Monday 21 August 2017

Eclipse, Distant Probes And The Vanishing UV On Venus


Eclipse spex from 1932



Okay, so this post is happening out of sync, but this is often the case in life - today is the day when a total solar eclipse is occuring from coast to coast in the USA, so happy viewing !



London eclipse viewing 1927

In other news, Elon Musk joins over a hundred 'robotics experts'* warning of the dangers of autonomous killer AI, as we head blindly into a future where 'The Terminator' is more than just a movie...I touched on this in a post I made in 2015

* I tried to get clarification, apparently there are over 100 AI and Robotics Experts, but no further details.
Sadly, no advice on how to actually become an 'expert' in the field of robotics.
I'm sure that my past experience with models of Robby the Robot , Gort, Maria from Metropolis, and a Dalek should count...
( pause for a moment as I am corrected that Daleks actually contain biological entities therefore don't count unless you include 'synths' like the 'replicants' from Bladerunner)

Maria - technically a replicant, for pedants of robotics

Meanwhile, far out in space...

Yesterday was the fortieth anniversary of the launch of Voyager 2 - Voyager 1 was launched on September 5th , so the official celebrations are next month.
The reason for the lack of orderly sequence was due to Voyager1 being sent on a different trajectory.
This links to a nice piece about those who are still tracking the intrepid Voyagers - which are not due anywhere near another star for 40,000 years...don't wait up


NASA will soon launch a probe tasked with discovering the nature of exactly what is absorbing UV light in the upper atmosphere of Venus - personally, I think aliens love a bit of blacklight rave...