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Reflection Nebula NGC 1333 in Perseus | Steward Observatory
NGC 1333 is located about 1,000 light-years away in the constellation of Perseus (The Hero), positioned next to the southern constellation border with Taurus and Aries. The cool gas and dust concentrated in this region is generating new stars whose light is then reflecting off the surrounding material, lighting it up and making this object’s lingering presence known to us. NGC 1333 is accordingly classified as a reflection nebula.
This nebula is in the western part of the Perseus molecular cloud and is a young region of very active star formation. It contains a fairly typical hierarchy of star clusters that are still embedded in the molecular cloud in which they formed, which are split into two main sub-groups to the north and south. Most of the infrared emission is happening in the southern part of the nebula. A significant portion of the stars seen in the infrared are in the pre-main sequence stage of their evolution.
Technical Details:
Phillips 24-inch RCOS Telescope
Camera: SBIG STL11000
Image Credit & Copyright: Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7: Launch Day Outtakes | Kennedy Space Center
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 crew members, from left, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark and NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli wave as they walk out of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, right, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, left, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, back right, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia, back left, wearing SpaceX spacesuits
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia launched aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft on Aug. 26, 2023, on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Crew-7's Dragon spacecraft docked to the space-facing port of the Harmony module of the International Space Station at 9:16 a.m. EDT on Aug. 27. The quartet then opened the hatch and floated onboard the orbital outpost before providing welcoming remarks as their mission aboard the space station began.
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.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Flight Day 2 Highlights | International Space Station
NASA’s SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa of Japan and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia autonomously docked to the space-facing port of the Harmony module of the International Space Station at 9:16 a.m. EDT on Aug. 27 following a launch the day before on the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Following docking, the quartet opened the hatch and floated onboard the orbital outpost before providing welcoming remarks as their mission aboard the space station began.
The four crew members will conduct a long-duration science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.
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.
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7: Welcoming Ceremony | International Space Station
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa of Japan and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia were welcomed aboard the International Space Station with a ceremony after docking and ingress on Aug. 27, 2023.
Crew-7 is SpaceX’s seventh operational mission for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
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.
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7: Dragon Hatch Opening | International Space Station
The hatch of SpaceX’s Crew-7 “Endurance” Crew Dragon spacecraft, with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa of Japan and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia, was opened on August 27, 2023, at 14:58 UTC (10:58 EDT). Crew-7 is SpaceX’s seventh operational mission for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
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.
XRISM: Exploring the Hidden X-ray Cosmos | NASA Goddard
Watch this video to learn more about the X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM), a collaboration between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and NASA. This new satellite aims to pry apart high-energy light into the equivalent of an X-ray rainbow using an instrument called Resolve.
“Resolve will give us a new look into some of the universe’s most energetic objects, including black holes, clusters of galaxies, and the aftermath of stellar explosions,” said Richard Kelley, NASA’s XRISM principal investigator at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “We’ll learn more about how they behave and what they’re made of using the data the mission collects after launch.”
Resolve measures tiny temperature changes created when an X-ray hits its 6-by-6-pixel detector. To measure that minuscule increase and determine the X-ray’s energy, the detector needs to cool down to around minus 460 Fahrenheit (minus 270 Celsius), just a fraction of a degree above absolute zero.
The mission’s other instrument, developed by JAXA, is called Xtend. It will give XRISM one of the largest fields of view of any X-ray imaging satellite flown to date, observing an area about 60% larger than the average apparent size of the full Moon.
XRISM is a collaborative mission between JAXA and NASA, with participation by ESA (European Space Agency). NASA’s contribution includes science participation from the Canadian Space Agency.
Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Scientific Visualization Studio
Sophia Roberts (AIMM): Lead Producer
Jeanette Kazmierczak (University of Maryland College Park): Lead Writer
Adriana Manrique Gutierrez (KBRwyle): Lead Animator
Scott Wiessinger (KBRwyle): Animator
Rob Andreoli (AIMM): Videographer
Harrison Bach (Intern): Videographer
John D. Philyaw (AIMM: Videographer
Aaron E. Lepsch (ADNET): Technical Support
Francois Mernier (University of Maryland College Park): Research Astrophysicist
The spectacular green colors visible in the night sky here are due to a phenomenon known as airglow. Airglow is not an optical illusion, but a genuine light source that results from chemical reactions in Earth’s upper atmosphere. It is far too faint to be visible during the daytime, and in most human-inhabited places it is drowned out by light pollution.
Image details: Single exposure, 10s
The Fading Milky Way
Light pollution is a growing environmental problem that threatens to erase the night sky before its time. A recent study revealed that perhaps two-thirds of the world's population can no longer look upwards at night and see the Milky Way—a hazy swath of stars that on warm summer nights spans the sky from horizon to horizon.
The Milky Way is dimming, not because the end of the Universe is near, but rather as a result of light pollution: the inadvertent illumination of the atmosphere from street lights, outdoor advertising, homes, schools, airports and other sources. Every night billions of bulbs send their energy skyward where microscopic bits of matter—air molecules, airborne dust, and water vapor droplets—reflect much of the wasted light back to Earth.
India's Chandrayaan-3 Lunar Rover Traveling on The Moon | ISRO
The travels of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 lunar rover, named Pragyan, along the lunar surface on August 25, 2023, were captured by a camera oboard the Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander, called Vikram. Chandrayaan-3 landed at Shiv Shakti Point in the Moon's South Pole region on August 23, 2023.
The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft is the first to land at the lunar south pole. This region is of special interest for space agencies and private space companies because of the presence of water ice that could support future surface activities.
India has become the fourth country, after the United States, Russia and China, to successfully soft-land on the Moon.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Flight Day 1 Highlights | International Space Station
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia launched aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft on Aug. 26, 2023, on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The four crew members are scheduled to arrive at the International Space Station on Aug. 27 where they will conduct a six-month mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.
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.
Meet Satoshi Furukawa, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut from Kanagawa, Japan, making his second trip to space as a mission specialist on Crew-7. Furukawa was selected as a JAXA astronaut in 1999 and has 165 days aboard the International Space Station under his belt as part of Expeditions 28 and 29 in 2011. He is a physician and received his medical degree from the University of Tokyo, and later a doctorate in medical science from the same university. Furukawa served as a crewmember on the 13th NEEMO mission, and later, was appointed head of JAXA’s Space Biomedical Research Group.
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.
Meet Cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov: NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Mission Specialist
Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia is making his first trip to space and serves as a mission specialist on Crew-7, 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.
Meet European Astronaut Andreas Mogensen: NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Pilot
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 pilot is Andreas Mogensen—the Copenhagen, Denmark native who was selected as a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut in 2009 and became the first Danish citizen in space after launching aboard a Soyuz for a 10-day mission to the International Space Station in 2015. He completed undergraduate studies and received a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College London in England before gaining his doctorate in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas at Austin.
Mogensen has since served as a crew member for NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) missions and was the European astronaut liaison officer to NASA's Johnson Space Center from 2016-2022, working as a capsule communicator (CAPCOM) for astronauts aboard the station and as ground support for spacewalks, relaying tasks and direction from mission control to the spacewalkers.
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.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Mission Overview | International Space Station
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission is carrying NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Konstantin Borisov of Roscosmos (Russia) to the International Space Station. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft launched from Launch Complex 39A on August 26, 2023, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida on the company’s seventh crew rotation mission for NASA.
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.
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Falcon 9 Rocket Launch to International Space Station
On August 26, 2023, at 3:27am ET, NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 aboard the Crew Dragon spacecraft Endurance embarked on a journey to the International Space Station. Watch the full coverage of their launch from pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA.
Andreas Mogensen of Denmark serves as pilot and has become the first European to take that role. He is sitting next to Crew-7's commander and NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli. Andreas is responsible for the spacecraft’s performance and systems. Accompanying them are mission specialists Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan) and Konstantin Borisov from Roscomos (Russia).
Andreas’s Huginn mission officially begins when Endurance docks with the Station. The name Huggin, which translates to ‘thought’ and traces back to the raven of Norse god Odin, symbolizes the raven's pursuit of knowledge. Similarly, Andreas is embarking on this mission to gather scientific information.
Aboard the International Space Station, Andreas’ tasks will include monitoring 3D-printing metal objects with a European Space Agency (ESA) printer and controlling a group of robots on Earth from the European Columbus module.
Meet NASA Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli: SpaceX Crew-7 Commander
Meet your Crew-7 commander, Jasmin Moghbeli, the New York native making her first trip into space after being selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017. Moghbeli earned her bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering with information technology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a master of science in aerospace engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Moghbeli has 2,000 hours of flight time in over 25 different aircraft. She is also a graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in Patuxent River, Maryland.
This is the first spaceflight for Moghbeli, who became a NASA astronaut in 2017.
Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli Official NASA Biography:
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.
NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Launch to International Space Station | NASA Kennedy
For SpaceX’s Crew-7 mission, a Falcon 9 rocket launched the “Endurance” Crew Dragon spacecraft with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa of Japan and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia, from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on August 26, 2023, at 3:27am ET.
The “Endurance” Crew Dragon is scheduled to dock to the International Space Station on August 27, 2023. Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage (B1081) landed on Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The “Endurance” Crew Dragon previously supported two missions: Crew-3 and Crew-5.