On a plane and in your yard

By Pam Eastlick

Welcome to The Deep science and technology column where we cover topics from the deep sea to deep space and beyond.

It’s time to talk about everybody’s least favorite subject: snakes. I live next to the jungle and have had many brown tree snakes in my house. I’m not afraid of them and to get rid of them, I just grab them and pop them into the freezer. No sharp objects, no blood, they just sleep with the frozen fishies.

I have been bitten a couple of times and am always amazed by how much it hurts when you consider the wounds aren’t very deep. There’s always a lot more blood than you’d expect from such tiny wounds too. Researchers are doing work on snake venom and have come up with some surprising results. Read on!

Researchers seeking to learn more about stroke by studying how the body responds to toxins in snake venom are releasing new findings that they hope will aid in the development of therapies for heart disease and, surprisingly, cancer.

The Japanese team is examining platelets, blood cells that control blood clotting. They’ve also discovered that platelets are involved in the development of blood vessels that feed blood to cancer tumors, as well as in forming the blood clots that cause stroke and heart attack.

What does this have to do with snake venom? Snake venom contains toxins that target the proteins in platelets. Some of them prevent the platelets from clotting (which certainly explains all the blood from the small wounds of a brown tree snake bite) and other toxins cause them to clot.

The Japanese researchers are now studying chemicals found in snake venom to see if they can use them to prevent the growth of the blood vessels that feed tumor cells. They have also found chemicals in snake venom that prevent the growth of the lymphatic vessels that allow cancer cells to enter the lymphatic system and spread throughout the body. So, thanks to these researchers, there’s a possibility that snake venom may turn out to do a body good after all!

The other thing I’ve always wondered is how brown tree snakes can climb up the walls of my house, and there’s research in that area as well. In a unique study involving young boa constrictors, University of Cincinnati researchers had snakes climb vertical ropes of various sizes and flexibility to see how they do it.

They discovered that regardless of the diameter or flexibility of the rope, the snakes alternated curving between left and right as they climbed the ropes. On thicker ropes, they could move greater portions of their bodies forward as they climbed. As the ropes became thinner and more flimsy, the snakes used more of their bodies — including their back, sides and belly — to manipulate the rope for climbing.

Although the large muscles of boa constrictors make them fairly stocky and heavy compared to other snakes, this anatomy probably increases their strength. All of the snakes gripped the ropes using a concertina mode of locomotion, which is defined by some regions of the body periodically stopping while other regions of the body extend forward. Boa constrictors are strong enough they can support their weight with a modest number of gripping regions.

Well, that may explain how they climb ropes and vines, but it still doesn’t tell me how they climb vertical walls with no legs and no suckers. I guess I’ll just have to do my own observations!

Boa constrictor climbing up a rope. How does a snake climb a vertical surface without slipping? (Credit: Bruce C. Jayne)

News from your Planetarium

By Pam Eastlick

Greetings All,

Oh my, we’re in for an incredible treat (if those pesky clouds

cooperate!). Most of you probably know that the Space Shuttle Endeavour

has blasted off for its final rendezvous with the International Space Station. It’s set to dock with the ISS tomorrow afternoon, Guam time.

Both spacecraft will pass over Guam early Sunday morning, 22 May. Keep reading and I’ll tell you all about it!

1. The Magic Half Hour

2. Early morning four-planet conjunction 3. Bright pass of the ISS and Endeavour

This is an absolutely amazing week for sky gazing. I hope you enjoy it as much as I plan to!

Pam

1. The Magic Half Hour

This is your last week to easily see The Magic Half Hour. This evening, both Canopus and Rigel will disappear below the western horizon by 7:50 p.m. It’s been cloudy, but we’ve had some remarkably clear nights. Go out one night this week and find eight of the ten brightest stars; fifteen of the twenty brightest stars; the largest and smallest constellations and the three most famous constellations in YOUR personal sky.

Full Moon is today and if you go out to observe The Magic Half Hour tonight, you can discover something wonderful. If I ask you what color the night sky is, I’m sure you’ll tell me “Black”, but if you really look at the sky tonight, you’ll discover something astounding. When the Moon is full here on Guam, the sky isn’t black at all; it’s an astounding deep dark blue. See if it looks blue to you tonight!

2. The four-planet conjunction

That wonderful four-planet conjunction continues in our early morning sky.

At 5:15 a.m. tomorrow morning, Jupiter will be 15 degrees above the eastern horizon and brighter Venus will be 5 degrees below Jupiter and to the left. Mercury will be less than a degree away from Venus, slightly below and to the right.

Venus and Mercury are getting closer to Mars every day. Mars is much dimmer than the other three and because the god of war is also closer to the horizon, he’s also much harder to see. I’ve now seen Mars, but it wasn’t easy!

Venus, Mercury and Mars will reach their closest point of approach on Saturday and Sunday morning 21 and 22 May, when the three planets will be less than two degrees apart. On Saturday morning, the three planets will form a very close triangle with Venus on top, Mercury below and to the right in the five o’clock position and Mars below and to the left of Venus in the eight o’clock position. Mars will be about the same distance away from Venus as Mercury.

On Sunday morning, the three planets will form a right triangle with Mercury almost directly below Venus and Mars to the left in the nine o’clock position. You need to start looking for them at 5:00 a.m.

3. Bright pass of the ISS and Endeavour That’s not the only reason you need to start looking at 5:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, 22 May. There will be an extremely bright pass of the International Space Station over Guam on Sunday morning and if everything goes according to plan, the Space Shuttle Endeavour will be docked with the ISS at the same time!

To see this pass, go outside at 5:00 a.m. and find your four-planet conjunction in the eastern sky. Then turn completely around. If you know where due west is from your viewing location (and many of you do!), measure four fist-widths along the horizon to the left (south) and watch that spot. At 5:05 a.m., you should see a very bright ‘star’ climb above the western horizon and head north. That’s not a star of course, it’s the ISS and Endeavour and their combined reflectivity will make them the same brightness as Venus and VERY easy to see.

By 5:09 a.m., they’ll be four fist-widths above the northwestern horizon and they will pass ten degrees below the bright star Vega at 5:09:41 a.m.

At 5:12 a.m., the ISS and Endeavour will be at the same altitude (about 10 degrees above the horizon) and six fist-widths to the left of Venus, Mars and Mercury.

The last voyage of the Space Shuttle Endeavour and the last four-planet conjunction for several years. BOY, is it worth getting up early on Sunday morning! Here’s hoping the clouds cooperate!

This has been a very LONG post. Thank you for sticking with it and thank you for being a friend to me and the UOG Planetarium! ENJOY!

THE SKY IS FALLING!!! THE SKY IS FALLING!!!

By Pam Eastlick

Welcome to The Deep science and technology column where we cover topics from the deep sea to deep space and beyond.

Several years ago, the magazine for planetarians (people who run planetariums) asked several of us to tell them the best and worst things about our jobs. My number one ‘worst thing’ was the question “How do you like being an astrologer?” There is a BIG difference between astrology and astronomy. Astrology is a religion; a belief system and astronomy is a science.

But if they asked me for the worst thing about my job today, I think my answer would be the question “Will the world end next year in 2012? EVERYBODY’S saying that it will!”

So I present to you a fact sheet that was sent to me by Steve Russo, a fellow planetarian. The information is from NASA and reputable scientists. Please read it carefully!

Question (Q): Are there any threats to the Earth in 2012? Many Internet websites say the world will end in December 2012.

Answer (A): As far as we know, nothing bad will happen to the Earth in 2012. Our planet has been getting along just fine for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012.

Q: What is the origin of the prediction that the world will end in 2012?

A: The story started with claims that Nibiru, a supposed planet discovered by the Sumerians, is headed toward Earth. This catastrophe was initially predicted for May 2003, but when nothing happened, the doomsday date was moved forward to December 2012. Then that fable was linked to the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar at the winter solstice in 2012 — hence the predicted doomsday date of December 21, 2012.

Q: Does the Mayan calendar end in December 2012?

A: Just because the calendar on your kitchen wall ends on December 31, doesn’t mean that time doesn’t exist after that and the same holds true for the Mayan calendar which does NOT end on December 21, 2012. This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then; just as your calendar begins again on January 1, another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar.

Q: Could phenomena occur where planets align in a way that impacts Earth?

A: There are NO planetary alignments in the next few decades, Earth will NOT cross the galactic plane in 2012 (we are already 50 light years above it), and even if these alignments did occur, their effects on Earth would be negligible. Each December the Earth and Sun align with the approximate center of the Milky Way Galaxy but that happens every year and the world does NOT end.

Q: Is there a planet or brown dwarf called Nibiru or Planet X approaching the Earth and threatening our planet with widespread destruction?

A: Nibiru and other stories about wayward planets are an Internet hoax. If Nibiru or Planet X were real and headed for an encounter with the Earth in 2012, astronomers would have been tracking it for at least the past decade, and it would be visible by now to the naked eye. You’ve all noticed the big Moon-sized planet in the night sky, right? No? Obviously, from YOUR observation, it doesn’t exist.

Q: Is the Earth in danger of being hit by a meteor in 2012?

A: Your spaceship, the planet Earth, strikes over 1,000 meteors every single day. Most of them are small, but we get hit by football field sized-rocks about once a century. The last really big impact was 65 million years ago, and it probably took out the dinosaurs. Will the big one hit in 2012? Who knows, it might arrive tomorrow! Or it may take another million years or so. You can worry about it if you want to!

Q: How do scientists feel about claims of pending doomsday?

A: There is NO evidence for any of the assertions made in books, movies, documentaries, or over the Internet, that unusual events will take place in December 2012.

Q: Is there a danger from the giant solar storms predicted to erupt from our Sun in 2012?

A: Solar activity has a regular cycle, with peaks approximately every 11 years. Near these activity peaks, solar flares can interrupt satellite communications, although engineers are learning how to build electronics that are protected against most solar storms. But there is NO special risk associated with 2012. The next solar maximum will occur in 2012-2014 and this cycle is predicted to be an average solar cycle, no different than previous cycles throughout history.

There! Feel better? Don’t be just another Chicken Little. The sky is NOT falling!

News from your Planetarium

By Pam Eastlick

Greetings All!

The spectacular four-planet conjunction continues in the early morning sky. Although I’ve see Mercury, Venus (hard to miss) and Jupiter (ditto), I confess that through a combination of Mars being fainter and some pesky black clouds, I have yet to see Mars.

It IS possible. I got an e-mail from Erik who said he’d seen Mars with binoculars. This morning, Mercury, Venus and Jupiter formed an equilateral triangle. Tomorrow (Wednesday, 11 May), the three planets will form a very close triangle and Mars will be less than two finger-widths below them and to the left in the 7:00 position.

By Thursday morning, Jupiter will be above Venus (I told you they moved

fast!) and Jupiter, Venus and Mercury will be their closest for this conjunction. Do try to see the three planets on Thursday morning.

On Friday morning, Jupiter will be directly above Venus and the three planets will form another triangle. Mars will still be less than two finger-widths below in the 7:00 position.

Over the weekend, Venus and Mercury will appear to move in tandem away from Jupiter and toward Mars. Next Monday morning Venus and Mercury will be equidistant between Jupiter and Mars.

This is an astounding sky dance and I urge you to have a look each morning. Watching the four planets change position gives you an intimate and personal look at our solar system.

ENJOY!

And don’t forget that we have public shows this week. The Magic Half Hour has moved into prime time and we’ll be having a look after the Planetarium show each night. That’s “The Magic Half Hour” this week Thursday, Friday and Saturday (12, 13 and 14 May) at 6:30 p.m. Then at 7:00, I’ll take a couple of questions, talk a little about the early morning conjunction and then we’ll all troop outside to look at the astounding show in the BIG planetarium! Doors open at 6:00 p.m. and Planetarium shows are always FREE! Don’t miss it!

THE MIRACLE CURE

By Pam Eastlick

Welcome to The Deep science and technology column where we cover topics from the deep sea to deep space and beyond.

Well, the ‘medicine’ file is bulging and it’s time to dip into studies about what ails us. So . . . let me ask you a question. How many people did you know that died from colon cancer? Two or three? Four or five? Want to insure that you aren’t next?

A study published on the British Medical Journal website says that about 25% of all colon cancer cases can be prevented if people follow healthy lifestyle advice in five areas including diet and exercise.

Researchers from Denmark found that following recommendations on physical activity, waist circumference, smoking, alcohol and diet could reduce the risk of developing colon cancer considerably — by 23%.

Colon cancer is the second highest cancer killer in the US, exceeded only by lung cancer (still smoking, are you?). It kills over 50,000 people a year. (Lung cancer kills 150,000.)

The Danish researchers wanted to explore the link between leading a healthy lifestyle and the risk of colon cancer in middle-aged people. They also wanted to discover how of colon cancer might be linked to leading a non-healthy lifestyle.

They studied data on 55,487 men and women aged 50-64 (colon cancer is rare in people under 40) not previously diagnosed with cancer. The study lasted almost 10 years.

All the participants filled in a lifestyle questionnaire that included questions about social factors, health status, reproductive factors and lifestyle habits as well as a diet questionnaire developed to assess food intake over 12 months. The healthy lifestyle index used by the researchers incorporated internationally accepted public health recommendations from the World Health Organization and the World Cancer Research Fund.

Their five assessment factors were 1.) being physically active for at least 30 minutes a day, 2.) having no more than seven drinks a week for women and 14 drinks a week for men, 3.) not smoking, 4.) consuming a healthy diet and 5.) having a waist circumference less than 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men.

The researchers monitored the participants for ten years and during that period, 678 of them were diagnosed with colon cancer.

The researchers concluded that if all the participants (except the healthiest) had followed even one additional recommendation, 13% of the colon cancer cases could have been prevented. If all the participants had followed all five recommendations, then 23% of the colon cancer cases could have been avoided.

So, have you heard this before? Stop drinking so much. Stop smoking entirely. Exercise more. Lose weight. Eat fruits and vegetables and stop living on meat, rice and sugared sodas.

YOU have the power to take control of your life. Do it today and live longer!