sky with the "fireworks" of the annual Orionids meteor shower. http://phys.org/news175364339.html Space & Earth Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:19:37 EST news175364339 (PhysOrg.com) -- The expanding spot discovered on Venus last month may not have garnered as much attention as the meteor impact with Jupiter, but its cause is certainly more puzzling. http://phys.org/news168610535.html Space & Earth Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:16:10 EST news168610535 Earth is entering a stream of dusty debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle, the source of the annual Perseid meteor shower. Although the shower won't peak until August 11th and 12th, the show is already getting underway. http://phys.org/news168262765.html Space & Earth Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:41:46 EST news168262765