Planets Without Suns

There are a number of starless planets roaming about in space, but one in particular is creating a lot of excitement among astronomers. It is only 100 light years away from Earth, which in astronomical distances is practically a hop, skip and a jump away, and it is very young.

The planet, a gas giant, has no name, at least as yet. It is known by its catalog number, CFBDSIR2149-0403. The reason astronomers are so excited is that they have a chance for a close-up study of an object without interference from starlight. Astronomers theorize that there may be billions of these objects wandering around in our galaxy.

CFBDSIR2149-0403 was detected in 2009 by astronomers in Hawaii using heat signals and an infrared camera. A second team at the Paranal Observatory in Chile then aimed a large telescope at the object and found the object. They describe it as being nearly identical in circumference to Jupiter, although it appears to be from four to seven times larger in mass. They analyzed its atmosphere and found ammonia, methane and water vapor. These same gases are found in our own solar system’s gas giants, Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune and Uranus.

The “substellar object” was found near the southern constellation Dorado, but may actually not be part of the AB Doradus group, which is a collection of 30 stars that formed from the same cloud of galactic gas. Astronomers have also found that it is a very young “planet,” aged somewhere between about 50 and 120 million years old.

Objects like CFBDSIR2149-0403, wandering without a star to illuminate them, are very hard to spot. Some of the younger objects, however, still carry a residual glow caused by their own heat.

Some of these stars may eventually be captured by a sun if they happen to wander close enough to be pulled in by the star’s gravity field. Others may wander for an eternity. One pair, however, found one another, circling around each other rather than around a sun.

 Since our solar system’s giant gas planets share gases in common with CFBDSIR2149-0403, one has to wonder whether they were once roaming stars that happened to wander into the Sun’s gravitational influence and become part of our own system. Perhaps there’s hope yet that CFBDSIR2149-0403 will yet find a home.

There’s more information on this orphan planet here

Meat-Eating Sponges?

Relax. You’re not likely to encounter one of these carnivorous sponges. They live about 2 miles below the ocean’s surface, and the biggest ones found so far are only about 14 inches tall.

Its scientific name is Chondrocladia lyra, but it’s better known as the “harp sponge” for its unusual, and beautiful form. It was actually discovered in 2000 by scientists using a deep-diving, remote operated vehicle, but researchers only reported its existence in an article published in the journal Intertebrate Biology in October 2012. It lives deep in Monterey Bay off the coast of California.

Scientists have known of the existence of carnivorous sponges for less than twenty years. But little was known about their lives since they usually live in very deep water. But researchers were able to retrieve two live specimens which allowed them to study the sponges in some detail.

Harp sponges use barbed hooks which cover their branching limbs to catch their dinner. They wait for tiny fish and crustaceans to be swept past them by deep-sea currents, then wrap their prey in thin membranes while they slowly digest their victims.

They also have an interesting way of reproducing. While most sponges release their sperm to swim in the water around them, all carnivorous sponges studied so far transfer their sperm in condensed packages. The swollen balls at the tips of the sponges’ branches hold these sperm packets, releasing the spermatophores into the passing currents. When other sponges capture the packets, the sperm works its way into its new host from the packets and fertilizing their eggs. These sponges are able to produce both sperm and eggs, although they cannot fertilize their own eggs.

The discovery was made by Senior Research Technician Lonny Lundsten of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, which has made other remarkable discoveries in the past, including a squid which has elbows.

If you’re interested in seeing a photo of this interesting new animal, go here

Pueblo, Colorado’s Haunted Fire Museum

One of the most active haunted sites in Pueblo is The Hose Co. No. 3 Fire Museum. And it is
definitely active.

The museum is housed in the old Station No. 3 of the Pueblo Fire Department, which was built in 1895. It was built by the Masonic Temple in Pueblo and was originally leased to the City of Pueblo for $75 a month. The city bought the station and the land it sat on for $500 in 1890. One of the stipulations of the agreement was that no alcohol was ever to be allowed on the property.  The fire house also served as a local hospital, and people in the neighborhood brought injured people there to be treated.

The building has been the scene of unusual events dating back at least to the 1930s. The museum boasts all the usual paranormal phenomena, such as footsteps and disembodied voices, things falling, cold spots, glowing orbs and EVP phenomena. And these ghosts are not shy.

One of the best documented examples of possible ghostly activity involves a Model T Ford that once was driven by the Fire Chief. The car was taken outside the station in 2006 and left idling while its battery was charged. Suddenly it started off by itself and took a trip around the block, eventually parking itself in the front of the building. The incident was witnessed not only by people at the station, but by a woman who worked across the street and a couple who lived not far away. The car had traveled 520 feet without a driver, and had made several turns in its trip around the block, running through a stop sign at one corner.

It turns out that the Model T is not the only vehicle to take itself for a short drive. Back in the early 1960s a 1960 Seagraves fire truck started itself about 3:30 in the morning and drove out through the door onto the street, a short trip of only about 20 feet. The firefighters in the building were asleep upstairs at the time.

Researchers, accompanied by a reporter, investigated the building just before Halloween in 2012 asked “What’s your name?” They did not hear a reply at the time, but later, when they reviewed their tape, they heard a male voice say, “I’m Ted.”

Later, the team heard footsteps, and experienced nausea in certain rooms. They also reported becoming nauseous when sitting in the old Model T. A stuffed animal fell off a desk on the ground floor while everyone was upstairs.

These stories represent only a few of the phenomena experienced by visitors, researchers, and firefighters over the many years of the station’s existence. The museum was featured in 2011 on the SyFy channel’s “The Haunted Collector.”

The museum does not have regular visiting hours, but Museum Curator Mark Pickerel, whose father was a firefighter working out of Hose Company No. 3 when it was still a working fire station, has posted many of the stories on the museum’s website at

So What Got Into These Bees?

The Alsace region in northeastern France is famous for its fine white wines. But one town has become famous for a product it can’t sell. Alsatian bees are producing blue and green honey.

There are an estimated 2,400 beekeepers in the region, with 35,000 bee colonies that produce about 1,000 tons of honey a year. This year, in the town of Ribeauville, the bees suddenly began producing honey in shades of blue and green.

Mystified beekeepers eventually traced the odd tints to a biogas plant which processes waste from a Mars-owned plant nearby. Mars is American company that produces the well-known M&Ms candy. Apparently the bees mistook the residue for pollen and snapped it up for their own honey-making operations.

The company that owns the biogas plant says it discovered the problem at the same time that the beekeepers did and quickly took steps to store the waste in airtight (and presumably bee-tight) containers. The honey will not be marketed.

All of this does leave one question in my mind. Why didn’t those bees produce red honey?

Green Eggs and Ham, anyone?

Did Meriwether Lewis Really Commit Suicide?

In 1809, Meriwether Lewis, heroic explorer and co-leader of the famous Lewis and Clark Expedition, set out for Washington, D.C. He had been appointed as governor of the Upper Louisiana Territory by President Thomas Jefferson, but was plagued by personal and professional problems.

The entire journey was plagued by problems. Lewis fell ill, and temporarily lost his pack horses, which were carrying his journals, but finally arrived at a lonely inn on October 10, 1809. Mrs. Grinder, the owner’s wife, found places for Lewis and the three men accompanying them. Lewis was given a cabin of his own. This is when the story becomes very strange.

At about 3:00 the next morning, two gunshots came from Lewis’ cabin. Mrs. Grinder apparently did not think to check on her guest. Lewis finally managed to crawl to her door. At last, two hours later, Mrs. Grinder notified Lewis’ servants that he had been shot. They found Lewis on his bed, dying.

Jefferson apparently accepted that Lewis had committed suicide, but many questions remain.  How did Lewis manage to shoot himself twice? Contradictory statements by Mrs. Grinder, her husband, and the three men who had accompanied him further complicated the story. And even Jefferson later said that Lewis had been murdered. Numerous conspiracy theories have been put forth, especially since many people stood to gain substantially by his death.

It is said that Lewis’ ghost still haunts the place where he died. A lonely voice is heard to say, “I am no coward.”

For more information on this very strange story, visit here

Is There a Monster in Sweden’s Lake Storsjöñn?

Lake Storsjön in Jamtland County is Sweden’s 5th largest lake. Its surface area covers more than 287 square miles and it as much as 250 feet deep. Does it harbor a monster? Many think it does, and thousands of people say they have actually seen it, and many say they’ve taken pictures of it. Apparently the creature, called Storsie, is not shy.
Storsie was first reported by a vicar way back in 1635. The creature apparently made its living at the time by raiding farm crops in the area. Since then, though, it has apparently confined its diet primarily to fish.

Most people say that Storzie has a serpentine body with humps on its back. It is grayish in color with a doglike head. But others say the monster is short and very fat with a roundish skull. The reports also disagree on whether Storzie has large flippers or strong back legs and short limbs with feet suitable for walking on land. They do agree, however, that Storzie is about 20 to 30 feet long with big eyes, and a huge mouth. There is such a huge difference between the two descriptions that I wonder if there are actually two different monsters in the lake.

One interesting indication of the possible reality of the Lake Storsjöön monster surfaced in June 1984 when a well-preserved carcass was found on the lake shore. Some researchers think the body may be an embryo. The creature, whatever it is, is now at the Jamtli Museum.

In August 1998 an international expedition under the leadership of Jan Ove Sunbert, founder of an organization known as the Global Underwater Search Team undertook a search for evidence of Storzie’s existence. They came up empty-handed, but the organization has continued its investigations both at Lake Storsjön and other areas and is now considered a world leader in the search for lake monsters. Loch Ness specialist Adrian Shine, a famed monster hunter, led his own expedition in 1998, but it was also unsuccessful.

A total of eight observation platforms were built on the shores of Lake Storsjöön between 2000 and 2001. From these platforms both tourists and locals can enjoy the beautiful local scenery, and watch for Storsie.

There’s a YouTube video purportedly showing film of Storsie here

Denver, Colorado’s Haunted Brown Palace Hotel

If you happen to be at the Brown Palace Hotel’s Churchill Bar and a man walks in, then leaves through a wall, don’t worry. It’s probably only Henry Brown.

Mr. Brown founded the hotel in 1892 and passed away in 1906. But apparently he is still attached to his hotel, and night watchmen often encounter him pacing the hallways.

Henry Brown isn’t the only ghost haunting the legendary hotel. Another regular is a bellhop who steals newspapers from doorways and walks through walls. Another is a prostitute from Denver’s more colorful days. Then there is the elderly woman wearing a long black dress. She complains that the heat is not working in her room, but vanishes when a repairman arrives to fix it.

Jenna Robbins, who guides tours of haunted portions of the hotel, became a believer while she was guiding a tour devoted to romantic scandals that had taken place there. She recalled talking to her tour group about one particular scandal involving a resident named Louise Crawford Hill, who had lived in Room 904 the hotel during that last 15 years of her life and was found dead in the room. On the day of the tour, staff members reported receiving numerous calls from Room 904, but heard only static on the line. There was no phone in the room at the time, and since the room was being renovated no guests were staying there.

Guests and hotel employees often experience other phenomena, including the usual array events like doors slamming, lights flickering on and off, and sudden chills in rooms and hallways. Papers fly off tables, and children laughing and playing in hallways are also fairly routine occurrences.

The Brown Palace Club dining room is also an active area. Besides frequent complaints that the dining room is too cold, there are also numerous reports of people walking through walls, and the sounds of bartenders clinking glassesare commonly reported.

In one case, a security officer heard the sounds of music coming from the ballroom and went to investigate. He found a trio of musicians playing their instruments. He advised them that it was too late to be making noise. One of the musicians told him, “It’s OK. We live here.” Then all three disappeared.

All the ghosts at the hotel seem to be benign. No real damage or injuries have been reported by witnesses or staff members.

The Brown Palace Hotel is so well known for its ghosts that they make tours available for hotel guests. If you’d like to schedule a tour yourself, visit here for more information.