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MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. – Preliminary data from NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, indicates the mission successfully uncovered water in a permanently shadowed lunar crater.
NASA said the discovery opens a new chapter in our understanding of the moon.
The LCROSS spacecraft and a companion rocket stage made twin impacts in the Cabeus crater Oct. 9 that created a plume of material from the bottom of a crater that has not seen sunlight in billions of years. The plume traveled at a high angle beyond the rim of Cabeus and into sunlight, while an additional curtain of debris was ejected more laterally.
"We're unlocking the mysteries of our nearest neighbor and, by extension, the solar system," said Michael Wargo, chief lunar scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "The moon harbors many secrets, and LCROSS has added a new layer to our understanding."
Scientists long have speculated about the source of significant quantities of hydrogen that have been observed at the lunar poles. The LCROSS findings are shedding new light on the question with the discovery of water, which could be more widespread and in greater quantity than previously suspected. If the water that was formed or deposited is billions of years old, these polar cold traps could hold a key to the history and evolution of the solar system, much as an ice core sample taken on Earth reveals ancient data. In addition, water and other compounds represent potential resources that could sustain future lunar exploration.
Since the impacts, the LCROSS science team has been analyzing the huge amount of data the spacecraft collected. The team concentrated on data from the satellite's spectrometers, which provide the most definitive information about the presence of water. A spectrometer helps identify the composition of materials by examining light they emit or absorb.
"We are ecstatic," said Anthony Colaprete, LCROSS project scientist and principal investigator at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "Multiple lines of evidence show water was present in both the high angle vapor plume and the ejecta curtain created by the LCROSS Centaur impact. The concentration and distribution of water and other substances requires further analysis, but it is safe to say Cabeus holds water."
The team took the known near-infrared spectral signatures of water and other materials and compared them to the impact spectra the LCROSS near infrared spectrometer collected.
"We were able to match the spectra from LCROSS data only when we inserted the spectra for water," Colaprete said. "No other reasonable combination of other compounds that we tried matched the observations. The possibility of contamination from the Centaur also was ruled out."
Additional confirmation came from an emission in the ultraviolet spectrum that was attributed to hydroxyl, one product from the break-up of water by sunlight. When atoms and molecules are excited, they release energy at specific wavelengths that can be detected by the spectrometers. A similar process is used in neon signs. When electrified, a specific gas will produce a distinct color. Just after impact, the LCROSS ultraviolet visible spectrometer detected hydroxyl signatures that are consistent with a water vapor cloud in sunlight.
Data from the other LCROSS instruments are being analyzed for additional clues about the state and distribution of the material at the impact site. The LCROSS science team and colleagues are poring over the data to understand the entire impact event, from flash to crater. The goal is to understand the distribution of all materials within the soil at the impact site.
"The full understanding of the LCROSS data may take some time. The data is that rich," Colaprete said. "Along with the water in Cabeus, there are hints of other intriguing substances. The permanently shadowed regions of the moon are truly cold traps, collecting and preserving material over billions of years."
LCROSS was launched June 18 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida as a companion mission to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO. Moving at a speed of more than 1.5 miles per second, the spent upper stage of its launch vehicle hit the lunar surface shortly after 4:31 a.m. PDT Oct. 9, creating an impact that instruments aboard LCROSS observed for approximately four minutes. LCROSS then impacted the surface at approximately 4:36 a.m.
LRO observed the impact and continues to pass over the site to give the LCROSS team additional insight into the mechanics of the impact and its resulting craters. The LCROSS science team is working closely with scientists from LRO and other observatories that viewed the impact to analyze and understand the full scope of the LCROSS data.
For information about LCROSS, visit http://www.nasa.gov/lcross .
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WaterColor Restaurant and Bar
6190 Soda Bay Rd.
Kelseyville, CA. 95451
707-279-8254
Wednesday through Friday, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Saturday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Since I once reviewed WaterColor Restaurant’s “Sunday Night Sushi” menu but not their regular menu, I have always planned on revisiting WaterColor Restaurant at the Ferndale Resort. I had been waiting to do it when they moved the facility to the Clear Lake Queen, but the other night when I was planning to have dinner elsewhere and that place wasn’t open, I decided to drop in on WaterColor since it wasn’t far away.
My family and I arrived fairly early in the evening and there were plenty of open tables, so the fact that we didn’t have reservation wasn’t a problem this time. We were seated immediately in the elegant, moderately lit dinning room which was set with white-clothed tables with candles, shiny silverware, and perfectly clean stemware.
I’m not a musician and have no musical talent at all, so I’m not sure if the music quietly being piped into the room was elevator grade jazz or dentist’s office grade jazz, but it gave us the giggles trying to describe it to each other.
Our waiter Danny was just the way I like the wait staff to be – there when we needed him but nowhere to be seen when we didn’t. They could do an episode of “Ghost Hunters” about him, because one moment he’s there then poof he’s gone. He never hovered over us or watched us from across the room; he just maintained an ethereal presence that made the dinner more enjoyable. Sorry, Danny, but if Holly got the nickname “Hollywood” from my last review, you are probably going to get one also.
We started the meal off with the fried calamari and rock shrimp appetizer, and my daughter gave what will go down as one of the great quotes of her life: “Calamari is the only way that I will eat squid.” We laughed and said, “Is beef the only way you’ll eat cow?”
We finally came to the conclusion that she meant “battered and deep fried” was the only way she would eat squid. WaterColor’s calamari is much lighter, crisper, not at all “doughy,” and much better than average fried squid, so much so that it is on my list to be ordered anytime I go there.
Dinner came with a choice of soup or salad and I made the mistake of ordering the salad. Not that the mixed greens weren’t good, but because I tried a little bit of the butternut squash soup that my daughter had and it was so fantastic. I recently made a squash soup at home which I was quite pleased with, but this was far and away better.
My wife and I started to joke about the scene in the movie “Once Upon a Time in Mexico,” where Johnny Depp is talking about how fantastic his puerco pibil is, and that it is so good, that it’s too good, so that he’s going to have to kill the cook just to restore balance in the world. The soup was that good. I looked at online reviews of WaterColor and even some of them made comments on how good other soups they’ve made there are.
My entrée was the “candy stripped marlin” (the misspelling of the word “striped” and a couple of other words made reading the menu part of the fun of the evening) set atop garlic mashed potatoes and topped with pineapple salsa, with a side of cooked collard greens. Danny mentioned that it is served rare but that it can be cooked through if I chose; I didn’t. Every part of the dish was extraordinary so I continued to joke that “the cook has to die just to level the playing field.”
My wife had the spinach and cheese stuffed ravioli in a pesto cream sauce. It came in a large bowl and smelled wonderful. She loved the ravioli, but towards the end of dinner admitted that the pesto cream sauce was a bit too heavy so that she couldn’t finish the whole portion.
My daughter had the rib eye steak, rare. It came with an abundance of crinkle cut French fries that looked like about three whole potatoes worth. She knew from the start that she wouldn’t be finishing this meal. She tore into the steak like the starving petting zoo vegetarian she is. She said it was the best steak she had ever had, and considering the number of times this girl eats out with me and the nonstop critiquing that she is subjected to listening to, I think I can trust her judgment that it was a very good steak.
We all ate until we were stuffed like bass on a wall and just as unlikely to move anytime soon. Even so, when we heard Danny telling the customers at another table what the desserts were my wife and daughter started making cooing noises. Of the six desserts available I was too full to even consider ordering one of them, but my wife and daughter each ordered one to go.
According to the menu, David Dalton is the chef at WaterColor and my advice to him is that if he sees Johnny Depp in the restaurant, run out the back door. My advice to anyone reading this is, get the soup.
Ross A. Christensen is an award-winning gardener and gourmet cook. He is the author of "Sushi A to Z, The Ultimate Guide" and is currently working on a new book. He has been a public speaker for many years and enjoys being involved in the community. Follow him on Twitter, http://twitter.com/Foodiefreak .
HIDDEN VALLEY LAKE – A home was damaged and its garage destroyed in a Hidden Valley Lake fire on Friday morning.
Cal Fire reported that the fire occurred on Coyle Springs Road at about 10:15 a.m. Friday.
The home's garage was fully involved when firefighters arrived on scene, according to Cal Fire.
Other agencies responding to the scene included South Lake County Fire and Hidden Valley Lake Safety and Security, according to witness David Lemoine.
Neighbors at the scene said the home was unoccupied at the time, Lemoine said.
Cal Fire said the garage and its contents were destroyed and the nearby home also was damaged.
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Transferring one’s home to family (e.g., one’s children), however, creates the potential hazard that one might get evicted, for various reasons, including a falling-out with the new owner, or problems befalling the new owner (such as creditor actions or divorce). What alternatives are available?
Various options exist. The reader is cautioned, however, that except for the first option below, none are guaranteed to succeed at avoiding estate recovery. Estate recovery is a very controversial area of law, and no one knows what the law will provide at one’s death.
So let’s examine the options.
One option is to sell the property to family with an understanding that they will allow one’s continued occupancy. This could be done by way of an installment sale that would generate monthly income, which is often preferable to taking a reverse mortgage.
So long as the income was spent buying exempt services or resources each month there would be no worries about accumulating disqualifying (excess) resources (cash). A bona fide sale with a sale price based on a qualified appraisal will not result in estate recovery claims against.
Another option is to transfer the residence to a family member while retaining a legal right of occupancy – either a reserved life estate or an unrecorded occupancy agreement.
A life estate is a much more substantial right and has to be contained in the deed of conveyance. California has not pursued recovery against life estates, although it has been threatened.
An occupancy agreement is not recorded (and so is more stealthy), but is a less substantial right. A right of occupancy is akin to an indefinitely long-term lease, but without rent payments. Also, whereas the life estate guarantees the family will get a new basis when the original owner dies, the occupancy agreement is less certain.
The last option discussed here is transferring the home to an irrevocable trust while reserving a lifetime right of occupancy.
The trust, often called an “intentionally defective irrevocable trust” (a.k.a., the ‘IDIT’), provides extra protection and flexibility.
First, the IDIT is not answerable to the creditors of whomever inherits the house, until such time as they actually inherit (when title goes outright into their name).
Second, the IDIT allows for the residence to be sold and the proceeds to be used to buy a replacement residence. That flexibility can be particularly desirable if one considers possibly moving to another home and/or different location.
Third, the IDIT allows one to still be the owner for income tax purposes, real property tax purposes and estate tax purposes (now usually only relevant insofar as the stepped-up basis at death goes).
Selecting the best option involves careful consideration of factors that usually differ very significantly from person to person.
Do not presume which one suits you best until you have discussed this with a qualified advisor.
Dennis A. Fordham, attorney (LL.M. tax studies), is a State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law. His office is at 55 1st St., Lakeport, California. Dennis can be reached by e-mail at
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In all, break-ins or attempted break-ins were reported at six businesses, starting over the weekend and lasting until Wednesday, according to Lt. Brad Rasmussen of the Lakeport Police Department.
“We believe all of the burglaries and the attempted burglaries are related, based on the evidence and the pattern that we're seeing,” Rasmussen said.
The break-ins started sometime late last Saturday night or early Sunday morning, said Rasmussen. That's when someone forced their way into First Nails in the Bruno's Shop Smart shopping plaza on Lakeport Boulevard.
Rasmussen said the burglars ransacked the business and took cash, the amount of which police are withholding.
Sometime late Sunday or early Monday morning Erma's Hair and Skin Essentials, located in the 800 block of Bevins Street, also was broken into and ransacked. Rasmussen said police are unsure of what's missing from that shop.
The following night, break-ins were attempted at Henny's Shear Delight and the All About Me boutique in the Willow Tree Plaza on 11th Street. In those cases, the suspects didn't get into the businesses, said Rasmussen.
However, overnight Tuesday or early Wednesday, another forced entry at All About Me was successful, with cash stolen, said Rasmussen.
That same night two other burglaries occurred – at Kelsey Creek Coffee Co. in the 900 block of N. Main and Pet Country in the 1100 block of N. Main. Cash was stolen in both cases, Rasmussen said.
Soda machines near Pet Country and the Anchorage Inn also were broken into, said Rasmussen.
“We're increasing our patrols of the business area to look for any suspicious activity,” he said.
Rasmussen said police are looking at potential leads.
“We've got a couple pieces of confirmation that we're following up on” that we think may be related, he said.
Rasmussen urged businesses not to keep cash on premises and to have their locks backed by secondary deadbolts.
It's also important to maintain good lighting at entry points into businesses to help deter potential burglars, he said.
In addition, Rasmussen suggested that business owners consider full alarm systems to add to their security.
Rasmussen said police want to hear from anyone who has seen anything suspicious in the affected business areas. If anyone sees anything as it's occurring, he urged them to call police right away.
“We consider it a serous issue and we're trying to do everything we can to prevent any further burglaries in the business district or anywhere else,” he said.
Lakeport Police Department can be reached at 707-263-5491. Emergency calls should go to 911.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
Pivniska Trucking requested a use permit, general plan amendment and rezone to replace a 10-year use permit that Community Development staff said expired in 2000.
Associate Planner Keith Gronendyke said county staff was recommending a partial approval of the application. Community Development Director Rick Coel added that they wanted to give the Pivniskas a year to meet several outstanding conditions with the old use permit.
Marilyn Pivniska, who has run the company with her son, Chris, since her husband Butch's death in June of 2007, told the commission that, “When you read this staff report, it paints us with a very ugly brush, like we are some noncompliant criminal element.”
Pivniska said she's been in the trucking business for 35 years, with 29 of those years being at the current location, 85 and 79 E. State Highway 20.
She said her operation generates more than $2 million in revenue which stays in Lake County. There's not much of a profit margin in trucking, she said, with most of her revenue going to her eight employees and the 10 to 20 owner/operator truckers she hires annually.
“We have been productive citizens in this county and the county should try to work with us” and all small businesses, Pivniska said.
She didn't have an issue with the year to comply, but she was concerned about having to move a portable gravel screening plant from its spot on land that is zoned for rural residential to another area of the property, where it was originally located and where the zoning is correct.
The county also was asking for piles of materials to be moved, and Pivniska asked permission to bring in a portable crusher for about a week to prepare the materials for resale.
Commissioner Cliff Swetnam was particularly concerned that the Pivniskas were operating on an expired use permit first issued in 1990, the conditions of which still weren't fully met nearly 20 years later.
Swetnam read off the eight unfulfilled use permit conditions: requirement to obtain an encroachment permit from Caltrans along the property's Highway 20 frontage, construction of a new encroachment, paving all parking lots and driveways with an all-weather surface, continuously maintaining all parking and access areas in good repair, installing landscaping along the highway frontage, installing fencing around fuel areas to screen them from the highway and no outdoor storage with the exception of one area on the property's southern portion.
He called it “gutsy” for the Pivniskas to request a new permit when they haven't fully complied with the old one.
“Well, I could blame it on my late husband, but I won't do that, I'll take full responsibility,” said Marilyn Pivniska, who noted that some of the delay was because of affordability.
Chris Pivniska said he's trying to clean up the issues left to him. “We would like to comply,” he said, explaining that they need both time and money.
“You've had 19 years,” said Swetnam.
Clearly frustrated, Chris Pivniska replied, “That's neither here nor there.”
He explained that moving a screening plant over close to the business' shop would not be cost effective.
“Would your business being shut down without permits be cost effective?” Swetnam asked.
No, said Pivniska, adding that the report said a lot of “bad things.”
“Tell us what's not true,” said Swetnam.
“Everything's true in it, obviously,” said Pivniska. “There's a lot of good things we do, too.”
Replied Swetnam, “I don't doubt that.”
Commissioner Clelia Baur, who chaired the meeting in the absence of Commissioner Gary Briggs, told the Pivniskas that the county respects the work they're doing and is trying to work with them.
“I think you can come into compliance in a year” while continuing to run the business and stay a part of the community, she said.
Coel said his staff's initial reaction was not to support the rezone, but looking at how the commission recently worked out some issues with Epidendio Construction caused them to reconsider.
Epidendio went before the commission in April and was granted a mitigated negative declaration and permission to continue operating for an indefinite period of time an equipment storage yard located at 11325 and 11180 Highway 29 in Lower Lake, according to commission records.
Coel said that, if the Pivniskas' location wasn't right on the highway and not close to downtown Upper Lake, the standards being applied to it probably wouldn't be as heavy.
He suggested the commission approve the new use permit with the same conditions, and his department would work with the Pivniskas on the issues. “We just want to see it brought up to current standards.”
Air Pollution Control Officer Doug Gearhart of the Lake County Air Quality Management District weighed in on the situation, noting there have been complaints about dust from the business in the past, but not in the last year.
There are residents who live close to the operation, he said, and as a result health impacts from emissions need to be considered.
As the Pivniskas come into compliance, Gearhart suggested the dust issues will go away. New laws also are requiring diesel emissions reductions.
“Until they actually have clearance on that property, we can't issue any permits for that operation,” he said.
If their permit eventually is granted, the operation may qualify for state Carl Moyer funding to update some equipment.
When Marilyn Pivniska asked if the temporary crusher would be allowed, Coel said they've issued permits in the past for temporary crushing and that they could tie in the permission with the initial one-year period for coming into compliance.
Swetnam said it's not the first time someone has come before the commission with violations, but he said 19 years was the longest-running violation he'd seen.
“You must come into compliance or I'm probably going to be supporting shutting your business down,” said Swetnam, explaining that “we're spinning our wheels” if they don't make permit holders follow the rules.
Fellow commissioners also offered their support for granting another year for compliance, and Coel asked that they amend the documents to add permission to use the portable crusher.
Swetnam made the motions to approve the mitigated negative declaration and use permit with the one-year compliance requirement. The commission approved the motions 4-0.
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