New Zealand's Rocket Lab Launches Astroscale Japan Orbital Debris Mission

New Zealand's Rocket Lab Launches Astroscale Japan Orbital Debris Mission

Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket successfully deployed the ADRAS-J satellite for Astroscale Japan Inc. to conduct an orbital debris inspection demonstration mission from Mahia, New Zealand on February 19, 2024. This was the 44th Electron rocket launch. The mission, named “On Closer Inspection”, launched from Pad B at Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 03:52 NZDT February 19th, 2024 (14:52 UTC, February 18th). 

Electron deployed the Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan (ADRAS-J), a satellite designed to test technologies and operations for approaching and monitoring debris objects in orbit, also known as space junk. The mission is the first phase in assessing the potential for satellites to rendezvous with orbital debris objects in future and assist in de-orbiting them, supporting space sustainability for future generations.

Following the successful launch on Electron, the 150-kilogram ADRAS-J satellite will now approach an aged, derelict rocket stage in orbit to observe it closely, understand how it behaves and determine potential methods for its assisted deorbiting in future. The rocket stage it will be observing is the Japanese H-2A upper stage left in low Earth orbit after the launch of the GOSAT Earth observation satellite in 2009. ADRAS-J will fly around the stage, 11 meters long and four meters in diameter, inspecting it with cameras and sensors. Astroscale’s full mission will take between three and six months to complete.

“Congratulations to the Astroscale team on this historic mission that paves the way for new and innovative ways to reduce orbital debris and ensure space remains safely accessible,” said Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck. “It’s a real honor to provide a dedicated launch service and enable the kind of precise orbital maneuvers required for an advanced mission like this.”

To enable the ADRAS-J satellite to rendezvous with the derelict H-2A upper stage in orbit, Rocket Lab had to design a mission with strict launch timing and precision orbital deployment parameters. Rocket Lab only received the final perigee, apogee, and inclination from Astroscale 20 days before launch, parameters that are typically determined many months in advance of a launch. Only then could argument of perigee targets for different days within the launch window be selected, essentially determining the timing of Electron Kick Stage burns to facilitate the unique elliptical orbit required depending on the launch date. The mission demanded highly accurate orbital insertion with tighter margins than required on most standard missions. The exact T-0 was only able to be defined the day prior to launch and the required LTAN accuracy only allows for +/- 15 seconds, demonstrating Rocket Lab’s capability to deliver rapid and responsive advanced guidance, navigation and control analysis.

“Today’s successful launch of ADRAS-J marks another milestone toward our efforts to grow the on-orbit servicing sector while creating a sustainable space environment,” said Astroscale founder & CEO Nobu Okada. “We are grateful for the collaboration with Rocket Lab, whose expertise in dedicated launch services has been instrumental to the start of this ground breaking mission.”

‘On Closer Inspection’ was Rocket Lab’s second launch of 2024 and the Company’s 44th Electron launch overall.

Image Credit: Rocket Lab

Image Date: Feb. 19, 2024

#NASA #Space #Aerospace #Earth #Satellites #SpaceDebris #OrbitalDebris #RocketLab #ElectronRocket #RocketLaunch #OnCloserInspection #F44Mission #ADRASJSatellite #AstroscaleJapan #Japan #日本 #MahiaPeninsula #NewZealand #CommercialSpace #PeterBeck #STEM #Education

Artist’s Impression of Record-breaking Quasar J0529-4351 | ESO

Artist’s Impression of Record-breaking Quasar J0529-4351 | ESO

This artist’s impression shows the quasar J059-4351, the bright core of a distant galaxy that is powered by a supermassive black hole. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, this quasar has been found to be the most luminous object known in the Universe to date. 

The supermassive black hole, seen here pulling in swirling surrounding matter, has a mass 17 billion times that of the Sun and is growing in mass by the equivalent of another Sun per day, making it the fastest-growing black hole ever known. 

Read the Research paper: 

https://www.eso.org/public/archives/releases/sciencepapers/eso2402/eso2402a.pdf

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/M. Kornmesser

Duration: 18 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 19, 2024

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Quasars #Quasar #J05294351 #BlackHoles #Astrophysics #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #AtacamaDesert #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education #Art #Animation #HD #Video

Zooming in on Record-breaking Quasar J0529-4351 | ESO

Zooming in on Record-breaking Quasar J0529-4351 | ESO

This video takes us on a journey from our Milky Way far into the sky to the quasar J0529-4351, the bright core of a distant galaxy, in the direction of the Pictor constellation. Using European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, this quasar has been found to be the most luminous object known in the Universe to date. It is so far away that its light has taken over 12 billion years to reach us. The supermassive black hole powering J0529-4351 is the fastest-growing black hole ever discovered. The video ends with an artist’s impression of this record-breaking object; all other visuals shown are real astronomical images.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/N. Risinger/Digitized Sky Survey 2/Dark Energy Survey/M. Kornmesser

Duration: 55 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 19, 2024

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Quasars #Quasar #J05294351 #BlackHoles #Astrophysics #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #AtacamaDesert #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Astronomers Identify Record-breaking Quasar | European Southern Observatory

Astronomers Identify Record-breaking Quasar | European Southern Observatory

 

Astronomers have characterized the most luminous quasar observed to date. It is powered by the fastest-growing black hole. This black hole is growing in mass by the equivalent of one Sun per day. The matter being pulled in toward this black hole forms a disc that measures seven light-years in diameter—about 15,000 times the distance from the Sun to the orbit of Neptune. 

“We have discovered the fastest-growing black hole known to date. It has a mass of 17 billion Suns, and eats just over a Sun per day. This makes it the most luminous object in the known Universe,” says Christian Wolf, an astronomer at the Australian National University (ANU) and lead author of the study published today in Nature Astronomy. The quasar, called J0529-4351, is so far away from Earth that its light took over 12 billion years to reach us.

Read the Research paper: 

https://www.eso.org/public/archives/releases/sciencepapers/eso2402/eso2402a.pdf

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Directed by: Angelos Tsaousis and Martin Wallner

Editing: Angelos Tsaousis

Web and technical support: Gurvan Bazin and Raquel Yumi Shida

Written by: Pamela Freeman and Elena Reiriz Martínez

Footage and photos: ESO / Martin Kornmesser, Luis Calçada, Angelos Tsaousis, Cristoph Malin, Dark Energy Survey

Scientific consultant: Paola Amico, Mariya Lyubenova.

Duration: 1 minute, 11 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 19, 2024

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Quasars #Quasar #J05294351 #BlackHoles #Astrophysics #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #AtacamaDesert #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Dwarf Galaxy IC 3476 in Coma Berenices | Hubble

Dwarf Galaxy IC 3476 in Coma Berenices | Hubble

This image features IC 3476, a dwarf galaxy that lies about 54 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Coma Berenices. Whilst this image does not look very dramatic—if we were to anthropomorphize the galaxy, we might say it looks almost serene—the actual physical events taking place in IC 3476 are highly energetic. In fact, the little galaxy is undergoing a process known as ram pressure stripping. This is driving unusually high levels of star formation within regions of the galaxy itself.

We tend to associate the letters ‘ram’ with the acronym RAM, which refers to Random Access Memory in computing. However, ram pressure has a totally distinct definition in physics. It is the pressure exerted on a body when it moves through a fluid, due to the overall resistance of the fluid. In the case of entire galaxies experiencing ram pressure, the galaxies are the ‘bodies’ and the intergalactic or intracluster medium (the dust and gas that permeates the space between galaxies, and for the latter the spaces between galaxies in clusters) is the ‘fluid’. 

Ram pressure stripping occurs when the ram pressure results in gas being stripped from the galaxy. This stripping away of gas can lead to a reduction in the level of star formation, or even its complete cessation, as gas is absolutely key to the formation of stars. However, the ram pressure can also cause other parts of the galaxy to be compressed. This can actually boost star formation. It seems to be taking place in IC 3476. There appears to be absolutely no star formation going on at the edge of the galaxy bearing the brunt of the ram pressure stripping, but then star formation rates within deeper regions of the galaxy seem to be markedly above average. 

Image Description: A dwarf spiral galaxy. The center is not particularly bright and is covered by dust, while the outer disc and halo wrap around as if they were swirling water. Across the face of the galaxy, an arc of brightly glowing spots marks areas where new stars are being formed. The galaxy is surrounded by tiny, distant galaxies on a dark background.

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, M. Sun

Release Date: Feb. 19, 2024

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Galaxies #Galaxy #IC3476 #DwarfGalaxy #SpiralGalaxy #ComaBerenices #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HST #SpaceTelescope #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Earth Images: IM-1 Robotic Moon Lander Mission | Intuitive Machines

Earth Images: IM-1 Robotic Moon Lander Mission | Intuitive Machines

SpaceX commented: "Pretty cool when a lunar lander takes a picture of its ride to space! Wishing Intuitive Machines and IM-1 a safe and soft landing on the Moon."

The IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus", departing Earth and heading towards the Moon.

The continent of Africa is clearly visible in this view of Earth.

The IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus", continues to be in excellent health, and flight controllers are preparing planned trajectory correction maneuvers to prepare the lander for lunar orbit insertion.

Since the IM-1 Mission launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on February 15, 2024, flight controllers have been learning more about the lander and how to efficiently fly the mission to return the United States to the surface of the Moon.

On February 17th, Intuitive Machines published the first IM-1 Mission images, capturing Earth in the background as Odysseus drifted away toward the Moon.

Looking forward, Intuitive Machines expects to execute lunar orbit insertion on February 21st, with a lunar landing opportunity on the afternoon of the 22nd.

Follow IM-1 Mission Updates: 

https://www.intuitivemachines.com/im-1

If all goes well, IM-1 will become the first American spacecraft to set down softly on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

China's Chang'e 3 Mission, the first Chinese landing on the Moon in 2013, was the first spacecraft to soft-land on the Moon since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 in 1976.

In 2023, after the Chandrayaan-3 Lander successfully soft-landed on the Moon, India became the fourth country, after the United States, Russia and China, to accomplish this.

NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative allows NASA to send science investigations and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface. Under Artemis, NASA will study more of the Moon than ever before, and CLPS will demonstrate how NASA is working with commercial companies to achieve robotic lunar exploration.

Learn more about CLPS:

https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services

Image Credit: Intuitive Machines

Release Date: Feb. 17, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Moon #ArtemisProgram #IntuitiveMachines #IM1Mission #IM1Spacecraft #NovaCLander #CommercialSpace #CLPS #SpaceTechnology #MSFC #GSFC #UnitedStates #History #STEM #Education

IM-1 Robotic Moon Lander Mission Update: Feb. 18, 2024 | Intuitive Machines

IM-1 Robotic Moon Lander Mission Update: Feb. 18, 2024 | Intuitive Machines

The IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus", continues to be in excellent health, and flight controllers are preparing planned trajectory correction maneuvers to prepare the lander for lunar orbit insertion.

Since the IM-1 Mission launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on February 15, 2024, flight controllers have been learning more about the lander and how to efficiently fly the mission to return the United States to the surface of the Moon.

On February 17th, Intuitive Machines published the first IM-1 Mission images, capturing Earth in the background as Odysseus drifted away toward the Moon.

Looking forward, Intuitive Machines expects to execute lunar orbit insertion on February 21st, with a lunar landing opportunity on the afternoon of the 22nd.

Follow IM-1 Mission Updates: 

https://www.intuitivemachines.com/im-1

If all goes well, IM-1 will become the first American spacecraft to set down softly on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

China's Chang'e 3 Mission, the first Chinese landing on the Moon in 2013, was the first spacecraft to soft-land on the Moon since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 in 1976.

In 2023, after the Chandrayaan-3 Lander successfully soft-landed on the Moon, India became the fourth country, after the United States, Russia and China, to accomplish this.

NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative allows NASA to send science investigations and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface. Under Artemis, NASA will study more of the Moon than ever before, and CLPS will demonstrate how NASA is working with commercial companies to achieve robotic lunar exploration.

Learn more about CLPS:

https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services

Video Credit: Intuitive Machines

Duration: 1 minute, 47 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 18, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Moon #ArtemisProgram #IntuitiveMachines #IM1Mission #IM1Spacecraft #NovaCLander #CommercialSpace #CLPS #SpaceTechnology #MSFC #GSFC #UnitedStates #History #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Aurora Australis | International Space Station

Aurora Australis | International Space Station

Expedition 70 NASA Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli "Sometimes I can’t believe this is our planet, OUR home. How lucky we are to live somewhere so spectacular and alive. I will definitely miss these views, but I look forward to exploring more of our planet and the beautiful views from the ground." 

On Earth, auroras are mainly created by particles originally emitted by the Sun in the form of solar wind. When this stream of electrically charged particles gets close to our planet, it interacts with the magnetic field, which acts as a gigantic shield. While it protects Earth’s environment from solar wind particles, it can also trap a small fraction of them. Particles trapped within the magnetosphere—the region of space surrounding Earth in which charged particles are affected by its magnetic field—can be energized and then follow the magnetic field lines down to the magnetic poles. There, they interact with oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the upper layers of the atmosphere, creating the flickering, colorful lights visible in the polar regions here on Earth.

Earth auroras have different names depending on which pole they occur at. Aurora Borealis, or the northern lights, is the name given to auroras around the north pole and Aurora Australis, or the southern lights, is the name given for auroras around the south pole.

Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli Official NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/jasmin-moghbeli

Follow Expedition 70 Updates:

https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 70 Crew

Station Commander: Andreas Mogensen of the European Space Agency (Denmark)

Roscosmos (Russia): Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub, Konstantin Borisov

JAXA: Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa (Japan)

NASA: Jasmin Moghbeli, Loral O'Hara (USA)

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 Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) 

Image Date: Feb. 5, 2024

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Sun #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #AuroraAustralis #SouthernLights #Astronauts #JasminMoghbeli #LoralOHara #UnitedStates #AndreasMogensen #Europe #SatoshiFurukawa #JAXA #Japan #Cosmonauts #Russia #Roscosmos #HumanSpaceflight #Expedition70 #STEM #Education

Ice Swirls along Canada's Labrador Coast | NASA Earth Science

Ice Swirls along Canada's Labrador Coast | NASA Earth Science

Expedition 70 astronaut photograph from the International Space Station on Feb. 3, 2024

Feb. 3, 2024, image from NASA’s MODIS instrument on its Terra Earth satellite

Filaments of sea ice trace ocean currents, creating swirls visible along the coast of Labrador, in eastern Canada. The dazzling display of frozen seawater was captured by satellite sensors and an astronaut on the International Space Station.

Image 1: The International Space Station affords astronauts the opportunity to observe processes that are impossible to see from the ground. The whirling ice eddies caught the eye of an astronaut on the station, who took the photo on the same day that NASA’s MODIS on the Terra satellite captured the other image. This side, or limb, view of Earth in the astronaut’s photo shows the ice swirls in the center, and part of the planet’s atmosphere (blue) in the upper-right.

Image 2: As sea ice at far northern latitudes approached its maximum annual extent, the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) instrument on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this image of the Labrador Sea on February 3, 2024. Situated between Canada’s Labrador Peninsula and Greenland, the sea is part of the North Atlantic Ocean and connects to the Arctic Ocean via various straits and bays to the north. Swirls of smaller sea ice pieces churned along the crumbling edge of the more consolidated ice pack off the coast of Labrador Inuit Lands, in the Newfoundland and Labrador province.

Ocean currents can stir ice chunks into circular vortices, or eddies. Eddies form frequently along boundaries between cold and warm ocean currents in the spring and fall, due to differences in water density. Even then, however, an ice eddy won’t form except under certain conditions: it must be warm enough for the ice to fragment, but cool enough for it to remain frozen.

According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center, sea ice growth throughout the Arctic region—including the Labrador Sea—has been slower than usual for the end of January. The Gulf of St. Lawrence, on the eastern coastline of Newfoundland and Labrador, would normally contain more sea ice this time of year. But as of the end of January, the area was mostly open water.

Astronaut photograph ISS070-E-86805 was acquired on February 3, 2024, with a Nikon D5 digital camera using a 135 millimeter lens and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center. 

Learn more NASA's Terra Earth satellite: https://terra.nasa.gov

NASA's Earth Observatory: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov

Image 1 Credits: ISS — Digital Camera, Feb. 3, 2024,  NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth

Image 2 Credits: NASA Earth Observatory image by Michala Garrison, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview. Terra satellite—MODIS February 3, 2024

Article Credit: Emily Cassidy

Release Date: Feb. 15, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Earth #Planet #Satellite #Science #Canada #Newfoundland #Labrador #AtlanticOcean #SeaIce #Eddies #TerraSatellite #MODIS #EarthObservingSystem #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #HumanSpaceflight #Expedition70 #JSC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

New Mars Images: February 2024 | NASA Mars Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

New Mars Images: February 2024 | NASA Mars Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Mars 2020 - sol 1063

Mars 2020 - sol 1054

MSL - sol 4094

Mars 2020 - sol 1052

MSL - sol 4096

MSL - sol 4096

MSL - sol 4096

MSL - sol 4096

Support FriendsofNASA.org

Celebrating 11+ Years on Mars (2012-2024)

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

Celebrating 3+ Years on Mars

Mission Name: Mars 2020

Rover Name: Perseverance

Main Job: Seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for return to Earth.

Launch: July 30, 2020    

Landing: Feb. 18, 2021, Jezero Crater, Mars

For more information on NASA's Mars missions, visit: mars.nasa.gov

Image Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS

Processing: Kevin M. Gill, Jason Major

Image Release Dates: Feb. 8-17, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Astrobiology #Geology #CuriosityRover #MSL #MountSharp #GaleCrater #PerseveranceRover #Mars2020 #JezeroCrater #Robotics #SpaceTechnology #SpaceEngineering #JPL #Caltech #UnitedStates #CitizenScience #KevinGill #JasonMajor #STEM #Education

Cómo observar un eclipse solar total de forma segura | NASA

Cómo observar un eclipse solar total de forma segura | NASA

El 8 de abril de 2024, un eclipse solar total cruzará Norteamérica, pasando por México, Estados Unidos y Canadá. Un eclipse solar total ocurre cuando la Luna pasa entre el Sol y la Tierra, bloqueando completamente la cara del Sol. 

Cuando se observan las fases parciales del eclipse solar no es seguro mirar directamente al Sol sin anteojos de observación solar que sean seguros (“anteojos para eclipses”) o un visor solar de mano que sea seguro. Los anteojos para eclipses NO son gafas de sol comunes: sin importar lo oscuras que sean, las gafas de sol comunes no son seguras para observar el Sol.

Durante el breve periodo en el que la Luna oculta completamente el Sol, conocido como periodo de totalidad, es seguro mirar directamente al astro sin protección ocular. Sin embargo, es crucial que sepas cuándo quitarte y ponerte las gafas de seguridad para ver el Sol. 

Para más información sobre seguridad durante los eclipses, visita: https://go.nasa.gov/4bACLWd

Ciencia de la NASA: https://ciencia.nasa.gov

Para obtener más información sobre la ciencia de la NASA, suscríbete al boletín semanal: https://www.nasa.gov/suscribete

Crédito del video: Centro de Vuelo Espacial Goddard de la NASA

Productora: Beth Anthony 

Guion: Vanessa Thomas 

Duration: 2 minutes, 18 seconds

Release Date: Feb 15, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Earth #NASAenespañol #español #Moon #Sun #SolarEclipses #EclipseMap #SolarEclipse #SolarEclipse2024 #TotalSolarEclipse #Canada #Mexico #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

How to Safely Watch a Total Solar Eclipse | NASA Goddard

How to Safely Watch a Total Solar Eclipse | NASA Goddard

On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun. 

When watching the partial phases of the solar eclipse it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without safe solar viewing glasses (eclipse glasses) or a safe handheld solar viewer. Eclipse glasses are NOT regular sunglasses; regular sunglasses, no matter how dark, are not safe for viewing the Sun. During the short time when the Moon completely obscures the Sun—known as the period of totality—it is safe to look directly at the star without eye protection. However, it is crucial that you know when to both remove and put back on your safe solar viewing glasses.

To learn more about eclipse safety visit: 

go.nasa.gov/EclipseSafety

View and download the eclipse map here: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5073

Video Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

Producer: Beth Anthony

Writer: Vanessa Thomas

Duration: 1 minute, 54 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 15, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Earth #Moon #Sun #SolarEclipses #EclipseMap #SolarEclipse #SolarEclipse2024 #TotalSolarEclipse #Canada #Mexico #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Lunar Eclipse over Kitt Peak National Observatory

Lunar Eclipse over Kitt Peak National Observatory

During the lunar eclipse of November 8, 2022, the Earth's shadow noticeably dims the shine of the Moon, turning it from a glistening source of light to a dim red orb. This timelapse was captured near the Nicholas U. Mayall 4-meter Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO).

The Nicholas U. Mayall Telescope is a four-meter (158 inches) reflector telescope in Arizona named after Nicholas U. Mayall. It saw first light on February 27, 1973, and was the second-largest telescope in the world at that time.

Credit: KPNO/NOIRLab/National Science Foundation (NSF)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)/P. Horálek

Duration: 13 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 16, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Sun #Earth #Moon #LunarEclipse #SolarSystem #Stars #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #KittPeakNationalObservatory #KPNO #MayallTelescope #Optical #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Timelapse #HD #Video

A New Robotic Moon Lander Mission with NASA Science | This Week @NASA

A New Robotic Moon Lander Mission with NASA Science | This Week @NASA 

Week of Feb. 16, 2024: A commercial mission heads to the Moon with NASA science, our Artemis II crew conducts some preflight training, and a major milestone for a planetary science mission … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA!

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully deployed the Intuitive Machines Nova-C Moon lander to a lunar transfer orbit after launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on February 15, 2024, at 06:05 UTC (01:05am EST). The Nova-C lunar lander is expected to soft-land near the South Pole of the Moon on February 23, 2024.

If all goes well, the  Intuitive Machines lander will become the first American spacecraft to set down softly on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative allows NASA to send science investigations and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface. Under Artemis, NASA will study more of the Moon than ever before, and CLPS will demonstrate how NASA is working with commercial companies to achieve robotic lunar exploration.

Learn more about CLPS:

https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services

Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Video Producer & Editor: Andre Valentine

Narrator: Emanuel Cooper

Duration: 2 minutes, 28 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 17, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Moon #ArtemisProgram #SpaceX #Falcon9Rocket #IntuitiveMachines #IM1Mission #IM1Spacecraft #NovaCLander #CommercialSpace #CLPS #SpaceTechnology #MSFC #GSFC #KSC #Florida #UnitedStates #History #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Tail of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks

The Tail of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks

Heading for its next perihelion (closest to the sun) passage on April 21, 2024, Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks is growing brighter.

12P/Pons–Brooks is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 71 years. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet with an orbital period between 20 and 200 years. It is also one of the brightest known periodic comets, reaching an absolute visual magnitude ~5 in its approach to perihelion.

Comet Pons-Brooks was discovered at Marseilles Observatory in July 1812 by Jean-Louis Pons, and then later recovered in 1883 by William Robert Brooks.

The greenish coma of this comet has become relatively easy to observe in small telescopes. However, the bluish ion tail now streaming from the active comet's coma and buffeted by the solar wind, is faint and difficult to follow. Still, in this image stacked exposures made on the night of February 11, 2024, reveal the fainter tail's detailed structures. The frame spans over two degrees across a background of faint stars and background galaxies toward the northern constellation Lacerta. Of course, Comet 12P's April 21, 2024, perihelion passage will be only two weeks after the April 8 total solar eclipse, putting the comet in planet Earth's sky along with a totally eclipsed Sun.

Image Credit & Copyright: Dan Bartlett

Dan's Website: https://www.astrobin.com/users/h2ologg/

Release Date:  Feb. 16, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Sun #Earth #Comets #Comet #Comet12PPonsBrooks #Perihelion #Lacerta #Constellation #SolarSystem #Astrophotography #DanBartlett #Astrophotographer #CitizenScience #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #APoD

Face-on Spiral Galaxy ESO 420-G013 in Sculptor | Hubble

Face-on Spiral Galaxy ESO 420-G013 in Sculptor | Hubble

Looking like a baseball lobbed into the depths of the universe, ESO 420-G013 is a face-on spiral galaxy and a Seyfert galaxy. Dark lanes of dust are visible against the background glow of the galaxy’s many stars.

Distance: 50 million light-years

About 10 percent of all the galaxies in the universe are thought to be Seyfert galaxies. They are typically spiral galaxies and have very bright nuclei, the result of supermassive black holes at their centers accreting material that releases vast amounts of radiation. The cores of these “active galaxies” are brightest when observing light outside the visible spectrum. Often galaxies with these kinds of active galactic nuclei are so bright that the host galaxy itself cannot be seen, washed out by the glow of its nuclei, but Seyfert galaxies are distinctive because the galaxy itself is also visible. In the case of ESO 420-G013, we can enjoy the galaxy’s almost perfectly round disk, brighter core, and whirled filaments of dark dust.

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope observed ESO 420-G013 as part of a study of Luminous Infrared Galaxies, or LIRGs, that are known to be extremely bright in the infrared part of the spectrum. Galactic interactions trigger new regions of star formation in LIRGs, causing them to be highly luminous in infrared light.

Image Credit: NASA/European Space Agency (ESA)/A. Evans (University of Virginia)

Image Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

Release Date: Feb. 16, 2024

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