Updated 31st August 2010




Festival
Lord Krishna was born on the Astami thithi (eighth day) in Krishna paksha during Shravan month (August “ September). It falls in Bhadrapad month as per North Indian Hindi calendars. Lord Krishnaâ's Nakshatra or the birth star is Rohini nakshatram. The main objective or the aim of Krishnas birth was to demolish the demon Kansa and his evil acts. Kansa is Krishnas maternal uncle.Janmashtami celebrates the birth of one of the most famous Gods of Hindu religion, Bhagwan Krishna, on the eighth day (Ashtami) in the month of Sravana or Savana. Lord Sri Krishna was born on the 'Rohini' nakshatram (star). It is generally celebrated in the month of August-September according to the Christian Calendar. Legend has it that Sri Krishna was born on a dark, stormy and windy night to end the rule and atrocities of his maternal uncle, Kansa.

Position of Stars at the time of Birth
It was only on the eighth day of the second fortnight, in the month of Sravana when, the moon entered the house of Vrishabha in Rohini Nakshatra (star) that Lord appeared. According to Barhapatyamana, the month of Sravana corresponds to the month of Bhadrapada Krishnapaksha. Lord was born in the year of Visvavasu, appx. 5,227 years ago.

Celebrated for over Two Days
Janmashtami is celebrated for over two days as “Rohini” nakshatra and Ashtami may not fall on the same day. The first day known as Krishnashtami, as the birth of Bhagwan Krishna falls on the eighth day after Raksha Bandhan, which generally falls in the month of August. The second day is known as Kalashtami.

Welcome the Lord at Midnight
It is only at midnight between the first and the second day that birth of Sri Krishna took place. The actual festivities begin during midnight in this 48 hour period. The celebration reaches its peak at midnight, with the birth of Lord Krishna, with lot of hymns, arti taking place and blowing of the Conch (shankh), rocking the cradle of Lord. The idol of lord is bathed with Panchamrit (A mixture of milk, ghee, oil, honey and Gangajal). The Panchamrit is later distributed as Prasad to the devotees along with other sweets. While some Fast on the first day and break it at midnight for others the fasting continues for both days. The period coincides with rainy season.



Comets, Stars, Galaxies & Supernovas
Hoags Object: A Strange Ring Galaxy
Is this one galaxy or two? This question came to light in 1950 when astronomer Art Hoag chanced upon this unusual extragalactic object.
On the outside is a ring dominated by bright blue stars, while near the center lies a ball of much redder stars that are likely much older.
Between the two is a gap that appears almost completely dark. How Hoag's Object formed remains unknown, although
similar objects have now been identified and collectively labeled as a form of ring galaxy.



: A Milky Way Shadow at Loch Ard Gorge
Have you ever seen the Milky Way's glow create shadows? To do so, conditions need to be just right. First and foremost, the sky
must be relatively clear of clouds so that the long band of the Milky Way's central disk can be seen. The surroundings
must be very near to completely dark, with no bright artificial lights visible anywhere.


Galaxy Cluster Abell 1689 Magnifies the Dark Universe
What's the matter with this cluster of galaxies? To find out what forms matter takes in the Abell 1689 cluster requires not only deep
images from telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope, but detailed computer modeling as well. To start, almost every fuzzy yellow
patch in the above image is an entire galaxy. A close inspection, however, shows that many background galaxies are strangely
magnified and distorted into long curving arcs by the gravitational lens deflections of the cluster.


M27: Not a Comet
While hunting for comets in the skies above 18th century France, astronomer Charles Messier diligently kept a list of the things he
encountered that were definitely not comets. This is number 27 on his now famous not-a-comet list. In fact, 21st century astronomers
would identify it as a planetary nebula, but it's not a planet either, even though it may appear round and planet-like in a small telescope.
Messier 27 (M27) is an excellent example of a gaseous emission nebula created as a sun-like star runs out of nuclear fuel in its core.

Dark Matter, Black Holes, Pulsars & Quasars
When Galaxies Collide: How the First Super-Massive Black Holes Were Born
Astronomers believe they have discovered the origin of our universe's first
super-massive black holes, which formed some 13 billion years ago

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Supermassive Black Holes Discovered Devouring Whole Galaxies
The Eridanus Void -Could It Be a "Universe-in-Mass" Black Hole?
The apparent development of a large void of some billion light-years in diameter in the Constellation Eridanus appears to be improbable
given current cosmological models. A radical and controversial theory proposes that it is a "universe-in-mass black hole" rather than
hypothetical dark matter responsible for the phenomenon described as the expanding-accelerating universe.  This radical theory of
cosmology suggests that stars at the edge of the Hubble length universe are being consumed by a universe-in-mass black hole.

Has a Mystery Energy Field Hidden Since the Big Bang Been Activated?
Was a dormant energy field lurking since the big bang that is now active causing the expansion of the universe
to accelerate? In the late 1990s, observations of supernovae revealed that the universe has started expanding f
aster and faster over the past few billion years.

 
Origins of the First Supermassive Black Holes Discovered
Astronomers believe they have discovered the origin of our universe's first super-massive black holes, which formed
some 13 billion years ago filling in a missing chapter of our universe's early history, and could help scientists
better understand how gravity and dark matter formed the universe


Colliding Black Holes Should Unleash Detectable Energy Jets
When galaxies collide, the merger between the supermassive black holes at their hearts could create
super-powerful jets of radiation that astronomers may eventually be able to spot with new space observatories


The Birthing & Death of Stars

The Deadly Beauty of the Rosette Nebula
the Rosette nebula located in the constellation Monoceros, or the Unicorn. We've known for a while that large astronomical events can spell bad news for life:  supernovae unleash unimaginable levels radiation, asteroids can kick up climate-killing clouds, and black holes can suck things out of existence altogether.  Now it seems that simply wandering too close to big star can evaporate a planet before it even forms.
Coma Cluster Cloaks an Ancient Universe
A surprisingly large collections of galaxies (red dots in center) stands out at a remarkably large distance in this composite image combining infrared and visible-light observations. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope contributed to the infrared component of the observations, while shorter-wavelength infrared and visible data are provided by Japan's Subaru telescope atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii.


Cosmic First: Pulsing Neutron Star Eclipsed By Stellar Companion
In a strange cosmic first, astronomers have discovered a pulsing X-ray neutron star – the ultra-dense leftovers from a supernova explosion – being eclipsed by another companion star in deep space. The unique star pair sits 22,000 light-years from Earth and was discovered using NASA's Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer satellite. It offers astronomers a rare chance to study the inner workings of neutron star systems.In this binary star system, known as Swift J1749, a normal star is eclipsing a pulsar – a fast-spinning neutron star that emits rotating beams of light like a lighthouse. Scientists can only see this light when the beams are pointing toward Earth, so its light appears to pulse — hence the name.

Comanche Outcrop on Mars Indicates Hospitable Past
Could life once have survived on Mars? Today, neither animal nor plant life from Earth could survive for very long on Mars because
at least one key ingredient -- liquid water -- is essentially absent on the red planet's rusty surface. Although evidence
from the martian rovers indicates that long ago Mars might once have had liquid water on its surface.

New Fireball on Jupiter Spotted By Skywatchers


Jupiter's Great Red Spot -"The Oldest Storm in the Milky Way?


Orion’s Thunderbolt
VISTA(Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy), highlights the distinction between looking and seeing. The telescope’s
ability to look in infrared wavelengths is counteracted by astronomers’ inability to see the images as anything but familiar theory.


Son of Gaea
One of the largest planets in the Solar System is also one of the most enigmatic. Uranus is the coldest planet in the Solar System at -224° Celsius. The refrigerated dwarf Pluto is colder, but by consensus it has been relegated to the planetesimal category and no longer qualifies as a fully
fledged planet.No one knows why Uranus is so cold—colder than its more remote neighbor Neptune at -214° Celsius. Neptune lies at
a mean distance from the Sun of 4,504,300,000 kilometers and Uranus at 2,870,990,000 kilometers, so it receives four times less
solar radiation. However, astronomers think that the low temperature anomaly on Uranus could be due to its rotational vector.



Earth
More Than Meets the Eye
While the axis mundi is only a geometric notion with no physical substance, a smattering of mythological and early cosmological
traditions describe it as a conspicuous luminous column endowed with a large number of specific morphological features
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Daily Updated every 10 minutes
Space Weather for Today
Current Solar Data
Hole in the Sun
This ominous, dark shape sprawling across the face of the Sun is a coronal hole -- a low density region extending above the surface where the solar magnetic field opens freely into interplanetary space. Studied extensively from space since the 1960s in ultraviolet and x-ray light, coronal
holes are known to be the source of the high-speed solar wind, atoms and electrons which flow outward along the open magnetic field lines.



Global Warming; Climate; Nature; Geochemistry
EcoAlert: Earth's Shrinking Atmosphere
The shrinking of the Earth's high outer atmospheric layer has been linked to a sharp drop in the sun's ultraviolet radiation levels. The research, led by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo., and the University of
Colorado at Boulder, indicates that the sun's magnetic cycle, which produces differing numbers of sunspots over
an approximately 11-year cycle, may vary more than previously thought.

El Niños Are Growing Stronger, NASA/NOAA Study Finds
A relatively new type of El Niño, which has its warmest waters in the central-equatorial Pacific Ocean,
rather than in the eastern-equatorial Pacific, is becoming more common and ...

Pacific El Nino Growing More Intense
A new type of El Niño, which has its warmest waters in the central- equatorial Pacific Ocean, rather than in the eastern-equatorial
Pacific, is becoming more common and progressively stronger, according to a new study by NASA and NOAA. The research may
improve our understanding of the relationship between El Niños and climate change.

Earthquakes
North American Continent Is a Layer Cake, Scientists Discover
The North American continent is not one thick, rigid slab, but a layer cake of ancient, 3-billion-year-old
rock on top of much newer material probably less than 1 billion years old



Using satellites provides us with stunning new InSAR images of two Kenyan volcanoes in the Great Rift Valley in Africa. The Great
Rift Valley was the site of a discovery by Meave Leakey, a member of a famous Kenya-based family of paleontologists, that
revealed that our human ancestry is still uncertain. Leakey research poked a very big hole in the most commonly
accepted theory of man's early evolution and is causing the experts to redefine our family tree.
Matter & Energy
Electricity Collected from the Air Could Become the Newest Alternative Energy Source
Imagine devices that capture electricity from the air -- much like solar cells
capture sunlight -- and using them to light a house or recharge an electric car.




Physics, Chemistry Mathematics & Nanotechnology
'Dry Water' Could Make a Big Splash Commercially, Help Fight Global Warming
An unusual substance known as "dry water," which resembles powdered sugar, could provide a new
way to absorb and store carbon dioxide, the major greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming



Genetics
First 3-D Atomic View of Key Genetic Processes
Scientists have created the first 3-D picture of genetic processes that happen inside every cell of our bodies.
The picture is the first-ever image of a protein interacting with DNA in its tightly packed "nucleosome" form. ...


Biology & Nature
Why Fish Don't Freeze in the Arctic Ocean: Chemists Unmask Natural Antifreeze
Researchers have discovered how natural antifreeze works to protect fish in the icy waters of the
Arctic Ocean from freezing to death. They were able to observe that an antifreeze protein?


Whale Evolution: l55 Million B.C. to Present -"A spectacularly successful mammalian invasion of the oceans."t

New "Bearded" Tti Monkey Found
The "fascinating" new species of monkey mates for life”and may be critically endangered by habitat loss in the Amazon rain forest.
Meet Callicebus caquetensis: a new species of titi monkey that has been discovered in the Amazon.The monkey was found in a region called Caquetá, in the south of Colombia, which had been inaccessible for many years due to a violent insurgence.About the size of a cat, the Caquetá titi has grey-brown hair and makes an extremely complex call. Unusually for a primate, it forms lifelong monogamous pairs.It is thought that there are less than 250 Caquetá titis in the wild, thanks to the destruction of their forest habitats, meaning they are critically endangered.


Thieving parrots hatch a plan to unlock food






Are Boom-and-Bust Cycles Hardwired in Human DNA?
Boom and bust is not unique to capitalist economies, to industrialized societies,  it's a cycle common to all of life, from the most primitive level to the most complex. Over three billion years ago, bacteria had a cycle of boom and bust built into their DNA. 


Did Early DNA Replicate at the Bottom of the Sea?
Lab experiments reveal that the precursor of life may have learned how to copy itself thanks to simple convection at the bottom of the ocean in tiny pores around undersea hydrothermal vents where magnesium-rich rocks react with sea water, creating a heat source that could drive miniature convection currents in nearby pores in the rock, according to research by Christof Mast and Dieter Braun of Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany, who proposed that such convection could concentrate nucleotides, strands of DNA, and polymerase,
providing a setting that would promote replication. 


 
 
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