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SpaceX CRS-25 Cargo Dragon Docking | International Space Station
The SpaceX Dragon resupply ship (CRS-25) carrying over 5,800 pounds of new science experiments and crew supplies docked with the International Space Station on Saturday, July 16, 2022. The spacecraft is expected to spend about a month attached to the orbiting outpost before it returns to Earth with research and return cargo, splashing down off the coast of Florida.
NASA Flight Engineers Jessica Watkins and Bob Hines spent Monday, July 18, 2022, unloading some of the science experiments and crew supplies delivered. The duo transferred time-critical research samples into the orbital lab to begin exploring a variety of space phenomena to benefit humans on and off the Earth. Some of the new experiments include a human immune system study, a protein production investigation, and a cancer treatment experiment.
'Black Hole Police' Spot Extragalactic Black Hole | European Southern Observatory
ESOcast 255 Light: The "black hole police", a team of astronomers known for debunking black hole discoveries, reported finding a "needle in a haystack". After searching nearly 1,000 stars outside our galaxy, they found that one of them has a stellar-mass black hole as a companion. This short video summarizes the discovery.
Zooming in on Binary System VFTS 243: A Hot Blue Star & Black Hole | ESO
In this video, we get to fly out from our home galaxy and into the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a satellite galaxy to the Milky Way. The LMC is the home of one of the brightest known nebulae, the Tarantula Nebula, that was discovered in the mid-18th century. The Tarantula Nebula hosts the binary system VFTS 243, where this video eventually ends. The system might seem like a lone hot blue star, but the other component is in fact invisible to us: a black hole, weighing at least nine times the mass of our Sun, and about 200,000 times smaller than its stellar companion.
A team of international experts, renowned for debunking several black hole discoveries, have found a stellar-mass black hole in the Large Magellanic Cloud. "For the first time, our team got together to report on a black hole discovery, instead of rejecting one," says study leader Tomer Shenar. Moreover, they found that the star that gave rise to the black hole vanished without any sign of a powerful explosion. The discovery was made thanks to six years of observations obtained with the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO’s) Very Large Telescope (VLT).
Stellar-mass black holes are formed when massive stars reach the end of their lives and collapse under their own gravity. In a binary, a system of two stars revolving around each other, this process leaves behind a black hole in orbit with a luminous companion star. The black hole is ‘dormant’ if it does not emit high levels of X-ray radiation, which is how such black holes are typically detected.
This close-up of an area in the northwest region of the large Iris Nebula seems to be clogged with cosmic dust. With bright light from the nearby star HD 200775 illuminating it from above, the dust resembles thick mounds of billowing cotton. It is actually made up of tiny particles of solid matter, with sizes from ten to a hundred times smaller than those of the dust grains we find at home. Both background and foreground stars are dotted throughout the image. Researchers studying the object are particularly interested in the region to the left and slightly above centre in the image, where dusty filaments appear redder than is expected.
Technical Info: Data from the following proposal were used to create this image.
"The Exciting Wavelength of Extended Red Emission"
Red: ACS/WFC F850LP
Green: ACS/WFC F625W
Blue: ACS/WFC F475W
North is 169.96° clockwise from up.
North is down, East is right. The field of view is 3.3 arcminutes. The image is a composite of four images obtained through blue, green, near-infrared and H-alpha filters.
Merging Galaxies Nicknamed "The Angel Wing" | Hubble
A close-up look at two merging galaxies in the VV689 system—nicknamed "The Angel Wing" system—in this image from the NASA/European Space Agency (ESA) Hubble Space Telescope. In this view, the focus is placed on the system itself, allowing a closer look at its unique morphology.
Judy Schmidt: "It's easy to see how it became known as the Angel Wing system. With nearly complete bilateral symmetry, it's hard not to see some kind of animal like an angel or bird wings."
China's First Space Telescope Under Development | CGTN
China is developing the prototype of the country's first space telescope Xuntian, or Chinese Survey Space Telescope, also known as the Chinese Space Station Telescope (CSST). It will maintain a similar orbit to China's Space Station (CSS) to allow docking and crew servicing. The 10-ton, bus-sized space telescope has an aperture of 2 meters (6.6 foot) and state-of-the-art detectors. It is expected to have a field of view 300–350 times larger than the 32-year old Hubble Space Telescope. This will allow the telescope to image up to 40 percent of the sky using its 2.5 gigapixel camera over ten years. The space telescope will be launched after the construction of China's Space Station is completed later in 2022.
SpaceX Starlink Mission: July 17, 2022 | Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
On Sunday, July 17, 2022, at 10:20 a.m. ET, SpaceX launched 53 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
This was the 13th flight for the Falcon 9 first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Dragon’s first crew demonstration mission, the RADARSAT Constellation Mission, SXM-7, and now 10 Starlink missions.
Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX)
This intriguing observation from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows a gravitationally lensed galaxy with the long-winded identification SGAS J143845+145407. Gravitational lensing has resulted in a mirror image of the galaxy at the center of this image, creating a captivating centerpiece.
Gravitational lensing occurs when a massive celestial body—such as a galaxy cluster—causes a sufficient curvature of spacetime for the path of light around it to be visibly bent, as if by a lens. Appropriately, the body causing the light to curve is called a gravitational lens, and the distorted background object is referred to as being "lensed". Gravitational lensing can result in multiple images of the original galaxy, as seen in this image, or in the background object appearing as a distorted arc or even a ring. Another important consequence of this lensing distortion is magnification, allowing astronomers to observe objects that would otherwise be too far away or too faint to be seen.
Hubble has a special flair for detecting lensed galaxies. The telescope's sensitivity and crystal-clear vision allow it to see faint and distant gravitational lenses that cannot be detected with ground-based telescopes because of the blurring effect of Earth's atmosphere. Hubble was the first telescope to resolve details within lensed images of galaxies, and is capable of imaging both their shape and internal structure.
This particular lensed galaxy is from a set of Hubble observations that take advantage of gravitational lensing to peer inside galaxies in the early Universe. The lensing reveals details of distant galaxies that would otherwise be unobtainable, and this allows astronomers to determine star formation in early galaxies. This in turn gives scientists a better insight into how the overall evolution of galaxies has unfolded.
Credit: European Space Agency/Hubble & NASA, J. Rigby
NASA SLS Moon Rocket Booster Test Preview | Northrop Grumman
NASA and Northrop Grumman will perform a full-scale static test of a Space Launch System (SLS) solid rocket booster motor at Northrop Grumman’s Promontory, Utah, test facility July 21, 2022. [This video is an example test from 2015.] Engineers will fire the booster during the demonstration, called the Flight Support Booster 2 test, to evaluate materials and processes to improve boosters for future Artemis missions.
“The current SLS boosters for the first eight Artemis missions are using a robust mix of new avionics and substantial heritage hardware from the Space Shuttle Program,” said Bruce Tiller, SLS Booster Program manager. “This particular ground test will demonstrate some new materials, a completely new steering system, and a new way to ignite the motor. Data from this test will improve our booster design for future missions that take us farther into deep space than ever before.”
For the test, one booster is affixed in a horizontal test stand and fired for approximately two minutes, the same amount of time and at the same power level as it would be fired during launch. On launch day, a pair of solid rocket boosters in a vertical position attached to the core stage of the SLS rocket supply more than 75% of the total thrust for the first two minutes of flight. Northrop Grumman is the lead contractor for the SLS solid rocket boosters.
NASA and Northrop Grumman experts will discuss the Flight Support Booster 2 test during a Facebook Live on the Space Launch System rocket’s Facebook page, as well as on NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center YouTube channel, beginning at 2:55 p.m. EDT. During the test, anyone can submit questions on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube using the hashtag #AskNASA. Julia Khodabandeh, motor team lead for SLS boosters at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and Jessica Rose, chemical engineer for SLS boosters at Northrop Grumman, will answer questions.
NASA and Northrop Grumman will perform a full-scale static test of a Space Launch System (SLS) solid rocket booster motor at Northrop Grumman’s Promontory, Utah, test facility July 21, 2022. Engineers will fire the booster during the demonstration, called the Flight Support Booster 2 test, to evaluate materials and processes to improve boosters for future Artemis missions.
The FSB-2 test builds off the Flight Support Booster-1 test conducted in September 2020 and will demonstrate a newly qualified motor initiation system and qualify a new ablative lining to protect the booster nozzle. This test will also provide information for the development of the next generation booster obsolescence and life extension booster that will support Artemis IX and beyond.
Through Artemis missions, NASA will land the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon, paving the way for a long-term, sustainable lunar presence and serving as a steppingstone for future astronaut missions to Mars.
QM-1 Static Fire Test Preview Video Footage [replay]
On March 11, 2015 NASA and Orbital ATK conducted the first qualification ground test of the five-segment rocket motor that will be used for initial thrust for NASA's heavy-lift Space Launch System, which will enable new missions of exploration across the solar system. This Northrop Grumman/Orbital ATK video gives a quick look at the events of the day. Release Date: April 24, 2015
Story Credit: Northrop Grumman/NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC)
NASA & Northrop Grumman Test Fire Future Artemis Moon Rocket Booster Motor
Image Description: Teams installed the flight support booster for future versions of the SLS rocket’s solid rocket boosters into a test stand in Promontory, Utah. Image Credit: Northrop Grumman. Image Date: June 24, 2022
Teams installed the flight support booster for future versions of the SLS rocket’s solid rocket boosters into a test stand in Promontory, Utah. NASA and Northrop Grumman engineers are preparing to conduct a full-scale static test of the motor at the Northrop Grumman test facility July 21.
NASA and Northrop Grumman will perform a full-scale static test of a Space Launch System (SLS) solid rocket booster motor at Northrop Grumman’s Promontory, Utah, test facility July 21, 2022. Engineers will fire the booster during the demonstration, called the Flight Support Booster 2 test, to evaluate materials and processes to improve boosters for future Artemis missions.
“The current SLS boosters for the first eight Artemis missions are using a robust mix of new avionics and substantial heritage hardware from the Space Shuttle Program,” said Bruce Tiller, SLS Booster Program manager. “This particular ground test will demonstrate some new materials, a completely new steering system, and a new way to ignite the motor. Data from this test will improve our booster design for future missions that take us farther into deep space than ever before.”
For the test, one booster is affixed in a horizontal test stand and fired for approximately two minutes, the same amount of time and at the same power level as it would be fired during launch. On launch day, a pair of solid rocket boosters in a vertical position attached to the core stage of the SLS rocket supply more than 75% of the total thrust for the first two minutes of flight. Northrop Grumman is the lead contractor for the SLS solid rocket boosters.
NASA and Northrop Grumman experts will discuss the Flight Support Booster 2 test during a Facebook Live on the Space Launch System rocket’s Facebook page, as well as on NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center YouTube channel, beginning at 2:55 p.m. EDT. During the test, anyone can submit questions on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube using the hashtag #AskNASA. Julia Khodabandeh, motor team lead for SLS boosters at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and Jessica Rose, chemical engineer for SLS boosters at Northrop Grumman, will answer questions.
The FSB-2 test builds off the Flight Support Booster-1 test conducted in September 2020 and will demonstrate a newly qualified motor initiation system and qualify a new ablative lining to protect the booster nozzle. This test will also provide information for the development of the next generation booster obsolescence and life extension booster that will support Artemis IX and beyond.
Through Artemis missions, NASA will land the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon, paving the way for a long-term, sustainable lunar presence and serving as a steppingstone for future astronaut missions to Mars.
Credit: NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC)
The Webb Space Telescope’s First Images: Unfold the Universe with Webb Scientists
A special one-hour discussion [replay]. Hear what excites astronomers about the new telescope’s capabilities and hear them answer questions from the public directly!
Rocket Science in 60 Seconds: What Are the SLS Moon Rocket Boosters? | NASA
Rocket Science in 60 Seconds gives you an inside look at work being done at NASA to explore deep space. The solid rocket boosters for NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket are the largest, most powerful boosters ever built for flight. In this episode, SLS booster subsystem manager Julia Khodabandeh explains how the two, five-segment solid rocket boosters provide more than 75% of the thrust power during launch and flight for SLS. Please note: This video was originally produced and published in August 2020.
Comparing the Webb Space Telescope & Hubble: The Carina Nebula | NASA
James Webb Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
Note: These images were taken 14 years apart.
This Hubble image shows the edge of the giant gaseous cavity within the star-forming region called NGC 3324. The glowing nebula has been carved out by intense ultraviolet radiation and stellar winds from several hot, young stars. A cluster of extremely massive stars, located well outside this image in the center of the nebula, is responsible for the ionization of the nebula and excavation of the cavity.
The image also reveals dramatic dark towers of cool gas and dust that rise above the glowing wall of gas. The dense gas at the top resists the blistering ultraviolet radiation from the central stars, and creates a tower that points in the direction of the energy flow. The high-energy radiation blazing out from the hot, young stars in NGC 3324 is sculpting the wall of the nebula by slowly eroding it away.
Located in the Southern Hemisphere, NGC 3324 is at the northwest corner of the Carina Nebula (NGC 3372), home of the Keyhole Nebula and the active, outbursting star Eta Carinae. The entire Carina Nebula complex is located at a distance of roughly 7,200 light-years, and lies in the constellation Carina.
This image is a composite of data taken with two of Hubble's science instruments. Data taken with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) in 2006 isolated light emitted by hydrogen. More recent data, taken in 2008 with the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2), isolated light emitted by sulfur and oxygen gas. To create a color composite, the data from the sulfur filter are represented by red, from the oxygen filter by blue, and from the hydrogen filter by green.
Webb Credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI
Webb Release Date: July 12, 2022
Hubble Credits: NASA, ESA, and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA);
Acknowledgment: N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley)
NASA's Mars Curiosity Rover: Views of A Large & Unique Boulder | JPL
MSL - sol 3532 - Mastcam
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill
MSL - sol 3532 - Mastcam
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill
MSL - sol 3533 - NavRight
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Kevin M. Gill
MSL - sol 3534 - MAHLI
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Kevin M. Gill
MSL - sol 3531 - Left NavCam
NASA/JPL-Caltech
MSL - sol 3534 - Mastcam
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill
Curiosity Rover Update for July 13, 2022: Sols 3532-3533
A Rover-Sized Boulder
Written by Lauren Edgar, Planetary Geologist at USGS Astrogeology Science Center
"Curiosity is back on the road, but some interesting boulders caught our attention and led to a short detour. The team was already planning to divert to the southwest to get some imaging of nearby cliffs, but the large boulders that have tumbled down provide a tantalizing glimpse of what’s to come. Boulders like the large one shown in the above Navcam image (now named “Ilha Novo Destino”) can help inform our understanding of the upcoming stratigraphy, so we thought it was worth a trip to this “new island destination” for the weekend."
"But first, there’s plenty of science to be done in our workspace before we get to the boulders. Today’s two-sol plan focused on DRT, MAHLI, and APXS on the bedrock right in front of the rover, including the interesting vein and fracture patterns shown in the foreground of the above Navcam image. Today we planned 3 MAHLI imaging targets and 2 APXS targets to assess the sedimentary textures and composition of bedrock and veins. We also planned ChemCam LIBS and Mastcam multispectral observations to further characterize this outcrop. Mastcam will also be used to document the field of boulders to help plan weekend activities, and ChemCam will acquire a long distance RMI mosaic to characterize the stratigraphy. The ENV theme group planned several environmental monitoring activities to search for dust devils and monitor dust and clouds in the atmosphere. On the second sol, Curiosity will drive to a parking spot right in front of these boulders to prepare for the weekend plan. Can’t wait to see this rover-sized boulder up close!"
Mission Name: Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)
Rover Name: Curiosity
Main Job: To determine if Mars was ever habitable to microbial life.
Launch: Nov. 6, 2011
Landing Date: Aug. 5, 2012, Gale Crater, Mars
For more information on NASA's Mars missions, visit: mars.nasa.gov
Hubble's launch and deployment in April 1990 marked the most significant advance in astronomy since Galileo's telescope. Thanks to five servicing missions and more than 30 years of operation, our view of the universe and our place within it has never been the same.
Eta Carinae, or Eta Car, is famous for a brilliant and unusual outburst, called the "Great Eruption", observed in the 1840s. This visualization presents the story of that event and examines the resulting multiwavelength emissions and three-dimensional structures surrounding Eta Car today.
Massive stars are known to have major outbursts. Eta Car, one of the most massive stars known, expelled about 10% of its mass in the Great Eruption, creating a small nebula, called the Homunculus Nebula, around it. Images taken in different wavelengths of light reveal different structures, each providing more information about the outbursts of Eta Car.
For this visualization, astronomers and artists have used NASA observations to model both the close-up and wide views of this massive and eruptive star. The Hubble Space Telescope and the Chandra X-ray Observatory have observed the nested layers of gas and dust around Eta Car using visible, ultraviolet, and x-ray light, as well as in the Hydrogen Alpha emission line. The Spitzer Space Telescope provides a larger view of the Carina Nebula, along with Eta Car’s dominant position within this star-forming region.
This visualization is presented by the AstroViz Project of NASA’s Universe of Learning. Viewers gain appreciation for how the observations from two centuries ago connect to the resulting structures seen today. Full 360-degree 3D views help to assemble a complete mental model that aids interpretation of the NASA observations. Eta Car serves as a notable example of the outbursts in the dying stages of massive stars.
Credits: J. Olmsted, D. Player, L. Hustak, A. Pagan, J. DePasquale, G. Bacon, F. Summers (STScI), R. Hurt (Caltech/IPAC), NASA, ESA
Images: A. Fujii, J. Morse (BoldlyGo Inst), N. Smith (U Arizona), Hubble SM4 ERO Team, NASA, ESA, STScI, JPL-Caltech, CXC, ESO, NOAO, AURA, NSF
Music: “Interstellar Wanderer”, Joseph DePasquale, CC BY-NC 4.0
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