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After 25 years of marriage, California¹s power couple has announced
their separation. Lloyd Grove on their groundbreaking relationship, the
recent signs of strain, and what¹s next for both. It was a shock to the
outside world Monday night when Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver announced their separation after 34 years together, 25 of them as
husband and wife. Just days after marking their silver wedding
anniversary with their four children aged 21 to 13 - Arnold and Maria
have split, possibly for good.
Schwarzenegger, Shriver separating after 25 years AP - May 10, 2011The breakup comes about four months after Schwarzenegger ended a bumpy,
two-term run as California governor, a job his wife never wanted him to
pursue. Since then, Schwarzenegger, 63, has been fashioning a role as an
international advocate for green energy, giving speeches and lining up
work in Hollywood. Shriver, 55, has guested-edited an edition of Oprah
Winfrey's magazine but also talked about the stress of changing roles
after serving as California's first lady.
Six Planets Will Be Aligning, but the Earth Will Not End TIME - May 10, 2011
Good thing President Obama released his long-form birth certificate. Now
we can all go back to worrying about an even greater threat than the
possibility that the President is a Kenyan double agent: the much
buzzed-about reports that the world is going to end in 2012. It was the
Mayans - or maybe the Romans or the Greeks or the Sumerians - who called
the shot this time, evidently on a day Nostradamus phoned in sick.
Apparently, a rogue planet named Nibiru (which frankly sounds more like a
new Honda than a new world) is headed our way, with a cosmic crack-up
set for next year. No matter who's behind the current prediction, there
are enough people ready to spread and believe in this kind of
end-of-the-world hooey that you have to wonder if the earth isn't
starting to take things personally. (See an illustrated history of
planet Earth.)
Spaceweather.com
APPROACHING
ACTIVE REGION: A sunspot located
just behind the sun's eastern limb erupted during
the waning hours of May 9th, hurling a spectacular
coronal mass ejection into space: movie.
NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory photographed hot
magnetic loops towering over the edge of the sun
in the aftermath of the explosion: must-see.
Earth was not in the line of fire this time, but
the active region is approaching the Earthside of
the sun, so future blasts could be geoeffective.
Stay tuned.
PLANETS
AT DAWN: No coffee? No
problem. To wake up any morning this week, all
you need to do is look out the window. Mars, Jupiter,
Venus and Mercury are aligning in the eastern sky
for a spectacular dawn conjunction. Mariano Ribas
photographed the gathering on May 9th from his home
in Buenos Aires, Argentina:"It was an awesome morning with an unforgettable
view: four planets packed in just a 7º piece of
sky," says Ribas. "The very compact Venus-Mercury-Jupiter
triangle was simply hypnotic. And Mars, below them,
was faint but still clearly visible to naked eye.
Marvelous planetary gathering, but the best is yet
to come." Indeed, on May 11th, Venus and
Jupiter, the two brightest planets in the Solar
System, will converge to form a pair less than 1/2
degree apart. Set your alarm for Wednesday morning and begin the day with an eye-opener--no caffeine
required.
more images: from
Danny Ratcliffe of Deception Bay, Queensland,
Australia; from
Alan Dyer near San Pedro de Atacama, Chile;
from
M. Raþid Tuðral of Ankara, Turkiye;
SUNDOG: Are you Sirius? "No,"
says John Stetson of Falmouth, Maine. "This
puppy's name is Otis; he belongs to my daughter-in-law
Amanda who is visiting from North Carolina."
On May 9th, Otis blocked the glare so Stetson could
photograph this lovely ring around the sun:
"It was a dog day afternoon,"
says Stetson. The ring around the sun, visible thanks to Otis, was created
by sunlight shining through ice crystals in high
cirrus clouds. When the geometry is right, those
same ice crystals can create genuine
sundogs. Look for them whenever the sky is hazy
with cirrus. And if you don't have a puppy to block
the glare... well...browse the links below.
puppy alternatives: from Doug Showell of Bellevue, Nebraska; from
Brandon Fell of Seattle WA; from
Pamela Williams-Gifford of Portland, Oregon;
from
Alan Atwood of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; from
Craig Haugen of Americus, Missouri;
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thunderbolts Picture of the Day
Astronomy Picture of the Day NASA
New Photos Show Lopsided Galaxy Called 'Meathook' Live Science - May 10, 2011
The asymmetrical Meathook galaxy,
or NGC 2442, has one spiral arm tightly folded in on itself and is the
site of a recent supernova. The other arm, which is dotted with recent
star formation, extends far out from the galactic nucleus.
May 10, 1900 - December 7, 1979 
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin was an English-born American astronomer who was
the first to apply laws of atomic physics to the study of the
temperature and density of stellar bodies, and the first to conclude
that hydrogen and helium are the two most common elements in the
universe.
May 10, 1960 
Bono Bono Google Videos
Bono is an Irish singer and musician, best known for being the main
vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. He has been nominated for
the Nobel Peace Prize, was granted an honorary knighthood by Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, and was named as a Person of the
Year by Time, among other awards and nominations.
La Nina brings flood risks and drought to the West PhysOrg - May 9, 2011
The winter and early spring have been extreme across the West, with
record snowpacks bringing joy to skiers and urban water managers but
severe flood risks to northern Utah, Wyoming and Montana.
Quake shifted Japan; towns now flood at high tide AP - May 9, 2011
The March 11 earthquake that hit eastern Japan was so powerful it pulled
the entire country out and down into the sea. The mostly devastated
coastal communities now face regular flooding, because of their lower
elevation and damage to sea walls from the massive tsunamis triggered by
the quake. 
Current Earthquake Activity USGS Magnitude 7.1 earthquake hits South Pacific AP - May 10, 2011
Geological monitoring services say a magnitude 7.1 earthquake has hit in
the South Pacific off the French territory of New Caledonia. No
injuries or damage were immediately reported. The Pacific Tsunami
Warning Center says there was no threat of a widespread tsunami based on
historical earthquake and tsunami data. River crests in Memphis; downstream states brace AP - May 10, 2011
The Mississippi River crested in Memphis at nearly 48 feet on Tuesday,
falling short of its all-time record but still soaking low-lying areas
with enough water to require a massive cleanup. To the south, residents
in the Mississippi Delta prepared for the worst.
Close Call: Ozone Hole Nearly Opens Over Arctic Live Science - May 10, 2011
The loss of ozone over Antarctica has been well-known since the late
1970s, when a major report exposed the crisis happening on the
continent. But this spring, an Arctic hole in the ozone nearly opened up
over the northern United Kingdom, Scandinavia and Russia.
How to Disappear Almost Completely ... and Protect Yourself from Data Breaches Live Science - May 10, 2011
The two massive data thefts disclosed in April by Epsilon, which handles
customer data for hundreds of large corporations, and Sony, which
operates global gaming networks, involved the personal information of
more than 100 million people. That's more than 100 million people
suddenly at greater risk of identity theft, suddenly more likely to
become the targets of "spear phishing" emails that deceive by pretending
to know you.
May 10, 1940 
Wayne Dyer
Wayne Walter Dyer is a popular American self-help advocate, author and
lecturer. His 1976 book Your Erroneous Zones has sold over 30 million
copies and is one of the best-selling books of all time. It is said to
have brought humanistic ideas to the masses.
Researchers measure the value of a smile PhysOrg - May 10, 2011
Researchers at Bangor University have placed an economic value on a
smile, demonstrating scientifically the effect that a genuine smile can
have on our decision-making. The psychologists call this Œsocial
information¹ and say that it has more of an effect than you may imagine.
How to tell when someone's lying PhysOrg - May 10, 2011
When someone is acting suspiciously at an airport, subway station or
other public space, how can law enforcement officers determine whether
he's up to no good?
