I apologize for the missing reports over the holidays, but not much has been happening anyway

Luna

The US DoD has proposed the idea of using Atlas and Delta rockets as a platform for launching manned missions to the moon.  Both rockets have been in service for decades and have a proven flight record, but neither is "man rated".  They have never been used to launch astronauts that is.  however, the safety record has been proven by hundreds of successful launches, and they are probably as safe as or safer than the space shuttle.  the big advantage would be cost.  With such a long program history, NASA could save as much as $3.4 billion over the proposed Ares program.

Also, a NASA instrument on Chandrayaan-1 has detected the signature of iron bearing minerals on the moon.  This is mildly exciting.  lunar materials containing aluminum and titanium are already known, this discovery may add iron as a potential material available from resources on the moon.

Mars

Lets give it up for the little rovers that could as they celebrate their 5th anniversary on Mars.  As I'm sure everyone remembers like it was just yesterday, Spirit landed on 1/3/04, and Opportunity landed 1/24/04.  Those little robots have surely exceeded all expectations of success by a wider margin than any other program in NASA history.  Of course there is Voyager, still going, but voyager was DESIGNED to last decades, not mere months.  The MER program is a shining example of success that should be used as a model for future NASA programs.

Jupiter

University of Arizona Professor Richard Greenberg has published a new book on his thin ice theory for Europa, and the implications this has for the possibility of life there.  The more conventional theory is that, if Europa has an ocean at all, it is covered by a thick mantle of ice, tens of kilometers thick.  Greenberg's thin ice theory, which is supported by his analysis of surface features on the moon, is the ice is no more than a few kilometers thick.  This would allow more flexing and cracks which reach the surface, allowing material to be exchange more easily between the surface and the deep ocean.  The theory also supports periodic melt troughs, where the liquid ocean would be exposed directly to the surface.

Saturn

According to Dr. Rosaly Lopes, new data collected from Titan supports the theory that the moon may have active cryovolcanoes.

Human Space Flight

MIT has released a comprehensive independent review of NASA's future plans for manned space exploration.  MIT's review actually calls for a much more aggressive program of exploration, with more international cooperation, clearer stated goals, and less pressure on NASA to do more with less. 

In honor of the upcoming 200th birthday of Charles Darwin (Feb. 12, 2009) Nature has published 12 very elegant examples of evolution.

If you have a Nature subscription you may go here: Darwin's enduring legacy

Otherwise it is summarized at Wired magazine: 12 Elegant Examples of Evolution

There are some cool examples listed such as the intermediate ancestor to whales, dinosaur feathers, competing epochs of water fleas and more.

And as an added bonus to our vast readership here at techRivet, here is the wikipedia article on Charles Darwin for your elucidation: Charles Darwin

Genius.

There is so much in this story.

1. The genius of the Greek proto-scientist/engineer to create this is extraordinary.
2. The discovery itself - how improbably that it was found?  And then properly saved and studied.
3. The creation of special technologies purpose built to decipher the inner workings of the Antikythera device.
4. The Genius again of Michael Wright, the former curator at the science museum in London to recreate the device.

Read the whole thing over at Wired: World's First Computer Rebuilt, Rebooted After 2,000 Years

Also here is the article on the technology used to decipher the inner workings of the Antikythera device: Imaging the Antikythera Computer

26 days.

...this could also make trips into orbit agonisingly slow, adding nine days or more to a climb that – at several hundred kilometres per hour – might already take about 15 days.

How many games of pinochle can you play on your way up the elevator?

Space elevator trips could be agonisingly slow

Luna

China's Chang'e-1 space probe has adjusted its orbit to just 200 km above the surface of the moon.

Mars

After last week's discussion of the possibility of long term climate cycles, and maybe even life on Mars, this week researchers at Cal Tech published a new study indicating that Mars' axial tilt could produce climate cycles on the order of 100,000 years in length, that's just under 50,000 mars years, by the way.  Glad to see great minds think alike.

Asteroids

Bulgarian astronomers have discovered a new asteroid this week, 2008 WN96.  The asteroid is estimated to be 2 km diameter, which is pretty large for an asteroid discovered so recently, with an orbital period of 3.2 years.

Jupiter

In a new report, University of Washington oceanographer Robert Tyler has calculated the heat required to maintain a liquid ocean on Europa could come from waves generated from the ocean itself.  An axial tilt of less than one degree would be sufficient to produce enough heat to keep the ocean liquid.

Deep Space

CO2 has been discovered for the first time in the atmosphere of an exoplanet, HD 189733b, 63 light years away.

So far only in computer simulations.  Still this is pretty cool.

One of the key nuts to crack with nanotechnology is how do you make a little motor to power these things.  You can't just shrink a motor down to nano size and have it work.  This solution builds off of several things. 

Electron Tunneling

1. Some bacteria's use of biomotors believed to be powered by proton tunneling.
2. Carbon nanotube technology to build the motor.
3. Electron tunneling

If they can build such a motor then nano-machines become much more viable.  Connecting the power supply to the motors becomes the next trick.

Main article: http://nanotechweb.org/cws/article/tech/36611

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/3705790/Scientists-develop-software-that-can-map-dreams.html

A team of Japanese scientists have created a device that enables the processing and imaging of thoughts and dreams as experienced in the brain to appear on a computer screen.

Early prototype only right now.  I always want to experience my flying dreams again.

Very cool.  Arizona State University researchers are working on flexible display technologies for the US Army.

Nadeau says flexible display technology will enable new applications for the soldier and Army platforms that cannot be realized with current glass-based displays. These will include body-worn displays that conform to the uniform; displays that can be rolled up and put in a pocket when not in use and unrolled for large-area, high information content; and many other applications that Army engineers and scientists are considering.

Article here.

Here is a video illustrating the technology during some durability testing:

and some more applicable examples

http://books.google.com/books?id=R9MDAAAAMBAJ

Now that's cool, even if it is from Google.

Fascinating expose' of a huge ant nest: