Ask Ethan: Where did the Big Bang happen? (Synopsis) [Starts With A Bang]

“The world you see, nature’s greatest and most glorious creation, and the human mind which gazes and wonders at it, and is the most splendid part of it, these are our own everlasting possessions and will remain with us as long as we ourselves remain.” -Seneca

Asking where in space the Big Bang happened is like asking where the starting point of Earth’s surface is. There’s no one “point” where it began, unless you’re talking about a point in time. The reality is that, as far as space is concerned, the Big Bang occurred everywhere at once, and we have the evidence to prove it.

Our view of a small region of the Universe, where each pixel in the image represents a mapped galaxy. On the largest scales, the Universe is the same in all directions and at all measurable location. Image credit: SDSS III, data release 8, of the northern galactic cap.

If the Big Bang were an explosion, we would discover ourselves in a Universe that had a preferred location with different densities surrounding it, but instead we see a Universe that has the same density everywhere. We’d see a Universe that looked different in different directions, yet we see one that’s uniform to better than one part in 10,000 in each direction we look. And we see a Universe that exhibits zero spatial curvature: one that’s indistinguishable from flat.

The appearance of different angular sized of fluctuations in the CMB results in different spatial curvature scenarios. Image credit: the Smoot group at Lawrence Berkeley Labs, via http://ift.tt/2abP9MP.

The Big Bang happened everywhere at once. This is how we know it, and this is what it means.

from ScienceBlogs http://ift.tt/2aoe8Qs

“The world you see, nature’s greatest and most glorious creation, and the human mind which gazes and wonders at it, and is the most splendid part of it, these are our own everlasting possessions and will remain with us as long as we ourselves remain.” -Seneca

Asking where in space the Big Bang happened is like asking where the starting point of Earth’s surface is. There’s no one “point” where it began, unless you’re talking about a point in time. The reality is that, as far as space is concerned, the Big Bang occurred everywhere at once, and we have the evidence to prove it.

Our view of a small region of the Universe, where each pixel in the image represents a mapped galaxy. On the largest scales, the Universe is the same in all directions and at all measurable location. Image credit: SDSS III, data release 8, of the northern galactic cap.

If the Big Bang were an explosion, we would discover ourselves in a Universe that had a preferred location with different densities surrounding it, but instead we see a Universe that has the same density everywhere. We’d see a Universe that looked different in different directions, yet we see one that’s uniform to better than one part in 10,000 in each direction we look. And we see a Universe that exhibits zero spatial curvature: one that’s indistinguishable from flat.

The appearance of different angular sized of fluctuations in the CMB results in different spatial curvature scenarios. Image credit: the Smoot group at Lawrence Berkeley Labs, via http://ift.tt/2abP9MP.

The Big Bang happened everywhere at once. This is how we know it, and this is what it means.

from ScienceBlogs http://ift.tt/2aoe8Qs

Metal Detectorist Tattoo #6 – Kvanli [Aardvarchaeology]

Detectorist John Kvanli is the chairman of Rygene detektorklubb and one of Norway’s most prominent proponents of collaboration between amateurs and professionals in field archaeology. Of course he has a tattoo! It’s an Urnes brooch from c. AD 1100, in the final exquisite Christian style of Scandinavian animal art.

John tells me he has found several fragments of these fragile objects, but the one inked onto his upper right arm is a settlement excavation find from Lindholm Høje, across the fjord from Aalborg in northern Jutland. The needlework was done by the Martin Tattoo Studio in Pattaya, Thailand.

See Aard’s tattoo tag for more like these.

from ScienceBlogs http://ift.tt/2akCPJQ

Detectorist John Kvanli is the chairman of Rygene detektorklubb and one of Norway’s most prominent proponents of collaboration between amateurs and professionals in field archaeology. Of course he has a tattoo! It’s an Urnes brooch from c. AD 1100, in the final exquisite Christian style of Scandinavian animal art.

John tells me he has found several fragments of these fragile objects, but the one inked onto his upper right arm is a settlement excavation find from Lindholm Høje, across the fjord from Aalborg in northern Jutland. The needlework was done by the Martin Tattoo Studio in Pattaya, Thailand.

See Aard’s tattoo tag for more like these.

from ScienceBlogs http://ift.tt/2akCPJQ

Gorgeous time-lapse of Dry Tortugas night skies

This new time-lapse from the SKYGLOW Project visits Dry Tortugas National Park, one of the darkest and most remote places on U.S. east coast.

Our friend Harun Mehmedinovic of SKYGLOW wrote:

On a remote island hours away from Key West [Florida] lies the largest masonry structure in the Americas: Fort Jefferson. Built with 16 million bricks, but never finished, the fort served as a prison during Civil War. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, upon visiting the island, named it a National Monument, and in 1992 it became part of Dry Tortugas National Park.

Besides serving as a safe haven for the most preserved coral reef in the United States, the set of islands that comprise the national park also protect countless marine animals and bird species. However, the true treasure of this amazing place was noted by one of its most famous prisoners, Dr. Samuel Mudd, who once noted that the the only escape from the hell of this prison was gazing at the night skies. Today, Dry Tortugas National Park is the darkest spot on the east coast.

Harun told us that the footage in this video is special because the National Park Service does not normally allow night photography at the park, but made an exception for this project.

This video was filmed as part of SKYGLOW, an ongoing crowdfunded quest to explore the effects and dangers of urban light pollution in contrast with some of the most incredible dark sky areas in North America. You can see more info on the video here.

Enjoying EarthSky? Sign up for our free daily newsletter today!

Bottom line: Time-lapse of night skies over Florida’s Dry Tortugas National Park.

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/2abwlgV

This new time-lapse from the SKYGLOW Project visits Dry Tortugas National Park, one of the darkest and most remote places on U.S. east coast.

Our friend Harun Mehmedinovic of SKYGLOW wrote:

On a remote island hours away from Key West [Florida] lies the largest masonry structure in the Americas: Fort Jefferson. Built with 16 million bricks, but never finished, the fort served as a prison during Civil War. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, upon visiting the island, named it a National Monument, and in 1992 it became part of Dry Tortugas National Park.

Besides serving as a safe haven for the most preserved coral reef in the United States, the set of islands that comprise the national park also protect countless marine animals and bird species. However, the true treasure of this amazing place was noted by one of its most famous prisoners, Dr. Samuel Mudd, who once noted that the the only escape from the hell of this prison was gazing at the night skies. Today, Dry Tortugas National Park is the darkest spot on the east coast.

Harun told us that the footage in this video is special because the National Park Service does not normally allow night photography at the park, but made an exception for this project.

This video was filmed as part of SKYGLOW, an ongoing crowdfunded quest to explore the effects and dangers of urban light pollution in contrast with some of the most incredible dark sky areas in North America. You can see more info on the video here.

Enjoying EarthSky? Sign up for our free daily newsletter today!

Bottom line: Time-lapse of night skies over Florida’s Dry Tortugas National Park.

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/2abwlgV

The awesome beauty of the Eagle Nebula

This photo is called the Pillars of Creation. It’s from the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995. This feature is located within the M16, or the Eagle Nebula. Image via HubbleSite.

The Eagle Nebula, also known as Messier 16 or M16, consists of a star cluster and many emission nebulae and dark nebulae, in the direction of the constellation Serpens the Serpent … visible at this time of year. It’s the location of several famous structures including the Pillars of Creation, whose photo you see above.

Take a look at the photos here, and delve deeper into this region of space, which is one of the most interesting and beautiful we know.

View larger. | The Eagle Nebula, aka M16. Photo by Martin MacPhee.

As viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, you’ll find the Eagle Nebula, or M16, above and to the left of the famous Teapot asterism of the constellation Sagittarius. Chart via Tammy Plotner and Universe Today.

In the late 18th century, when this object began to be catalogued by astronomers, only the star cluster could be seen, and it was designated as M16 in Messier’s catalog of things not to be confused with comets. Later, this star cluster became known as the Snow Queen Cluster.

The advent of astrophotography revealed a large area of glowing hydrogen gas that was invisible to the unaided eye, and that looked somewhat like an eagle with outstretched wings, giving rise to the current common name of Eagle Nebula.

As higher resolution photography and then digital photography began to reveal more and more features, particularly the dark patches (aka dark nebulae), many distinct features within the Eagle Nebula were given individual names. Today, the informal name of the Eagle Nebula is taken as referring to all of these in one collective designation.

Some of them are famous, and all are beautiful.

View larger. | A closer look at the Eagle Nebula. Photo by Martin MacPhee.

The Eagle Nebula suddenly burst upon the world’s collective consciousness in 1995, when the Hubble Space Telescope focused its attention on a dark nebula in the center of the Eagle, which you can see in the photo at the top of this post.

The dark protrusions of dense gas were found to be the site of new star and solar system formation, and the resulting photograph became known as the Pillars of Creation and gave most people their first view of new stars and solar systems at the dawn of their creation.

Similar areas, such as the Stellar Spire on the left side of the Eagle, are also forming new stars, through a combination of processes. The cold, mostly hydrogen, gas of the nebula has already fueled the formation of a series of young, hot stars. As the gas continues to collapse under its own gravity into the dark forms we see, new stars and solar systems are formed and continue to grow as they attract more and more gas to them. However, the intense light pressure from the new stars that have formed and their solar winds are eroding away the dense, cold gas pockets, diminishing new star formation and dispersing the nebulae.

At the same time however, the shock waves where the light and solar wind impacts the cold gas, heat and compress some of the cold gasses at the same time, resulting in a new set of star forming environments

View larger. | Labelled map showing both the Pillars of Creation and the Stellar Spire, within the Eagle Nebula. Photo and labels by Martin MacPhee.

I am very pleased I can see these structures in my ‘scope, which is only 8″ in diameter, especially given that they are located around 7,000 light-years away, and the Stellar Spire is roughly 9.5 light-years (~ 9 trillion kilometers) tall – about twice the diameter of our solar system. In seeing them from my driveway in the heavily light-polluted Maryland suburbs of Washington D.C., I’m doing very well. And for approximately $10,000,000,000 less than the Hubble telescope cost, which makes my wife very happy too!

Enjoy the view while you can. Sadly, data from other telescopes has shown that the Pillars and Spire are likely already gone, victims of a massive shock wave from a supernova explosion that happened 8,000 to 9,000 years ago. Its light has already gone past us, but the slower-moving shock waves would have taken thousands of years more to sweep through the Eagle Nebula, destroying the delicate structures we find so entrancing.

The light of that destruction is already on its way to us, so in a few thousand years, people will be seeing a very different Eagle in the ever-changing sky.

Stellar Spire, also located in the Eagle Nebula, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope.

Bottom line: What we know today as the Eagle Nebula, or M16, once was thought to be a simple star cluster. Astrophotography revealed the structure that resembled an eagle and gave the Nebula its current name. The Hubble Space Telescope revealed even more detail, so that today the Eagle Nebula is known as home to at least two famous structures: the Stellar Spire and the Pillars of Creation.

How the Pillars of Creation were created

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/2abwMaX

This photo is called the Pillars of Creation. It’s from the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995. This feature is located within the M16, or the Eagle Nebula. Image via HubbleSite.

The Eagle Nebula, also known as Messier 16 or M16, consists of a star cluster and many emission nebulae and dark nebulae, in the direction of the constellation Serpens the Serpent … visible at this time of year. It’s the location of several famous structures including the Pillars of Creation, whose photo you see above.

Take a look at the photos here, and delve deeper into this region of space, which is one of the most interesting and beautiful we know.

View larger. | The Eagle Nebula, aka M16. Photo by Martin MacPhee.

As viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, you’ll find the Eagle Nebula, or M16, above and to the left of the famous Teapot asterism of the constellation Sagittarius. Chart via Tammy Plotner and Universe Today.

In the late 18th century, when this object began to be catalogued by astronomers, only the star cluster could be seen, and it was designated as M16 in Messier’s catalog of things not to be confused with comets. Later, this star cluster became known as the Snow Queen Cluster.

The advent of astrophotography revealed a large area of glowing hydrogen gas that was invisible to the unaided eye, and that looked somewhat like an eagle with outstretched wings, giving rise to the current common name of Eagle Nebula.

As higher resolution photography and then digital photography began to reveal more and more features, particularly the dark patches (aka dark nebulae), many distinct features within the Eagle Nebula were given individual names. Today, the informal name of the Eagle Nebula is taken as referring to all of these in one collective designation.

Some of them are famous, and all are beautiful.

View larger. | A closer look at the Eagle Nebula. Photo by Martin MacPhee.

The Eagle Nebula suddenly burst upon the world’s collective consciousness in 1995, when the Hubble Space Telescope focused its attention on a dark nebula in the center of the Eagle, which you can see in the photo at the top of this post.

The dark protrusions of dense gas were found to be the site of new star and solar system formation, and the resulting photograph became known as the Pillars of Creation and gave most people their first view of new stars and solar systems at the dawn of their creation.

Similar areas, such as the Stellar Spire on the left side of the Eagle, are also forming new stars, through a combination of processes. The cold, mostly hydrogen, gas of the nebula has already fueled the formation of a series of young, hot stars. As the gas continues to collapse under its own gravity into the dark forms we see, new stars and solar systems are formed and continue to grow as they attract more and more gas to them. However, the intense light pressure from the new stars that have formed and their solar winds are eroding away the dense, cold gas pockets, diminishing new star formation and dispersing the nebulae.

At the same time however, the shock waves where the light and solar wind impacts the cold gas, heat and compress some of the cold gasses at the same time, resulting in a new set of star forming environments

View larger. | Labelled map showing both the Pillars of Creation and the Stellar Spire, within the Eagle Nebula. Photo and labels by Martin MacPhee.

I am very pleased I can see these structures in my ‘scope, which is only 8″ in diameter, especially given that they are located around 7,000 light-years away, and the Stellar Spire is roughly 9.5 light-years (~ 9 trillion kilometers) tall – about twice the diameter of our solar system. In seeing them from my driveway in the heavily light-polluted Maryland suburbs of Washington D.C., I’m doing very well. And for approximately $10,000,000,000 less than the Hubble telescope cost, which makes my wife very happy too!

Enjoy the view while you can. Sadly, data from other telescopes has shown that the Pillars and Spire are likely already gone, victims of a massive shock wave from a supernova explosion that happened 8,000 to 9,000 years ago. Its light has already gone past us, but the slower-moving shock waves would have taken thousands of years more to sweep through the Eagle Nebula, destroying the delicate structures we find so entrancing.

The light of that destruction is already on its way to us, so in a few thousand years, people will be seeing a very different Eagle in the ever-changing sky.

Stellar Spire, also located in the Eagle Nebula, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope.

Bottom line: What we know today as the Eagle Nebula, or M16, once was thought to be a simple star cluster. Astrophotography revealed the structure that resembled an eagle and gave the Nebula its current name. The Hubble Space Telescope revealed even more detail, so that today the Eagle Nebula is known as home to at least two famous structures: the Stellar Spire and the Pillars of Creation.

How the Pillars of Creation were created

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/2abwMaX

Teapot of Sagittarius: Galaxy’s center

From the Northern Hemisphere, look southward in July and August to find the Teapot in Sagittarius. From the Southern Hemisphere, look generally northward, and high in the sky, and turn this chart upside down.

Modern stargazers have a hard time seeing a Centaur with a bow and arrow in the constellation Sagittarius. But The Teapot – in the western half of Sagittarius – is easy to make out. The Teapot is an asterism, not a constellation, but a recognizable pattern of stars. Two noteworthy points in our sky lie in this direction: first, the center of our Milky Way galaxy and, second, the point at which the sun shines on the December solstice, around December 21 each year.

The Teapot is best viewed during the evening hours from about July to September.

On dark, moonless nights, look for the “steam” billowing out of the Teapot’s spout. It’s the edgewise view into our own galaxy, the combined glow of millions of stars running astride the galactic equator (see sky chart above). You’ll notice that the Milky Way band appears to broaden and brighten in the direction of the Teapot. It’s here that the center of our galaxy lies.

From a dark country sky, scan this river of stars with binoculars. This region of the sky is chock-full of star fields, star clusters, galactic nebulae and dust.

Because the sun passes in front of Sagittarius from about December 18 to January 20, the Teapot isn’t visible then. However, about a half year later – on July 1 – the Teapot climbs to its highest point for the night around midnight (1 a.m. Daylight Time), when it appears due south as seen from the Northern Hemisphere or due north as seen from the Southern Hemisphere.

As seen from our mid-northern latitudes, the Teapot rises in the southeast about 3 hours before its climbs to its highest point, then sets in the southwest about 3 hours afterwards.

The Teapot returns to the same place in the sky about 4 minutes earlier with each passing day, or 2 hours earlier with each passing month. On August 1, the Teapot climbs to its highest point around 10 p.m. (11 p.m. Daylight Time). On September 1, it climbs highest around 8 p.m. (9 p.m. Daylight Time). On October 1, it’s highest around 6 p.m. (7 p.m. Daylight Time).

From the Northern Hemisphere, look southward in July and August evenings to see these stars. From the Southern Hemisphere, look generally northward, higher in the sky and turn this chart upside down. Chart via AstroBob.

Bottom line: The Teapot asterism in the constellation Sagittarius is easy to spot in a dark sky. When you look in the direction, you’re looking toward the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/1EQMdQ2

From the Northern Hemisphere, look southward in July and August to find the Teapot in Sagittarius. From the Southern Hemisphere, look generally northward, and high in the sky, and turn this chart upside down.

Modern stargazers have a hard time seeing a Centaur with a bow and arrow in the constellation Sagittarius. But The Teapot – in the western half of Sagittarius – is easy to make out. The Teapot is an asterism, not a constellation, but a recognizable pattern of stars. Two noteworthy points in our sky lie in this direction: first, the center of our Milky Way galaxy and, second, the point at which the sun shines on the December solstice, around December 21 each year.

The Teapot is best viewed during the evening hours from about July to September.

On dark, moonless nights, look for the “steam” billowing out of the Teapot’s spout. It’s the edgewise view into our own galaxy, the combined glow of millions of stars running astride the galactic equator (see sky chart above). You’ll notice that the Milky Way band appears to broaden and brighten in the direction of the Teapot. It’s here that the center of our galaxy lies.

From a dark country sky, scan this river of stars with binoculars. This region of the sky is chock-full of star fields, star clusters, galactic nebulae and dust.

Because the sun passes in front of Sagittarius from about December 18 to January 20, the Teapot isn’t visible then. However, about a half year later – on July 1 – the Teapot climbs to its highest point for the night around midnight (1 a.m. Daylight Time), when it appears due south as seen from the Northern Hemisphere or due north as seen from the Southern Hemisphere.

As seen from our mid-northern latitudes, the Teapot rises in the southeast about 3 hours before its climbs to its highest point, then sets in the southwest about 3 hours afterwards.

The Teapot returns to the same place in the sky about 4 minutes earlier with each passing day, or 2 hours earlier with each passing month. On August 1, the Teapot climbs to its highest point around 10 p.m. (11 p.m. Daylight Time). On September 1, it climbs highest around 8 p.m. (9 p.m. Daylight Time). On October 1, it’s highest around 6 p.m. (7 p.m. Daylight Time).

From the Northern Hemisphere, look southward in July and August evenings to see these stars. From the Southern Hemisphere, look generally northward, higher in the sky and turn this chart upside down. Chart via AstroBob.

Bottom line: The Teapot asterism in the constellation Sagittarius is easy to spot in a dark sky. When you look in the direction, you’re looking toward the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/1EQMdQ2

Mercury-Regulus conjunction on July 30

Tonight – July 30, 2016 – the innermost planet Mercury and bright star Regulus in the constellation Leo the Lion present the year’s closest conjunction of a planet and bright star. Their fleeting rendezvous takes place in the glare of evening twilight, unfortunately. Both worlds are bright, but won’t appear bright against a bright twilight background.

If you’re up for the challenge, bring along binoculars to see if you can catch their furtive meeting in the twilight glare.

Find an unobstructed horizon in the direction of setting sun, and in addition, hope for a crystal-clear sky. Some 30 to 40 minutes after sunset, look for the very bright planets Venus and Jupiter to pop out into the western sky. Venus, though the brighter of these two dazzling worlds, might be the harder to spot, because it also sits low in the sky after sunset and near the sunset glare. Once again, binoculars may come in handy.

Seek for the two embracing worlds – Mercury and Regulus – in between Venus and Jupiter, though they’ll be much closer to Venus on the sky’s dome.

The coy couple will slip beneath the horizon about an hour after sunset – or before it gets good and dark – roughly 15 minutes after Venus sinks below the horizon.

Mercury is actually several times brighter than Regulus, the constellation Leo the Lion’s brightest star. So if you see only one starlike object in your binocular field, it’s probably Mercury, the innermost planet of the solar system.

If you miss Venus, Mercury and Regulus, there is still a wonderful consolation prize awaiting you at dusk or nightfall. Jupiter should be easy pickings in the western sky, given that this dazzling world will stay out till after dark.

Also, as darkness falls, look in the south to southwest sky for the planets Mars and Saturn (or look high overhead if you live in the Southern Hemisphere).

If you do spot Mercury and Venus, you may well have the opportunity to view all five bright planets at the same time. These are the planets known and observed by our ancestors since time immemorial: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.

They’re all in the evening sky, now.

From mid-northern latitudes, look in your southern sky as soon as darkness falls for the planets Mars and Saturn,plus the bright star Antares.

Bottom line: Planet Mercury and star Regulus appear in 2016’s closest conjunction of a planet and a bright star on July 30. Too bad they’re so near the sunset glare.

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/29721n0

Tonight – July 30, 2016 – the innermost planet Mercury and bright star Regulus in the constellation Leo the Lion present the year’s closest conjunction of a planet and bright star. Their fleeting rendezvous takes place in the glare of evening twilight, unfortunately. Both worlds are bright, but won’t appear bright against a bright twilight background.

If you’re up for the challenge, bring along binoculars to see if you can catch their furtive meeting in the twilight glare.

Find an unobstructed horizon in the direction of setting sun, and in addition, hope for a crystal-clear sky. Some 30 to 40 minutes after sunset, look for the very bright planets Venus and Jupiter to pop out into the western sky. Venus, though the brighter of these two dazzling worlds, might be the harder to spot, because it also sits low in the sky after sunset and near the sunset glare. Once again, binoculars may come in handy.

Seek for the two embracing worlds – Mercury and Regulus – in between Venus and Jupiter, though they’ll be much closer to Venus on the sky’s dome.

The coy couple will slip beneath the horizon about an hour after sunset – or before it gets good and dark – roughly 15 minutes after Venus sinks below the horizon.

Mercury is actually several times brighter than Regulus, the constellation Leo the Lion’s brightest star. So if you see only one starlike object in your binocular field, it’s probably Mercury, the innermost planet of the solar system.

If you miss Venus, Mercury and Regulus, there is still a wonderful consolation prize awaiting you at dusk or nightfall. Jupiter should be easy pickings in the western sky, given that this dazzling world will stay out till after dark.

Also, as darkness falls, look in the south to southwest sky for the planets Mars and Saturn (or look high overhead if you live in the Southern Hemisphere).

If you do spot Mercury and Venus, you may well have the opportunity to view all five bright planets at the same time. These are the planets known and observed by our ancestors since time immemorial: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.

They’re all in the evening sky, now.

From mid-northern latitudes, look in your southern sky as soon as darkness falls for the planets Mars and Saturn,plus the bright star Antares.

Bottom line: Planet Mercury and star Regulus appear in 2016’s closest conjunction of a planet and a bright star on July 30. Too bad they’re so near the sunset glare.

from EarthSky http://ift.tt/29721n0

Florida reports first locally transmitted Zika cases; advocates push Congress to act on funding [The Pump Handle]

This morning, the Florida Department of Health reported a “high likelihood” of the first localized transmission of Zika virus from mosquito to person in the United States.

Up until now, the more than 1,600 documented Zika cases in the continental U.S. have been related to travel abroad; however, the news from Florida likely means that local mosquitoes are carrying the virus. The news also means that although public health officials have long warned that this day would come, local Zika transmission got here quicker than help from Congress did. Back in February, President Obama requested $1.9 billion in emergency Zika funding based on recommendations from the public health and scientific community. Unfortunately, ruling members of Congress refused to grant that request (one Congress member even labeled the funding a “slush fund”) and instead, Congress left for recess earlier this month without passing emergency Zika funds.

In a news release about the Florida cases, Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association (APHA), said: “Sadly, we knew this outcome was probable with each passing day that Congress failed to fund Zika protection and response. And now Congress has adjourned for summer recess.

“Public health is AGAIN being asked to do more with less to keep Americans safe. We’ll do the best we can. Damage has already been done, but when Congress comes back in September, it must make sending bipartisan Zika legislation to the president a top priority.”

According to the Florida Department of Health, public health officials believe active transmission is currently happening in a very small, one-square-mile area of Miami-Dade County. The agency stated that even though no trapped mosquitoes have yet tested positive for Zika, officials believe that four human Zika cases are the result of being bitten by local mosquitoes. The Florida Department of Health reports:

The department is actively conducting door-to-door outreach and urine sample collection in the impacted area and will share more details as they become available. The results from these efforts will help (the) department determine the number of people affected. These local cases were identified by clinicians who brought them to the attention of the department. In addition, blood banks in the area are currently excluding donations from impacted areas until screening protocols are in place.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working closely with Florida health officials as they investigate the likely locally transmitted cases. In a CDC news release, Lyle Petersen, incident manager for the agency’s Zika response, said: “We anticipate that there may be additional cases of ‘homegrown’ Zika in the coming weeks. Our top priority is to protect pregnant women from the potentially devastating harm caused by Zika.” CDC Director Tom Frieden said the agency expects “isolated” cases of Zika, but doesn’t expect widespread transmission in the U.S.

On the funding issue, CDC has given Florida more than $8 million in Zika-specific funding and about $27 million in emergency preparedness monies that can be used for Zika efforts. Earlier this month, CDC announced it would begin awarding nearly $60 million to states, cities and territories in support of Zika response and protection efforts — that funding will be made available on Monday. Still, as The Pump Handle reported in May, a lack of congressional action on emergency Zika funds is hampering the country’s public health response and forcing CDC to redirect critically needed funds away from state and local public health agencies.

“This is the news we’ve been dreading,” said Edward R.B. McCabe, senior vice president and chief medical officer at the March of Dimes, of the locally acquired Florida cases. “It’s only a matter of time before babies are born with microcephaly, a severe brain defect, due to local transmission of Zika in the continental U.S. Our nation must accelerate education and prevention efforts to save babies from this terrible virus. Federal, state and local authorities are doing the best they can with the limited resources available to them, but much more is needed.“

Visit CDC to stay up to date on Zika cases in the U.S. Or use this easy template from APHA to call on your congressional representatives to fund Zika prevention and research.

Kim Krisberg is a freelance public health writer living in Austin, Texas, and has been writing about public health for nearly 15 years.

from ScienceBlogs http://ift.tt/2a69fwD

This morning, the Florida Department of Health reported a “high likelihood” of the first localized transmission of Zika virus from mosquito to person in the United States.

Up until now, the more than 1,600 documented Zika cases in the continental U.S. have been related to travel abroad; however, the news from Florida likely means that local mosquitoes are carrying the virus. The news also means that although public health officials have long warned that this day would come, local Zika transmission got here quicker than help from Congress did. Back in February, President Obama requested $1.9 billion in emergency Zika funding based on recommendations from the public health and scientific community. Unfortunately, ruling members of Congress refused to grant that request (one Congress member even labeled the funding a “slush fund”) and instead, Congress left for recess earlier this month without passing emergency Zika funds.

In a news release about the Florida cases, Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association (APHA), said: “Sadly, we knew this outcome was probable with each passing day that Congress failed to fund Zika protection and response. And now Congress has adjourned for summer recess.

“Public health is AGAIN being asked to do more with less to keep Americans safe. We’ll do the best we can. Damage has already been done, but when Congress comes back in September, it must make sending bipartisan Zika legislation to the president a top priority.”

According to the Florida Department of Health, public health officials believe active transmission is currently happening in a very small, one-square-mile area of Miami-Dade County. The agency stated that even though no trapped mosquitoes have yet tested positive for Zika, officials believe that four human Zika cases are the result of being bitten by local mosquitoes. The Florida Department of Health reports:

The department is actively conducting door-to-door outreach and urine sample collection in the impacted area and will share more details as they become available. The results from these efforts will help (the) department determine the number of people affected. These local cases were identified by clinicians who brought them to the attention of the department. In addition, blood banks in the area are currently excluding donations from impacted areas until screening protocols are in place.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working closely with Florida health officials as they investigate the likely locally transmitted cases. In a CDC news release, Lyle Petersen, incident manager for the agency’s Zika response, said: “We anticipate that there may be additional cases of ‘homegrown’ Zika in the coming weeks. Our top priority is to protect pregnant women from the potentially devastating harm caused by Zika.” CDC Director Tom Frieden said the agency expects “isolated” cases of Zika, but doesn’t expect widespread transmission in the U.S.

On the funding issue, CDC has given Florida more than $8 million in Zika-specific funding and about $27 million in emergency preparedness monies that can be used for Zika efforts. Earlier this month, CDC announced it would begin awarding nearly $60 million to states, cities and territories in support of Zika response and protection efforts — that funding will be made available on Monday. Still, as The Pump Handle reported in May, a lack of congressional action on emergency Zika funds is hampering the country’s public health response and forcing CDC to redirect critically needed funds away from state and local public health agencies.

“This is the news we’ve been dreading,” said Edward R.B. McCabe, senior vice president and chief medical officer at the March of Dimes, of the locally acquired Florida cases. “It’s only a matter of time before babies are born with microcephaly, a severe brain defect, due to local transmission of Zika in the continental U.S. Our nation must accelerate education and prevention efforts to save babies from this terrible virus. Federal, state and local authorities are doing the best they can with the limited resources available to them, but much more is needed.“

Visit CDC to stay up to date on Zika cases in the U.S. Or use this easy template from APHA to call on your congressional representatives to fund Zika prevention and research.

Kim Krisberg is a freelance public health writer living in Austin, Texas, and has been writing about public health for nearly 15 years.

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