1. Space News Update - December 22, 2017 - In the News Departments
Story 1:
'Winking' Star 550 Light-years Away May Be Devouring Wrecked Planets
Story 2:
Arecibo Radar Returns with Asteroid Phaethon Images
Story 3: A New Twist in the Dark Matter Tale
Departments
The Night Sky
ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar
NASA-TV Highlights
Food for Thought
Space Image of the Week

2. 'Winking' Star 550 Light-years Away May Be Devouring Wrecked Planets
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. Arecibo Radar Returns with Asteroid Phaethon Images

4. A New Twist in the Dark Matter Tale

5. The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Friday, December 22
• As twilight fades away this evening, you'll find the waxing crescent Moon in the southwest. The Moon is less than halfway from Fomalhaut, far left of it, to Altair, farther right of it.
• Even with winter officially here, the big Summer Triangle remains up in the west after nightfall. Altair is the first of its stars to go. Start by spotting bright Vega in the northwest. The brightest star above Vega is Deneb. Altair is the Triangle's third star, farther to Vega's left or lower left. How late into the evening, and into the advancing winter, can you keep Altair in view?
Saturday, December 23
• Watch Sirius rise this evening! Find a spot with an open view smack down to the east-southeast horizon, and watch for Sirius to come up below Orion's vertical Belt, by about two fists at arm's length. Sirius rises around 7 or 8 p.m. now, depending on your location. When a star is very low, it tends to twinkle quite slowly and often in vivid colors. Sirius is bright enough to show these effects well, especially with binoculars.
• Sirius and Procyon in the balance.Once Sirius is up, look to its left (by about two fists at arm's length) for Procyon. If you live around latitude 30° north (Tijuana, New Orleans, Jacksonville), they'll be at the same height above your horizon soon after they rise. If you're north of that latitude, Procyon will be higher. If you're south of there, Sirius will be the higher of the two. The eastern edge of the Earth tilts differently depending on where you are!
• Algol should be at its minimum brightness for a couple hours centered on 8:00 p.m. EST.
Sunday, December 24
• As soon as the stars come out, look high above the Moon for the Great Square of Pegasus. Look far below the Moon for Fomalhaut.
Monday, December 25
• The Moon, now fattened to first quarter, shines in Pisces — about at the same place it always resides when it's first quarter on Christmas (think why).
Once the stars come out, you'll find the Great Square of Pegasus still above above the Moon. But, unlike yesterday, the eastern (left) side of the Square points down to the Moon (at nightfall for North America).
And look far lower right of the Moon now for Fomalhaut. As the "Autumn Star," Fomalhaut will soon slide down out of sight in the southwest.
Sky & Telescope

6. ISS Sighting Opportunities
ISS For Denver:
Date
Visible
Max Height
Appears
Disappears
Sun Dec 24, 6:35 AM
1 min
14°
10° above S
14° above SSE
Tue Dec 26, 6:26 AM
6 min
41°
11° above SSW
10° above ENE
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)
Friday, December 22 
3 p.m., 7 p.m., 11 p.m., Space Station Crew Delivers Holiday Greetings from Orbit (NTV-1 (Public))
6 p.m., 10 p.m., Replay of SpaceCast Weekly (all channels)
Saturday, December 23 
9 a.m., 3:30 p.m., 11 p.m, Space Station Crew Delivers Holiday Greetings from Orbit (NTV-1 (Public))
10 a.m, 5 p.m., 10 p.m., Replay of SpaceCast Weekly (all channels)
1 p.m., The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Presents – “STEM in 30” – The Airplanes Family Tree: From the Wright Brothers to Today (NTV-1 (Public))
2 p.m., The von Kármán Lecture Series: Weight Watching from Space: Tracking Earth’s water cycle with GRACE Follow-On (NTV-1 (Public))
4 p.m., 9 p.m., Replay of the Facebook Live: “Hubble Holiday Lights: Seeing the Winter Sky via Both Space and Backyard Telescopes” (NTV-1 (Public))
5 p.m., Saturday, December 23 - Replay of SpaceCast Weekly (all channels)
6 p.m., Replay of The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Presents – “STEM in 30” – The Airplanes Family Tree: From the Wright Brothers to Today (NTV-1 (Public))
7 p.m., Replay of the von Kármán Lecture Series: Weight Watching from Space: Tracking Earth’s water cycle with GRACE Follow-On (NTV-1 (Public))
Sunday, December 24 
8:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., Space Station Crew Delivers Holiday Greetings from Orbit (NTV-1 (Public))
9 a.m., Replay of SpaceCast Weekly (NTV-1 (Public))
10 a.m., Replay of the von Kármán Lecture Series: Weight Watching from Space: Tracking Earth’s water cycle with GRACE Follow-On (NTV-1 (Public))
1 p.m., Replay of the Facebook Live: “Hubble Holiday Lights: Seeing the Winter Sky via Both Space and Backyard Telescopes” (NTV-1 (Public))
2 p.m., Replay of The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Presents – “STEM in 30” – The Airplanes Family Tree: From the Wright Brothers to Today (NTV-1 (Public))
Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

8. Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar
Dec 22 - Iridium Next 31-40 Falcon 9 Launch
Dec 22 - Ursids Meteor Shower Peak
Dec 22 - Comet 176P/LINEAR At Opposition (1.891 AU)
Dec 22 - Comet P/2002 EJ57 (LINEAR) At Opposition (2.014 AU)
Dec 22 - Comet 117P/Helin-Roman-Alu At Opposition (4.124 AU)
Dec 22 - Comet C/2010 U3 (Boattini) At Opposition (8.195 AU)
Dec 22 - Asteroid 1767 Lampland Occults HIP 64122 (5.6 Magnitude Star)
Dec 22 - [Dec 20] Apollo Asteroid 2017 YE Near-Earth Flyby (0.007 AU)
Dec 22 - Apollo Asteroid (2008 WM64) Near-Earth Flyby (0.039 AU)
Dec 22 - Apollo Asteroid 2015 YQ1 Near-Earth Flyby (0.044 AU)
Dec 22 - Apollo Asteroid 2017 TS3 Near-Earth Flyby (0.047 AU)
Dec 22 - [Dec 15] Apollo Asteroid 2017 XX2 Near-Earth Flyby (0.071 AU)
Dec 22 - Apollo Asteroid 2015 HU9 Near-Earth Flyby (0.098 AU)
Dec 22 - [Dec 15] Apollo Asteroid 2007 KE Near-Earth Flyby (0.072 AU)
Dec 22 - Asteroid Sheldoncooper Closest Approach To Earth (1.780 AU)
Dec 22 - Kuiper Belt Object (2002 XW93) At Opposition ( AU)
Dec 23 - GCOM-C/ SLATS H-2A Launch
Dec 23 - LKW 2 CZ-2D Launch
Dec 23 - Comet C/2016 R2 (PANSTARRS) Closest Approach To Earth (2.054 AU)
Dec 23 - Comet P/2006 F4 At Opposition (2.903 AU)
Dec 23 - Asteroid 8256 Shenzhou Closest Approach To Earth (0.736 AU)
Dec 23 - Asteroid Samthurman Closest Approach To Earth ( AU)
Dec 23 - Asteroid 5050 Doctorwatson Closest Approach To Earth (1.220 AU)
Dec 23 - Amor Asteroid 1580 Betulia Closest Approach To Earth (1.580 AU)
Dec 23 - Karol Bokbo's 80th Birthday (1937)
Dec 23 - Harold Masrusky's 95th Birthday (1922)
Dec th Anniversary (1672), Giovanni Cassini's Discovery of Saturn Moon Rhea
Dec 24 - Comet C/2017 F1 (Lemmon) Closest Approach To Earth (3.695 AU)
JPL Space Calendar

9. Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar
Dec 24 - Comet 278P/McNaught At Opposition (4.113 AU)
Dec 24 - Aten Asteroid 2017 WZ14 Near-Earth Flyby (0.019 AU)
Dec 24 - Apollo Asteroid 2017 WD15 Near-Earth Flyby (0.069 AU)
Dec 24 - Asteroid Jonstewart Closest Approach To Earth (1.680 AU)
Dec 25 - Superview 1-03 & 04 CZ-2D Launch
Dec 25 - Venus Passes 1.1 Degrees From Saturn
Dec 25 - Comet C/2017 F1 (Lemmon) At Opposition (3.695 AU)
Dec 25 - Aten Asteroid 2016 YA1 Near-Earth Flyby (0.080 AU)
Dec 25 - Asteroid 4690 Strasbourg Closest Approach To Earth (0.826 AU)
Dec 25 - Asteroid Pandabear Closest Approach To Earth (1.343 AU)
Dec 25 - Asteroid 1381 Danubia Closest Approach To Earth (1.343 AU)
Dec 25 - Asteroid 1554 Yugoslavia Closest Approach To Earth (1.759 AU)
Dec 25 - Plutino 2002 XV93 At Opposition ( AU)
JPL Space Calendar

10. New Technique Puts Exoplanets on the Scale
Food for Thought
NASA Invests in Concept Development for Missions to Comet, Saturn Moon Titan

11. Gemini's Meteors Composite Image Credit & Copyright: Jeff Dai (TWAN)
Space Image of the Week
Gemini's Meteors  Composite Image Credit & Copyright: Jeff Dai (TWAN)