The NGST and the zodiacal light in the Solar system

We develop a physical model of the zodiacal cloud incorporating the real dust sources of asteroidal, cometary, and kuiperoidal origin. Using the inferred distribution of the zodiacal dust, we compute its thermal emission and scattering at several wavelengths (1.25, 5, and 20 $\mu$m) as a function of NGST location assumed to be at 1 AU or 3 AU. Areas on the sky with a minimum of zodiacal light are determined.Comment: 6 pages, incl. 2 colored figures, uses paspconf.sty. To be published in "The NGST Science and Technology Exposition" (eds. Eric P. Smith and Knox Long). Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 200

Investigating the development of the hemp processing industry in New York State

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) has emerged as an environmentally beneficial renewable resource due to its short growing cycle, carbon sequestration properties, and the medical applications of cannabidiol (CBD). All parts of the hemp plant can be used to produce products that are eco-friendly. New York State (NYS) has recently legalized production of hemp. Many farmers have obtained permits to grow hemp, but there has been a lack of hemp processors within the state who can turn raw hemp into hemp products. This research focuses on the lack of processing within the hemp market in NYS in order to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the industry as a whole. Through interviews with hemp growers, processors, and state-level politicians involved in creating hemp legislation, as well as review of existing data on the industry, this research will identify what actions are necessary, both in entrepreneurship and state legislation, to improve the conditions and efficiency of the hemp industry in the state. A more comprehensive analysis of the hemp industry from seed to product will allow for a more effective market, and subsequently, more eco-friendly products in the market for consumers to purchase and greater economic opportunity for producers and processors.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2021/1053/thumbnail.jp

Area preserving group actions on surfaces

Suppose G is an almost simple group containing a subgroup isomorphic to the three-dimensional integer Heisenberg group. For example any finite index subgroup of SL(3,Z) is such a group. The main result of this paper is that every action of G on a closed oriented surface by area preserving diffeomorphisms factors through a finite group.Comment: Published by Geometry and Topology at http://www.maths.warwick.ac.uk/gt/GTVol7/paper21.abs.htm

On the origin of extinction in the Coma cluster of galaxies

Visual extinction of distant clusters seen through the Coma cluster seem to suggest that dust may be present in the hot x ray emitting intracluster gas. However, the Infrared Astronomy Satellite (IRAS) failed to detect any infrared emission from the cluster at the level expected from the extinction measurements. Researchers carried out a detailed analysis of the properties of intracluster dust in the context of a model which includes continuous injection of dust by the cluster galaxies, grain destruction by sputtering, and transient grain heating by the hot plasma. Computed infrared fluxes are in agreement with the upper limit obtained from the IRAS. The calculations, and the constraint implied by the IRAS observations, suggest that the intracluster dust must be significantly depleted compared to interstellar abundances. Researchers discuss possible explanations for the discrepancy between the observed visual extinction and the IRAS upper limit

Is the Cosmic Microwave Background a Shell Around Us? or are the Microwaves Everywhere in the Universe?

A: The cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation fills the universe and travels in all directions. As we see it from here in satellite maps, it is about equally bright in all directions, and thats one of the main reasons we know its cosmic

Giving Birth to the James Webb Space Telescope: Part 1

In late October 1995, I found a remarkable message on my answering machine from Ed Weiler, then the Program Scientist for the Hubble Space Telescope. Would I work on the next generation space telescope, the successor to the beautiful HST? It took me mere moments to work out the answer: Of course! At the time, my work on the COsmic Background Explorer (COBE) was finished, I was writing a book about it (The Very First Light, with John Boslough), and I thought NASA might never do anything nearly as spectacular again. Wow, was I happy to be surprised by that call