Lucy: The NASA Mission to Explore Jupiter's Trojans

In 2021, NASA plans to launch a 12 year mission to explore the Trojan asteroids of Jupiter. Trojans are asteroids that follow a planet's orbital path in within one of that planet's Lagrange points. Several planets in our solar system are known to have Trojans; Earth has one and Neptune has them.

My second book, Trojan, is about the Trojan asteroids of Neptune and their exploration.
The Kindle version may be found here:
Trojan: The Black Chronicles, Book II

Second Book Published

The second book in the Black Chronicles series was just listed for Amazon Kindle.  I am very excited to finally make it available. The decision to publish it electronically and not go with a traditional publisher was difficult; there are many reasons I believe the traditional route is still preferable - and I do not care to get into that at the moment.  A couple of reasons I decided to do this were: I have been asked repeatedly over the years when the second book in the series would be available and I do not currently have the time to do any events in an attempt to market paperbacks.
My hope in writing this book, like the first, was to bring an adventurous, interesting story that inspires imagination, exploration and the desire to bravely stand for all that is good. I have no delusions my work will ever be held in high esteem as some great work of literature and am not for a moment bothered by the notion. However, if I can entertain while writing - as C.S. Lewis stated, "...the right kinds of books" then someday perhaps I will consider myself a successful author.

Therefore, I hope you enjoy book two of The Black Chronicles:  Trojan

New Year, New Edition and soon, New Book

Europa, after a long absence, has been republished for Kindle on Amazon (2nd edition); it will be free on Kindle Unlimited for the foreseeable future.
Europa: Kindle Version

The second book in the series will be published in the next month.
Book Two Teaser

Publishing Issues

My publisher went out of business and further printings of Europa are on hold indefinitely; I have  routed my other web address here because the publisher's site is down.
I am currently exploring other publishing options, traditional and otherwise, and will keep everyone apprised in the upcoming months.

Europa Clipper Mission

In case you hadn't heard:

Europa Clipper

Possible Geysers On Europa

On September 26th, NASA released photos taken by the Hubble telescope that showed evidence of geysers on Europa. The photos, taken in January, March and April of 2014, were not released until initial analysis was completed and researchers were reasonably sure of what they were seeing. The research teams complete findings will be published in the September 29th issue of the Astrophysical Journal.

Europa Plumes Discovered by Hubble

Psyche

Yesterday, after reviewing 27 submissions, NASA chose to fund five projects for initial mission investigation. The five projects will receive 3 million dollars to conduct concept design and analysis studies. Sometime in September 2016 NASA will choose one or two of the projects for mission funding.

My personal favorite is the Psyche project.
     Psyche is an asteroid that appears to be solid metal, a property making it very different from the usual drifting space rock. In addition to possibly being a very large magnet, and depending on the level of magnetism could wreak havoc on a vehicle's equipment, Psyche may be a potentially useful resource both for knowledge of the way planetary cores cool and what asteroids could provide commercially. Here is the summary story on Gizmodo, or if you want to geek-out a little the summary from the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.

Pluto - Images from the New Horizons Spacecraft

Finally, some new images from New Horizons!

This shot of Pluto's atmosphere is stunning!


The closeup of the mountains is amazing as well. However...


The feature I found most remarkable is a potentially active nitrogen glacier! The ices may have evaporated from the surface and fallen into the mountains, re-compressed into solid ice again and flowed back onto the plain; a cycle nearly identical to water ice (snow) on Earth falling in the mountains, being compressed into ice and flowing downward in the form of a glacier.


Apologies for the first photos getting cut off on the top of the page but I wanted to post them as large as possible. The the full story and complete set of photos may be viewed the NASA link below:
Pluto - Backlit Panorama and Glacial Flows

The Future is Now: Indoor Lighting

     One of the downsides to living underground, or on the floor of a light-less alien ocean, is the lack of natural lighting. Most anyone who has spent a significant amount of time in a windowless office, worked in a basement - even a well lit one, or stayed in one of those new windowless bargain hotel rooms knows the close feeling of no windows and the fishbowl depression induced by faux lighting. Most of this effect can be alleviated by the addition of an artificial window. However, the major flaw in merely placing a television screen on a wall - even a high definition model - is that it is still lacking a significant element; sunlight.
     The clear solution to this problem would be an artificial window that could simulate natural light. Fortunately, a new company calling themselves CoeLux has developed an artificial skylight that can simulate natural sunlight. The innovation is quite a leap in technology and has dozens of applications. I, for one, want one in in my future home; assuming they can drop the price a bit below the current $68,000 in the next twenty years...


CoeLux Artificial Skylight Video

Ceres - The Dwarf Planet

As NASA's Dawn spacecraft approaches the dwarf planet Ceres - the largest body in the asteroid field between Mars and Jupiter - it continues to send an impressive array of photos back to Earth. Dawn will pass nearest Ceres sometime in February (probably around the 25th) and we will finally get to see detailed photos of this fascinating dwarf planet. After Dawn passes Ceres, NASA will compile the data and map the planet.

Below is the latest composition of photographs:
Ceres spinning!

NASA's Europa Page

NASA is still trying to postpone a mission to Europa citing cost and current budget restrictions. However, a recent set of grants given to ten U.S. universities is an encouraging step in the direction of a fully realized mission to Europa (Cube Sats). The university's respective programs will develop small cube satellites, which are smaller and cheaper than traditional deep space probes, with the potential to enhance a future mission. The smaller satellites would increase the number of sensors placed in orbit resulting in more data. A mission conducted exclusively using cube satellites - especially if taken from an existing model, assuming the technology was available at the time, would very likely be cheaper than developing a single large mission dedicated spacecraft.

For more information on Europa, see NASA's Europa page.

Regenerative polymer self heals...

     A 2013 article in Chemistry World (Terminator Polymer) described a polymer that could heal a broken bond with itself after about a two hour recovery period. Not too bad but a little slow. More recently, a research team at the University of Illinois has designed an experimental polymer system that can heal itself much like human body uses blood to clog and fill a minor wound. Using two gel filled "capillaries" this polymer is able to fill a wound up to 9mm in circumference with a two stage gel, probably something like an epoxy mixture, and harden to about 62% strength retention. No mention about how long the process takes but this seems like a better method of repair since damage to soft substances often comes in the form of tears or punctures.
     The existence of regenerative polymer materials was posited in Europa, giving Jonas Black's submarine, Manta, the the ability to heal her hull when damaged. Seeing science fiction becoming science fact is always an exciting prospect...with the exception of Skynet becoming self aware, of course.

For the full article see link below:

Regenerative polymer self heals after injury

Mustache Discrimination Must End!

     Having been the victim of mustache discrimination, I understand the plight of my fellow persecuted mustachioed brethren. I once had a full length horseshoe mustache that had a lovely reddish hue when rays of sunlight filtered through the fall foliage. Alas, I was eventually told by my boss that I must shave most of it off because it "did not look professional". After briefly considering ending my career, I did as I was told. I have often missed my mustache and take advantage of any significant leave of absence to reacquaint myself with my long lost friend. Recently, I was glad to discover the American Mustache Institute; an organization dedicated to fighting for the rights of those downtrodden, mislabeled and just plain misunderstood mustachioed men who want nothing more than to live in peace with those who lack the courage or - sadly - sometimes the ability to grown their very own bristly lip sweater. So if you have dreamed about growing a mustache but never thought you could, or never wanted to admit it, visit the expert fellows at the AMI.

The American Mustache Institute

Machine Intelligence

     Step by step Artificial Intelligence continues to become closer to reality. One important step in the process is what is known as "machine intelligence". Machine intelligence refers to the use of computer programs and applications in processing information. While not true AI, machine intelligence is becoming the most prolific form of AI as open source programs take advantage of crowd sourcing and mobile computers (i.e. phones and tablets) to test and perfect their applications. Mega-data collectors such as Google are using their vast resources and near endless pools of online data to process information and use it to further their own research. Larger companies often struggle to innovate as smaller start up companies use platform programs to take greater risk and build new applications outside the realm of corporate safety.

     Several comments in a recent article from Forbes.com offer an encouraging perspective: "...neural networks, which have been in development since the 1940s, are only loosely related to the way the brain actually works." And, "Machine intelligence does not need to resemble the human brain at all," Said Jeremy Howard on Reddit. "The more interesting question is: what can machines do? Not ‘are they truly intelligent?’ Machine ‘intelligence’ is different enough from human intelligence that I don’t think it is a terribly useful analogy.” Understanding there is not a processor set currently in existence which possesses the capacity to perform on the level of the human brain means developers will not be chasing unattainable goals but will work within the confines of available technology to take full advantage of its potential. Such gains will lead to further understanding and ultimately lead to programs that more closely resemble true AI. Let us all hope they are designed to be Three Laws safe.
Deep Learning and Machine Intelligence - Full Article on Forbes

NASA E-Mails Wrench?

When Commander Barry Wilmore (of the ISS) needed a wrench the team at Made In Space delivered, via email. The wrench was designed - in CAD - on the ground, emailed to NASA and transmitted to the International Space Station. Commander Wilmore was then able to build the wrench on site using a 3D printer; it may not be rocket science per se, but it's pretty darn cool.

For the full article at Gizmodo see link below:
NASA E-Mails Wrench - Article

Light As A Feather?

Gravity exerts a constant force on any mass withing its range. Can a feather fall as fast as a bowling ball? Cyclists know wind resistance is a big factor in pace. Aeronautics and automotive engineers are always looking to lower drag coefficients to increase performance and fuel efficiency. If you have never thought of wind resistance before or experienced the incredible force of the atmosphere, one of the very things ancient scientists thought was non-substantive, you should watch this video. Even if you already know the outcome, this is a fun experiment to watch...

Bowling Ball and Feather Drop

Forthcoming Film: Chappie...

I am interested to see another iteration of the potential evolution of Artificial Intelligence. I thoroughly enjoyed District 9 (the same creators) and Chappie appears to have potential. We shall see...

Chappie trailer on YouTube

Europa Mission Gaining Support in Congress!

Several House Representatives have thrown their weight behind a mission to Europa...Very encouraging!
To Europa!

Gyroscopic Precession

An interesting concept I stumbled across the other day is Gyroscopic Precession. I am familiar with this concept, not by name but by experience with cycling and motorcycling. The faster the wheels on your cycle of choice are spinning the more difficult it is for that cycle to tip over. I cannot explain it better than the guy on YouTube so I am providing a link to two videos that cover the topic quite well.
Flywheel Experiment
Gyroscopic Precession

Artificial Intelligence on Indigogo

This may be old news to some but I just stumbled across a new A.I. project on the indigogo site called EmoSPARK. The little box appears to be a voice recognition system that "learns" to modify its responses to suit the user's mood and preferences. There have been a lot of over the years, all of them disappointing thus far, claiming to be some form of A.I. I do not know if this will another small step to an actual A.I., like voice activated search engines. I do know I want one. I will call her Em...
EmoSPARK