Sunday, August 18, 2024

Views of Giant Emission Nebula IC 1396 in Cepheus | Mayall Telescope

Views of Giant Emission Nebula IC 1396 in Cepheus | Mayall Telescope



These images were obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the Mayall 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. IC 1396 is a giant emission nebula that is over 3 degrees in diameter. It is illuminated by a hot, massive O-type star (HD 206267) near its center. The star is not visible in this image—it is off of the top edge. This image is of a portion of IC 1396 in the south-eastern part of the nebula. It shows only about 5% of the entire nebula. The image was generated with observations in the Hydrogen alpha (red) and Sulphur [SII] (blue) filters.

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

Learn more about the Mayall Telescope: 

https://noirlab.edu/science/programs/kpno/telescopes/nicholas-mayall-4m-telescope


Image Credits: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage), H. Schweiker & S. Pakzad (NOIRLab/NSF/AURA)

Release Date: June 30, 2020


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #IC1396 #EmissionNebula #StarHD206267 #Cepheus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MayallTelescope #KittPeakNationalObservatory #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Saturday, August 17, 2024

Hurricane Ernesto Barreling Toward Bermuda | NASA Earth Observatory

Hurricane Ernesto Barreling Toward Bermuda | NASA Earth Observatory


After battering Puerto Rico, Hurricane Ernesto picked up steam over the western Atlantic Ocean as it moved toward Bermuda. The Category 1 hurricane made landfall on the western side of Bermuda early Saturday, August 17, 2024. It could generate large waves along the Atlantic shore of the U.S. and Canada.

This image, acquired with the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the Suomi NPP satellite, shows Ernesto at about 18:00 Universal Time (3 p.m. local time in Bermuda) on August 15, when the center of the storm was 530 miles southwest of the British island territory. At the time, Ernesto had sustained winds of around 85 miles (140 kilometers) per hour and was continuing to strengthen.

Earlier in the week, Ernesto moved through the Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands, and eastern Puerto Rico, bringing torrential rains and wind gusts near hurricane strength. According to news reports, the storm knocked out power for about half of Puerto Rico’s residents and dumped 3 to 10 inches (8 to 25 centimeters) of rain over much of the island. The storm flooded roadways, downed power lines, and destroyed homes and vehicles.

As Ernesto moved north from Puerto Rico, NASA scientists teamed up with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to drop small sensors into and around the storm to better understand how the storm was changing. On August 15, 35 dropsondes were released from NOAA’s Gulfstream IV jet from 40,000 feet above the Atlantic. As the dropsondes careened through the storm, they measured temperature, moisture, pressure, and wind conditions.

“Dropsonde data indicated that dry air along Ernesto’s path likely prevented it from becoming an even more powerful storm,” said Justin Stachnik, an atmospheric scientist at NASA Headquarters. “These dropsondes give scientists and weather forecasters a better picture of the moisture present near the storm, and they can retrieve measurements near the surface, where it’s not safe for aircraft to fly.”

The dropsonde measurements can be used to calibrate and validate simultaneous observations from satellites that are part of NASA’s TROPICS mission—a constellation of CubeSats designed to provide high-resolution, rapid updates of the intensity, size, and precipitation of tropical cyclones. “Calibrating satellite observations with these in-air measurements will allow NASA to better provide near-real-time monitoring of storms,” Stachnik said.

Although Ernesto was not expected to hit the mainland U.S., high surf and rip currents from the hurricane were expected to spread up the east coast on August 17 and 18 and could reach portions of Atlantic Canada.

NASA’s Disasters program has been activated in response to Hurricane Ernesto, working with the Puerto Rico Science, Technology, & Research Trust and the Puerto Rico Department of Public Safety to support response activities. As new information becomes available, the team will be posting maps and data products on its open-access mapping portal.

Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory image by Wanmei Liang, using VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership

Article Credit: Emily Cassidy

Image Date: Aug. 15, 2024

Release Date: Aug. 17, 2024


#NASA #NOAA #Science #Space #Satellite #SuomiNPP #VIIRS #Planet #Earth #Weather  #Meteorology #Storm #Precipitation #Hurricanes #HurricaneErnesto #Bermuda #Britain #CaribbeanSea #AtlanticOcean #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #Environment #UnitedStates #GSFC #STEM #Education

Northern Lights above Teton Mountains in Idaho

Northern Lights above Teton Mountains in Idaho

Photographer Glenn McCreery: "The photo of the colorful aurora featured [here] was captured from eastern Idaho on May 11, 2024, at 10:47 p.m. local time. I was positioned about 5 miles (8 km) south of the town of Driggs, Idaho. Lights of the town are shown in the foreground, with the silhouetted Teton Mountain Range in the background. The highest peak in the range, Grand Teton, is at center. Thanks primarily to the long shutter speed, the colors in the photograph are more brilliant and saturated than the human eye can perceive."

The Teton Range is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in North America. It extends for approximately 40 miles (64 km) in a north–south direction through the U.S. state of Wyoming, east of the Idaho state line. It is south of Yellowstone National Park, and most of the east side of the range is within Grand Teton National Park.

Grand Teton National Park:

https://www.nps.gov/grte/index.htm


Photo Details: Canon 6D camera; Sony ART 24 mm lens; f1.4; 10 second exposure; ISO 1250. 

 

Image & Caption Credit: Glenn McCreery

Driggs, Idaho Coordinates: 43.7232, -111.1109

Image Date: May 11, 2024

Release Date: Aug. 12, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Planet #Earth #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #MagneticField #Magnetosphere #SolarWind #Sun #Star #Astrophotography #TetonMountains #RockyMountains #Driggs #Idaho #GlennMcCreery #Astrophotographer #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Distant Spiral Galaxies in Dorado: Wide-field view | Victor Blanco Telescope

Distant Spiral Galaxies in Dorado: Wide-field view | Victor Blanco Telescope


Intermediate barred spiral galaxy NGC 1515 composed of data taken with the Dark Energy Camera on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF’s NOIRLab, as part of the Dark Energy Survey, a project that mapped millions of galaxies. One of the most powerful digital cameras in the world, the Dark Energy Camera was designed specifically for the Dark Energy Survey and was operated by the US Department of Energy and NSF between 2013 and 2019.

Distance: 55 million light years 

The 4-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope was commissioned in 1974. It is a near twin of the Mayall 4-meter telescope on Kitt Peak. In 1995, it was dedicated and named in honor of Puerto Rican astronomer Víctor Manuel Blanco. It is also part of the Dark Energy Survey (DES), a visible and near-infrared survey that aims to probe the dynamics of the expansion of the Universe.

Víctor M. Blanco Telescope:

https://noirlab.edu/science/programs/ctio/telescopes/victor-blanco-4m-telescope


Credit: Dark Energy Survey/DOE/FNAL/DECam/CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF’s NOIRLab), J. Miller (Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Zamani & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)
Release Date: Dec. 29, 2021

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #Galaxy #NGC1515 #NGC1566 #DoradoGroup #Spirals #Barred #Dorado #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #DECam #CTIO #Chile #KPNO #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

A Collection of Distant Spiral Galaxies in Dorado | Victor Blanco Telescope

A Collection of Distant Spiral Galaxies in Dorado | Victor Blanco Telescope

At the center of this image is NGC 1515, an intermediate barred spiral galaxy that is part of the Dorado Group at a distance of 55 million light years. Large-scale observations of the Universe have found that galaxies “clump” together. These clumps are held together by a loose gravitational pull and designated a group or cluster, depending on the number of galaxies within a bounded radius. 

One of the characteristics of groups of galaxies is the slow speed of individual galaxies, about 150 km/s (93 mi/hr), which results in frequent interactions between members. The Dorado Group is composed of three subgroups and NGC 1515 is a member of the subgroup associated with the galaxy NGC 1566. In the background of this image are thousands of other galaxies, located even further away than NGC 1515, alongside stars located in our own Milky Way.

This image is composed of data taken with the Dark Energy Camera on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab, as part of the Dark Energy Survey, a project that mapped millions of galaxies. One of the most powerful digital cameras in the world, the Dark Energy Camera was designed specifically for the Dark Energy Survey and was operated by the US Department of Energy and NSF between 2013 and 2019.

The 4-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope was commissioned in 1974. It is a near twin of the Mayall 4-meter telescope on Kitt Peak. In 1995, it was dedicated and named in honor of Puerto Rican astronomer Víctor Manuel Blanco. It is also part of the Dark Energy Survey (DES), a visible and near-infrared survey that aims to probe the dynamics of the expansion of the Universe.

Víctor M. Blanco Telescope:

https://noirlab.edu/science/programs/ctio/telescopes/victor-blanco-4m-telescope


Credit: Dark Energy Survey/DOE/FNAL/DECam/CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

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

Release Date: Dec. 29, 2021


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #Galaxy #NGC1515 #NGC1566 #DoradoGroup #Spirals #Barred #Dorado #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #DECam #CTIO #Chile #KPNO #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Dark Nebula Barnard 163 in Cepheus | Digitized Sky Survey 2

Dark Nebula Barnard 163 in Cepheus | Digitized Sky Survey 2


Barnard 163 is a dark nebula within IC 1396, a very large emission nebula complex in the constellation Cepheus. This interstellar cloud was discovered by Edward Emerson (E. E.) Barnard (1857-1923), an American astronomer and pioneer of astrophotography who began as an amateur comet hunter, earned a degree in mathematics and later worked at Lick Observatory and the University of Chicago. He is also the namesake of Barnard’s star, the second closest known star system to Earth.

The Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) is a ground-based imaging survey of the entire sky in several colors of light produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute through its Guide Star Survey group.


Credit: T.A. Rector/University of Alaska Anchorage, H. Schweiker/WIYN and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Release Date: Jan. 7, 2007


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Nebulae #Nebula #Barnard163 #IC1396 #Cepheus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #DSS2 #NOIRLab #AURA #NSF #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The 'Hungry' Ghost Nebula: vdB 141 in Cepheus | Mayall Telescope

The 'Hungry' Ghost Nebula: vdB 141 in Cepheus | Mayall Telescope

The Hungry Ghost Festival on August 18 this year is one of the most eerie celebrations in Chinese culture. In Hong Kong, the city comes alive with vibrant rituals and community events that are steeped in superstition and rituals. The festival is thought to have roots in Buddhist, Taoist, and folk traditions dating back to the Tang dynasty (618-907). According to Chinese folklore, the festival is a time when ghosts and spirits are free to wander the earth. During this time, the rituals are observed to try and avoid the wrath of wandering spirits.

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic Camera on the Mayall 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. vdB 141 is a reflection nebula located in the constellation Cepheus. Sometimes referred to as the ghost nebula, its awkward name is its catalog number in Sidney van den Bergh's catalog of reflection nebulae, published in 1966. Several stars are embedded in the nebula. Their light gives it a ghoulish brown color. North is down and East is to the right. 

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


Image Credit: T.A. Rector/University of Alaska Anchorage, H. Schweiker/WIYN and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Caption Credit: NOIRLab/SCMP

Image Date: Aug. 28, 2009


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #GhostNebula #vdB141 #ReflectionNebula #Cepheus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #MayallTelescope #KittPeak #KPNO #Tucson #Arizona #NOIRLab #AURA #NSF #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Expedition 71 Crew Photos: August 2024 | International Space Station

Expedition 71 Crew Photos: August 2024 | International Space Station

NASA astronaut and Boeing Crew Flight Test Pilot Suni Williams, inside the International Space Station's Unity module, displays portable carbon dioxide monitors recently delivered aboard Northrop Grumman's Cygnus cargo spacecraft.
 NASA astronauts (from left) Tracy C. Dyson and Suni Williams enjoy an ice cream dessert with fresh ingredients delivered aboard the Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo spacecraft. The duo was enjoying their delicious snack inside the International Space Station's Unity module where crews share meals in the galley.
NASA astronaut and Expedition 71 Flight Engineer Jeanette Epps processes blood and saliva samples aboard the International Space Station's Harmony module. She stowed the specimens in a science freezer and the Kubik research incubator for future retrieval and later analysis. The weightless environment of the orbital outpost allows investigators to explore how living in space long term affects humans and gain insights not possible in Earth’s gravity conditions.
NASA astronaut and Expedition 71 Flight Engineer Matthew Dominick displays a bag containing simulated lunar soil and other materials mixed with a liquid solution. He was exploring how microgravity affects the production of cement materials that could be used to build infrastructure on the lunar surface.
NASA astronaut and Expedition 71 Flight Engineer Mike Barratt points a camera out a window on the International Space Station's Destiny laboratory and photographs landmarks on Earth. The orbital outpost was soaring 258 miles above China near Hong Kong on the coast of the South China Sea at the time of this photograph.
NASA astronaut and Boeing Crew Flight Test Pilot Suni Williams installs the Packed Bed Reactor Experiment, experimental life support hardware, inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox located aboard the International Space Station's Destiny laboratory.
NASA astronaut and Boeing's Crew Flight Test Pilot Suni Williams observes a pair of Astrobee robotic free-flying assistants demonstrating autonomous docking maneuvers inside the International Space Station's Kibo laboratory module. Williams was inside Kibo's logistics module. It serves as a storage area that houses materials for experiments, maintenance tools, and crew supplies.
NASA astronauts (from left) Jeanette Epps and Matthew Dominick, both Expedition 71 Flight Engineers, are pictured wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) shortly after entering the Northrop Grumman Cygnus space freighter. Inside Cygnus is a poster of former NASA astronaut Francis R. "Dick" Scobee for whom the spacecraft is named after. The duo was wearing PPE after opening the hatch and entering the vehicle to protect against potential dust or debris that may have dislodged during Cygnus' launch and ascent to space.

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)


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

Image Dates: Aug. 1-12, 2024


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

China's CAS Space Successfully Tests Lijian-2 Rocket Engine for 320 seconds

China's CAS Space Successfully Tests Lijian-2 Rocket Engine for 320 seconds


[No Audio] Chinese commercial rocket company CAS Space successfully tested its first stage 85-ton liquid oxygen/kerosene Lijian-2 rocket engine and servo system for 320 seconds, meeting flight requirements. This validates its reliability for upcoming power system tests. First flight is set for 2025. It is expected to become a major liquid propellant carrier rocket for China's launch missions, supporting low-cost cargo spacecraft and the buildout of large communications satellite constellations. This will include first stage recovery being achieved by a vertical landing.

Lijian-2 has a core stage diameter of 3.35 meters, a total length of 53 meters, a takeoff weight of 625 tons, and a takeoff thrust of 766 tons. The Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) carrying capacity is 8 tons, and the LEO carrying capacity is 12 tons.

CAS Space (Chinese: 中科宇航) is a Chinese commercial space launch provider based in Guangzhou. It was founded in 2018 and is majority owned by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).


Video Credit: CNSA Watcher

Duration: 5 minutes, 31 seconds 

Release Date: Aug. 14, 2024


#NASA #Space #China #中国 #CASSpace #中科宇航 #Rocket #RocketEngines #Lijian2Engine #LOXKerosene #RocketEngineTests #VTOL #LEO #Spaceflight #CommercialSpace #Satellites #SatelliteConstellations #TiangongSpaceStation #ChinaSpaceStation #CSS #CommercialCargo #Guangzhou #Guangdong #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Friday, August 16, 2024

Lightning over India | International Space Station

Lightning over India | International Space Station

NASA Astronaut Matthew Dominick: "When trying to capture lighting in an image, I use burst mode and hope lighting strikes in the frame. I was super happy when this lightning strike ended up in the middle of the frame. No crop needed." 

Techncial details: 1/5s, 85mm, f1.4, ISO 6400

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)


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

Release Date: Aug. 11, 2024


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #Meteorology #Weather #Lightning #India #BhāratGaṇarājya #SoyuzCrewSpacecraft #Astronaut #MatthewDominick #AstronautPhotography #UnitedStates #SpaceLaboratory #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #Expedition71 #STEM #Education

Aurora over Pennsylvania

Aurora over Pennsylvania

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

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

The Colors of the Aurora (U.S. National Park Service)

Technical details: Canon 5D Mark IV + Rokinon 24mm 1.4 Shutter Speed: 10 seconds F/1.4 ISO 500


Image Credit: Tony Bendele

Tony's website:

https://www.tonybendelephotography.com

Location: Upper Augusta Township, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania

Image Date: August 12, 2024 


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Planet #Earth #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #MagneticField #Magnetosphere #SolarWind #Sun #Star #Astrophotography #TonyBendele #Astrophotographer #UpperAugustaTownship #NorthumberlandCounty #Pennsylvania #UnitedStates #NorthAmerica #STEM #Education

Cerro Tololo captura deslumbrante cúmulo galáctico en Chile

Cerro Tololo captura deslumbrante cúmulo galáctico en Chile

Cosmoview Episodio 85: La cámara de Energía Oscura captura una imagen del deslumbrante Cúmulo de Coma, llamado así por el cabello de la Reina Berenice II de Egipto. Este conjunto de galaxias no sólo es significativo en la mitología griega, sino que también fue fundamental para el descubrimiento de la materia oscura. La teoría surgió en 1937, cuando el astrónomo Fritz Zwicky observó que las galaxias del Cúmulo de Coma se comportaban como si estuvieran bajo la influencia de grandes cantidades de materia “oscura” inobservable.


Credit:

Images and Videos: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA/T. Slovinský/S. Hall/A. Cuerden/N. Bartmann

Image Processing: D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Duration: 1 minute, 26 seconds

Release Date: Aug. 14, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #NASAenespañol #español #Galaxies #GalaxyClusters #ComaCluster #ACO1656 #DarkMatter #Astrophysics #ComaBerenices #Constellation #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #KPNO #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #KittPeak #Arizona #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Coma Galaxy Cluster: Queen Berenice II’s Hair Tied Together by Dark Matter

The Coma Galaxy Cluster: Queen Berenice II’s Hair Tied Together by Dark Matter

Cosmoview Episode 85: The Dark Energy Camera captures an image of the dazzling Coma Cluster, named after the hair of Queen Berenice II of Egypt. Not only significant in Greek mythology, this collection of galaxies was also fundamental to the discovery of the existence of dark matter. The theory emerged in 1937 when Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky noticed that the Coma Cluster galaxies behaved as if they were under the influence of vast amounts of unobservable ‘dark’ matter.

Distance: 320 million light years


Credit:

Images and Videos: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA/T. Slovinský/S. Hall/A. Cuerden/N. Bartmann

Image Processing: D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Duration: 1 minute, 26 seconds

Release Date: Aug. 15, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #GalaxyClusters #ComaCluster #ACO1656 #DarkMatter #Astrophysics #ComaBerenices #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #KPNO #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #KittPeak #Arizona #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Zooming into The Coma Cluster | NOIRLab-DOE Dark Energy Camera

Zooming into The Coma Cluster | NOIRLab-DOE Dark Energy Camera


The Dark Energy Camera captured an image of the dazzling Coma Cluster, named after the hair of Queen Berenice II of Egypt. Not only significant in Greek mythology, this collection of galaxies was also fundamental to the discovery of the existence of dark matter. The theory emerged in 1937 when Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky noticed that the Coma Cluster galaxies behaved as if they were under the influence of vast amounts of unobservable ‘dark’ matter.

Distance: 320 million light years


Video Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA/N. Bartmann

Image Processing: D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: Aug. 15, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #GalaxyClusters #ComaCluster #ACO1656 #DarkMatter #Astrophysics #ComaBerenices #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #KPNO #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #KittPeak #Arizona #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Pan on The Coma Cluster: Distance 320 million light years | Dark Energy Camera

Pan on The Coma Cluster: Distance 320 million light years | Dark Energy Camera

The Dark Energy Camera captured an image of the dazzling Coma Cluster, named after the hair of Queen Berenice II of Egypt. Not only significant in Greek mythology, this collection of galaxies was also fundamental to the discovery of the existence of dark matter. The theory emerged in 1937 when Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky noticed that the Coma Cluster galaxies behaved as if they were under the influence of vast amounts of unobservable ‘dark’ matter.


Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA/N. Bartmann

Image Processing: D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Duration: 30 seconds
Release Date: Aug. 15, 2024


#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #GalaxyClusters #ComaCluster #ACO1656 #DarkMatter #Astrophysics #ComaBerenices #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #KPNO #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #KittPeak #Arizona #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Coma Cluster: Held Together by Dark Matter | Victor Blanco Telescope

Coma Cluster: Held Together by Dark Matter | Victor Blanco Telescope

The Dark Energy Camera captures an image of the dazzling Coma Cluster, named after the hair of Queen Berenice II of Egypt. Not only significant in Greek mythology, this collection of galaxies was also fundamental to the discovery of the existence of dark matter. The theory emerged in 1937 when Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky noticed that the Coma Cluster galaxies behaved as if they were under the influence of vast amounts of unobservable ‘dark’ matter.

The Dark Energy Camera on the Victor Blanco Telescope has probed the Coma Cluster—a rich cluster of galaxies named for the hair of an ancient queen and an inspiration for the theory of dark matter. This densely populated image showcases an enormous cluster not of individual stars, but of entire galaxies, known as the Coma Cluster. The Coma Cluster is named for the constellation where it lies, Coma Berenices. It is the only one of the 88 IAU constellations to be named after a historical figure. Its namesake is Queen Berenice II of Egypt, or more precisely her hair, with ‘coma’ meaning ‘hair of the head’ in Latin.

Distance: 320 million light years

Berenice famously cut her hair off and presented it as a votive offering to the gods when her husband returned safely from war. The hair was placed in a temple, but went missing soon after. The court astronomer, Conon of Samos, claimed to identify Berenice’s lost tresses in a rather unlikely spot—the night sky—suggesting that the goddess Aphrodites had catasterized (literally turned into a constellation) the queen’s locks. This all took place around 245 BCE, meaning that Berenice’s hair has enjoyed celestial recognition for an extraordinarily long time.

The data used to build this detailed picture were collected by the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam). It is mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, a Program of the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab. The 570-megapixel camera was built to carry out the Dark Energy Survey (DES)—an amazing 758-night run of observations between 2013 and 2019. DES was conducted with the intention to better understand the nature of dark energy—the unknown entity that is causing the expansion of our Universe to accelerate.

The Coma Cluster is closely associated with dark energy’s equally mysterious counterpart: dark matter. Nearly a century ago, in 1937, Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky observed several galaxies within the Coma Cluster. He calculated an approximation of the cluster’s mass based on its luminous—in other words, observable—structures.  However, he encountered something strange. The cluster seemed to be missing mass. In fact, the galaxies within the cluster were behaving as though the cluster contained 400 times more mass than his estimates suggested.

Zwicky reached this conclusion by observing how fast the galaxies within the cluster were moving. To explain this further, it is helpful to briefly revisit a key point about the nature of gravity. Gravity is one of the four known fundamental interactions that exist between all entities with energy or mass. The more mass that an object has, the stronger the gravitational pull it will exert. Therefore, less massive objects that are within a certain distance to a more massive object will be pulled uncontrollably towards it.

However, there is an additional factor to consider: velocity. If an object is moving fast enough, it can escape the gravitational pull of other objects. It is this principle that enabled Zwicky to infer that the Coma Cluster appeared to be ‘missing’ matter. He found that the galaxies were moving so fast that they should be escaping the cluster if it were being held together only by the observable mass. This led him to postulate that the cluster must be held together by vast amounts of unobservable ‘dark’ matter, although this suggestion seemed far-fetched to much of the astronomical community.

It took until the 1980s for the majority of astronomers to be convinced of the existence of dark matter. The consensus moved as several studies came out reporting the same curious mass inconsistency that Zwicky observed, but on the scale of single galaxies rather than entire galaxy clusters. One such study was done in 1970 by U.S. astronomers Kent Ford and Vera C. Rubin, who found evidence of invisible matter in the Andromeda Galaxy. And in 1979, astronomers Sandra Faber and John Gallagher performed a robust analysis of the mass-to-light ratio for over 50 spiral and elliptical galaxies. This led them to conclude that, “the case for invisible mass in the Universe is very strong and getting stronger.”

The existence of dark matter and dark energy is now widely accepted, and understanding their elusive nature is a main focus of modern astrophysics. A deeper understanding may be on the horizon with the upcoming 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time. It will be conducted by NSF–Department of Energy Vera C. Rubin Observatory, named after the inspirational female astronomer that helped show the world that there is so much more to the Universe than meets the eye.


Image Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA

Image Processing: D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Release Date: Aug. 14, 2024


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