Russia One Step Closer

The Russians may be the first country ever to land a probe on Mars! There are some technical difficulties such as, where are is the probe going to land? The are now one step closer to figuring out where to land though, thanks to the European Space Agency's Mars Express Spacecraft. This spacecraft showed two possible landings on Phobos, Mars' moon. This mission is supposed to air later this year, but now it could actually air a little earlier than expected. Russians are holding their breath to what might be their next greatest astronomic achievement in history. Russia as a whole think this will work. They might get the first pictures of the landscape of Mars' moon. People have been taking educated guesses about the landscape, but this might be the first actual picture of Phobos. http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/69101/title/Fresh_pics_of_Mars%E2%80%99_groovy_moon

2010 ties 2005 for warmest year!

Should we hand 2010 a trophy and say, " Way to go 2010! You are the warmest year!" The answer is no! This proves that the Earth is heating up. James Hansen, the director of the GISS, ( GISS is a group that records the temperature each year and compares.) says," If the warming trend continues, as if expected, if the greenhouse gases continue to increase, the 2010 record will not stand for long" This up in temperature is horrible for the planet and you. Because the Earth's temperature is increasing, the Artic sea ice is melting and so is the continent Antartica. The Artic sea ice acts as an insulation to the Earth's heat. Take away this insulation and the heat of the world will enter the atmosphere, creating more heat on all of the Earth's surface. In the north they may be experiencing a chilly spell, which they are, but this is due to the decline of Artic sea ice. In Antartica, if the whole continent completely melts, there will be enough water to flood the entire world. Canada's winter has already declined by 18 degrees farhenheit. The weather patterns have been crazy! Most scientists think it may be because of the decline of our insulation, the Artic Sea. We should not hand ourselves and 2010 a trophy at all! Go here for more information about my article:
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/2010-warmest-year.html