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Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Phobos 360
NASA ^ | December 25, 2013 | (see photo credit)

Posted on 12/24/2013 9:13:13 PM PST by SunkenCiv

Explanation: What does the Martian moon Phobos look like? To better visualize this unusual object, images from ESA's Mars Express orbiter have been combined into a virtual rotation movie. The rotation is actually a digital illusion -- tidally-locked Phobos always keeps the same face toward its home planet, as does Earth's moon. The above video highlights Phobos' chunky shape and an unusually dark surface covered with craters and grooves. What lies beneath the surface is a topic of research since the moon is not dense enough to be filled with solid rock. Phobos is losing about of centimeter of altitude a year and is expected to break up and crash onto Mars within the next 50 million years. To better understand this unusual world, Mars Express is on course to make the closest flyby ever on Sunday.

December 25, 2013

(Excerpt) Read more at 129.164.179.22 ...


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; astronomy; bodeslaw; deimos; grooves; mars; phobos; rochelimit; rocheradius; science; stickneycrater; striations; titiusbode; titiusbodelaw; titiusbodeslaw
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[Video Credit: Mars Express, ESA]

1 posted on 12/24/2013 9:13:13 PM PST by SunkenCiv
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To: brytlea; cripplecreek; decimon; bigheadfred; KoRn; Grammy; married21; steelyourfaith; Mmogamer; ...
YouTube Video

2 posted on 12/24/2013 9:15:27 PM PST by SunkenCiv (http://www.freerepublic.com/~mestamachine/)
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To: SunkenCiv

IBTNM


3 posted on 12/24/2013 9:35:41 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: SunkenCiv
"What lies beneath the surface is a topic of research since the moon is not dense enough to be filled with solid rock."

Marshmallow cream?

Seriously, what could possibly be at the core besides solid rock. Can't be molten magma for something so tiny. Perhaps it's fragmented rock.

4 posted on 12/24/2013 9:36:10 PM PST by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: ETL

Ice. The density of the four inner planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars) are similar, and about four times that of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, which are similar to each other.


5 posted on 12/24/2013 9:40:25 PM PST by SunkenCiv (http://www.freerepublic.com/~mestamachine/)
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To: SunkenCiv

Captured comet?


6 posted on 12/24/2013 9:43:16 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: SunkenCiv

But Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are all gas giants. Rocky planets like Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, would obviously be much denser than them. I wonder how it stacks up, density-wise, to these rocky planets. Ice at the center would seem to suggest it would have a hollow core. That would be odd, given its rocky exterior.


7 posted on 12/24/2013 9:48:00 PM PST by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: SunkenCiv

They say here below, with 3 references, that the small moon is known to have “significant porosity” (has internal crevices). I guess that would explain the low over all density.

“Spectroscopically it appears to be similar to the D-type asteroids,[10] and is apparently of composition similar to carbonaceous chondrite material.[11] Phobos’s density is too low to be solid rock, and it is known to have significant porosity.[12][13][14]”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phobos_%28moon%29#Physical_characteristics


8 posted on 12/24/2013 9:56:10 PM PST by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: SunkenCiv

Every time I read the word, “Phobos,” I remember the storyline to the video game, “Doom.”

Pretty scary stuff.
Thanks for the post.


9 posted on 12/24/2013 10:00:17 PM PST by RandallFlagg (IRS = Internal Revenge Service)
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To: BenLurkin

I don’t know what that means.


10 posted on 12/24/2013 10:01:02 PM PST by jim35 (Obama: the second saboteur-in-chief.)
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To: SunkenCiv

Sounds like you could be right about it having some ice in its interior. But it could just as well have had empty space in those internal crevices.

“D-type asteroids have a very low albedo and a featureless reddish electromagnetic spectrum.[citation needed] It has been suggested that they have a composition of organic rich silicates, carbon and anhydrous silicates, possibly with water ice in their interiors.[citation needed] D-type asteroids are found in the outer asteroid belt and beyond; examples are 152 Atala, and 944 Hidalgo as well as the majority of Jupiter’s Trojans.

The Nice model suggests that D-type asteroids may have originated in the Kuiper belts.[1]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-type_asteroid


11 posted on 12/24/2013 10:05:18 PM PST by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: jim35

Institute of Business Travel Management

Or...

Acronym Definition
IBTM Institute of Business Travel Management
*IBTM In Before the Move (internet forums)
IBTM International Business and Technology Management (Lappeenranta University of Technology; Finland)
IBTM In Band Transport Multiplex

http://acronyms.thefreedictionary.com/IBTM


12 posted on 12/24/2013 10:08:47 PM PST by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: SunkenCiv

13 posted on 12/24/2013 10:18:00 PM PST by Talisker (One who commands, must obey.)
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To: jim35

See post 13


14 posted on 12/24/2013 10:25:57 PM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: Talisker

You got that right, Talisker - the powers that be have intentionally blacked out the part of Phobos they don’t want us to see; This is probably where an extra-terrestrial development is located!


15 posted on 12/24/2013 10:49:33 PM PST by Ken522
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To: SunkenCiv

The one crater looks like it was dug by an antlion.


16 posted on 12/24/2013 10:56:24 PM PST by Darksheare (Try my coffee, first one's free..... Even robots will kill for it!)
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To: Ken522
You got that right, Talisker - the powers that be have intentionally blacked out the part of Phobos they don’t want us to see; This is probably where an extra-terrestrial development is located!

Yeah, I noticed that hyper-blurred section too. Nothing to see there, move along!

17 posted on 12/24/2013 11:17:47 PM PST by Talisker (One who commands, must obey.)
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To: BenLurkin

Old spaceship parked in orbit millions of years ago. It’s hollow.


18 posted on 12/25/2013 12:01:10 AM PST by Dr. Bogus Pachysandra ( Ya can't pick up a turd by the clean end!)
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To: ETL

Hoagland has some ideas!

Part 1
http://www.enterprisemission.com/Phobos.html

Part 2
http://www.enterprisemission.com/Phobos2.html

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin says there is a monolith on Phobos.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZgJqESAFJI


19 posted on 12/25/2013 5:32:25 AM PST by Jack Hydrazine (Pubbies = national collectivists; Dems = international collectivists; me = independent conservative)
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To: Jack Hydrazine

If you think that is wild wait until you see what’s on the Moon!

Moon Rising trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd_aOtqMUzA

Moon Rising
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM-P08JcMr8

Object on the Moon mentioned in ‘Moon Rising’ looked at more closely
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_x0abB40mo

Celestial trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVKC_bNU_YM

Celestial
http://www.disclose.tv/action/viewvideo/108630/Jose_Escamilla_Celestial__720p/


20 posted on 12/25/2013 5:43:53 AM PST by Jack Hydrazine (Pubbies = national collectivists; Dems = international collectivists; me = independent conservative)
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