Ad astra per aspera
Europe's new Herschel space observatory has provided a demonstration of its capability with a first image of the iconic Whirlpool Galaxy.The billion-euro telescope opened its "eyes" to the cosmos last Sunday when a command was given to lift a protective hatch covering the instrument bay. Herschel spied the galaxy, also known as M51, with its Photoconductor Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS). Scientists stress Herschel is still in its commissioning phase.
Europe's new Herschel space observatory has provided a demonstration of its capability with a first image of the iconic Whirlpool Galaxy.
The billion-euro telescope opened its "eyes" to the cosmos last Sunday when a command was given to lift a protective hatch covering the instrument bay.
Herschel spied the galaxy, also known as M51, with its Photoconductor Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS).
Scientists stress Herschel is still in its commissioning phase.
The image is a composite of three observations taken at 70, 100 and 160 microns, taken by Herschel's Photoconductor Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) on 14 and 15 June, immediately after the satellite's cryocover was opened on 14 June. Herschel, launched only a month ago, is still being commissioned and the first images from its instruments were planned to arrive only in a few weeks. But engineers and scientists were challenged to try to plan and execute daring test observations as part of a `sneak preview' immediately after the cryocover was opened. The objective was to produce a very early image that gives a glimpse of things to come. The obvious advantage of the larger size of the telescope is clearly reflected in the much higher resolution of the images: Herschel reveals structures that cannot be discerned in a Spitzer image of M51.
The image is a composite of three observations taken at 70, 100 and 160 microns, taken by Herschel's Photoconductor Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) on 14 and 15 June, immediately after the satellite's cryocover was opened on 14 June.
Herschel, launched only a month ago, is still being commissioned and the first images from its instruments were planned to arrive only in a few weeks. But engineers and scientists were challenged to try to plan and execute daring test observations as part of a `sneak preview' immediately after the cryocover was opened. The objective was to produce a very early image that gives a glimpse of things to come.
The obvious advantage of the larger size of the telescope is clearly reflected in the much higher resolution of the images: Herschel reveals structures that cannot be discerned in a Spitzer image of M51.
World hunger is projected to reach a historic high in 2009 with 1,020 million people going hungry every day, according to new estimates published by United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The most recent increase in hunger is not the consequence of poor global harvests but is caused by the world economic crisis that has resulted in lower incomes and increased unemployment. This has reduced access to food by the poor, the UN agency said. "A dangerous mix of the global economic slowdown combined with stubbornly high food prices in many countries has pushed some 100 million more people than last year into chronic hunger and poverty," said FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf. "The silent hunger crisis -- affecting one sixth of all of humanity -- poses a serious risk for world peace and security. We urgently need to forge a broad consensus on the total and rapid eradication of hunger in the world and to take the necessary actions." "The present situation of world food insecurity cannot leave us indifferent," he added.
World hunger is projected to reach a historic high in 2009 with 1,020 million people going hungry every day, according to new estimates published by United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The most recent increase in hunger is not the consequence of poor global harvests but is caused by the world economic crisis that has resulted in lower incomes and increased unemployment. This has reduced access to food by the poor, the UN agency said.
"A dangerous mix of the global economic slowdown combined with stubbornly high food prices in many countries has pushed some 100 million more people than last year into chronic hunger and poverty," said FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf. "The silent hunger crisis -- affecting one sixth of all of humanity -- poses a serious risk for world peace and security. We urgently need to forge a broad consensus on the total and rapid eradication of hunger in the world and to take the necessary actions."
"The present situation of world food insecurity cannot leave us indifferent," he added.
It doesn't seem to say that the the UN food programme budget for 2009 has already run dry by now...
Key climate indicators such as global mean surface temperature, sea-level rise and extreme climatic events are already moving beyond the patterns of natural variability within which contemporary society and economy have developed. This is one of the key messages of a report presented by leading scientists in Brussels today in preparation for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December. The up-to-date overview of research relevant to climate change was handed over to the Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, the host of the conference. "We have covered new findings on climate science, climate impacts on society and the environment, and effective tools and approaches to deal with these challenges," says Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and member of the writing team. "The scientific findings presented in this update create by themselves a sense of urgency that we hope will lead the Copenhagen conference to success," says Schellnhuber, who advises the German government on global change issues. In Copenhagen a follow-up to the Kyoto protocol will be debated.The Synthesis Report summarises new knowledge that was presented at the congress "Climate Change: Global Risks, Challenges & Decisions" at the University of Copenhagen in March this year. Approximately 2500 people from nearly 80 countries attended the congress with over 1400 scientific presentations. "The bottom line is that limiting global warming to a manageable extent will require all our ingenuity for the climate-smart evolution of existing structures," says Schellnhuber. Yet large-scale transformational measures would also be needed.
Key climate indicators such as global mean surface temperature, sea-level rise and extreme climatic events are already moving beyond the patterns of natural variability within which contemporary society and economy have developed. This is one of the key messages of a report presented by leading scientists in Brussels today in preparation for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December. The up-to-date overview of research relevant to climate change was handed over to the Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, the host of the conference.
"We have covered new findings on climate science, climate impacts on society and the environment, and effective tools and approaches to deal with these challenges," says Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and member of the writing team. "The scientific findings presented in this update create by themselves a sense of urgency that we hope will lead the Copenhagen conference to success," says Schellnhuber, who advises the German government on global change issues. In Copenhagen a follow-up to the Kyoto protocol will be debated.The Synthesis Report summarises new knowledge that was presented at the congress "Climate Change: Global Risks, Challenges & Decisions" at the University of Copenhagen in March this year. Approximately 2500 people from nearly 80 countries attended the congress with over 1400 scientific presentations. "The bottom line is that limiting global warming to a manageable extent will require all our ingenuity for the climate-smart evolution of existing structures," says Schellnhuber. Yet large-scale transformational measures would also be needed.
The Synthesis Report can be found here (pdf!).
Even today's atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide are high enough to cause a global increase in temperature of between 2 and 2.4 degrees Celsius. "Drastic and immediate" emissions reductions would be "impossible," the paper, which was presented in Brussels on Thursday, argues. The concentration of these gases will thus continue to increase in upcoming decades. The researchers write: "An overshoot of the atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations needed to constrain global warming to 2 degrees Celsius is thus inevitable." The paper is 39 pages long and includes among its 12 authors Nicolas Stern, a London-based environmental economist, and Hans-Joachim Schellnhuber, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. The "Synthesis Report" summarizes the results of the Climate Change Congress that took place in Copenhagen in March -- an event which included roughly 2,500 participants and over 1,400 papers.
Even today's atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide are high enough to cause a global increase in temperature of between 2 and 2.4 degrees Celsius. "Drastic and immediate" emissions reductions would be "impossible," the paper, which was presented in Brussels on Thursday, argues. The concentration of these gases will thus continue to increase in upcoming decades. The researchers write: "An overshoot of the atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations needed to constrain global warming to 2 degrees Celsius is thus inevitable."
The paper is 39 pages long and includes among its 12 authors Nicolas Stern, a London-based environmental economist, and Hans-Joachim Schellnhuber, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. The "Synthesis Report" summarizes the results of the Climate Change Congress that took place in Copenhagen in March -- an event which included roughly 2,500 participants and over 1,400 papers.
