@Dr_Watson: Some additional info from the computer graphics artist who produced this image. [www2.iap.fr]

@FlyingAvocado: NASA is not all about "spaceships and astronauts;" their interests cover a wide range of scientific fields.

As a matter of size comparison.

@RuckingFetard: *A video featuring the same scientist referred to in this article.

@bcgetz: Although it is difficult to perceive, the shadow's length (for this particular image), is very close to the height of the of the building itself. About 1/2 mile. [As unscientifically determined using scale measurements on Google Earth, and the known value of the Burj Khalifa.]

@trentless: This might explain it...

@Arggh! there goes a...snake a snake!: The image above is of Susanne Leidenroth, a curator from the Museum am Löwentor, Germany. She is holding a Meganeuropsis Dragonfly model that was used in an exhibit about insect evolution.

For those interested in similar things, a company named Southern Stars created a WiFi enabled iPhone to RS-232 serial interface. Although it was specifically designed to wirelessly run a telescope via an iPhone astronomy sky map app, the makers say that any number of serial devices could potentially be adapted. The…

@BoscoH: The difference is, Energizer is requiring the user to purchase the MagSafe Airline adapter from Apple. Not as elegant as the HyperMac hack, but does not infringe on Apple's patent.

Energizer/XPalPower came up with a workable solution to this issue for their Energi To Go batteries (that is, requiring the use of Apple's own MagSafe Airline adapter). I wonder if HyperMac could go the same route?

@andrew_berge: Although it will not capture the moment, so to speak, the best time to telescopically view or photograph the Moon is during its phases. At Full Moon, the lack of angular shadows on the surface causes a noticeable decrease in apparent detail.

@espinha: Twisted magnetic fields temporarily suppress convective heat transfer in areas below the Sun's Photosphere. This creates localized zones slightly cooler (~4500K as opposed to ~5800K) than the surrounding areas, and thus appear "darker" when observed.

removed

@pist: The smallest object the Hubble Space Telescope (for example) could *just barely* resolve on the Moon (if it were used in that capacity), would be about 300 feet in diameter. The largest Earth-bound telescope in the world (the GTC), could do a little better and begin to resolve an object as small as about 71…

@Anthone Tony Si: At the top the image's website, they provide the following information; The 70 Billion Pixel Budapest image was created by a company called '360 World' and sponsord by Microsoft, Sony, and EPSON

@CommentingpointlesslyisMeh: You can download a higher resolution version of this video from the NASA/JPL website at this link [mars.jpl.nasa.gov] (230 MB QuickTime). A number of other sizes in QT and MPEG-4 are also available at this website [mars.jpl.nasa.gov]

@TheiPhoneDeveloper: The cartridge for the steel Sharpie retails for $1.99. A standard Sharpie retails for $1.69 or 56 cents a piece when purchased by the dozen.

Here is a time lapse HD video I just uploaded of the magnetic putty. Enjoy.

For those interested in High Altitude Ballooning, here are some links you may wish to visit.

Inspired by this Gizmodo post, I created my own super-easy DIY laptop stand. Once you have the required "something," it takes just a few minutes to produce.