New names and old puzzles

Peter Bond returns with more news from current and future space missions, including a name for the next space telescope.     

Sunspots and Mars frost

Peter Bond discusses the latest observations of the Sun and Mars and the possibilities for a Pluto mission, among other space news.     

The Sun's influence — and beyond

Peter Bond reports on unusual solar activity, space weather forecasting and a momentous moment for Voyager 1 — or is it?     

New frontiers and old puzzles

Peter Bond reports on new programmes for planetary exploration and successes in observation and research.     

Hello Moon, goodbye Jupiter

The last Great Observatory takes its place, Europe heads for the Moon, and Galileo ends its Jovian adventure. Peter Bond reports.     

Hello Mars, goodbye Hubble?

Successes at Mars make the promise of more money for space exploration appealing, but will other projects pay the price? Peter Bond reports.     

Cosmic fingerprints

A mixed bag of news of space missions, including successes and failures for comet missions, more X-ray success and Galileo's last flyby, from Peter Bond .     

Continuing after Columbia

Peter Bond reports on reappraisal for NASA in the aftermath of the loss of the shuttle Columbia, refinement of an extrasolar planet's mass and rethinking of ideas about water on Mars.     

Comets, craters and cosmology

Peter Bond recounts another attempt to visit Mars, yet more data from Galileo and the benefits that result from applying a variety of instruments to a tricky problem.     

Refinements and revelations

Peter Bond summmarizes recent discoveries about Martian radiation, possible new forms of matter and a sooty black comet – not to mention the nearly new Hubble Space Telescope.     

Solar storms, Mars and a comet's tail

Some spacecraft come to the end of their lives while others keep going on and on, writes Peter Bond .     

High energy and high excitement

Peter Bond reports on exciting discoveries in the high-energy universe and rock-solid signs of water on Mars.     

Telescopes in Education at the IAU

The development and utilization of telescopes for educational purposes were discussed on 18 August at a special session of the IAU in Manchester. The session, which was organized by Barrie Jones and Alan Pickwick of the RAS Education Committee, was entitled "Astronomy Research Projects for School and University Students". Peter Bond summarizes.     

Ups and downs

Cluster goes up but will planetary programmes go down? Peter Bond reports on space mission plans and achievements.     

Hubble's long view

Peter Bond brings a round-up of space news, including X-ray observations of the galactic centre, a new sort of black hole, targets within the expanding solar system, and Hubble's longest, deepest look back in time.     

Haunting images

Peter Bond reports on Mars and Jupiter as never seen before, ghosts in galaxy clusters and some surprising sunspots.     

Pick of the bunch

Peter Bond reports on a mixed bag of science from space-based misssions, including more on Martian water, X-ray flashes to match gamma-ray bursts and what the ionosphere does when Earth is in the path of a solar storm.     

Fundamental Changes in In Situ Air Sparging How Patterns

Two types of gas-phase flow patterns have been discussed and observed in the in situ air sparging (ISAS) literature: bubble flow and air channels. A critical factor affecting the flow pattern at a given location is the grain size of the porous medium. Visualization experiments reported in the literature indicate that a change in the flow pattern occurs around 1 to 2 mm grain diameters, with air channels occurring below the transition size and bubbles above. Analysis of capillary and buoyancy forces suggests that for a given gas-liquid-solid system, there is a critical size that dictates the dominant force, and the dominant force will in turn dictate the flow pattern. The dominant forces, and consequently the two-phase flow patterns, were characterized using a Bond number modified with the porous media aspect ratio (pore throat to pore body ratio). Laboratory experiments were conducted to observe flow patterns as a function of porous media size and air flow rate. The experimental results and the modified Bond number analysis support the relationship of flow patterns to grain size reported in the literature.     

From ACIS to Zamama

Image gets going, Chandra continues and Galileo goes on and on, reports Peter Bond , in his regular round-up.     

Chandra's X-ray vision seeks out black holes

The dark universe, in the form of black holes, has been under investigation during recent observations by space-based observatories, reports Peter Bond .