Space News Update - March 10, 2015 - In the News Departments Story 1: Comet Flyby: OSIRIS Catches Glimpse of Rosetta’s Shadow Story 2: NASA’s Hubble Discovers Four Images of Same Supernova Split by Cosmic Lens Story 3: Use of Rover Arm Expected to Resume in a Few Days Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

Comet Flyby: OSIRIS Catches Glimpse of Rosetta’s Shadow In this computer graphic, NASA's Voyager 1 probe, moving toward upper left, nears the edge of the sun's influence, flying through a region of space dominated by a "magnetic highway" that helps mediate the flow of particles into and out of the solar system. The region includes particles from the sun's southern hemisphere that have been forced northward by the pressure of the interstellar wind. Voyager 1 is expected to cross the boundary into interstellar space sometime within the next few years if not sooner. (Credit: NASA)

NASA’s Hubble Discovers Four Images of Same Supernova Split by Cosmic Lens Ratchet Wrench ‘E-mailed’ to Space Station

Use of Rover Arm Expected to Resume in a Few Days

The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Tuesday, March 10 Jupiter this month forms a big, more-or-less equilateral triangle with Procyon and Pollux. Face southeast soon after dark, and Procyon is to Jupiter's right. Pollux is high above them. Procyon is also part of the slightly larger Winter Triangle just to the west, also equilateral. Its other stars are orange Betelgeuse and bright Sirius below. Wednesday, March 11 The eclipsing variable star Algol should be at minimum brightness, magnitude 3.4 instead of its usual 2.1, for a couple hours tonight centered on midnight EDT; 9 p.m. PDT. Algol takes several additional hours to fade and to rebrighten. Early risers will find the last-quarter Moon passing over Saturn and Scorpius. They're due south in early dawn. (See picture) Before and during dawn Thursday morning the 12th, the waning Moon poses near Saturn, as shown here. Look for Antares below them. Thursday, March 12 On Friday morning the 13th, the last-quarter Moon shines to the left of Saturn and the head of Scorpius before and during dawn. Friday, March 13 You know the season is shifting. As the stars come out, the Big Dipper standing on its handle in the northeast is now as high as Cassiopeia standing on end in the northwest. The Dipper is rising into spring and summer, and Cassiopeia is descending from its high showing in fall and winter.   Sky & Telescope

ISS Sighting Opportunities ISS For Denver: Date Visible Max Height Appears Disappears Wed Mar 11, 5:51 AM 3 min 31° 17 above S 27 above ESE Thu Mar 12, 5:01 AM 1 min 15° 15 above ESE 11 above E Thu Mar 12, 6:34 AM 6 min 50° 12 above WSW 11 above NE Fri Mar 13, 5:43 AM 2 min 80° 63 above SSW 22 above NE Sat Mar 14, 4:52 AM < 1 min 19° 19 above ENE Sat Mar 14, 6:25 AM 4 min 25° 15 above WNW 11 above NNE Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Time Zone) MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA NASA-TV Highlights Tuesday, March 10 1 p.m. - NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission Prelaunch News Conference (all channels) 3 p.m. - NASA Social -- SLS Booster Test (all channels) Wednesday, March 11 10:30 a.m. - Space Station Live (all channels) 11 a.m. - Live Coverage of the Orbital ATK Booster Test in Promontory, (all channels) 1 p.m. - NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission Science Briefing (all channels) 3 p.m. - ISS Expedition 42 Farewells and Hatch Closure Coverage (all channels) 6:15 p.m. - ISS Expedition 42/Soyuz TMA-14M Undocking Coverage (all channels) 9 p.m. - ISS Expedition 42/Soyuz TMA-14M Deorbit Burn and Landing Coverage (all channels) Thursday, March 12 Midnight – Video File of the ISS Expedition 42/Soyuz TMA-14M Landing and Post-Landing Activities (all channels) 10:30 a.m. - Video File of the ISS Expedition 42/Soyuz TMA-14M Landing and Post-Landing Activities (Including an interview with Expedition 42 Commander Barry Wilmore of NASA and the return of Expedition 42 Flight Engineers Alexander Samokutyaev and Elena Serova (all channels)  3 p.m. - NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission Social (all channels) 8 p.m. - Live Launch coverage of NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission (Launch scheduled at 10:44 p.m. ET) (NTV-1 (Public), NTV-3 (Media)) 9:15 p.m. - Live NASA Edge coverage of the launch of the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission from Kennedy Space Center, Florida (NTV-2 (Education))   (all times Eastern Time Zone) Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar Mar 10 - New Horizons, Trajectory Correction Maneuver Mar 10 - Comet C/2015 A1 (PANSTARRS) Perihelion (2.020 AU) Mar 10 - Asteroid 12524 Conscience Closest Approach To Earth (1.770 AU) Mar 11 - Mars Passes 0.3 Degrees from Uranus Mar 11 - Comet C/2014 W6 (Catalina) At Opposition (2.206 AU) Mar 11 - Asteroid 9025 Polansky Closest Approach To Earth (2.629 AU) Mar 11 - 50th Anniversary (1965), Pioneer 5 Launch (Solar Orbiter) Mar 12 - Soyuz TMA Return To Earth (International Space Station) Mar 12 - Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS 1-4) Atlas 5 Launch Mar 12 - Kompsat 3A Dnepr 1 Launch Mar 12 - Comet C/2013 V5 (Oukaimeden) Closest Approach To Earth (2.125 AU) Mar 12 - Comet C/2013 V2 (Borisov) Closest Approach To Earth (2.960 AU) Mar 12 - Comet C/2015 D3 (PANSTARRS) At Opposition (7.568 AU) Mar 12 - Asteroid 498 Tokio Occults HIP 14439 (5.6 Magnitude Star) Mar 12 - Asteroid 78577 JPL Closest Approach To Earth (1.956 AU) Mar 13 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #406 (OTM-406) Mar 13 - Comet C/2014 W6 (Catalina) Closest Approach To Earth (2.206 AU) Mar 13 - Comet 6P/d'Arrest Closest Approach To Earth (2.297 AU) Mar 13 - Comet C/2014 N3 (NEOWISE) Perihelion (3.882 AU) Mar 13 - Asteroid 141527 (2002 FG7) Near-Earth Flyby (0.044 AU) Mar 13 - Asteroid 12426 Racquetball Closest Approach To Earth (1.484 AU) Mar 13 - Asteroid 2688 Halley Closest Approach To Earth (2.316 AU) Mar 14 - Cassini, Distant Flyby of Helene & Calypso Mar 14 - Comet 295P/LINEAR At Opposition (2.331 AU) Mar 14 - Asteroid 3199 Nefertiti Closest Approach To Earth (0.990 AU) JPL Space Calendar

Fastest Star in the Galaxy Has a Strange Origin Food for Thought Fastest Star in the Galaxy Has a Strange Origin

Space Image of the Week Pillars and Jets in the Pelican Nebula Image Credit & Copyright: Larry Van Vleet (LVVASTRO)