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This image is dominated by a large sky filled with blue, purple, and red clouds. Beneath them is one of ALMA’s antennae, which is pointing directly upwards and appears to be illuminated by a beam of red light.
This Picture of the Week shows the grand skies of the Chajnantor plateau in the Chilean Atacama desert. The rare sight of clouds in this typically dry and arid region creates a dramatic display of reds and blues, as well as a sun pillar––an optical phenomenon caused by ice crystals in the atmosphere––that emanates from the Sun in line with a telescope. This large antenna is a part of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), which is co-owned by the European Southern Observatory (ESO).
ALMA is one of the most powerful observatories in the world for radio astronomy. Its collection of 66 antennae—like the one pictured above—has been responsible for many incredible ground-breaking discoveries, including contributing to the creation of the first image of a black hole.
Credit: C. Duran /European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Untangling a Knot of Galaxy Clusters | NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory
Astronomers have captured a spectacular and ongoing collision between at least three galaxy clusters. Data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, ESA’s XMM-Newton and a trio of radio telescopes are helping astronomers sort out what is happening in this jumbled scene.
Galaxy clusters are some of the largest structures in the Universe and contain a mixture of galaxies, hot gas and dark matter. Over time, these colossal objects can collide and merge with each other through their gravitational pull. This is the main way that galaxy clusters can grow into the gigantic cosmic edifices seen today.
Abell 2256, located 780 million light years from Earth, is a scene where this process is taking place. Astronomers studying this object are trying to tease out what has led to this unusual-looking structure. Each telescope tells a different part of the story. For example, Chandra and XMM-Newton can see the multi-million-degree gas from the clusters. The radio emission in this system arises from an even more complex set of sources.
The first are the galaxies themselves, where the radio signal is generated by particles blasting away in jets from supermassive black holes at their centers. Radio waves are also coming from a huge filamentary structure, which was likely generated when the collision created shock waves and accelerated particles in the gas.
Astronomers will continue to study this complex system to untangle this knot of galaxy clusters and the details of the physics taking place there. This will help us learn more about how these cosmic giants came to inhabit the Universe today.
U.S. Poet Laureate's Poem Will Travel to Jupiter’s Moon Europa on NASA Spacecraft
U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón is writing an original poem dedicated to NASA’s Europa Clipper mission. The poem will be engraved on the spacecraft, as a way to connect the water world of our home planet Earth with another world with water in our solar system (Jupiter’s moon, Europa).
Europa Clipper will travel 1.8 billion miles on its path to the Jupiter system. The poem will be part of an upcoming NASA-led program that will invite international public participation.
The spacecraft is set to launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in October 2024, and by 2030, it will be in orbit around Jupiter. It will conduct multiple flybys of the planet’s icy moon Europa to gather detailed measurements and determine if the moon has conditions suitable for life.
Europa, which scientists are confident harbors an internal ocean with twice the amount of water in Earth’s oceans combined, may currently have conditions suitable for supporting life. Europa Clipper will orbit Jupiter and conduct multiple close flybys of Europa to gather data on the moon’s atmosphere, surface, and interior. Its sophisticated payload will investigate everything from the depth and salinity of the ocean to the thickness of the ice crust to the characteristics of potential plumes that may be venting subsurface water into space.
Limón was appointed 24th Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden in 2022. The Library of Congress is the world’s largest library, offering access to the creative record of the United States—and extensive materials from around the world—both on site and online. It is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office.
More information about the Europa Clipper mission is available at europa.nasa.gov/
Astronaut Koichi Wakata (Japan) works on orbital plumbing tasks
Follow Expedition 68 crew updates at:
https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/
Expedition 68 Crew
Station Commander: Sergey Prokopyev of Roscosmos (Russia)
Roscosmos (Russia): Flight Engineers Anna Kikina & Dmitri Petelin
NASA: Flight Engineers Nicole Mann, Frank Rubio & Josh Cassada
JAXA (Japan): Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata
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.
A snapshot of the Tarantula Nebula (also known as 30 Doradus) is the most recent from the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope. The Tarantula Nebula is a large star-forming region of ionised hydrogen gas that lies 161,000 light years from Earth in the Large Magellanic Cloud, and its turbulent clouds of gas and dust can be seen swirling between the region’s bright, newly-formed stars.
Image Description: Wispy, nebulous clouds extend from the lower-left of the image. At the top and right the dark background of space can be seen through the sparse nebula. Along the left and in the corner are many layers of brightly-colored gas and dark, obscuring dust. A cluster of small, bright blue stars in the same corner expands out across the image. Many much smaller stars cover the background.
The Tarantula Nebula is a familiar site for Hubble. It is the brightest star-forming region in our galactic neighborhood and home to the hottest, most massive stars known. This makes it a perfect natural laboratory in which to test out theories of star formation and evolution, and a rich variety of Hubble images of this region have been released to the public in recent years. The NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope also recently delved into this region, revealing thousands of never-before-seen young stars.
This new image combines data from two different observing proposals. The first was designed to explore the properties of the dust grains that exist in the void between stars and which make up the dark clouds winding through this image. This proposal, which astronomers named Scylla, complements another Hubble observing proposal called Ulysses and is revealing how interstellar dust interacts with starlight in a variety of environments. This image also incorporates data from an observing program studying star formation in conditions similar to the early Universe, as well as cataloguing the stars of the Tarantula Nebula for future science with Webb.
Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, C. Murray, E. Sabbi
Hubblecast 123 Light: This video highlights Jupiter’s trademark spot and observations made of the feature by the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope that demonstrate that the spot has shrunk over time.
Credits:
Directed by: Bethany Downer
Editing: Nico Bartmann
Web and technical support: Mathias André and Raquel Yumi Shida
Written by: Bethany Downer
Footage and photos: European Space Agency (ESA), NASA, A. Simon, M.H. Wong, M. Kornmesser, H. Hammel, R. Beebe
A Close-Up Look at Jupiter’s Dynamic Atmosphere | Hubble
The NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope reveals the intricate, detailed beauty of Jupiter’s clouds in this image from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3, when the planet was 644 million kilometers from Earth. The image features the distinct bands of roiling clouds that are characteristic of Jupiter’s atmosphere and represents a stretched-out map of the entire planet.
Researchers combined several Hubble exposures to create this flat map, which excludes the polar regions (above 80 degrees latitude). These observations of Jupiter form part of the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.
Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)
Global Model of Jupiter | NASA & European Space Agency
This three-dimensional model of Jupiter was computer-generated from a new global map of the planet that was taken by the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera 3 when the planet was 644 million kilometers from Earth.
Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley), M. Kornmesser
Zooming into the Great Red Spot of Jupiter | Hubble
This video is a pan across the surface of Jupiter, featuring a zoom into the planet's trademark Great Red Spot.
This image was taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera 3, when the planet was 644 million kilometers from Earth. The image highlights the Great Red Spot in a more intense color palette in the clouds swirling in the planet’s turbulent atmosphere than seen in previous years.
Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)
The NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope reveals the intricate, detailed beauty of Jupiter’s clouds in this image by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3, when the planet was 644 million kilometers from Earth. The image features the planet’s trademark Great Red Spot and a more intense color palette in the clouds swirling in the planet’s turbulent atmosphere than seen in previous years.
The observations of Jupiter form part of the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.
Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)
A dramatic triplet of galaxies takes center stage in this image from the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope, which captures a three-way gravitational tug-of-war between interacting galaxies. This system—known as Arp 195—is featured in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies, a list which showcases some of the weirder and more wonderful galaxies in the universe.
Observing time with the Hubble Space Telescope is extremely valuable, so astronomers do not want to waste a second. The schedule for Hubble observations is calculated using a computer algorithm which allows the spacecraft to occasionally gather bonus snapshots of data between longer observations. This image of the clashing triplet of galaxies in Arp 195 is one such snapshot. Extra observations such as these do more than provide spectacular images—they also help to identify promising targets to follow up with telescopes, such as the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope.
Credit: European Space Agency/Hubble & NASA, J. Dalcanton
A dramatic triplet of galaxies takes center stage in this image from the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope, which captures a three-way gravitational tug-of-war between interacting galaxies. This system—known as Arp 195—is featured in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies, a list which showcases some of the weirder and more wonderful galaxies in the universe.
Observing time with the Hubble Space Telescope is extremely valuable, so astronomers do not want to waste a second. The schedule for Hubble observations is calculated using a computer algorithm which allows the spacecraft to occasionally gather bonus snapshots of data between longer observations. This image of the clashing triplet of galaxies in Arp 195 is one such snapshot. Extra observations such as these do more than provide spectacular images—they also help to identify promising targets to follow up with telescopes, such as the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope.
Credit: European Space Agency/Hubble & NASA, J. Dalcanton
Great Galaxies of The Perseus Galaxy Cluster | Hubble
Two things capture your attention in this spectacular image taken by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3): the two enormous galaxies that flank the left and right sides of the image. The galaxy on the left is a lenticular galaxy, which rejoices in the name of 2MASX J03193743+4137580. The side-on spiral galaxy on the right is more simply named UGC 2665. Both galaxies lie approximately 350 million light-years from Earth, and they both form part of the enormous Perseus galaxy cluster.
Perseus is an important figure in Greek mythology, renowned for slaying Medusa the Gorgon—who is herself famous for the unhappy reason that she was cursed to have living snakes for hair. Given Perseus’s impressive credentials, it seems appropriate that the eponymous galaxy cluster is one of the biggest objects in the known Universe, consisting of thousands of galaxies, only a few of which are visible in this image.
The wonderful detail in the image is thanks to the WFC3’s powerful resolution and high sensitivity. The WFC3 is sensitive to both visible and infrared light, so those are the wavelengths that are captured in this image. The Perseus supercluster looks very different at other wavelengths. Whilst in this image the spaces between the galaxies appear dark and peaceful, when the X-ray emission is observed the Perseus cluster appears to be burning with bright intense light.
Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, W. Harris
Great Galaxies of The Perseus Galaxy Cluster | Hubble
Two things capture your attention in this spectacular image taken by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3): the two enormous galaxies that flank the left and right sides of the image. The galaxy on the left is a lenticular galaxy, which rejoices in the name of 2MASX J03193743+4137580. The side-on spiral galaxy on the right is more simply named UGC 2665. Both galaxies lie approximately 350 million light-years from Earth, and they both form part of the enormous Perseus galaxy cluster.
Perseus is an important figure in Greek mythology, renowned for slaying Medusa the Gorgon—who is herself famous for the unhappy reason that she was cursed to have living snakes for hair. Given Perseus’s impressive credentials, it seems appropriate that the eponymous galaxy cluster is one of the biggest objects in the known Universe, consisting of thousands of galaxies, only a few of which are visible in this image.
The wonderful detail in the image is thanks to the WFC3’s powerful resolution and high sensitivity. The WFC3 is sensitive to both visible and infrared light, so those are the wavelengths that are captured in this image. The Perseus supercluster looks very different at other wavelengths. Whilst in this image the spaces between the galaxies appear dark and peaceful, when the X-ray emission is observed the Perseus cluster appears to be burning with bright intense light.
Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, W. Harris
A Bear on Planet Mars? | NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
Wait . . . what? Is this a peculiar formation or do your eyes deceive you?
There is a hill with a V-shaped collapse structure ("the nose"), two craters ("the eyes"), and a circular fracture pattern ("the head"). The circular fracture pattern might be due to the settling of a deposit over a buried impact crater. Maybe "the nose" is a volcanic or mud vent and the deposit could be lava or mud flows?
"Maybe just grin and bear it!" ;)
Seeing familiar objects or patterns in otherwise random or unrelated objects or patterns is called pareidolia. It is a form of apophenia, which is a more general term for the human tendency to seek patterns in random information.
Black and white images are less than 5 km across; enhanced color images are less than1 km.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) is a spacecraft designed to study the geology and climate of Mars, to provide reconnaissance of future landing sites, and to relay data from surface missions back to Earth. It was launched on August 12, 2005, and reached Mars on March 10, 2006.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The HiRISE camera was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corporation and is operated by the University of Arizona.
Long Duration Human Spaceflight: Hibernation Research | European Space Agency
Did you know that the European Space Agency (ESA) is researching human hibernation for long distance spaceflight to Mars or beyond? Hibernating astronauts could be the best way to save mission costs, reduce the size of spacecraft by a third and keep crew healthy on their way to Mars. An ESA-led investigation suggests that human hibernation goes beyond the realm of science-fiction and may become a game-changing technique for space travel.
When packing for a return flight to the Red Planet, space engineers account for around two years’ worth of food and water for the crew.
Torpor during hibernation is an induced state that reduces the metabolic rate of an organism. This ‘suspended animation’ is a common mechanism in animals who wish to preserve energy.
Reducing the metabolic rate of a crew en route to Mars down to 25% of the normal state would dramatically cut down the amount of supplies and habitat size, making long-duration exploration more feasible.
Mimicking therapeutic torpor, the idea of putting human into a state of hibernation, has been around in hospitals since the 1980s—doctors can induce hypothermia to reduce metabolism during long and complex surgeries. However, it is not an active reduction of energy and misses most of the advantages of torpor. Studies on hibernation to visit other planets could offer new potential applications for patient care on Earth.
Animals hibernate to survive periods of cold and food or water scarcity, reducing their heart rate, breathing and other vital functions to a fraction of their normal life, while body temperature lowers close to ambient temperature. Tardigrades, frogs and reptiles are very good at it.
Lower testosterone levels seem to aid long hibernation in mammals, estrogens in humans strongly regulate energy metabolism.
With the crew at rest for long periods, artificial intelligence will come into play during anomalies and emergencies.
The possibilities of hibernation for medical use is of particular interest to the European research community and could transform how we approach many severe illnesses.
Inducing torpor is already used in some medical environments such as surgical theathers to replace anesthesia in those patients allergic to anesthetic drugs.
The step to space research is closer than you might think. Get involved with spaceflight research via https://www.esa.int/spaceflightAO
Find out about our commercial partnerships and opportunities in human and robotic exploration via https://www.esa.int/explorationpartners to run your research in microgravity as well.
