Sunday, July 28, 2024

The Fireworks Galaxy NGC 6946: 25 million light years away | Hubble

The Fireworks Galaxy NGC 6946: 25 million light years away | Hubble


In the last century alone, galaxy NGC 6946 has experienced 10 observed supernovae, earning its nickname as the Fireworks Galaxy. In comparison, our Milky Way averages just 1-2 supernova events per century. This NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope image shows the stars, spiral arms, and stellar environments of NGC 6946 in phenomenal detail. 

We are able to marvel at NGC 6946 as it is a face-on galaxy. It means that we see the galaxy “facing” us, rather than seeing it from the side (known as edge-on). The Fireworks Galaxy is further classified as an intermediate spiral galaxy and as a starburst galaxy. The former means the structure of NGC 6946 sits between a full spiral and a barred spiral galaxy, with only a slight bar in its center, and the latter means it has an exceptionally high rate of star formation.

The galaxy resides 25.2 million light-years away, along the border of the northern constellations of Cepheus and Cygnus (The Swan).


Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Leroy, K. S. Long

Release Date: Jan. 4, 2021


#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #Galaxy #NGC6946 #SpiralGalaxy #StarburstGalaxy #Supernovae #Cygnus #Constellation #Galaxy #Cosmos #Universe #HST #SpaceTelescope #Infrared #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Saturday, July 27, 2024

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Flight Crew News Conference | International Space Station

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Flight Crew News Conference | International Space Station

Crew members discuss their upcoming mission to the International Space Station in this Friday, July 26, 2024 news conference. As part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission, four crew members are preparing to launch to the International Space Station in August. They will conduct a wide-ranging set of operational and research activities for the benefit of all.

Launching aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, NASA astronauts Commander Zena Cardman, Pilot Nick Hague, and Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov of Russia, will join Expedition 71 and 72 crew members no earlier than August. They will arrive to the space station for a short duration handover with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission.

This will be the first spaceflight for Cardman. She was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017. The Williamsburg, Virginia, native holds a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a master’s in Marine Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At time of selection, she was a doctoral candidate in geosciences. Cardman’s research focused on geobiology and geochemical cycling in subsurface environments, from caves to deep sea sediments. Since completing initial training, Cardman has supported real-time station operations and development for lunar surface exploration.

Zena Cardman's Official NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/zena-cardman/

With a total of 203 days in space, this will be Hague’s third launch and second mission to the orbiting laboratory. During his first launch in 2018, Hague and his crewmate, Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin, experienced a rocket booster failure resulting in an in-flight launch abort. The Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft landed safely. Five months later, Hague launched aboard Soyuz MS-12 and served as a flight engineer aboard the space station during Expeditions 59 and 60. Hague and his crewmates participated in hundreds of experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science, and Earth science. Hague conducted three spacewalks, to upgrade space station power systems and install a docking adapter for commercial spacecraft. As an active-duty colonel in the U.S. Space Force, Hague completed a developmental rotation at the Defense Department in Washington, where he served as the USSF director of test and evaluation from 2020 to 2022. In August 2022, Hague resumed duties at NASA working on the Boeing Starliner Program until this flight assignment.

Nick Hague's Official NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/nick-hague/

A veteran of three spaceflights, STS-121, STS-120, and STS-131, Wilson has spent 42 days in space aboard three separate space shuttle Discovery missions. Before her selection as a NASA astronaut in 1996, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Engineering Science from Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas in Austin, and worked at Martin Marietta and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. During her first mission, STS-121 in November 2004, she and her crewmates spent 13 days in orbit. Wilson served as the robotic arm operator for spacecraft inspection, for the installation of the “Leonardo” Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, and for spacewalk support. In November 2006, Wilson and her STS-120 crewmates aboard Discovery delivered the Harmony module to the station and relocated a solar array. In May 2009, Wilson and her STS-131 crewmates completed another mission to resupply the station, delivering a new ammonia tank for the station cooling system, new crew sleeping quarters, a window observation facility, and a freezer for experiments. During her nearly 30 years with NASA, Wilson served as the integration branch chief for NASA’s Astronaut Office focusing on International Space Station systems and payload operations, and on a nine-month detail, served as the acting chief of NASA’s Program and Project Integration Office at the agency’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

Stephanie Wilson's Official NASA Biography

https://www.nasa.gov/people/stephanie-d-wilson/

This will be Gorbunov’s first trip to space and the station. Born in Zheleznogorsk, Kursk region, Russia, he studied engineering with qualifications in spacecraft and upper stages from the Moscow Aviation Institute. Gorbunov graduated from the military department with a specialty in operation and repair of aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft engines. Before being selected as a cosmonaut in 2018, he worked as an engineer for Rocket Space Corporation Energia and supported cargo spacecraft launches from the Baikonur cosmodrome.

This is the ninth rotational mission to the space station under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. It works with the American aerospace industry to meet the goal of safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the orbital outpost on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.

For more than two decades, humans have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and demonstrating new technologies, making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. The station is a critical testbed for NASA to understand and overcome the challenges of long-duration spaceflight and to expand commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit. As commercial companies focus on providing human space transportation services and destinations as part of a robust low Earth orbit economy, NASA’s Artemis campaign is underway at the Moon where the agency is preparing for future human exploration of Mars.

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The ISS has been the most politically complex space exploration program ever undertaken.

Find more information on NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at:

https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew


Credit: NASA

Duration: 27 minutes

Release Date: July 26, 2024


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #SpaceX #Engineering #Astronauts #StephanieWilson #ZenaCardman #NickHague #JSC #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #AleksandrGorbunov #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #CCP #Expedition71 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

China's Two New Satellites for Atmosphere/Ecosystem Observation Now Operating

China's Two New Satellites for Atmosphere/Ecosystem Observation Now Operating

The China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced on Thursday, July 25, 2024, that two new satellites launched in 2022 for atmosphere and ecosystem observation have been officially put into operation, advancing the country’s goal of achieving zero-carbon emissions.

The satellites feature cutting-edge technologies for environmental monitoring, including high-precision atmospheric remote sensing using active laser detection methods. As part of China's civilian space infrastructure, the orbiting pair demonstrates the country's commitment to peaking carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.

"The atmospheric environmental surveyor satellite is equipped with an advanced aerosol and carbon detection lidar, which is one of the leading payloads in the world. It can continuously detect column-averages of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, functioning both day and night, which greatly enhances its efficiency," said Meng Lingjie, director of the Earth Observation System and Data Center at the administration.

The other satellite, named Goumang after the ancient Chinese god of forestry and spring, focuses on terrestrial ecosystem carbon inventory. It employs innovative remote sensing techniques to assess forest stock, biomass, and carbon storage, supporting applications in agriculture and vegetation monitoring.

The operation of these two satellites marks a significant milestone in China's space capabilities and its efforts towards environmental sustainability.


Video Credit: China Central Television (CCTV)

Duration: 1 minute, 18 seconds

Release Date: July 27, 2024


#NASA #CNSA #Space #Satellites #Goumang #Science #Planet #Earth #China #中国 #Ecosystems #Atmosphere #Weather #Meteorology #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #CO2 #Climate #EnvironmentalSustainability #GreenhouseGases #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #LIDAR #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Advancing Next-Gen Space Station Technology with Sierra Space & NASA

Advancing Next-Gen Space Station Technology with Sierra Space & NASA

Sierra Space, a leading commercial space-tech company announced today that its expandable space station technology successfully passed a seventh key validation test, and second full-scale structural test at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. The results "herald a giant leap towards building the world’s first end-to-end business and technology platform in Low Earth Orbit, enabling humanity to find the answers to some of the toughest problems faced on Earth."

Completion of the successful Ultimate Burst Pressure test, which occurred on June 18, 2024, in collaboration with ILC Dover Astrospace and NASA, accelerates Sierra Space’s revolutionary softgoods technology towards on-orbit operations. Planned for an initial stand-alone pathfinder mission before the end of the decade, the technology will also feature as a key element of the Orbital Reef commercial space station. The test will close out Milestone #8 for Orbital Reef with Blue Origin under NASA’s Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program. 

Learn more about Sierra Space's Life habitat technology:

https://www.sierraspace.com/commercial-space-stations/life-space-habitat/

For more information about NASA’s commercial low Earth orbit strategy, visit: 

https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/commercial-space/low-earth-orbit-economy/


Video Credit: Sierra Space

Duration: 6 minutes

Release Date: July 25, 2024


#NASA #Space #SierraSpace #ILCDover #SpaceStations #CommercialSpace #CommercialSpaceStations #LIFEHabitat #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceTechnology #Engineering #LEO #DeepSpace #SolarSystemExploration #MSFC #Huntsville #Alabama #OrbitalReef #BlueOrigin #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Zooming to Star Cluster NGC 6193 & Nebula NGC 6188 | ESO

Zooming to Star Cluster NGC 6193 & Nebula NGC 6188 | ESO

This zoom sequence zeros in on a region of gas and dust in the constellation of Ara. In the center of the final image from the VLT Survey Telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory is the young open cluster NGC 6193, and to the right is the emission nebula NGC 6188, illuminated by the ionizing radiation emitted by the brightest nearby stars.


Video Credit: ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2/N. Risinger

Duration: 50 seconds

Release Date: March 11, 2015


#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC6188 #EmissionNebula #Stars #StarClusters #NGC6193 #AraOB1 #Ara #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #VLTSurveyTelescope #ParanalObservatory #OmegaCAM #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Close-up View: Star Cluster NGC 6193 & Nebula NGC 6188 in Ara | ESO

Close-up View: Star Cluster NGC 6193 & Nebula NGC 6188 in Ara | ESO

This video, taken by OmegaCAM on the VLT Survey Telescope at Paranal Observatory, gives a close-up view of a section of the Ara OB1 stellar association. In the center of the image is the young open cluster NGC 6193, and to the right is the emission nebula NGC 6188, illuminated by the ionizing radiation emitted by the brightest nearby stars.


Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Duration: 50 seconds

Release Date: March 11, 2015


#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC6188 #EmissionNebula #Stars #StarClusters #NGC6193 #AraOB1 #Ara #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #VLTSurveyTelescope #ParanalObservatory #OmegaCAM #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Star Cluster NGC 6193 & Nebula NGC 6188 in Ara | ESO

Star Cluster NGC 6193 & Nebula NGC 6188 in Ara | ESO


This image, taken by OmegaCAM on the VLT Survey Telescope at Paranal Observatory, shows a section of the Ara OB1 stellar association. In the center of the image is the young open cluster NGC 6193, and to the right is the emission nebula NGC 6188, illuminated by the ionizing radiation emitted by the brightest nearby stars. 


Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Release Date: March 11, 2015


#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC6188 #EmissionNebula #Stars #StarClusters #NGC6193 #AraOB1 #Ara #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #VLTSurveyTelescope #ParanalObservatory #OmegaCAM #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education

Friday, July 26, 2024

Introducing NASA's Space Crew-9 | International Space Station

Introducing NASA's Space Crew-9 | International Space Station

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Commander Zena Cardman
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Commander Zena Cardman
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Pilot Nick Hague
SpaceX Crew-9 crew members: Commander  Zena Cardman and Mission Specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov of Roscosmos (Russia)

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 members stand in front of a Falcon 9 first-stage booster at SpaceX’s HangarX facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. From left are NASA astronauts Pilot Nick Hague and Commander Zena Cardman, Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Alexander Gorbunov of Russia, and NASA astronaut Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 members poses for a group photo in front of the White Room located at the end of the crew access arm on the launch tower at Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. From left are, Pilot Nick Hague from NASA; Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson from NASA; Mission Specialist Alexsandr Gorbunov from Roscosmos (Russia); and Commander Zena Cardman from NASA.

As part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission, four crew members are preparing to launch to the International Space Station and conduct a wide-ranging set of operational and research activities for the benefit of all.

Launching aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, NASA astronauts Commander Zena Cardman, Pilot Nick Hague, and Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov of Russia, will join Expedition 71 and 72 crew members no earlier than August. They will arrive to the space station for a short duration handover with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission.

This will be the first spaceflight for Cardman. She was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017. The Williamsburg, Virginia, native holds a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a master’s in Marine Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At time of selection, she was a doctoral candidate in geosciences. Cardman’s research focused on geobiology and geochemical cycling in subsurface environments, from caves to deep sea sediments. Since completing initial training, Cardman has supported real-time station operations and development for lunar surface exploration.

Zena Cardman's Official NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/zena-cardman/

With a total of 203 days in space, this will be Hague’s third launch and second mission to the orbiting laboratory. During his first launch in 2018, Hague and his crewmate, Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin, experienced a rocket booster failure resulting in an in-flight launch abort. The Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft landed safely. Five months later, Hague launched aboard Soyuz MS-12 and served as a flight engineer aboard the space station during Expeditions 59 and 60. Hague and his crewmates participated in hundreds of experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science, and Earth science. Hague conducted three spacewalks, to upgrade space station power systems and install a docking adapter for commercial spacecraft. As an active-duty colonel in the U.S. Space Force, Hague completed a developmental rotation at the Defense Department in Washington, where he served as the USSF director of test and evaluation from 2020 to 2022. In August 2022, Hague resumed duties at NASA working on the Boeing Starliner Program until this flight assignment.

Nick Hague's Official NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/nick-hague/

A veteran of three spaceflights, STS-121, STS-120, and STS-131, Wilson has spent 42 days in space aboard three separate space shuttle Discovery missions. Before her selection as a NASA astronaut in 1996, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Engineering Science from Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas in Austin, and worked at Martin Marietta and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. During her first mission, STS-121 in November 2004, she and her crewmates spent 13 days in orbit. Wilson served as the robotic arm operator for spacecraft inspection, for the installation of the “Leonardo” Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, and for spacewalk support. In November 2006, Wilson and her STS-120 crewmates aboard Discovery delivered the Harmony module to the station and relocated a solar array. In May 2009, Wilson and her STS-131 crewmates completed another mission to resupply the station, delivering a new ammonia tank for the station cooling system, new crew sleeping quarters, a window observation facility, and a freezer for experiments. During her nearly 30 years with NASA, Wilson served as the integration branch chief for NASA’s Astronaut Office focusing on International Space Station systems and payload operations, and on a nine-month detail, served as the acting chief of NASA’s Program and Project Integration Office at the agency’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

Stephanie Wilson's Official NASA Biography

https://www.nasa.gov/people/stephanie-d-wilson/

This will be Gorbunov’s first trip to space and the station. Born in Zheleznogorsk, Kursk region, Russia, he studied engineering with qualifications in spacecraft and upper stages from the Moscow Aviation Institute. Gorbunov graduated from the military department with a specialty in operation and repair of aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft engines. Before being selected as a cosmonaut in 2018, he worked as an engineer for Rocket Space Corporation Energia and supported cargo spacecraft launches from the Baikonur cosmodrome.

This is the ninth rotational mission to the space station under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. It works with the American aerospace industry to meet the goal of safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the orbital outpost on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.

For more than two decades, humans have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and demonstrating new technologies, making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. The station is a critical testbed for NASA to understand and overcome the challenges of long-duration spaceflight and to expand commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit. As commercial companies focus on providing human space transportation services and destinations as part of a robust low Earth orbit economy, NASA’s Artemis campaign is underway at the Moon where the agency is preparing for future human exploration of Mars.

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The ISS has been the most politically complex space exploration program ever undertaken.

Find more information on NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at:

https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew


Image Credits: SpaceX

Release Date: July 26, 2024


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #SpaceX #Engineering #Astronauts #StephanieWilson #ZenaCardman #NickHague #JSC #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #AleksandrGorbunov #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #CCP #Expedition71 #STEM #Education

Pan of Spiral Galaxy NGC 3430 in Leo Minor | Hubble Space Telescope

Pan of Spiral Galaxy NGC 3430 in Leo Minor | Hubble Space Telescope

In this Hubble picture, we are treated to a detailed view of NGC 3430. A spiral galaxy, it lies 100 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Leo Minor. Several other galaxies are located relatively nearby, just out of frame; one is close enough that gravitational interaction is driving star formation in NGC 3430.

NGC 3430 is a fine example of a galactic spiral. This may be why it ended up as part of the sample that Edwin Hubble used to define his classification of galaxies. Namesake of the Hubble Space Telescope, in 1926 he authored a paper that classified four hundred galaxies by their appearance—as either spiral, barred spiral, lenticular, elliptical or irregular. This straightforward typology proved immensely influential, and the modern, more detailed schemes that astronomers use today are still based on it. NGC 3430 itself is an SAc galaxy, a spiral lacking a central bar with open, clearly-defined arms.

At the time of Hubble’s paper, the study of galaxies in their own right was in its infancy. With the benefit of Henrietta Leavitt’s work on Cepheid variable stars, Hubble had only a couple of years before settled the debate about whether these ‘nebulae’, as they were called then, were situated within our galaxy or were distant and independent. He himself referred to ‘extragalactic nebulae’ in his paper, indicating that they lay beyond the Milky Way galaxy. Once it became clear that these distant objects were very different from actual nebulae, the favored term for a while was the quite poetic ‘island universe’. While NGC 3430 may look as if it still deserves this moniker, today we simply call it and the objects like it a ‘galaxy’.

Image Description: A spiral galaxy with three prominent arms wrapping around it, and plenty of extra gas and dark dust between the arms. There are shining blue points throughout the arms and patches of gas out beyond the galaxy’s edge, where stars are forming. The center of the galaxy also shines brightly. It is on a dark background where small orange dots mark distant galaxies.


Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick, N. Bartmann (ESA/Hubble)

Duration: 30 seconds

Release Date: July 22, 2024


#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #Galaxy #NGC3430 #SAcGalaxy #LeoMinor #Constellation #Galaxy #Cosmos #Universe #HST #SpaceTelescope #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Nebula Kohoutek 3-46: A ‘Butterfly’ from Death’s Door | Gemini North Telescope

Nebula Kohoutek 3-46: A ‘Butterfly’ from Death’s Door | Gemini North Telescope


This ghostly, butterfly-shaped planetary nebula, captured by the Gemini North telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation and operated by NOIRLab, is known as Kohoutek 3-46. Kohoutek 3-46 derives its name from the prolific planetary nebula hunter that discovered it, Czech astronomer Luboš Kohoutek. 

Located in the constellation Cygnus, Kohoutek 3-46 is estimated to be around 20,000 years old and around 7,200 light-years away. The term ‘planetary nebula’ is a misnomer, since these nebulae are unrelated to planets. The term originates from their planet-like round shape. Kohoutek 3-46 has expanded into an unusual bipolar shape, classified by its well-defined hourglass shape, prominent equatorial ring and marked waist. About 10–20% of planetary nebulae are bipolar. No matter the shape they take on, these glowing clouds of gas form after a star of one to eight times the mass of the Sun has expanded into a red giant. As the core of the red giant contracts, the star expels layers of its atmosphere into space. Energetic ultraviolet radiation from the hot, exposed core then ionizes this gaseous shell around it, ‘illuminating’ the planetary nebula.

Since 2002, Gemini North has also been known as the Frederick C. Gillett Gemini North telescope. Dr. Gillett, who died in April 2001, was one of the primary visionaries of the Gemini telescopes. He was instrumental in assuring that the design of Gemini's twin 8-meter telescopes would make major scientific contributions to astronomy.

Learn more about Gemini North here: https://www.gemini.edu

Credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA

Image Processing: J. Miller (International Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Rodriguez (International Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab) & M. Zamani (NSF’s NOIRLab)

Release Date: July 24, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #PlanetaryNebula #Kohoutek346 #PNK346 #BipolarNebula #Cygnus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #InternationalGeminiObservatory #GeminiNorthTelescope #GMOSN #NOIRLab #AURA #NSF #Maunakea #Hawaii #UnitedStates #Astronomer #LubošKohoutek #Czech #STEM #Education

NASA Astronauts Salute 2024 Olympic Games in Paris | International Space Station

NASA Astronauts Salute 2024 Olympic Games in Paris | International Space Station

The 2024 Olympic Games officially began in Paris, France on July 26 with athletes coming from around the world to compete. Meanwhile, above the Earth—on our orbiting laboratory, the International Space Station—NASA's astronauts are sharing the Olympic spirit. Check out their training montage from space, followed by a message to Earth from NASA astronaut Matt Dominick.

Learn more about the station: https://www.nasa.gov/international-space-station/

Follow the 2024 Summer Olympics Games in Paris: 

https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024

Expedition 71 Updates: 

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

Expedition 71 Crew
Station Commander: Oleg Kononenko (Russia)
Roscosmos (Russia): Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin (Russia)
NASA: Tracy Dyson, Matthew Dominick, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps
NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore

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.

Learn more about the important research being operated on Station:

https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science 

For more information about STEM on Station:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation

Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM)


Credit: NASA

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: July 26, 2024


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Earth #Paris24 #OlympicGames2024 #Astronauts #Astronaut #MatthewDominick #SpaceLaboratory #Engineering #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #Expedition71 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NASA's Space to Ground: Star Sailors | Week of July 26, 2024

NASA's Space to Ground: Star Sailors Week of July 26, 2024

NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station. 

Expedition 71 Updates: 

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

Expedition 71 Crew
Station Commander: Oleg Kononenko (Russia)
Roscosmos (Russia): Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin (Russia)
NASA: Tracy Dyson, Matthew Dominick, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps
NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore

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.

Learn more about the important research being operated on Station:

https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science 

For more information about STEM on Station:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation

Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM)


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

Duration: 3 minutes

Release Date: July 26, 2024


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Earth #SpaceTechnology #SpaceLaboratory #Engineering #Astronauts #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #Expedition71 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Unique Feature Found in Bright Gamma-Ray Burst | NASA Fermi Space Telescope

Unique Feature Found in Bright Gamma-Ray Burst | NASA Fermi Space Telescope

In October 2022, astronomers were stunned by what was quickly dubbed the BOAT—the brightest-of-all-time gamma-ray burst (GRB). Now an international science team reports that data from NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope reveals a feature never seen before.

GRBs are the most powerful explosions in the cosmos and emit copious amounts of gamma rays, the highest-energy form of light. The most common type occurs when the core of a massive star exhausts its fuel, collapses, and forms a rapidly spinning black hole. Matter falling into the black hole powers oppositely directed particle jets that blast through the star’s outer layers at nearly the speed of light. We detect GRBs when one of these jets points almost directly toward Earth.

A few minutes after the BOAT erupted, Fermi’s Gamma-ray Burst Monitor recorded an unusual energy peak. Scientists now say this feature is the first high-confidence emission line ever seen in 50 years of studying GRBs.

When matter interacts with light, the energy can be absorbed and reemitted in characteristic ways. These interactions can brighten or dim particular colors (or energies), producing key features visible when the light is spread out, rainbow-like, in a spectrum. These features can reveal a wealth of information.

The science team says that the odds this feature is a fluke—just a noise fluctuation—are less than one chance in half a billion.

The BOAT, formally known as GRB 221009A, erupted Oct. 9, 2022, and promptly saturated most of the gamma-ray detectors in orbit, including those on Fermi. If part of the same population as previously detected GRBs, the BOAT was likely the brightest burst to appear in Earth’s skies in 10,000 years.

The putative emission line appears almost 5 minutes after the burst was detected and well after it had dimmed enough to end saturation effects for Fermi. The line persisted for at least 40 seconds, and the emission reached a peak energy of about 12 MeV (million electron volts). For comparison, the energy of visible light ranges from 2 to 3 electron volts.

The team thinks the most likely source for the emission line is the annihilation of electrons and their antimatter counterparts, positrons. When these particles collide, they produce a pair of gamma rays with an energy of 0.511 MeV. Because we are looking into the jet, where matter is moving at near light speed, this emission becomes greatly blueshifted and pushed toward much higher energies.

If this interpretation is correct, to produce an emission line peaking at 12 MeV, the annihilating particles had to have been moving toward us at about 99.9% the speed of light.


Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

Producer: Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)

Science writer: Francis Reddy (University of Maryland College Park)

Narrator: Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)

Animators: Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC), Adriana Manrique Gutierrez (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)

Duration: 3 minutes

Release Date: July 25, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #GRB #GammaRayBursts #GRB221009A #BOAT #EmissionLine #Astrophysics #Fermi #FGST #SpaceTelescope #Cosmos #Universe #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Thursday, July 25, 2024

NASA Artemis II Moon Mission Core Stage Arrives at Kennedy Space Center

NASA Artemis II Moon Mission Core Stage Arrives at Kennedy Space Center

Yesterday, ground teams at NASA's Kennedy Space Center offloaded the second core stage from the Pegasus barge and transported the future Artemis II launch vehicle to the historic Vehicle Assembly Building.

Like the rockets before it, this core stage will undergo final testing and outfitting before it launches humanity back into lunar orbit.

Check the NASA Artemis II Mission page for updates:

https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/

For more information about SLS, visit: 

https://www.nasa.gov/sls


Video Credit: Boeing Space

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: July 25, 2024


#NASA #ESA #CSA #Space #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIIMission #ArtemisII #SLS #SLSCoreStage #Boeing #DeepSpace #Astronauts #MoonToMars #Science #SpaceExploration #HumanSpaceflight #NASAKennedy #VAB #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #Canada #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Smoky Skies across North America | NASA Earth Observatory

Smoky Skies across North America | NASA Earth Observatory

  July 17 - 24, 2024

In July 2024, wildland fires in Canada billowed smoke that drifted across North America. A stretch of extreme heat, coupled with windy conditions and thunderstorms, helped spur the ignition and expansion of fires in several Canadian provinces. As of July 24, 989 fires actively burned in Canada, with over half of those occurring in British Columbia or Alberta, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.

This animation  highlights the concentration and movement of wildfire smoke from July 17–24, 2024. It shows black carbon particles—commonly called soot—from Canadian fires sweeping broadly across North American skies during that period. Black carbon signatures from fires in Oregon and Washington are also prominent.

The black carbon data come from NASA’s GEOS forward processing (GEOS-FP) model, which assimilates data from satellites, aircraft, and ground-based observing systems. In addition to making use of satellite observations of aerosols and fires, GEOS-FP also incorporates meteorological data like air temperature, moisture, and winds to project the plume’s behavior.

Wildfire activity in British Columbia and Alberta intensified throughout the period shown in the animation, as unsettled weather entered the region. High winds and thunderstorms, on top of record-high temperatures in places, created prime conditions for wildfires. The B.C. Wildfire Service reported 20,000 lightning strikes on July 21 and 38,000 on July 22, with most of those strikes occurring in the northeast part of the province and the rest in the south-central portion.

The storms resulted in scores of new fires and multiple evacuations from towns and public lands. Smoke from the hundreds of active fires drifted across the country and south into the central United States. Smoky skies and poor air quality were reported in multiple states, including North Dakota, Kansas, Colorado, and Wisconsin.

Multiple fires in Jasper National Park in Alberta caused up to 25,000 visitors and residents to leave the area on July 23, according to news reports. 


Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Wanmei Liang, using GEOS-5 data from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at NASA GSFC and VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS). 

Article Credit: Lindsey Doermann

Duration: 5 seconds

Release Date: July 25, 2024


#NASA #Space #Satellites #JPSS #Science #Earth #Planet #Canada #Alberta #BritishColumbia #Wildfires #Smoke #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #Atmosphere #AirQuality #Weather #Meteorology #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Animation #HD #Video

An Intriguing Mars Rock Discovered by NASA's Perseverance Rover | JPL

An Intriguing Mars Rock Discovered by NASA's Perseverance Rover | JPL

NASA’s Perseverance rover discovered “leopard spots” on a vein-filled, reddish rock nicknamed “Cheyava Falls” in Mars’ Jezero Crater during July 2024. Scientists think the spots may indicate that, billions of years ago, the chemical reactions in this rock could have supported microbial life; other explanations are being considered. 

Analysis by instruments aboard the rover indicates the rock possesses qualities that fit the definition of a possible indicator of ancient life. The rock exhibits chemical signatures and structures that could possibly have been formed by life billions of years ago when the area being explored by the rover contained running water.

The rock—the rover’s 22nd rock core sample—was collected on July 21, 2024, as the rover explored the northern edge of Neretva Vallis, an ancient river valley measuring a quarter-mile (400 meters) wide that was carved by water rushing into Jezero Crater long ago.

For more about NASA's Perseverance rover:

science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance


Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Duration: 1 minute 

Release Date: July 25, 2024


#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Astrobiology #MicrobialLife #CheyavaFalls #BrightAngel #Geology #PerseveranceRover #Mars2020 #JezeroCrater #Robotics #SpaceTechnology #SpaceEngineering #JPL #Caltech #ASU #MSSS #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video