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In May 2024, we are looking away from the crowded, dusty plane of our own galaxy toward a region where the sky is brimming with distant galaxies. Locate Virgo to find a concentration of roughly 2,000 galaxies and search for Coma Berenices to identify many more. Keep watching for space-based views of galaxies like the Sombrero Galaxy, M87, and M64.
About this Series
“Tonight’s Sky” is a monthly video of constellations you can observe in the night sky. The series is produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute, home of science operations for the Hubble Space Telescope, in partnership with NASA’s Universe of Learning.
This product is based on work supported by NASA under award numbers NNX16AC65A to the Space Telescope Science Institute, working in partnership with Caltech/IPAC, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and Sonoma State University.
Video Credit: Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)
Wide-field View: Star Cluster NGC 6440 | James Webb Space Telescope
This image from the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope features NGC 6440, a globular cluster that resides roughly 28,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius. The object was first discovered by William Herschel in May 1786.
Globular clusters like NGC 6440 are roughly spherical, tightly packed, collections of old stars bound together by gravity. They can be found throughout galaxies, but often live on the outskirts. They hold hundreds of thousands to millions of stars that are on average about one light-year apart, but they can be as close together as the size of our Solar System. NGC 6440 is known to be a high-mass and metal-rich cluster that formed and is orbiting within the Galactic bulge. It is a dense, near-spherical region of old stars in the inner part of the Milky Way.
This image was obtained with 2023 data from Webb’s Near-InfraRed Camera (NIRCam) as part of an observation program to explore the stars in the cluster and to investigate details of the cluster’s pulsars. A pulsar is a highly magnetized, rotating neutron star that emits a beam of electromagnetic radiation from their magnetic poles. To us, that beam appears as a short burst or pulse as the star rotates. Pulsars spin extremely fast. Astronomers have clocked the fastest pulsars at more than 716 rotations per second, but a pulsar could theoretically rotate as fast as 1500 rotations per second before slowly losing energy or breaking apart.
The new data obtained by the science team indicate the first evidence from Webb observations of abundance variations of helium and oxygen in stars in a globular cluster. These results open the window for future, in-depth investigations of other clusters in the Galactic bulge, which were previously infeasible with other telescope facilities given the significant crowding of stars in the cluster and the strong reddening caused by interstellar dust between the cluster and Earth.
Image Description: A spherical collection of stars fills the entire view. The cluster is dominated by a concentrated group of bright white stars at the center, with several large yellow stars scattered throughout the image. Many of the stars have visible diffraction spikes. The background is black.
Pan over Star Cluster NGC 6440 | James Webb Space Telescope
This image from the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope features NGC 6440, a globular cluster that resides roughly 28,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius. The object was first discovered by William Herschel in May 1786.
Globular clusters like NGC 6440 are roughly spherical, tightly packed, collections of old stars bound together by gravity. They can be found throughout galaxies, but often live on the outskirts. They hold hundreds of thousands to millions of stars that are on average about one light-year apart, but they can be as close together as the size of our Solar System. NGC 6440 is known to be a high-mass and metal-rich cluster that formed and is orbiting within the Galactic bulge. It is a dense, near-spherical region of old stars in the inner part of the Milky Way.
This image was obtained with 2023 data from Webb’s Near-InfraRed Camera (NIRCam) as part of an observation program to explore the stars in the cluster and to investigate details of the cluster’s pulsars. A pulsar is a highly magnetized, rotating neutron star that emits a beam of electromagnetic radiation from their magnetic poles. To us, that beam appears as a short burst or pulse as the star rotates. Pulsars spin extremely fast. Astronomers have clocked the fastest pulsars at more than 716 rotations per second, but a pulsar could theoretically rotate as fast as 1500 rotations per second before slowly losing energy or breaking apart.
Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, P. Freire, N. Bartmann (ESA/Webb)
Star-studded Cluster NGC 6440 | James Webb Space Telescope
This image from the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope features NGC 6440, a globular cluster that resides roughly 28,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius. The object was first discovered by William Herschel in May 1786.
Globular clusters like NGC 6440 are roughly spherical, tightly packed, collections of old stars bound together by gravity. They can be found throughout galaxies, but often live on the outskirts. They hold hundreds of thousands to millions of stars that are on average about one light-year apart, but they can be as close together as the size of our Solar System. NGC 6440 is known to be a high-mass and metal-rich cluster that formed and is orbiting within the Galactic bulge. It is a dense, near-spherical region of old stars in the inner part of the Milky Way.
This image was obtained with 2023 data from Webb’s Near-InfraRed Camera (NIRCam) as part of an observation program to explore the stars in the cluster and to investigate details of the cluster’s pulsars. A pulsar is a highly magnetized, rotating neutron star that emits a beam of electromagnetic radiation from their magnetic poles. To us, that beam appears as a short burst or pulse as the star rotates. Pulsars spin extremely fast. Astronomers have clocked the fastest pulsars at more than 716 rotations per second, but a pulsar could theoretically rotate as fast as 1500 rotations per second before slowly losing energy or breaking apart.
The new data obtained by the science team indicate the first evidence from Webb observations of abundance variations of helium and oxygen in stars in a globular cluster. These results open the window for future, in-depth investigations of other clusters in the Galactic bulge, which were previously infeasible with other telescope facilities given the significant crowding of stars in the cluster and the strong reddening caused by interstellar dust between the cluster and Earth.
Image Description: A spherical collection of stars fills the entire view. The cluster is dominated by a concentrated group of bright white stars at the center, with several large yellow stars scattered throughout the image. Many of the stars have visible diffraction spikes. The background is black.
Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test: The Atlas V Rocket | United Launch Alliance
Continuing Atlas' legacy of launching humans to space, ULA is using an Atlas V rocket to launch the Crew Flight Test (CFT) Mission to the International Space Station for NASA with Boeing Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. See how the Atlas V rocket was stacked ahead of launch. Go Atlas. Go Centaur.
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program works with the American aerospace industry to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.
Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at:
China Completes Ignition Tests for Powerful Reusable Liquid-fueled Rocket Engine
China successfully completed an ignition test on Sunday, April 28, 2024, for its liquid-propellant engine with the highest thrust, according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC).
According to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), four YF-100K rocket engines have been successfully tested in parallel at the Tongchuan Test Center, Shaanxi Province, China. YF-100K is a “130-ton reusable liquid oxygen/kerosene rocket engine” that may be used by the Long March-10 launch vehicle. This marks a new breakthrough in the country's liquid propulsion development. It is also the first-ever parallel ignition test of four large-thrust liquid oxygen (LOX) kerosene engines. The 130-tonne class LOX kerosene engine, developed by the CASC, has a total thrust of over 500 tonnes.
Compared to the currently operational 120-tonne class LOX kerosene engines, it boasts not only a larger thrust and better performance, but also a more compact structure, effectively enhancing the rocket's carrying capacity.
"The successful test assessed the coordination of the multi-engine operation of our system, and the operating reliability of the engines in extreme thermal and force environment. [The result] indicates that the engines are fully qualified to participate in [rocket launching] tests," said Li Bin, deputy head of the Academy of Aerospace Liquid Propulsion Technology under CASC.
The engine used in this test was designed with the "pump back swing" technology, referring to an engine with a swing device at the rear. Compared with the main liquid oxygen kerosene engines currently in service, this kind of engine has a greater thrust, better performance, and a more compact structure.
With the pump back swing technology, more engines can be set within the same rocket diameter, which can effectively improve rocket carrying capacity.
"An engine with the pump back swing technology has a compact structure. For instance, we can place four engines within a diameter of 3.8 meters, and seven engines within a diameter of 5 meters," Li said.
The parallel ignition test refers to the integration of four mature engine systems, working in unison rather than simply being bundled together. This approach provides a larger thrust for the rocket while also reducing the overall complexity of the system.
The successful trial run validates the coordination of multiple engines and their reliability in high thermal environments, demonstrating that the engines are fully capable of flight applications.
After the test run, the engines will be delivered for rocket launching missions upon an engine check.
Video Credit: China Central Television (CCTV)/China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC)
Waning Gibbous Moon above Earth's Horizon | International Space Station
The waning gibbous Moon is pictured above Earth's horizon from the International Space Station as it orbited 258 miles above the Pacific Ocean northeast of Japan.
Roscosmos (Russia): Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin (Russia)
NASA: Tracy Dyson, Matthew Dominik, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps
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.
China Readies Chang'e-6 Sample Return Mission to Moon's Far Side South Pole
The Chang'e-6 lunar probe is scheduled to be launched at an appropriate time in the beginning of May 2024, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). This is China's second lunar sample return mission. In 2020, Chang'e 5 was the first lunar sample-return mission since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 in 1976. The mission made China the third country to return samples from the Moon after the United States and the Soviet Union.
The combination of the Chang'e-6 lunar probe and the Long March-5 Y8 carrier rocket was transferred vertically on Saturday, April 27, 2024, to the launch area at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China's Hainan Province, the CNSA said.
"Comparing Chang'e-6 with Chang'e-5, the most significant difference is that Chang 'e-5 conducted the sample-return mission on the near side of the moon, while the Chang 'e-6 will conduct the sample-return mission on the far side of the moon. The Chang'e-6 aims to achieve breakthroughs in the design and control technology of the Moon's retrograde orbit, intelligent sampling, take-off and ascent technologies, and automatic sample-return on the far side of the Moon. At present, the Long March-5 carrier rocket and the Chang'e-6 probe are in good condition. All preparations for the launch are progressing in an orderly manner, following normal working procedures," said Ge Ping, deputy director of the Center of Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering, China National Space Administration.
"At present, the launch site has ensured the normal testing of Chang'e-6 and the Long March-5 Y8 carrier rocket. Our Hainan launch site features high temperatures, high humidity, and high salt mist. We have made corresponding preparations for the environmental conditions, and we have also prepared some typhoon prevention plans to adapt to the weather in Hainan," said Liao Guorui, an engineer at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site.
Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test Launch Preparations | International Space Station
During a mission dress rehearsal, NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are photographed in their Boeing spacesuits at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building, part of the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Friday, April 26, 2024. As part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, Wilmore and Williams are the first to launch to the International Space Station aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. Liftoff to the International Space Station atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex-41 at nearby Cape Canaveral is scheduled for 10:34 p.m. ET Monday, May 6, 2024.
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program works with the American aerospace industry to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.
Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at:
China Shenzhou-17 Astronaut Jiang Xinlin after Landing in Inner Mongolia
Every day of the six-month stay in space was fulfilling, fascinating, and wonderful, said Shenzhou-17 astronaut Jiang Xinlin on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, after returning to Earth safe and sound.
Jiang was the last of the Shenzhou-17 crew to get out of the return capsule, after the module touched down safely at the designated Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Tuesday.
The return capsule, carrying Shenzhou-17 astronauts Tang Hongbo—the mission commander, Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin, landed at 17:46 Beijing Time, according to the China Manned Space Agency.
Upon landing, Jiang and the two other crew members reported their good conditions to the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.
"During my six-month stay in space, every day was incredibly fulfilling, fascinating, and wonderful. Now that I've returned to the embrace of the motherland, my heart is filled with excitement. I feel immensely proud of our great motherland. Moving forward, I will continue to work hard, do a good job in my recovery, and strive to return to space at an early date," he said.
After all three crew members got out of the return capsule, the ground control at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center announced the Shenzhou-17 manned mission a complete success.
Since blasting off for the Chinese space station last October, the Shenzhou-17 crew had witnessed the arrival of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft, performed two extravehicular activities, carried out 84 in-orbit experiments with more than 200 samples produced, and have brought back over 400 material samples retrieved after being exposed to space outside the station's Wentian lab module.
During their second spacewalk, the astronauts did repair work on the solar panels of the space station's core module, which had been subject to minor damage by space debris. This marked China's first-ever extravehicular repair mission.
The Shenzhou-17 spaceship, which was launched on Oct. 26 last year, initiated its journey back to Earth after separating from the space station combination at 08:43 Beijing Time (00:43 GMT) on Tuesday.
China Shenzhou-17 Astronaut Tang Shengjie after Landing in Inner Mongolia
Astronaut Tang Shengjie was the second to leave the return capsule of the Shenzhou-17 spaceship, after the module landed safely at the designated landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Tuesday.
The return capsule, carrying astronauts Tang Hongbo—the mission commander, Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin, touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 17:46 Beijing Time (09:46 GMT), according to the China Manned Space Agency.
"Returning to the beautiful Earth after six months, I'm so happy and excited, and I'd like to thank my powerful motherland and thank all space program workers who have struggled successively generation by generation. During this mission, led by our commander, we cooperated closely with the ground teams and worked together to complete all designated tasks. For me, the past six months were also a journey of study and exploration, and I gained a lot of valuable experience. The starry sky is a vast universe, and our exploration knows no limit. I think realizing the dream of space flight is not an end but a starting point. Next, I'll fully cooperate with our staff in post-mission recovery and engage in follow-up training in the best shape," he said.
Tang Shengjie and the other two crew members of the spaceship will later be transferred to Beijing, where they will undergo post-mission medical evaluation, recovery and debriefing.
The homecoming of the Shenzhou-17 crew follows the completion of a six-month mission and in-orbit crew rotation with the newly-arrived crew members of the Shenzhou-18 mission.
Since blasting off for the Chinese space station last October, the Shenzhou-17 crew had witnessed the arrival of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft, performed two extravehicular activities, carried out 84 in-orbit experiments with more than 200 samples produced, and have brought back over 400 material samples retrieved after being exposed to space outside the station's Wentian lab module.
During their second spacewalk, the astronauts did repair work on the solar panels of the space station's core module, which had been subject to minor damage by space debris. This marked China's first-ever extravehicular repair mission.
The Shenzhou-17 spaceship, which was launched on Oct. 26 last year, initiated its journey back to Earth after separating from the space station combination at 08:43 Beijing Time (00:43 GMT) on Tuesday.
China Shenzhou-17 Astronaut & Mission Commander Tang Hongbo after Landing
Chinese astronaut Tang Hongbo, commander of the Shenzhou-17 mission, returned to Earth from the China Space Station on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, after a six-month stay in space.
Tang was the first of the three crew members of the spacecraft to emerge from the return capsule, after the module touched down the ground safely at the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 17:46 Beijing Time, according to the China Manned Space Agency.
The landing came after Tang and his crew mates, Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin, handed over control of the Tiangong Space Station to the newly arrived Shenzhou-18 crew on Sunday.
With his return, Tang has set the record for the longest time spent in orbit so far—279 days—among Chinese astronauts.
Upon landing, Tang said in an interview with China Central Television (CCTV) that he felt proud to have completed the six-month mission along with his two crew mates and that he missed his loved ones on Earth very much.
The Shenzhou-17's return capsule separated from its orbiting capsule at around 08:40 Beijing Time on Tuesday, as per the flight procedure.
Soon after the return capsule landed, the ground search team arrived at the landing site. Medical personnel confirmed that the crew members were in good health.
With the return of the crew, the Shenzhou-17 manned spaceflight mission was announced a complete success.
The Shenzhou-17 crew was launched into space on Oct 26, 2023, for their stay aboard the Tiangong Space Station. During their six-month-long mission, the trio witnessed the arrival of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft, completed two spacewalks, and carried out 84 in-orbit tests and space application experiments, and generated more than 200 samples, involving space life science and biotechnology, space medicine, space materials science and other fields.
Dwarf Galaxy IC 776 in Virgo: On the Hunt for X-rays | Hubble
This is the dwarf galaxy IC 776. It is a swirling collection of stars new and old located in the constellation Virgo—in fact, in the Virgo galaxy cluster—100 million light-years from Earth. While a dwarf galaxy, it is also been classified as an SAB-type or ‘weakly barred’ spiral, one study naming it a “complex case” in morphology. This highly detailed view from Hubble demonstrates that complexity well. IC 776 has a ragged, disturbed disc that nevertheless looks to spiral around the core, and arcs of star-forming regions.
This image is from an observation program dedicated to the study of dwarf galaxies in the Virgo cluster, searching for sources of X-rays in such galaxies. X-rays are often emitted by accretion discs, where material that is drawn into a compact object by gravity crashes together and forms a hot, glowing disc. The compact object can be a white dwarf or neutron star in a binary pair, stealing material from its companion star, or it can be the supermassive black hole at the heart of a galaxy, devouring all around it. Dwarf galaxies like IC 776, travelling through the Virgo cluster, experience a pressure from the intergalactic gas which can both stimulate star formation and feed the central black hole in a galaxy. That can create energetic accretion discs, hot enough to emit X-rays.
While Hubble is not able to see X-rays, it can coordinate with X-ray telescopes, such as NASA’s Chandra, revealing the sources of this radiation in high resolution using visible light. Dwarf galaxies are thought to be very important for our understanding of cosmology and the evolution of galaxies. As with many areas of astronomy, the ability to examine these galaxies across the electromagnetic spectrum is critical to their study.
Image Description: A spiral galaxy viewed tilted at a diagonal angle. The core and the disc of the galaxy are different colors, but are otherwise difficult to tell apart, with the disc having wispy, ragged edges and many arcs of glowing star-forming patches. A few distant galaxies can be seen in the background around the spiral galaxy, as well as several foreground stars.
Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, M. Sun
Shenzhou-17 Crew Successfully Lands in North China | China Space Station
The three astronauts of China's Shenzhou-17 crewed spaceflight mission returned to Earth on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, after completing their six-month mission aboard the Tiangong space station and conducting an in-orbit rotation with the newly-arrived Shenzhou-18 crew.
Preparations for Return of China's Shenzhou-17 Crew | China Space Station
A search and rescue team has fully prepared for the return of the Shenzhou-17 spacecraft and its three crew members at the Dongfeng landing site in China's Gobi Desert. The Shenzhou-17 crew is due to return to Earth on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.
With an area of tens of thousands of square kilometers, the landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia encompasses a multitude of terrain features, including deserts, grasslands, lakes, and saline-alkali lands, posing great challenges to the search and rescue operation.
To better handle their task in the challenging environment, the team has undertaken a range of training, including high-altitude rappelling from helicopter, anti-vertigo training, unmanned drone operation, diving and long-distance hiking with heavy loads in desert.
"Under the most challenging and complex conditions, we have conducted multiple systematic trainings and a three-month comprehensive exercise. In addition, we have carried out simulated trainings based on potential scenarios to ensure a safe return of the astronauts to the Dongfeng landing site," said Su Liming, a member of the search and rescue team.
Two comprehensive exercises involving the entire system of the landing site have been carried out, significantly enhancing the team's capabilities in performing search and rescue operations with coordinated and joint efforts.
"During the comprehensive exercises, both our personnel and equipment demonstrated outstanding performance. We have the capability and confidence to ensure a safe return of the astronauts," said Sun Liwen, another member of the search and rescue team.
Shenzhou-17 Crew:
Hongbo Tang (汤洪波, Commander)
Shengjie Tang (唐胜杰, Mission Specialist)
Xinlin Jiang (江新林, Mission Specialist)
Video Credit: China Global Television Network (CGTN)
How Solar Storms This Year Will Help Future Mars Astronauts | NASA/JPL
Mars Report - April 2024: The Sun’s activity will be at its peak in 2024, providing a rare opportunity to study how solar storms and radiation could affect future astronauts and robots on Mars. This peak period—called solar maximum—will be observed by NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmospheric and Volatiles EvolutioN) orbiter and Curiosity rover. Learn how both spacecraft have a big year ahead in this video featuring MAVEN Principal Investigator Shannon Curry of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Solar maximum occurs roughly every 11 years. During this period, the Sun is especially prone to throwing fiery tantrums in a variety of forms, such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections. These events launch radiation deep into space. When a series of these solar events erupt, it’s called a solar storm.
Earth’s magnetic field largely shields our home planet from the effects of these storms. But Mars lost its global magnetic field long ago, leaving the Red Planet more vulnerable to the Sun’s energetic particles. Researchers are excited to potentially gather data on just how intense solar activity can get at Mars. Among the preparations space agencies will need to make for sending humans to the Red Planet is what kind of radiation protection astronauts would require.
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the MAVEN mission.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California leads the Curiosity mission.
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