*** The Official Astronomy & Universe Thread ***

I've just come across http://curiositystream.com/physicsgirl and thought some of you may be interested, loads of documentaries seem to be mostly 15-20mins long. Loads of stuff about space, just watched one called exoplanets. it's $5.99 a month but you can get 2 months free and cancel anytime with the link and put in physicsgirl in the code box. No idea if i will continue after free period, but should have plenty of time wasting over the next couple of months.
 
Auroras over Saturn seen by Cassini:


NASA VR: Fly Over Ceres with the Dawn Spacecraft (360 video):


Occator Crater on Ceres is home to the brightest area on the entire dwarf planet. At 57 miles (92 kilometers) wide and 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) deep, Occator displays evidence of recent geologic activity. NASA's Dawn mission found that the bright spots may have been produced by upwelling of salt-rich liquids after the impact that formed the crater. Pan and zoom as you fly over the crater with Dawn in this 360-degree animation made with observations from the spacecraft.
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Why in the hell is this guy Cosimo allowed to bombard the site with his daily links and hit and run, he never offers an opinion, ever but you get the sad sense he wants to be the first person ever to make a million posts on a forum ... I'd be ashamed of his ridiculous post count.

Lets be clear about this guy, anyone else would get the usual OcUK response of , can we hear your opinion please, but this cosimo/simulator guy troll is allowed to constantly spam here, day after day in a ritual way, usually at same time of day too, just multitude of copy and pasting from popular science sites, day after day after day after day ... anyone else does this its a ban or infraction, something odd going on here for sure.
 
Quick heads up just in case people hadn't seen it. . BBC2 at 21:00 tonight (in about 20 mins).

The Search for a New Earth

Planet Earth has been home to humankind for over 200,000 years, but with a population of 7.3 billion and counting and limited resources, this planet might not support us forever. Professor Stephen Hawking thinks the human species will have to populate a new planet within 100 years if it is to survive. With climate change, pollution, deforestation, pandemics and population growth, our own planet is becoming increasingly precarious.

In this landmark film, Professor Hawking, engineer and radio astronomy expert Professor Danielle George and Christophe Galfard, former student of Professor Hawking, join forces to find out if, and how, humans can reach for the stars and relocate to different planets. Travelling the globe, they meet top scientists, technologists and engineers who are working to answer our biggest questions. Is there another planet out there that we could call home? How will we travel across the vast distances of space to get there? How will we survive the journey? And how will we set up a new human civilisation on an alien world?

Christophe and Danielle journey to the heart of the Atacama Desert, visiting the aptly named 'Very Large Telescope', where they meet the astronomers who are discovering new planets outside our solar system every single day. But are any of them suitable for human life? Travelling deeper into the Atacama, microbiologist Maria Farias introduces Christophe to a strange life form could help us make an unlimited supply of oxygen on another planet.

In Houston, Texas, engineer and ex-astronaut Franklin Chang Diaz shows Danielle the plasma powered rocket engine that could revolutionise space travel, taking humans into space faster than ever before. On the arctic island of Svalbard, Christophe witnesses the stunning Northern Lights. This mystical phenomenon is a glorious by-product of Earth's protective magnetic field, deflecting dangerous radiation. In space, we can't take this protective field with us, but in the Netherlands, Christophe meets anaesthesiologist Dr Rob Henning, who believes hibernating bears may hold the key to protecting the human body from the hazards of space. Muscle wastage is another problem for potential planetary pioneers. Without gravity, space travellers lose muscle and bone strength at an alarming rate. However, the European Space Agency may have the answer - artificial gravity. Christophe takes a spin on a human centrifuge that could help keep us healthy on our journey to distant planets.

In Arizona, Danielle explores the giant greenhouses of Biosphere 2, where scientist Gene Giacomelli is working on ways to sustain human life on a planet with no atmosphere, growing plants for not just for food but also oxygen. His lunar greenhouse could provide enough oxygen for a single astronaut to survive on a planet with no atmosphere. And finally, at Kennedy Space Centre she meets fellow engineer Robert Mueller, who showcases NASA's own 'robot army', under development as a means of mining the natural resources and building the infrastructure we need on another planet before humans even get there.

Taking in the latest advances in astronomy, biology and rocket technology. From the Atacama Desert to the wilds of the Arctic, from plasma rockets to human hibernation. We discover a whole world of cutting-edge research. This journey shows that Professor Hawking's ambition isn't as fantastical as it sounds - that science fact is closer to science fiction than we ever thought. As Professor Hawking states, 'We can, and must, use our curiosity and intelligence to look to the stars.'.
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