Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Listen to the Universe: New NASA Sonifications & Documentary | NASA Chandra

Listen to the Universe: New NASA Sonifications & Documentary | NASA Chandra

Three new sonifications of images from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and other telescopes have been released. Sonification is the process of translating data into sounds. In the case of Chandra and other telescopes, scientific data are collected from space as digital signals that are commonly turned into visual imagery. The sonification project takes these data through another step of mapping the information into sound.

The three new sonifications feature different objects observed by NASA telescopes. 

1) IC 443 is a supernova remnant, or the debris of an exploded star, which astronomers have nicknamed the Jellyfish Nebula. A visual composite image of IC 443 includes X-rays from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the German ROSAT X-ray telescope, along with radio data from the NSF’s Very Large Array, and optical data from the Digitized Sky Survey. The sounds in the sonification of IC 443 sounds are mapped to colors in the image with red colors heard as lower pitches, green as medium pitches, and the blue light as the higher pitches. This creates notes that sweep up and down in pitch continuously. The background stars in the optical image have been converted to water drop sounds in the sonification. 

2) Messier 74 is a spiral galaxy like our Milky Way. It is seen face-on from Earth’s vantage point some 32 million light-years away. In the image, X-rays from Chandra have been combined with an infrared view of M74 from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope as well as optical data from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. In sonifying these data, the Chandra sources correspond to relatively high musical pitches of glassy, ethereal clear plucked sounds. The Webb data are represented by low, medium, and high frequency ranges of pitches respectively and the brightest stars are percussive sounds. The Hubble data have been turned into breathy synthesizer sounds, along with thin, metallic plucked sounds for bright stars and clusters.

3) The third new sonification is of MSH 15-52, a cloud of energized particles blown away from a dead, collapsed star. This image includes X-rays from the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer, or IXPE, as well as Chandra. These data have been combined with infrared data from the Dark Energy Plane Survey 2. In sound, the scan goes from the bottom to the top. The brightness of the Chandra data of the cloud have been converted into rough string-like sounds. The blast wave is represented by a range of pitches of firework-type noises. The IXPE data are heard as wind-like sounds. The infrared data are mapped to musical pitches of a synthesizer sound.


Video Credit: NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory

Duration: 3 minutes, 32 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 28, 2024


#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Hubble #Webb #IC443 #SupernovaRemnant #JellyfishNebula #Messier74 #SpiralGalaxy #Galaxies #MSH1552 #Cosmos #Universe #IXPE #Chandra #Xray #SpaceTelescopes #CSA #JPL #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Canada #Europe #STEM #Education #Sonification #Audio #HD #Video

India's Space Agency Announces Four Astronauts for First Spaceflight Mission

India's Space Agency Announces Four Astronauts for First Spaceflight Mission

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the names of four astronauts selected for the country's first crewed mission to low-Earth orbit—the Gaganyaan Mission. Gaganyaan means "sky craft" in Hindi. The mission involves the launch of a crewed spacecraft over the next year to an orbit of 400 kilometers with a return landing in the Indian Ocean. Prime Minister Modi awarded the four crew members—all of them air force officers—"astronaut wings" at a space center in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala state on Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, during their first public appearance after months of rigorous training. The four astronauts undergoing training for India's human spaceflight mission are: 

• Group Captain Prashanth BalaKrishnan Nair

• Group Captain Ajit Krishnan

• Group Captain Angad Prathap

• Wing Commander Shubhansku Shukla

Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, a former Indian Air Force pilot, flew aboard the Soyuz T-11 spacecraft on April 3, 1984, for the sixth expedition to the Soviet Salyut 7 space station. This was part of the Soviet Interkosmos program. To date, Sharma is the only Indian citizen to travel in space.

Only the United States, Russia, and China have sent their own crewed missions into space. Astronauts from more than three dozen other countries have made space trips aboard either U.S. or Russian missions.


Video Credit: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)/NDTV

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: Feb. 27, 2024 


#NASA #Space #Earth #India #ISRO #GaganyaanMission #GaganyaanAstronauts #Astronauts #HumanSpaceflight #PMModi #BhāratGaṇarājya #Thiruvananthapuram #Kerala #Science #CrewedSpacecraft #SpaceTechnology #Engineering #STEM #Education #History #NDTV #HD #Video

Tuesday, February 27, 2024

Exploring Jupiter's Ocean Moon Europa | NASA's James Webb Space Telescope

Exploring Jupiter's Ocean Moon Europa | NASA's James Webb Space Telescope

On Earth, where there is liquid water, there is life. Jupiter’s moon Europa also has a liquid water ocean underneath its icy crust. Go behind the scenes with scientists as they explore Europa with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and prepare for the launch of the Europa Clipper mission. 

NASA’s Europa Clipper is designed to seek out conditions suitable for life on an ice-covered moon of Jupiter. 

The Europa Clipper spacecraft will train nine science instruments on Europa, all producing large amounts of rich data: high-resolution color and stereo images to study its geology and surface; thermal images in infrared light to find warmer areas where water could be near the surface; reflected infrared light to map ices, salts, and organics; and ultraviolet light readings to help determine the makeup of atmospheric gases and surface materials. Clipper will bounce ice-penetrating radar off the subsurface ocean to determine its depth, as well as the thickness of the ice crust above it. A magnetometer will measure the moon’s magnetic field to confirm the deep ocean’s existence and the thickness of the ice.

For more information on the mission go to: https://europa.nasa.gov/

Download Europa Clipper Ocean World poster: go.nasa.gov/3Gsjzt5


Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Duration: 31 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 27, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Jupiter #Europa #Moon #Ocean #Astrobiology #Biosignatures #Habitability #Radiation #EuropaClipper #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #JWST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #ESA #Canada #CSA #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Ax-3 Mission Recap | Axiom Space | International Space Station

Ax-3 Mission Recap | Axiom Space | International Space Station

Relive the excitement of the Ax-3 mission. Axiom Space operates end-to-end missions to the International Space Station today while developing its successor, Axiom Station—designed to be "the world’s first commercial space station in low-Earth orbit. It will sustain human growth off the planet and bring untold benefits back home."

Learn more about Ax-3 at:

https://axiomspace.com/ax3

Michael López-Alegría Official Biography (Axiom Space):

https://www.axiomspace.com/astronaut/michael-lopez-alegria

Former NASA astronaut Michael López-Alegría's Official Biography: 

https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/lopez-alegria_michael_0.pdf

Walter Villadei - Ax-3 Pilot Biography: 

https://www.axiomspace.com/astronaut/walter-villadei

Alper Gezeravcı - Ax-3 Mission Specialist Biography: 

https://www.axiomspace.com/astronauts/alper-gezeravci

Marcus Wandt - Ax-3 Mission Specialist Biography: 

https://www.axiomspace.com/astronauts/marcus-wandt

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.


Video Credit: Axiom Space

Duration: 3 minutes, 37 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 27, 2024


#NASA #Space #ISS #AxiomSpace #Ax3Mission #Ax3 #SpaceX #CrewDragonSpacecraft #CommercialSpace #Astronauts #MichaelLópezAlegría #Spain #Espana #UnitedStates #WalterVilladei #Italy #Italia #AlperGezeravcı #Türkiye #MarcusWandt #Sweden #Sverige #MuninnMission #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Panning over Celestial 'Fossils': Globular Cluster NGC 1841 in Mensa | Hubble

Panning over Celestial 'Fossils': Globular Cluster NGC 1841 in Mensa | Hubble

This densely populated group of stars is the globular cluster known as NGC 1841. It is found within the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a satellite galaxy to our Milky Way galaxy that lies about 162,000 light-years away. Satellite galaxies are galaxies that are bound by gravity in orbits around a more massive host galaxy. We typically think of our galaxy’s nearest galactic companion as being the Andromeda Galaxy, but it would be more accurate to say that Andromeda is the nearest galaxy that is not in orbit around the Milky Way galaxy. In fact, our galaxy is orbited by tens of known satellite galaxies that are far closer than Andromeda, the largest and brightest of these is the LMC. It is easily visible to the naked eye from the southern hemisphere (although this is decreasingly the case due to light pollution). 

The LMC is home to many globular clusters. These celestial bodies fall somewhere between open clusters—much less dense and tightly bound—and small, compact galaxies. Increasingly sophisticated observations have revealed the stellar populations, and other characteristics of globular clusters, to be varied and complex. It is not well understood how these tightly-packed clusters form. However, there are certain consistencies across all globular clusters. They are very stable and are capable of lasting a long time. Thus, they can be very old. This means that globular clusters often contain large numbers of very old stars. This makes them akin to celestial ‘fossils’. Just as fossils provide insight into the early development of life on Earth, globular clusters such as NGC 1841 can help us learn about very early star formation in galaxies.

Image Description: A cluster of stars. Most of the stars are very small and uniform in size. They are bluish and cluster more densely together towards the center of the image. A number appear larger in the foreground. The stars give way to a dark background at the corners.


Video Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, A. Sarajedini, F. Niederhofer, N. Bartmann 

Duration: 30 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 27, 2024


#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarClusters #GlobularStarCluster #NGC1841 #Mensa #Constellation #Galaxy #LargeMagellanicCloud #LMC #Cosmos #Universe #HST #SpaceTelescope #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Recientemente: Un módulo de aterrizaje comercial llega a la Luna | NASA

Recientemente: Un módulo de aterrizaje comercial llega a la Luna | NASA

Recientemente en la NASA, la versión en español de las cápsulas This Week at NASA, te informa semanalmente de lo que está sucediendo en la NASA.

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


Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Duration: 3 minutes

Release Date: Feb. 26, 2024


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

Intuitive Machines Odysseus Lunar Lander: New Moon Landing Photos

Intuitive Machines Odysseus Lunar Lander: New Moon Landing Photos



Intuitive Machines: "The images included here are the closest observations of any spaceflight mission to the south pole region of the Moon. Odysseus is quite the photographer, capturing this image approximately 30 meters above the lunar surface while his main engine throttled down more than 24,000 mph. Another day of exploration on the south pole region of the Moon."

On February 22, 2024, the IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus," became the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

Follow IM-1 Mission Updates: 

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

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. 27, 2024


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

NASA's SpaceX Crew-8 Falcon-9 Rocket Rollout at Kennedy Space Center

NASA's SpaceX Crew-8 Falcon-9 Rocket Rollout at Kennedy Space Center
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon spacecraft atop, is vertical at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Monday, Feb. 26, 2024, ahead of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 launch to the International Space Station. 


As preparations continue for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company's Dragon spacecraft is rolled out to the launch pad of Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024.


SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission is mated to the company's Falcon 9 rocket at SpaceX’s hangar at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Cape Canaveral.

As preparations continue for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company's Dragon spacecraft was rolled out to the launch pad of Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and made vertical between Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024 and Monday, Feb. 26, 2024.

Four Commercial Crew members are preparing for their launch to the International Space Station aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft. Commander Matt Dominick (NASA), Pilot Mike Barratt (NASA), and Mission Specialists Jeanette Epps (NASA) and Alexander Grebenkin of Roscosmos (Russia) will lift off aboard Dragon no earlier than 12:04 a.m. EST on Friday, March 1, 2024. They are scheduled to dock at the Harmony module’s forward port at 6 a.m. on Saturday beginning a six-month space research mission on the orbital lab. 

Learn more about the SpaceX Crew-8 Mission:
    
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program works with the American aerospace industry to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the orbital outpost on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.

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: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)

Image Dates: Feb. 23-26, 2024


#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew8 #Falcon9Rocket #CrewDragonSpacecraft #Astronauts #MatthewDominick #MichaelBarratt #JeanetteEpps #Cosmonaut #AleksandrGrebenkin #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #KSC #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #Russia #Россия #Роскосмос #Expedition70 #Expedition71 #STEM #Education

Monday, February 26, 2024

NASA's SpaceX Crew-8 Arrives at Kennedy Space Center Ahead of Launch

NASA's SpaceX Crew-8 Arrives at Kennedy Space Center Ahead of Launch

Crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission to the International Space Station from right to left NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, Matthew Dominick, and Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia, stand before members of the news media at the Launch and Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024
Crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission to the International Space Station from right to left NASA astronauts Jeanette Epps, Matthew Dominick, and Michael Barratt, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia
NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps, Crew-8 mission specialist, delivers remarks to members of the news media
NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick, Crew-8 commander, delivers remarks to members of the news media
NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps, Crew-8 mission specialist, smiles during crew arrival for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission
NASA astronaut Michael Barratt, Crew-8 pilot, delivers remarks to members of the news media
Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia, Crew-8 mission specialist, delivers remarks to members of the news media
Four Commercial Crew members representing the SpaceX Crew-8 mission arrived at the Launch and Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024. They are preparing for their launch to the International Space Station aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft. Commander Matt Dominick (NASA), Pilot Mike Barratt (NASA), and Mission Specialists Jeanette Epps (NASA) and Alexander Grebenkin of Roscosmos (Russia) will lift off aboard Dragon no earlier than 12:04 a.m. EST on Friday, March 1, 2024. They are scheduled to dock at the Harmony module’s forward port at 6 a.m. on Saturday beginning a six-month space research mission on the orbital lab.
Learn more about the SpaceX Crew-8 Mission:
    
NASA Astronaut Jeanette Epps Official Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/jeanette-j-epps/biography

NASA Astronaut Matthew Dominick Official Biography

https://www.nasa.gov/people/matthew-dominick

NASA Astronaut Michael Barratt Official Biography

https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/michael-reed-barratt/biography

Alexander Grebenkin graduated from Irkutsk High Military Aviation School, Irkutsk, Russia, majoring in engineering, maintenance, and repair of aircraft radio navigation systems. He graduated from Moscow Technical University of Communications and Informatics with a degree in radio communications, broadcasting, and television.

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program works with the American aerospace industry to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the orbital outpost on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.

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 Kim Shiflett

Image Date: Feb. 25, 2024


#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew8 #CrewDragonSpacecraft #Earth #Astronauts #MatthewDominick #MichaelBarratt #JeanetteEpps #Cosmonaut #AleksandrGrebenkin #LongDurationMission #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #KSC #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #Russia #Россия #Роскосмос #Expedition70 #Expedition71 #STEM #Education

NASA Lunar Orbiter Image of Odysseus Moon Lander's Location

NASA Lunar Orbiter Image of Odysseus Moon Lander's Location


NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft, orbiting the Moon since 2009, has imaged Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus Nova-C lunar lander (the IM-1 mission) near crater Malapert A in the South Pole region of the Moon.

On February 22, 2024, the IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus," became the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

Follow IM-1 Mission Updates: 

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

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. 26, 2024


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

NASA Solar Observatory Captures Three X-class Solar Flares in February 2024

NASA Solar Observatory Captures Three X-class Solar Flares in February 2024

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), in orbit around the sun since 2010, spotted three X-class flares on the Sun between February 21 and 22, 2024.  Watch this video to see what those events looked like in several wavelengths of extreme ultraviolet light that SDO captures. The video opens with quick shots of the three flares in different wavelength blends. The first is a blend of 131 and 171-angstrom-light imagery, the second is 171 and 304, and the last is 171 and 1600. Each wavelength highlights different temperature plasma and reveals different layers and features of the Sun. The 131 angstrom light shows both the extremely hot plasma of flares (6-10 million Kelvin) and cooler plasma (400,000 Kelvin).

Of course, the Sun does not behave the same way all the time. It goes through phases of high and low activity, which make up the solar cycle. Approximately every 11 years, the Sun’s geographic poles change their magnetic polarity – that is, the north and south magnetic poles swap. During this cycle, the Sun's photosphere, chromosphere, and corona change from quiet and calm to violently active.

The height of the Sun’s activity cycle, known as solar maximum, is a time of greatly increased solar storm activity. Sunspots, eruptions called solar flares, and coronal mass ejections are common at solar maximum.

The latest solar cycle—Solar Cycle 25—started in December 2019 when solar minimum occurred, according to the Solar Cycle 25 Prediction Panel, an international group of experts co-sponsored by NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Scientists now expect the Sun’s activity to ramp up toward the next predicted maximum in July 2025.

Video Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)/Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)

Producer & Editor: Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)

Visualizer: A. J. Christensen (AVL NCSA/University of Illinois)

Duration: 3 minutes, 39 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 26, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Earth #Moon #SpaceWeather #Sun #Star #Solar #SolarFlares #XClass #Ultraviolet #Plasma #MagneticField #Astrophysics #Heliophysics #Physics #Spacecraft #Satellite #SDO #SolarSystem #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Intuitive Machines Odysseus Lunar Lander Photo of Moon's Surface After Arrival

Intuitive Machines Odysseus Lunar Lander Photo of Moon's Surface After Arrival


The Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus Lunar Lander apparently captured this image from its horizontal position on the Moon's surface after arrival. This camera is "located on the starboard aft-side of the lander." Note: The sun is visible in the background.

On February 22, 2024, the IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus," became the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

Follow IM-1 Mission Updates: 

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

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. 26, 2024


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

Metal Scar Found on Cannibal Star WD 0816-310 | European Southern Observatory

Metal Scar Found on Cannibal Star WD 0816-310 | European Southern Observatory

Using European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have found a metal ‘scar’ imprinted on the surface of a dead star. This video summarizes the discovery.

When a star like our Sun reaches the end of its life, it can ingest the surrounding planets and asteroids that were born with it. This seems to be the case of the white dwarf WD 0816-310, the Earth-sized remnant of a star similar to, but somewhat larger than, our Sun.

The scar the team observed is a concentration of metals imprinted on its surface. These metals seem to originate from a planetary fragment as large as or possibly larger than Vesta, which is about 500 kilometers across and the second-largest asteroid in the Solar System.


Video Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Duration: 1 minute, 16 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 26, 2024


#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Star #WhiteDwarfStar #WD0816310 #Heliophysics #Astrophysics #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #AtacamaDesert #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Metal Scar Found on Cannibal Star WD 0816-310 | European Southern Observatory

Metal Scar Found on Cannibal Star WD 0816-310 | European Southern Observatory

Using European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have found a metal ‘scar’ imprinted on the surface of a dead star. This video summarizes the discovery.

When a star like our Sun reaches the end of its life, it can ingest the surrounding planets and asteroids that were born with it. This seems to be the case of the white dwarf WD 0816-310, the Earth-sized remnant of a star similar to, but somewhat larger than, our Sun.

The scar the team observed is a concentration of metals imprinted on its surface. These metals seem to originate from a planetary fragment as large as or possibly larger than Vesta, which is about 500 kilometers across and the second-largest asteroid in the Solar System.


Video Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Duration: 1 minute, 16 seconds

Release Date: Feb. 26, 2024


#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Star #WhiteDwarfStar #WD0816310 #Heliophysics #Astrophysics #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #AtacamaDesert #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus Moon Lander Location Found | NASA LRO

Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus Moon Lander Location Found | NASA LRO

NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft, orbiting the Moon since 2009, has imaged Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus (Odie) Nova-C lunar lander (the IM-1 mission) near crater Malapert A in the South Pole region of the Moon.

On February 22, 2024, the IM-1 Mission Nova-C Moon Lander, named "Odysseus," became the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon’s surface since the NASA Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.

Follow IM-1 Mission Updates: 

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

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: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University

Duration: 1 minute, 14 seconds

Acknowledgement: SciNews

Release Date: Feb. 26, 2024


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

Celestial 'Fossils': Globular Cluster NGC 1841 in Mensa | Hubble

Celestial 'Fossils': Globular Cluster NGC 1841 in Mensa | Hubble


This densely populated group of stars is the globular cluster known as NGC 1841. It is found within the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a satellite galaxy to our Milky Way galaxy that lies about 162,000 light-years away. Satellite galaxies are galaxies that are bound by gravity in orbits around a more massive host galaxy. We typically think of our galaxy’s nearest galactic companion as being the Andromeda Galaxy, but it would be more accurate to say that Andromeda is the nearest galaxy that is not in orbit around the Milky Way galaxy. In fact, our galaxy is orbited by tens of known satellite galaxies that are far closer than Andromeda, the largest and brightest of these is the LMC. It is easily visible to the naked eye from the southern hemisphere (although this is decreasingly the case due to light pollution). 

The LMC is home to many globular clusters. These celestial bodies fall somewhere between open clusters—much less dense and tightly bound—and small, compact galaxies. Increasingly sophisticated observations have revealed the stellar populations, and other characteristics of globular clusters, to be varied and complex. It is not well understood how these tightly-packed clusters form. However, there are certain consistencies across all globular clusters. They are very stable and are capable of lasting a long time. Thus, they can be very old. This means that globular clusters often contain large numbers of very old stars. This makes them akin to celestial ‘fossils’. Just as fossils provide insight into the early development of life on Earth, globular clusters such as NGC 1841 can help us learn about very early star formation in galaxies.

Image Description: A cluster of stars. Most of the stars are very small and uniform in size. They are bluish and cluster more densely together towards the center of the image. A number appear larger in the foreground. The stars give way to a dark background at the corners.


Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Sarajedini, F. Niederhofer

Release Date: Feb. 26, 2024


#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarClusters #GlobularStarCluster #NGC1841 #Mensa #Constellation #Galaxy #LargeMagellanicCloud #LMC #Cosmos #Universe #HST #SpaceTelescope #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education