Retired Port Jervis science teacher and Radio Catskill volunteer Joe Johnson is back with some of the fascinating science stories that have caught our eye, including the solar eclipse, black holes, Iceland volcanoes, and the limit of the periodic table and revising the concept of the “island of stability” with recent advances in superheavy element research.
Image: The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration has captured a new view of the massive object at the center of our Galaxy: how it looks in polarized light. This image shows the polarized view of the Milky Way black hole. The lines mark the orientation of polarization, which is related to the magnetic field around the shadow of the black hole. Image Credit: EHT Collaboration
If you are traveling north to see the eclipse, you might see the International Space Station (ISS) soar across the sky about the time of totality — a rare “daylight” visible pass. The “Heavens-Above” website can help you pinpoint the exact time and direction to look.