Well this looks simply fantastic, doesn't it? Nothing more for me to say - just go watch it!
Dune movie trailer on YouTube: https://youtu.be/n9xhJrPXop4
Dune
The Majesty of NGC 4414
Way back in 1995, Hubble took this image of spiral galaxy NGC 4414 as part of the HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale. An international team of astronomers, led by Dr. Wendy Freedman of the Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, observed this galaxy on 13 different occasions over the course of two months.
Images were obtained with Hubble's Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) through three different colour filters. Based on their discovery and careful brightness measurements of variable stars in NGC 4414, the Key Project astronomers were able to make an accurate determination of the distance to the galaxy.
The galaxy’s central region contains older and more red and yellow stars. In the spiral arms, stars are being born all the time, and therefore these arms contain more blue stars - and also large amounts of dust.
Originally shared on Twitter.
Our Moon in Sharp Relief
Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy took an 85 megapixel shot of the moon last night by blending together 24,000 individual image frames. What an incredible image!
Link: https://twitter.com/AJamesMcCarthy/status/1298740657259868160
High res prints: https://www.imagekind.com/first-quarter-in-august_art?IMID=5392a72e-88db-4d46-b6b4-b00c9782a559
Originally posted on Twitter.
Government Sanction
Check it out - I have government sanction now! Papers with an official seal and everything.
Seriously, what is this? Well, it's a certificate from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office formally issuing my trademark for "AMARANTHE," as it relates to a series of science fiction works!
...and only for a series of science fiction works. The Swedish metalcore band was here first, and we are no threat to one another - so long as they don't start writing sci-fi books and I don't start screeching out chords on a guitar?
But SERIOUSLY, what does this do? Basically - besides giving me something else to frame and stick on a wall - this gives me a legal route to respond should someone try to capitalize on the Amaranthe brand name I've built by sticking the word on their sci-fi books and hoping to get sales due to reader confusion. So if you ever see someone trying that, let me know.
The former lawyer in me is very proud.
Marsvalanche
An avalanche on Mars.... a Marsvalance, if you will. Captured by @HiRISE on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter back in 2019. The rocks and regolith are plunging down a cliff 500 metres high.
Learn more here: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/capturing-an-avalanche-on-mars
Originally posted on Twitter.
Crescent Saturn
“From Earth, Saturn never shows a crescent phase. But when viewed from a spacecraft the majestic giant planet can show just a sunlit slice. This image of crescent Saturn in natural color was taken by the robotic Cassini spacecraft in 2007. It captures Saturn's rings from the side of the ring plane opposite the Sun -- the unilluminated side -- another vista not visible from Earth. Visible are subtle colors of cloud bands, the complex shadows of the rings on the planet, and the shadow of the planet on the rings. The moons Mimas, at 2 o'clock, and Janus 4 o'clock, can be seen as specks of light, but the real challenge is to find Pandora (8 o'clock). From Earth, Saturn's disk is nearly full now and opposite the Sun. Along with bright fellow giant planet Jupiter it rises in the early evening.
Originally posted on Twitter.
Horizon Zero Dawn
Gamer friends: this weekend I did a 2.5-day breakneck sprint through the main storyline of Horizon Zero Dawn (with pauses to write a few words, of course ;) ). What a gorgeous, compelling and fun game. I realize I'm 3 years late to the party (boo to PS4 exclusivity), but Aloy is a wonderful protagonist. 4.5 stars.
I now return you to your regularly scheduled sci-fi.
We Are Starstuff Indeed
How cool is this? We are starstuff indeed.
"The hydrogen in your body, present in every molecule of water, came from the Big Bang. There are no other appreciable sources of hydrogen in the universe. The carbon in your body was made by nuclear fusion in the interior of stars, as was the oxygen. Much of the iron in your body was made during supernovas of stars that occurred long ago and far away. The gold in your jewelry was likely made from neutron stars during collisions that may have been visible as short-duration gamma-ray bursts or gravitational wave events. Elements like phosphorus and copper are present in our bodies in only small amounts but are essential to the functioning of all known life.
"The featured periodic table is color coded to indicate humanity's best guess as to the nuclear origin of all known elements. The sites of nuclear creation of some elements, such as copper, are not really well known and are continuing topics of observational and computational research."
Prometheus In Orbit
Prometheus orbiting Saturn just inside the F ring—a color composite made from images acquired by #Cassini's narrow-angle ISS camera on April 13, 2007. Via Jason Major: https://twitter.com/JPMajor/status/1291452836631511040
Originally posted on Twitter.
Happy Landing Anniversary to Curiosity
The Mars rover touched down on the red planet 8 years ago on August 5th.
"Since touchdown, the rover journeyed more than 14 miles (23 kilometers), drilling 26 rock samples and scooping six soil samples along the way as it revealed that ancient Mars was indeed suitable for life. Studying the textures and compositions of ancient rock strata is helping scientists piece together how the Martian climate changed over time, losing its lakes and streams until it became the cold desert it is today."
It's also taken as many selfies as a teenage girl on Instagram.
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/curiosity-celebrates-8-years-on-the-red-planet
Originally posted on Facebook.
My Cup Runneth Over
You guys did it, and it wasn't even close. Thank you for making INVERSION the Best Sci-Fi Book of 2020 (So Far). Free virtual cupcakes and libations for everyone! 🧁🧁🍻🥂
You can read all about the Top 10 books here: https://discoverscifi.com/top-10-sci-fi-books-of-2020-so-far/, and I'll copy/paste Inversion's entry below. As the post says, nearly 1/3 of the 1,000 votes cast were cast for Inversion. That is...beyond any superlative I can find in the dictionary.
And, hey, consider signing up for Discover Sci-Fi's newsletter (https://discoverscifi.com/). They're pretty awesome.
*
"1. Inversion: Riven Worlds Book Two (Amaranthe 15) G. S. Jennsen
“Voting for Inversion, GS Jennsen. It's part of an awesome series. Strong character development, creative technology, intriguing plot, and exciting space battles.” —DSF Facebook Group Member
We agree! Jennsen’s mastery of her craft has earned a loyal and passionate fanbase, and they turned out to support Inversion in record numbers, casting nearly a third of over 1000 votes for the entry. We reached out to Jennsen to ask what she thought it was about this story that resonated with readers and she had this to share:
"Inversion resonates with readers because it grounds the classic “triumph over impossible odds” story arc in the personal struggles of a cast of characters those readers have come to care deeply about. The book opens with our heroes facing some of the most dire circumstances they’ve ever encountered (which is saying something). Trapped underground beneath a city besieged by powerful aliens. Held captive in an enemy prison and thought dead by the world. Killed in action only to be resurrected in a new body using risky and unproven technology.
It’s dark, it’s ugly, it’s desperate. But no one is willing to give up and accept their fate. Instead they climb to their feet, brush the dirt off and, together and alone, fight and claw their way back to freedom, to safety, to victory. And because the readers were there alongside the characters as they fought those battles, they feel like they earned the triumph as much as the characters did."
If you haven’t started the series yet, these results should tell you: you are missing something really special!
"Nothing has prepared humanity for an enemy on the scale of the Rasu. Now, after a devastating defeat no one saw coming, the dream of victory has become a battle for survival.""
Originally posted on Facebook.
The Best Sci-Fi Book of 2020 (So Far)...?
The awesome people at Discover Sci-Fi are running a poll for the best sci-fi book of 2020 (so far). I'm thrilled to announce that a certain little book named "Inversion" has made the final ballot! So if you enjoyed Inversion and are so inclined, go forth and vote: https://discoverscifi.com/time-to-decide-best-books-2020/
Off to the Red Planet
It's official! The Perseverance rover and it's little helicopter buddy, Ingenuity, are on their way to Mars!
They are scheduled to arrive in February, at a target landing zone found in what’s known as Jezero Crater. "This location on Mars was once a lake, long ago when the atmosphere on Mars was quite different than the dry, dusty and cold environment we know today. This has been chosen specifically because it’s a prime spot for finding any evidence of microbiological life that might exist, since it contains one of the best-preserved deposits of a river delta on Mars."
Image by Mike Seeley (https://twitter.com/Mike_Seeley/status/1288812959322591237).
Originally posted on Facebook.
Inversion Signed Paperbacks
INVERSION paperbacks are now in stock! Get a personalized, signed paperback of any of my books here: https://www.gsjennsen.com/store
Mars in 4K
Feast your eyes and hearts on 10 minutes of 4K, ultra high-definition video from Mars. The video was rendered entirely from images sent back by the Curiosity, Oppy and Spirit rovers.
The narration is hilariously dry, but the visuals are literally out of this world (*hides*).
Originally posted on Facebook.
Echo Rift Update
I hope everyone is very much enjoying INVERSION! (Or has already very much enjoyed it ). Feel free to wax poetic about it anywhere, anytime. I don't mind.
Today I give you a totally useless image that tells you nothing interesting whatsoever. What is it? The current scene-by-scene outline of ECHO RIFT. 60 scenes for now; there will be more, as characters get loud and bossy. The first column is the individual scenes, then across the top each column is a character/location arc.
For this book I'm playing with Dabble, an intriguing new competitor for Scrivener (dabblewriter.com/). It lacks (for now) the color coding feature of Scrivener that might have given you a tiny bit more useful info here, but OTOH it has this wonderful plotting tool that links your outline directly with the scenes your writing. Perhaps the best thing going for it, though, is constant cloud syncing and web access: write anywhere with no version conflict disasters.
Anyway, here's your next book - in progress.
Originally posted on Facebook.
CosmoQuest-a-Con
I'm excited to announce that I will be a guest at CosmoQuest-a-Con, an online space & scifi convention taking place THIS WEEKEND! It's produced by the fantastic Planetary Science Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the exploration of our solar system.
How can you attend? Watch all the "main stage" events for free at Twitch.tv/CosmoQuestX . Or, grab a $20 ticket here (https://planetaryscienceinstitute.kindful.com/e/cosmoquest-a-con) and get access to concerts, contests, readings, & talks on Discord, as well as the vendor and artist rooms. Proceeds benefit on-going science and science-education activities.
I'll be speaking on 3 panels on Saturday and Sunday:
"IMPROMPTU SPACE" (Sat 10:30 EDT): I'll be the host and 'interpreter' for an audience-driven impromptu space-themed song and dance performance by Gillian Rhodes (a celebrated dancer and choreographer) and David Joseph Wesley (a Grammy Award nominated composer). No, *I* won't be singing or dancing. Sorry, guys.
"CREATING THE FUTURE THROUGH FICTION" (Sat 4:30 EDT): "Science fiction often starts by imagining future technologies, but it doesn't end there. From creating new cultures to creating new ways to live, science fiction must build new worlds from the stars down. Let's talk with fiction writers about what they consider in world-building."
I'll be joined on this panel by sci-fi rock stars Dennis E. Taylor (author of the Bobiverse novels) and Alex White, Writer (author of The Salvagers trilogy).
"SUNDAY MORNING BREAKFAST SPACE" (Sun 11:30 EDT): "In this hectic world, it sometimes takes effort to make room for creative activities. Join us as we discuss how we make space for space fiction."
I'll be joined on this panel by Dr. Sean Raymond (an astrophysicist studying the formation and evolution of planetary systems) and Dr. Elizabeth Ferrara (a Research Scientist at the University of Maryland studying pulsars and gravitational waves).
See the full 3-day schedule here: https://cosmoquest.org/x/cosmoquest-a-con/. It's packed with space, astronomy, sci-fi, art, games, music and more.
All the thanks to the awesome Beth Johnson for getting me involved in this exciting event!
Closest Images of the Sun Ever Taken
This morning, the European Space Agency and NASA have unveiled the closest images of the Sun ever taken by a spacecraft: high-resolution pictures taken by their newly launched Solar Orbiter spacecraft. Already, the pictures are revealing weird phenomena on the Sun that we’ve never seen in such detail.
“We didn’t really expect the first images to turn out really this great,” Daniel Müller, ESA’s project scientist for the Solar Orbiter mission, tells The Verge. “They’re not only really sharp and perfectly exposed from the technical perspective, but they really show things that we have not seen before.”
Thanks to these images, scientists have discovered what appear to be relatively “tiny” solar flares peppered across the Sun’s surface. The scientists behind the mission have dubbed these small flares “campfires,” as they are millions to billions of times smaller than the massive, energetic flares that periodically erupt from the Sun. Dozens of these campfires can be seen at any give time within the field of view of Solar Orbiter’s camera. “What is intriguing is that they seem to be happening everywhere on the Sun all the time,” says Müller.
Proper Driving Attire
"Caleb" is going to be with me for many years, so of course I had to outfit him appropriately.
Originally posted on Facebook.
Amaranthe Bumper Stickers
AMARANTHE bumper stickers are now available in the Zazzle store! Why? Because I need one for "Caleb." (The car: https://www.gsjennsen.com/supermassive-black-holes/2020/6/5/luckiest-writer).
Store: https://www.zazzle.com/amaranthe_bumper_sticker-128262723484683736
Originally posted on Facebook.