Posted on 07/12/2016 8:03:24 AM PDT by BenLurkin
Pluto isn't quite as lonely as scientists had thought.
Astronomers have discovered another dwarf planet in the Kuiper Belt, the ring of icy objects beyond Neptune. But this newfound world, dubbed 2015 RR245, is much more distant than Pluto, orbiting the sun once every 700 Earth years, scientists said. (Pluto completes one lap around the sun every 248 Earth years.)
"The icy worlds beyond Neptune trace how the giant planets formed and then moved out from the sun," discovery team member Michele Bannister, of the University of Victoria in British Columbia, said in a statement. "They let us piece together the history of our solar system."
...
The exact size of 2015 RR245 is not yet known, but the researchers think it's about 435 miles (700 kilometers) wide. Pluto is the largest resident of the Kuiper Belt, with a diameter of 1,474 miles (2,371 km).
The research team first spotted 2015 RR245 in February of this year, while poring over images that the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in Hawaii took in September 2015 as part of the ongoing Outer Solar System Origins Survey (OSSOS).
"There it was on the screen — this dot of light moving so slowly that it had to be at least twice as far as Neptune from the sun," Bannister said.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
Oh yeah, purrfect. :D
FINALLLY! I get a few minutes to check the Interwebs and ...
SHOOT!
FINALLLY! I get a few minutes to check the Interwebs and ...
SHOOT!
That's how the present administration got their economics training...
I’m glad the card arrived. I haven’t gone around the bend, yet, but I played Mexican Christian music on the way to the library, the situation being too Grave for history lectures.
I’m thinking of starting the school year immediately, because they can’t seem to find themselves anything to do.
OK, maybe now I can catch up on ...
Nagdabbit!!!!
Hi! I see you’re having a day.
113, SSW @ 3 mph, 12%, smoky
And here I sit in A/C comfort, trying to hold out long enough to make it worth my while to go lie down. Some days, it just isn’t worth chewing through the straps.
And I have chills again. Dangit. I’ll see if the doctor will give me some antibiotics for my tooth. I also have to pick up the meds for my neck, and I hope I have enough left to do that. That Filtrete filter went up a dollar. *sheesh*
It would be nice to have a non-smoker for a neighbor. :o|
We’re going to the pool soon.
Oh, I sure did!
Glad it’s over. Now on to the next one.
What about you?
“I’m thinking of starting the school year immediately...”
Planning to crank up the Big Generator with D2 and D3 starting August 8th using history as the “spine” (a la Tapestry of Grace, Vol 2: 475AD to 1800AD). Learning from earlier efforts, I’m upping the structure with these two.
Sent D1 to DFW yesterday to hang out with daughters of good friends for a week before she starts “real school” on August 10th. New charter. Performing Arts focus. Usual subjects through the morning hours (8am to noon-ish) then the student’s conservatory of choice until 4:15pm. UNLESS said student is cast in the school production for the semester in which case they are not “done” until past 6pm.
Found this cool flight tracker website so I could coordinate with friends waiting at the other end regarding changes to projected arrival time and gate assignment. Feel free to geek out over it. This was the actual flight:
http://flightaware.com/live/flight/NKS408
Got the round trip OAK-DFW and back for ~$260 on Spirit.
Check ‘em out if you’re not averse to a la carte pricing structures and somewhat off-hours flight times.
I read a library book in the pool. Didn’t get it too wet.
Good price on the flight. I dream of structure. Maybe someday, when the first six have graduated ...
There are a couple of charter schools opening in this area, but they ask a lot of parents in terms of time commitment, and really limit one’s freedom, with their schedules and all.
Last day of Frank and Kathleen’s swimming lessons. Next week, a group goes to Pamlico Seabase for a week. They’ll return with D2, who’s been working at camp all summer and is supposed to be Ecology Area Director next summer (requiring more training and stuff, but will look good when she applies to a forestry program as a college junior).
"Is this the correct wand for you, tiny floofy?"
A black hole of puppies.
Awww...squee!
Pounce!
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