A Long-lived Storm System on Saturn | NASA Cassini

A Long-lived Storm System on Saturn | NASA Cassini

It was one of the largest and longest lived storms ever recorded in our Solar System. First seen in late 2010, the above cloud formation in the northern hemisphere of Saturn started larger than the Earth and soon spread completely around the planet. The storm was tracked not only from Earth but from up close by the robotic Cassini spacecraft then orbiting Saturn.

Pictured here in false colored infrared, orange colors indicate clouds deep in the atmosphere, while light colors highlight clouds higher up. The rings of Saturn are seen nearly edge-on as the thin blue horizontal line. The warped dark bands are the shadows of the rings cast onto the cloud tops by the Sun to the upper left. A source of radio noise from lightning, the intense storm was thought to relate to seasonal changes when spring emerges in the north of Saturn. After raging for over six months, the iconic storm circled the entire planet and then tried to absorb its own tail, which surprisingly caused it to fade away.

The Cassini-Huygens mission was a cooperative project of NASA, ESA (European Space Agency) and the Italian Space Agency. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter. The radar instrument was built by JPL and the Italian Space Agency, working with team members from the U.S. and several European countries.

For more information about Cassini, go to:

https://www.nasa.gov/cassini

https://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov

Image Credit: Cassini Imaging Team, SSI, JPL, ESA, NASA

Release Date: September 15, 2019

#NASA #Astronomy #Science #Space #Saturn #Rings #Planet #Atmosphere #Weather #SolarSystem #Exploration #Cassini #Spacecraft #JPL #UnitedStates #ESA #ASI #History #STEM #Education #APoD

The Terminator | International Space Station

The Terminator | International Space Station

European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano took this image of the line that separates day from night, known as the terminator, during his Beyond mission. He captioned it: "To be able to observe with one’s own eyes the night coming in, that line between day and obscurity, is always an experience of surreal, inexplicable emotion."

Learn about Luca's Beyond mission:
http://lucaparmitano.esa.int

Credit: ESA/NASA-L.Parmitano
Image Date: July 29, 2019

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Tropical Storm Humberto Forms Close to Bahamas

Tropical Storm Humberto Forms Close to Bahamas

Tropical Cyclone Nine became a tropical storm as it moved northwestward over the Southwest Atlantic Ocean, bringing strong winds and heavy rainfall to the central and northwest Bahamas, including areas recently devastated by Hurricane Dorian. Tropical storm Humberto will likely bring tropical-storm-force-winds and heavy rainfall to portions of the northwestern Bahamas today. Significant storm surge is not expected in the northwestern Bahamas from this system. The center of Humberto is now passing just east of Great Abaco Island.

The future track of this system is still uncertain, and forecasters will continue to monitor it closely.

For the latest information, visit the National Hurricane Center:
https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/cyclones/

This GeoColor-enhanced imagery was created by NOAA's partners at the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere. The GOES East geostationary satellite, also known as GOES-16, provides coverage of the Western Hemisphere, including the United States, the Atlantic Ocean and the eastern Pacific. The satellite's high-resolution imagery provides optimal viewing of severe weather events, including thunderstorms, tropical storms, and hurricanes.

Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Image Date: September 13, 2019

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East Timor Sunset | International Space Station

East Timor Sunset | International Space Station

An image of a sunset in East Timor captured by European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano during his Beyond mission to the International Space Station.

East Timor or Timor-Leste, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Maritime Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island surrounded by Indonesian West Timor. Australia is the country's southern neighbor, separated by the Timor Sea. 

(Source: Wikipedia)

Credit: ESA/NASA-L.Parmitano
Image Date: August 23, 2019

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Inside NASA's Kennedy Space Center | Week of Sept. 13, 2019

Inside NASA's Kennedy Space Center | Week of Sept. 13, 2019

Hurricane Dorian skirted the coast of Kennedy Space Center on Sept. 3 and 4. A few days before, the Mobile Launcher, atop the crawler-transporter, was moved from Launch Pad 39B back to the Vehicle Assembly as a precaution. Kennedy Director Bob Cabana presented awards to NASA and contractor employees during the center's annual NASA KSC Honor Awards Ceremony on Sept. 10.

Credit: NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC)
Duration: 1 minute, 36 seconds
Release Date: September 13, 2019

#NASA #Space #Science #Astronomy #SLS #Rocket #Orion #Artemis #Moon #Mars #Dorian #Hurricane #HurricaneDorian #Kennedy #KSC #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #Women #Engineering #STEM #Education #Video

Earth from Space: Baja California, Mexico | ESA

Earth from Space: Baja California, Mexico | ESA

The European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite takes us over the region of Baja California in northwest Mexico, in this week's edition of the Earth from Space program.

We are Europe's gateway to space. Our mission is to shape the development of Europe's space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. Check out http://www.esa.int/ESA to get up to speed on everything space related.

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)
Duration: 2 minutes, 52 seconds
Release Date: September 13, 2019

#NASA #ESA #Earth #Space #Satellite #BajaCalifornia #Baja #Mexico #México #Europe #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #EarthFromSpace #Copernicus #Sentinel1 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NASA's Space to Ground: Counting Down | Week of Sept. 13, 2019

NASA's Space to Ground: Counting Down

Week of Sept. 13, 2019

Sept. 13, 2019: NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station.

The crew of Expedition 60, consisting of Commander Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos; NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Andrew Morgan and Nick Hague; ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano; and cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov, took much-needed respite on Thursday during an off-duty day aboard the International Space Station. This Friday, investigations furthering scientific research in support of crew health and extended travels to destinations deeper in the solar system are resuming.

On Earth, the Expedition 61 prime crew of cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir, along with spaceflight participant Hazzaa Ali Almansoori, are at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, finalizing pre-launch training and preparations for their launch on Sept. 25 aboard a Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft. On Wednesday, they ran through procedures and completed the necessary fit check, spacesuits donned, within the Soyuz vehicle. On Thursday, they took part in ceremonial activities, such as raising the flags of Russia, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates, along with backup crew members Tom Marshburn of NASA, Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos and spaceflight participant Sultan Al-Neyadi of the United Arab Emirates.

Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)
Duration: 2 minutes, 4 seconds
Release Date: September 13, 2019


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Soyuz #Rocket #Research #Microgravity #Astronauts #JessicaMeir #Cosmonauts #OlegSkripochka #HazzaaAliAlmansoori #UAE #الإمارات‎#Russia #Россия #Expedition61 #Human #Spaceflight #Spacecraft #JSC #Houston #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Video #وكالةالإمارات للفضاء

Hubble’s Brand New Image of Saturn | NASA

Hubble’s Brand New Image of Saturn | NASA

Sept. 12, 2019: This new Hubble Space Telescope view of Saturn, taken in late June 2019, reveals the giant planet's iconic rings. Saturn’s amber colors come from summer smog-like hazes, produced in photochemical reactions driven by solar ultraviolet radiation. Below the haze lie clouds of ammonia ice crystals, as well as deeper, unseen lower-level clouds of ammonium hydrosulfide and water.

The planet’s banded structure is caused by winds and clouds at different altitudes. Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 observed Saturn on June 20, 2019, as the planet made its closest approach to Earth, at about 845 million miles away.

For more information, visit: https://go.nasa.gov/30eSrbH

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

Paul R. Morris (USRA): Lead Producer

Music Credits: "Momentum" by Guillaume Bernard [SACEM]; Universal Production Music
Duration: 1 minute, 27 seconds

Release Date: September 12, 2019

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Saturn #Rings #Planet #SolarSystem #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #STEM #Education #Video

Saturn Close-up | Hubble

Saturn Close-up | Hubble

This video pans over the planet Saturn, as recently observed with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope on June 20, 2019, when it was approximately 1.36 billion kilometers away.

Credit:

NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)

Duration: 19 seconds

Capture Date: June 20, 2019

Release Date: September 12, 2019

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Saturn #Rings #Planet #SolarSystem #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #STEM #Education #Video

Saturn's Rings Shine in New Hubble Portrait | NASA

Saturn's Rings Shine in New Hubble Portrait | NASA

Sept. 12, 2019: The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera 3 observed Saturn on June 20, 2019 as the planet made its closest approach to Earth this year, at approximately 1.36 billion kilometers away.

Since the Hubble Space Telescope was launched, its goal has been to study not only distant astronomical objects, but also the planets within our Solar System. Hubble’s high-resolution images of our planetary neighbors can only be surpassed by pictures taken from spacecraft that actually visit these bodies. However, Hubble has one advantage over space probes; it can look at these objects periodically and observe them over much longer periods than any passing probe could.
Saturn hosts many recognizable features, most notably its trademark ring system, which is now tilted towards Earth. This gives us a magnificent view of its bright icy structure. Hubble resolves numerous ringlets and the fainter inner rings. Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens first identified the rings in 1655 and thought they were a continuous disk encircling the planet, but we now know them to be composed of orbiting particles of ice and dust. Though all of the gas giants boast rings, Saturn’s are the largest and most spectacular.

The age of Saturn’s ring system continues to be debated. And, even more perplexingly, it is unknown what cosmic event formed the rings. There is no consensus among planetary astronomers today.
Another intriguing feature is the long-lasting hexagon-shaped structure circling the planet’s north pole. It is a mysterious six-sided pattern caused by a high-speed jetstream. The hexagon is so large that four Earths could fit inside its boundaries (there is no similar structure at Saturn’s south pole).
Other features, however, are not as long-lasting. A large storm in the north polar region spotted by Hubble last year has disappeared. Smaller, convective storms, such as the one just above the center of the planet’s image, also come and go.

Saturn’s amber colors come from summer smog-like hazes, produced in photochemical reactions driven by solar ultraviolet radiation. Below the haze lie clouds of ammonia ice crystals, as well as deeper, unseen lower-level clouds of ammonium hydrosulphide and water. The planet’s banded structure is caused by the winds and clouds at different altitudes.

Saturn’s appearance changes with its seasons, caused by the planet’s 27-degree axial tilt. This image was taken during summer in the planet’s northern hemisphere.

This image is the second in a yearly series of snapshots taken as part of the Outer Planets Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) project. OPAL is helping scientists to understand the atmospheric dynamics and evolution of our Solar System’s gas giant planets. In Saturn’s case, astronomers will be able to track shifting weather patterns and other changes to identify trends.
The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)

Release Date: September 12, 2019

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Saturn #Rings #Planet #SolarSystem #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #STEM #Education

Hubble Finds Water Vapor on Distant Exoplanet | NASA

Hubble Finds Water Vapor on Distant Exoplanet | NASA

Exoplanet distance from Earth: 110 light years

Sept. 11, 2019: With data from the Hubble Space Telescope, water vapor has been detected in the atmosphere of an exoplanet within the habitable zone of its host star.

K2-18b, which is eight times the mass of Earth, is the only planet orbiting a star outside the solar system (or “exoplanet”) within the habitable zone.

For more information, visit https://nasa.gov/hubble

Video Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Paul R. Morris (USRA): Lead Producer
Music Credits: "Only Human" by Guillaume Bernard [SACEM]; Universal Production Music
Duration: 2 minutes, 3 seconds
Release Date: September 11, 2019


#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Exoplanet #K218b #Atmosphere #Water #Planet #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #Art #Illustration #STEM #Education #Video

Water Detected on Exoplanet K2-18b | Hubble

Water Detected on Exoplanet K2-18b | Hubble

First Water Detected on Planet in the Habitable Zone

Sept. 11, 2019: This Hubblecast Light video highlights the exciting discovery of the first water detected on a potentially habitable planet. With data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, water vapor has been detected in the atmosphere of a super-Earth with habitable temperatures by University College Longon (UCL) researchers.

Credit:

Directed by: Bethany Downer

Editing: Nico Bartmann.

Web and technical support: Mathias André and Raquel Yumi Shida.

Written by: Bethany Downer & UCL

Music:

Footage and photos: ESA/Hubble, M. Kornmesser, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab

Duration: 1 minute, 19 seconds

Release Date: September 11, 2019

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Exoplanet #K218b #Atmosphere #Water #Planet #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #Art #Illustration #STEM #Education #Video

First Water Detected on Planet in Habitable Zone | Hubble

First Water Detected on Planet in Habitable Zone | Hubble

Exoplanet distance to Earth: 110 light years

With data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, water vapor has been detected in the atmosphere of a super-Earth within the habitable zone by University College London (UCL) researchers in a world first. K2-18b, which is eight times the mass of Earth, is now the only planet orbiting a star outside the Solar System, or exoplanet, known to have both water and temperatures that could support life.

The discovery, published today in Nature Astronomy, is the first successful atmospheric detection of an exoplanet orbiting in its star’s habitable zone, at a distance where water can exist in liquid form.

Image: This artist’s impression shows the planet K2-18b, its host star and an accompanying planet in this system. K2-18b is now the only super-Earth exoplanet known to host both water and temperatures that could support life.

First author, Dr Angelos Tsiaras (UCL Centre for Space Exochemistry Data,CSED), said: “Finding water on a potentially habitable world other than Earth is incredibly exciting. K2-18b is not ‘Earth 2.0’ as it is significantly heavier and has a different atmospheric composition. However, it brings us closer to answering the fundamental question: Is the Earth unique?”

The team used archive data from 2016 and 2017 captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and developed open-source algorithms to analyse the starlight filtered through K2-18b’s atmosphere [1]. The results revealed the molecular signature of water vapor, also indicating the presence of hydrogen and helium in the planet’s atmosphere.

The authors believe that other molecules, including nitrogen and methane, may be present but they remain undetectable with current observations. Further studies are required to estimate cloud coverage and the percentage of atmospheric water present.

The planet orbits the cool dwarf star K2-18, which is 110 light years from Earth in the constellation of Leo. Given the high level of activity of its red dwarf star, K2-18b may be more hostile than Earth and is likely to be exposed to more radiation.

K2-18b was discovered in 2015 and is one of hundreds of super-Earths—planets with masses between those of Earth and Neptune—found by NASA’s Kepler spacecraft. NASA’s TESS mission is expected to detect hundreds more super-Earths in the coming years.

Co-author Dr Ingo Waldmann (UCL CSED), said: “With so many new super-Earths expected to be found over the next couple of decades, it is likely that this is the first discovery of many potentially habitable planets. This is not only because super-Earths like K2-18b are the most common planets in our Milky Way, but also because red dwarfs—stars smaller than our Sun—are the most common stars.”

The next generation of space telescopes, including the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope and ESA’s ARIEL mission, will be able to characterize atmospheres in more detail as they will carry more advanced instruments. ARIEL is expected to launch in 2028 and will observe 1,000 planets in detail to get a truly representative picture of what they are like.

Professor Giovanna Tinetti (UCL CSED), co-author and Principal Investigator for ARIEL, said: “Our discovery makes K2-18b one of the most interesting targets for future study. Over 4000 exoplanets have been detected but we don’t know much about their composition and nature. By observing a large sample of planets, we hope to reveal secrets about their chemistry, formation and evolution.”

“This study contributes to our understanding of habitable worlds beyond our Solar System and marks a new era in exoplanet research, crucial to ultimately placing the Earth, our only home, into the greater picture of the Cosmos,” said Dr Tsiaras.

Notes
[1] The observations were achieved from 9 transits of K2-18b with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), as part of the HST proposals 13665 and 14682 (PI: Björn Benneke).

More information
The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA.

Angelos Tsiaras, Ingo P. Waldmann, Giovanna Tinetti, Jonathan Tennyson & Sergey N. Yurchenko, ‘Water vapour in the atmosphere of the habitable-zone eight Earth-mass planet K2-18 b’ has been published in Nature Astronomy.

The research was funded by European Research Council and the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council which is part of UKRI.

Image Credit: ESA/Hubble, M. Kornmesser
Release Date: September 11, 2019

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Exoplanet #K218b #Atmosphere #Water #Planet #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #Art #Illustration #STEM #Education

Earth: Gulf of Guinea to Caspian Sea | International Space Station

Gulf of Guinea to Caspian Sea | International Space Station

Original timelapse by Riccardo Rossi (ISAA)

ISAA (Italian Space and Astronautics Association)

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
Raw imagery courtesy of Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth: http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov

Music: Soft Gentle Piano by BDKSonic - Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
https://www.jamendo.com/artist/486550/bdksonic

Timelapse HD 1080p video

Credit: AstronautiCAST/JSC
Capture Date: August 7, 2019
Release Date: August 11, 2019
Duration: 2 minutes, 31 seconds

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Earth #ISS #Planet #Spacecraft #Astronauts #Expedition60 #Guinea #CaspianSea #Photography #Art #Science #OrbitalPerspective #OverviewEffect #AstronautiCAST #ISAA #STEM #Education #Timelapse #Video

Earth from Space: Italy's Castelli Romani | European Space Agency

Earth from Space: Italy's Castelli Romani | ESA

Earth from Space is back after the summer break!

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite takes us over a set of small towns, located around 20 km southeast of Rome, Italy and known collectively as Castelli Romani, in this week's edition of the Earth from Space program.

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)

Duration: 3 minutes

Release Date: September 6, 2019

#NASA #ESA #Earth #Space #Satellite #Italy #Italia #CastelliRomani #Europe #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #Copernicus #Sentinel2 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Human Technology | International Space Station

Human Technology | International Space Station

Image captured by European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano during his Beyond mission to the International Space Station. Notice the moon at top right.

Luca: "One of the most innovative technologies flies over one of the most ancient cultures on Earth."

"Una delle tecnologie più innovative vola sopra una delle culture più antiche della terra."

Credit: ESA/NASA-L.Parmitano
Image Date: August 24, 2019


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Technology #Earth #Astronaut #ESA #LucaParmitano #MissionBeyond #Italia #Italy #Expedition60 #Human #Spaceflight #Spacecraft #STEM #Education #OverviewEffect #OrbitalPerspective