Top 10 News Stories of 2005

1. Close Approach of Mars in 2005

Mars came close to Earth in 2005, but not as close as many people would have you think. It is possible you received an email which said that Mars would be closer to Earth in August than it had in 50,000 years. Was that email true?

2. New Tsunami Images

On December 26, 2004, a tsunami swept across the Indian ocean, spawned by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Sumatra. Indonesia suffered many tsunami casualties, part of the total death toll of over 155,000. We have before and after images of Meluaboh, Indonesia.

3. Huygens Lands Successfully on Titan - Sends Back Pictures

After its seven-year journey through the Solar System on board the Cassini spacecraft, ESA’s Huygens probe has successfully descended through the atmosphere of Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, and safely landed on its surface on January 14, 2005. Discovered in 1655 by the Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens, Titan is the biggest of the 31 known moons orbiting Saturn. It is a cold world enclosed by a thick, hazy atmosphere impenetrable by telescopes and cameras.

4. Google Earth

Want to see what your house looks like in a satellite image? Now, you have the chance with Google's free 3D mapping and search product, Google Earth.

5. Hurricane Katrina Devastates Gulf Coast

On Monday, August 29, hurricane Katrina slammed into the gulf coast of the US, bringing death and destruction. It now seems clear that New Orleans and the other cities nearly wiped off the map will never be the same. Learn more about NASA's problems as well as what they are doing to help others. View some images of Katrina and the affected areas.

6. Life on Mars?

Space.com was reporting that "A pair of NASA scientists told a group of space officials at a private meeting" in Washington "Sunday that they have found strong evidence that life may exist today on Mars, hidden away in caves and sustained by pockets of water."

Shortly after that announcement, your About Astronomy & Space Guide responded.

7. NASA Clears Space Shuttle Discovery for Landing

During the return to flight mission, STS-114, crewmembers of the Space Shuttle Discovery resupplied the International Space Station, held a memorial for their fallen fellow astronauts from the Space Shuttle Columbia STS-107 Mission, and performed historic spacewalks to repair the ISS and Discovery. On August 05, 2005, they had returned the Raffaello Multi-Purpose Logistics Module to Space Shuttle Discovery's payload bay and were ready to come home.

8. NASA Discovers 10th Planet

This news wasn't greeted with the excitement I expected. NASA scientists have discovered a 10th planet in our solar system. The planet, larger than Pluto, was discovered using the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif. The discovery was announced today by planetary scientist Dr. Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., whose research is partly funded by NASA.

9. Son of Space Veteran Guilty of Possession of Child Pornography

The son of one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts is currently awaiting sentencing on child pornography charges. On August 31, 2005, 55 year old Walter Schirra III, son of Wally Schirra, pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography in a federal sex tourism case.

10. Dying Star Sculpts Rungs of Gas and Dust

Astronomers may not have observed the fabled "Stairway to Heaven," but they have photographed something almost as intriguing: ladder-like structures surrounding a dying star. A new image, taken with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, reveals startling new details of one of the most unusual nebulae known in our Milky Way. Cataloged as HD 44179, this nebula is more commonly called the "Red Rectangle" because of its unique shape and color as seen with ground-based telescopes.