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Credit: ESA =================================================================================== This image — the closest ever taken of the Sun — shows the corona teeming with thousands of miniature solar flares, which scientists have dubbed campfires. The pictures are the first released from the Solar Orbiter mission, led by the European Space Agency. “When the first images came in, my first thought was this is not possible, it can’t be that good,” David Berghmans, principal investigator for the orbiter’s Extreme Ultraviolet Imager instrument, told a press briefing on 16 July. “It was much better than we dared to hope for.” “The Sun might look quiet at the...

It seems the U.S. Forest Service recently published a 700-word guide on how to safely roast marshmallows. (The publication was released in time for Aug.30, which was officially, I kid you not, “National Roasted Marshmallow Day.” Your tax dollars at work.) This comprehensive article suggests that a 10-foot buffer between children and a fire is a good rule of thumb. Roasting sticks should be at least 30 inches in length. (Do the math for how long a kid’s arm will have to be to roast marshmallows from 10 feet away with a 30-inch stick.) Oh, and don’t eat too many...

The U.S. Forest Service celebrated National Roasted Marshmallow Day the only way a government agency knows how — by telling people how not to roast smores.“Never start a campfire when there are fire restrictions in place,” the jovial blog post says. “Be sure you are at least 15 feet from tent walls, trees or other flammable objects.” It also recommends keeping children at least 10 feet from the campfire, ensuring that they take no part in dangerous marshmallow melting.Once minors have been safely sequestered out of sight, “let’s get to the marshmallow basics. Use a roasting stick of at least...

Boy Scouts of America Selects Campfire Cafe Cookbook http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/5/prweb384364.htm (PRWEB) May 16, 2006 -- Over The Open Fire, a unique cookbook featuring open fire cooking recipes and methods from the popular television series Campfire Cafe, has been chosen for worldwide distribution by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Boy Scouting is designed to take place outdoors. In the outdoors, the skills and activities practiced at troop meetings come alive with purpose. Outdoor cooking has long proved to be an activity that helps make outdoor excursions more fun and educational. Over The Open Fire takes traditional open-fire cooking methods enjoyed by...

There's something about a campfire that makes us gaze. Our eyes focus on the dancing flames. We stare. We contemplate. We don't know what we're thinking about, as we poke the embers for no apparent reason, but we feel as warm inside as the middle of a toasted marshmallow. Just last week, when an early September chill grasped the night air, we piled a bunch of sticks inside a ring of rocks in the backyard and struck a match. We never had the patience to rub two sticks together. There's something about a campfire that attracts the neighbors' kids. Or...