Space News Update - August 8, In the News Story 1: Story 1: Perseid Meteor Shower: Best Times to Spot 'Shooting Stars' This Week Story 2: Story 2: Coming To A Solar System Near You… Super-Earth! Story 3: Story 3: NASA Mars Rover Approaches Long-Term Goal Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

Perseid Meteor Shower: Best Times to Spot 'Shooting Stars' This Week

Coming To A Solar System Near You… Super-Earth!

NASA Mars Rover Approaches Long-Term Goal

The Night Sky Monday, August 8 · This evening the Moon shines between the head of Scorpius to its right and the top of the Sagittarius Teapot to its left. · The brightest asteroid, 4 Vesta, is just past opposition this week, shining at magnitude 5.7 in Capricornus. It's an easy find in binoculars in late evening and can be seen with the unaided eye from a dark site once the Moon sets. Use the finder chart in the August Sky & Telescope, page 53, or our Vesta and Ceres finder charts online. The Dawn spacecraft is orbiting Vesta and sending back high-res pictures. Dawn will spiral down to a much lower orbit for closeup imaging by early 2012.Sky & TelescopeVesta and Ceres finder charts onlinesending back high-res pictures Meanwhile, 1 Ceres lurks two constellations farther east in Cetus. It's magnitude 8.3 and brightening. After Dawn departs Vesta in summer 2012, it will fly on to take up orbit around Ceres in February Tuesday, August 9 · Ganymede, Jupiter's biggest satellite, will disappear into eclipse by Jupiter's shadow around 3:24 a.m. Wednesday morning Eastern Daylight Time. Jupiter's Great Red Spot should cross the planet's central meridian about 44 minutes later, around 4:08 a.m. Wednesday morning EDT. The "red" spot appears very pale orange-tan. It should be visible for about an hour before and after in a good 4-inch telescope if the atmospheric seeing is sharp and steady. A light blue or green filter helps. Wednesday, August 10 · In late afternoon or early evening, the dark edge of the gibbous moon occults the 2.9-magnitude star Pi Sagittarii (in the Teaspoon) for the eastern half of North America. See our article. Here are timetables by city for the star's disappearance and (on the Moon's bright limb) reappearance.articletimetables

The Night Sky Thursday, August 11 · Look west after nightfall this week for bright Arcturus shining about halfway up the sky. Turn to the right and look northwest at about the same height for the Big Dipper. The two front stars of the Dipper's bowl point upper right toward Polaris farther around to the right due north (outside the frame here). And farther around in the northeast, there's Cassiopeia at about the same height as the Dipper. Friday, August 12 · The annual Perseid meteor shower peaks late tonight, but the light of the practically full Moon fills the sky all night and will hide all but the brightest meteors. (You can look forward to next year, when the Moon will be just a waning crescent.)

ISS Sighting Opportunities SATELLITELOCALDURATION MAX ELEV APPROACHDEPARTURE DATE/TIME(MIN)(DEG)(DEG-DIR) Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting InformationSatellite Sighting Information For Denver: For Denver: No ISS Sighting Opportunities ISSSat Aug 06/02:48 AM< above N ISSSat Aug 06/04:25 AM< above N ISSSun Aug 07/05:02 AM21610 above NNW16 above NNE ISSMon Aug 08/04:04 AM11110 above N11 above NNE ISSMon Aug 08/05:39 AM33810 above NW38 above NE

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Daylight Time) Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA websiteNASA website August 9, Tuesday 12:55 - 1:15 p.m. - ISS Expedition 28 Educational Event with the Boy Scouts of America in St. Paul, MN - JSC (All Channels) August 10, Wednesday 11: :05 p.m. - ISS Expedition 28 In-Flight Interviews with KTRK-TV, Houston and KTRH Radio, Houston - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels)

Space Calendar Aug 08 - Asteroid 1718 Namibia Closest Approach To Earth (0.755 AU)Asteroid 1718 Namibia Aug 09 - Asteroid 5891 Gehrig Closest Approach To Earth (1.432 AU)Asteroid 5891 Gehrig Aug 09 - Asteroid 6216 San Jose Closest Approach To Earth (1.794 AU)Asteroid 6216 San Jose Aug 09 - Asteroid 4628 Laplace Closest Approach To Earth (1.919 AU)Asteroid 4628 Laplace Aug th Anniversary (1976), Luna 24 Launch (USSR Moon Sample Return)Luna 24 Aug 10 - Comet C/2011 L3 (McNaught) Perihelion (1.925 AU)Comet C/2011 L3 (McNaught)Perihelion Aug th Anniversary (1966), Lunar Orbiter 1 LaunchLunar Orbiter 1 Aug 11 - [Aug 04] Dawn, Vesta Science Phase BeginsDawnVesta Science Phase Begins Aug 11 - Sich 2/ Nigeriasat 2/ NX/ Rasat/ Edusat/ AprizeSat 5 & 6/ PQ-Gemini 1-4/ BPA- 2 Dnepr 1 LaunchSich 2Nigeriasat 2NXRasatEdusatAprizeSatPQ-Gemini 1-4BPA- 2 Aug 12 - Perseids Meteor Shower PeakPerseids Meteor Shower Aug 12 - Asteroid 6030 Zolensky Closest Approach To Earth (2.045 AU)Asteroid 6030 Zolensky Aug 12 - Asteroid 3259 Brownlee Closest Approach To Earth (2.401 AU)Asteroid 3259 Brownlee JPL Space Calendar

Food for Thought EARTH MAY NOT HAVE NEEDED MOON FOR LIFE

Space Image of the Week Cassini Focuses In On Two Moons Image Credit: NASA