Michael Jackson 1958-2009

Michael Jackson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009), known as the "King of Pop," was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful entertainers of all time. His unique contributions to music and dance, along with a highly publicized personal life, made him a prominent figure in popular culture for four decades.
He started a solo career in 1971, having made his debut in 1964 as a member of The Jackson 5. His 1982 album Thriller remains the best-selling album of all time, with four others — Off the Wall (1979), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), and HIStory (1995) — among the best selling. He popularized several intricate dance moves, such as the robot and the moonwalk. He is widely credited with having transformed the music video from a promotional tool into an art form, with videos for his songs "Billie Jean", "Beat It" and "Thriller" making him the first African American artist to amass a strong crossover following on MTV.
Twice inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, his other achievements feature multiple Guinness World Records — including the "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time" — 13 Grammy Awards, 17 number one singles (including the four number ones with Jackson 5), and estimated sales between 350 million[2][3][4] and 750 million records worldwide.[5][6][7] He was also a notable philanthropist and humanitarian who donated and raised million of dollars through support of 39 charities and his own Heal the World Foundation.[8]
Significant controversy was generated by Jackson's personal life. His changing appearance was noticed from the early 1980s, with changes to the shape of his nose and to the color of his skin drawing media publicity. He was accused in 1993 of child sexual abuse, although no charges were brought. He married twice, first in 1994 and again in 1996, and brought up three children, one born to a surrogate mother. In 2005, he was tried and acquitted of child molestation allegations. While preparing for the This Is It concert tour in 2009, Jackson died at the age of 50 in Los Angeles, California, after suffering from cardiac arrest. His death was ruled a homicide by the Los Angeles County coroner. His memorial service was broadcast live around the world.

Jupiter Planet

Atmosphere of Jupiter
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Cloud pattern on JupiterThe atmosphere of Jupiter is the largest planetary atmosphere in the Solar System. It is primarily made of molecular hydrogen and helium in roughly solar proportions; other chemical compounds are present only in small amounts, and include methane, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and water. The latter has not been directly observed but is thought to reside deep in the atmosphere. The oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur and noble gas abundances in Jupiter's atmosphere exceed solar values by a factor of about three.[1] The atmosphere of Jupiter lacks a clear lower boundary and gradually transitions into the fluid interior of the planet.[2] From lowest to highest, the atmospheric layers are the troposphere, stratosphere, thermosphere and exosphere. Each layer has characteristic temperature gradients.[3] The lowest layer, the troposphere, has a complicated system of clouds and hazes, comprising layers of ammonia, ammonium hydrosulfide and water.[4] The upper ammonia clouds visible at Jupiter's surface are organized in a dozen zonal bands parallel to the equator and are bounded by powerful zonal atmospheric flows (winds) known as jets. The bands alternate in color: the dark bands are called belts, while light ones are called zones. Zones, which are colder than belts, correspond to upwellings, while belts mark descending air.[5] The zones' lighter color is believed to result from ammonia ice; what gives the belts their darker colors is not known with certainty.[5] The origins of the banded structure and jets are not well understood, though two models exist. The shallow model holds that they are surface phenomena overlaying a stable interior. In the deep model, the bands and jets are just surface manifestations of deep circulation in Jupiter's mantle of molecular hydrogen, which is organized in a number of cylinders.[6]



The Jovian atmosphere shows a wide range of active phenomena, including band instabilities, vortices (cyclones and anticyclones), storms and lightning.[7] The vortices reveal themselves as large red, white or brown spots (ovals). The largest two spots are the Great Red Spot (GRS)[8] and Oval BA,[9] which is also red. These two and most of the other large spots are anticyclonic. Smaller anticyclones tend to be white. Vortices are thought to be relatively shallow structures with depths not exceeding several hundred kilometers. Located in the southern hemisphere, the GRS is the largest known vortex in the Solar System. It could engulf several Earths and has existed for at least three hundred years. Oval BA, south of GRS, is a red spot a third the size of GRS that formed in 2000 from the merging of three white ovals.[10]

Jupiter has powerful storms, always accompanied by lightning strikes. The storms are a result of moist convection in the atmosphere connected to the evaporation and condensation of water. They are sites of strong upward motion of the air, which leads to the formation of bright and dense clouds. The storms form mainly in belt regions. The lightning strikes on Jupiter are more powerful than those on Earth. However, there are fewer of them, and the average levels of lightning activity are comparable to those on Earth.[11]

Solar eclipse of July 22, 2009

Solar eclipse of July 22, 2009
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The solar eclipse of July 22, 2009 was the longest total solar eclipse during the 21st century, not to be surpassed until June 2132.[1] It lasted a maximum of 6 minutes and 39 seconds off the coast of Southeast Asia,[2] causing tourist interest in eastern China, India and Nepal.[2][3][4] This was the second in the series of three eclipses in a one-month period, being book-ended by two minor penumbral lunar eclipses, on July 7 and on August 6.