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 * * * SKY & TELESCOPE's WEEKLY NEWS BULLETIN - February 4, 2005 * * *

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Welcome to S&T's Weekly News Bulletin. Images, the full text of stories
abridged here, and other enhancements are available on our Web site,
SkyandTelescope.com, at the URLs provided below. (If the links don't work,
just manually type the URLs into your Web browser.) Clear skies!

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ASTEROID 2004 MN4: A REALLY NEAR MISS

If you plan to be alive on April 13, 2029, you can look forward to an
asteroid-watching party across three continents like nothing the world has
ever seen.

The near-Earth asteroid 2004 MN4 made headlines for a couple of days last
December when astronomers estimated that it had a 1-in-38 chance of
hitting Earth in 2029. The threat quickly passed when old images were
found that pinned down the asteroid's orbit well enough to guarantee that
it will miss our planet. Now, extremely precise radar observations made on
January 27th, 29th, and 30th have refined its orbit even further. The
asteroid is still certain to miss Earth, but it will be a squeaker
indeed -- and the event will present a once-in-a-millennium naked-eye
asteroid show....

> http://SkyandTelescope.com/news/article_1458_1.asp

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THE REAL RHEA

With a diameter of 1,528 kilometers (949 miles), Rhea edges out Iapetus
for being Saturn's second largest satellite, though it is less than half
the size of Earth's Moon. Like most Saturnian satellites, Rhea has a
heavily cratered surface that is covered by water-ice. A new image of the
trailing hemisphere, acquired by Cassini's narrow-angle camera on January
16th, reveals wispy streaks in the ice that may be ice cliffs....

> http://SkyandTelescope.com/news/article_1457_1.asp

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SOHO COMET CATCHER

On January 15th, just seven months after the 800th comet was found in
images obtained by the SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory)
spacecraft, SOHO Comet No. 900 was discovered by a German amateur
astronomer. Rainer Kracht detected the object in images taken with one of
the spacecraft's LASCO coronagraphs. Kracht downloaded the observations
from the LASCO Web site....

> http://SkyandTelescope.com/news/article_1454_1.asp

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HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS WEEK'S SKY

* This week Comet Machholz is fading a bit as it continues to move
northward. It's northeast of Cassiopeia and still easily visible in
binoculars.
* Mars is passing between the Lagoon and Trifid nebulae in Sagittarius on
the 7th and 8th.
* New Moon is February 8th.

For more details, see This Week's Sky at a Glance and Planet Roundup:

> http://SkyandTelescope.com/observing/ataglance

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EXPLORE THE SKY FROM OPPOSITE ENDS OF THE EARTH! (Advertisement)

CHILE  Here is your opportunity to view southern astronomical treasures
under possibly the darkest sky in the world. The village of San Pedro de
Atacama, at 23 degrees south latitude in Chile's immense Atacama Desert,
is the perfect base for four nights dedicated to exploring the southern
sky. Join us from May 29 to June 4, 2005.

ALASKA  View and photograph the northern lights at the fabulous Chena Hot
Springs Resort. Witness spectacular mountains and glaciers, and get a
behind-the-scenes tour of the Poker Flat Research Range, where scientists
launch rockets into the aurora borealis. Act now: this 7-day tour starts
March 7th.

Both tours are led by award-winning astrophotographer Dennis Mammana. For
more information about either tour or to reserve your space, call
TravelQuest today at 800-830-1998 or visit us online:

For southern-sky stargazing in Chile:
> http://www.travelquestinternational.com/Chile2005/ChileHome.htm
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