Saturday, May 29, 2021

What's on Mars?

I love it when my favorite land rover on Mars, Curiosity, is in the news. NASA notes:

 

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured these clouds just after sunset on March 19, 2021, the 3,063rd Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s mission. The image is made up of 21 individual images stitched together and color corrected so that the scene appears as it would to the human eye.

Curiosity Spots Clouds Over Mont Mercou: NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured these clouds just after sunset on March 19, 2021, the 3,063rd Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s mission. The image is made up of 21 individual images stitched together and color corrected so that the scene appears as it would to the human eye. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS. Download Image ›


The science team is studying the clouds, which arrived earlier and formed higher than expected, to learn more about the Red Planet.


Cloudy days are rare in the thin, dry atmosphere of Mars. Clouds are typically found at the planet’s equator in the coldest time of year, when Mars is the farthest from the Sun in its oval-shaped orbit. But one full Martian year ago – two Earth years – scientists noticed clouds forming over NASA’s Curiosity rover earlier than expected.

Curiosity GIF Shows Drifting Clouds Over Mount Sharp
Curiosity GIF Shows Drifting Clouds Over Mount Sharp: This GIF shows clouds drifting over Mount Sharp on Mars, as viewed by NASA’s Curiosity rover on March 19, 2021, the 3,063rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. Each frame of the scene was stitched together from six individual images. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS Download Image ›

This year, they were ready to start documenting these “early” clouds from the moment they first appeared in late January. What resulted are images of wispy puffs filled with ice crystals that scattered light from the setting Sun, some of them shimmering with color. More than just spectacular displays, such images help scientists understand how clouds form on Mars and why these recent ones are different.

In fact, Curiosity’s team has already made one new discovery: The early-arrival clouds are actually at higher altitudes than is typical. Most Martian clouds hover no more than about 37 miles (60 kilometers) in the sky and are composed of water ice. But the clouds Curiosity has imaged are at a higher altitude, where it’s very cold, indicating that they are likely made of frozen carbon dioxide, or dry ice. Scientists look for subtle clues to establish a cloud’s altitude, and it will take more analysis to say for sure which of Curiosity’s recent images show water-ice clouds and which show dry-ice ones.

Curiosity Navigation Cameras Spot Twilight Clouds on Sol 3075
Curiosity Navigation Cameras Spot Twilight Clouds on Sol 3075: Using the navigation cameras on its mast, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover took these images of clouds just after sunset on March 31, 2021, the 3,075th sol, or Martian day, of the mission. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech Download Image ›

The fine, rippling structures of these clouds are easier to see with images from Curiosity’s black-and-white navigation cameras. But it’s the color images from the rover’s Mast Camera, or Mastcam, that really shine – literally. Viewed just after sunset, their ice crystals catch the fading light, causing them to appear to glow against the darkening sky. These twilight clouds, also known as “noctilucent” (Latin for “night shining”) clouds, grow brighter as they fill with crystals, then darken after the Sun’s position in the sky drops below their altitude. This is just one useful clue scientists use to determine how high they are.

Curiosity Navigation Cameras Spot Twilight Clouds on Sol 3072
Curiosity Navigation Cameras Spot Twilight Clouds on Sol 3072: Using the navigation cameras on its mast, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover took these images of clouds just after sunset on March 28, 2021, the 3,072nd sol, or Martian day, of the mission. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech Download Image ›

Even more stunning are iridescent, or “mother of pearl” clouds. “If you see a cloud with a shimmery pastel set of colors in it, that’s because the cloud particles are all nearly identical in size,” said Mark Lemmon, an atmospheric scientist with the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colorado. “That’s usually happening just after the clouds have formed and have all grown at the same rate.”

Curiosity Spots Iridescent (Mother of Pearl) Clouds
Curiosity Spots Iridescent (Mother of Pearl) Clouds: NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover spotted these iridescent, or “mother of pearl,” clouds on March 5, 2021, the 3,048th Martian day, or sol, of the mission. Seen here are five frames stitched together from a much wider panorama taken by the rover’s Mast Camera, or Mastcam. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS Download Image ›

These clouds are among the more colorful things on the Red Planet, he added. If you were skygazing next to Curiosity, you could see the colors with the naked eye, although they’d be faint.

“I always marvel at the colors that show up: reds and greens and blues and purples,” Lemmon said. “It’s really cool to see something shining with lots of color on Mars.”

For more about Curiosity, visit:

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/

For more about NASA’s Mars program, visit:

https://mars.nasa.gov

News Media Contacts

Andrew Good
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-2433
andrew.c.good@jpl.nasa.gov

Karen Fox / Alana Johnson
NASA Headquarters, Washington
301-286-6284 / 202-358-1501
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / alana.r.johnson@nasa.gov



 
Also on Mars? China's land rover Zhurong is on Mars. Amanda Kooser (CNET) reports:

 
Two countries have successfully landed and operated a rover on Mars: the US and China. China joined the exclusive club earlier this month by delivering the Zhurong rover -- part of its Tianwen-1 Mars mission -- to the red planet.
Zhurong moved into a new phase last weekend when it rolled from the land platform, down a ramp and onto the surface of Mars. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) shared images from the surface operations and gave Earthlings their first look at the rover's wheel tracks etched into the dusty surface of Mars.

“祝融号”火星车成功驶上火星表面

Here's a video of Zhurong.



 

 

 

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

 Friday, May 28, 2021.  Some news is seen fit to print.


At the top of yesterday's snapshot, the following appeared:


The militias surround the prime minister's compound and you may be saying, "Huh? This wasn't on THE NEWSHOUR or CBS EVENING NEWS or . . ."  No, it wasn't.


To its credit, 13 hours ago THE NEW YORK TIMES published Jane Arraf and Falih Hassan's report on what's been taking place:

Iraq’s leader has been under intense pressure to rein in the dozens of paramilitary groups that are nominally under the command of the Iraqi government but have proved seemingly impossible for him to control.

That was made abundantly clear this week, when Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi ordered a move against one militia leader and quickly paid a price.

After government forces arrested a paramilitary commander on Wednesday, Iraqi militias backed by Iran mounted a show of force in and around the heavily guarded Green Zone in Baghdad, in a confrontation that goes to the heart of who controls security in Iraq.

Curbing the Iranian-backed militias that emerged in 2014 to fight the Islamic State — and have now become an entrenched part of Iraq’s security — was one of Mr. Kadhimi’s key promises when he took power last May. Bringing to justice those who kidnap and kill government protesters was another pledge.

A year later, he is seen as having failed to deliver on either of them.

The catalyst for the latest confrontation was an interior ministry arrest warrant in the killing of two young Iraqi activists shot in the Shiite holy city of Karbala. One was shot dead on May 9 by gunmen on motorcycles using silencers. He had survived a previous attempt on his life that killed a fellow activist, Fahem al-Tai, in Karbala last December.


As noted in yesterday's snapshot, while the western press (wire services) were avoiding the issue of the activists, the Iraaqi press was reporting that the charges included the targeting of activists.  The one that is referred to in the last NYT paragraph above, the one who had survived one assassination attempt before being killed earlier this month, was Ihab al-Wazni.


As THE NEW ARAB notes:


Qasem Muslih is accused of giving the order to kill anti-government campaigner Ihab Al-Wazni, who was shot outside his home by men on motorbikes on 9 May in the holy city of Karbala.


Ihab al-Wazni was on the minds of activists that turned out in massive numbers on Tuesday



The protest movement in Iraq is organizing a mass demonstration on May25under the slogan(Who Killed Me)to demand justice for Ihab Al-Wazni, Hisham Al-Hashemi, Reham Yacoub and 800 others who have been killed with impunity since October 2019 #Tishreen_return_in_May
Image


"Liar Kadhimi! Liar!" a woman holding an image of assassinated protest leader Ihab al-Wazni leads a chant as protesters gather for a mass demonstration in Baghdad to condemn government failure to end killings of activists. rudaw.net/english/middle


Also, freedom of expression is lacking in Iraq when you are a civil activist and criticize the parties and militias of Iran. You will be killed, as happened by the Iraqi activists, Ihab Al-Wazni, Fahim Al-Ta’i and others, thousands who were killed because of saying the truth.


Wazni’s family have publicly accused Musleh of killing Ihab. "We charged him with the murder of my brother Ihab. My mother filed a lawsuit against him. We are sure that he was the mastermind of my brother's assassination," Marwan al-Wazni told MEE.


The Crisis Group's Lahib Higel offers her take in the following thread:


[Thread] As embarrassing as today’s events seem for Kadhimi there may be something gained for political elites that stand with the ‘state’ against the ‘non-state’.


Whether Muslih is released or not, the reaction of Hashd faction’s only serves to discredit their own image. Since the Tishreen protests, and even before, the Hashd’s sanctity has been on steady decline among Iraqis.



The killing of Ihab al-Wazni in Kerbala provided an opportunity for the government to capitalise on the street outrage and renewed calls for accountability.


It facilitated the protests and utilised it as a pretext to target Muslih, whose background is not coincidental. From Kerbala, he long served as a commander of the Atabat security but during the war on ISIS turned to pro-Iran, Liwa al-Tufuf.


With October elections around the corner, the government and its political backers, may benefit from provocations that discredit the forces opposing it.


The question remains, however, to what degree these forces are ready to up the pressure. So far, it appears that negotiated settlements keep the political peace.


In comparison to the aftermath of the June 2020 Dora raid when arrested KH members were released, the detainee is now held in shared custody of the joint operations command and the security of the Hashd. A minor nuance, yet a concession on part of the Hashd, even if temporary.


I'm sure it was a political calculation as much as anything else.  Elections are supposed to take place this fall.  Despite stating he was going in as prime minister for a very brief time, he'd get elections and then get out, Mustafa quickly changed his mind.  He now wants a second term.  


Where are the votes going to come from?


Not from supporters of former prime minister and forever thug Nouri al-Maliki.  His alliance is strongly critical of Mustafa.  The October Movement (the activism that began in the fall of 2019) might seem an ally; however, factions of the movement have announced that they don't intend to vote because Mustafa has done nothing as one activist after another has been killed.


Remember, this is the movement that overthrew the previous prime minister. 


And Tuesday's huge protest in Baghdad (and elsewhere, but Baghdad had the largest turnout) no doubt reminded Mustafa and his advisors of just how strong and large The October Movement actually is.  


Due to COVID, a number had stopped turning out at the protests in recent months.  Rallying behind the assassination of Ihab, they turned out in full force and then some.


That could be a huge voting bloc.  And Mustafa needs something to get a second term.  He's done nothing as prime minister. Nouri is his enemy (Nouri's State Of Law remains a large bloc with strong support) and the only one he's had any success with when it comes to reaching out has been cleric Moqtada al-Sadr whose influence has waned.


Let's go into that for just a moment because it goes to the power of The October Movement -- a movement the US outlets have largely ignored -- from WSWS on through the corporate media.  Moqtada is a failue all by himself.  But people need hope and they rallied around him when he returned to Iraq after fleeing yet again.  He seemed to mature with the realization of how many people were vested in his success.  But then came The October Movement.


As Moqtada always does, he saw a popular movement and tried to co-opt it and tried to use its popularity to argue for his own.  He didn't organize, he didn't inspire.  He tried to hitchhike on an already popular issue -- just like he did recentl on the demonstration in support of Palestinians held in Baghdad.  He was one of many militia leaders calling for a large turnout.  But the lazy, western press credited the turnout to him in one wire article after another.  Despite the fact that he and his spokesperson have a public record of verbally attacking the Palestinians going back to 2006 -- a reality ignored by the wire services but well documented on Arabic social media.


Moqtada forgot that he had hitched a ride and then began trying to control the movement -- issuing orders to people who were not his followers.  When they refused to comply, he denounced them.  This resulted in a huge backlash so he quickly backed off that.  


Then he tried to controlling them.  He issued orders that men and women could not protest together.


That went over about as well as you would expect.


At the next demonstration, women were only more prominent and various activists carried signs denouncing Moqtada.  He just couldn't let it go and still can't.  It was only weeks ago that he was serving up a veiled threat that women who are protesting should be "gang-raped."  Out of concern, you understand he raised the issue of "gang-rape."


This is the man the western media refuses to challenge and instead glorifies over and over.  It wasn't always that way.  (Reminder, this is the same western media that reduced these protests to men only while we repeatedly objected to that lie.  I note that the wire services, when they carry photos of this week's demonstrations make a point to select ones that include women; however, with their large turnout, it's really impossible for the wire services to continue to ignore the women.)


At any rate, Mustafa wants a second term but doesn't have the votes.  The arrest can be seen as a campaign offering, no question.


I'm glad that THE TIMES reported on what's going on; however, it needs to be noted that the story was published hours after the US State Dept had already issued its own statement raising the issue:


           Rule of Law in Iraq

The United States is outraged that peaceful demonstrators who took to the streets to urge reform were met with threats and brutal violence.  Moreover, the violation of Iraqi sovereignty and rule of law by armed militias harms all Iraqis and their country. We welcome every effort by the government to hold accountable the militias, thugs, and vigilante groups for their attacks against Iraqis exercising their right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly as well as for their assault on the rule of law.

We reaffirm the U.S. government’s enduring commitment to the Iraqi people and a strong, sovereign, and prosperous Iraq.


The following sites updated: