PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD 2. LOCATION CONCLUSIONS 0 Was Balloon 1963 French River. ~tinu_asa_t_a 0 Probably Balloon 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION Possibly Balloon 3. DATETIME GROUP Qc&round VIsual 0 Ground-Radar 0 Was Aircraft Probably Aircraft GMT ry_7 /05007. 27 /OS077. 0 AI,. Visual 0 Air-Intercept Rodor Possibly Aircraft Was Astronomical meteor Probobl y Astronomi col Mili:ta~:v Possibly Astronomical LENGTH OF.OBSERVATION HUMBER OF OBJECTS Insufficient Data fo r Evaluation s au~d~ Qll~ e~l2lQding south BRIEF :iUMMARY OF SIGHTING 1 / Round blue g reen to a flare observed straight l.D 180 dgr az which time it faded. Round bluish white turning red breaking up and fading observed seconds at 45 dgr elevatio n 230 dgr Disappe a red at same azimuth .A.TtC FORM l:zt (Jt&V 2 6 UP 52) ScrsN'c NEws L ETTER for Fdm~t~ry 23, 1961 ASTRONQM'f Still Shines Brightly Mars is rapidly drawing away from earth but is still easy to identify by its red colo r and its brightness, greate r than any visible star except Sirius, James Stokley reports. ~ )\L THOUGH MARS is rapidly moving away anJ getting fainter as it docs so, the planet rema ins a conspicuous fe:~ture of the March e\ening skies. Its position, at the middle of the month, is shown on the accompanying maps. These give the appearance of the skies about 10 p.m., yo ur own kind of st:1ndard time, at the first of March; an hour earlier mid.month and two hours earlier at the Mars is high in the south, in the constell:nion of Cancer, the crab. Mars Easy to Identify T wo features make Mars easy to identify. First i~ its brightness, greater than any visible st:tr except Sirius, which is lower a nd to the right in Canis Major, the gre:lt dog. Also, ~fars is distinctly red in color. And it shines with a steady light. unlike the t win- On Feb. ~. ~ars made it> closc~t .lp- proach to earth, for this \' isit; then it \\':1~ 6~.:!80,000 miles away. :--io \\' it is r:~pidly receding: to 69 million miles on :\br~h I, and Q million miles on the 3ht. Be.:.1use , of this it as rapid!~ dimming. At the end .~f \f.ar.:! it will be al'llf l1.1lf a~ ~ :i~!r '' It the h~inning of the mont h. While the constellation of Cancer is one of the least compicuous of the 12 constella- tions of the zodiac-the path of the planets -two prominent groups attend it on either e. To the right is Gemini, the twins, stars C:~stor and Pollux. To the left is Leo, the lion, with the sub-group called the sickle. First magnitude Regulus is at the end of the sickle's handle. Below Gemini stands Orion, the most of all the constellations. Three stars in a row depict the belt of this celestial as he was shown on the old star Above the belt is Betelgeuse ami is Rigel. Both are bright stars-of the first magnitude. Taurus, the bull, is to the right of Orion, brilliant Aldeb:~ran. T o the left, a lit- tle lower, is Sirius, in Canis l\hjor, :1nd ve this is Procyon, in Canis :\!inor, the little dog. In the northwest, to the right of T:1urus :1nd somewhat higher, is Auriga. the chario- with Capella. Two other first magni- tude stars are also shO\\ n on the maps. Low in the northeast is Bootes, the herd~man, \\ ith Arcturus. And in the southeast, bdow Leo, is Virgo, the virgin. In it is Spica, ~.1se to the hMiz,')n. where atmospheric tbsorption of its hght m.1kes it lrok much o o SYMBOLS FOR STARS IN ORDER OF BRIGHTNESS fainter than it will a few months from now when it \\ill be high in the southern evening sky. Mercury :~nd Jupiter, during March, are too dose to the sun's direction to be visible, but Venus rises about two hours :~head of the sun a nd shines brightly in the south- e:l'lt. So docs Saturn, but as Venus is some 65 times as bright, it is easy to ident ify them. Venus passes directly north of Saturn on March 20. And on the 22nd the moon asses them also. T hese three objects, so close together, will form an interesting spectacle in the early morning sky. Mars "Canals" Controversy Of all t he planets in the sky, the one th:~t has attracted most popular interest is undoubtedly Mars. And this is largely due to the controversial features obsened on its surface called "canals." These were discov- ered in 1877 by an Italian astronomer, Giovanni Schiaparelli (uncle of the famous dress designer). He saw what were appar- str:~ight markings across the planet, he called them "canali." Although this re:~lly means "channels," the word was translated as "can This suggested that they had an artifici:ll origin, and around 1900 the American as- tronomer, Percival Lowell, announced his theor> that they really were .:::anals, built by intelligent beings to carry water from 1 he fro7.en polar caps to irrigate the arid s. But few other astronomers \\ ere able to see the c:m.tls. And even those who could see them, when the observing condi- tinns were at their finest, might lind that they broke up into :1 mass of sm:.ller details . In fact, it \\as ~uggestcd that the canals \\ere entirely illusory. :\linor details ran- tributed, it \\'JS said, will ap~ar .1~ .1 net\\ ork of )traight lines \'-hen you can- ~e them cle:trly. And some experiments supported this \' iew. Perhaps ~ume of the c.tn:lls c::tn be explained in this way-but nor all of rhem, in the opinion of tooay's :\!artian experts. Through large telescopes on the surfuce of the earth a nd under the most f.worable conditions, we cJnnot S(C Mars J ny better tha n we can see the moon through a pair of binoculars. But e\en so, a great deal of information has been assembled about this mysterious pl:tner. Using the best av:tilable photographs, from observatories in many p:~rts of the world, astronomers at H:1rvard ersity and the Uni\'ersity of Texas arc orking on the :O.I:trs ~lap Project. They th.at br the time astronauts make th e fir~t mission to ~Iars they will have a m:1p that i~ f.ar more accur:He tlun any now :w:tilable. A~ we laundt satellite observ:~tories, op- cr:ning :tho\'l' the :11mosphere th:~t seriously lintih \',trrh.J,,,und a~tronnmen, even on llhllnt.uta t"l'' \\\' m.ay .~n.1in better viC\,~ ,,f \l.trs . . \nJ duuutle~' new infornution \\til be oht.uned l>y space probe~ flying pa~t SciENCE NEws LETTER for F~bmury 23, 1963 lfl1 IE LID~ Any young astronomer comidcring inve~ tigating this method should remember th1s warning: Do not look directly a t the: sun with your naked eye or t hrough a telescope unless it is heavily shaded with a dense filter. Your eyes can be irreparably d:unJged or blinded by careless ob)(:rvation. Sun glasses are NOT sufficient protection. VETERINARY MEDICINE Domestic Animal Cancer Rate Highest in Cows ~ THE COW appears to have a higher cer rate than any other large domestic but dogs anti cats :1re also ~us- Visual drawings are sometimes influence<.! by the subjectivity of the tbigner, and must be corrected by comparison with projection s. Sometimes the Jetails of the sun- spots arc too complex to be copied, or their Serious economic loss results from a the Mariner Bew by Venus last variety of tumors in the large domesti December. mals, D r. ]. E. Moulton of the Schc Already such a Soviet Mar tian probe is ry Medicine, University of on its way; if all goes well it will report fornia, Davis, told the Conference on back within a few month s. Perhaps within zootiology of Cancer in Animals held at a yea r the U. S. Mariner B will be launched York Academy of Sciences in t toward the red planet-and it will give us York. by television some brief close-up glimpses E)e tumors and cancer of the lr of the Martian surface. nl>\.!es occur before slaughter age in C Science News letter, 83:122 February 23, 1963 Among cats, cancer of the blood-for; us.ue) far outnumbers all its other 1 nant tumors, and among dogs, v types of leukemia are prevalent. had more leukemic tumors :my other dogs among 300 cases revic by D r. Hilton A. Smit h of the . Fon:es Institute of Pathology, \\',uhit D. C. Cocker spaniels ranked next, fox terriers third, Boston terriers foun Ge:m.tn shepherds fifth in the inciden tumors. Tumors in do.sz~ u.:c l.ne middle age, from fi\ e to nine ~ e Scince New a Lener, 831121 February 2 Celestial Time Table for March :\larch EST 1 11 :oo p.m. Pluto nearc~t C'3rth, distance ~.985.ooo,ooo miles 2 12:18 p.m. ~loon 1n fir>t quJrter 1 :or :1.m. Algol (\'Jr1.1ble stJr in Per scu~) at minimum ~loon p:hscs ~l:!rs Algol at mimmum ~loon farthC'H, di>t.IOCC 252, ::oo mile$ Juptter l:ochinJ sun Moon in lJt quMter \'enus pa>ccs SJturn Drawings of Sunspot! Aid Solar Understand ::1 3:20 a.m. Sun over equJtor, sprin,c be sins in :--:nrthcrn llt-mi~phcrc 2.! 5:00 a.m. ~loon passes S.Jturn ~ :\STRO~O~IERS have become .1nists to sketch the spots of tl- 8:oo a.m. Moon pas~cs \'cnus Algol at minimum ;\loon ne:~test, distance 2ll, thJt .:.1nnot be easily photographed. Th: >hape and structure, growth a1 cline: of the always acti\e sunspots c accur Jtdr drawn in detail as fine filament measuring one : of an arc or less, about 1/2000 of the z8 11 :36 p.m. .\lgol at m1nirnum 31 IO:t ; p.m. ~loon in first quJttcr. Subtract one hour for CST, two hours for MST, ::md three hours for PST. eter of the moon. This method is particularly valuable when ospheric conditions prevent clear photogr:~ph>, reported Pa trick S. Mcintosh of the Sacramento Peak Observatory in Sun- spot. X :\le:t., part of the Air Force Cam- brid~e L:Jl>orJtories in Hanscom Field, Mass. S .~nor quali[) photography of s.un~pots are .:enain onlv when the: telescope IS hfted al>0~ e the atmosphere, or on those rare occ.biun~ when weather conditions permit u' e of the full r esolving power of tele- on the ground. With the 35-inch telc:~cope of the Sacra- 11\Cnto Peak Observatory, observations were made: through e)cpiece~ that magnify 80 an<.! 160 times, using a full aperture neutral chromium filter. The clrawings were cor- rected fiJr distortion and then enl:lrgecl to a 11li .. n;, ,.:.de of one 'e..:on<.l of arc pt:r millincta IJy. comp;1ring them with the SJ~rJII.c mo P..:ak Obscr\'Jtory projection clra'' 11~, m:~Je with a (i.inch telescope. Science Hews le"er, 13:122 februory 23, 1963 ra a fits onto an ly designed automobile trailer. Science News leiter, 83:121 february 23, 1963 TECHNOlOGY Gl Jeep Radio's Voice Made Much Stronger ~ GI JEEPS now have I OO.pounJ , <.lou hie- distance radios to report inform.ltion anJ receive comm:~nds. T he twu-way tran~i~tor ized set is called the "Angry-106." It use~ single siJeb:~nJ circuitry that re:1ches mile~ over rough country, with ten times the signal power, :~nd twice the r:~nge of earlier jeep radios. The Angr>-106 was completed in two years hy the U. S. Army Electronic~ Re- ,c.lrch a nd Ocn:lopmcnt l..clllor.ltury. Fort ~lonmouth, N.J. It~ cco~llr.ldor ''" Gencr . .t l)yn:tmin Electronic~ of Rochc~ter, N. Y Science News leller, 83:121 February 23, 1963 BIOTECHNOlOGY Platinum Electrodes Help Diagnose Heart Defects ~ A QUICKER and more accurate diag. nosi' of the surgically correct.tble defects in the valves that control the flow o( blooJ through the heart and lungs may be .1chieved by inserting tiny platinum elec- trodes into the heart chambers. Drs. Eliot Cord:ty and Rouert B. T. Skel- tOII of the Uni\crsity of California, Los Angeles, Medical School and Cedars of Leb- anon l mtitute for Medical Re~earch have such a technique in experimental The electrodes, which are specifically sen. tive to a vitamin C solution, are placed one on ei ther side of a valve through a catheter technique. This involves inserting them via long, flexible tubes which are pushed in through blood vessels going to the hear t. A test solution of vitamin C is then in- jected into the heart via the catheter on the downstream side of the valve. he valve is normal, only the electrode on the: downstream side of the valve will sen)e the test solution. If the \'ahe is defec- some of the solution with regurgitate back through the \'ahe and be Jetected by the electrode on the upstream The l:CL.\ ime~tigators belie\'e that with refinement in the instrument:nion and catheter system they will be able to <.letect the amount of regurgitation through the Jh e. T his \\ ouiJ enable a phy~ici:m to e\:1lua:c: the degree of vJivubr insufficiency .1nd whether the patient might henefit from surgery or 111edical treatment. Science Ne ws letter, 83:121 Februory 23, 1963 New Cancer Treatment From Detection Method ~ DOING wh:tt surgery cannot do, a new of treating cancer with radioactive iodine has been developed by a tc.1m of \\',.leer Reed General Hospital ph~,iciJnS. It uses a method formerlv cnnfineJ to di~gnosi~-the ,-iewing of lyn1ph \c:~seb b) X-rays following the injection of contr.1st This procedure is now being used to treat tumors of the genitourinary traer through administration of radioactive iodine. The treatment may precede or follow >urgery. Gy injecting a mixture of raclioacti\e iodine and ethioJol, the contrJ~t m.1t.:rial, the rcse:1rchers can eliminate lymph nodes not reache<.l by surgery. Fou:1d A. Habby of the hospital's cal service s:~id remit~ with 15 per~on~ have been encouraging, with no complic:~tions or :1dvcrse side effect~. The: new method a l~o can relie\'C the p.tin of p.1- tient~ who c:mnot tolerate further C\ternal irr.Hii~tion nr drugs. A much brger dose of r.1diatio11 l'.ln be admini~tc:rcd hr thi~ pro- cedure th:111 h\ coll\entional extern:ll mc:~n~. he ,.lid. :\l.1j. n 1\id :0.1. Seitzm:m. M.tj. oh..:rt \\'right .md C.1pt. Jamc' I I. Free 111.111, rcp11rll'd tlol1r find111~' in llll' .\Iller 1..111 l~>llfll d ul J{,.._nt~cllollll)!\. R.ulium Tha.cp\ .end '-:11,k.1r ~led1~.ine. l.m lCJf,{ Science N~ws lo:uer, 83:121 February 23, 1963 (Information o o loo o . .. Yl!t .. vJ~CJtl lit.. o o o o o o o o