Hello and welcome to the 96th Carnival of Space on Astroengine.com!
Before we begin, I want to wish the Universe Today a Happy 10th Birthday! Fraser Cain started the website way back on March 23rd, 1999 (have a look to see what it used to look like) and he hasn’t looked back since. I am proud to be writing for the premium space news blog on the web that pulls in two million visitors per month. I love working with Fraser, Nancy, Tammy, Nick, Mark, and now our newest addition to our ace team, Anne. Here’s to the next decade!
So, for this week’s Carnival, as there were so many quality entries, I decided to pose a question for each entry. You can take a look at the questions below, and before you click on the link, try to guess the answer. Otherwise, just scroll down and read through the entire list. (Many of the answers may not be too obvious.) Failing that, you can listen into Astroengine Live on Wednesday April 1st for the first ever “live” Carnival of Space!
Thank you Fraser for allowing me to host this week’s Carnival, it really has grown since the last time I played host way back on the Carnival of Space #51 in April 2008! I hope to do it justice. If your entry isn’t here, be sure to drop me a comment below and I’ll get you online ASAP. Cheers!
Ready? Let’s roll….
The Questions
- What’s bright, flashy, massive, yet very small? Hint: It’s not a pulsar.
- What is the fastest way to travel to the nearest star? Hint: Project has the same name as the son of a mythological Greek craftsman.
- For one hour, on March 28th, the World dimmed. Why?
- In 1912, on the night the Titanic sank in the Atlantic Ocean, which planet was prominent in the night sky?
- Where can you go to explore 9000 lunar impact craters and create your own?
- The Mars Science Laboratory will be launched in 2011. What will it be called? Hint: Not just “The MSL”.
- Who is Susan Sakimoto?
- The Kepler mission will look for Earth-like exoplanets orbiting other stars. Is it a waste of money?
- Theory of space-time with quantum scale fractals, anyone? Hint: I couldn’t think of a decent question for this, so skip to the answer.
- Who is Rex Ridenoure?
- Why was Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal so horribly, horribly wrong?
- Has Venus ever been considered as a destination for manned missions?
- Where are the most energetic particles in the Universe born?
- How was the Expedition-19 Soyuz TMA-14 transported to the launch pad?
- Can liquid water exist on the surface of Mars?
- Who is Valentina Tereshkova?
- Which rocket failed to deliver the Orbital Carbon Observatory (OCO) into orbit on February 24th, 2009?
- What resembles a muddy splodge on the Martian landscape?
- What does it take to be an astropixie?
- How close are we to space colonization? Hint: We are close.
- What makes a planet habitable?
- Could the Mars Science Laboratory be a girl rover?
- What’s the name of India’s first mission to the Moon?
- Do asteroids lurk at the Earth’s L4 and L5 points?
- Which spaceflight participant is currently in space, enjoying his second trip?
- Who is writing a book called “Astroeconomics: Making Money From The Vacuum Of Space”?
- Extra: Who was late to the Carnival? (A mini-party for those who missed the main event.)
astroengine.com 