Happy Carl Sagan Day!

Happy Carl Sagan Day!

Today, we remember astronomer and science communicator Carl Sagan (1934-1996) on his birthday. He would have celebrated his 90th birthday on this date. A leading visionary in the American space program, Sagan inspired millions of people with his love for space exploration. 

Learn about Carl Sagan's important contributions to NASA and planetary exploration here: 
https://science.nasa.gov/people/carl-sagan

The founder of Friends of NASA, Dwayne Lawrence, was partly inspired by Carl Sagan to study astronomy at the University of Toronto and to found this organization in 2008. He grew up reading Carl Sagan's books, such as The Cosmic Connection published in 1973. He also watched the popular and award winning 13-part PBS television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage that Sagan narrated and co-wrote with Ann Druyan and Dr. Steven Soter in 1980. 

Friends of NASA (FoN) is an independent non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to building international support for peaceful space exploration, commerce, scientific discovery, and STEM education.

Learn more about Friends of NASA here (donations are welcome):

https://www.friendsofnasa.org

Carl Sagan founded The Planetary Society in 1980 together with Bruce Murray and Louis Friedman. This American internationally-active non-governmental nonprofit organization was involved in research, public outreach, and space advocacy for engineering projects related to astronomy, planetary science, and space exploration.

Image & Caption Credit: NASA's History Office/Dwayne Lawrence (FriendsofNASA.org) 
Release Date: Nov. 9, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #PlanetEarth #Planets #CarlSagan #CarlSaganDay #Birthday  #SpaceExploration #PlanetaryExploration #SolarSystem #Mars #VikingMissions #VoyagerMissions #SETI #CarlSagan #Astronomer #Scientist #ScienceCommunicator #PaleBlueDot #Humanity #Future #Learning #Curiosity #Imagination #History #Art #Music #STEM #Education #Documentaries #Cosmos #Universe

Aurora Timelapse over Italian Alps

Aurora Timelapse over Italian Alps

Here, a red glow is visible from energetic electron and proton particles, generated by an X-class solar flare, striking oxygen atoms high in Earth's atmosphere. This video shows a one-hour timelapse, compressed to 9 seconds, as seen from the town of Cortina d'Ampezzo over Alps Mountain peaks in northern Italy. Stars from our Milky Way Galaxy dot the background while streaks from airplanes and satellites punctuate the foreground. The high recent activity of our Sun is likely to continue to produce picturesque auroras over Earth during the next year or so since the Sun has reached its solar maximum period of its current 11-year cycle.

Learn more here—"Sun Reaches Maximum Phase in 11-Year Solar Cycle":

https://science.nasa.gov/science-research/heliophysics/nasa-noaa-sun-reaches-maximum-phase-in-11-year-solar-cycle/

The Alps are one of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately 1,200 km (750 mi) across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia.

Video Credit & Copyright: Cristian Bigontina

Cristian's website: 

https://www.nottidelledolomiti.it/chi-sono

Caption Credit: NASA Goddard

Duration: 9 seconds

Release Date: Oct. 11, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Planet #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #MagneticField #Magnetosphere #SolarWind #SolarFlares #Sun #Astrophotography #Astrophotographer #CristianBigontina #Alps #ItalianAlps #Italy #Italia #Europe #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Timelapse #HD #Video #APoD

The 'Helping Hand' Dark Nebula (LDN 1355) in Cassiopeia

The 'Helping Hand' Dark Nebula (LDN 1355) in Cassiopeia

Drifting near the plane of our Milky Way galaxy these dusty molecular clouds seem to extend a helping hand on a cosmic scale. They are part of a local complex of star-forming interstellar clouds they include LDN 1358, 1357, and 1355 from American astronomer Beverly Lynds' 1962 Catalog of Dark Nebulae. Presenting a challenging target for astrophotographers, these obscure dark nebulae are nearly 3,000 light-years away, toward rich starfields in the northern constellation Cassiopeia. At that distance, this deep, telescopic field of view would span about 80 light-years.

Lynds' Catalogue of Dark Nebulae (abbreviation: LDN) is an astronomical catalogue of dark nebulae. Objects listed in the catalog are numbered with the prefix LDN. Beverly Turner Lynds (August 19, 1929 – October 5, 2024) was best known for compiling two astronomical catalogues in the 1960s, Lynds' Catalogue of Bright Nebulae and Lynds' Catalogue of Dark Nebulae. We honor her many lasting contributions to astronomical science.

Image Credit & Copyright: Francesco Radici
Francesco's website: https://francescoradici.com
Caption Credit: NASA Goddard
Image Date: March 11, 2024
Release Date: Nov. 8, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #DarkNebulae #Nebula #DarkNebula #LDN1355 #LDN1358 #LDN1357 #StellarNurseries #Cassiopeia #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #CitizenScience #Astrophotographer #FrancescoRadici #Europe #Italy #Italia #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #APoD

Planet Mars Images: November 2024 | NASA's Mars Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Planet Mars Images: November 2024 | NASA's Mars Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Mars 2020 - sol 1321

Mars 2020 - sol 1302

MSL - sol 4355

Mars 2020 - sol 1319

Mars 2020 - sol 1319

Mars 2020 - sol 1319

Mars 2020 - sol 1321

Support FriendsofNASA.org

Celebrating 12+ Years on Mars (2012-2024)

Mission Name: Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)

Rover Name: Curiosity

Main Job: To determine if Mars was ever habitable to microbial life. 

Launch: Nov. 6, 2011

Landing Date: Aug. 5, 2012, Gale Crater, Mars

Celebrating 3+ Years on Mars

Mission Name: Mars 2020

Rover Name: Perseverance

Main Job: Seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for return to Earth.

Launch: July 30, 2020    

Landing: Feb. 18, 2021, Jezero Crater, Mars

For more information on NASA's Mars missions, visit: mars.nasa.gov

Image Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS

Processing: Kevin M. Gill

Image Release Dates: Nov. 6-7, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Astrobiology #Geology #CuriosityRover #MSL #MountSharp #GaleCrater #PerseveranceRover #Mars2020 #JezeroCrater #Robotics #SpaceTechnology #SpaceEngineering #JPL #Caltech #UnitedStates #CitizenScience #KevinGill #STEM #Education

Shell Galaxies (Arp 227): Stellar Companions in Pisces

Shell Galaxies (Arp 227): Stellar Companions in Pisces

This spectacular intergalactic skyscape features Arp 227, a curious system of galaxies from the 1966 Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies. About 100 million light-years distant within the boundaries of the constellation Pisces, Arp 227 consists of the two galaxies prominent above and left of center, the shell galaxy NGC 474 and its blue, spiral-armed neighbor NGC 470. 

The readily apparent shells and star streams of NGC 474 are likely tidal features originating from the accretion of another smaller galaxy during close gravitational encounters that began over a billion years ago. The large galaxy on the bottom righthand side of the deep image, NGC 467, appears to be surrounded by faint shells and streams too, evidence of another merging galaxy system. Intriguing background galaxies are scattered around the field that also includes spiky foreground stars. Of course, those stars lie well within our own Milky Way Galaxy. The telescopic field of view spans 25 arc minutes or just under 1/2 degree on the sky.

Image Credit & Copyright: George Williams

George's website: https://www.astrobin.com/users/KuriousGeorge/

Caption Credit: NASA Goddard

Release Date: Nov. 7, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Galaxies #Arp227 #InteractingGalaxies #ShellGalaxies #NGC467 #NGC474 #NGC470 #SpiralGalaxy #Pisces #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Astrophotography #Astrophotographer #GeorgeWilliams #STEM #Education #APoD

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 6 | Burrell Schmidt Telescope

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 6 | Burrell Schmidt Telescope

The Veil Nebula, also known as the Cygnus Loop, is an enormous region of diffuse gas emission, covering several degrees of the sky at about 1,500 light years away. Although this image is over a degree across (more than 40 light-years), using the full wide-field capability of the Burrell Schmidt Telescope, it still shows only the western segment (NGC 6960) of the entire object (over 100 light-years in width). These are the remains of a star that exploded 5,000 to 10,000 years ago. The original supernova would have been bright enough to be seen clearly from Earth with the naked eye. The star—that was 20 times the mass of the Sun—lived fast and died young, ending its life in a cataclysmic release of energy. The bright star near the center of the image, known as 52 Cygnus, is not associated with the supernova. 

The nebula consists mostly of interstellar matter swept up by the material flung off by the exploding star, and it still shines because of excitation due to the collision between this expanding shock wave and the interstellar medium. The Veil Nebula also emits X-rays, although they are weaker than those from younger supernova remnants such as Cassiopeia A, since the shock loses energy as it plows through its surroundings. 

Supernova explosions are perhaps the most spectacular events in our galaxy, occurring when a star throws off its outer layers at speeds of ten to twenty thousand kilometers per second, leaving behind sometimes nothing, sometimes a shriveled remnant neutron star, or sometimes a black hole. 

The Cygnus Loop (radio source W78, or Sharpless 103), located in the constellation Cygnus, is an emission nebula measuring nearly 3° across. Arcs of the loop, known collectively as the Veil Nebula or Cirrus Nebula, emit in the visible electromagnetic range. Radio, infrared, and X-ray images reveal the complete loop. The Cygnus Loop extends over three times the size of the full moon in the night sky, and is tucked next to one of the “swan’s wings” in the constellation of Cygnus.

This image was made by combining a number of exposures taken by the Burrell Schmidt Telescope of the Warner and Swasey Observatory of Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), situated on Kitt Peak in southern Arizona.

Learn more the Burrell Schmidt Telescope here:

https://noirlab.edu/public/programs/kitt-peak-national-observatory/burrell-schmidt-telescope/

Image Credit: N.A.Sharp, REU Program / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA

Release Date: June 30, 2020

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #SupernovaRemnant #SNR #Nebulae #Nebula #VeilNebula #CygnusLoop #W78 #Sharpless103 #IC1340 #NGC6960 #EmissionNebula #52Cygnus #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #BurrellSchmidtTelescope #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 5 | WIYN Telescope

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 5 | WIYN Telescope

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the WIYN 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona. It shows NGC 6960—faint filaments that are part of a large supernova remnant (SNR) called the Cygnus Loop. These are the remains of a star that exploded 5,000 to 10,000 years ago. The original supernova would have been bright enough to be seen clearly from Earth with the naked eye. The star—that was 20 times the mass of the Sun—lived fast and died young, ending its life in a cataclysmic release of energy. The distance to it is estimated at about 1,500 light years. The bright star near the center of the image, known as 52 Cygnus, is not associated with the supernova.

The Cygnus Loop (radio source W78, or Sharpless 103), located in the constellation Cygnus, is an emission nebula measuring nearly 3° across. Arcs of the loop, known collectively as the Veil Nebula or Cirrus Nebula, emit in the visible electromagnetic range. Radio, infrared, and X-ray images reveal the complete loop. The Cygnus Loop extends over three times the size of the full moon in the night sky, and is tucked next to one of the “swan’s wings” in the constellation of Cygnus.

The color image was generated by combining data from narrowband filters; data from H-alpha was assigned a red color, [OIII] is blue, and [SII] is green. North is to the left and east is down.

The WIYN Consortium, led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Indiana University, are operational responsible for the historic 0.9-meter (36-inch) WIYN Telescope at the National Science Foundation's Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO).

Image Credit: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) and WIYN/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Release Date: June 30, 2020

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #SupernovaRemnant #SNR #Nebulae #Nebula #VeilNebula #CygnusLoop #W78 #Sharpless103 #IC1340 #NGC6960 #EmissionNebula #52Cygnus #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #WIYNTelescope #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 4 | WIYN Telescope

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 4 | WIYN Telescope

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the WIYN 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona. It shows NGC 6992—faint filaments that are part of a large supernova remnant (SNR) called the Cygnus Loop. These are the remains of a star that exploded 5000 to 10,000 years ago. The original supernova would have been bright enough to be seen clearly from Earth with the naked eye. The star—that was 20 times the mass of the Sun—lived fast and died young, ending its life in a cataclysmic release of energy. The distance to it is estimated at about 1,500 light years.

The Cygnus Loop (radio source W78, or Sharpless 103), located in the constellation Cygnus, is an emission nebula measuring nearly 3° across. Arcs of the loop, known collectively as the Veil Nebula or Cirrus Nebula, emit in the visible electromagnetic range. Radio, infrared, and X-ray images reveal the complete loop. The Cygnus Loop extends over three times the size of the full moon in the night sky, and is tucked next to one of the “swan’s wings” in the constellation of Cygnus.

The image was generated with observations in the Oxygen [OIII] (blue), Sulphur [S II] (green) and Hydrogen-Alpha (orange) filters. In this image, North is right, East is up.

The WIYN Consortium, led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Indiana University, are operational responsible for the historic 0.9-meter (36-inch) WIYN Telescope at the National Science Foundation's Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO).

Image Credit: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) and WIYN/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Release Date: June 30, 2020

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #SupernovaRemnant #SNR #Nebulae #Nebula #VeilNebula #CygnusLoop #W78 #Sharpless103 #IC1340 #NGC6992 #EmissionNebula #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #WIYNTelescope #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 3 | WIYN Telescope

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 3 | WIYN Telescope

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the WIYN 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona. It shows faint filaments that are part of a large supernova remnant (SNR) called the Cygnus Loop. These are the remains of a star that exploded 5000 to 10,000 years ago. The original supernova would have been bright enough to be seen clearly from Earth with the naked eye. The star—that was 20 times the mass of the Sun—lived fast and died young, ending its life in a cataclysmic release of energy. The distance to it is estimated at about 1,500 light years.

Because of its immense size, the Veil Nebula contains several individually named objects, including NGC 6992 and IC 1340 on the left side as well as NGC 6960 and Pickering's Triangle on the right. To create this image, nine separate images were taken and stitched together. The full-resolution image is over 600 megapixels in size. It covers an area of the sky that is about 45 times that of the full moon. 

The Cygnus Loop (radio source W78, or Sharpless 103), located in the constellation Cygnus, is an emission nebula measuring nearly 3° across. Arcs of the loop, known collectively as the Veil Nebula or Cirrus Nebula, emit in the visible electromagnetic range. Radio, infrared, and X-ray images reveal the complete loop. The Cygnus Loop extends over three times the size of the full moon in the night sky, and is tucked next to one of the “swan’s wings” in the constellation of Cygnus.

The image was generated with observations in the Oxygen [OIII] (blue), Sulphur [S II] (green) and Hydrogen-Alpha (orange) filters. In this image, North is up, East is left. Please note that the full resolution version of this image is extremely large at more than 24,000 pixels on a side, and the file size of the TIFF is 1.65 Gigabytes. 

The WIYN Consortium, led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Indiana University, are operational responsible for the historic 0.9-meter (36-inch) WIYN Telescope at the National Science Foundation's Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO).

Image Credit: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) and WIYN/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Release Date: Dec. 18, 2012

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #SupernovaRemnant #SNR #Nebulae #Nebula #VeilNebula #CygnusLoop #W78 #Sharpless103 #IC1340 #EmissionNebula #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #WIYNTelescope #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Veil Nebula | FiIaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 2 | Mayall Telescope

The Veil Nebula | Filaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 2 | Mayall Telescope

These faint filaments (IC 1340) are part of a large supernova remnant (SNR) called the Cygnus Loop, located about 1,500 light-years from Earth. Astronomers estimate the supernova explosion that produced the Veil Nebula occurred between 5,000 to 10,000 years ago. The filaments are the remains of a star that exploded 5,000 to 10,000 years ago. The original supernova would have been bright enough to be seen clearly from Earth with the naked eye. The star—that was 20 times the mass of the Sun—lived fast and died young, ending its life in a cataclysmic release of energy.

The Cygnus Loop (radio source W78, or Sharpless 103), located in the constellation Cygnus, is an emission nebula measuring nearly 3° across. Arcs of the loop, known collectively as the Veil Nebula or Cirrus Nebula, emit in the visible electromagnetic range. Radio, infrared, and X-ray images reveal the complete loop. The Cygnus Loop extends over three times the size of the full moon in the night sky, and is tucked next to one of the “swan’s wings” in the constellation of Cygnus.

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the 4-meter Mayall telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. 

The image was generated with observations in the Oxygen [OIII] (blue), Sulphur [S II] (green) and Hydrogen-Alpha (orange) filters. In this image, North is left, East is down.

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

Credit: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) and H. Schweiker (WIYN and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA)
Release Date: June 30, 2020

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #SupernovaRemnant #SNR #Nebulae #Nebula #VeilNebula #CygnusLoop #W78 #Sharpless103 #IC1340 #EmissionNebula #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #MayallTelescope #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Veil Nebula | FiIaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 1 | Mayall Telescope

The Veil Nebula | FiIaments of The Cygnus Loop: Image 1 | Mayall Telescope

These are faint filaments that are part of a large supernova remnant (SNR) called the Cygnus Loop. It is located about 1,500 light-years from Earth. These filaments are the remains of a star that exploded 5,000 to 10,000 years ago. The original supernova would have been bright enough to be seen clearly from Earth with the naked eye. The star—that was 20 times the mass of the Sun—lived fast and died young, ending its life in a cataclysmic release of energy.

The Cygnus Loop (radio source W78, or Sharpless 103), located in the constellation Cygnus, is an emission nebula measuring nearly 3° across. Arcs of the loop, known collectively as the Veil Nebula or Cirrus Nebula, emit in the visible electromagnetic range. Radio, infrared, and X-ray images reveal the complete loop. The Cygnus Loop extends over three times the size of the full moon in the night sky, and is tucked next to one of the “swan’s wings” in the constellation of Cygnus.

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the 4-meter Mayall telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. 

The image was generated with observations in the Oxygen [OIII] (blue), Sulphur [S II] (green) and Hydrogen-Alpha (orange) filters. In this image, North is down, East is right.

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

Credit: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) and H. Schweiker (WIYN and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA)
Release Date: June 30, 2020

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Nebulae #Nebula #VeilNebula #CygnusLoop #W78 #Sharpless103 #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #MayallTelescope #KPNO #KittPeakNationalObservatory #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Spot Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS over Italian Village of Vitorchiano

Spot Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS over Italian Village of Vitorchiano

Featured here is a photo of Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS as observed on the morning of September 30, 2024, over the Borgo sospeso of Vitorchiano. The waning crescent Moon is at upper left. Because of its weekly hyperbolic orbit, it is not known if Tsuchinshan-ATLAS will be ejected from our solar system and never be seen again. In late September, near perihelion (September 27), it became a naked eye object for the first time. Note that its closest approach to the Earth occurred on October 12, 2024.

Image Details: HDR of 5 shots with times from 1/25 of a second to 5 seconds exposure; 640 ISO; Nikon Z9 camera; Nikon Z70-200/2.8S lens; f/3.5; 100 mm focal length; taken at 06:20 local time.

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 passed perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) at a distance of 0.39 AU (58 million km; 36 million miles) on September 27, 2024.

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.

Image Credit: Marco Meniero
Location: Borgo sospeso of Vitorchiano (Vt), Italy

Coordinates: 42.4704, 12.1742
Marco's Website: https://www.meniero.it
Caption Credits: Marco Meniero; Jim Foster
Image Date: Sept. 30, 2024
Release Date: Nov. 8, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #SolarSystem #Planet #Earth #Moon #Italy #Italia #Europe #CentralEurope #Comets #CometTsuchinshanATLAS #C2023A3 #OortCloud #SolarSystem #Astrophotography #MarcoMeniero #Astrophotographer #China #中国 #SouthAfrica #STEM #Education #EPoD

Stephan's Quintet: A Multi-Wavelength Exploration | Space Telescope Science Institute

Stephan's Quintet: A Multi-Wavelength Exploration | Space Telescope Science Institute

This visualization explores the galaxy group Stephan's Quintet by using observations in visible, infrared, and X-ray light. The sequence contrasts images from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope, Webb Space Telescope, and Chandra X-ray Observatory to provide insights across the electromagnetic spectrum.

Exploring the grouping in three dimensions, the video showcases the galaxy distances, diverse shapes, and the interactions between them. In particular, the stretched and distorted galactic features, along with a ridge of high-energy emission, provide evidence of a high-speed collision occurring within the group.

Multi-wavelength views enable contrasting and complimentary studies of this complex compact group.

Video Credit: Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

Visualization: Frank Summers (STScI), Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Leah Hustak (STScI), Joseph Olmsted (STScI), Greg Bacon (STScI); Narration: Frank Summers (STScI); Audio: Danielle Kirshenblat (STScI); Producer: NASA's Universe of Learning

Duration: 5 minutes

Release Date: Nov. 8, 2024

#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Galaxies #NGC7319 #NGC7320 #NGC7320C #NGC7318A #NGC7318B #NGC7317 #StephansQuintet #HicksonCompactGroup92 #Pegasus #Constellation #Universe #JWST #HST #NASASpitzer #NASAChandra #SpaceTelescopes #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #CSA #Canada #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NASA's Space to Ground: Location, Location, Location | Week of Nov. 8, 2024

NASA's Space to Ground: Location, Location, Location | Week of Nov. 8, 2024

NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station. The SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecraft, with Expedition 72 crew members NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, autonomously redocked with the space-facing port of the station’s Harmony module on November 3, 2024.

The port relocation freed up Harmony’s forward-facing port for the 31st SpaceX commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station. This was the fifth port relocation of a Dragon spacecraft with crew aboard following previous moves during the Crew-1, Crew-2, Crew-6, and Crew-8 missions.

Expedition 72 Updates:

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

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams

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

NASA: 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, 10 seconds 
Release Date: Nov. 8, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Earth #SpaceX #CRS31 #CargoDragonSpacecraft #SpaceXCrew9 #CrewDragonSpacecraft #CrewDragonFreedom #Astronauts #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #InternationalCooperation #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #UnitedStates #Expedition72 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Hurricane Rafael after Crossing Cuba | NOAA GOES 16 Weather Satellite

Hurricane Rafael after Crossing Cuba | NOAA GOES 16 Weather Satellite

The latest major storm in 2024’s active hurricane season brought heavy rain and storm surge to Cuba as it moved into the Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane Rafael made landfall in the western Cuban province of Artemisa as a Category 3 storm on the afternoon of November 6, 2024. The hurricane approached the island from the south, having skirted past Jamaica the previous day as a tropical storm. Approaching Cuba, it traversed warm waters and encountered light to moderate vertical wind shear—environmental conditions that helped the storm to strengthen into a major hurricane.

Rafael’s sustained wind speeds peaked at 115 miles (185 kilometers) per hour prior to landfall, reported the National Hurricane Center (NHC). It weakened slightly upon encountering land, downgrading to a Category 2 storm as it moved across Cuba and tracked northwest into the Gulf of Mexico.

According to news reports, the Cuban government announced the hurricane had knocked out power across the entire island before landfall. Several airports suspended flights. Western Cuba was expected to receive 4 to 8 inches (100 to 200 millimeters) of rainfall from the storm system, according to the NHC, with several inches also forecast for the Cayman Islands and Florida Keys. The NHC also warned of strong storm surge that could raise water as much as 14 feet (about 4 meters) above normal levels along Cuba’s southern coast.

As of the morning of November 7, forecasters expected Rafael to move slowly to the west and remain a hurricane for several days, though it could weaken as it encounters a dry airmass in the southern Gulf of Mexico. The longer-term forecast remained uncertain.

Consistent with National Weather Service predictions, it has been an active year for hurricanes in the North Atlantic. Rafael is the 17th named storm and 11th hurricane of the 2024 season, which runs from June 1 to November 30. These numbers exceed the average seasonal totals of 14 named storms and seven hurricanes.

GOES-16 is the first of the GOES-R series of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) operated by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). GOES-16 serves as the operational geostationary weather satellite in the GOES East position at 75.2°W, providing a view centered on the Americas. GOES-16 provides high spatial and temporal resolution imagery of the Earth through 16 spectral bands at visible and infrared wavelengths using its Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI). GOES-16 was launched from Cape Canaveral in November 2016 aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket.

Image Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
NASA Article Credit: Lindsey Doermann
Release Date: Nov. 7, 2024

#NASA #NOAA #Space #Satellites #GOES16 #GOESEast #Science #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #Meteorology #Weather #Oceans #AtlanticOcean #GulfOfMexico #Cuba #HurricaneRafael #SeaTemperatures #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #Environment #CIRA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Timelapse #Animation #GIF

Ancient Impact Crater & 'Eye' of Quebec in Canada | Landsat 8 Satellite | USGS

Ancient Impact Crater & 'Eye' of Quebec in Canada | Landsat 8 Satellite | USGS

A large, round lake in Quebec, Canada, highlights the geography of an ancient impact crater. In the late Triassic Period, a 3 mile wide meteorite struck northern Pangea at over 30,000 miles per hour. The resulting crater is now 214 million years old, but the dramatic circular lake visible in 2024 Landsat imagery is a surprisingly recent feature.

It was the completion of the Daniel-Johnson Dam in 1968 that united two river systems, creating the Manicouagan Reservoir, or the Eye of Quebec. A declassified 1964 satellite image from the CIA’s Project Argon shows two crescent-shaped lakes originally outlining the impact zone. By 1972, the reservoir’s new water level had been established, as revealed by Landsat 1, with more or less the same shoreline it has today.

The Landsat program conceived of in the 1960s, has been running longer than any remote sensing program. The idea was simple: position a satellite in a nearly polar orbit fixed to the solar angle so that each daytime pass would cross the equator at roughly the same local time.

Data representing bands of the spectrum are captured and processed into grayscale recordings that can be combined to create natural looking views like this or false color views like this. Nine Landsat satellites have been launched in partnership with NASA since 1972.

The USGS EROS Center archive contains a wealth of satellite and digitized film imagery available at no cost to communities and scientists studying land change around the world: 

https://www.usgs.gov/centers/eros/science/usgs-eros-archive-products-overview

Official Quebec Tourism Website:

https://www.bonjourquebec.com/en

Côte-Nord: 

https://www.bonjourquebec.com/en/where-to-go/regions-of-quebec/cote-nord

Station Uapishka S.E.N.C.: 

https://www.bonjourquebec.com/en/listing/accommodation/station-uapishka-s-e-n-c/0a5a

Video Credit: United States Geological Survey (USGS)
Duration: 1 minute, 22 seconds

Release Date: Nov. 7, 2024

#NASA #USGS #Space #Planet #Earth #Geology #Meteorite #Pangea #ImpactCrater #Crater #ManicouaganReservoir #EyeOfQuebec #Quebec #Canada #Satellites #Landsat #Landsat8 #RemoteSensing #EarthObservation #EROS #SouthDakota #GSFC #UnitedStates #International #History #STEM #Education #HD #Video