1. Space News Update - March 13, 2015 - In the News Departments Story 1:
Hubble Observations Suggest Underground Ocean on Jupiter's Largest Moon
Story 2:
Atlas 5 rocket launches NASA satellite quartet
Story 3: Most Powerful Solid Rocket Booster Ignites in Milestone Test, Propelling NASA on Path to Deep Space
Departments
The Night Sky
ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar
NASA-TV Highlights
Food for Thought
Space Image of the Week

2. Hubble Observations Suggest Underground Ocean on Jupiter's Largest Moon
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)

3. Atlas 5 rocket launches NASA satellite quartet
Ratchet Wrench ‘ ed’ to Space Station

4. Most Powerful Solid Rocket Booster Ignites in Milestone Test, Propelling NASA on Path to Deep Space

5. The Night Sky Sky & Telescope 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, which is standing on end in the northwest. The Dipper is rising into spring and summer; Cas is descending from its high showing in the fall and winter.
Last-quarter Moon (exact at 1:48 p.m. EDT). The Moon rises around 1 or 2 a.m. on the morning of Saturday the 14th. By the beginning of Saturday's dawn the Moon poses far left of Scorpius and above the upright, newly risen Sagittarius Teapot.
Saturday, March 14
On the traditional divide between the winter and spring sky is dim Cancer, marked this year by Jupiter. Wintry Gemini is to its west, and Leo of spring is to its east. Don't be too distracted by Jupiter; Cancer also hosts the Beehive Star Cluster, M44, in its middle. Look for it 6° to Jupiter's upper right after dark. That's about the width of a binocular's field of view.
Algol should be at its minimum brightness for a couple hours centered on 9 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Comparison-star chart.
Sunday, March 15
Have another look for Comet Lovejoy! This evening it's just a fraction of a degree from Delta Cassiopeiae, the second-dimmest star of Cassiopeia's W pattern. The comet is still 6th magnitude and fading more slowly than predicted. Nor is there bothersome moonlight in the evening sky. See Bob King's Catch Comet Lovejoy in Cassiopeia with a quickie naked-eye chart to find the right star in Cassiopeia, or Comet Lovejoy Shines On with a finder chart for every evening in March. You'll need good binoculars or a low-power telescope. Plan to go out right after dark, when Cassiopeia is still high.
Monday, March 16
The brightest point of light at dusk is Venus in the west. Second-brightest is Jupiter, much higher in the east-southeast. Look to the right of Jupiter by two or three fists at arm's length for Procyon. Look the same distance lower right of Procyon and there's the evening's third-brightest point, Sirius.
Tuesday, March 17
Jupiter this month forms a big, more-or-less equilateral triangle with Procyon and Pollux. Face southeast after dark, and Procyon is to Jupiter's lower right. Pollux is to Jupiter's upper right.
Procyon is also part of the slightly larger Winter Triangle, down to Procyon's lower right. The Winter Triangle too is equilateral. Its other stars are orange Betelgeuse in Orion and bright Sirius below.
Sky & Telescope

6. ISS Sighting Opportunities
Date
Visible
Max Height
Appears
Disappears
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
Sun Mar 15, 5:34 AM
3 min
41°
41 above NNW
Mon Mar 16, 4:43 AM
15 above NE
Mon Mar 16, 6:16 AM
16°
12 above NW
10 above NNE
Tue Mar 17, 5:24 AM
22°
22 above N
Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

7. 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
(all times Eastern Time Zone)
10:20 a.m., Friday, March 13 - ISS Expedition 43 In-Flight Interviews with WTOP Radio, Washington, D.C. and Euronews with ISS Commander Terry Virts of NASA and Flight Engineer Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency (all channels)
10 a.m., Monday, March 16 - Video File of the ISS Expedition 43 Crew Departure from Star City, Russia for Baikonur, Kazakhstan (all channels)
11:50 a.m., Monday, March 16 - ISS Expedition 43 In-Flight Interview with WBBF-TV, Baltimore and Expedition 43 Commander Terry Virts of NASA (all channels)
Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

8. Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar
Mar 13 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #406 (OTM-406)
Mar 13 - [Mar 13] Comet C/2015 A1 (PANSTARRS) Perihelion (1.996 AU)
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 - [Mar 11] Asteroid 2015 EF Near-Earth Flyby (0.006 AU)
Mar 13 - [Mar 12] Asteroid 2015 EK Near-Earth Flyby (0.008 AU)
Mar 13 - [Mar 12] Asteroid 2015 EP Near-Earth Flyby (0.018 AU)
Mar 13 - Asteroid (2002 FG7) Near-Earth Flyby (0.044 AU)
Mar 13 - Asteroid Racquetball Closest Approach To Earth (1.484 AU)
Mar 13 - Asteroid 2688 Halley Closest Approach To Earth (2.316 AU)
Mar th Anniversary (1980), Pascu/Seidelmann/Baum/Currie's Discovery of Saturn Moon Calypso
Mar 13 - Percival Lowell's 160th Birthday (1855)
Mar 14 - [Mar 11] Pi Day
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)
Mar 14 - Lecture: Women in Aviation and Space, Washington DC
Mar 14 - Kartchner Caverns State Park Star Party, Arizona
Mar 14 - Heidi Hammel's 55th Birthday (1960)
Mar 14 - Giovanni Schiaparelli's 180th Birthday (1835)
Mar 15 - Comet 249P/LINEAR Closest Approach To Earth (2.306 AU)
Mar 15 - Comet P/2013 O2 (PANSTARRS) At Opposition (2.692 AU)
Mar 15 - Comet P/2007 T2 (Kowalski) At Opposition (4.258 AU)
Mar 15 - [Mar 12] Asteroid 2015 EO Near-Earth Flyby (0.007 AU)
Mar 15 - Asteroid 2005 ES70 Near-Earth Flyby (0.056 AU)
Mar 15 - Asteroid 2015 DG198 Near-Earth Flyby (0.082 AU)
Mar 15 - Asteroid Verish Closest Approach To Earth (1.194 AU)
Mar 15 - Asteroid 3767 DiMaggio Closest Approach To Earth (1.306 AU)
Mar 15 - Asteroid Pillinger Closest Approach To Earth (2.081 AU)
Mar 15 - Asteroid Boslough Closest Approach To Earth (2.394 AU)
Mar th Anniversary (1960), Kitt Peak National Observatory Dedicated
Mar 16 - [Mar 09] Cassini, Titan Flyby
Mar 16 - Comet 311P/PANSTARRS Closest Approach To Earth (1.281 AU)
Mar 16 - Comet 178P/Hug-Bell At Opposition (3.285 AU)
JPL Space Calendar

9. Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar
Mar 16 - Asteroid 126 Velleda Occults HIP 52911 (5.3 Magnitude Star)
Mar 16 - Asteroid 2015 BZ310 Near-Earth Flyby (0.054 AU)
Mar 16 - Asteroid 2015 DB199 Near-Earth Flyby (0.096 AU)
Mar 16 - Asteroid Samthurman Closest Approach To Earth (1.707 AU)
Mar 16 - Asteroid 1095 Tulipa Closest Approach To Earth (1.963 AU)
Mar th Anniversary (1975), Mariner 10, 3rd Mercury Flyby
Mar 16 - Caroline Herschel's 265th Birthday (1750)
Mar 17 - Mercury Passes 1.6 Degrees From Neptune
Mar 17 - Comet P/2014 A3 (PANSTARRS) Closest Approach To Earth (3.544 AU)
Mar 17 - Comet 36P/Whipple At Opposition (4.063 AU)
Mar 17 - Asteroid 3728 IRAS Closest Approach To Earth (1.596 AU)
Mar 17 - Asteroid 1604 Tombaugh Closest Approach To Earth (2.340 AU)
Mar 17 - Asteroid 241 Germania Closest Approach To Earth (2.370 AU)
Mar 17 - Asteroid 3351 Smith Closest Approach To Earth (2.837 AU)
Mar 17 - Jim Irwin's 85th Birthday (1930)
JPL Space Calendar

10. Lots of Lunar Layers Under Chang’e 3
New Technique Puts Exoplanets on the Scale
New Technique Puts Exoplanets on the Scale
Food for Thought
Lots of Lunar Layers Under Chang’e 3

11. March 11, 2015 Colorado Fireball
Space Image of the Week
Click image to view YouTube video
March 11, 2015 Colorado Fireball