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THE WORLD AROUND US
Mountain Views News Saturday, February 13, 2016
MYSTERIOUS, FLOATING HILLS IN PLUTO’S “HEART”
The nitrogen ice glaciers on Pluto appear to
carry an intriguing cargo: numerous, isolated
hills that may be fragments of water ice from
Pluto’s surrounding uplands. These hills
individually measure one to several miles
across, according to images and data from
NASA’s New Horizons mission.
The hills, which are in the vast ice plain
informally named Sputnik Planum within
Pluto’s “heart,” are likely miniature versions
of the larger, jumbled mountains on Sputnik
Planum’s western border. They are yet
another example of Pluto’s fascinating and
abundant geological activity.
Because water ice is less dense than
nitrogen-dominated ice, scientists believe
these water ice hills are floating in a sea of
frozen nitrogen and move over time like
icebergs in Earth’s Arctic Ocean. The hills
are likely fragments of the rugged uplands
that have broken away and are being carried
by the nitrogen glaciers into Sputnik Planum.
“Chains” of the drifting hills are formed
along the flow paths of the glaciers. When
the hills enter the cellular terrain of central
Sputnik Planum, they become subject to the
convective motions of the nitrogen ice, and
are pushed to the edges of the cells, where the
hills cluster in groups reaching up to 12 miles
across.
At the northern end of the image, the
feature informally named Challenger Colles—
honoring the crew of the lost space shuttle
Challenger—appears to be an especially large
accumulation of these hills, measuring 37
by 22 miles. This feature is located near the
boundary with the uplands, away from the
cellular terrain, and may represent a location
where hills have been “beached” due to the
nitrogen ice being especially shallow.
The image shows the inset in context next
to a larger view that covers most of Pluto’s
encounter hemisphere. The inset was obtained
by New Horizons’ Multispectral Visible
Imaging Camera (MVIC) instrument. North
is up; illumination is from the top-left of the
image. The image resolution is about 1050
feet per pixel. The image measures a little
over 300 miles long and about 210 miles wide.
It was obtained at a range of approximately
9,950 miles from Pluto, about 12 minutes
before New Horizons’ closest approach to
Pluto on July 14, 2015.
A VALENTINE FOR CLYDE TOMBAUGH.
The light-colored heart-shaped region,
estimated to be 1000 miles across, was one of
the most prominent features seen when New
Horizons began sending close-ups of Pluto.
From three billion miles away, Pluto had
sent a “love note” back to Earth. Launched
on January 19, 2006, the spacecraft had
traveled nearly a decade to receive its summer
valentine.
Pluto was discovered in 1930 by a young
amateur astronomer, Clyde Tombaugh (1906–
1997), a farm boy without college education
who had taken a job as assistant at the Lowell
Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was the
first object to be found in what would later be
identified as the Kuiper belt. At the time of its
discovery, Pluto was considered to be the Solar
System’s ninth planet, but it was reclassified
in 2006 by the International Astronomical
Union (IAU)—which has the responsibility
for naming astronomical bodies—as a “dwarf
planet.”
Tombaugh spent much of his later life in
New Mexico, where—after the IAU’s decision
to downgrade Pluto to a dwarf planet—
the State Legislature honored him with a
proclamation stating that “in New Mexico,
Pluto will always be known as a planet.”
You can contact Bob Eklund at: b.eklund@
MtnViewsNews.com.
CHRISTOPHER Nyerges
OUT TO PASTOR
A Weekly Religion Column by Rev. James Snyder
REVIEWING ONE’S LIFE
WILL THERE BE CELL PHONES IN HEAVEN?
[Nyerges is the author of
several books, including
“Extreme Simplicity,” “How
to Survive Anywhere,” and
others. He can be reached
at Box 41834, Eagle Rock,
CA 90041, or www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com,
where you can also view his blogs.]
Since 1977, I have done something called a
Birthday Run, taught to me by my mentor as a better
and more uplifting way to commemorate one’s
birthday. Originally, I would go to a local track and
run one lap per year as I recalled the highlights of
that year. Some years I have run alone, and some
years I have run with friends who chose to come and
support the run. I have run in the dark, in the rain,
in the fog, and on sunny days. One or two years I did
not run at all because I was sick, and it wasn’t the
same when I ran a week later. And over the years,
my “laps” have grown shorter, otherwise I would be
running those slow laps for several hours and would
have trouble walking for days after.
This year I ran alone – other than an occasional
hawk and one coyote -- and I found my lap in the
bottomlands of the Arroyo Seco. It was quiet and
eerily peaceful as I continued the cycles through
my life, replaying the mental movie of each year
after each year, going to school, moving around,
and my interactions with various people.
My mind began to look at the financial side of
my life, and perhaps, more specifically, the non-
financial side to my life. Perhaps this was because
of the recent PowerBall game where so many were
talking about nothing else but what they’d do if
they suddenly had all that money. I realized that I
too could do so much more, so much more quickly,
if I had a few spare million in the bank, maybe.
As I ran through my years, I realized that I
operated mostly in financial ignorance, and in a
financial fairy-land. Yes, money was always an
element, and yes, money was often the limiting
factor in so many endeavors. Money was like
oxygen – you just had to have it. But I think, like
most people, my school and family discussions
were wholly insufficient as any sort of real financial
training for dealing with the real world. I moved
from activity to activity based on my areas of
interest, and when money was needed, I got it –
somehow – or I curtailed the activity.
But because of my financial ignorance, I found
other ways to pursue my goals, ways that seemed
more difficult at the time, but which were actually
more wholistic ways to pursue my life’s interests.
Without a car, I often bicycled, and formed
friendships so that several of us could travel
together. If I wanted to attend workshops or field
trips, I learned that I could convince my friends
that they’d want to attend also, and invariably,
someone had a car.
And I discovered and lived my life utilizing
so many of the low-cost and free benefits of
our modern society: buses, public libraries,
public recreation centers, free hiking in the local
mountains, free lectures, clubs and organizations
where people just got together and did things.
Eventually, somewhat fortuitously and almost by
accident, I was a squatter for a year and a half on
an acre property on the edge of Los Angeles. It
was quite an adventure. I learned how to live well
cheaply, and I learned how to solicit individual
investors in my book and other projects.
I am sure I would have done a lot of this very
differently had I been born into wealth, but as I
looked back, I realized that I learned some very
important lessons by simply finding solutions to
life’s problems without being able to just “throw
money at it.”
That was one theme that went through my mind
this year. Another was relationships.
By my age, one has had many relationships,
and many types of relationships. In my mind, a
mental movie played of the various people in my
life and how I treated them: mother, father, friends,
teachers, girl friends, wives, business associates.
When I do this annual run, I am looking for what
I did right, but mostly what I did wrong so that I
can do it better next time around. I felt great pain
at the many things I did wrong as an arrogant
child talking back to my parents and not obeying.
It doesn’t matter that others were worse – I was
evaluating myself only. And no, my parents were
not perfect either. But I felt great joy that I was
able to take precious time in my mother’s, and my
father’s, final days and become their friend and
speak to them as equals. It was very challenging,
but very fulfilling.
I also spent a lot of time reviewing my 22 married
years with Dolores – the trips, our animals, our
self-sufficient home, our accomplishments, our
fights, our disagreements, our agreements. We had
our ups and downs, and though I was not perfect, I
realized I could not have been perfect. I was living
life, trying to make ends meet, and trying to be a
good husband with all the challenges of life that
conspire against us. In the end, when Dolores was
dying, I was able to experience a rare time of caring
for her when she could do so little. We became
inseparable, and best friends, and it was as if all our
conflicts dissolved. And then she died and I felt
plunged into darkness. And then there were other
challenges, and tasks, and relationships.
I thought about a few very special people who
I never see anymore, and still felt so blessed that
we had the time together that we did, and I wished
each one the greatest happiness.
Remember, I tried to recall what was going on in
my life, year by year as I ran a large lap in the sand
in the dimming light of the late afternoon. I am
sure I mixed up some years, but in the end, it is the
learning that matters.
My two lessons were that while money is
important, and you must earn it, it is a good goal
to pursue whatever one feels compelled to pursue
in life without focusing upon money. Yes, it seems
unrealistic, but it actually can change the quality
and character of what we do.
And secondly, I realized that relationships are
the most important aspect of life, and you have a
good life when you maintain good relationships,
however you do that. This does not mean you are
always laughing and happy. It means that you deal
with others honestly and with the integrity that the
close ones in your life deserve.
I know I have not been perfect, and I feel blessed
to have been guided to begin this birthday tradition
nearly 40 years ago. In just a few hours, I review my
life and tried to figure out if what I have done was
worth doing. By honestly assessing my self in that
way, it helps me to determine what is worth doing
– and not doing – this year, and into the future.
Last Tuesday started out like any other day except
for one thing. I overslept.
Isn’t it strange that when you have a full schedule
you oversleep? Normally, I am up at the crack of
dawn. Sometimes I wish the dawn would not crack
so loud, but then I would never get awake.
In a strange way, I pride myself with being able to
get up early in the morning. At my age, I do not need
that much sleep anymore and so it is my motto,
“Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy,
wealthy and wise.”
I think I have the healthy down, but the other two
are nowhere to be seen, at least from my bedroom
window. Maybe I am not going to bed early enough
and maybe I am not rising early enough. I have to
think that through a little bit.
Tuesday I had a very heavy schedule and it started
out early in the morning with appointments all
throughout the day. I do not complain about a full
schedule because it makes the day go faster. As far as
I am concerned, the faster a day goes the better it is.
It is not that often that I have a day filled with
appointments, but it does happen on occasion. Like,
Tuesday.
I would like to blame the alarm clock, but then I did
not set it the night before so that is out of the picture.
When I did get up and realized how late I was, I
put full steam forward in motion and got to my first
appointment. Fortunately, I was on time, but barely.
It was right after the third appointment that
something seemed a little strange. I could not put
my finger on it, but I knew something was wrong
and I did not quite know what it was. I could not
give too much thought to it because I had a busy
schedule.
It just irked me because I knew something was
wrong and I could not figure it out.
By lunchtime I was quite hungry and satisfied that
all of the appointments went according to schedule.
I was afraid the way my day started that it would
affect everything else during the day. As luck would
have it, and I do not count too much on luck, but the
day was going quite nicely as planned.
I just could not get away from something in the
back of my head that was bothering me. I checked to
make sure I had the same socks on both feet. I have
gone out with a blue sock on my left foot and a brown
one on my right foot. If that isn’t embarrassing.
That was not the problem. My tie was okay. I
had the right shirt on and my pants were okay. But
something was wrong.
As I was eating lunch, I thought it would be nice
to call the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage. After
all, it was a busy day and she had just as busy a day as
I did. I thought I would just touch base and tell her
hi.
I reached for my shirt pocket to get my phone
and discovered, much to my chagrin, that my shirt
pocket was empty. That’s right. Empty!
I frantically searched my person and did not
discover my cell phone anywhere. Then I had one
of those “aha” moments. I had left the house that
morning in such a hurry that I forgot to pick up my
cell phone. How was I going to get through the day
without my cell phone?
As I sat there finishing my lunch my fingers began
to itch and twitch. They were insisting that I text
somebody. Anybody! But I had nothing upon which
I could text.
I cannot remember any day that I did not have my
cell phone with me. It is just one of those automatic
things with me wherever I go. I need to be careful
that I do not take it into the shower because that
would be a disaster. Wherever I go, I always take my
cell phone.
I am old enough to remember back in the day
when nobody had a cell phone. Texting was not
even invented at that time. If you wanted to make
a telephone call, you had to stop at one of those
telephone booths and hope Superman was not
ahead of you. Making a telephone call at that time
was a major business.
Today, cell phones have made our lives so mobile
that we can go anywhere, that is as long as there is
Internet service, and talk to anybody.
Sitting there munching on my dessert I began
to think about cell phones in heaven. The thought
came to me quite suddenly, are there cell phones in
heaven?
Here on earth we cannot live without these
contraptions, but will we need them in heaven?
As I was musing on the subject, I thought of a
verse in the Bible. “And call upon me in the day of
trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify
me” (Psalms 50:15).
Long before cell phones were ever thought of,
God had a plan for us communicating with Him.
All I need is to “call upon” God and His promises
that He “will deliver” me. What more does a person
need?
The Rev. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Family of
God Fellowship, Ocala, FL. Call him at 352-687-4240
or e-mail jamessnyder2@att.net. The church web site
is www.whatafellowship.com.
Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com
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