Estimating Distance Using Your Mil-Dot Scope

This is a simple example on how to estimate distance using a scope of binoculars that comes with a mil-dot function. You can us metric or imperial measurements but the trick to have a reference height of an item in the sights.

Saw the planets Jupiter and Venus in the night sky over Kuala Lumpur

Last night was a relatively clear night over Kuala Lumpur. Since it is the month of June, a number of planets in our solar system is visible via the naked eye. Two such planets that I got to witness is Jupiter and Venue.

In the photo below you can make out the two spots in the sky. The dimmer dot just above the brighter spot is the planet Jupiter. The brighter spot is the planet Venus. The direction of observation is due West.

Here is a magnification of the same sky location where you can see the bright venus and the dim Jupiter.

Went to Petrosains, KLCC with my son

While trying to kill some time in KLCC, my son and I went to Petrosains. The latest section included is on space exploration. Here my son is trying out the wall sleeping bag that one would find on the International Space Station (ISS).

The prehistoric exhibition is always interesting. This life size TRex is so life-like.

Reflection of a prehistoric jungle including animals and a volcano (off-camera and to the left).

The replica of an oil rig is also interesting. Guests can try out a number of emergency escape techniques such as tube slides etc.

Petronas foray into motorsport ...

Won the Constructors Championship in 2014.

Magic Trick - how to do make an egg float halfway down a glass

This is an interesting science project that you can do with your kids.

The last couple of days were the supermoon event

The last couple of days, the last super-moon of the year will be seen by Earthlings. Signs were there to signify the event. For example, in the few days running up to the super-moon, the sunset looks bigger over Bangsar.

The super-moon. What a sight. It was bigger then usual.

This is the usual size of the moon during normal times.

Science experiment

Have fun.

Stargazing event in 2014

Not to be missed!!

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 12

Sensitive to subtle shifts in wind circulation patterns and wind strengths, Martian sand dunes are shaped just like those on Earth. On both worlds, the subtleties provide clues to the sedimentary history of the surrounding terrain.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGwlBZF8

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 11

Sand dunes are among the most widespread wind-driven features present on Mars. When the Spirit and Opportunity rovers went dormant for the Martian winter, they relied on the spring winds to blow the settled dust off of their solar panels.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGwSq2if

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 10

This color image of Santa Maria Crater, with the Opportunity rover perched on the southeast rim. Rover tracks are clearly visible to the east. Opportunity and its twin Spirit landed on Mars in 2004.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGvvWm3g

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 9

A 1,300 kilometer (approximately 800 mile) diameter depression from which enormous cataclysmic releases of ground water are thought to have exploded onto the surface of Mars long ago. Mars is filled with surface depressions and riverbeds carved and otherwise formed by ancient water flows.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGwbvtq4

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 8

The dunes imaged here are similar to barchan dunes, commonly found in desert regions on Earth.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGwFO5cy

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 7

The dune gullies appear active and are anomalous in their location in the planet's higher latitudes. Just as on Earth, Mars's surface is not uniform, but is filled with features particular to various regions.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGw6WHbn

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 6

Most of the dunes visible in this image are what's known as barchan dunes. On barchan dunes, the steep slip face is between two "horns" that point downwind.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGvogbCW

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 5

A "fossa" is a cavity or depression in the surface. Floods of water and lava are thought to have emanated from the larger fossae nearby, perhaps forming the channel and later filling it with lava.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGvgF7ws

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 4

On Mars the seasonal polar caps are composed principally of frozen carbon dioxide. In the springtime as the sun shines on the ice, it turns from solid directly to gas. From Earth, the expansion and contraction of the Martian polar caps are readily visible.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGvZsYjY

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 3

Mars has extremely large temperature changes from winter to summer compared to the Earth. It gets cold enough to freeze carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere during the winter, but this ice is unstable when the warmer summer arrives and forces it to sublimate (transform directly back into a gas) away.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGvQzztH

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 2

A towering dust devil casts a serpentine shadow over the Martian surface in this stunning, late springtime image of Amazonis Planitia. The length of the shadow indicates that the dust plume reaches more than 800 meters, or half a mile, in height. Mars's thin atmosphere—less than 1% of Earth's—can still whip up considerable winds.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGvBkg00

Beautiful pictures of Mars from Nasa 1

The 4 kilometer (2.5 mile) diameter crater in this image appears relatively fresh, but with little erosion or underground upheaval on Mars and no evidence of an extremely recent meteor hit, "fresh" is a relative term.

Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/08/06/martian-vistas-a-look-at-curiosity-rovers-new-home/#ixzz2HGunv8U2

A handheld Torch That Cuts Through Steel

Saw this article in Popular Mechanics. Scary piece of equipment!
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An offshoot of a military project, the Metal Vapor Torch could allow law enforcement officers to cut chains and padlocks fast.

The Metal Vapor Torch might be the next best thing to a lightsaber: a belt tool that can generate a blade of flame that slices through a half-inch steel bar in less than a second.

Energetic Materials & Products, Inc. of Round Rock, Texas designed the MVT as a tactical breaching tool for police and others who need to cut through bolts, chains, and padlocks quickly. By using reactive material technology with solid fuel and an oxidizer, the MVT is cheaper, lighter, and more compact than a traditional oxy–acetylene torch.

At the heart of the MVT is a reaction between copper oxide and precisely graded particles of magnesium and aluminum; consistent particle size is crucial to ensure that the torch burns at the desired temperature. The result is a jet of flame with a temperature over 2700 C (nearly 5000 F) and a speed of over 2000 meters (more than a mile) per second. A rectangular carbon fiber nozzle shapes the jet into a flat blade for cutting. The jet has higher energy density than a gas flame; the cutting action is produced by a combination of heat and abrasion by particles of metal oxide.

The MVT is the size of a tactical flashlight and is quiet in operation. The fuel comes in small cartridges which burn for a couple of seconds; a fresh cartridge can be loaded rapidly so the operator can cut through several obstacles in quick succession, and the torch handle can be reloaded and used as many times as needed. The solid fuel is highly resistant to shock and is safe at temperatures up to 550 C (1022 F). 

Dennis Wilson, the CEO of EMPI, says that the torch will be priced at around $135, with the intent that it be affordable enough to be supplied to every member of a police team. Cartridges will be about $35 each. The first preproduction version of the MVT will ship later this year, and feedback from users will help shape the final production model, Wilson says.

EMPI has also developed other versions of the MVT. For instance, the design can be scaled up, and Wilson has tested larger versions capable of cutting through inch-thick steel. The MVT could be equipped with fuel cartridges that incorporate abrasive additives for cutting through fiberglass. An alternative round nozzle could punch holes rather than cutting straight lines.

The MVT—which is a spinoff from work done by the U.S. Air Force—would be useful for first responders who need to cut through rebar to rescue accident victims. It works as well underwater as it does in air, making it suitable for divers, and it can be triggered remotely, or used by a robot, to swiftly disarm IEDs without setting them off.

Criminals could also easily misuse it—which is why Wilson says the MVT will be supplied to approved customers only.