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Thursday, April 21, 2022

NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Starts New Science Campaign at River Delta | JPL

NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Starts New Science Campaign at River Delta | JPL

MSL - Sol 3447 - MAHLI | Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill | Release Date: April 18, 2022

MSL - Sol 3447 - MastCam | Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill | Release Date: April 19, 2022

Mars2020 - Sol 411 - Mastcam-Z | Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Kevin M. Gill | Image Date: April 18, 2022

MSL - Sol 3444 - MastCam | Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill | Image Date: April 17, 2022

After collecting eight rock-core samples from its first science campaign and completing a record-breaking, 31-Martian-day (or sol) dash across about 3 miles (5 kilometers) of Mars, NASA’s Perseverance rover arrived at the doorstep of Jezero Crater’s ancient river delta April 13. Dubbed “Three Forks” by the Perseverance team (a reference to the spot where three route options to the delta merge), the location serves as the staging area for the rover’s second science expedition, the “Delta Front Campaign.”

“The delta at Jezero Crater promises to be a veritable geologic feast and one of the best locations on Mars to look for signs of past microscopic life,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, the associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “The answers are out there—and Team Perseverance is ready to find them.”

The delta, a massive fan-shaped collection of rocks and sediment at the western edge of Jezero Crater, formed at the convergence of a Martian river and a crater lake billions of years ago. Its exploration tops the Perseverance science team’s wish list because all the fine-grained sediment deposited at its base long ago is the mission’s best bet for finding the preserved remnants of ancient microbial life.

Using a drill on the end of its robotic arm and a complex sample collection system, Perseverance is gathering rock cores for return to Earth—the first part of the Mars Sample Return campaign.

“We’ve been eyeing the delta from a distance for more than a year while we explored the crater floor,” said Ken Farley, Perseverance project scientist at Caltech in Pasadena. “At the end of our fast traverse, we are finally able to get close to it, obtaining images of ever-greater detail revealing where we can best explore these important rocks.”

Caption Credit: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill

Image Release Dates: April 17-21, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #River #Delta #KodiakHill #Astrobiology #Geology #Jezero #Crater #Perseverance #Rover #Robotics #Technology #JPL #Pasadena #California #UnitedStates #JourneyToMars #STEM #Education

View of SpaceX Dragon Endurance Crew Ship | International Space Station

View of SpaceX Dragon Endurance | International Space Station

The SpaceX Dragon Endurance crew ship is pictured from a window aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour crew ship. Endurance is docked to the Harmony module's forward-facing port while Endeavour is docked to Harmony's space-facing port on the International Space Station.

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The ISS has been the most politically complex space exploration program ever undertaken.

Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)

Image Date: April 12, 2022

#NASA #Space #SpaceX #ISS #CrewDragon #Spacecraft #Endeavour #Endurance #DragonCrew3 #Science #Technology #Engineering #UnitedStates #LaunchAmerica #CommercialCrewProgram #CCP #Human #Spaceflight #Expedition66 #Expedition67 #STEM #Education

SpaceX Crew-4 Suit-Up & Walkout Rehearsal | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX Crew-4 Suit-Up & Walkout Rehearsal | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

Four commercial crew astronauts representing NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are scheduled to launch no earlier than April 26, 2022, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center inside the SpaceX Dragon Freedom crew ship and dock to the same port vacated by the Ax-1 mission on Sunday at 6 a.m. The quartet commanded by NASA’s Kjell Lindgren, with Pilot Robert Hines and Mission Specialists Jessica Watkins of NASA and the European Space Agency's Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy, will live and work aboard the orbiting lab for just over four-and-a-half months. The Crew-4 astronauts will become Expedition 67 flight engineers after they open the hatches and enter the space station.

ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti gives a thumbs-up in the suit room inside Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building during Crew-4 dry dress rehearsal on April 20, 2022.

NASA astronaut Jessica Watson smiles in the suit room inside Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building during NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 dry dress rehearsal on April 20, 2022.

NASA astronaut Bob Hines relaxes in the suit room inside Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building during NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 dry dress rehearsal on April 20, 2022.

NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren gets assistance in the suit room inside Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building during NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 dry dress rehearsal on April 20, 2022.

Crew-4 mission astronauts Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, Jessica Watkins, and Samantha Cristoforetti walk out of the Astronaut Crew Quarters inside Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building during a dry dress rehearsal on April 20, 2022. A team of SpaceX suit technicians assisted them as they put on their custom-fitted spacesuits and checked the suits for leaks.

SpaceX Crew-4 Flag Raising

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 flag is raised near the News Center countdown clock at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 19, 2022. The SpaceX Falcon 9 with Crew Dragon, named Freedom by the Crew-4 crew, atop is scheduled to lift off Saturday, April 23, 2002, at 5:26 p.m. EDT, from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy. Dragon will carry NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, and Jessica Watkins, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

Caption Credit: NASA's Kennedy Space Center

Image Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

Image Date: April 20, 2022

#NASA #ESA #SpaceX #Falcon9 #Rocket #CrewDragon #Freedom #ISS #Earth #Science #Astronaut #Astronauts #KjellLindgren #JessicaWatkins #RobertHines #SamanthaCristoforetti #Minerva #Italy #Italia #Human #Spaceflight #Crew4 #CCP #LaunchComplex39A #Kennedy #KSC #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

ESA Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti's Arrival | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

ESA Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti's Arrival | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti arrives at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, with NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines and Jessica Watkins on April 18, 2022.

Collectively known as SpaceX Crew-4, the astronauts flew in from Houston, Texas, and are spending this week in quarantine before being launched to the International Space Station on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.

When they arrive at the International Space Station (ISS), Samantha’s Minerva mission will officially begin. This is the second long-duration space mission for Samantha who first flew to the orbital outpost in 2014 for her Italian Space Agency (ASI) sponsored mission Futura.

Samantha will be welcomed on board by fellow ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer and enjoy a short handover in orbit before Matthias returns to Earth in April as part of SpaceX Crew-3.

Throughout her mission, Samantha will hold the role of US Orbital Segment (USOS) lead, taking responsibility for all operations within the US, European, Japanese and Canadian modules and components of the Space Station. She will support around 35 European and many more international experiments in orbit.

Learn more about Mission Minerva: https://bit.ly/MissionMinerva

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)

Duration: 6 minutes, 45 seconds

Release Date: April 20, 2022

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

SpaceX Crew-4 Suit Up for Dragon | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX Crew-4 Suit Up for Dragon | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

Four commercial crew astronauts representing NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are scheduled to launch at 5:26 a.m. EDT on Saturday, April 23, 2022, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center inside the SpaceX Dragon Freedom crew ship and dock to the same port vacated by the Ax-1 mission on Sunday at 6 a.m. The quartet commanded by NASA’s Kjell Lindgren, with Pilot Robert Hines and Mission Specialists Jessica Watkins of NASA and the European Space Agency's Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy, will live and work aboard the orbiting lab for just over four-and-a-half months. The Crew-4 astronauts will become Expedition 67 flight engineers after they open the hatches and enter the space station.

Crew-4 astronauts, from left, Jessica Watson, mission specialist; Bob Hines, pilot; Kjell Lindgren, commander and Samantha Cristoforetti, mission specialist, pose outside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, named Freedom by the Crew-4 crew, during a dry dress rehearsal at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 20, 2022.

Image Credit: SpaceX

Crew-4 astronauts, from left, Jessica Watson, mission specialist; Bob Hines, pilot; Kjell Lindgren, commander and Samantha Cristoforetti, mission specialist, are positioned inside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, named Freedom by the Crew-4 crew, during a dry dress rehearsal at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 20, 2022.

Image Credit: SpaceX

Crew-4 mission astronauts participate in NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 dry dress rehearsal in the suit room inside Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building on April 20, 2022. A team of SpaceX suit technicians assisted them as they put on their custom-fitted spacesuits and checked the suits for leaks. From left are: Jessica Watkins, mission specialist; Bob Hines, pilot; Kjell Lindgren, commander; and Samantha Cristoforetti, mission specialist.

Image Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 astronauts—from front, left to right—Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, Jessica Watson, and Samantha Cristoforetti walk out through the double doors below the Neil A. Armstrong Building’s Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a dry dress rehearsal on April 20, 2022.

Image Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover Sees Solar Eclipse | JPL

NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover Sees Solar Eclipse | JPL

NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover used its Mastcam-Z camera system to shoot video of Phobos, one of Mars’ two moons, eclipsing the Sun. It’s the most zoomed-in, highest frame-rate observation of a Phobos solar eclipse ever taken from the Martian surface.

Several Mars rovers have observed Phobos crossing in front of the Sun over the past 18 years. Spirit and Opportunity made the first observations back in 2004; Curiosity in 2019 was the first to record video of the event. Each time these eclipses are observed, they allow scientists to measure subtle shifts in Phobos’ orbit over time. The moon’s tidal forces pull on the deep interior of the Red Planet, as well as its crust and mantle; studying how much Phobos shifts over time reveals something about how resistant the crust and mantle are, and thus what kinds of materials they are made of.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA’s Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS/SSI

Duration: 49 seconds

Release Date: April 20, 2022

The Great Lakes | Axiom 1 Mission | International Space Station

The Great Lakes | Axiom 1 Mission | International Space Station

Axiom 1 Mission Commander Michael López-Alegría: "Very soon I get to fly back home, on a dragon, to this beautiful planet! 📸"

The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America or the Laurentian Great Lakes, is a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes with sea-like characteristics in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. They are Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario and are in general on or near the Canada–United States border. Hydrologically, there are four lakes, because lakes Michigan and Huron join at the Straits of Mackinac. The Great Lakes Waterway enables modern travel and shipping by water among the lakes.

The Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total area and are second-largest by total volume, containing 21% of the world's surface fresh water by volume.

Former NASA astronaut, Michael López-Alegría, is vice-president of business development for Axiom Space. López-Alegría has flown four times in space already on space shuttle missions STS-73, STS-92, and STS- 113. He was also the commander of International Space Station (ISS) Expedition 14, coming to and from the space station aboard a Russian Soyuz TMA-9.

Ax-1 crew members Commander Michael López-Alegría of Spain and the United States, Pilot Larry Connor of the United States, and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe of Israel, and Mark Pathy of Canada are on a 10-day space mission. The crew is spending over eight days on the International Space Station conducting scientific research, outreach, and commercial activities.

Learn more about Ax-1 at Axiom Space: https://www.axiomspace.com

Credit: Michael López-Alegría/Axiom Space

Image Date: April 18, 2022

#NASA #Space #ISS #Earth #TheGreatLakes #LakesSuperior #LakeMichigan #LakeHuron #LakeErie #LakeOntario #Canada #OverviewEffect #AxiomSpace #Ax1 #PlvsVltra #FurtherBeyond #PrivateMission #Astronauts #MichaelLópezAlegría #Spain #Espana #España #UnitedStates #Science #NorthAmerica #STEM #Education

SpaceX Crew-4 Falcon 9 Rocket & Crew Dragon | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX Crew-4 Falcon 9 Rocket & Crew Dragon | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is vertical with the company’s Crew Dragon atop for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 mission at Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 19, 2022. NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, and Jessica Watson, along with European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, will launch aboard Dragon, named Freedom by the Crew-4 crew, atop the Falcon 9 on April 23, 2022, to the International Space Station (ISS). Launch is targeted for 5:26 a.m. EDT from Pad 39A. The astronauts will conduct scientific research in areas such as materials science, health technologies, and plant science to prepare for human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit.

Credit: NASA's Kennedy Space Center

Image Date: April 19, 2022

SpaceX Crew-4: Launch Week Preparations | Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX Crew-4: Launch Week Preparations | Kennedy Space Center

Four commercial crew astronauts representing NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are scheduled to launch at 5:26 a.m. EDT on Saturday, April 23, 2022, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center inside the SpaceX Dragon Freedom crew ship and dock to the same port vacated by the Ax-1 mission on Sunday at 6 a.m. The quartet commanded by NASA’s Kjell Lindgren, with Pilot Robert Hines and Mission Specialists Jessica Watkins of NASA and ESA’s Samantha Cristoforetti, will live and work aboard the orbiting lab for just over four-and-a-half months. The Crew-4 astronauts will become Expedition 67 flight engineers after they open the hatches and enter the space station.

NASA Hosts Virtual Media Event for the Agency’s SpaceX Crew-4

From left, NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins, Bob Hines, and Kjell Lindgren, and European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti smile during NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 virtual media engagement event at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 19, 2022.

Image Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett | Image Date: April 19, 2022

SpaceX Crew-4 Dress Rehearsal

From left to right, NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins, Robert Hines, and Kjell Lindgren, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, wearing SpaceX spacesuits, are seen as they prepare to depart the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building for Launch Complex 39A during a dress rehearsal prior to the Crew-4 mission launch, Wednesday, April 20, 2022, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Image Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

Image Date: April 20, 2022

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Axiom 1 Mission Farewell Ceremony | International Space Station

Axiom 1 Mission Farewell Ceremony | International Space Station

On Tuesday morning, April 19, 2022, Axiom Space and NASA held a farewell ceremony between the Ax-1 and Expedition 67 crews aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Ax-1 is the first private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. Ax-1 crew members are Commander Michael López-Alegría of Spain and the United States, Pilot Larry Connor of the United States, and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe of Israel, and Mark Pathy of Canada. During their 10-day mission, the crew spent over eight days on the International Space Station (ISS) conducting scientific research, outreach, and commercial activities.

Learn more about Ax-1 at Axiom Space: https://www.axiomspace.com

Credit: Axiom Space

Duration: 9 minutes, 19 seconds

Release Date: April 19, 2022

#NASA #Space #ISS #Axiom #AxiomSpace #Ax1 #SpaceX #CrewDragon #Falcon9 #Rocket #Artemis #ArtemisI #Orion #Spacecraft #SLS #Private #Crew #Mission #Astronauts #MichaelLópezAlegría #Spain #Espana #LarryConnor #UnitedStates #EytanStibbe #Israel #MarkPathy #Canada #Science #Research #STEM #Education #HD #Video

SpaceX Crew-4 Dragon Rollout | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX Crew-4 Dragon Rollout | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon—named Freedom by the Crew-4 astronauts—atop the company’s Falcon 9 rocket, leaves the SpaceX integration hangar adjacent to NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A for rollout to the launch pad on April 19, 2022.

NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, and Jessica Watkins, and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, who arrived at Kennedy one day ago, will fly to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 mission. Liftoff is targeted for Saturday, April 23, at 5:26 a.m. EDT.

Image Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

Image Date: April 19, 2022

#NASA #ESA #SpaceX #Falcon9 #Rocket #CrewDragon #ISS #Earth #Science #Astronaut #Astronauts #KjellLindgren #JessicaWatkins #RobertHines #SamanthaCristoforetti #Minerva #Italy #Italia #Human #Spaceflight #Crew4 #LaunchComplex39A #Kennedy #KSC #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

SpaceX Crew-4 Falcon 9 Rocket Rollout | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceX Crew-4 Falcon 9 Rocket Rollout | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft onboard is seen as it is rolled out to the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A as preparations continue for the Crew-4 mission, Tuesday, April 19, 2022, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 mission is the fourth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Robert Hines, Jessica Watkins, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti are scheduled to launch on April 23 at 5:26 a.m. EDT, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

Image Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

Image Date: April 19, 2022

Samantha’s Second Space Mission: Minerva | European Space Agency

Samantha’s Second Space Mission: Minerva | European Space Agency

European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy will return to the International Space Station in April 2022. Her second space mission is known as Minerva.

Inspired by Roman mythology, Samantha says the Minerva mission name and patch pay homage to the competence and sophisticated craftmanship of all those who make human spaceflight possible.

Samantha will travel to the Station alongside NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob “Farmer” Hines and Jessica Watkins. Collectively known as Crew-4, the astronauts will be launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.

When Samantha arrives at the Station, her Minerva mission officially begins. This will see her live and work aboard the orbital outpost for approximately five months. During this time, she will support over 35 European and many more international experiments in orbit.

Samantha will also hold the role of US Orbital Segment (USOS) lead, responsible for operations within the US, European, Japanese and Canadian modules and components of the International Space Station (ISS).

As her launch draws closer, Samantha continues her training with International Space Station partners.

Learn more about Mission Minerva: https://bit.ly/MissionMinerva

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)

Duration: 4 minutes, 41 seconds

Release Date: April 19, 2022

#NASA #ESA #SpaceX #ISS #Earth #Science #Astronaut #SamanthaCristoforetti #Minerva #Italy #Italia #Human #Spaceflight #Crew4 #Kennedy #KSC #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

A Group of Five Bright Galaxies to Celebrate Hubble's 32nd Birthday!

A Group of Five Bright Galaxies to Celebrate Hubble's 32nd Birthday!

NASA is celebrating the Hubble Space Telescope's 32nd birthday with a stunning look at an unusual close-knit collection of five galaxies, called The Hickson Compact Group 40. This menagerie includes three spiral-shaped galaxies, an elliptical galaxy, and a lenticular (lens-like) galaxy. Somehow, these different galaxies crossed paths in their evolution to create an exceptionally crowded and eclectic galaxy sampler. Caught in a leisurely gravitational dance, the whole group is so crowded that it could fit within a region of space that is less than twice the diameter of our Milky Way's stellar disk.

Though such cozy galaxy groupings can be found in the heart of huge galaxy clusters, these galaxies are notably isolated in their own small patch of the universe, in the direction of the constellation Hydra.

One possible explanation is that there is a lot of dark matter (an unknown and invisible form of matter) associated with these galaxies. If they come close together, then the dark matter can form a big cloud within which the galaxies are orbiting. As the galaxies plow through the dark matter they feel a resistive force due to its gravitational effects. This slows their motion and makes the galaxies lose energy, so they fall together. Therefore, this snapshot catches the galaxies at a very special moment in their lifetimes. In about 1 billion years they will eventually collide and merge to form a giant elliptical galaxy.

Astronomers have studied this compact galaxy group not only in visible light, but also in radio, infrared, and X-ray wavelengths. Almost all of them have a compact radio source in their cores, which could be evidence for the presence of supermassive black holes. X-ray observations show that the galaxies have been gravitationally interacting due to the presence of a lot of hot gas among the galaxies. Infrared observations reveal clues to the rate of new star formation.

Though over 100 such compact galaxy groups have been cataloged in sky surveys going back several decades, Hickson Compact Group 40 is one of the most densely packed. Observations suggest that such tight groups may have been more abundant in the early universe and provided fuel for powering black holes, known as quasars, whose light from superheated infalling material blazed across space. Studying the details of galaxies in nearby groups like this help astronomers sort out when and where galaxies assembled themselves, and what they are assembled from.

"I remember seeing this on a sky survey and saying, 'wow look at that!'" said Paul Hickson of the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. "All that I was using at the time was a big plastic ruler and a magnifying glass while looking over sky survey prints." He re-discovered the group by browsing through a collection of peculiar galaxies first published by Halton Arp in 1966.

Hubble was deployed into orbit around Earth by NASA astronauts aboard the space shuttle Discovery, on April 25, 1990. The telescope has taken 1.5 million observations of approximately 50,000 celestial targets to date. This treasure trove of knowledge about the universe is stored for public access in the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes, at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland.

Hubble's unique capabilities in observing visible and ultraviolet light are a critical scientific complement to the infrared-light observations of the recently launched Webb Space Telescope, which will begin science observations this summer.

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, in Washington, D.C.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

Release Date: April 19, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Hubble #Galaxies #HicksonCompactGroup40 #Elliptical #Spiral #Lenticular #Collision #Galactic #Hydra #Constellation #Science #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Orion Pines in Spain

Orion Pines in Spain

Taken with a camera fixed to a tripod, many short exposures were aligned with the stars to unveil this beautiful, dark night sky. Captured near the rural village of Albany`a at the northeastern corner of Spain, the three stars of Orion's belt stretch across top center in the starry frame. Alnitak, the easternmost (left) of the belt stars is seen next to the more diffuse glow of the Flame Nebula and the dark notch of the famous Horsehead. Easily visible to the naked-eye The Great Nebula of Orion is below the belt stars. A mere 1,500 light-years distant, it is the closest large stellar nursery to our fair planet. Best seen in photographs, the broad and faint arc of Barnard's Loop seems to embrace Orion's brighter stars and nebulae though. In the northern spring the familiar northern winter constellation is setting. Near the western horizon toward lower right Orion's apparently bright blue supergiant Rigel just touches the branches of a pine tree.

Image Credit & Copyright: Juan Carlos Casado

Juan's website: https://www.twanight.org/casado

Caption Credit: Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)

Release Date: April 16, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Orion #Horsehead #Flame #Nebula #GreatNebula #BarnardsLoop #Stars #Alnitak #Rigel #Astrophotographer #JuanCarlosCasado #Astrophotography #Cosmos #Universe #Earth #Spain #España #STEM #Education #APoD

Monday, April 18, 2022

NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 Arrival | Kennedy Space Center

NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 Arrival | Kennedy Space Center

After months of training in Houston, Texas, NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 astronauts caught a flight to Florida before their April 23, 2022, launch to the International Space Station (ISS). Crew-4 consists of NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins, Kjell Lindgren, and Robert Hines, along with European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy. Until April 23, they will attend briefings, do a practice run of launch day, and spend time with family. They can be seen at the Launch and Landing Facility where they answered questions from members of the media at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, April 18, 2022.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 mission is the fourth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP). Lindgren, Hines, Watkins, and Cristoforetti are scheduled to launch April 23 at 5:26 a.m. EDT, from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center.

Samantha Cristoforetti is the third European astronaut to launch on SpaceX, after Thomas Pesquet in early 2021 and current ESA astronaut-in-space Matthias Maurer in late 2021. This is the second mission for Samantha who spent approximately 200 days in space in 2015 for her Futura mission.

NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins, left, Kjell Lindgren, second from left, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, second from right, and NASA astronaut Robert Hines, right.

NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren speaks to members of the media

NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins speaks to members of the media

European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti is seen after arriving at the Launch and Landing Facility

NASA astronaut Robert Hines speaks to members of the media

NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins is seen after arriving at the Launch and Landing Facility with fellow crewmates

Image Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

Release Date: April 18, 2022

#NASA #ESA #SpaceX #ISS #Earth #Science #Astronaut #Astronauts #KjellLindgren #JessicaWatkins #RobertHines #SamanthaCristoforetti #Minerva #Italy #Italia #Human #Spaceflight #Crew4 #Kennedy #KSC #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

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Thursday, April 21, 2022

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Monday, April 18, 2022