Show Date: December 19, 2004

GETTING LOST AND A WIND FROM THE STARS
Pam Eastlick for the Marianas Variety

Greetings and welcome to The Deep column and the deepest radio show on Earth. The Deep is the science talk radio program that takes you from the depths of the ocean to the farthest reaches of the universe. This week on The Deep hosted by Jim Sullivan and aired at 6:00 each Wednesday evening on K-57, we’ll find our way around Earth and learn about a wind from the stars.

FINDING YOUR WAY
Last week, President Bush ordered plans to shut down the Global Positioning System (GPS) in case of a terrorist attack “to prevent terrorists from using the navigational technology”. The Global Positioning System is a network of 24 solar-powered orbital satellites that orbit about 12,000 miles above the Earth. This is much higher than most conventional satellites (which orbit between 200-400 miles up) and the high orbits mean that there are at least three satellites above you at all times. If a ground receiver can get data from at least three satellites, it can pinpoint your latitude and longitude with extreme accuracy. If the device can receive four or more signals, it can also determine your altitude. The GPS has become a very important navigational tool.

The GPS was originally a military system that was opened for civilian use after its benefits were proven. And in the beginning, the military programmed the system for "selective availability," which gave the military 10-meter precision and civilians 100-meter precision. Selective availability was eliminated in 2000.
So, why should we care here on Guam if the system is disabled entirely? Most of us don’t use a GPS system to get from Tumon to Yigo.
I was in the air on a flight from Tokyo to Chicago when the planes went into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon. US air space was shut down after the attack and no flights were allowed to land anywhere on US soil. Our flight was diverted to Vancouver and shortly after we landed, Canadian air space was closed.

All large ships and commercial airplanes now rely heavily on the GPS. If it had been shut down immediately after the September 11 attacks, I’m not sure my plane could have landed anywhere. Of course, we’ve been navigating for thousands of years without the GPS system, but its removal, especially in times of crisis degrades the safety margin for all users.

Commercial shippers also rely heavily on GPS. How easy would it be to find Guam without it? Who knows, but if there is another terrorist attack, the air space will be shut down again and we’ll have to relyon ships for our food, gasoline and other supplies. It’s bad enough when the planes don’t fly, but if the ships can’t find us . . .. Join us this week on The Deep as we discuss the Mysteries of Survival.

A WIND FROM THE STARS
Every year in December, something happens that will throw your horoscope out of whack. The sun enters Ophiuchus, the little-known 13th house of the zodiac. You all know about Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, and the other zodiac signs. The sun passes through these constellations, one by one, throughout the year. But Ophiuchus?

We don't divide the sky the same way ancient astronomers did. On modern star maps, the sun cuts through a 13th constellation, Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer, between Nov. 30th and Dec. 17th. Astrologically speaking, if you were born between those dates you're no longer a Sagittarian, you're an Ophiuchi! But that's another story....

What really happens when the sun enters the zodiac's 13th house is extremely interesting. We plow into an interstellar wind. It's a helium-rich breeze from the stars that flows into the solar system from the direction of Ophiuchus. The sun's gravity focuses the material into a cone and Earth passes through it during December. We're inside the cone now.

We aren’t in any danger. The helium breeze is closer to a vacuum than we can create on Earth, but astronomers are keen to study it because it can tell us something of what lies outside the solar system. Learn more about this interstellar wind this week on The Deep.

Join Jim Sullivan on The Deep every Wednesday night at 6:00 p.m. on K-57 for a fascinating look at the deepest science on Earth. This week we’ll explore the consequences of shutting down the GPS and a wind from the stars. Don’t miss it!