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#usra major
idkman46 · 1 year
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Finally got the fuckers
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raayllum · 2 years
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So with the new art of Aaravos in mind, let’s talk about stars, skits, and foreshadowing
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It seems to be child Aaravos, gathered around stars. Now, most of what we know about stars were jokes included in the “Written in the Stars” skit from a comic con in 2019, where Callum (Jack de Sena) and Rayla (Paula Burrows) stargazed together their first night in Xadia, discussing different constellations between their cultures. It is adorable, and you should watch this animatic of it right now if you haven’t already, and even if you have.
Rayla talks about Garlaf ruling the night sky (with his merciless boot of crushing), Callum talks a baby banther mama banther constellation that’s clearly an Usra major / minor reference. (Perhaps Garlaf is a famous Moonshadow or Startouch elf of old?) But most notably, Callum references something called the South Star, a parody of the north star. What he says is this:
“What about that? Brightest star in the sky. A single point of light. We call it the South Star. Humans used it to navigate, you know, to find their way in the endless darkness of the night.”
Why does this matter? Well, Rayla has been consistently associated with light - not just moonlight - with Callum in her framing and in their dynamic, mostly notably in season one and season two. There is also the general theme of them being Truthtellers for each other, helping them see through the illusions they held concerning each other: Rayla to shame and murder, Callum to self worth and magic. Callum’s arc with magic and how it pertains to Rayla is also very interesting, because of the way magic (and an arcanum specifically) is defined as a Spark, like fire, the tiniest flicker of a primal source inside you.
The framing below because it is also consistent, but more specific examples to show:
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[Callum walking out of the dark and into the light after his date with Claudia / now that he knows the truth, but Rayla could’ve been in darkness to signify his mood. Instead, she’s in the light (and her white hair) because although shattered, their relationship and her presence in his life is the Truth, and what ultimately helps him deal with the truth]
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[More lighting and Rayla turning him towards her, toward the sun]
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Which is to say, if the South Star is the Xadian equivalent of the North Star, something that Rayla comments as being like poetry (poetry clearly being important in the world of TDP, as the only information we have about Startouch elves at all are in two poems), well... Let’s look at the associations we typically have with the North Star and see if they match up, shall we?
The North Star is the anchor of the northern sky. It is a landmark, or sky marker, that helps those who follow it determine direction as it glows brightly to guide and lead toward a purposeful destination. It also has a symbolic meaning, for the North Star depicts a beacon of inspiration and hope to many.
So despite being an inverse in name, the South Star holds the same meaning in TDP’s world that it holds in ours. But, you may be saying: this all seems like a Reach. A good natured little skit, a handful of screencaps, what does this all have to do with anything, really?
And I’m not saying it isn’t a reach, and that the majority of TDP’s cute little con skits aren’t just silly (they are), but there are two skits that have some loaded symbolism behind them.
At the SDCC in 2020 when we got the confirmation for the full saga, the entire voice cast at the time did two skits. One was a fairly silly DND skit, but Aaravos, notably, was DM, controlling the game and pushing the players forward. It’s easy to see the parallels to this in show, as currently, very few characters know Aaravos is even a player in the events that have happened in s2 and s3 in particular, and only two characters really know what he can do: Runaan (whose coined) and Viren, who was using it to his own advantage. And even then, there’s a lot Viren doesn’t know.
The more interesting and painful parallel, to me, is from the opening skit of the Zoom, initially just a play on the characters having to deal with the pandemic the way we would, facetiming, social distancing, etc. However, I just want to remind you that Through the Moon, where Rayla leaves Callum to hunt Viren down on her own, came out just a couple months before the con was released, and the writers absolutely knew it was a plot point. Which is to say, this?
Rayla: Hey guys. Long time no see Callum. Good to see you, from far, far away. Ezran: Wait a minute, you guys have the same background. Are you in the same place? Callum: Uh, nope! Nope. Totally different places, separate, far away locations. Ezran: Callum, I can see part of your scarf in Rayla’s background. You’re supposed to be distancing. Callum: Oh come on, it’s a big castle! There’s — there’s lots of distancing. Rayla: Not so much that we miss each other too much.
Can be seen as foreshadowing, because in canon they are far away from each other, there is going to be loads of distancing, and they’re definitely going to miss each other (way too much). So if one skit had meaning in a small way, and this skit has foreshadowing in a bigger way, and the show loves its one off jokes being rooted in lore, like the famous explorer Sir Phineas Cursed...
Rayla is hunting down Viren, Aaravos’ current ‘vessel’ / partner in crime (even if that may be on the outs in s4). Callum has Aaravos’ Key.
All of this is to say if the Written in the Stars skit is foreshadowing that Callum and Rayla will become entangled with Aaravos’ plotline by S4’s end, and that Rayla is Callum’s chosen South Star and vice versa, to lead and help each other get through the dark times they’re going through... I will burst into tears and you can count on that.
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rwby-encrusted-blog · 6 months
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How does Emerald react to her developing feelings for the pair after spending time with Ren and Nora? Before and after the inevitable confession.
Oscar: You know, If you asked them They'd probably give it a chance with you.
Emerald: .. Who and What do you mean?
Oscar: Ren and Nora? You're clearly into them. Just ask if you can join!
Emerald: Psch! What? No! Him and Her? With Me? Nah. No. Don't be ridiculous!
Oscar: ...
~3 AM the Next day~
Emerald: *Bursting into his Room* OSCAR YOU WERE RIGHT!
Oscar: *Annoyed at the rude awakening*... can we please do this later? It's not even light out.
Emerald: I mean- like- Nora is so boldly loving, and kind, and Ren helped save us from Salem, and they're both so hot-
Oscar: *Sigh of Resignation*
~~~~~
Emerald: H-hey, can I talk to you guys for a minute?
Ren: Of course.
Nora: What's on your mind?
Emerald: Well, I-uh - I
Emerald: ... Ren, You saved me. Back in Atlas, alongside Oscar, and ... Yang and Jaune. I just wanted you to know I'm really thankful for that.
Emerald: Nora, You have been a lot to get used to. But since I've gotten used to you, I can't imagine waking up without you towering over me with that Big goofy grin.
Emerald: You both are so ... amazing and kind, and I - I know you both have been through a lot together, and I wouldn't want to intrude ...
Nora: Emerald, We would love if you joined us.
Emerald: What?
Ren: In Atlas my semblance evolved, and it allows me to see the emotions someone has. You've been swirling with pink when you think no one can see you looking at Nora and I. We decided to let you pursue us when you felt comfortable doing so.
Nora: So? Girlfriends? like, Girlfriends-Girlfriends?
Emerald: I like the sound of that. Girlfriends-Girlfriends, and Girlfirend-Boyfriend.
Nora: *Usra-Major Hugging Emerald* HAHA! I GOT TWO GREEN LOVES-
~~~~~
Ruby: ... I miss Penny. And Oscar.
~~~~~
Nora: *Crying tears* I- I can't believe it! I'm so lucky!
Emerald: *Gritting Teeth* Yep! I- Nora I can't Breathe!
Nora: *Setting Emerald Down* Sorry I'm just- I'm so-
Emerald: *Hugging Nora* Hey. It's okay. I love you.
Nora: *Gently Hugging back* I love you too.
Emerald: .. Get over here Ren.
Ren: *Joining the hug, kissing Emerald on the head* Thank you~
~~~~~ Oscar: Thank goodness. If I have to deal with any more pining, I'm throwing myself off the building.
Winter: Oh, good, I've beeen meaning to find you. I need assistance with Robyn-
Oscar: *Jumping with his aura Up* Nope!
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luxxsstuff · 2 months
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Sat in my garden tonight and I spotted Usra Major for the first time!! I'm reminded of stargazing on my camping trip in Aotearoa ❤️
What do you think is out there?
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(Marble Hill Campsite, Kawatiri Beach Westport, Lake Mahinapua)
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maybe-noun · 8 months
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النهاردة شوفت Arcturus، كانت جميلة أوي وبتذكرني بصديقة عزيزة عليا للغاية.
النجوم اللي على شكل حرف ال L هي ضمن consultation اسمها Usra Major أسماء النجوم فيها بالترتيب من فوق لتحت:
Alkaid
Mizar
Alioth
Megrez
Phecda
Merac
Dubhe
على شمالهم هنلاقي Arcturus ألمع نجمة حولهم، وهي بتكون ضمن consultation اسمها Bootis.
كل ده بيأكد لي صغري وضآلتي قصاد الكون الكبير ده، الحمد لله الذي علّم بالقلم علّم الإنسان ما لم يعلم.
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orristea · 2 years
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Ursa Major/ the big bear saying hello! 
This is just a little story concept ive been playing with for a while. A children’s book maybe some time? who knows!
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marvel-dc-art · 3 years
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Avengers v8 #46 (2021) pencil & ink by Javier Garrón color by David Curiel
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halfelven · 4 years
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Ursa Major
anonymous request from the beginning of this month. This took forever because I’ve never written a full au like this before and I kept changing my mind about things! anyway, here’s the fellowship in a university setting with Legolas and Elrohir together! can be read on ao3 here
(no real warnings. there’s some alcohol consumption. Elrohir struggles with depression.)
chapter one: conclusion is the worst paragraph 
Friday
Elrohir wakes up still feeling tired. It’s cloudy outside, so the room is dark, and he doesn’t know what time it is. He reaches for his phone, worried about sleeping through his alarm, before remembering that he has a day off and didn’t set an alarm. It’s noon, which is fine. He rolls out of bed and opens the curtains.
The sky is dark, and the rain comes down in streaks over the window. The world is just the colours of the brick houses and trees outside his window.
‘Ugh, I don’t wanna finish this essay,’ Legolas grumbles. He’s been awake for a few hours, finishing an essay for theatre class. He lays his head on his desk. ‘I hate it.’
‘So take a break,’ Elrohir says. He pours a glass of cold green tea.
‘It’s due tonight,’ Legolas complains.
‘Boo.’ Elrohir pulls his hair up into a ponytail and goes into the bathroom to wash up.
Legolas is staring out the window when he comes back.
‘I’m never going to finish it,’ Legolas whines. ‘And I’m going to fail...’
‘Tragic.’
Elrohir gets out cold pizza for lunch. He leans against the counter, looking across the small space of their studio apartment at the rain. He hopes that it will keep up pouring like this. The sound of it is comforting.
‘You don’t even care,’ Legolas says.
‘I care.’
‘You don’t.’
‘I care.’ Elrohir checks his phone.
‘Evil!’ Legolas cries.
‘So dramatic,’ Elrohir says.
‘I’m not dramatic, you’re dramatic.’ Legolas flips his hair.
‘Maybe we’re both dramatic.’ Elrohir drops down on the bed. He flings one leg over the other.
‘Ugh, I hate it.’ Legolas glares at his laptop.
‘Then don’t write it.’
‘It’s almost done anyway,’ Legolas grumbles. ‘I just have to take out all the swearing.’
Elrohir laughs.
‘Please submit it with the swearing!’
‘You don’t even love me.’ Legolas shakes his head.
‘Of course not.’
‘Conclusion is the worst paragraph,’ Legolas says a few minutes later. He pops a gummy bear in his mouth.
‘Just summarise what you said.’
‘That’s easy for you to say,’ Legolas says. ‘You always know what you say. I just write what I’m feeling.’
‘I feel sorry for your teacher,’ Elrohir remarks.
Legolas nods.
‘Okay, I’m saving a clean copy. Come check it for me?’
Elrohir bends over Legolas and wraps his arms around his shoulders. He smells the clean scent of his strawberry face wash as he presses his face to Legolas’s cheek.
‘Mmm. You really do just write whatever you’re feeling.’
‘I’m too pretty for school.’ Legolas feeds Elrohir a gummy bear.
Elrohir laughs lightly. He smells his cheek, his hair.
‘It looks okay. Just make sure you send this copy and not the angry one.’
‘He deserves the other one though,’ Legolas mutters. ‘Making me write essays...’
‘Uh huh.’
‘I’m sending it in!’ Legolas sings. ‘I don’t care if it’s due on midnight and I could edit it because I am done! I am done! And I never want to see it again!’
‘Mhm.’ Elrohir kisses the corner of his lips. He takes his glass and makes his way around the room, watering the plants that need to be watered. The fig tree reaches up to the ceiling. Its leaves brush against the glow in the dark stars stuck along the ceiling. Elrohir sings gently to the plants as he waters them.
Legolas smiles over his shoulder at him.
‘You’re in a good mood again,’ Elrohir says.
‘Because I’m done,’ Legolas says. ‘And I don’t have to write that essay ever again!’
‘Yeah, let’s hope he passes you.’ Elrohir finishes watering the plants.
‘Awful.’
The light in the room changes as the rain lets up a little and the clouds shift. Elrohir leans against the wide windowsill and traces his fingers over the raindrops that slide down the pane.
‘I submitted it,’ Legolas announces. He springs up. ‘Do you want wine?’
‘Okay.’
It’s the middle of the day, but Legolas just finished his last essay for the semester, and neither of them have anywhere to go. Besides, it’s raining.
They drink the white wine while the rain comes down hard again and the record turns in the player. Legolas rests his head on Elrohir’s shoulder. He’s relaxed now, apparently not worried about the essay or the class any longer. Elrohir traces the freckles on Legolas’s arm, connecting constellations out of them.
‘The great bear,’ he says of one.
Legolas lifts Elrohir’s hand and kisses it.
‘I like how you see stars in everything.’
Elrohir presses his face against Legolas’s hair. He’s sad, and he doesn’t know why. Maybe it’s the song, or the rain, or the heaviness of the wine on him when he’s still tired. Maybe it’s because this moment is so perfect, and he already misses it even though it isn’t over, because maybe it will never happen again, and even if it does, it will still be different.
‘Love you,’ he whispers.
Legolas gazes up at him, and he kisses him slowly while the rain swims against the glass making the silver light from behind the clouds flicker over the room, so soft it could already be a memory.
‘Don’t be sad,’ Legolas whispers. ‘Please, don’t be sad already.’
Elrohir touches his cheek. He traces the freckles there too. Legolas smiles. He’s life itself. He is filled with dreams and joy and the constant need to explore and learn.
‘I don’t know what you’re afraid of,’ Legolas says.
‘I don’t know either,’ Elrohir says. He can’t explain his mood. There’s a tightness in his chest, and it creeps up into his throat. He could cry. He could really cry here, on such a perfect afternoon, and he doesn’t even have a reason.
Legolas brushes his thumb under Elrohir’s eye. Elrohir smiles at him. He takes Legolas’s hand and kisses it, across his knuckles, across the back of his hand.
Legolas smiles, and he leans forward, and his eyes glow with the joy of life that he always manages to find, no matter what happens. Elrohir wishes he could be happy like him.
He is happy now, happy in that way that makes his heart beat a little faster because it’s like an adventure every day with Legolas. He kisses him, and the record skips but then plays on.
Sunday
Legolas spends the weekend at Elrohir’s family house, like they usually do. Aragorn and Arwen are there also, along with some of their friends. It’s a pretty big house, and everyone is always welcome.
Sunday morning, Legolas gets up bright and early and goes to make everyone pancakes. Maybe Legolas is the most annoying person in the universe (if you ask Gimli on a bad day), but he makes good pancakes. He puts on his music and sings along as he goes about the kitchen.
Aragorn walks in, half asleep, brown waves a mess around his head. He points a finger at Legolas.
'Headphones. Use them.'
Legolas pauses in his pancake making. ‘What? Why?’
'No one else wants to be awake yet.'
‘I’m making food for you!’
'Leave the batter. And turn your music down.'
‘Fine!’ Legolas sings. He flashes a peace sign at Aragorn.
Aragorn rolls his eyes.
Legolas puts on headphones, and Aragorn goes back to bed.
*
When Elrohir wakes up, there is pancake batter in the fridge and ‘Y’ALL ARE BORING’ written on the whiteboard on the fridge.
Legolas is missing.
Underneath ‘Y’ALL ARE BORING’ is another note: went for a run :)
Elrohir stretches. Legolas is so cute and silly.
Celebrían comes in in her silk dressing gown, which is covered with flowers and little birds.
‘Good morning, Mum,’ Elrohir says. ‘Legolas made pancake batter.’
‘That’s sweet of him,’ Celebrían says. She kisses Elrohir. ‘Good morning, darling.’
She reads the note.
‘He has a lot of energy.’
Legolas skips in in a tank top and sweatpants.
‘Morning, sleepies!’
'Morning,' Elrohir murmurs.
Legolas slides his shoes off and skips off to shower. Elrohir follows up the stairs after him.
Elrohir passes Aragorn’s room. Aragorn is doing push-ups with Frodo and Merry’s little Pippin on his back. Pippin waves at Elrohir. He’s still in high school, but he hangs out with them a lot.
‘Show off,’ Elrohir calls to Aragorn.
Legolas is already in the shower, singing of course. Elrohir goes in and leans against the sink. He yawns.
Legolas’s hair is all suddy.
‘Can I join you?’ Elrohir asks.
‘Uh huh.’
Legolas rinses his hair.
Elrohir gets in with him.
‘Cute ass.’
‘Thank you!’
Elrohir smacks it gently.
‘You’re awful!’ Legolas chides, sounding not at all horrified.
‘Sure, babe.’
*
Elrond is cooking the pancakes when they get downstairs.
‘Thank you for making the batter, Legolas,’ he says.
‘Mhm,’ Legolas says. ‘Aragorn doesn’t appreciate it though.’
‘I don’t appreciate you playing music when I’m trying to sleep,’ Aragorn says. ‘So there.’
‘Aragorn’s grumpy,’ Legolas says.
‘Grumpy when I’m tired,’ Aragorn says.
Elladan comes in wearing one of Elrond’s paint shirts. He wraps his arms around Legolas from behind. ‘He’s always tired.’
Legolas giggles.
‘I’m stealing your boyfriend,’ Elladan tells Elrohir.
‘Go ahead, I need a break.’ Elrohir pours tea.
‘Ouch,’ says Arwen. She’s sitting on Aragorn’s lap, because of course she is. ‘That’s harsh.’
Gimli comes in, yawning, and Legolas ducks out of Elladan’s arms to give him a hug.
‘Morning, Gimli!’
Celebrían wraps her arms around Elrohir and rests her chin on his shoulder.
‘My baby.’
‘Are you working today, Mum?’
‘No, because your grandfather isn’t.’ Celebrían tugs gently on Elrohir’s hair. ‘Cute.’
Elrohir shifts them so that he can put his chin on top of her head. He watches Legolas skip around the kitchen, passing plates to people to eat. He loves how happy he is. He wishes he could be that happy all the time. He catches Legolas’s eye and blows him a kiss with two fingers.
Monday
‘Okay, so what did I miss?’ Elrohir slides into the seat next to Legolas halfway through class.
‘Shh!’ Arwen whacks her brother gently.
Elrohir shrugs. He slides his backpack onto the floor next to the bag with his wet rubber boots. He’s late because he was in the book arts studio, making paper, and it took longer than he’d anticipated. You can’t just leave paper. Anyway, it’s not like he doesn’t know history already. It’s one of his father’s favourite subjects, and he hasn’t come across anything in this required class that he hasn’t learned before. He steals Legolas’s notes anyway. Nothing jumps out to him though.
Legolas pecks Elrohir on the cheek because they’re that couple.
Elrohir tries to concentrate on the class, but his mind keeps wandering. He’s not good at sitting still, and the fluorescent lights are too bright and hurt his head. There are too many people breathing to pay attention. He shifts, slouching lower in his seat, and wraps his moss green scarf around his head to dim some of the lights and noise. He prefers making paper or being out at sea, wading through the tides, or on a boat, observing the world there where it’s quieter. He wants to take a study abroad semester to the remotest place in the world he can.
He squeezes Legolas’s hand underneath the desk.
‘I have to go to the toilet.’
Elrohir doesn’t go to the toilet. He leaves the class and hurries down the stairs and out the building. He runs around the building twice and then hurries back up the stairs and into class. He takes his seat again and secures his scarf safely around his head. He sips water at regular intervals until it’s over and they can all go to lunch.
*
Gimli catches up with them on their way to lunch. He’s a graduate student, which he says makes him busier than all of them, but he seems to spend most of his time staring into space and sighing deeply. This is of course, working, Gimli has explained, as he is studying philosophy, and a lot of the work is thinking. Elrohir doesn’t quite believe him, but he also never disputes him, because Gimli’s second favourite hobby is arguing. Elrohir doesn’t know what his favourite hobby is, but Legolas says it changes, so he’s probably right.
Elladan runs up to them. He kisses both his siblings.
‘I only have ten minutes before my next class,’ he says, walking backwards to talk to them. ‘But I wanted to make sure that we’re on for tonight.’
‘Yeah, we’re coming to your place,’ Legolas says.
‘Okay, amazing, I love you, bye!’ Elladan runs off.
The others make their way down the hill and off campus, and cross the bridge to their favourite café.
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nasa · 3 years
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Amazing Earth: Satellite Images from 2020
In the vastness of the universe, the life-bringing beauty of our home planet shines bright. During this tumultuous year, our satellites captured some pockets of peace, while documenting data and striking visuals of unprecedented natural disasters. As 2020 comes to a close, we’re diving into some of the devastation, wonders, and anomalies this year had to offer. 
NASA’s fleet of Earth-observing satellites and instruments on the International Space Station unravel the complexities of the blue marble from a cosmic vantage point. These robotic scientists orbit our globe constantly, monitoring and notating changes, providing crucial information to researchers here on the ground. 
Take a glance at 2020 through the lens of NASA satellites:
 A Delta Oasis in Southeastern Kazakhstan
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Seen from space, the icy Ili River Delta contrasts sharply with the beige expansive deserts of southeastern Kazakhstan.
When the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8 acquired this natural-color image on March 7, 2020, the delta was just starting to shake off the chill of winter. While many of the delta’s lakes and ponds were still frozen, the ice on Lake Balkhash was breaking up, revealing swirls of sediment and the shallow, sandy bed of the western part of the lake.
The expansive delta and estuary is an oasis for life year round. Hundreds of plant and animal species call it home, including dozens that are threatened or endangered. 
Fires and Smoke Engulf Southeastern Australia
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A record-setting and deadly fire season marred the beginning of the year in Australia. Residents of the southeastern part of the country told news media about daytime seeming to turn to night, as thick smoke filled the skies and intense fires drove people from their homes. 
This natural-color image of Southeastern Australia was acquired on January 4, 2020, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite. The smoke has a tan color, while clouds are bright white. It is likely that some of the white patches above the smoke are pyrocumulonimbus clouds—clouds created by the convection and heat rising from a fire.
Nighttime Images Capture Change in China
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A team of scientists from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and Universities Space Research Association (USRA) detected signs of the shutdown of business and transportation around Hubei province in central China. As reported by the U.S. State Department, Chinese authorities suspended air, road, and rail travel in the area and placed restrictions on other activities in late January 2020 in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in the region.
A research team analyzed images of Earth at night to decipher patterns of energy use, transportation, migration, and other economic and social activities. Data for the images were acquired with the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the NOAA–NASA Suomi NPP satellite (launched in 2011) and processed by GSFC and USRA scientists. VIIRS has a low-light sensor—the day/night band—that measures light emissions and reflections. This capability has made it possible to distinguish the intensity, types, and sources of lights and to observe how they change.
The Parched Paraná River
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Though a seemingly serene oasis from above, there is more to this scene than meets the eye. On July 3, 2020, the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8 captured this false-color image of the river near Rosario, a key port city in Argentina. The combination of shortwave infrared and visible light makes it easier to distinguish between land and water. A prolonged period of unusually warm weather and drought in southern Brazil, Paraguay, and northern Argentina dropped the Paraná River to its lowest water levels in decades. The parched river basin has hampered shipping and contributed to an increase in fire activity in the delta and floodplain.
The drought has affected the region since early 2020, and low water levels have grounded several ships, and many vessels have had to reduce their cargo in order to navigate the river. With Rosario serving as the distribution hub for much of Argentina’s soy and other farm exports, low water levels have caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses for the grain sector, according to news reports.
Historic Fires Devastate the U.S. Pacific Coast
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Climate and fire scientists have long anticipated that fires in the U.S. West would grow larger, more intense, and more dangerous. But even the most experienced among them have been at a loss for words in describing the scope and intensity of the fires burning in West Coast states during September 2020.
Lightning initially triggered many of the fires, but it was unusual and extreme meteorological conditions that turned some of them into the worst conflagrations in the region in decades. 
Throughout the outbreak, sensors like the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) and the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) on the NOAA-NASA Suomi NPP satellite collected daily images showing expansive, thick plumes of aerosol particles blowing throughout the U.S. West on a scale that satellites and scientists rarely see. 
This image shows North America on September 9th, 2020, as a frontal boundary moved into the Great Basin and produced very high downslope winds along the mountains of Washington, Oregon, and California. The winds whipped up the fires, while a pyrocumulus cloud from the Bear fire in California injected smoke high into the atmosphere. The sum of these events was an extremely thick blanket of smoke along the West Coast.
The Sandy Great Bahama Bank
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Though the bright blues of island waters are appreciated by many from a sea-level view, their true beauty is revealed when photographed from space. The underwater masterpiece photographed above is composed of sand dunes off the coast of the Bahamas. 
The Great Bahama Bank was dry land during past ice ages, but it slowly submerged as sea levels rose. Today, the bank is covered by water, though it can be as shallow as two meters (seven feet) deep in places. The wave-shaped ripples in the image are sand on the seafloor. The curves follow the slopes of the dunes, which were likely shaped by a fairly strong current near the sea bottom. Sand and seagrass are present in different quantities and depths, giving the image it’s striking range of blues and greens.
This image was captured on February 15th, 2020, by Landsat 8, whose predecessor, Landsat 7, was the first land-use satellite to take images over coastal waters and the open ocean. Today, many satellites and research programs map and monitor coral reef systems, and marine scientists have a consistent way to observe where the reefs are and how they are faring. 
Painting Pennsylvania Hills
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Along with the plentiful harvest of crops in North America, one of the gifts of Autumn is the gorgeous palette of colors created by the chemical transition and fall of leaves from deciduous trees. 
The folded mountains of central Pennsylvania were past peak leaf-peeping season but still colorful when the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on the Landsat 8 satellite passed over on November 9, 2020. The natural-color image above shows the hilly region around State College, Pennsylvania overlaid on a digital elevation model to highlight the topography of the area.
The region of rolling hills and valleys is part of a geologic formation known as the Valley and Ridge Province that stretches from New York to Alabama. These prominent folds of rock were mostly raised up during several plate tectonic collisions and mountain-building episodes in the Ordovician Period and later in the creation of Pangea—when what is now North America was connected with Africa in a supercontinent. Those events created the long chain of the Appalachians, one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world. 
A Dangerous Storm in the Night
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Ominous and looming, a powerful storm hovered off the US coastline illuminated against the dark night hues. 
The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on NOAA-20 acquired this image of Hurricane Laura at 2:20 a.m. Central Daylight Time on August 26, 2020. Clouds are shown in infrared using brightness temperature data, which is useful for distinguishing cooler cloud structures from the warmer surface below. That data is overlaid on composite imagery of city lights from NASA’s Black Marble dataset.
Hurricane Laura was among the ten strongest hurricanes to ever make landfall in the United States. Forecasters had warned of a potentially devastating storm surge up to 20 feet along the coast, and the channel might have funneled that water far inland. It did not. The outcome was also a testament to strong forecasting and communication by the National Hurricane Center and local emergency management authorities in preparing the public for the hazards.
A Windbreak Grid in Hokkaido
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From above, the Konsen Plateau in eastern Hokkaido offers a remarkable sight: a massive grid that spreads across the rural landscape like a checkerboard, visible even under a blanket of snow. Photographed by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8, this man-made design is not only aesthetically pleasing, it’s also an agricultural insulator. 
The strips are forested windbreaks—180-meter (590-foot) wide rows of coniferous trees that help shelter grasslands and animals from Hokkaido’s sometimes harsh weather. In addition to blocking winds and blowing snow during frigid, foggy winters, they help prevent winds from scattering soil and manure during the warmer months in this major dairy farming region of Japan. 
Shadows from a Solar Eclipse
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Formidable, rare, and awe-inspiring — the first and only total solar eclipse of 2020 occurred on December 14, with the path of totality stretching from the equatorial Pacific to the South Atlantic and passing through southern Argentina and Chile as shown in the lower half of the image above. The Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) on Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 16 (GOES-16) captured these images of the Moon’s shadow crossing the face of Earth. 
The “path of totality” (umbral path) for the eclipse was roughly 90 kilometers (60 miles) wide and passed across South America from Saavedra, Chile, to Salina del Eje, Argentina. While a total eclipse of the Sun occurs roughly every 18 months, seeing one from any particular location on Earth is rare. On average, a solar eclipse passes over the same parcel of land roughly every 375 years. The next total solar eclipse will occur on December 4, 2021 over Antarctica, and its next appearance over North America is projected for April 8, 2024.
For additional information and a look at more images like these visit NASA’s Earth Observatory.  
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.
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This is what it looks like when a black hole snacks on a star University of Arizona astronomers documented a fatal encounter between an unlucky star and an intermediate-mass black hole While black holes and toddlers don't seem to have much in common, they are remarkably similar in one aspect: Both are messy eaters, generating ample evidence that a meal has taken place. But whereas one might leave behind droppings of pasta or splatters of yogurt, the other creates an aftermath of mind-boggling proportions. When a black hole gobbles up a star, it produces what astronomers call a "tidal disruption event." The shredding of the hapless star is accompanied by an outburst of radiation that can outshine the combined light of every star in the black hole's host galaxy for months, even years. In a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal, a team of astronomers led by Sixiang Wen, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Arizona Steward Observatory, use the X-rays emitted by a tidal disruption event known as J2150 to make the first measurements of both the black hole's mass and spin. This black hole is of a particular type – an intermediate-mass black hole – which has long eluded observation. "The fact that we were able to catch this black hole while it was devouring a star offers a remarkable opportunity to observe what otherwise would be invisible," said Ann Zabludoff, UArizona professor of astronomy and co-author on the paper. "Not only that, by analyzing the flare we were able to better understand this elusive category of black holes, which may well account for the majority of black holes in the centers of galaxies." By re-analyzing the X-ray data used to observe the J2150 flare, and comparing it with sophisticated theoretical models, the authors showed that this flare did indeed originate from an encounter between an unlucky star and an intermediate-mass black hole. The intermediate black hole in question is of particularly low mass – for a black hole, that is – weighing in at roughly 10,000 times the mass of the sun. "The X-ray emissions from the inner disk formed by the debris of the dead star made it possible for us to infer the mass and spin of this black hole and classify it as an intermediate black hole," Wen said. Dozens of tidal disruption events have been seen in the centers of large galaxies hosting supermassive black holes, and a handful have also been observed in the centers of small galaxies that might contain intermediate black holes. However, past data has never been detailed enough to prove that an individual tidal disruption flare was powered by an intermediate black hole. "Thanks to modern astronomical observations, we know that the centers of almost all galaxies that are similar to or larger in size than our Milky Way host central supermassive black holes," said study co-author Nicholas Stone, a senior lecturer at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. "These behemoths range in size from 1 million to 10 billion times the mass of our sun, and they become powerful sources of electromagnetic radiation when too much interstellar gas falls into their vicinity." The mass of these black holes correlates closely with the total mass of their host galaxies; the largest galaxies host the largest supermassive black holes. "We still know very little about the existence of black holes in the centers of galaxies smaller than the Milky Way," said co-author Peter Jonker of Radboud University and SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, both in the Netherlands. "Due to observational limitations, it is challenging to discover central black holes much smaller than 1 million solar masses." Despite their presumed abundance, the origins of supermassive black holes remain unknown, and many different theories currently vie to explain them, according to Jonker. Intermediate-mass black holes could be the seeds from which supermassive black holes grow. "Therefore, if we get a better handle of how many bona fide intermediate black holes are out there, it can help determine which theories of supermassive black hole formation are correct," he said. Even more exciting, according to Zabludoff, is the measurement of J2150's spin that the group was able to obtain. The spin measurement holds clues as to how black holes grow, and possibly to particle physics. This black hole has a fast spin, but not the fastest possible spin, Zabludoff explained, begging the question of how the black hole ends up with a spin in this range. "It's possible that the black hole formed that way and hasn't changed much since, or that two intermediate-mass black holes merged recently to form this one," she said. "We do know that the spin we measured excludes scenarios where the black hole grows over a long time from steadily eating gas or from many quick gas snacks that arrive from random directions." In addition, the spin measurement allows astrophysicists to test hypotheses about the nature of dark matter, which is thought to make up most of the matter in the universe. Dark matter may consist of unknown elementary particles not yet seen in laboratory experiments. Among the candidates are hypothetical particles known as ultralight bosons, Stone explained. "If those particles exist and have masses in a certain range, they will prevent an intermediate-mass black hole from having a fast spin," he said. "Yet J2150’s black hole is spinning fast. So, our spin measurement rules out a broad class of ultralight boson theories, showcasing the value of black holes as extraterrestrial laboratories for particle physics." In the future, new observations of tidal disruption flares might let astronomers fill in the gaps in the black hole mass distribution, the authors hope. "If it turns out that most dwarf galaxies contain intermediate-mass black holes, then they will dominate the rate of stellar tidal disruption," Stone said. "By fitting the X-ray emission from these flares to theoretical models, we can conduct a census of the intermediate-mass black hole population in the universe," Wen added. To do that, however, more tidal disruption events have to be observed. That's why astronomers hold high hopes for new telescopes coming online soon, both on Earth and in space, including the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, also known as the Legacy Survey of Space and Time, or LSST, which is expected to discover thousands of tidal disruption events per year. This research was supported by grants from NASA and the U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation. IMAGE....When a star ventures too close to a black hole, gravitational forces create intense tides that break the star apart into a stream of gas, resulting in a cataclysmic phenomenon known as a tidal disruption event. Tremendous amounts of energy are released, causing a tidal disruption to outshine its galaxy in some cases. CREDIT NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Chris Smith (USRA/GESTAR)
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planet-crait · 4 years
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A Saltier analysis of the Art of Star Wars Rebels (Part 2)
So…..after my initial post you can find here more issues with the book where pointed out to me/I just sat looking through it noticing even more issues so….consider this a part two to my original post going over even more issues I have with the Art of Star Wars Rebels. Obviously there will be salt so if you enjoyed the book a lot and don’t want that view tainted please don’t click on below the cut. Also beware major spoilers for Rebels. 
So first off we’re going to kick off with talking about some items that were very strangely missing from the book. Now full disclosure @findswoman​ really was the one who noticed this issue but it seriously deserves mention and I am stunned I missed it but, why are Loth cats and Loth Bats not ever mentioned in the book? 
Loth Cats are a near constant presence within the series, they play some minor roles even in destroying a droid and helping distract guards. Loth bats similarly inspire the gliders that the kids use to rescue Hera! Said gliders make it into the book
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Why aren’t the loth bats, the inspiration for said gliders, even in the book as well?
Another potentially controversial criticism I have is for the cover for the deluxe edition itself. 
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Some people may love it which is fair but personally I am not as fond of it as I am of the original cover. I get that they were trying to get a feel of the holocron in the cover but it just doesn’t vibe with me at all and I feel like they could have done something more special for the deluxe cover. 
Speaking of holocrons, they do not get a proper showcase within the art book. Here is the page where it is mentioned and notice how it talks about the map, not the holocron itself. 
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Hell, you barely see it in the image in the book! Why? The holocrons are a big deal in the show, why are they not getting showcased when items that only make an appearance in one episode do? Even if other media showed off the holocrons, this is the art of Star Wars Rebels, if it was important to the show, it deserved a place in the book. Instead they waste space on things that were not important or even really shown in the show. Like Tatooine gets two full pages in the book:
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Some of those images almost look like shots from Episode 4 which brings back the question of what the heck is this doing here? (Which I found myself asking way too much when looking through this book). Again this book should be a celebration of Rebels, not all of Star Wars. Those pages could have been used to show off key elements from the show that for unknown reasons got cut from the book. 
There is just a lot of what feels like filler or wasted space in the book, for example Rex, Obi-wan, Vader, Yoda, Bo-Katan and Palpatine get two pages devoted to their characters while other main characters from the show get only one page or only half a page like in Choppers case. Zeb, Kallus, and Hera also all do not get their alternate season designs shown off in the book while Kanan, Sabine and Ezra do. Hell Rex even got an extra half a page to show off designs that never made it into the show and seemingly only exists to push Filoni’s headcanon that Rex was there with Han Solo. 
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Why are the main characters not allowed to be the unashamed stars of this book? Why did the editors feel the need to waste space with characters who are not the stars and have their spot to shine in other media? Original characters for this show should get full and multiple pages for their characters, not characters who have appeared in other media and probably appear in other art books. 
If other side characters like Tristen and Usra Wren or Ketsun where getting these full or two pages I wouldn’t be quiet as annoyed because they are all original characters for the show, but those characters only got half a page while again, characters from other media like Saw and Mon Motha got a full page. I will say this until I am blue in the face but the original characters created specifically for Rebels should have been the true stars of this book, instead they are getting gypped and the short end of the stick while other characters the team thinks is more popular are given the spotlight. (I am not showing the pictures because, as is, this post is getting ridiculously long but I will happily share them in a reblog if anyone wants to see this).
They even included characters who never appeared in the show in the book
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This is the very definition of wasted space. This page could have been used for undercover Chopper designs or season 3 or 4 of Hera and Zeb designs or one of the many many things that never made an appearance in the book that by all accounts should have been like Kanan’s lightsaber or Zeb’s bo-rifle. Instead we get stuff of Director Krennic.
Even things that had their fair share of content, still managed to miss the mark in some cases. 
The Ghost in total has about six pages devoted to it which even includes concept art for it that was never used which is not a problem at all. In fact I love that! This is what I bought the book for, to see concepts and art for things that were at some point going to be in the show but were cut for one reason or another. The book would have benefited if it contained way more concept art for things like this like for example what Filoni imagined Lasan to look like or other concept designs for Zeb or hell talk about Kallus’s early days when he was originally a Chiss. Interesting stuff like that which wasn’t explored in the show but still exciting and interesting. 
My big issue with the Ghost sections (yes sections) is that instead of putting everything related to the Ghost together for some reason the pages are split into two different sections within the book. 
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(Don’t ask my why they decided to throw concept art of the millennium falcon to go with that little tidbit instead of more concept art for the Ghost, just know this is on my shitlist too)
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These are pages 48 through 51 of the book. The next time the Ghost appears is way later near the end of the book
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Pages 150 and 151! Some of the split concepts for things can be explained by the fact that the book is split into several sections: Beginning, middle, and end of the show. However this does not give a satisfactory explanation as to why the Ghost’s concept art is split across two sections and not even evenly! Why not put all of the information for the Ghost all together in one section so if someone was looking for something specifically for reference or something they don’t have to look through the whole book to find it because the info is all over the place?  Directly following the later pages is the Phantom II so maybe the logic was they didn’t want to just toss the Phantom in without any other context? Which….doesn’t work cuz the Ghost honestly feels thrown in for no real reason. The Phantom II being separated from the Ghost and The Phantom would have been fine because the Phantom does come in later so it being in the section devoted to later parts of the series would have been fine. 
Of course, I can’t really say there is a section for the Phantom, that one image you saw back on page 50? That is the only reference the original Phantom ,something that was in the show for two seasons, get’s. One image and maybe a second but it feels more like an image of the back of the Ghost and not one of the Phantom. Meanwhile the Phantom II get’s two pages entirely to itself. Why the difference? Both ships were in the series for two seasons, why not some images of the inside of the Phantom or more shots from different angles? Why does only the Phantom II get these?
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I really cannot fathom why they skimped out on one ship and gave two pages to another when both had equal importance. 
Now I mentioned before that the layout of the book may have influenced the decision to split the pages talking about the Ghost, but personally I am not a fan of the layout of the book. It makes things confusing and doesn’t flow well. Here is the table of contents:
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At a glance this seems fine and a nice nod to the series having four seasons, but notice there are no sub categories like textbooks that have key concepts in the chapter and what page they start on. So if you wanted to focus on character models? You would still have to spend a lot of time flipping through the sections to find what you were looking for. Personally I would have rather the book be divided by content: Characters, props, and environments. That way all things that are alike would all be group together instead of broken up into four sections across the book. Of course other art books could be laid out like this and people may like this method. This particular point is a bit more nitpicky and me being a person who was far more interested in character concept art then anything else. 
I briefly touched upon this in my part one analysis of the book, but this issue rears its ugly head again in the issue of things not getting good labeling leaving the reader having to read the mini paragraphs or searching the book to figure out what it is or what is going on. 
Want to know where this is?
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Or this?
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Or even this?
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Me too, too bad the book can’t be bothered to tell you anything about these. When I was searching for anything to tell me what these images among many others in the book where, I noticed this
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Which for a bit I couldn’t figure out what  it was, notes accidentally left in? Some obscure reference to what it was supposed to be? Looking at other pages I noticed repeat notes that looked the same so I was starting to get even more confused until when looking through the cover pages, I finally spotted this:
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Which okay fine they shorthanded the artists names in the credits right be the art….but then I noticed that not every piece of art in this book has any sort of credit along with the fact that quite a few have no label for what it's supposed to be. And while one could argue that those places are iconic enough to be recognized I have to disagree. Not everyone knows or follows all Star Wars Media that is a fan of the show. Not everyone has a great memory of the episodes within rebels or places that most would think are familiar. There is no reason to not put in a small label next to the artist credit so fans know what it is supposed to be. I could guess or try to look it up but I shouldn’t have to, the book should tell me what it is!
Even worse is the inconsistency on if an artist gets credit for the art they made. Like this one here:
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No credit or anything, we have no clue who created this piece or why there is nothing here to indicate who did, and that is not fair to the person who created this piece. (I checked the next page as well even and there was nothing)
Also yes that image above the artist’s credit is another concept art from episode 4 which was slapped on there for who knows why. Again this should have been more art from Rebels. This is not, nor should it be, the art of Star Wars. It is the art of Star Wars Rebels. No concept art from other media has any business being in this book. 
So many aspects of this book feel rushed or slapped together with no real rhyme or reason even though it was delayed in its release and then released early! Why? It just doesn’t make any sense and isn’t fair to the fans of this show who adored it and wanted to get this book to learn more about the show that for many fans, including myself, got me into Star Wars. We deserve more respect than this. 
This book truly feels like a quick cash grab, not the thank you to the fans of the show it should have been. 
Again I cannot stress this enough, if you like the book that is fine. But you cannot blow off and ignore the voices of people who are not satisfied with this book and expected so much more from it then it gave us. 
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rwbyvein · 4 years
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Firen Lhain: Chapter 009: Yellow Streak
Note: This story runs parallel to Jaundice / Forever Fall, (it's easy to forget how short the early episodes were, to the point that all four basically add up to to the screen time of a regular half hour/22 minute episode).
* * *
Cardin held his mace above his head as he looked down at Jaune, when a buzzer sounded. Glynda walked out, "That's enough. Students, as you can see, Mr. Arc's aura has now dropped into the red. If this were tournament-style duel, this would indicate that Jaune is no longer fit for battle, and that the official may call the match. Mr. Arc, it's been weeks now. Please try to refer to your scroll during combat. Gauging your aura will help you decide when it is appropriate to attack, or when it is better to move to a more defensive strategy. We wouldn't want you to be gobbled up by a Beowulf, now would we?"
"Speak for yourself." Cardin said, as held his mace over his shoulder and turned to walk away.
* * *
RWBY walked into their dorm room. "Oh, man," Yang said excitedly, "I'm pumped about the festival."
"Too bad what happened to Jaune..." Ruby voiced.
"And... you just have to bring me down..." Yang said, and turned to look at her sister. "Look, no one likes what Cardin is doing to him, but does anyone have a plan to fix it?" At this, Ruby, Weiss, and Blake were silent. "That's what I thought."
"The only one that can help Jaune... is Jaune..." Blake voiced. "All we can do is be ready to pick up the pieces... It's not like he's the only one that is being discriminated against."
"But!," Ruby said proudly, "he's - our - friend!"
"Exactly." Yang stated.
"Indeed." Weiss added, and Yang looked at her questioningly. Weiss nervously looked away, her proud stance turning into a shy, uncertain one. "But what happens when the Vytal festival arrives, and he is still?.."
"He's going to get creamed." Yang said.
"Unless his team can save him." Blake added.
"He does have Pyrrha Nikos on his team." Weiss stated.
"This is Jaune we are talking about!" Ruby exclaimed.
"He's loveable..." Yang stated, "but that doesn't mean he can fight. And that's one thing a huntsman needs to be able to do..."
"He's great at watching..." Blake voiced, "Remember what he did in the Emerald Forest..."
"If I didn't have you girls," Yang uttered, "I'd love to have him on my team."
"Good thing... you do..." Blake said to her.
"I trust you girls more than anyone I've trusted in my life." Yang replied, "You can't tell me it wasn't real? That it's not real?"
"Our team is coming along swimmingly." Weiss added.
"But that includes Jaune, doesn't it?" Ruby asked.
"Of course it does, sis." Yang replied, "It wouldn't be the same without any of them."
"And the antlers are pretty cool." Ruby said, and Yang developed a wicked smile.
* * *
"Ms. Xiao Long." Ozpin said, as she walked into the stone cloister. "We have approved your request. Yang looked at the stone pillar in the centre of the cloister with a wicked grin. "As you expect, the stone pillar is yours to do with as you please."
Yang cracked her neck back and forth, and pulled down the strike-plates on her Ember Celica.
"I will leave you to your training." Ozpin said to her.
"Thank you, Professor." Yang replied.
Ozpin walked away, swinging his cane. "Ah, the energy of youth. That takes me back... quite a ways..."
* * *
Blake swung about the spires of Beacon at night, when she saw something on one of the rooftops.
* * *
Blake walked into RWBY's room with a confused look on her face. "What's up?" Yang asked, as Blake closed her door.
"I just saw Jaune... with Cardin?.." Blake asked.
"What?" Yang asked her.
"What?!" Ruby exclaimed from her hanging bed.
"But?.." Weiss nervously asked.
"Yeah," Yang said, "they don't exactly get along..."
"To put it mildly." Weiss added.
Ruby's head appeared out of her bed, "What do we do?"
"What do you mean?" Weiss asked.
"Well... I mean..." Ruby stammered.
"This isn't right." Yang added.
"I doubt Jaune is doing this out of benevolence." Weiss stated.
"More like violence." Yang said to her.
"We can't exactly do anything..." Blake stated, and the girls all looked at her, "without knowing for sure."
"But?.." Ruby asked, "Jaune?.."
"If he doesn't come to us for help..." Blake sadly said, "there's nothing we can do?.."
"How do you?.." Weiss asked her.
"Because maybe I had my own!.." Blake shouted, "I mean... just... let's just drop it. It's not exactly something I want to share, especially not with a Schnee."
Weiss gasped as Blake turned towards the door and stepped out.
"Yikes." Yang stated.
* * *
Blake sat on one of the parapets overlooking Beacon. "I... can't believe I said that..." she voiced, "but... she is a Schnee. A couple months ago, she was my greatest enemy. I can't believe... I trust her? How could I ever trust a Schnee?.."
* * *
"So?" Yang asked Weiss, "You do something to tick her off?"
"I am... uncertain?" Weiss asked. She sat on her bed, shoulders pulled in, looking into nothing.
* * *
Pyrrha forlornly looked out JNPR's window, into the dark of the night. Nora came up behind and gave her a hug. Pyrrha sighed. "I know..." Nora quietly said, before letting her go.
A quiet tension filled the room until Jaune finally returned. He quietly sat down to do homework. At which point the tension shifted from absence to unspoken.
* * *
Professor Oobleck walked into Ozpin's office. Well, for him it was a walk, for most it would be a run.
"Batholomew?" Ozpin asked.
"I have come on a situation of the gravest importance!" Oobleck said to him, and Ozpin just smiled a quiet smile at him. "Academic misconduct!"
"And, who is it?" Ozpin asked.
"Without getting into Mr. Arc's apparent lack of academic abilities as a huntsman, I required my two delinquent students to write an essay." Barthomolew then put two stapled stacks of paper on Ozpin's desk.
Ozpin picked up the essays, and quickly read through them. He then looked up, giving Bartholomew a knowing look.
"It is highly unlikely that they were written by two different individuals. If I had to guess, I'd say Mr. Winchester's essay lacks his daunting self-assurance. This is dreadful, truly dreadful."
Ozpin thought for a moment before speaking, "Do you have any proof."
"Unfortunately," Oobleck stated, "that is the one thing I do not have."
"This is not... the first time... that Mr. Winchester's name has come across my desk." Ozpin replied. "Until now, Mr. Arc's problem has been ability..." Ozpin drank from his coffee cup. "Do exactly as I expect you to do."
"I will keep detailed records on every scrap of evidence I've come across." Oobleck replied.
* * *
Jaune sat on his bed, breathing heavily, bathed in the morning light.
"You coming, Leader?" Nora asked him, and his eyes opened.
"Coming!"
* * *
Cardin cowered, his teammates fled, and the Ursa Major bore down upon him. There was only one man who could do something, and that was Jaune. He dove between the charging Ursa and Cardin, using his shield to brace against the swipe. It was the hardest thing he had ever had to do, but his aura held, his arm held, his feet held. The Ursa pushed down upon him, and he had to summon all of his strength... aura-amplified strength... to push it back. It was at that moment that it finally became clear to him. That was they RWBY and his team were able to move so quickly, jump so high, ricochet off trees like like an air hockey game. It was not just themselves, but their aura. It felt like his... substantial... energy was exploding inside himself. He managed to push the Ursa away, and strike at it with his sword.
He adopted a braced stance. His sword helped balance against his shield, his antlers balanced against one-another. The Usra bore down on him once again, dropping it's great paw. He once again braced it against his shield. This time he felt his aura diminished by the strike. This was what it felt like. This is what hte others already knew. He dug his left antler into the Ursa's paw and it recoiled. It did not last long as it bore down again, this time with it's left paw. Jaune stepped into the attack, trying to headbutt the Ursa.
He was not used to attacking with his antlers. Before he knew about aura he always thought they were too fragile to be used in any truly dangerous situations... and too deadly to use in any others. His antlers hit... somewhat... causing the Ursa to step back, looking at him. The Ursa was filled with it's iconic rage, but Jaune could feel his blood boiling as well. The Ursa charged at him, striking down once again, and once again Jaune blocked it. Once again he felt his aura ebb. He looked at the scroll placed on the back of his shield, and showed his aura was still mostly full. He swung at the Ursa. He hit, though not enough to deal significant damage. But, he had left himself open, and the Ursa swung in.
He felt his aura reinforce his breastplate. The breastplate took the brunt of the attack. His aura seemed to stretch the attack across the rest of his body. He stagged back, and then squared his head. He had to to balance his antlers and balance himself. The Ursa charged at him again. He once again braced for the attack, but felt something tug at his shield. His shield moved just enough to parry, knock the paw away as it bore down, leaving the Ursa completely defensiveless. Jaune's sword passed through the Ursa's neck, and the two separated in darkness. He breathed in deeply to recentre himself, noticing the Ursa begining to evaporate beside him. It seemed to take a lot longer than the Beowulves had. He should really be paying attention in Professor Port's lectures.
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didanawisgi · 5 years
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Some of the most sacred Inca buildings in Peru were constructed with precisely fitting stones held together by gravity alone. Even a credit card can't be inserted into these mortar-free cracks. Peru is highly seismic and major earthquakesare part of its history. For example, a 1746 event completely destroyed the capital city of Lima. It was one of the strongest seismic events in modern times. But Inca construction has a remarkable number of design features that protect buildings against collapsing in an earthquake. These include:
Terraces buttress steep mountain slopes
Precisely fitting and mortar-free stone walls move (dance) during an earthquake, resettling as they were before the event
Doors and windows are trapezoidal and tilt inward from bottom to top
Corners are sometimes rounded
L-shaped blocks were used to tie outside corners of the structure
As you see here, the most precisely constructed walls incline slightly into the rooms
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rvexillology · 5 years
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Ireland in the style of Australia
from /r/vexillology Top comment: R7: On the canton you can find the Irish flag, on the lower hoist quadrant is a harp, an Irish national symbol, and located on the fly are the stars of the "Starry Plough", a flag commonly found among Irish political organizations. The stars depict the constellation Usra Major, and it signifies "that a free Ireland would control its own destiny from the plough to the stars". Finally, i used blue as the color of the field, as it is one of the four national colors of Ireland (the others are present of the flag), and i used that particular shade of blue as it is present of various Irish coats of arms and because a lot of the modern versions of the "Starry Plough" flag use lighter shades of blue.
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scifigeneration · 5 years
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Naturally occurring 'batteries' fueled organic carbon synthesis on Mars
Mars' organic carbon may have originated from a series of electrochemical reactions between briny liquids and volcanic minerals, according to new analyses of three Martian meteorites from a team led by Carnegie's Andrew Steele published in Science Advances.
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The group's analysis of a trio of Martian meteorites that fell to Earth -- Tissint, Nakhla, and NWA 1950 -- showed that they contain an inventory of organic carbon that is remarkably consistent with the organic carbon compounds detected by the Mars Science Laboratory's rover missions.
In 2012, Steele led a team that determined the organic carbon found in 10 Martian meteorites did indeed come from the Red Planet and was not due to contamination from Earth, but also that the organic carbon did not have a biological origin. This new work takes his research to the next step -- trying to understand how Mars' organic carbon was synthesized, if not by biology.
Organic molecules contain carbon and hydrogen, and sometimes include oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, and other elements. Organic compounds are commonly associated with life, although they can be created by non-biological processes as well, which are referred to as abiotic organic chemistry.
"Revealing the processes by which organic carbon compounds form on Mars has been a matter of tremendous interest for understanding its potential for habitability," Steele said.
He and his co-authors took a deep dive into the minerology of these three Martian meteorites. Using advanced microscopy and spectroscopy, they were able to determine that the meteorites' organic compounds were likely created by electrochemical corrosion of minerals in Martian rocks by a surrounding salty liquid brine.
"The discovery that natural systems can essentially form a small corrosion-powered battery that drives electrochemical reactions between minerals and surrounding liquid has major implications for the astrobiology field," Steele explained.
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A similar process could occur anywhere that igneous rocks are surrounded by brines, including the subsurface oceans of Jupiter's moon Europa, Saturn's moon Enceladus, and even some environments here on Earth, particularly early in this planets' history.
The team included Carnegie's Pamela Conrad and Jianhua Wang; Liane Benning, Richard Wirth, and Anja Schreiber of the German Research Centre for Geosciences; Sandra Siljeström of the RISE Research Institutes of Sweden; Marc Fries and Francis McCubbin of the NASA Johnson Space Center; Karyn Rogers of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Jen Eigenbrode of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center; A. Needham of USRA-Science and Technology Institute; David Kilcoyne of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; and Juan Diego Rodriguez Blanco of University of Leeds.
The paper is dedicated to the memory of Erik Hauri, a Carnegie scientist and co-author on the paper who died in September.
The researchers were supported by NASA, the Swedish National Space Board, the Swedish Research Council, the Helmholtz Recruiting Initiative, and the Department of Energy's Office of Basic Energy Sciences.
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uzaydanhaberler · 5 years
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DÜNYA DOĞUŞU: BİR VİDEO REKONSTRÜKSİYONU
Bu videonun yaklaşık 12'nci saniyesinde sıra dışı bir şey gerçekleşiyor. Dünya yükselmeye başlıyor. Dünya'nın, Ay'ın kenarı üzerinde, daha önce insanlar tarafından hiç görülmemiş olan doğuşu elli yıl önce yarın meydana geldi ve Apollo 8 mürettebatını şaşırttı. Ekip hemen, Apollo 8'in Ay çevresindeki yörüngesinden kaynaklanan bu büyüleyici manzaranın görüntülerini almaya uğraştı. Bu video, bu olayın modern bir film kamerasıyla çekilmiş olsa görüleceği şekilde  yeni rekonstrüksiyonu. Dünyamızın renkli dairesi uzak ve tanıdık olmayan Ay manzarasının üzerinde yükselen bilindik bir simge olarak yükseliyor. Tüm sahne Dünya'dan görülen bilindik Ay doğuşunun kavramsal bir zıttı. Çoğumuz için bu sahne aynı zamanda insanlığın birliğini de anlatıyor; bu büyük mavi küre, bu biziz, hepimiz orada yaşıyoruz. İki dakikalık video hızlandırılmış değil, bu Dünya'nın Apollo 8'in pencerelerinde gerçek yükselme hızı. Yedi ay ve üç görev sonra Apollo 11 astronotları Ay'ın etrafında dönmekle yetinmediler, üzerine de indiler.
Görsel: NASA, SVS, Apollo 8 Ekibi; Animasyon: Ernie Wright; (USRA); Müzik: C Major Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach
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