2014

Artistic concept of some multiple-planet systems found thanks to the Kepler Space Telescope (Image NASA)

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Yesterday NASA announced a truly sensational discovery because 715 new exoplanets were found. These are the results of a new type of analysis performed on the data collected during the first two years of observations by the Kepler space telescope. This new method allowed to confirm that 305 stars have a multiple-planet system. So far, almost 1,000 planets were confirmed therefore confirming other 715 at once is a huge leap forward in the search for exoplanets.

Hummingbird installed in Eye Clinic Maastricht (Photo courtesy Maastricht University Medical Centre. All rights reserved)

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A device called Hummingbird, made during the study phase of ESA’s Darwin project, a constellation of space telescopes, has been adapted for use in the field of eye surgery. The doctors of the University Eye Clinic Maastricht in the Netherlands, will be able to carry out high-precision surgery on the eyes of patients without vibration problem.

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A group of Spanish astronomers published a paper in the journal “Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society” that describes the greatest impact on the Moon ever recorded. It took place on September 11, 2013, when a meteorite the size of a car has caused an impact that generated a flash of light detected by the MIDAS (Moon Impacts Detection and Analysis System) system.

Light by M. John Harrison

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The novel “Light” by M. John Harrison was published for the first time in 2002. It won the James Tiptree, Jr. Award and the Finnish Tähtivaeltaja Award. It’s the first book in the Kefahuchi Tract sequence.

In 1999 , Michael Kearney is going to achieve a considerable advancement in the field of quantum physics with his colleague Brian Tate but is haunted by a kind of spectrum he calls Shrander. He’s convinced that this creature wants him to kill someone periodically, what does all this have to do with the Kefahuchi Tract, a strange cosmic disturbance recently discovered?

In 2400, Seria Mau Genlicher is a K-ship pilot. This means that she’s become part of the starship through surgery and various implants. She stole her spaceship and has become a freelance killer. A job the brings her to face the mysteries of the Kefahuchi Tract.

Ed Chianese is a former space pilot who looks for excitement seeking technological artifacts left by ancient races that have ventured close near the Kefahuchi Tract. He has a sort of addiction to virtual reality and owes money to the Cray sisters, two criminals he’s fleeing from.

A composite image of the IGR J11014-6103 pulsar in the lower right and the supernova remnants in the upper left that contains data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, radio data from the Australia Compact Telescope Array and optical data from the 2MASS survey (Image NASA/CXC/ISDC)

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The Chandra X-ray observatory in space, NASA has allowed the observation of a runaway pulsar, which means that it belongs to the category of stars that move at speeds abnormally high compared to what surrounds them. This neutron star, known as IGR J11014-6103, is moving at a speed yet to be measured exactly between 4 and 8 million km/h (between 2.5 and 5 mph). Another extraordinary feature of this pulsar is the tail created by a jet of high-energy particles, which extends for some 37 light years.