Space News Update - December 6, 2013 - In the News Departments Story 1: Astronomers discover planet that shouldn't be there Story 2: Heat Shield for NASA's Orion Spacecraft Arrives at Kennedy Space Center Story 3: Signs of Water Found on 5 Alien Planets by Hubble Telescope   Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

Astronomers discover planet that shouldn't be there 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)

Heat Shield for NASA's Orion Spacecraft Arrives at Kennedy Space Center

Signs of Water Found on 5 Alien Planets by Hubble Telescope

The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Friday, December 6  The waxing crescent Moon hangs high over Venus at dusk, with Alpha and Beta Capricorni now to its lower right. Saturday, December 7  Earliest sunset of the year (near 40° north latitude). The longest night won't come until December 21st at the solstice, and the latest sunrise doesn't happen until January 4th. The reason? Local Apparent Solar Time is shifting with respect to Local Mean Time during this part of the year, an effect caused by the tilt of Earth's axis and the ellipticity of Earth's orbit. Be glad that we use standardized time, so you don't have to keep adjusting your clocks to the inconstant motions of the Sun like in olden days. Standard time made things a lot simpler for society but complicated things for careful skywatchers.    Sunday, December 8  This evening, look to the right of the Moon by less than a fist-width at arm's length for the dim Water Jar asterism of Aquarius. Far lower left of the Moon shines Fomalhaut. Monday, December 9  First-quarter Moon (exact at 10:12 a.m. EST). This evening the Moon shines just under the dim Circlet of Pisces below the Great Square of Pegasus.    Jupiter is passing just 15 arcminutes from Delta Geminorum, magnitude 3.5, this evening and tomorrow evening. That's about half a pencil-width at arm's length. (But it's not as close as Jupiter passed by the star on October 4th, while going the other way.) Sky & Telescope

ISS Sighting Opportunities ISS For Denver: Date Visible Max Height Appears Disappears Sat Dec 7, 6:01 PM 1 min 13° 10 above SSE 13 above SE Sun Dec 8, 6:46 PM 23° 10 above SW 23 above SW Mon Dec 9, 5:57 PM 4 min 38° 10 above SSW 33 above ESE Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

NASA-TV Highlights Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website (all times Eastern Daylight Time) No special programming through Dec. 12, 2013. Watch NASA-TV’s regular daily programming here. Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar Dec 06 - [Dec 02] Chang'e 3 Lunar Orbit Insertion (China) Dec 06 - Asteroid 21088 Chelyabinsk Closest Approach To Earth (0.958 AU) Dec 06 - Asteroid 1831 Nicholson Closest Approach To Earth (1.541 AU) Dec 06 - Asteroid 2531 Cambridge Closest Approach To Earth (1.956 AU) Dec 07 - Comet 84P/Giclas Closest Approach To Earth (1.246 AU) Dec 07 - Asteroid 18024 Dobson Closest Approach To Earth (2.406 AU) Dec 08 - Inmarsat 5 F1 Proton M-Briz M Launch Dec 08 - Comet P/2006 S1 (Christensen) Closest Approach To Earth (2.013 AU) Dec 08 - Asteroid 6312 Robheinlein Closest Approach To Earth (1.052 AU) Dec 08 - Asteroid 3106 Morabito Closest Approach To Earth (1.489 AU) Dec 08 - Asteroid 19535 Rowanatkinson Closest Approach To Earth (1.815 AU) Dec 08 - Asteroid 3140 Stellafane Closest Approach To Earth (1.894 AU) Dec 08 - Asteroid 88705 Potato Closest Approach To Earth (2.340 AU) Dec 08 - Kuiper Belt Object 2004 XR190 At Opposition (56.666 AU) Dec 08 - 105th Anniversary (1908), Mount Wilson 60-inch Telescope First Light Dec 09 - Comet P/2000 R2 (LINEAR) Closest Approach To Earth (2.173 AU) Dec 09 - Comet 40P/Vaisala At Opposition (2.554 AU) Dec 09 - Asteroid 3155 Lee Closest Approach To Earth (1.147 AU) Dec 09 - Asteroid 1620 Geographos Closest Approach To Earth (1.798 AU) Dec 09 - Asteroid 6677 Renoir Closest Approach To Earth (2.310 AU) Dec 09 - Kuiper Belt Object 19521 Chaos At Opposition (40.542 AU) Dec 09 - 35th Anniversary (1978), Pioneer Venus 2, Venus Arrival (Atmospheric Probes) Dec 09 - 155th Anniversary (1858), Ausson Meteorite Fall (Hit Building in France) JPL Space Calendar

Could Particle ‘Spooky Action’ Define The Nature Of Gravity? Food for Thought Could Particle ‘Spooky Action’ Define The Nature Of Gravity?

Space Image of the Week Subaru Telescope Captures the Fine Details of Comet Lovejoy’s Tail Image Credit: NAOJ with data processing by Masafumi Yagi (NAOJ)