Show
Date: July 7, 2005
Pam Eastlick for THE DEEP on line
DEEP FLIGHT
AND
DEEP IMPACT
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, aired at 6:00 this evening on K-57, we’ll talk
about an inverted Mt. Everest with one of the most famous undersea
explorers. Then we’ll have some expedition calls. Maybe
we’ll hear from Bob Silvers in the Mediterranean or Dr.
Skoog in China. Or perhaps we’ll talk to Christine Boskoff.
We’ll be talking about the Deep Impact space mission to
a comet and have some science news updates. We’ll also be
taking your phone calls. Tune in tonight and join host Jim Sullivan,
Pam Eastlick and our expedition coordinator Peter Melyan for the
latest in scientific news! Then log on to www.thedeepradioshow.com
for more information on all the latest and deepest news!
DEEP FLIGHT
One of the contentions of The Deep panel members is that
we live on top of the highest mountain on Earth. Forget
Mt. Everest, it’s wimpy at 29,035 ft. The tallest
mountain on Earth measured from the center of the Earth
is Aconcagua in the Chilean Andes because the Earth is 25
MILES wider at the equator than the poles. Mauna Kea is
13796 feet from its peak to the sea, but the mountain extends
another 16,000 feet to the ocean bottom making it taller
than Mt. Everest.
But the highest mountain on Earth measured from its peak
to the ocean bottom is the island of Guam because we lie
close to the Marianas Trench, at 36,198 ft, the deepest
spot on Earth. Add that to the vaulting peak of Mt. Lam
Lam, and you’ve got a record height of 37,530 feet.
That’s over seven miles! |
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Our guest tonight on The
Deep is Graham Hawkes, a world-renowned explorer of the
oceans. He believes that manned access to the deep ocean
is integral to the future, and he has built the world's
first underwater aircraft, (a prototype capable of flying
down to 3,300 feet). He plans to take the next generation
of his vehicle, into Challenger Deep, the deepest point
in The Marianas Trench — the ocean equivalent of going
to the moon. |
He calls his proposed adventure,
Deep Flight II and it’s captured the attention of
the global media and the public because Graham Hawkes plans
to access the last frontier of planetary exploration and
discovery.
Hawkes Ocean Technologies has completed the conceptual design
of Deep Flight II, a revolutionary modular system designed
for pure exploratory and scientific expeditions. Join us
on The Deep with Graham Hawkes as he prepares for the ultimate
journey - "Ocean Everest" - a flight 37,000 feet
down to the bottom of the planet. |
DEEP IMPACT
The Deep Impact ‘impactor’
has collided right on schedule with Comet Tempel 1. The
washing machine-sized impactor was released from the main
ship and dropped right into the path of the southern Guam-sized
comet. Scientists weren’t sure exactly what would
happen because we don’t know exactly what Comet Tempel
1 is made of and how densely it’s packed. The impactor
was expected to blow a house-sized to football field-sized
hole in the dirty snowball.
All eyes were turned on Comet Tempel 1. The impact occurred
at 3:53 p.m. Guam time on the 4th of July. We couldn’t
see anything because it occurred in daylight hours for us
but thousands of amateur astronomers, all of our orbiting
platforms and all observatories on the night side of Earth
had their telescopes trained on the comet. It visibly brightened
when the probe hit it.
The probe took pictures all the way in, including this one
minutes before impact.
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Comets are unweathered remnants left over
from the formation of the solar system. Scientists expect
to learn much about how the solar system was born from studying
the effects of this collision. Tune into The Deep to learn
more.
NASA TV
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Whether we’re learning about Deep Flight or Deep Impact,
The Deep, hosted by Jim Sullivan with Pam Eastlick and Peter Melyan
is the place to be on K-57 tonight at 6:00 p.m. Don’t miss
it!
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