It seems that the statement by former astronaut Dr. Edgar Mitchell is drawing a lot of attention. Some websites that have taken a survey on what he has said are finding that about ¾ of all people going to the sites agree with Mitchell and also believe that we are being visited by aliens. Another new planet was discovered, it is the size of Jupiter. The planet is located in an area that is about 3,000 light years from here and was named CoRoT-Exo-4b, not exactly a name that brings a lot of excitement to the discovery. Scientists have stated that it is impossible for life to exist there. I think that they should be a little more careful before making such statements, maybe they should say that it is impossible for life that is of the type found on earth to exist there. Life has a way of popping up where you least expect it. There is at least one strange thing about this planet. It is in sync with the star that it orbits. So far more than 300 planets have been discovered since we began searching for them about 15 years ago. There is a story going around in the news that the president has just been briefed by Phoenix scientists about what may be some type of life on Mars. Phoenix is the name of a robotic vehicle that was sent to Mars to look for ice and ultimately water. One source is quoting Aviation Week & Space Technology as stating that the government wants to mull over the whole thing before announcing that life was found. Some scientists are saying that something was found, but any announcement will not include the discovery of life whether past or present. This statement certainly doesn't mean that life was not found, it could mean that they just don't want us to know about it. If you remember, there was a story a few weeks ago that suggested that when Phoenix was digging in an ice patch, something swam past the camera and could be seen through the ice.

NASA scientists announced that they have found what causes the Northern Lights. They said it is magnetic explosions. To put it more precisely they stated that it is caused by a magnetic reconnection. This reconnection takes place when the lines of a magnetic field suddenly snap into a new shape. The lines are located about 80,000 miles above the earth. Scientists now believe more than ever that the moon Titan may have a huge ocean under it's crust. What has led them to believe this, is that a shift by as much as 19 miles has been found on landmarks on the moon's surface. Now it is believed that the surface is ice that is about 100 kilometers thick that is sitting on a global ocean. It is beginning to look more and more like water may be a very common element in at least our solar system.

You don't hear much about it and most people don't even know about it, but there is a pyramid outside of Moscow. It is said to be about 12 stories high and contains about 55 tons of fiberglass. Stories are spreading fast about the magical powers it contains and people are flocking from everywhere in Russia to try for different cures. It turns out that a Ukrainian defense contractor has been building these pyramids all over Russia and it has cost him millions of dollars to do. He was quoted as saying, "You can't expect to build a pyramid and see everything change overnight. It happens gradually, the possibility of any emergency decreases, including hurricanes and typhoons. It seriously changes physical and psychological conditions." Hey if this works, maybe they should start to think about building these things in Florida. The builder actually believes that a pyramid changes the structure of space in some way, thus altering events. The structure is open for all to go into free of charge. One older woman had come there with her family. When she was interviewed she stated that she only wanted to feel better, but complained that she didn't feel any different after going inside.

You don't want to become a target in the Arab world. That is just what happened to a Brigadier General from Syria. He had long been thought to be the liaison between Syria and the Hezbollah in Lebanon. It is being said that the circumstances of his death are not clear. The officer was said to be Mohammad Suleiman. To make matters even worse for the Syrians, it had been said that this guy was the head of security at the presidential palace. How does someone get that close to one of the most important security heads of a country? One answer might be that he knew his killer and trusted him or her, if indeed he was killed, even that has not been admitted. I can see why, this is a huge embarrassment to the Syrian government, because it sort of indicates that there is someone out there that can kill anyone he or she wants to and there is nothing that anyone can do to stop them.

New studies on global warming are showing that we are going to get more tropical storms. The data that was examined was from NASA and went back two decades. It indicated that as the atmosphere is getting warmer, there is an increase in moisture and this causes more torrential rain storms. Here is the unusual part of all this, not everyone will get more rain. The scientists feel that the regions of the planet that are wet, will get the increased rain, while the dry regions will get even less moisture, making life there even harsher.

Some scientists now feel that Jupiter and Saturn are home to something that was thought to be very rare. A new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and in London, indicate that metallic helium is inside these worlds. This would mean that the previous notion that this was very rare is in error. It is felt that this discovery is very important in understanding the long term evolution of planets. One scientist stated, "The finding is also interesting from the point of view of understanding why materials are the way they are, and what determines their stability and their physical and chemical properties." The reason that helium is in a liquid metal form on these planets is from the tremendous pressure that these bodies are exerting. More energy is emitted from Jupiter and Saturn than they absorb from the sun and this has always been a great mystery. There was a theory that this was caused by helium rain. The new discovery disproves this theory, so the mystery still remains.

The newest problem with the airlines is that they are pressuring pilots to fly with less reserve fuel. The reason for this is that it saves money. The FAA is backing the companies, as has been the case with this administration in every facet of life. They state that there is no reason to order airlines to carry more fuel. Gee I can think of one big one. What happens if, for some reason, a plane has to be put into a holding pattern and can not land? This does happen from time to time. Could it run out of fuel? I know that I wouldn't want to be on a plane doing this, would you? Several planes have been in a position where they had to tell air traffic controllers that they had to land immediately, because of a fuel shortage. So far we have been very lucky, but how long can this luck last? I bet Air Force One has a full tank of fuel when it takes off. Some may ask how can flying with less fuel save money, because ultimately all the fuel will get used? The answer is simple, the lighter the plane, the less fuel burned. If a plane can take off 1,500 pounds lighter, it saves the company about $750. This may not sound like much, but in a time when airlines are really hurting, all savings are welcomed.

NASA has taken a better look at geysers on the moon Enceladus that circles Saturn. In 2005 the discovery of jets coming out of this moon had intrigued astronomers. The moon is only about 310 miles wide and activity of this kind on such a diminutive moon was totally unexpected. There just happens to be a warmer spot that is melting this ice and scientists think that there may be water there. As we all know, water could lead to life being found.