The Rose of Saturn

Recently, NASA release an incredible photo of Saturn’s north pole showing a massive spinning vortex of a storm they dubbed “The Rose”. This false-color image taken by the Cassini spacecraft shows the storm spanning a 2,000 km diameter which, by comparison, is 200 km wider than Hurricane Sandy. Maximum wind speeds of 530 km/h have been calculated—that is some hurricane!
   See how much you know about the ringed planet by answering these ten quiz questions, below. Good luck!

The Golden Tortoise Beetle

The Golden Tortoise Beetle (Charidotella sexpunctata)

The golden tortoise beetle is a common North American beetles that lives on and eats morning glory leaves. They can also be found on sweet potatoes which belong to the morning glory family. Both larvae and adults feed on foliage of which they make many small- to medium-sized irregular holes. Rarely are tortoise beetles numerous enough to be considered damaging to the host plants.
   In spring and summer, the beetle earns its name by turning the color of brilliant liquid gold. The color is produced by an optical illusion—the outer cuticle is transparent and reflects light through a layer of liquid over the next layer of cuticle. The beetles change color depending on the availability of the liquid layer which they control through microscopic valves under their shell. In the fall and winter, the beetles become less lustrous and are more orange and bronze often with black spots similar in appearance to ladybugs. If you try and add the beetle to an insect collection, it quickly turns dark brown as is dries, and looses its golden color. The beetle is most beautiful while alive.

   The larvae hatch out in late May and June and are just as interesting as the adults, but in a much different way. The young larvae are surrounded by many small protuberances giving them a spiny appearance. As the larvae molts, it keeps its old skin attached to a fork-like structure hinged to its rear end. The larvae will add its own feces to the old shell to create a type of shield which it can use for defense. When they are disturbed by another insect or predator, they flip the shield up in the direction of the disturbance. This "poo protector" is an unappetizing and effective deterrent against potential predators looking for a meal!

All Eyes on ISON

Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON) shares many of the same
characteristics as the Great Comet of 1680.

Be sure to keep tabs on comet C/2012 S1 (ISON), which is hurling toward a close approach with the sun this fall. Even though ISON is still a long way away, located just inside Jupiter’s orbit, it has already formed a tail of gas and dust stretching 90,000 km.
   This is thought to be the comet’s first pass into the inner solar system and promises to provide us with a spectacular show between November 2013 and January 2014 after it has its close encounter with the Sun.
   C/2012 S1 was discovered in September 2012 by two amateur astronomers using the International Scientific Optical Network in Russia, hence the nickname ISON has been adopted by the media.
   ISON has been recently observed by NASA’s Deep Impact spacecraft. Deep Impact, which was launched in January 2005, was originally used to study comet Tempel 1 by hitting the comet with a small metal probe then doing a close flyby to study the debris it kicked up. In 2010, Deep Impact flew past comet Hartley 2 and is now on its way to a January 2020 visit to a near-Earth asteroid that is large enough and close enough to us to be classified as a potentially hazardous object (PHO) by NASA.
   C/2012 S1 will be well placed for observers in the northern hemisphere during the last two weeks in December 2013. Some speculate that if it does not break up as it reaches perihelion it could become brighter than the moon at its peak, but many sungrazing comets do not survive the encounter. It has been calculated that as it nears the Sun it will reach a peak temperature or 2,700°C, hot enough to melt iron. 
   ISON’s orbital path is similar to that of the Great Comet of 1680, another sungrazer that is also known as Newton’s Comet because Isaac Newton used it to verify Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. Newton’s Comet was one of the brightest comets of the 17th century. It was noted for its extremely long tail and at its peak it was bright enough to be seen during the day. Time will tell if ISON will someday be known as the Great Comet of 2013.