Sunday, April 15, 2018

Apr 15 - Black Hole Megamergers

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Theorists describe black hole megamergers
"Binary black holes are basically like giant targets hanging out in a globular star cluster, and as you throw other black holes or stars at them, they undergo these crazy chaotic encounters."
New moon is April 15-16
New moon is this evening for the Americas (April 16 at 01:57 UTC; translate UTC to your time). Especially from North America, you might see an extremely young moon, below brilliant Venus, shortly after sunset Monday evening.
Clock time and sun time agree
Sundial and clock agree every year in middle April. It means that, when the midday sun climbs highest, the sundial reads 12 noon and your local clock says 12 noon.
Planet-hunting TESS mission launches tomorrow
How to watch live, online. TESS will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida. Lift-off is planned for no earlier than 6:32 p.m. EDT on Monday (10:32 p.m. UTC; translate UTC to your time).

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Theorists describe black hole megamergers
A snapshot of a simulation showing a binary black hole formed in the center of a dense star cluster. Image via Northwestern Visualization/Carl Rodriguez.
Milky Way over the Saguaros
A symbol of American West, set against a symbol of the vast universe, caught last week in Saguaro National Park by Gary Peltz.
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