In the arid reaches of the Lone Star State, tucked under some of the darkest, world-class night skies for optical astronomy, an unlikely reservoir was born by a quirk of geology and topography. DeSmogBlog paints the picture beautifully:
Travelers crossing the long stretch of arid desert spanning West Texas might stumble across an extraordinarily improbable sight — a tiny teeming wetlands, a sliver of marsh that seems like it should sit by the ocean but actually lays over 450 miles from the nearest coast.
Famous as “the oasis of West Texas,” Balmorhea State Park now hosts over 150,000 visitors a year, drawn by the chance to swim in the cool waters of the park's crystal-blue pool, which is fed by up to 28 million gallons of water a day flowing from the San Solomon springs. The pool's steady 72 to 76 degree Fahrenheit temperatures make the waters temptingly cool in the hot Texas summer and surprisingly warm in the winter locals say — part of the reason it's been called “the crown jewel of the desert.” Iconic Texas wildlife — diamondback rattlesnakes, road-runner, and javelina — stir in the underbrush. And they're not alone. Unique animals, including multiple endangered species, have adapted specifically to live in or near these springs' desert waters ...
But, as the article notes, signs of oil and gas have been found in the region. Given our current bumbling corrupt administration along with Exxon’s new Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, even West Texas locals are deeply concerned about what might happen next.
Our friend Phil Plait, known to millions as the Bad Astronomer, has boldly gone to his new blog home at SyFyWire. Phil originally became the “bad” astronomer by debunking pseudoscience like moon landing hoaxers and related nonsense back in the neolithic days of the Internet, also known as the ‘90s. But there should be no doubt that he will be every bit as passionate and successful, in both illuminating the beauty tucked into every tiny out-of-the way parsec, and in defending the future of science against all comers. You can help show him Great Orange welcome by visiting here!
This past week we marked the tragic loss of the Apollo 1 crew on January 27, 1967, and the Space Shuttle Columbia lost with all crew aboard while entering Earth’s atmosphere on February 1, 2003.
While Lagrange 2 may soon become the literal focal point for near and infrared astronomy with James Webb, Chile has already become the place for traditional land-based optical astronomy. But in just a few more years, the 30 meter Magellan telescope will begin operations and the science returned is expected to be incredible.