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Wednesday, March 13, 2024

NASA's Europa Clipper Spacecraft: Five Panel Solar Array | Kennedy Space Center

NASA's Europa Clipper Spacecraft: Five Panel Solar Array | Kennedy Space Center

When two of these five-panel solar arrays are installed and deployed on Europa Clipper—the agency’s largest spacecraft ever developed for a planetary mission—the spacecraft will span a total length of more than 100 feet and weigh 7,145 pounds without the inclusion of propellants. Europa Clipper is expected to launch to planet Jupiter in October 2024 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft needs to survive a 1.6 billion-mile, six-year journey to Jupiter—and sophisticated enough to perform a detailed science investigation of Europa once it arrives at the Jupiter system in 2030.

Missions such as Europa Clipper contribute to the field of astrobiology, the interdisciplinary research on the variables and conditions of distant worlds that could harbor life as we know it. While Europa Clipper is not a life-detection mission, it will conduct detailed reconnaissance of Europa and investigate whether the icy moon, with its subsurface ocean, has the capability to support life.

Understanding Europa’s habitability will help scientists better understand how life developed on Earth and the potential for finding life beyond our planet.

In these images, technicians examine the first of two fully extended five-panel solar arrays built for NASA’s Europa Clipper suspended on a support system called a gravity offload fixture during inspection and cleaning as part of assembly, test, and launch operations inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, March 6, 2024. Another name for the gravity offload fixture is the Transportable Large Envelope Deployment Facility (T-LEDF).

Download Europa Clipper Ocean World poster:

go.nasa.gov/3Gsjzt5

Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, JPL leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with APL for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. APL designed the main spacecraft body in collaboration with JPL and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission.

NASA's Europa Clipper Mission website:

https://europa.nasa.gov/

Image Credit: NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC)

Image Date: March 6, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Jupiter #Europa #Moon #Ocean #Astrobiology #Biosignatures #Habitability #Radiation #EuropaClipper #EuropaClipperSpacecraft #SolarPanels #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #JHUAPL #GSFC #MSFC #JPL #Caltech #KSC #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Using Infrared Light to Survey Our Milky Way Galaxy | NASA Goddard

Using Infrared Light to Survey Our Milky Way Galaxy | NASA Goddard

Observatories with smaller views of space have provided exquisite images of other galaxies, revealing complex structures. However, studying our own galaxy’s anatomy is surprisingly difficult. The plane of the Milky Way covers such a large area on the sky that studying it in detail can take a very long time. Astronomers also must peer through thick dust that obscures distant starlight. Infrared light can pass through that dust and is a key tool for learning about the far side of our galaxy.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)

Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC): Producer

Ashley Balzer (ADNET Systems, Inc.): Science Writer

Duration: 1 minute

Release Date: March 12, 2024

#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Stars #Planets #Exoplanets #MilkyWayGalaxy #HubbleSpaceTelescope #Optical #Infrared #HST #Cosmos #Universe #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Gigapixel Image of Vela Supernova Remnant Captured | Víctor Blanco Telescope

Gigapixel Image of Vela Supernova Remnant Captured | Víctor Blanco Telescope

With the powerful, 570-megapixel Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera, astronomers have constructed a massive 1.3 gigapixel image showcasing the central part of the Vela Supernova Remnant. It is the cosmic corpse of a gigantic star that exploded as a supernova 11,000 years ago. DECam is one of the highest-performing wide-field imaging instruments in the world and is mounted on the US National Science Foundation's 4-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab.

Distance: about 800 light years

Credit:

Images and Videos: CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA, T. Matsopoulos, N. Bartmann

Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Zamani (NSF’s NOIRLab) & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)

Duration: 1 minute, 12 seconds

Release Date: March 10, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #SupernovaRemnant #VelaSupernovaRemnant #Nebula #Vela #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #DECam #CerroTololoObservatory #NOIRLab #AURA #NSF #DOE #CTIO #CerroTololo #Chile #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Zooming into The Vela Supernova Remnant | NOIRLab

Zooming into The Vela Supernova Remnant | NOIRLab

With the powerful, 570-megapixel Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera, astronomers have constructed a massive 1.3 gigapixel image showcasing the central part of the Vela Supernova Remnant, the cosmic corpse of a gigantic star that exploded as a supernova 11,000 years ago. DECam is one of the highest-performing wide-field imaging instruments in the world and is mounted on the 4-meter US National Science Foundation's Víctor M. Blanco Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab.

Distance: about 800 light years

Video Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Zamani (NSF’s NOIRLab) & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)

Duration: 1 minute

Release Date: March 11, 2024

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Recovery Operations | International Space Station

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Recovery Operations | International Space Station

Support teams work around the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft

Support teams raise the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft aboard the recovery ship MEGAN shortly after it landed

Members of the medical teams watch as the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft is moved aboard the recovery ship MEGAN shortly after it landed with NASA's Crew-7.

The helicopter that will carry NASA's Crew-7 is seen as it lands on the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, Tuesday, March 12, 2024.

The crew of the “Endurance” SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft for NASA's Crew-7 mission to the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia, was successfully recovered after splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, on March 12, 2024, at 5:47am EDT.

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/Joel Kowsky

Capture Date: March 12, 2024

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Astronauts #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew7 #CrewDragon #JasminMoghbeli #AndreasMogensen #Europe #ESA #SatoshiFurukawa #JAXA #Japan #日本 #Cosmonaut #KonstantinBorisov #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #Expedition70 #HumanSpaceflight #GulfofMexico #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Panning over The Vela Supernova Remnant | Víctor Blanco Telescope

Panning over The Vela Supernova Remnant | Víctor Blanco Telescope

This colorful web of wispy gas filaments is the Vela Supernova Remnant, an expanding nebula of cosmic debris left over from a massive star that exploded about 11,000 years ago. This image was taken with the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam), mounted on the US National Science Foundation's 4-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab.

The striking reds, yellows, and blues in this image were achieved through the use of three DECam filters that each collect a specific color of light. Separate images were taken in each filter and then stacked on top of each other to produce this high-resolution image that contains 1.3 gigapixels and showcases the intricate web-like filaments snaking throughout the expanding cloud of gas.

Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA

Duration: 50 seconds

Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Zamani & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)

Release Date: March 11, 2024

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Welcomed Home | International Space Station

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Welcomed Home | International Space Station

NASA astronaut & Crew-7 commander Jasmin Moghbeli

European Space Agency astronaut & Crew-7 pilot Andreas Mogensen

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa

Support teams onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN work around the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft after the hatch was opened shortly after it landed

Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Russia, left, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen of Denmark, NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa are seen inside the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN shortly after having landed in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, Tuesday, March 12, 2024.

Support teams work around the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft shortly after it landed

Image Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

Capture Date: March 12, 2024

Ghostly Stellar Tendrils of The Vela Supernova Remnant | Víctor Blanco Telescope

Ghostly Stellar Tendrils of The Vela Supernova Remnant | Víctor Blanco Telescope

This colorful web of wispy gas filaments is the Vela Supernova Remnant, an expanding nebula of cosmic debris left over from a massive star that exploded about 11,000 years ago. This image was taken with the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam), mounted on the US National Science Foundation's 4-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab.

Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA

Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Zamani & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)

Release Date: March 12, 2024

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7: Earth Return Highlights | International Space Station

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7: Earth Return 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 returned to Earth for a parachute-assisted splashdown off the coast of Florida at 5:47 a.m. EDT Tuesday, March 12, 2024.

They completed their six-month mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and to demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration flights. This is part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Duration: 25 minutes

Release Date: March 12, 2024

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Astronauts #SpaceX #SpaceCrewDragon #Crew8 #LoralOHara #JasminMoghbeli #UnitedStates #AndreasMogensen #Europe #ESA #SatoshiFurukawa #JAXA #Japan #日本 #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #HD #Video

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Returns Home | International Space Station

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Returns Home | International Space Station

Credit: NASA/SpaceX

Acknowledgement: SciNews

Duration: 3 minutes, 34 seconds

Release Date: March 12, 2024

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7: Recovery after Splashdown | International Space Station

NASA's SpaceX Crew-7: Recovery after Splashdown | International Space Station

NASA astronaut & Crew-7 commander Jasmin Moghbeli

European Space Agency astronaut & Crew-7 pilot Andreas Mogensen

Roscosmos cosmonaut & Crew-7 mission specialist Konstantin Borisov of Russia

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut & Crew-7 mission specialist Satoshi Furukawa

Image Credit: NASA/SpaceX

Capture Date: March 12, 2024

Monday, March 11, 2024

Eight Countries, One Earth Photo | International Space Station

Eight Countries, One Earth Photo | International Space Station

An astronaut aboard the International Space Station captured this highly oblique photograph of the Persian Gulf while in orbit over Saudi Arabia. The Gulf drains into the Indian Ocean through the Strait of Hormuz and forms part of the border for eight countries: Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman.

The Persian Gulf occupies a large depression formed by a tectonic subduction zone between the Arabian and Eurasian plates. The collision of these two tectonic plates also produced the Zagros Mountains in southern Iran, visible to the north-northwest of the Persian Gulf.

The image shows several cities concentrated along the coastline that serve as ports for goods moving in and out of the region. A significant amount of shipping within the Persian Gulf transports oil and petroleum products with an average of 21 million barrels carried through the Strait of Hormuz each day.

The photo provides a unique wide-angle perspective of Earth as viewed by astronauts aboard the space station. The 28 millimeter focal length of the camera lens lends a perspective similar to that of the human eye, which has an average focal length of between 22 to 24 millimeters based on the physical refraction of light. In this view, the camera’s focal length and the astronaut’s framing of the image offer the feeling of peering out over the planet from an altitude of about 250 miles (400 kilometers).

Image Credit: ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit at NASA's Johnson Space Center

Caption Credit: Cadan Cummings, Jacobs, JETS II Contract at NASA-JSC.

Image Date: Sept. 26, 2023

Release Date: March 10, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Planet #Earth #PersianGulf #MiddleEast #Iran #Iraq #Kuwait #SaudiArabia #Bahrain #Qatar #UAE #Oman #Astronauts #Cosmonauts #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #Russia #Роскосмос #OverviewEffect #OrbitalPerspective #Expedition69 #InternationalCooperation #STEM #Education

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Dragon Spacecraft Undocking | International Space Station

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Dragon Spacecraft Undocking | International Space Station

Aboard the 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 began their journey back to Earth on Monday, March 11, 2024.

SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance closed its hatches and autonomously undocked shortly after at 11:20 a.m. EDT. NASA and SpaceX are targeting 5:50 a.m. EDT Tuesday for a splashdown that will wrap up a six-month science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration flights as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

Follow Expedition 70 Updates: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 70 Crew

Station Commander: Oleg Kononenko (Russia)

Roscosmos (Russia): Nikolai Chub

NASA: Loral O'Hara, Matthew Dominik, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps

Video Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)

Duration: 12 minutes, 25 seconds

Release Date: March 11, 2024

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Astronauts #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew7 #CrewDragon #JasminMoghbeli #UnitedStates #AndreasMogensen #Europe #ESA #SatoshiFurukawa #JAXA #Japan #日本 #Cosmonaut #KonstantinBorisov #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #Expedition70 #HumanSpaceflight #HD #Video

Cepheid Host Galaxy NGC 5468 | Webb & Hubble Space Telescopes

Cepheid Host Galaxy NGC 5468 | Webb & Hubble Space Telescopes

This image of NGC 5468, a galaxy located about 130 million light-years from Earth, combines data from the Hubble and James Webb space telescopes. This is the most distant galaxy in which Hubble has identified Cepheid variable stars. These are important milepost markers for measuring the expansion rate of the Universe. The distance calculated from Cepheids has been cross-correlated with a Type Ia supernova in the galaxy. Type Ia supernovae are so bright they are used to measure cosmic distances far beyond the range of the Cepheids, extending measurements of the Universe’s expansion rate deeper into space.

The rate at which the Universe is expanding, known as the Hubble constant, is one of the fundamental parameters for understanding the evolution and ultimate fate of the cosmos. However, a persistent difference, called the Hubble Tension, is seen between the value of the constant measured with a wide range of independent distance indicators and its value predicted from the afterglow of the Big Bang. The NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope has confirmed that the Hubble Space Telescope’s keen eye was right all along, erasing any lingering doubt about Hubble’s measurements.

The observational challenge is that past Hubble images of these more distant Cepheid variables look more huddled and overlapping with neighboring stars at ever greater distances between us and their host galaxies, requiring careful accounting for this effect. Intervening dust further complicates the certainty of the measurements in visible light. Webb slices through the dust and naturally isolates the Cepheids from neighboring stars because its vision is sharper than Hubble’s at infrared wavelengths.

“Combining Webb and Hubble gives us the best of both worlds. We find that the Hubble measurements remain reliable as we climb farther along the cosmic distance ladder,” said Riess.

The new Webb observations include five host galaxies of eight Type Ia supernovae containing a total of 1,000 Cepheids, and reach out to the farthest galaxy where Cepheids have been well measured—NGC 5468. “This spans the full range where we made measurements with Hubble. So, we’ve gone to the end of the second rung of the cosmic distance ladder,” said co-author Gagandeep Anand of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, which operates the Webb and Hubble Telescopes for NASA.

Image Description: A face-on spiral galaxy with four spiral arms that curve outward in a counterclockwise direction. The spiral arms are filled with young, blue stars and peppered with purplish star-forming regions that appear as small blobs. The middle of the galaxy is much brighter and more yellowish, and has a distinct narrow linear bar angled from 11 o’clock to 5 o’clock. Dozens of red background galaxies are scattered across the image. The background of space is black.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, A. Riess (JHU/STScI)

Release Date: March 11, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #CepheidVariables #HubbleTension #Galaxy #NGC5468 #Hubble #HST #Infrared #JamesWebb #SpaceTelescopes #JWST #Cosmos #Universe #UnfoldTheUniverse #ESA #Europe #CSA #Canada #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Farewell & Command Change | International Space Station

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Farewell & Command Change | International Space Station

Aboard the International Space Station, Crew-7 which includes NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andy Mogensen, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov provided farewell remarks on March 10, 2024, ahead of their upcoming departure. Joining Crew-7 for the farewell remarks were NASA astronauts Matthew Dominik, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps, and Loral O’Hara as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub.

Following the farewell remarks, a change of command ceremony took place in which Mogensen handed over command of the International Space Station to Kononenko as Mogensen prepares to head home with his Crew-7 crewmates. Crew-7 is slated to undock this week and will splashdown off the coast of Florida after completing a six-month mission.

Follow Expedition 70 Updates: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 70 Crew

Station Commander: Oleg Kononenko (Russia)

Roscosmos (Russia): Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin (Russia)

NASA: Loral O'Hara, Matthew Dominik, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps

Video Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)

Duration: 12 minutes, 25 seconds

Release Date: March 11, 2024

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Astronauts #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew7 #JasminMoghbeli #UnitedStates #AndreasMogensen #Europe #ESA #SatoshiFurukawa #JAXA #Japan #日本 #Cosmonaut #KonstantinBorisov #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #Expedition70 #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video

"The Dark Tower Nebula": Globule GN 16.43.7.01 | ESO

"The Dark Tower Nebula": Globule GN 16.43.7.01 | ESO

Astronomers are well-known for naming objects with odd conventions, and the cometary globule GN 16.43.7.01 seen in this image is no exception. Cometary globules have nothing to do with comets aside from appearance: they are named for their dusty head and elongated, dark tail, as seen in this image taken with the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) hosted at the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory in Chile.

This globule, dubbed the Dark Tower—astronomers compensate with obvious names—lies about 5,000 light-years away from Earth in the southern constellation Scorpius (the Scorpion). It contains dense clumps of collapsing gas and dust that will form new stars.

The curious shape of this object is carved out from an intense bombardment of radiation from a cluster of young, bright stars located out-of-view to the upper-left. This radiation has swept around and outlined the cometary globule with the characteristic pink glow of hot, excited matter.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/VPHAS+ Team

Acknowledgement: Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit (CASU)

Release Date: March 11, 2024

#NASA #ESO #Space #Astronomy #Science #Nebula #Stars #StellarNursery #BokGlobule #GN1643701 #Scorpius #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #VST #ParanalObservatory #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education

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