h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

One famous charioteer was Pharaoh Tutankhamun, the 'boy king'. We know this because several chariots were found in his tomb, including one complete golden one, which now resides in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Clothing found in his tomb was demonstrated on a model in a TV documentary to show how his inner organs would have been protected whilst driving at speed, and in the event of an accident. Such speeds were only possible by horse-power over 3,300 years ago, and one-man chariots were used for hunting and racing. Pharaoh Tutankhamun would also have had a two-seater for himself and his wife, with his own personal driver. Because the king's leg bone was broken but had shown signs of repair, there are many today, including Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities Dr Zahi Hawass, who believe that Tutankhamun met his early death following an accident while driving his hunting chariot.

Thanks GB.

I've put the above in and added a couple of other items as suggested.

Hello Deke, I don't want to lose my temper in your PR thread so I'll just leave it up to you to decide whether you want to say "1st mag" or "first mag"

I found this:
http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/extra/brightest.html
<> by Chris Dolan whose work I use for reference in my own constellations, to prove I am not wrong

I've made the amendment on magnitudes to what I think is right. You may want to have a look at my comments on the PR thread.

I've also ajusted the Ripley bit.

Thanks

Canis Minor A31338993 ready to go, as soon as one of my two other constellations is picked from PR. There'll not be a dry eye in the house!

I've also taken on board Opti's comments about repetition, and reworded the meteor showers, and the stars intro.

For your modern culture section if you want it:

One of the most recogniseable small dogs is 'Nipper'. He's the HMV logo. The dog looking down the gramaphone horn. I only mention it because he was buried in a back garden in kingston, my home town. There's plenty on the net about him. The back garden is now a bank's car park.
http://www2.danbbs.dk/~erikoest/nipper.htm

That would make a good EG subject.

Grus the Crane.
A bit of a typo: >..south of the celestial equator known as the ecliptic.<<
You seem to be saying that the ecliptic and the celestial equator are the same thing. They aren't. The celestial equator is the Earth's equator 'projected' onto the sky. The ecliptic is the apparent path of the Sun through the sky and 'that' path is inclined to the CE at about 23'5 degrees.

It's because the Earth's axis is tilted by that same 23'5 degrees so the Sun appears to get higher in the sky during summer and lower in winter. If it wasn't for that tilt the ecliptic and the CE would be the same thing and the sun would always appear at the same height summer and winter. And there wouldn't be any seasons.

All donethanks Deke

I've written up my column to send it in early for Bel. Do you have anything to add? although, I want to send it off tonight,

I've mentioned the three super-Earth solar system found in Pictor (and also updated the Pictor constellation edited page with the full info, by the way) and also it's the anniversary of the Crab Nebula being spotted in 1054 (3/4 July) so I've written about that as well. Also next month Antares will be occulted by the Moon but only from very far down in the southern hemisphere but I'm trying not to be "Eurocentric" as Shagbark called me once.

The only thing I have ATM is that this is NASA's 50th birthday year. It was I think created in Nov 1958.

There's a sort of 50th photography entry going on which is requesting photographs featuring the No 50.

http://www.nasa.gov/50th/home/index.html

Would it be possible to be able to organise your photographers to find a photo that would be suitable as an entry from H2 ?

Otherwise not much else I m afraid.

You've probably got it already but Jupiter is big and bright in the early hours at the moment. It was stunning last night about 2 o/clock, although it is fairly low down in the SE.

I mentioned Jupiter last time. I'll certainly bookmark the NASA birthday for later in the year, but the Photographers club is separate from The Post, so I'll get that organised.

I can't stay up that late

I've just been watching their Featured Video- NASA 50 years of exploration. Fantastic! Try it.

I t would be great if h2 photogrophers could do something with that.

Quite fitting really.

I've downloaded the logo, but how do we photograph that? I don't understand

I don't really know but anyone who creats a picture could download it themselves, print it out and use it in the shot.

Or you could vote/pick the suitable picture and someone with a photo editor such as photoshop could lay it in.

Most of the postcards already sent seem to be of groups. Aren't you going to a meet sometime soon. Get a group photo with H2G2 somewhere in it and the NASA 50 can be incorporated in that.

My printer isn't working, so I don't know how I'll be able to do this, I might have a word with Moonhogg.

Canis Major and Columba are ready for submitting to PR tomorrow for my July quota. That's #59 and #60. I am ready to begin another, and am browsing my Atlas right now.

Are you still intending doing Carina, Vela and Puppis, or did that idea fall by the wayside? (I seem to recall it did)

I'd be happy to take Carina next, if you don't mind, but if you've already begun it, no problem

Yes I've got behind with this. I've done some constructive work on it but nothing I could put up at the moment. I had intended to do the three together (Actually there's four) but I can't get it together without it becoming much too big and unmanageable.

It probably would be best to do them individually. So if you'd like to do Carina, go ahead and we'll treat them all as separate cases.

The only problem as I see it, is that there will be a lot of repetition in the intro bit, which is what I was trying to avoid. That's going to be unavoidable but we may be able to get around it by you doing two and me the other two and each doing the intro individually.

Re the NASA postcard thing.

Another way might be if you took a group photo at your meet and let me have a copy. I've got Photoshop and I could possibly get the photo and logo together and send it on.

I'm still learning the ropes with PS but I should be able to manage that. Or if I can't I know someone who might help.

I guess you should let them know what the photo's for in case there's any objections though.

What do you think of my two little additions to Auriga by the way.

Do you think dragging Star Wars in is a bit too much?

What's the 4th?

Carina, Puppis, Vela, ?