Skywatching: Jupiter and Daymoon 19-02-2014

     Jupiter shines brightly this month, and on Saturday a friend and I went outside to skywatch. Fog from our breath quickly disappeared like dragon's breath in the crisp night air with a dwindling breeze. We fidgeted eagerly in our places and shuffled light flakes of frigid snow beneath our boots, as we peered up at the sky, straining to catch sight of dimmer stars.

     In this area light pollution sometimes blocks them out, but on Saturday without a cloud in sight the brightest light around was the full moon and the second-brightest was Jupiter (top right). We couldn't see Jupiter's moons, but in a darker area or with some aid they can be spotted. This website, Astro Viewer (http://www.astroviewer.com/current-night-sky.php?lon=-73.94&lat=40.67&city=New+York+City&tz=EST) , has a nice nightly star chart which can help you locate Jupiter, and you can use the search box on the left to set it to your location.
     The way I've been finding Jupiter this week is locating the constellation Orion, then going in a straight line from Rigel (Orion's right foot from our point-of-view) to Betelgeuse (Orion's left shoulder) and continuing about that length one more time and that's right next to Jupiter.

Here's a photo  from today:

These were taken with a Panasonic LUMIX DMC-ZS15 digital camera and no telescope, but in the picture above two of Jupiter's moons can be seen very faintly. For more about viewing Jupiter this month check out space.com's article: http://www.space.com/24624-see-jupiter-near-moon-tonight.html
Just for fun, here is a picture of the day moon this morning at around 7:30AM.

Good morning/night!

Elucidating Facts About Bioluminescence

The otherworldly, bioluminescent fauna of the twilight (or dysphotic) zone is astounding. A documentary series the Blue Planet features footage of creatures alien from our world on land from the way they were shaped, the way they moved, and the way they glowed.

Bioluminescence is a type of chemiluminescence which is when light is emitted during a chemical reaction and in chemiluminescence very little heat is emitted. This means that this sophisticated method of producing light is also very energy-efficient (perhaps someday technology will be mimicking these animals' efficiency). Bioluminescence Webpage gives a very clear and brief explanation: the chemical luciferin (either produced internally or obtained trough food) reacts with oxygen and is catalyzed by another chemical luciferase, resulting in the production of oxyluciferin and light from the atom going into an excited state.

So these animals use internal chemical reactions to make themselves glow brilliantly... but why? Here are a few thing bioluminescence is used for:

1. To see in the dark.

Very little light reaches the dysphotic zone in the ocean, so being able to glow can help animals see other organisms sharing the waters. Bioluminescence is different from bioflorescence which requires light to be absorbed from an external source in order to produce the glowing effect, so these animals wouldn't need to rely on external sources of light in their dark world. This might seem like an obvious reason, but the colour of the light also matters; many animals in the twilight zone glow blue or green, and that's because blue light will travel the farthest which can help the individual see more, whereas red lights do not travel as far, which can be helpful for finding food, but this also means that they would be more easily spotted by predators. Some animals have the ability to control their glow, but not all of them.

2. As a lure.

If you've seen Disney and Pixar's animated film Finding Nemo, then you've probably seen a enactment of the luring effect of a pretty little light on an angler fish... with some artistic license taken. The angler fish uses a little bioluminescent lure to attract smaller fish and other potential prey into its vicinity so that the angler fish can catch its prey by surprise.

3. For defense.

There are different ways in which bioluminescence is used in defense. Comb jellies/ctenophores have what is called sacrificial tags; when a part of one of the jellies is bitten off, the part remains glowing within the digestive tract of the predator, exposing the predator's location while a shrimp, Acanthephyra purpurea, ejects a blue bioluminescent cloud when it is attacked to protect itself (read more in Switek's article/post in the reference list). Other animals that can control the visibility of their bioluminescence can sometimes also use the glow to confuse predators. The glow of a firefly also warns predators of the bad-tasting chemical catalyst lucibufagens that the firefly is filled with.

Photonic camouflage is a unique type of bioluminescence, and the hatchetfish is one example. To avoid having a silouhette that can be spotted by predators, they adjust photophores on their stomachs which emit light to camouflage with the colour of the light/environment behind them. 

p.s. Scroll to the bottom of the page for an interactive demonstration by feeing 10 bioluminescent fish... however, one has photonic camouflaging (it is the exact same colour as the background). Like the hatchetfish, this fish is very tricky. Try to find the camouflaged fish, and don't forget to share your result in the poll that will be up for the rest of the month (the fish will still be there after the month is up, though). 
          Hint: The fish will follow your mouse until you drop food in.

4. To communicate.

Although this is not their only method of communicating, fireflies are also an example of this one; when they are attracting a mate, males and females will flash signals with their bioluminescent abdomen to communicate with each other. 

There is so much to bioluminescence this only scratches the surface of one of the most brilliant characteristics of a deep part of the ocean. If you're interested in further I found the websites in the reference to be great sources, and the the Blue Planet was awesome.

References

Bioluminescence Webpage. Chemistry of Bioluminescence.The Bioluminescence Webpage. Retrieved January 16, 2014 from http://biolum.eemb.ucsb.edu/chem/

'Docmo'. Animals the Glow: the Science of Bioluminescence. http://docmo.hubpages.com/hub/Animals-that-Glow-The-Science-of-Bioluminescence

National Science Foundation. December 30, 2011. What Glows Beneath: Illuminating Mysteries of the Unseen. Live Science. Retrieved January 16, 2014 from http://www.livescience.com/17685-glow-coral-oceans-nsf-bts.html

Office of Naval Research. Ocean Water: Optics. Office of Naval Research and Science Technology. Retrieved January 16, 2014 from http://www.onr.navy.mil/focus/ocean/water/optics1.htm

Scientific Amierican. Shining Examples: 10 Bioluminescent Creatures that Glow in Surprising Ways [Slide Show]. http://www.scientificamerican.com/slideshow/bioluminescent-avatar/

Switek, Brian. Glow Little Spewing Shrimp, Glow. January 23. 2012. Wired Science. Retrieved February 12, 2014 from http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/01/glow-little-spewing-shrimp-glow/

Mid-winter Mysteries

Hi all, I'd like to call out to fellow explorers for some help identifying some species in Southern Ontario (especially arthropod/plant experts), Below the pictures are their Project Noah links so feel free to make a suggestion on the site to have it linked to your account if you have one, or if you'd like to create an account.

Spotted February 5, 2014 (http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/163076011)

Identification: Ichneumon Wasp (Ichneumonidae)

This new friend was what really spurred this post. My sister found this on insect the windowsill in the living room and we've been itching to know more about her and the specific species. She was about 1 inch in length, and the colour on her antennae gradiated from red to yellow at the tips with a subtle black band in between. It also has dark eyespots and thin pincers. He/she was walking very slowly and wasn't seen flying (only cleaning him/herself) and appeared to drink water straight form the tiny puddle we put in a can lid.

 

#2 (flower plant): Spotted July 11, 2013 (http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/157706016)

These flowers were dotting the side of a road in an industrial area. I was speedwalking with someone and couldn't stop for very long, but they were so lovely I just had to snap a couple photos with a cell phone. 

#3 (green insect): Spotted July 12, 2013 (http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/151776016)

This green insect was spotted about  on a mulberry in my backyard. Its crest, colour, and shape kind of reminds me of a chameleon.

Thanks for taking a look!

     - Melody