Vesta: Asteroid or planet?
STATE COLLEGE, Pa., April 5 (UPI) -- As a U.S. spacecraft nears a rendezvous with the asteroid Vesta, a centuries old debate has reignited -- is it an asteroid or should it be considered a planet?
Vesta, orbiting the sun between Mars and Jupiter in the asteroid belt, is larger than most asteroids, which average 60 miles in diameter or less, accuweather.com's astronomy blog reported Wednesday.
At 330 miles in diameter, Vesta has been classified a "minor" planet, a tag it now shares with Pluto since the solar system's ninth planet was "demoted."
A "minor" planet is an object that circles the sun but is neither a proper planet nor a comet.
In June, the NASA Dawn spacecraft will arrive at Vesta, and astronomers hope to get some data to help solve the argument.
"I don't think Vesta should be called an asteroid. Not only is Vesta so much larger, but it's an evolved object, unlike most things we call asteroids," NASA investigator Tom McCord said.
Some researchers favor the term "protoplanet," which they define as a dense, layered celestial body that began to form in the same way as the "normal" planets but never fully developed.
They point to the fact that Vests has a core, mantle and a crust, just like Earth.
"This gritty little protoplanet has survived bombardment in the asteroid belt for over 4.5 billion years, making its surface possibly the oldest planetary surface in the solar system," Christopher Russell of UCLA said. "Studying Vesta will enable us to write a much better history of the solar system's turbulent youth."
Manitoba wind farm comes online
ST. JOSEPH, Manitoba, April 5 (UPI) -- Manitoba's largest energy wind farm has been completed and is in operation to deliver enough energy for 50,000 homes in the province, officials said.
Located in southern Manitoba community of St. Joseph, the facility is capable of generating 138 megawatts of power, a release by Pattern Energy, builder of the project, said Tuesday.
Manitoba Minister of Innovation, Energy and Mines, David Chomiak spoke at the opening ceremony to mark the start of operations.
"This wind farm is one of the largest in the country and will produce enough energy to power 50,000 homes," Chomiak said. "It showcases our province's dedication to creating renewable energy and continuing to build Manitoba Hydro. This project has also provided a solid boost to the local economy creating new opportunities and jobs."
The first group of turbines in the project was set in motion by Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger in January. Now fully operational, the wind farm will contribute to a regional reduction of more than 350,000 tons of greenhouse gases, Pattern said.
Pattern Energy will pay an estimated $38 million to landholders and an additional $44 million in local municipal taxes over the life of the project.
Oregon volcano to be monitored
BEND, Ore., April 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. Geological Survey says it wants to monitor a volcano in Eastern Oregon to record any future rumblings of activity as soon as possible.
The Newberry volcano, about 20 miles southeast of Bend, will get eight seismic and GPS monitoring stations under a USGS proposal, the East Oregonian reported Wednesday.
"We're doing this on Newberry because it's a potentially active volcano," John Ewert at the Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Wash., said.
"And as far as volcanoes go, it's one that, were it to reactivate, we'd be pretty concerned about because there are substantial numbers of people and infrastructure nearby."
The seismometers can detect earthquakes caused when magma moves below the surface, and the GPS will signal changes in the shape of the surface that could be caused by the shifting magma below, Ewert said.
There is currently one seismic detector on the volcano, but to detect the exact location of cracking or fracturing rock signaling a possible eruption requires at least four, he said.
Nine stations is something of a minimal number for a volcano the size of Newberry, he said, and can measure its normal behavior on a day-to-day basis.
With the last eruption just 1,300 years ago -- relatively recently, geologically speaking -- volcanologists say the more measurements, the better.
"It's just a big honking volcano," Cynthia Gardner with the Cascades observatory said, "and it deserves more than we have on it right now."
U.N.: Arctic sees record ozone loss
UNITED NATIONS, April 5 (UPI) -- A U.N. weather and climate agency says ozone loss over the arctic reached record levels this spring because of ozone-depleting substances and weather.
The arctic region has suffered an ozone loss of about 40 percent from the beginning of the winter to late March, a release by the World Meteorological Organization said Tuesday.
The highest loss previously recorded was about 30 percent over the entire winter, the organization said
"The arctic stratosphere continues to be vulnerable to ozone destruction caused by ozone-depleting substances linked to human activities," organization Secretary-General Michel Jarraud said.
The record loss is despite the success of the Montreal Protocol cutting production and consumption of ozone-destroying chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons and halons once present in refrigerators, spray cans and fire extinguishers.
"Without the Montreal Protocol, this year's ozone destruction would most likely have been worse," the meteorological group said. "The slow recovery of the ozone layer is due to the fact that ozone-depleting substances stay in the atmosphere for several decades."
The depletion of the ozone layer is also due to a very cold winter in the stratosphere, the organization said, noting that even though this arctic winter was warmer than average at ground level, it was colder in the stratosphere than for a normal arctic winter.
Significant arctic ozone loss is possible in the case of a cold and stable arctic stratospheric winter, it said.
