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Rare red nova explosion could add a star to the sky in 2022
There is much still to learn about the universe, and red novas remain one of its mysteries. It's thought these explosive events, named for their red glow, are the result of binary stars finally merging after eons of cosmic courting. That's the prevailing theory, anyway, but the rare event has only been observed a handful of times. Our understanding of this stellar event, as well as the lifecycle of stars in general, could improve significantly if the prediction of Calvin College astronomer Larry Molnar proves true. He believes he's spotted a duo of stars that are on the cusp of merging, becoming a red nova in 2022, "give or take a year." It's not just exciting for the research community, though, as the explosion should be so energetic that we'll be able to see it in the night sky with the naked eye.
Red Nova is fast and fun but needs a little work
In the game Red Nova (for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch) you play a lone ship against a bunch of flying enemies in a 3/4 angled, fast-paced arcade space shooter. Red Nova launched to some acclaim, and I can see why. The sound is great, the graphics, while low-polygon, are good and the animation and feel is quite nice. You can tell a lot of time and attention went into the game. The story is pretty worn out (protect the mother ship), but the gameplay reminded me a bit of one of my favorite games ever: Lunatic Fringe. People have drawn comparisons to Asteroids, but Lunatic Fringe had the same angle, the same frenetic feel and the same attitude as Red Nova. Yet where Lunatic Fringe was simple, Red Nova is more complex. This is not necessarily a good thing. Interface I played both the iPhone and iPad versions and must say I found both challenging. The limited real estate on the iPhone made it sometimes tricky to see your enemies approaching. The iPad, on the other hand, could be tricky in that the control scheme requires you to use the screen in a set of quadrants, with each one allowing you to perform various tasks in the game. More on this in a moment. The graphics look better on the iPhone due to the somewhat chunky nature of the low-poly models used in the game. Still, the frame rate at which everything happens is terrific if you like action. Unfortunately, on the iPad, and to some extent the iPhone, the text is so washed out or small (and in a funky font) that you may find yourself squinting to read it. The usual meters for shields and energy are in the upper left while the upper right shows kills and power-ups. Incoming enemies have a warning indicator that moves along the edge of the screen when the baddies are in range. %Gallery-111808%
Red Nova for iPhone and iPad now available, features iPhone-to-iPad controls
Red Nova is now available on the App Store for iPhone and iPad. An Asteroids-like shooter, Red Nova sacrifices high detail for high framerates and provides frenetic but satisfying gameplay. The game is integrated into Apple's Game Center for leaderboards and achievements, comes with Retina Display graphics and has various difficulty levels. Also, the game is universal and will run on your iPad as well as your iPhone. What is really interesting is that Red Nova is extending the game concept first started by Chopper 2 where you can can use your iPhone as the controller and play the game on your iPad. As with Chopper 2, it takes a little while to get used to having the controls on the iPhone, but the idea is great. We'll have a full review later this week, but for now check out the iPhone-to-iPad gameplay on the next page.
