from now on, I'm flying out of Bradley (Hartford CT/Springfield MA)

... but it's reassuring that if a naked man drops out of the ceiling and tries to kill me, he gets punished extra because I'm older than 60.

* * *

NBC News
(USA commercial television network)
Saturday 22 November 2014

Man Arrested in Bizarre Naked Rampage 

at Boston Airport

by Tom Winter (NBC News)

Authorities in Boston arrested a man who allegedly stripped naked inside a ladies restroom at Logan International Airport, climbed into a drop ceiling, crashed through and then attacked an 84-year-old man, state police said. A motive for the bizarre rampage, which played out at 11:58 a.m. Saturday [today] at Logan’s Terminal C Saturday, is unclear.

Cameron Shenk, 26, was arrested on several charges, including attempted murder, mayhem, assault and battery on a person over 60, assault on a police officer, and committing a lewd and lascivious act. The 84-year-old victim was hurt but his injuries are not life threatening, police said. A Massachusetts state police trooper was injured during a struggle during Shenk’s arrest. Shenk was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital and will then be booked. 

- 30 -

 

WHO reports Black Death outbreak in Madagascar

Click to enlarge.

Daniel Defoe was 6 years old when the plague struck England.

Because of the plague, Cambridge closed, and the student Isaac Newton returned to the family farm in Woolsthorpe, where an apple fell on his head while he was reading in the orchard. He wondered if the force that made the apple fall might be the same force that keeps the Moon orbiting the Earth.

The sweet pea (Pisum sativum) garden where the Augustinian monk Gregor Mendel grew his amazingly large, tasty peas is still growing and receiving visitors in Brno, Czech Republic. Mendel published his mathematical laws of heredity. His discovery was completely ignored, but rediscovered and credited 16 years after his death.

Now elected abbot, he told a visiting seed distributor that he grew his big peas using a few old gardener's tricks. He did not discuss these tricks further.

* * *

Reuters
UK newswire founded 1851
Friday 21 November 2014

 
WHO: Plague in Madagascar
has killed  
40 of 119 cases
 

GENEVA -- An outbreak of the plague has killed 40 people out of 119 confirmed cases in Madagascar since late August and there is a risk of the disease spreading rapidly in the capital, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

So far two cases and one death have been recorded in the capital Antananarivo but those figures could climb quickly due to "the city's high population density and the weakness of the healthcare system," the WHO warned.

"The situation is further complicated by the high level of resistance to deltamethrin (an insecticide used to control fleas) that has been observed in the country," it added.

Plague, a bacterial disease, is mainly spread from one rodent to another by fleas. Humans bitten by an infected flea usually develop a bubonic form of plague, which swells the lymph node and can be treated with antibiotics, the WHO said.

If the bacteria reach the lungs, the patient develops pneumonia (pneumonic plague), which is transmissible from person to person through infected droplets spread by coughing. It is "one of the most deadly infectious diseases" and can kill people within 24 hours. Two percent of the cases reported in Madagascar so far have been pneumonic, it added.

The first known case of the plague was a man from Soamahatamana village in the district of Tsiroanomandidy, identified on 31 August. He died on 3 September and authorities notified the WHO of the outbreak on 4 November, the agency said.

The WHO said it did not recommend any trade or travel restrictions based on the information available about the outbreak.

The last previously known outbreak of the plague was in Peru in August 2010, according to the WHO.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; editing by Janet Lawrence and Hugh Lawson)
 

- 30 -

Humans land a probe and camera on a comet and send us back photographs! Congratulations Darmstadt!

Click to enlarge.

Late last week, the Rosetta space probe orbiting Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko detached its comet lander Philae, Philae descended to the surface of the comet, bounced roughly twice, and photographed what was in its viewfield. It sent the photograph back to Earth, to mission control of the European Space Agency in Darmstadt, Germany.

I find it thrilling that, by pure coincidence, I am alive and sentient at the moment when human beings leave Earth, and send remarkable machines into space, and begin to explore the rest of the universe. We've been looking at the sky and the Moon and the planets -- and at comets -- and wondering what they are and what's on them for as long as we've been human. We've imagined ways to reach the Moon and the planets and other objects. Mere failure and frustration for 100,000 years never stopped us from wanting to see, to know, to travel there.

The surface of a comet -- we just got there. That's it, at the top, taken on 26 September 2014.

In 1986 I flew from Massachusetts USA to the desert of Australia to get the planet's best view of Comet Halley, and after two disappointingly overcast nights, I crawled out of my tent one night and there it was -- a broken white streak in the sky. Though I know much about it, though I knew its facts and figures and its fabled history, it was still very spooky. The night sky isn't supposed to have a strange thing like that. We saw it for many nights after that, and then the Alice Springs Astronomy Club (Yanks like me, mostly, who worked at the NSA electronic listening post called Pine Gap) let us look at the comet through their large portable telescopes.

Now we've sent a probe to a comet and landed on it to begin imaging its surface and drilling into it and analyzing its composition. The Rosetta/Philae mission hasn't gone perfectly. Its harpoons didn't fix it solidly to the comet, and when it finally stopped bouncing, it was in the shadow of a cliff. Philae gets its energy from solar panels, the needed power wasn't dependable enough, and now Philae's batteries are running low. (It may function well again when the comet passes near the Sun.) 

Most of the women and men in Darmstadt mission control have worked on this project for ten years or more. These are very smart people, very clever, very dedicated. They all chose that this is how they wanted to spend this long, intense block of their lives, to land cameras and other experiments, on a comet. They all knew the chances of succeeding were very iffy.

But they did it! And have begun showing what Rosetta and Philae see to us!

This is quite amazing. This is spectacular.

One Englishwoman astronomer screamed and shrieked and jumped up and down when Darmstadt knew Philae had landed and was sending back data. An Australian astronomer proudly showed off the colorful tattoo of the Rosetta comet mission on his calf.

This is a wonderful thing. I wish Philae and Rosetta and everyone who helped make it happen well and good luck. They've already thrilled me and made me proud to be a human being. (And that's a very difficult feeling to get for the last few years.)

the 7th day of the 11th month in the USA state shaped like the palm of a right-hand mitten where Pussy Riot are not beaten or imprisoned

Don't click, 
this is as large as it gets.

Go Blue!

An unexpected gift from my Army buddy what lives under the thumb of the USA state shaped like the palm of a right-hand mitten, so you can point to your hand and show where you went to your cousin's wedding. It arrived 4 days before the 11th day of the 11th month (Reformed Gregorian Solar Calendar), which -- since 1918 and perhaps forever after -- is (in the USA) Veterans Day, and in Commonwealth countries is also called Armistice Day and Remembrance Day.

Ron's old Army buddy Joe Schlobladewski says: 

Thanks for serving, 

you're welcome for serving.

Incidentally, Ron informs me that Pussy Riot are Artists in Residence at the University of Michigan @ Ann Arbor! Where I can guarantee they are never imprisoned or sent to a gulag or taken from their babies or beaten with clubs or pepper-sprayed for singing songs!

Bite me, Vlad.

ESA Philae lander's first selfie on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko! Wunderbar! Unglaublich! Hoorah Darmstadt!

Click image to enlarge!

ESA Philae successfully lands on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko! / Philae images as soon as Vleeptron can filch them!

The comet lander Philae has successfully landed on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and signalled mission control in Darmstadt, Germany. (The one-way radio transmission to Earth takes 28 minutes.)

This summary is from NASA, which has instruments aboard the European Space Agency Rosetta space probe.

================

Earlier this morning, the European Space Agency's Rosetta Mission deployed its comet lander, Philae. Seven hours later at 11 a.m. EST, the experiment-laden, harpoon-firing Philae is set to touch down on the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

It will be the first time in history that a spacecraft has attempted a soft landing on a comet. Rosetta is an international mission led by the European Space Agency (ESA), with instruments provided by its member states, and additional support and instruments provided by NASA.

NASA Television will provide live coverage from 9-11:30 a.m. EST of Rosetta scheduled landing of a probe on a comet today. NASA's live commentary will include excerpts of the ESA coverage and air from 9-10 a.m. EST. NASA will continue carrying ESA's commentary from 10-11:30 a.m. EST. ESA’s Philae (fee-LAY) lander is scheduled to touch down on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko at 10:35 a.m. EST.  A signal confirming landing is expected at approximately 11:02 a.m. EST.

After landing, Philae will obtain the first images ever taken from a comet's surface. It also will drill into the surface to study the composition and witness close up how a comet changes as its exposure to the sun varies. Philae can remain active on the surface for approximately two-and-a-half days. Its “mothership” is the Rosetta spacecraft that will remain in orbit around the comet through 2015. The orbiter will continue detailed studies of the comet as it approaches the sun and then moves away. NASA has three of the 16 instruments aboard the orbiter.

Comets are considered primitive building blocks of the solar system that are literally frozen in time. They may have played a part in "seeding" Earth with water and, possibly, the basic chemical ingredients for life.

Watch NASA TV online at: http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv

European Space Agency's Rosetta probe about to land Philae on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko!

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Posted on 07/11/2014 by Daniel

Rosetta and Philae landing timeline

A timeline of the most crucial activities related to separation, descent and landing on 11 and 12 November.

What does Philae do during descent? Credit: ESA/ATG medialab

It has been compiled with inputs from the Flight Control Team at ESOC and the Science Operations Team at ESAC and is accurate as of now. PLEASE remember: many of these times are subject to change and confirmation, given the extremely dynamic nature of this delicate and complex operation. We'll do our best to update this as we receive firm information, but on 12 November the live webcasts from ESA TV and ESA's social media accounts (Twitter!) will be the best ways to get the latest information.
Admittedly, this timeline is a little dense, but we thought it better to provide more detail for those who – like us! – are extreme Rosetta & Philae fans (and you know who you are!). We'll publish a lighter version in the main ESA website later today and there's also a high-level version in the press kit (PDF; page 63 or in SlideShare here). And for those who wish, here is the opposite: an even more detailed version as a PDF, or also in Slideshare.
Review the notes/legend underneath for acronyms (no space mission can succeed without them!). There's also a diagramme illustrating the delivery orbits.
ROSETTA AND PHILAE OPERATIONS TIMELINE AROUND COMET LANDING 11-12 NOVEMBER 2014

All times are subject to change and should not be assumed confirmed. Actual times may vary considerably. Please follow ESA TV, the Rosetta website, the Rosetta blog and ESA social media for the latest updates. All are linked via http://rosetta.esa.int
One-way light time (OWLT): 00h:28m:20s
Earth distance: 511 million km
CET/UTC offset: 01h:00m:00s
Updated 8.11.2014 to correct 12/11 04:28UTC event and add 01:00UTC event

Date	UTC on Earth	CET on Earth	Event
11/11	01:48:49	02:48:49	BOT ESA New Norcia (NNO)
11/11	03:10:00	04:10:00	BOT NASA DSN Canberra
11/11	12:25:00	13:25:00	EOT Canberra
11/11	13:40:00	14:40:00	BOT DSN Madrid
11/11	13:58:05	14:58:05	BOT ESA Malargüe (MLG)
11/11	14:00:00	15:00:00	Flight Dynamics Team at ESOC begin orbit determination procedure to accurately fix Rosetta's precise trajectory
11/11	14:30:17	15:30:17	EOT ESA NNO
11/11	18:33:20	19:33:20	Lander switch-on. Includes switching on Electrical Support System, which controls orbiter communication interface with the lander
11/11	19:05:20	20:05:20	Lander batteries and compartment heating ADS Tank (Active Descent System - provides cold gas thrust upwards to avoid rebound upon landing) opening
11/11	19:25:20	20:25:20	Lander Primary Battery conditioning start; about 28 mins
11/11	19:00:00	20:00:00	EOT DSN Madrid
11/11	19:30:00	20:30:00	GO/NOGO1 - Last full orbit determination; ESOC Flight Dynamics confirms Rosetta trajectory is correct
11/11	20:03:00	21:03:00	Rosetta starts slew to pre-delivery manoeuvre attitude (expected loss of signal)
11/11	20:20:00	21:20:00	BOT DSN Goldstone
11/11	20:43:00	21:43:00	End of Rosetta slew
11/11	20:52:20	21:52:20	Start Lander flywheel operation - provides stability during descent
11/11	23:25:00	00:25:00	BOT DSN Goldstone
11/11	23:40:00	00:40:00	BOT DSN Canberra
12/11	00:00:00	01:00:00	EOT DSN Goldstone
12/11	00:00:00	01:00:00	GO/NOGO 2(a) - Confirm telecommands to control delivery sequence are ready GO/NOGO 2(b) - ESOC confirms Rosetta is ready
12/11	01:00:00	02:00:00	ESOC uploads commands to control spacecraft for Lander delivery operations
12/11	01:03:20	02:03:20	Lander generates final telemetry (TM) on-board prior to GO/NOGO for SEP decision
12/11	01:35:00	02:35:00	(EXPECTED AT 02:35 UTC / 03:35 CET) GO/NOGO 3 - Confirm Philae is ready for landing
12/11	01:46:10	02:46:10	BOT ESA New Norcia
12/11	03:02:50	04:02:50	EOT ESA Malargüe
12/11	04:03:20	05:03:20	Lander - start of Separation, Descent & Landing (SDL) activities Start switching Lander instruments ON; ROMAP first
12/11	04:28:20	05:28:20	Rosetta - Start executing on-board commands for delivery operations
12/11	04:34:20	05:34:20	Start heating Lander batteries to separation temperature
12/11	06:03:20	07:03:20	Rosetta - Earliest start pre-delivery manoeuvre (thruster burn) Burn will be followed by loss of signal due to subsequent slew for separation Manoeuvre expected to be about 0.46m/s & about 6 mins duration
Date	UTC on Earth	CET on Earth	Event
12/11	06:35:00	07:35:00	Earliest GO/NOGO 4 - final decision to go for landing
12/11	07:03:20	08:03:20	Rosetta - Latest start pre-delivery manoeuvre
12/11	07:35:00	08:35:00	Latest GO/NOGO 4 - final decision to go for landing
	-	-	Following MVR, ESOC Flight Dynamics Team conducts rapid assessment of MVR performance to verify burn results
12/11	07:49:20	08:49:20	Lander - Switch on MUPUS
12/11	07:52:20	08:52:20	Start MUPUS operation and switch-on CivaRolis ÇIVA and ROLIS are imaging systems; ÇIVA makes panoramic images, ROLIS looks down
12/11	07:55:20	08:55:20	Start CivaRolis operation and switch-on SESAME (dust sensor)
12/11	08:04:20	09:04:20	Start SESAME operation
12/11	08:46:20	09:46:20	Start MSS (Mechanical Support System), which executes the mechanical separation from the Orbiter
12/11	08:46:20	09:46:20	Separation Motors ON
12/11	08:49:20	09:49:20	Start CONSERT Orbiter operation
12/11	08:50:20	09:50:20	Start CONSERT Lander operation
12/11	08:51:20	09:51:20	Start MSS sequence - internal autosequence to prepare for landing
12/11	08:53:20	09:53:20	Lander now on internal battery power
12/11	-	-	Screws in Separation Motors start to rotate and impart deployment speed to push Lander away, retrograde .21 m/s
12/11	09:03:20	10:03:20	PHILAE SEPARATION (Forecast; 94-sec window) Separation confirmation received on ground via ESA's NNO New Norcia station
12/11	09:04:12	10:04:12	Lander (ÇIVA) obtains first images of Orbiter (FAREWELL1)
12/11	09:06:17	10:06:17	Lander (ÇIVA) obtains seconds images of Orbiter (FAREWELL2)
12/11	09:12:17	10:12:17	Lander / Orbiter separation distance now ~100m Earliest autodeployment of landing gear and ROMAP boom antenna
12/11	09:25:50	10:25:50	Lander starts rotation of 14 degrees to stable landing orientation
12/11	09:43:20	10:43:20	Rosetta performs post-delivery manoeuvre Burn will be followed by loss of signal due to subsequent slew back to nominal pointing Manoeuvre magnitude to be determined on 12/11
12/11	09:47:17	10:47:17	Lander completes all post-separation activities
12/11	10:53:20	11:53:20	Acquisition of signal (AOS) from Rosetta Expected AOS; link with Rosetta now re-established
12/11	11:59:20	12:59:20	Start of stored data downlink from Rosetta & Philae
12/11	12:20:00	13:20:00	EOT DSN Canberra
12/11	13:15:00	14:15:00	BOT DSN Madrid
12/11	13:55:00	14:55:00	BOT ESA MLG
12/11	14:27:00	15:27:00	EOT NNO
12/11	14:58:57	15:58:57	Lander - switch-on Anchor & CivaRolis
Date	UTC on Earth	CET on Earth	Event
12/11	15:01:57	16:01:57	Lander - start imaging landing site and switch on ADS (Active Descent System)
12/11	15:07:02	16:07:02	ROLIS begins imaging
12/11	15:17:15	16:17:15	On board Lander, systems conduct final pre-touch-down operations
12/11	15:22:20	16:22:20	Start of Lander touch-down window
12/11	16:02:20	17:02:20	EXPECTED LANDING and receipt of signal (Forecast; 40 min variability)
12/11	-	-	Upon landing - start post-touch-down operations including: * ADS thruster fires for ~15 sec to avoid rebound * Harpoons (X2) fire to secure Lander to surface * Flywheel off
12/11	16:07:12	17:07:12	ÇIVA-P panoramic imaging on Lander obtains first images of surface and transmits same (forecast; depends on landing time)
12/11	16:07:14	17:07:14	Separation, Descent & Landing (SDL) science observations continue: Ptolemy & COSAC begin science gathering; data collected during descent and initial surface observations will be uploaded
12/11	16:39:39	17:39:39	Lander completes SDL operations; upload of science data
12/11	17:49:07	18:49:07	Lander begins First Science Sequence (FSS) Block 1; runs about 7 hours
12/11	19:00:00	20:00:00	EOT DSN Madrid
12/11	19:03:00	20:03:00	End of Lander/Orbiter first communication window
13/11	01:43:00	02:43:00	BOT ESA NNO
13/11	02:59:00	03:59:00	EOT ESA MLG

Keen for more details? Download the extended version of this timeline here.
Notes:

BOT	Begin of track
EOT	End of track
NNO	ESA - ESTRACK 35m New Norcia tracking station, Australia
MLG	ESA - ESTRACK 35m Malargüe tracking station, Argentina
LDR	Philae Lander
ROS	Rosetta Orbiter
LCC	Lander Control Centre, DLR/Cologne
ESOC	Rosetta Control Centre, ESA/Darmstadt
ROLIS	Rosetta Lander Imaging System (ROLIS): CCD imager designed to return images of the landing site before and after Philae has landed
ADS	Active Descent System (ADS) - this system emits cold gas thrust at touchdown to avoid rebound.
BOT	Indicates when station is pointing & ready. Actual acquisition of signal may come only afterwards
DSS 25	NASA - DSN 34m Goldstone tracking station, California, USA
DSS 45	NASA - DSN 34m Canberra tracking station, Australia
DSS 55	NASA - DSN 34m Madrid tracking station, Spain
DSS 54	NASA - DSN 34m Madrid tracking station, Spain
MVR	Manoeuvre - a thruster burn to change direction and/or speed
MSS	(Mechanical Support System) is the lander side of Philae which executes the mechanical separation from the orbiter.
ESS	ESS (Electrical Support System) is the orbiter part of the lander. The ESS controls the orbiter communication interface with the lander. ESS itself operates as usual as power and data interface to the Orbiter.

Link to Lander science instruments via http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Rosetta/Lander_Instruments
CIVA, CONSERT, COSAC, PTOLEMY, MUPUS, ROLIS, ROMAP, SD2, SESAME

Labelled diagram indicating Rosetta’s trajectory from the end of October until early December. Screenshot from video. Credit: ESA

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