AAS221
catdynamics | January 10, 2013The James Webb Space Telescope is large, overbudget and in a category of its own.
Literally.
And now stirring over some controversy as the reality of science funding starts smacking scientists in the face.
Last year, as I'm, sure you remember, the JWST funding line was take out of the Astrophysics Division and segregated in its own division, a funding maneuver that has been used before for large overruning projects.
This, incidentally, brutally exposed how tight the space science budgets have been squeezed, partly through overruns, partly through tough little missions hanging on longer than…
catdynamics | January 9, 2013Space based infrared observations find double planetesimal belts around Vega.
Vega
Su et al. (ApJ in press) got Spitzer and Herschel observations of Vega, and find emission consistent with an inner warm asteroid belt and an outer cool planetesimal belt, with a gap between.
Vega
This is similar to what we see in the Solar System but on a bigger scale around a younger, hotter, more massive star.
The inference is that the gap between the two belts is kept clear of tepid dust by multiple planets orbiting in the region.
Schematic of Vega system inferred from observations
This is a very cool…
catdynamics | January 7, 2013It was at the gathering,
and all the astronomers were there,
drinking coffee among the posters,
hearing the NSF in despair...
I am at my almost regular pilgrimage to the Annual Meeting of the American Astronomical Society, where I hope to do some semi-liveblogging of developments and science news in my copious spare time.
I have more tasks than usual at this meeting, as not only am I, and my student, giving talks, I am also doing recruiting for prospective graduate students, postdoctoral hires and faculty, and attending the informal gathering of the ApJ editors.
I would also go to The Party,…