Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy Close-up | Hubble
Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), and The Hubble Heritage Team STScI/AURA
Release Date: Nov. 11, 2004
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Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy Close-up | Hubble
Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), and The Hubble Heritage Team STScI/AURA
Release Date: Nov. 11, 2004
The Sagittarius Dwarf Irregular Galaxy: Like a Hidden Diamond | ESO
Squint or you’ll miss it! At the very center of this image, taken with the VIMOS instrument attached to the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), you can just about see the faint and fuzzy blue form of a distant galaxy known as the Sagittarius Dwarf Irregular Galaxy.
Discovered in 1977 with the European Southern Observatory (ESO) 1-meter Schmidt telescope, situated at ESO’s La Silla observatory, the irregularly shaped—hence the name—dwarf galaxy is approximately 3 million light-years away in the constellation of Sagittarius (The Archer). It is the most distant member of the Local Group of galaxies, of which the Milky Way is a member.
Unlike normal galaxies, dwarf galaxies are typically smaller and host a relatively small number of stars. Gravitational tugs from nearby galaxies can often distort the spherical and disc-like shapes of these fragile galaxies—this very process may be responsible for the slightly rectangular shape of this particular dwarf galaxy.
Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/M. Bellazzini et al.
Release Date: Jan. 29, 2018
#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Galaxies #Galaxy #SagittariusDwarfGalaxy #SagDIG #IrregularGalaxy #Sagittarius #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #Telescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education
Relentless Heat in Mexico & America's Southwest: July 2023 | NASA Earth Science
An unprecedented streak of extreme temperatures scorched the southwestern U.S. in July 2023. Blistering temperatures have lingered in the region for more than three weeks, contributing to delayed air travel and heat-related deaths.
The map here shows air temperatures across the Southwest on July 25, 2023. The map was produced by combining satellite observations with temperatures predicted by a version of the Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) model, which uses mathematical equations to represent physical processes in the atmosphere. The map represents temperatures at about 6.5 feet (2 meters) above the ground at about 2 p.m. Pacific Time. The darkest reds indicate temperatures of more than 113°F (45°C). On this day, measurements from a weather station in Phoenix, Arizona, recorded 119°F, topping the daily air temperature record by three degrees.
The desert Southwest is known for its heat, but the duration of the recent extreme temperatures has far surpassed previous records. As of July 26, Phoenix had endured 27 days with maximum temperatures exceeding 110°F (43°C), shattering the previous record of 18 days in a row, recorded in 1974. As of July 27, El Paso, Texas, had suffered for 42 consecutive days at or above 100°F (38°C), which was 19 days longer than its previous record set in 1994.
“The duration and extent of this heat wave has been mind-boggling,” said Brian Kahn, an atmospheric scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Kahn noted that a ridge of high pressure—or a heat dome—has spread across the southern U.S. Heat domes occur when strong, high-pressure atmospheric conditions trap sweltering heat over large areas.
“There is a close relationship between how hot the surface is and the depth of the heat dome,” said Kahn, “and this particular system has extended high into the atmosphere for weeks on end.”
The extreme heat has affected more than just the Southwest. Temperature records have been shattered throughout the U.S., China, and southern Europe. The heat also precedes July. According to NASA scientists, June 2023 was the hottest June on record.
Kahn and JPL climate scientist Glynn Hulley have previously studied Southern California heatwaves and found that they are becoming more frequent, more intense, and longer-lasting. Kahn noted that although urban development in the Southwest probably exacerbated recent warming—by replacing vegetation with impervious surfaces more likely to trap heat—he noted that anthropogenic climate change was likely contributing to this heat wave.
Extreme heat is the leading cause of weather-related death in the U.S., according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, causing or contributing to the deaths of more than 700 Americans per year over the past 30 years.
According to a recent report from scientists at World Weather Attribution, the extreme heat seen in the southwestern U.S., China, and southern Europe would have been “virtually impossible” without human-caused climate change.
Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using GEOS-5 data from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at NASA GSFC
Story Credit: Emily Cassidy.
Release Date: July 25, 2023
#NASA #Space #Satellites #GOES5 #Planet #Earth #Science #Atmosphere #Weather #Meteorology #Mexico #Southwest #AmericanSouthwest #Desert #HighTemperatures #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #GreenhouseGases #GEOS #AirTemperatureModel #Illustration #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
L2 Orbits of NASA's Webb Telescope & Europe's Euclid & Gaia Spacecraft
Nearly a month after its launch on July 1, 2023, the European Space Agency's Euclid spacecraft has travelled 1.5 million kilometers from Earth towards the Sun-Earth Lagrange point L2, meaning it has ‘arrived’ at its destination orbit. Euclid's mission is to explore the composition and evolution of the dark Universe.
Located about 1.5 million kilometers from Earth in the opposite direction from the Sun, L2 is about four times further away than our Moon. Several other space missions like Webb and Gaia also orbit L2 as it offers the perfect vantage point to study the Universe.
At L2, the spacecraft can keep the Sun, Earth and Moon behind them at all times, so they do not interfere with observations, while at the same time getting a clear view of deep space and pointing an antenna back to Earth to remain in close communication.
Note: In celestial mechanics, the Lagrange points are points of equilibrium for small-mass objects under the gravitational influence of two massive orbiting bodies. Mathematically, this involves the solution of the restricted three-body problem.
Note: In orbital mechanics, a Lissajous orbit, named after Jules Antoine Lissajous, is a quasi-periodic orbital trajectory that an object can follow around a Lagrangian point of a three-body system with minimal propulsion.
The region around L2 is big and even though the orbits of these spacecraft seem to cross in the animation, in reality there is plenty of space and a collision can be easily avoided. For example, Webb and Gaia are between 400,000 and 1,100,000 km apart, depending on where they are in their respective orbits.
Video Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Gaia/DPAC; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Duration: 2 minutes
Release Date: July 28, 2023
#NASA #ESA #Space #Astronomy #Science #JWST #GaiaMission #EuclidMission #EuclidSpacecraft #SpaceTelescopes #3DMapping #MilkyWayGalaxy #Galaxies #GalaxyClusters #Cosmos #Universe #Cosmology #Astrophysics #Gravity #DarkMatter #DarkEnergy #Europe #UnitedStates #Canada #STEM #Education #Animation #HD #Video
Take Flight with NASA's STAQS Campaign to Support TEMPO Earth Mission
NASA and NOAA’s STAQS campaign is taking to the skies and ground this summer to support TEMPO satellite data. Scientists will compare the air quality data they measure from planes with what TEMPO measures from orbit, making both measurements better. Air pollution—including ozone, nitrogen dioxide and formaldehyde, and tiny atmospheric particles called aerosols—can have serious consequences for human health and the environment.
TEMPO, launched in April 2023, forms part of an air quality satellite "virtual constellation" that offers a more holistic view of how pollution is transported around the Northern Hemisphere. Ball Aerospace in Broomfield, Colorado built the TEMPO instrument.
Kelly Chance, of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is the principal investigator for TEMPO.
“NASA makes data from instruments like TEMPO easily accessible to everyone,” said Karen St. Germain, division director for NASA’s Earth Sciences Division. “Which means that everyone from community and industry leaders to asthma sufferers are going to be able to access air quality information at a higher level of detail—in both time and location—than they’ve ever been able to before. And that also provides the information needed to start addressing one of the most pressing human health challenges.”
Learn more about TEMPO: https://tempo.si.edu
Learn about NASA’s Earth sciences, visit:
Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Lead Producer: Kathleen Gaeta (GSFC AIMMS)
Duration: 53 seconds
Earth & Station Views from New Panoramic Cameras | China Space Station
Credit: China National Space Administration (CNSA)
Acknowledgement: CNSA Watcher
Duration: 2 minutes, 31 seconds
Release Date: July 29, 2023
#NASA #Space #China #中国 #Earth #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #天和核心舱 #HDCameras #PanoramicViews #Tianhe #Wentian #Mengtian #Shenzhou16 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #JingHaipeng #ZhuYangzhu #GuiHaichao #CNSA #CMSA #国家航天局 #MicrogravityExperiments #SpaceResearch #SpaceLaboratory #Science #Technology #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video
Barnard’s Galaxy: Wide-field view | Victor Blanco Telescope
An image of the nearby irregular Barnard’s Galaxy or NGC 6822 shows a myriad of hot blue massive stars and several famous nebulae in impressive detail. NGC 6822 is located approximately 1.6 million light-years from Earth, in the constellation Sagittarius. A member of the Milky Way galaxy's Local Group, it was discovered by E.E. Barnard in the early 1880s. Edwin P. Hubble conducted the first detailed investigation of the galaxy in 1925, using the new 100-inch telescope on Mount Wilson.
Credit: Local Group Galaxies Survey Team/NOIRLab/National Science Foundation (NSF)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)
Release Date: Jan. 10, 2002
#NASA #NOIRLab #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #Stars #Starbirth #CosmicBubbles #Galaxy #DwarfGalaxy #NGC6822 #IrregularGalaxy #Sagittarius #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #Chile #CTIO #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
Barnard’s Galaxy: A Neighbor to Our Milky Way | NOIRLab
Distance: 2 million light years
Credit: Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO)/NOIRLab/National Science Foundation (NSF)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)
Acknowledgments: P. Massey (Lowell Obs.), G. Jacoby, K. Olsen, C. Smith (NOAO/AURA/NSF) & T.A. Rector (NRAO/AUI/NSF)
Image Processing: Travis Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage), Mahdi Zamani & Davide de Martin
Release Date: April 16, 2020
#NASA #NOIRLab #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #Stars #Starbirth #CosmicBubbles #Galaxy #DwarfGalaxy #NGC6822 #IrregularGalaxy #Sagittarius #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #CTIO #Chile #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
Earthbound Trajectory of NASA's OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Spacecraft
July 2022—October 2023: [No Audio] NASA’s OSIRIS-REx is the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid. The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will deliver a capsule with fragments of asteroid Bennu to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023. The spacecraft briefly touched down on Bennu in October 2020 and gathered an estimated cupful of material. Seven months later, it departed Bennu on a 1.2-billion-mile cruise back to Earth. OSIRIS-REx will release the capsule above Earth’s atmosphere for a landing in Utah’s West Desert and continue flying past Earth. After delivering the sample, the spacecraft will adopt a new name for an extended mission to asteroid Apophis: OSIRIS-APEX. It will spend 5.5 years in an elliptical orbit of the Sun and rendezvous with Apophis in 2029. It will orbit and study Apophis for 1.5 years and then venture close to its surface to stir up loose material.
This visualization depicts a portion (July 2022–October 2023) of the spacecraft’s return cruise from asteroid Bennu to Earth.
Credits: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Scientific Visualization Studio, Kel Elkins
Duration: 24 seconds
Release Date: July 27, 2023
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #OSIRISRExMission #OSIRISRExSpacecraft #Asteroids #AstreroidBennu #ToBennuAndBack #Organics #Minerals #SampleReturn #SpaceTechnology #GSFC #CSA #JAXA #Japan #日本 #UnitedStates #Apophis #OSIRISAPEX #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education #Visualization #Animation #HD #Video
Reflection Nebula IC 2087 in Taurus: Wide-field view | Focal Pointe Observatory
Distance: ~430 light years
Image Data: Takahashi FSQ-106ED @ f/5.0 (530 mm F.L.)
Image Credit & Copyright: Bob Franke
Caption Credit: Bob Franke
Image Capture Dates: Jan. 27-31, 2017
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Nebulae #B77 #GN04391 #Barnard22 #Nebula #IC2087 #ReflectionNebula #Taurus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #Astrophotographer #BobFranke #FocalPointeObservatory #Arizona #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
Reflection Nebula IC 2087 in Taurus: Close-up view | Schulman Telescope
Reflection nebula IC 2087 is a "fantastic fountain of color in the dusty realms of the Taurus Molecular Cloud."
Distance: ~430 light years
Image Data: Schulman 0.8m Reflector RCOS
Image Credit & Copyright: Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona
Location: Mount Lemmon SkyCenter, Tucson, Arizona, United States
Image Date: Dec. 10, 2010
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Nebulae #Nebula #IC2087 #ReflectionNebula #Taurus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #UA #MountLemmonObservatory #SchulmanTelescope #Astrophotographer #AdamBlock #Arizona #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
Reflection Nebula IC 2087 in Taurus
Image Details: 2 x Canon 200 mm prime lenses; f3.8; 2 x M26C OSC CCDs. A total of 4-hours exposure time using 20-minute sub-exposures.
Image Credit: Greg Parker
Caption Credit: Greg Parker
Location: New Forest Observatory, U.K. Coordinates: 50.819444, -1.59
Release Date: July 25, 2023
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Nebulae #Nebula #IC2087 #ReflectionNebula #Taurus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #Astrophotography #GregParker #Astrophotographer #NewForestObservatory #UK #STEM #Education #EPoD
Russia's Borisov & Japan's Furukawa of NASA's SpaceX Crew-7
These are portraits and views of cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Roscosmos (Russia) and astronaut Satoshi Furukawa from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) during a crew equipment integration test at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Borisov and Furukawa will serve as mission specialists for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission—the agency’s seventh rotational mission to the International Space Station.
Astronaut Satoshi Furukawa JAXA Biography:
https://humans-in-space.jaxa.jp/en/astronaut/furukawa-satoshi/
Cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Roscosmos will be making his first trip to space, and will also serve as a mission specialist, working to monitor the spacecraft during the dynamic launch and entry phases of flight. He entered the Roscosmos Cosmonaut Corps as a test cosmonaut candidate in 2018 and will serve as a flight engineer for Expedition 69/70.
NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than Aug. 17, 2023, for the launch of Crew-7, aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The four astronauts will join an expedition crew aboard the International Space Station.
More on Crew-7: https://go.nasa.gov/471ovnh
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.
Image Credits: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)
Image Capture Dates: June 18-20, 2023
#NASA #Space #Earth #ISS #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew7 #CrewDragonSpacecraft #Cosmonaut #KonstantinBorisov #Russia #Россия #Роскосмос #Astronaut #Astronauts #SatoshiFurukawa #Japan #日本 #JAXA #宇宙航空研究開発機構 #JasminMoghbeli #ESA #AndreasMogensen #Denmark #Danmark #Europe #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
Our Next International Space Station Crew Rotation Flight | This Week @NASA
Our next International Space Station crew rotation flight, a launch day simulation for our upcoming Moon mission, and visiting the splashdown recovery crew for Artemis II . . . a few of the stories to tell you about—This Week at NASA!
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 will carry NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli as well as Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station no earlier than Aug. 17, 2023.
More on Crew-7: https://go.nasa.gov/471ovnh
NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara, who will fly to space for the first time, is set to launch aboard a Soyuz rocket no earlier than Sept. 15, 2023, to join the other crew members to conduct science experiments and research aboard the orbiting laboratory.
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: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Video Producer, Video Editor, Narrator: Andre Valentine
Duration: 2 minutes, 38 seconds
Release Date: July 28, 2023
#NASA #Space #ISS #ArtemisII #OrionSpacecraft #Moon #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew7 #CrewDragonSpacecraft #Cosmonaut #KonstantinBorisov #Роскосмос #Russia #Россия #Astronauts #SatoshiFurukawa #Japan #日本 #JAXA #JasminMoghbeli #ESA #AndreasMogensen #Denmark #Danmark #Europe #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video
The Northern Jewel Box & Crimson Nebula: NGC 6231 & IC 4628 | NOIRLab
The reddish nebulosity toward the top left of the frame is IC 4628. The bright concentrated cluster in the lower right is NGC 6321. This entire region is north of Zeta Scorpii. By the unaided eye, this part of the sky looks like a spray of stars coming from the bend in the scorpion (beneath Antares). NGC 6231 is often referred to as the "Northern Jewel Box."
This image was taken as part of Advanced Observing Program (AOP) program during 2014 at Kitt Peak Visitor Center.
Credits: Kitt Peak National Observatory/NOIRLab/National Science Foundation (NSF)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)/Adam Block
Release Date: June 7, 2014
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarCluster #NGC6321 #Nebulae #Nebula #IC4628 #Scorpius #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Astrophotography #AdamBlock #Astrophotographer #NOIRLab #AURA #NSF #KPNO #Arizona #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
The Prawn Nebula: Wide-field view | ESO
This image also contains information from images of this object taken by Martin Pugh.
Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Acknowledgement: Martin Pugh
Release Date: September 18, 2013
#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #IC4628 #PrawnNebula #Scorpius #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #VLT #ParanalObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education