The Science of the Aurora | BBC Sky at Night Magazine

The Science of the Aurora | BBC Sky at Night Magazine

The aurora are set to be at their best in the next few years, but what creates the light show in the first place?

Join us as we talk with aurora expert Melanie Windridge in Episode 2 of our Aurora special series of Star Diary podcast, from the makers of Sky at Night Magazine.

Melanie Windridge is a British plasma physicist and science communicator best known for her book Aurora: In Search of the Northern Lights.

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 which 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.

Video Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine

Duration: 26 minutes

Release Date: Oct. 10, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Sun #Star #CME #Earth #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #AuroraAustralis #SouthernLights #Skywatching #Cosmos #Universe #SolarSystem #BBC #Podcast #STEM #Education 

The Northern Lights & STEVE Arcs in France

The Northern Lights & STEVE Arcs in France

At the far left and right, arcs of light appear to be a phenomenon known as STEVE, short for Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement. Unlike auroras, the STEVE seems to form from a ribbon of hot gases.

Astrophotographer Julien Looten: ". . . It all started two days ago, when a huge X-class solar flare propelled a gigantic coronal mass ejection (CME) towards Earth. It hit our planet yesterday afternoon, generating polar auroras that have continued to light up the sky ever since. . ."

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 which 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.

In the last photo of the series, at the far left and right, arcs of light appear to be a phenomenon known as STEVE, short for Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement. Unlike other auroras, the STEVE seems to form from a ribbon of hot gases.

Image Credit: Julien Looten

Release Date: Oct. 10, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Sun #Star #CME #Earth #France #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #STEVE #CitizenScience #Astrophotographer #JulienLooten #Astrophotography #Cosmos #Universe #SolarSystem #STEM #Education

The Himalayas & Mount Everest | International Space Station

The Himalayas & Mount Everest | International Space Station

NASA astronaut Don Pettit: "Mt. Everest is in this photo; can you find it? It is the big mountain that sticks up high. Mount Everest is the tallest peak in a whole range of tall peaks and not easily found. We have a way of picking it out, sort of like a geographic mnemonic that serves to impress rookie crewmembers."

"As your orbit approaches the Himalayas, always from west to east, you can readily spy two nested lakes that look like 'wine glasses'. Now only 15 seconds away from Everest, you quickly search for “Bow Tie Lake”, seen in photo 2. To find Everest, go east from Bow Tie Lake to the first large drainage (about 3 Bow Tie lengths), drop down to the end of the right fork and move SE from that point about one Bow Tie and there be Everest!"

"Again, not easy to find when you have maybe 10-15 seconds to get a good photo. Photo 3 is an oblique and allows Everest’s peak to be spotted."

Image details: Nikon Z9, Sigma 50-500 lens f2.8 lens at 78mm, 1/2500 sec, f8, ISO 500

Mount Everest is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The Himalayas, separating the Indian subcontinent from China, home to the South Asian nations of Nepal and Bhutan, and with Lakes Mansarovar and Rakshastal on the Chinese side, are pictured from the International Space Station as it orbited 261 miles above. The Himalayas, or Himalaya, is a mountain range in Asia. The range has a number of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 peaks exceed elevations of 7,200 meters (23,600 feet) above sea level in the Himalayas.

The Himalayas cross five countries: Nepal, China, Pakistan, Bhutan and India.

Expedition 72 Updates:

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

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams

Roscosmos (Russia): Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov

NASA: Matthew Dominick, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps, Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

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

Image Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)/D. Pettit

Release Date: Oct. 11, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Planet #Earth #Himalayas #Nepal #MountEverest #China #中国 #Asia #Astronauts #DonPettit #AstronautPhotography #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #Russia #Roscosmos #HumanSpaceflight #Expedition72 #STEM #Education

Preparing for SpaceX Starship Test Flight 5 at Starbase Texas

Preparing for SpaceX Starship Test Flight 5 at Starbase Texas

Starship is stacked ahead of its fifth flight test at Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas. Regulatory approval is expected as soon as October 13, 2024.

Find updates on Starship Test Flight 5 here:

https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=starship-flight-5

"Starship is essential to both SpaceX’s plans to deploy its next-generation Starship system as well as for NASA, which will use a lunar lander version of Starship for landing astronauts on the Moon during the Artemis III mission through the Human Landing System (HLS) program."

Key Starship Parameters:

Height: 121m/397ft

Diameter: 9m/29.5ft

Payload to LEO: 100 – 150t (fully reusable)

Satellites: "Starship is designed to deliver satellites further and at a lower marginal cost per launch than our current Falcon vehicles. With a payload compartment larger than any fairing currently in operation or development, Starship creates possibilities for new missions, including space telescopes even larger than the James Webb."

Super Heavy is the first stage, or booster, of the Starship launch system. Powered by 33 Raptor engines using sub-cooled liquid methane (CH4) and liquid oxygen (LOX), Super Heavy is fully reusable and will re-enter Earth’s atmosphere to land back at the launch site.

Starship's Engines: Raptors

"The Raptor engine is a reusable methalox staged-combustion engine that powers the Starship launch system. Raptor engines began flight testing on the Starship prototype rockets in July 2019, becoming the first full-flow staged combustion rocket engine ever flown."

Raptor Engine Parameters:

Diameter: 1.3m/4ft

Height: 3.1m/10.2ft

Thrust: 230tf/500 klbf

Learn more:

https://www.spacex.com/vehicles/starship/

Download the Free Starship User Guide (PDF):

https://www.spacex.com/media/starship_users_guide_v1.pdf

Image Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)

Release Dates: Oct. 7-11, 2024

#NASA #SpaceX #Space #Earth #Mars #Moon #MoonToMars #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIII #Starship #Starship5 #TestFlight5 #HeavyBooster #Spacecraft #SuperHeavyRocket #ElonMusk #SpaceTechnology #Engineering #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #SpaceExploration #Starbase #BocaChica #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Earth Aurora from Geomagnetic Storm | International Space Station

Earth Aurora from Geomagnetic Storm | International Space Station

NASA astronaut Don Pettit: "The sun goes burp and the atmosphere turns red. Spectacular not only from Earth but from orbit as well. This event caught both Astronaut Matthew Dominick and I off guard. Aurora had been just so-so; we were out of energy at the end of a long day and reluctant to once again set up our cameras up for yet another 'No Show'. We were just heading to some much needed sleep when we made the mistake of peeking out the Cupola windows." 

"Stunning was the word."

"It looked like the International Space Station had been shrunk to some miniature dimension and inserted into a neon sign. We were not flying 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 the aurora; we were flying 𝘪𝘯 the aurora. And it was blood red. Caught off guard, we hastily set up our cameras, four of them, all snapping shutters as fast as they could, creating a syncopated rhythm that accented Nature’s artistic display presented before us."

"Here is one of the shots."

Image details: Nikon Z9, Nikon 24mm f1.4 lens, 1/5 second, f1.4, ISO 3200, adjusted in Photoshop (noise reduction, color, contrast)

Expedition 72 Updates:

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

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams

Roscosmos (Russia): Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov

NASA: Matthew Dominick, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps, Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

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)/D. Pettit

Release Date: Oct. 11, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Sun #SolarSystem #SolarFlares #CME #Planet #Earth #Aurora #GeomagneticStorm #Astronauts #DonPettit #AstronautPhotography #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Роскосмос #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #Expedition72 #STEM #Education

Dusty Water Ice in Mars' Terra Sirenum | NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Dusty Water Ice in Mars' Terra Sirenum | NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

This image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) shows white material believed to be dusty water ice lining the edges of Martian gullies in a region named Terra Sirenum. Scientists believe dust particles within this ice act similarly to dust that falls onto glaciers on Earth, warming up in sunlight and causing subsurface pockets of meltwater to form.

On Earth, the dust that builds up on glaciers is called cryoconite, and the pockets it forms are called cryoconite holes. These pockets of water on our planet are often teeming with simple life, including algae, fungi, and cyanobacteria. Scientists believe similar shallow pools of water could exist on Mars, and may also be excellent places to search for life on the Red Planet today.

This enhanced-color image was captured by MRO's High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on Dec. 25, 2016.

The blue color at the bottom of the gullies is likely coarse sand (not ice); the hue would not actually be perceptible to the human eye. HiRISE is able to detect this color by looking at the scene in far-infrared wavelengths.

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) is a spacecraft designed to study the geology and climate of Mars, to provide reconnaissance of future landing sites, and to relay data from surface missions back to Earth. It was launched on August 12, 2005, and reached Mars on March 10, 2006. 

For more information on MRO, visit:

https://mars.nasa.gov/mro

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MRO/mission/index.html

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) manages MRO for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Caltech, in Pasadena, manages JPL for NASA. The University of Arizona, in Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., in Boulder, Colorado. The Context Camera was built by, and is operated by, Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego.

Image Credit: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory--Caltech/University of Arizona

Image Date: Dec. 25, 2016

Release Date: Oct. 10, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Mars #Planet #RedPlanet #Science #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #TerraSirenum #Gullies #Dust #WaterIce #MRO #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISECamera #Infrared #JPL #Caltech #BallAerospace #MSSS #STEM #Education

Hurricane Milton Damage Assessment | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

Hurricane Milton Damage Assessment | NASA's Kennedy Space Center

Oct. 10, 2024 Update: "Kennedy's Ride Out Team is conducting an initial assessment of the center. The majority of the impacts observed at this time are minor damage to doors, traffic lights, awnings, and small trailers."

"The Damage Assessment and Recovery Team, or DART, will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the center prior to determining conditions are safe for employees to return on-site."

"The agency’s Europa Clipper launch team will schedule an official launch date when teams from NASA and SpaceX are able to perform their assessments, and confirm its safe to launch. Teams are working to protect launch opportunities no earlier than Sunday, Oct. 13. Clipper has launch opportunities through Wednesday, Nov. 6."

"NASA will provide more information on Clipper launch opportunities as it becomes available."

Learn more about NASA's Kennedy Space Center:

https://www.nasa.gov/kennedy/

Europa Clipper is expected to reach the Jupiter system in April 2030, and it will accomplish a few milestones along the way, including a Mars flyby in February 2025 that will help propel the spacecraft toward Jupiter’s moon through a Mars-Earth gravity assist trajectory.

For more information on the Europa Clipper mission, visit: 

https://europa.nasa.gov/

https://blogs.nasa.gov/europaclipper/

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

Image Dates: Oct. 8-11, 2024

#NASA #Science #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #Meteorology #Weather #Oceans #AtlanticOcean #SeaTemperatures #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #Environment #HurricaneMilton #KennedySpaceCenter #KSC #MerrittIsland #EuropaClipper #SpaceX #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Hurricane Milton Crosses Florida | NASA Earth Observatory

Hurricane Milton Crosses Florida | NASA Earth Observatory

Hurricane Milton barreled into Florida’s west-central coast on the evening of October 9, 2024, making landfall south of Tampa as a major Category 3 storm. The hurricane lashed the region with heavy rainfall, damaging winds, and life-threatening storm surge, according to the National Hurricane Center.

This animation shows Milton in the days before, during, and after its devastating encounter with Florida. The false-color images depict infrared signals known as brightness temperature. This is useful for distinguishing cooler cloud structures (white and purple) from the warmer surface below (yellow and orange). Data for the animation were acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instruments on several NASA and NOAA satellites.

Since infrared data are based on temperatures rather than visible light, the data can be obtained day or night. This animation shows both daytime and nighttime images, beginning at 3:35 p.m. Eastern Time (19:35 Universal Time) on October 8 and ending at 3:08 a.m. Eastern Time (07:08 Universal Time) on October 10.

Shortly before the first image of this series, Milton was a Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 155 miles (250 kilometers) per hour. It soon grew to a Category 5 storm and then weakened to a still-potent Category 3 storm prior to making landfall on October 9. The storm maintained hurricane-strength intensity and fast, forward speed while crossing Florida, emerging over the western Atlantic as a Category 1 storm with sustained winds of 85 miles (140 kilometers) per hour at the end of this animation on October 10.

NASA’s Disaster Response Coordination System (DRCS) has been activated to support agencies responding to the storm, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Florida Geospatial Information Office. The team will be posting maps and data products on its open-access mapping portal as new information becomes available about flooding, power outages, precipitation totals, and other topics.

Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Michala Garrison, using MODIS and VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview and the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS)

Release Date: Oct. 11, 2024

#NASA #NOAA #Space #Satellites #NOAA20 #NOAA21 #NASATerra #Science #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #Meteorology #Weather #Oceans #AtlanticOcean #GulfOfMexico #SeaTemperatures #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #Environment #HurricaneMilton #Florida #UnitedStates #Animation #STEM #Education

NASA's Space to Ground: Observing Extreme Storms | Week of Oct. 11, 2024

NASA's Space to Ground: Observing Extreme Storms | Week of Oct. 11, 2024

NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station. Aboard the International Space Station, NASA's Space Crew-8 includes NASA astronauts Matt Dominick, Mike Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia. They gave farewell remarks on October 10, 2024, ahead of their upcoming departure from the International Space Station. Joining Crew-8 were NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, and Nick Hague as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, and Aleksandr Gorbunov of Russia. 

Crew-8 is slated to undock on October 13 and splashdown off the coast of Florida October 14 after completing a seven month mission.

Expedition 72 Updates:

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

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams

Roscosmos (Russia): Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov

NASA: Matthew Dominick, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps, Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

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, 30 seconds

Release Date: Oct. 11, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #SpaceX #HurricaneMilton #SpaceXCrew8 #CrewDragonSpacecraft #Earth #Astronauts #MatthewDominick #MichaelBarratt #JeanetteEpps #Cosmonaut #AleksandrGrebenkin #LongDurationMission #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #UnitedStates #Russia #Россия #Роскосмос #Expedition72 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Comet C/2023 A3, Aurora, Orbital Sunrise & Airglow | International Space Station

Comet C/2023 A3, Aurora, Orbital Sunrise & Airglow | International Space Station

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was about 44 million miles away from Earth in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 272 miles above the South Pacific Ocean southeast of New Zealand just before sunrise.

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was about 44 million miles away from Earth in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 272 miles above the South Pacific Ocean southeast of New Zealand just before sunrise.

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was about 44 million miles away from Earth in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 272 miles above the South Pacific Ocean west of the Patagonia region of South America just before sunrise.

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was about 44 million miles away from Earth in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited into a sunrise 272 miles above the Indian Ocean south of Australia's island state of Tasmania. The aurora australis seemingly fades into the atmospheric glow above Earth's horizon.

The aurora australis blends with Earth's atmospheric glow blanketing the nighttime horizon with New Zealand's city lights below in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 270 miles above the Tasman Sea.

The aurora australis blends with Earth's atmospheric glow blanketing the nighttime horizon in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 271 miles above the Pacific Ocean off the coast of New Zealand.

As the International Space Station soared 266 miles over Western Australia, NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps captured this long-exposure shot of Earth at night and star trails glittering above airglow in the Earth's the atmosphere.

The first rays of an orbital sunrise breakthrough illuminating Earth's atmosphere in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 272 miles above the South Pacifc Ocean off the southern coast of New Zealand. In the foreground, at right, is the Canadarm2 robotic arm and partially obscured at top, is the SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecract docked to the Harmony module's forward port.

C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) is a comet from the solar system's Oort cloud discovered by the Purple Mountain Observatory east of Nanjing, China, on January 9, 2023, and independently found by the automated Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) in South Africa on February 22, 2023. ATLAS is funded by NASA's planetary defense office, and developed and operated by the University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy. C/2023 A3 will pass perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) at a distance of 0.39 AU (58 million km; 36 million miles) on September 27, 2024. This is when it can be best viewed with the naked eye from the ground on Earth.

The Oort cloud is theorized to be a vast cloud of icy planetesimals surrounding the Sun at distances ranging from 2,000 to 200,000 AU (0.03 to 3.2 light-years). The concept of such a cloud was proposed in 1950 by the Dutch astronomer Jan Oort, in whose honor the idea was named. Oort proposed that the bodies in this cloud replenish and keep constant the number of long-period comets entering the inner Solar System—where they are eventually consumed and destroyed during close approaches to the Sun.

Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light to shed their excess energy. Or, it can happen when atoms and molecules that have been ionized by sunlight collide with and capture a free electron. In both cases, they eject a particle of light—called a photon—in order to relax again. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is energized by ordinary, day-to-day solar radiation.

Expedition 72 Updates:

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

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams

Roscosmos (Russia): Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov

NASA: Matthew Dominick, Mike Barrett, Jeanette Epps, Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

Image Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center

Image Dates: Sept. 27-Oct. 1, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #Astronomy #ISS #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #Airglow #AuroraAustralis #OrbitalSunrise #Comets #CometTsuchinshanATLAS #C2023A3 #SolarSystem #Astronauts #AstronautPhotography #UnitedStates #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #Expedition72 #China #中国 #SouthAfrica #STEM #Education

NASA's SpaceX Crew-8: Farewell Remarks | International Space Station

NASA's SpaceX Crew-8: Farewell Remarks | International Space Station

Aboard the International Space Station, NASA's Space Crew-8 includes NASA astronauts Matt Dominick, Mike Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia. They gave farewell remarks on October 10, 2024, ahead of their upcoming departure from the International Space Station. Joining Crew-8 were NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, and Nick Hague as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, and Aleksandr Gorbunov of Russia. 

Crew-8 is slated to undock on October 13 and splashdown off the coast of Florida October 14 after completing a seven month mission.

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

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

Duration: 4 minutes, 37 seconds

Record Date: Oct. 10, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #SpaceX #SpaceXCrew8 #CrewDragonSpacecraft #Earth #Astronauts #MatthewDominick #MichaelBarratt #JeanetteEpps #Cosmonaut #AleksandrGrebenkin #LongDurationMission #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #UnitedStates #Russia #Россия #Роскосмос #Expedition71 #Expedition72 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Possible Volcanic Moon Detected 635 Light-Years Away | NASA/JPL

Possible Volcanic Moon Detected 635 Light-Years Away | NASA/JPL

The existence of exomoons (moons around planets outside our solar system) has long been theorized, but their detection has remained elusive due to their small size and faintness. A new NASA-led study, however, suggests that a potential exomoon may be orbiting the exoplanet WASP-49 b, a gas giant located 635 light-years from Earth. The possible exomoon is believed to be rocky and volcanically active, similar to Jupiter’s moon Io.

The study centers on a sodium cloud near WASP-49 b that was discovered in 2017. It shares characteristics with the gas emissions seen around Io. The scientists tracked the cloud’s motion and the data strongly indicates the presence of a separate orbiting body—an exomoon—as the source.

Further observations are needed to confirm the existence of this potential exomoon. If WASP-49 b indeed hosts a moon similar in size to that of Earth, the exomoon may face a violent fate. Gravitational forces from the exoplanet could eventually cause it to disintegrate.

Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: Oct. 10, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Star #WASP49b #Exoplanet #Planet #Exomoon #VolcanicMoon #Lepus #Constellation #Science #Cosmos #Universe #JPL #Caltech #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Art #Animation #HD #Video

Today's Earth Geomagnetic Storm: Currents Flowing into Ground | USGS/NOAA

Today's Earth Geomagnetic Storm: Currents Flowing into Ground | USGS/NOAA

Electrical currents are currently flowing through rocks and soil of the United States, Canada and other countries and areas of our planet in response to today's geomagnetic storm. Red zones in these maps from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) show where the geoelectric voltages have been the highest. "Peak voltages in the US midwest are approaching 5 V/km. For reference, this is less than 25% of what caused the Great Quebec Blackout in 1989. Power outages are currently unlikely." The first two maps are "snapshots from a real-time display that takes into account the 3D conductivity of the Earth and ongoing geomagnetic activity. A computer at NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center generates the data to produce minute-by-minute estimates of electricity in the ground."

"The coronal mass ejection (CME) launched by the sun's X-flare on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, has just reached Earth. It appears to be as potent as advertized. Solar wind speeds have jumped up to 750 km/s, and a crack is opening in Earth's magnetic field. A strong G3-class geomanetic storm is underway with a good chance that it will intensify to category G4 (severe). If it is dark where you are, be alert for auroras!"

The geoelectric field is a measure of the induction hazard to human-made conductors, such as electrical power lines, that results from geomagnetic activity, and can be used to estimate the amount of current induced by integrating along the conducting pathway. 

The US-Canada-1D geoelectric field model uses 1D conductivity models over the lower 48 United States and over Canada up to 60 degrees latitude, with output spatial resolution of 1/2 degree in latitude and longitude. Potentially hazardous geoelectric fields can be induced during geomagnetic storms. 

These geomagnetic storms are a form of space weather driven by enhanced currents in Earth's magnetosphere and ionosphere and are observed at ground level as a time-varying magnetic field. As is well known from Faraday's law, a time-varying magnetic field induces currents along natural and artificial conducting pathways. 

These geoelectric field maps combine information about the time-varying magnetic field together with Earth-conductivity information to estimate regional geoelectric fields. The amount of current induced in an artificial conductor may be calculated by integrating the geoelectric field along the conducting pathway. When currents are induced in artificial conductors, unexpected and sometimes problematic effects can occur in the operation of the affected equipment. 

Learn more about the effect this has on electrical power systems on Earth here: https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/impacts/electric-power-transmission

The near real-time US-Canada-1D E-field mapping project is a joint effort between NOAA/SWPC and NRCan/CHIS Space Weather, in collaboration with the USGS geomagnetism group and the NASA/Community Coordinated Modeling Center (CCMC).

Image Credits: NOAA/United States Geological Survey (USGS)/Natural Resources Canada

Article Credit: NOAA/Spaceweather[dot]com

Release Date: Oct. 10, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Earth #GeomagneticStorms #SpaceWeather #Sun #Star #SolarFlares #CME #Sunspots #Plasma #MagneticField #Heliophysics #Physics #Spacecraft #Satellites #ElectricalGrids #SolarSystem #NOAA #USGS #GSFC #UnitedStates #NRCan #Canada #Infographics #STEM #Education

Sun Releases Two Strong Solar Flares in 2 Days | NASA SDO

Sun Releases Two Strong Solar Flares in 2 Days | NASA SDO

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare—seen as the bright flash in the center of the Sun’s disk—on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024. The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares. This is colorized in red.

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare—seen as the bright flash on the right—on Oct. 9, 2024. The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares. This is colorized in gold.

The Sun emitted two strong solar flares—an X1.8 flare peaking at 9:56 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024 and an X1.4 flare peaking at 11:47 a.m. ET on October 9, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) watches the Sun constantly and captured images of both events.

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

The Sun's outer atmosphere, the corona, is structured by strong magnetic fields. Where these fields are closed, often above sunspot groups, the confined solar atmosphere can suddenly and violently release bubbles of gas and magnetic fields called coronal mass ejections (CMEs). A large CME can contain a billion tons of matter that can be accelerated to several million miles per hour in a spectacular explosion. Solar material streams out through the interplanetary medium, impacting any planet or spacecraft in its path. CMEs are sometimes associated with flares but can occur independently.

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov/, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. 

NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.

Image Credit: NASA/SDO

Capture Dates: Oct. 8-9, 2024

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Ye Guangfu: 1st Chinese Astronaut to Spend 340+ Days in Space | China Space Station

Ye Guangfu: 1st Chinese Astronaut to Spend 340+ Days in Space | China Space Station

At the beginning of October 2024, Shenzhou-18 crew member, Ye Guangfu, became the first Chinese astronaut to spend over 340 days at China's orbiting space station. He is now looking forward to new records in space endurance.

Ye Guangfu, and two other astronauts, Li Cong and Li Guangsu, were sent to China's Tiangong space station aboard their Shenzhou-18 crew spacecraft on April 25, 2024.

Ye said that such an achievement not only marks a personal triumph, but also signifies the progress of China's space program as it ventures into an era of expansion in space exploration.

"I'm fortunate enough to witness such a great era, and I believe the record for in-orbit duration will be broken soon. As the representatives of the countless strivers and climbers in China's space endeavors, we remain steadfast in our mission and responsibility for China's manned space missions. As the Chinese space station has now entered the phase of operation and development, I'm confident that more 'footprints' of Chinese astronauts will be left in space in the future," said Ye.

The three crew members are scheduled to return to Earth later this month.

Shenzhou-18 Crew:

Ye Guangfu (叶光富, commander)

Li Cong (李聪, mission specialist)

Li Guangsu (李广苏, mission specialist)

Video Credit: CCTV

Duration: 48 seconds

Release Date: Oct. 1, 2024

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NASA's SpaceX Crew-10: Training in California | International Space Station

NASA's SpaceX Crew-10: Training in California | International Space Station

The crew members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission (from left) mission specialist Kirill Peskov of Roscosmos (Russia), NASA astronauts Nichole Ayers, pilot, and Anne McClain, commander, along with Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), pose for a picture during training at SpaceX in Hawthorne, California.

Crew-10 mission (from left) Mission Specialist Kirill Peskov of Roscosmos (Russia), NASA astronauts Nichole Ayers, pilot, and Anne McClain, commander, along with Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) are pictured training inside a Dragon mockup crew vehicle at SpaceX in Hawthorne, California.

NASA astronauts (from left) Nichole Ayers and Anne McClain, NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission pilot and commander respectively, smile and grab hands during a simulation inside a mockup of a SpaceX Dragon cockpit at the company's facilities in Hawthorne, California. 

NASA astronaut and commander of NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission Anne McClain in training

NASA astronaut and pilot of NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission Nichole Ayers in training

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut and NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi is pictured training inside a Dragon mockup crew vehicle at the company's facilities in Hawthorne, California.

Roscosmos cosmonaut and mission specialist of NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission Kirill Peskov of Russia is pictured training inside a Dragon mockup crew vehicle at the company's in Hawthorne, California.

The SpaceX Crew-10 patch

Four crew members are preparing to launch for a long-duration stay aboard the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Commander Anne McClain and Pilot Nichole Ayers, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Kirill Peskov of Russia will join astronauts at the orbiting laboratory no earlier than February 2025.

Veteran Astronaut Anne McClain NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/anne-c-mcclain/

https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/astronauts/anne-c-mcclain/

Astronaut Nichole Ayers NASA Biography:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/nasa-astronaut-nichole-ayers

https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/astronauts/nasa-astronaut-nichole-ayers/

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi Biography

https://humans-in-space.jaxa.jp/en/astronaut/onishi-takuya/

The flight is the 10th crew rotation with SpaceX to the station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. While aboard, the international crew will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare humans for future missions and benefit people on Earth.

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

Image Credits: SpaceX/NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)

Image Dates: Sept. 26-Oct. 1, 2024

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