So the end of the year is coming up fast....it is the last day of spring break ALREADY!!!andnbsp; On that note it is time to study for the regents Exam.andnbsp; We will do our first practice exam soon and you should start working on the first four exams in your Red Barron's Review Book.andnbsp; Remember for the Regents it is all about how much you study!andnbsp;andnbsp; A couple of students have asked me about review classes...I have listed them below if you would like to enroll and get some extra review.andnbsp;andnbsp;

Molloy Weekly Review:

coned.molloy.edu/ShowSchedule.awp

Adelphi One Day Class:

www.passtheregents.com/nav/subject/lid/1/sid/3/Long_Island_Earth_Science_Exam_Review

http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OHfigures/OH2010-Fig04.pdf



http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=292186andamp;user_id=292186andamp;blog_id=1233470andamp;position2=-1

I know you will all be very upset at having to postpone a very enjoyable test ....but in light of the two snow days we will be moving our Topic 7 test to the Tuesday after vacation.andnbsp;

andnbsp;Let the other students know andnbsp;:)

The Geminids Meteor Shower will be visible on the 13/14^th of December.andnbsp; It shold be spectacular.andnbsp; In Herricks, we are hampered by light pollution because of our close proximity to the city.andnbsp; With a clear view of the sky as many as 100 meteors per hour can be visible.andnbsp; The best time to view the shower will be between midnight and dawn Monday morning.andnbsp; I included a map of the southern sky below.andnbsp;andnbsp; Enjoy

andnbsp;

Here is a link to an article with more information:

www.space.com/spacewatch/081128-ns-moon-jupiter-venus.html

www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/blackhole/program.html

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_holes

Picture of a Simulated Black Hole

I thought this was an interesting idea that I would share with you

When we look out into space we are actually looking back in time! andnbsp;Letandrsquo;s fist think about a simple example.andnbsp;andnbsp; Since light from the Sun takes about eight minutes to reach Earth,andnbsp; if the Sun were to cease shining, we would still receive light (see the Sun) for eight minutes.andnbsp; When we look into space, the other stars in our galaxy (Milky Way) are at much greater distances than the Sun.andnbsp; Because of this, when you look at a star you are actually looking at light that has been traveling for hundreds or even thousands of years!andnbsp; In a sense, when you look at the night sky you are looking back in time!andnbsp;

andldquo;Staring into the cosmos. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field is the deepest image ever taken of the universe in visible light. The bright and sparkling spots are not stars but galaxies. The nearest one is about one billion light-years away, and since one light-year is the distance light travels in a year, the view is of that one galaxy as it appeared a billion years ago.andrdquo;

andnbsp;Photo: NASA, ESA, R. Windhorst (ArizonaStateUniversity) and H. Yan (SpitzerScienceCenter, Caltech

www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/08/04/science/space/080508-Hubble_14.html

www.nytimes.com/2008/08/05/science/space/05books.html

By Demian McLean Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) --

NASA's Phoenix Lander, in its fifth month of searching for signs of life on Mars, lost a limb today as it shut down equipment in a bid to survive a little longer on the frigid Red Planet. A heater that maintains its sole robotic arm was switched off overnight, one of several that will be powered down in coming weeks, NASA said. The probe, which has surpassed its expected lifespan by two months, is trying to keep crucial batteries and cameras warm. Temperatures dropped as low as minus 139 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 95 Celsius) last week, forcing the craft's on-board heaters to work harder. At the same time, the sun is weakening as autumn approaches, starving the lander's solar panels. ``We could lose Phoenix today or in the next several weeks,'' Veronica McGregor, a spokeswoman at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said by telephone. ``We're trying to eke out as much as we can from the spacecraft; anything is a bonus.'' The probe's biggest discovery came in June when it found sheets of ice several inches below the red soil, showing the planet has a key ingredient for life, even if in frozen form, scientists say. Phoenix's 8-foot (2.4-meter) arm sports a soil probe, a shovel and drill, which penetrated several feet of dirt at the landing spot near Mars's northern polar cap. More Data Coming The Phoenix heated soil samples in small onboard ovens, which ``sniffed'' for chemicals and trace elements. Scientists say the red dirt could support asparagus or other alkaline-loving plants if they had sunlight, water and other ingredients. A thermal and electrical-conductivity probe, which sits on the arm, will stay inserted in the soil. It needs no heater and can send back data for weeks, NASA said. Any energy saved will feed Phoenix's main camera and weather instruments. Unheated electronics will eventually succumb to polar temperatures as low as minus 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Mars's seasons last twice as long as Earth's. That makes it unlikely Phoenix will thaw out and return to service after autumn and winter, which start Dec. 26 and May 22, respectively, said McGregor. The probe parachuted to the surface in late May of this year. Follow the Water Phoenix is part of NASA's current theme in Mars exploration: Follow the water, which a prerequisite for life. Viking probes also examined Martian soil in the 1970s, though the samples at those sites lacked much ice. Phoenix, built by Lockheed Martin Corp., is NASA's third probe active on the planet, along with the wheeled rovers Spirit and Opportunity. Engineers can wring more power from Phoenix in coming weeks by shutting down heaters that warm the camera and batteries. That would leave just one survival heater. Eventually, the sun will drop below the horizon. Wind gusts, which reached 36 miles per hour (58 kph) this month, will buffet Phoenix, and an ice coating of water and carbon dioxide will cover the lander's solar panels, ending its life. ``At that point, Phoenix will be at the mercy of Mars,'' Chris Lewicki, lead Phoenix mission manager at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said in a statement.