I've been looking for weeks/months for a perfect (translation: CHEAP but brand new or barely used) replacement for the 55+ year old single pane, aluminum-framed windows that has been in place since 1962.
Finally, late at night last week, I spied a window on Facebook marketplace that would potentially work. We had to drive all the way to rural Bonney Lake, southeast of Auburn, about an hour away from home (with no traffic) to pick it up, but it was less than half of the retail price, so it was well worth the trip.
In the photo below, the old window is out, and we've expanded the opening to accommodate the slightly-taller new window.
INKTOBER: Annabelle is participating in a drawing 'challenge' this month. Called "Inktober," the month-long challenge where artists post one ink-drawn work for each day of October.
She's on day 8 and has done a drawing a day so far. She's using drawing prompts from this list.
HUBBLE TROUBLE: Headlines have started to pop up over the past couple of days, pointing toward Big Trouble with the Hubble Space Telescope. Some of them made it sound like the Hubble was about to go lights out.
Hubble Trouble: A Crisis in Cosmology?
Hubble trouble: Gyro failure puts space telescope out of action
The Butterfly Nebula, NASA/Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble has had trouble before. Really Big Trouble. Right after it launched, back in 1990, it was clear there was a significant problem with its mirrors. But that was remedied by a successful space telescope rescue mission by NASA astronauts on spacewalks.
However, the Really Big Problem right now is that the U.S. doesn't have a way to service the telescope. For years now, there have been no manned space launches from our shores. We buy seats on a Russian Soyuz. Our space program's fate is literally not in the driver's seat.
While headlines make it sound like Hubble is darn near a goner, the NASA press release from today makes it sounds less critical. ...
Hubble in Safe Mode as Gyro Issues are Diagnosed
NASA is working to resume science operations of the Hubble Space Telescope after the spacecraft entered safe mode on Friday, October 5, shortly after 6:00 p.m. EDT. Hubble’s instruments still are fully operational and are expected to produce excellent science for years to come.Hubble entered safe mode after one of the three gyroscopes (gyros) actively being used to point and steady the telescope failed. Safe mode puts the telescope into a stable configuration until ground control can correct the issue and return the mission to normal operation.Built with multiple redundancies, Hubble had six new gyros installed during Servicing Mission-4 in 2009. Hubble usually uses three gyros at a time for maximum efficiency, but can continue to make scientific observations with just one.The gyro that failed had been exhibiting end-of-life behavior for approximately a year, and its failure was not unexpected; two other gyros of the same type had already failed. The remaining three gyros available for use are technically enhanced and therefore expected to have significantly longer operational lives.
Two of those enhanced gyros are currently running. Upon powering on the third enhanced gyro that had been held in reserve, analysis of spacecraft telemetry indicated that it was not performing at the level required for operations. As a result, Hubble remains in safe mode. Staff at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and the Space Telescope Science Institute are currently performing analyses and tests to determine what options are available to recover the gyro to operational performance.
Science operations with Hubble have been suspended while NASA investigates the anomaly. An Anomaly Review Board, including experts from the Hubble team and industry familiar with the design and performance of this type of gyro, is being formed to investigate this issue and develop the recovery plan. If the outcome of this investigation results in recovery of the malfunctioning gyro, Hubble will resume science operations in its standard three-gyro configuration.
If the outcome indicates that the gyro is not usable, Hubble will resume science operations in an already defined “reduced-gyro” mode that uses only one gyro. While reduced-gyro mode offers less sky coverage at any particular time, there is relatively limited impact on the overall scientific capabilities.
One of my favorite Hubble photos ever is below!
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.
Credits: NASA
These towering tendrils of cosmic dust and gas sit at the heart of M16, or the Eagle Nebula. The aptly named Pillars of Creation, featured in this stunning Hubble image, are part of an active star-forming region within the nebula and hide newborn stars in their wispy columns.
Although this is not Hubble’s first image of this iconic feature of the Eagle Nebula, it is the most detailed. The blue colors in the image represent oxygen, red is sulfur, and green represents both nitrogen and hydrogen. The pillars are bathed in the scorching ultraviolet light from a cluster of young stars located just outside the frame. The winds from these stars are slowly eroding the towers of gas and dust.
Stretching roughly 4 to 5 light-years, the Pillars of Creation are a fascinating but relatively small feature of the entire Eagle Nebula, which spans 70 by 55 light-years. The nebula, discovered in 1745 by the Swiss astronomer Jean-Philippe Loys de Chéseaux, is located 7,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Serpens. With an apparent magnitude of 6, the Eagle Nebula can be spotted through a small telescope and is best viewed during July. A large telescope and optimal viewing conditions are necessary to resolve the Pillars of Creation.
Credits: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Last Updated: Feb. 22, 2018Editor: Brian Dunbar
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