Astronomy
Goodbye to the Bevatron
For the last 18 years, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has had the physics equivalent of a rusty pickup truck parked in its front yard. Now, the 1950s era Bevatron is being demolished, and a chapter in the Bay Area's history of high level physics research comes to a close.
Audio Report on Apr 20, 2009 by KQED QUEST staff from QUEST Northern California
When a Cosmo's More Than a Cocktail: Yuri's Night at Cal Academy
208 parties in 46 countries on eight continents celebrated Yuri Alexyevich Gagarin between April 6 and 12th of this year. Who is Yuri and why does he deserve such accolades?
Post on Apr 15, 2009 by Cat
Is the Sun Pulling a Rip Van Winkle?
The Sun seems to be unusually quiet these last few years–and solar scientists are excited by this long, deep slumber….
Post on Apr 10, 2009 by Ben Burress
QUEST Quiz: The Moon
In an average lifetime, a person experiences about 936 full Moons. So, how old is the Moon? How was it formed? Take the QUEST Quiz to find out how much you REALLY know about Earth's Moon.
Video on Apr 07, 2009 by Josh Rosen from QUEST Northern California
NASA Ames Rocket to the Moon
Call them demolition derby astrophysicists: NASA scientists in Mountain View deliberately crashed an unmanned rocket into the moon on October 9th, 2009. Their goal? To find water, in the form of ice, which could one day support a moon base. On November 15th, 2009, they announced they had found it. QUEST looks at the planning and run-up to the big event.
Video on Apr 07, 2009 by Sheraz Sadiq from QUEST Northern California
Producer's Notes: LCROSS Rocket to the Moon
The goal is to see if water exists on the moon and if it does, buried deep beneath the lunar soil, accumulating over millions of years of impacts with comets, it would accelerate our efforts to establish a permanent lunar base.
Post on Apr 07, 2009 by Sheraz Sadiq
Asteroid Apophis–Hit or Miss?
Friday the 13th, April, 2029: If you're superstitious, this might not be a good day to schedule a near-Earth asteroid encounter.
Post on Mar 25, 2009 by Ben Burress
Web Extra: Nudging with Nukes
Most scientists agree that using nuclear explosives to deflect an incoming asteroid is a bad idea. But Astrophysicist David Dearborn from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has been heating up the debate with his theories about how nuclear explosives could be used effectively to nudge an asteroid into a new orbit that causes it to miss the Earth entirely.
Video on Mar 24, 2009 by Lindsay Kelliher from QUEST Northern California
Asteroid Hunters
Everyone knows that eight planets orbit the Sun. But thousands of other objects, including icy comets and football field-sized asteroids, are also zooming around our solar system. And some of them could be on a collision course with Earth. QUEST explores how these Near Earth Objects are being tracked and what scientists are saying should be done to prevent a deadly impact.
Video on Mar 24, 2009 by Amy Miller from QUEST Northern California
Producer's Notes: Asteroid Hunters
On March 3rd, 2009 at 1:40PM GMT, just a mere month after we’d finished the Asteroid Hunters segment, an asteroid of up to 165 feet in diameter snuck up on us, coming within approximately 37,000 miles from a direct impact with Earth.
Post on Mar 23, 2009 by Amy Miller
First Star I See… In My Life!
What's that up in the sky? A… uh… an… uh…. Golly, never seen that before…
Post on Mar 13, 2009 by Ben Burress
NASA's Kepler: Staring Down Earth-like Planets
For several years there has been a lot of buzz about the detection of extra-solar planets, or exoplanets: planets orbiting stars other than our Sun. However, due to the limits in technology and observational capabilities, to date only large, gas giant planets orbiting close to the stars (so called "Hot Jupiters") have been found, with a possible exception or two.
Post on Feb 27, 2009 by Ben Burress
Age of Aquarius: Are We There Yet?
"Can you tell me about the upcoming beginning of the Age of Aquarius?" said the voice on the phone. "I heard that it starts this Saturday…."
Post on Feb 13, 2009 by Ben Burress
A Long and Winding DNA
How long would the DNA from every living thing on Earth stretch? Could we make it to the next star? The next galaxy? The end of the Universe?
Post on Feb 02, 2009 by Dr. Barry Starr
Methane on Mars? Moooooooo!
Methane on Mars? Really? What does that mean? If you know anything about the source of most of Earth's atmospheric methane gas, you already know the answer: possible life.
Post on Jan 30, 2009 by Ben Burress
Globe At Night: Measuring Light Pollution with Human Eyes
Want a chance to do some "citizen" science, contribute to an international investigation, and have some fun to boot? An opportunity is coming up in March: Globe At Night. All you need is your eyes….
Post on Jan 16, 2009 by Ben Burress
O Say Can You Cesium-133? The Leap Second of 2008
Did you make good use of the extra second you received in 2008? A little extra sleep perhaps? Did you notice the extra time?
Post on Jan 03, 2009 by Ben Burress
Chu, Two and Btu
People around here at Lawrence Berkeley Lab are saddened by the loss of Dr. Chu as director, but extremely excited about his nomination as Secretary of Energy.
Post on Dec 26, 2008 by Jim Gunshinan
Snows of the Solar System
Snow is quite unusual for the Oakland Hills. Is snow so unusual for the rest of the solar system?
Post on Dec 19, 2008 by Ben Burress
The International Year of Astronomy
2009 has been designated the International Year of Astronomy (IYA), in celebration of the 400th anniversary of Galileo first pointing the new invention of the telescope at the sky.
Post on Dec 05, 2008 by Ben Burress
