Spiral Galaxy UGC 10043 in Serpens: Side Profile & Central Bulge | Hubble

Spiral Galaxy UGC 10043 in Serpens: Side Profile & Central Bulge | Hubble

What kind of astronomical object is this? It does not look quite like the kinds of galaxies, nebulae, star clusters or galaxy clusters that Hubble normally brings us images of. In fact, this is a spiral galaxy, named UGC 10043—we just happen to be seeing it directly from the side. Located roughly 150 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Serpens, UGC 10043 is one of the rare spiral galaxies that are seen edge-on from our perspective.

From this point of view, we see the galaxy’s disc as a sharp line through space, overlain with a prominent dust lane. This dust is spread across the spiral arms of UGC 10043, but it looks very thick and cloudy when viewed from the side. You can even see the lights of active star-forming regions in the arms, shining out from behind the dust. Strikingly, we can also see that the center of the galaxy sports a glowing, almost egg-shaped ‘bulge’, rising far above and below the disc. 

All spiral galaxies have a bulge like this one as part of their structure, containing stars that orbit the galactic center on paths above and below the whirling disc; it is a feature that is not normally obvious in pictures of galaxies. The unusually large size of this bulge compared to the galaxy’s disc is possibly thanks to UGC 10043 siphoning material from a nearby dwarf galaxy. This may also be why the disc is warped, bending up at one end and down at the other.

Like most full-color Hubble images, this is a composite, made up of several individual snapshots capturing unique light wavelengths. 

Image Description: A spiral galaxy seen directly from the side, such that its disc looks like a narrow diagonal band across the image. A band of dark dust covers the disc in the center most of the way out to the ends, and the disc glows around that. In the center a whitish circle of light bulges out above and below the disc. The tips of the disc are a bit bent. The background is black and mostly empty.

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, R. Windhorst, W. Keel
Release Date: Nov. 18, 2024

#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Hubble #Galaxies #Galaxy #UGC10043 #SpiralGalaxy #GalacticBulge #InteractingGalaxies #DwarfGalaxy #SerpensCaput #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

Leonids Meteor Shower Peaks November 18-24, 2024 | BBC Star Diary

Leonids Meteor Shower Peaks November 18-24, 2024 | BBC Star Diary

The Leonids meteor shower reaches the peak of activity this week. It might not be the best year for the shower, but fortunately we are on hand with many more stargazing highlights in this week’s Star Diary podcast, from the makers of BBC Sky at Night Magazine.

The Leonids, peaking during mid-November each year, are considered to be a major shower though meteor rates are often as low as about 15 meteors per hour. The Leonids are bright meteors and can also be colorful. They are also fast: Leonids travel at speeds of 44 miles (71 kilometers) per second, and they are considered to be some of the fastest meteors.

Every 33 years, or so, viewers on Earth may experience a Leonid storm that can peak with hundreds to thousands of meteors seen per hour depending on the location of the observer.

A meteor storm versus a shower is defined as having at least 1,000 meteors per hour. Viewers in 1966 experienced a spectacular Leonid storm: thousands of meteors per minute fell through Earth's atmosphere during a 15-minute period. There were so many meteors seen that they appeared to fall like rain. The last Leonid meteor storm took place in 2002.

Leonids are also known for their fireballs and Earth-grazer meteors. Fireballs are larger explosions of light and color that can persist longer than an average meteor streak. This is due to the fact that fireballs originate from larger particles of cometary material. Fireballs are also brighter with magnitudes brighter than -3. Earth-grazers are meteors that streak close to the horizon and are known for their long and colorful tails.

Where Do Meteors Come From?

Meteors come from leftover comet particles and bits from broken asteroids. When comets come around the Sun, the dust they emit gradually spreads into a dusty trail around their orbits. Every year the Earth passes through these debris trails, which allows the bits to collide with our atmosphere where they disintegrate to create fiery and colorful streaks in the sky.

The Comet

The pieces of space debris that interact with our atmosphere to create the Leonids originate from comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. It takes comet Tempel-Tuttle 33 years to orbit the sun once.

Comet Tempel-Tuttle was discovered twice independently—in 1865 and 1866 by Ernst Tempel and Horace Tuttle, respectively. Tempel-Tuttle is a small comet—its nucleus measures only about 2.24 miles (3.6 kilometers) across.

Learn more about the Leonids Meteor Shower:

https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/meteors-meteorites/leonids/

Video Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine

Caption Credit: NASA Goddard/BBC
Duration: 16 minutes
Release Date: Nov. 17, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Meteors #Fireballs #MeteorShowers #Leonids #LeonidMeteorShower #Leo #Constellations #Planets #SolarSystem #Stars #StarClusters #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #Skywatching #BBC #UK #Britain #Europe #UnitedStates #Canada #NorthernHemisphere #STEM #Education #Podcast #HD #Video

Wide-field view: Cosmic Bat Nebula (NGC 1788) in Orion | Digitized Sky Survey 2

Wide-field view: Cosmic Bat Nebula (NGC 1788) in Orion | Digitized Sky Survey 2

The delicate nebula NGC 1788 is located in a dark and often neglected corner of the constellation Orion. Although this ghostly cloud is rather isolated from Orion’s bright stars, their powerful winds and light have a strong impact on the nebula, forging its shape and making it a home to a multitude of infant suns. This image from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 covers a field of view of 3 x 2.9 degrees, and shows that the Bat Nebula is part of much larger nebulosity.

Distance: 1,300 light years

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.

Image Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/Digitized Sky Survey 2

Acknowledgement: Davide de Martin
Release Date: March 3, 2010

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC1788 #ReflectionNebula #Orion #Cosmos #Universe #Chile #Europe #DSS2 #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Journey to The Cosmic Bat Nebula: NGC 1788 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

Journey to The Cosmic Bat Nebula: NGC 1788 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

This zoom video starts with a wide view of the Milky Way and ends with a close-up look at the reflection nebula NGC 1788. Hidden in one of the darkest corners of the Orion constellation, this Cosmic Bat is spreading its hazy wings through interstellar space 1,300 light years away.

Although this ghostly cloud is rather isolated from Orion’s bright stars, their powerful winds and light have a strong impact on the nebula, forging its shape and making it a home to a multitude of infant suns.

The final close-up image was obtained using the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s La Silla Observatory in Chile. It combines images taken through blue, green and red filters, as well as a special filter designed to let through the light of glowing hydrogen. The field is about 30 arcminutes across; North is up, and East to the left.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/Digitized Sky Survey 2/N. Risinger

Duration: 50 seconds

Release Date: March 14, 2019

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC1788 #ReflectionNebula #Orion #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #DSS2 #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Close-up View of The Cosmic Bat Nebula: NGC 1788 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

Close-up View of The Cosmic Bat Nebula: NGC 1788 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

This video pans across the reflection nebula NGC 1788. Hidden in one of the darkest corners of the Orion constellation, this Cosmic Bat is spreading its hazy wings through interstellar space 1,300 light years away.

Although this ghostly cloud is rather isolated from Orion’s bright stars, their powerful winds and light have a strong impact on the nebula, forging its shape and making it a home to a multitude of infant suns.

This image has been obtained using the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s La Silla Observatory in Chile. It combines images taken through blue, green and red filters, as well as a special filter designed to let through the light of glowing hydrogen. The field is about 30 arcminutes across; North is up, and East to the left.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Duration: 25 seconds

Release Date: March 14, 2019

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC1788 #ReflectionNebula #Orion #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Cosmic Bat: Nebula NGC 1788 in Orion | ESO MPG/ESO Telescope

The Cosmic Bat: Nebula NGC 1788 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

The delicate nebula NGC 1788, located in a dark and often neglected corner of the Orion constellation, is revealed in this finely nuanced image. Although this ghostly cloud is rather isolated from Orion’s bright stars, their powerful winds and light have a strong impact on the nebula, forging its shape and making it a home to a multitude of infant suns.

Distance: 1,300 light years

This image has been obtained using the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s La Silla Observatory in Chile. It combines images taken through blue, green and red filters, as well as a special filter designed to let through the light of glowing hydrogen. The field is about 30 arcminutes across; North is up, and East to the left.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Release Date: March 3, 2010

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #NGC1788 #ReflectionNebula #Orion #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education

Aurora over Scotland

Aurora over Scotland

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.

Learn more:
The Colors of the Aurora (National Park Service)
https://www.nps.gov/articles/-articles-aps-v8-i1-c9.htm

Image Credit & Copyright: Alan Tough
Location: Bishopmill, Scotland, United Kingdom
Image Dates: Nov. 8, 2024 

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Planet #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #MagneticField #Magnetosphere #SolarWind #Sun #Astrophotography #Astrophotographer #AlanTough #Bishopmill #Scotland #UK #UnitedKingdom #STEM #Education

Shenzhou-19 Crew Transfers Tianzhou-8 Cargo | China Space Station

Shenzhou-19 Crew Transfers Tianzhou-8 Cargo | China Space Station

China's Shenzhou-19 astronauts opened the hatch door of the Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft and began to move supplies and equipment to the Tiangong Space Station in orbit on the morning of Saturday, November 16. Tianzhou-8 carries about 6 tons of supplies, including provisions for the crew’s in-orbit stay, propellant, experimental devices, and over 400 kilograms of scientific materials. New Year gifts for the crew, celebrating the Year of the Snake, were also delivered. The delivery of Tianzhou-8 took a total of 3 hours and 17 minutes.

Alongside astronaut supplies and experimental equipment, the Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft carries bricks made of varying compositions from simulated lunar soil. These bricks will undergo exposure tests to assess their durability in extreme conditions and their potential use in constructing lunar stations.

The Long March-7 Y9 rocket carrying the spacecraft blasted off at 11:13 p.m. Beijing time on Friday, November 15, 2024, from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China's Hainan island province. About three hours later, the cargo spacecraft successfully docked with the China Space Station. 

Shenzhou-19 Crew:

Commander Cai Xuzhe (蔡旭哲)
Mission Specialist Wang Haoze (王浩泽)
Mission Specialist Song Lingdong (宋令东)

Video Credit: CCTV
Duration: 1 minute, 20 seconds

Release Date: Nov. 16, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #China #中国 #Tianzhou8 #CargoSpacecraft #Shenzhou19 #神舟十九号 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #TiangongSpaceStation #SpaceLaboratory #CMSA #国家航天局 #HumanSpaceflight #CLEP #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Soap Bubble Nebula: PN G75.5+1.7 in Cygnus | Mayall Telescope

The Soap Bubble Nebula: PN G75.5+1.7 in Cygnus | Mayall Telescope

Informally known as the "Soap Bubble Nebula", this planetary nebula (officially known as PN G75.5+1.7) was discovered by amateur astronomer Dave Jurasevich on July 6th, 2008. It was noted and reported by Keith Quattrocchi and Mel Helm on July 17, 2008. 

PN G75.5+1.7 is located in the constellation of Cygnus, not far from the Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888). It is embedded in a diffuse nebula which, in conjunction with its faintness, is the reason it was not discovered until recently. The spherical symmetry of the shell is remarkable, making it very similar to Abell 39.

This image was obtained with the 4-meter Kitt Peak Mayall Telescope on June 19th, 2009 in the H-alpha (orange) and [OIII] (blue) narrowband filters. In this image, north is to the left and east is down.

Credit: T. A. Rector/University of Alaska Anchorage, H. Schweiker/WIYN and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA
Release Date: Oct. 15, 2009

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #PlanetaryNebula #SoapBubbleNebula #PNG75517 #Cygnus #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Universe #MayallTelescope #KPNO #Arizona #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Tianzhou-8 Cargo Spacecraft Supply Mission Recap | China Space Station

Tianzhou-8 Cargo Spacecraft Supply Mission Recap | China Space Station

China's Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft successfully docked with the orbiting Tiangong Space Station on Saturday, November 16, 2024, at 2:32am Beijing time, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced. Tianzhou-8 completed a 3-hour rapid autonomous rendezvous and docking approach. This will mark the establishment of a standard docking mode for future missions that combines efficiency with reliability. The Shenzhou-19 crew, sent to the China Space Station on October 30, have entered the cargo spacecraft and begun to transfer items as scheduled.

China launched the Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center in its southern island province of Hainan using a Long March-7 Y9 carrier rocket on Friday night, November 15, 2024 at 11:32pm Beijing time. After about 10 minutes, the Tianzhou-8 separated from the rocket and entered its designated orbit. Its solar panels then unfolded. Tianzhou-8 has delivered supplies for the orbiting Tiangong Space Station, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). 

Alongside astronaut supplies and experimental equipment, the Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft carries bricks made of varying compositions from simulated lunar soil to the Tiangong Space Station. These bricks will undergo exposure tests to assess their durability in extreme conditions and their potential use in constructing lunar stations.

Compared to its predecessors, Tianzhou-6 and Tianzhou-7, the Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft boasts a larger cargo capacity—an increase of more than 200 more liters of space and more than 100 kilograms of cargo load.

Shenzhou-19 Crew:

Commander Cai Xuzhe (蔡旭哲)
Mission Specialist Wang Haoze (王浩泽)
Mission Specialist Song Lingdong (宋令东)

Video Credit: CCTV

Duration: 1 minute, 47 seconds
Release Date: Nov. 16, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #China #中国 #LongMarch7Y9Rocket #Tianzhou8 #CargoSpacecraft #Docking #Shenzhou19 #神舟十九号 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #TiangongSpaceStation #SpaceLaboratory #CMSA #国家航天局 #HumanSpaceflight #CLEP #WenchangSLS #Hainan #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Enter The Dragon | International Space Station

Enter The Dragon | International Space Station

NASA astronaut Don Pettit: "Floating down the dark tunnel leading to Crew-9 Dragon last month, when it was docked to the International Space Station. Node 2 forward."

The SpaceX Dragon Freedom crew spacecraft is assigned to NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Mission.

Learn more about SpaceX's Dragon Spacecraft:

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

Enter the Dragon (Chinese: 龍爭虎鬥) is a 1973 martial arts film directed by Robert Clouse and written by Michael Allin. The film stars Bruce Lee, John Saxon, Ahna Capri, Bob Wall, Shih Kien and Jim Kelly. Enter the Dragon was Bruce Lee's final completed film appearance before his death on July 20, 1973, at the age of 32. An American-Hong Kong co-production, the film was premiered in Los Angeles on August 19, 1973, one month after Lee's death.

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.

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

Duration: 22 seconds
Release Date: Nov. 15, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #SpaceX #CrewDragonSpacecraft #SpaceXCrewDragonFreedom #Astronauts #DonPettit #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #InternationalCooperation #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #CommercialSpace #UnitedStates #Expedition72 #FilmHistory #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Wide-field View: Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent)

Wide-field View: Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent)

Wide-field view of the sky around dark nebula LDN 483. This visible-light wide-field image of the region around the dark nebula LDN 483 was created from photographs forming part of the Digitized Sky Survey 2. LDN 483 appears at the center.

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.

Where did all the stars go? This dark cloud obscures hundreds of background stars. LDN 483 is a region of space clogged with gas and dust. These materials are dense enough to effectively eclipse the light of background stars. LDN 483 is located about 700 light-years away in the constellation of Serpens (The Serpent).

Particularly dense molecular clouds, like LDN 483, qualify as dark nebulae because of this obscuring property. The starless nature of LDN 483 and its ilk would suggest that they are sites where stars cannot take root and grow. However, the opposite is true. Dark nebulae offer the most fertile environments for eventual star formation.

Astronomers studying star formation in LDN 483 have discovered examples of the youngest observable kinds of baby stars buried in LDN 483’s shrouded interior. These gestating stars can be thought of as still being in the womb, having not yet been born as complete, albeit immature, stars.

In this first stage of stellar development, the star-to-be is just a ball of gas and dust contracting under the force of gravity within the surrounding molecular cloud. The protostar is still quite cool — about –250 degrees Celsius—and shines only in long-wavelength submillimeter light. Yet temperature and pressure are beginning to increase in the fledgling star’s core.

This earliest period of star growth lasts a mere thousands of years, an astonishingly short amount of time in astronomical terms, given that stars typically live for millions or billions of years. In the following stages, over the course of several million years, the protostar will grow warmer and denser. Its emission will increase in energy along the way, graduating from mainly cold, far-infrared light to near-infrared and finally to visible light. The once-dim protostar will have then become a fully luminous star.

As more and more stars emerge from the inky depths of LDN 483, the dark nebula will disperse further and lose its opacity. The missing background stars that are currently hidden will then come into view—but only after the passage of millions of years, and they will be outshone by the bright young-born stars in the cloud.

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.

Credit: European Southern Observatory and Digitized Sky Survey 2
Release Date: Jan. 7, 2015

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #DarkNebula #LDN483 #SerpensCauda #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Chile #Europe #DSS2 #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Journey to Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent)

Journey to Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent)

Where did all the stars go? This dark cloud obscures hundreds of background stars. The Wide Field Imager (WFI) on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile snapped this image of the dark nebula LDN 483. The object is a region of space clogged with gas and dust. These materials are dense enough to effectively eclipse the light of background stars. LDN 483 is located about 700 light-years away in the constellation of Serpens (The Serpent).

Particularly dense molecular clouds, like LDN 483, qualify as dark nebulae because of this obscuring property. The starless nature of LDN 483 and its ilk would suggest that they are sites where stars cannot take root and grow. However, the opposite is true. Dark nebulae offer the most fertile environments for eventual star formation.

Astronomers studying star formation in LDN 483 have discovered examples of the youngest observable kinds of baby stars buried in LDN 483’s shrouded interior. These gestating stars can be thought of as still being in the womb, having not yet been born as complete, albeit immature, stars.

In this first stage of stellar development, the star-to-be is just a ball of gas and dust contracting under the force of gravity within the surrounding molecular cloud. The protostar is still quite cool—about –250 degrees Celsius—and shines only in long-wavelength submillimeter light. Yet temperature and pressure are beginning to increase in the fledgling star’s core.

This earliest period of star growth lasts a mere thousands of years, an astonishingly short amount of time in astronomical terms, given that stars typically live for millions or billions of years. In the following stages, over the course of several million years, the protostar will grow warmer and denser. Its emission will increase in energy along the way, graduating from mainly cold, far-infrared light to near-infrared and finally to visible light. The once-dim protostar will have then become a fully luminous star.

As more and more stars emerge from the inky depths of LDN 483, the dark nebula will disperse further and lose its opacity. The missing background stars that are currently hidden will then come into view—but only after the passage of millions of years, and they will be outshone by the bright young-born stars in the cloud.

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.

Learn about the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope:

https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/

Credit: European Southern Observatory

Duration: 50 seconds
Release Date: Jan. 7, 2015

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #DarkNebula #LDN483 #SerpensCauda #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Close-up: Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent) | MPG/ESO Telescope

Close-up: Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent) | MPG/ESO Telescope

Where did all the stars go? This dark cloud obscures hundreds of background stars. The Wide Field Imager (WFI) on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile snapped this image of the dark nebula LDN 483. The object is a region of space clogged with gas and dust. These materials are dense enough to effectively eclipse the light of background stars. LDN 483 is located about 700 light-years away in the constellation of Serpens (The Serpent).

Particularly dense molecular clouds, like LDN 483, qualify as dark nebulae because of this obscuring property. The starless nature of LDN 483 and its ilk would suggest that they are sites where stars cannot take root and grow. However, the opposite is true. Dark nebulae offer the most fertile environments for eventual star formation.

Astronomers studying star formation in LDN 483 have discovered examples of the youngest observable kinds of baby stars buried in LDN 483’s shrouded interior. These gestating stars can be thought of as still being in the womb, having not yet been born as complete, albeit immature, stars.

In this first stage of stellar development, the star-to-be is just a ball of gas and dust contracting under the force of gravity within the surrounding molecular cloud. The protostar is still quite cool—about –250 degrees Celsius—and shines only in long-wavelength submillimeter light. Yet temperature and pressure are beginning to increase in the fledgling star’s core.

This earliest period of star growth lasts a mere thousands of years, an astonishingly short amount of time in astronomical terms, given that stars typically live for millions or billions of years. In the following stages, over the course of several million years, the protostar will grow warmer and denser. Its emission will increase in energy along the way, graduating from mainly cold, far-infrared light to near-infrared and finally to visible light. The once-dim protostar will have then become a fully luminous star.

As more and more stars emerge from the inky depths of LDN 483, the dark nebula will disperse further and lose its opacity. The missing background stars that are currently hidden will then come into view—but only after the passage of millions of years, and they will be outshone by the bright young-born stars in the cloud.

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.

Learn about the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope:

https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/

Credit: European Southern Observatory

Duration: 50 seconds
Release Date: Jan. 7, 2015

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #DarkNebula #LDN483 #SerpensCauda #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent) | MPG/ESO Telescope

Dark Nebula LDN 483 in Serpens (The Serpent) | MPG/ESO Telescope

Where did all the stars go? This dark cloud obscures hundreds of background stars. The Wide Field Imager (WFI) on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile snapped this image of the dark nebula LDN 483. The object is a region of space clogged with gas and dust. These materials are dense enough to effectively eclipse the light of background stars. LDN 483 is located about 700 light-years away in the constellation of Serpens (The Serpent).

Particularly dense molecular clouds, like LDN 483, qualify as dark nebulae because of this obscuring property. The starless nature of LDN 483 and its ilk would suggest that they are sites where stars cannot take root and grow. However, the opposite is true. Dark nebulae offer the most fertile environments for eventual star formation.

Astronomers studying star formation in LDN 483 have discovered examples of the youngest observable kinds of baby stars buried in LDN 483’s shrouded interior. These gestating stars can be thought of as still being in the womb, having not yet been born as complete, albeit immature, stars.

In this first stage of stellar development, the star-to-be is just a ball of gas and dust contracting under the force of gravity within the surrounding molecular cloud. The protostar is still quite cool — about –250 degrees Celsius—and shines only in long-wavelength submillimeter light. Yet temperature and pressure are beginning to increase in the fledgling star’s core.

This earliest period of star growth lasts a mere thousands of years, an astonishingly short amount of time in astronomical terms, given that stars typically live for millions or billions of years. In the following stages, over the course of several million years, the protostar will grow warmer and denser. Its emission will increase in energy along the way, graduating from mainly cold, far-infrared light to near-infrared and finally to visible light. The once-dim protostar will have then become a fully luminous star.

As more and more stars emerge from the inky depths of LDN 483, the dark nebula will disperse further and lose its opacity. The missing background stars that are currently hidden will then come into view—but only after the passage of millions of years, and they will be outshone by the bright young-born stars in the cloud.

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.

Learn about the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope:

https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/

Credit: European Southern Observatory
Release Date: Jan. 7, 2015

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #DarkNebula #LDN483 #SerpensCauda #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education

Timelapse Star Trails & Starlinks with Earth Airglow | International Space Station

Timelapse Star Trails & Starlinks with Earth Airglow | International Space Station

NASA astronaut Don Pettit: "Wonky streaks: Starlinks flashing ISS. Compared to the well-defined streaks from star trails, this time exposure shows wonky streaks flashing ISS. These are Starlink satellites reflecting pre-dusk or pre-dawn sunlight off their solar panels. They are only seen from 5 to 18 degrees preceding or trailing the Sun."

"They create bright flashes, perhaps lasting for a few seconds each due to the orientation of their outward pointing solar panels. Starlink satellites look like a miniature version of the monolith from “2001: A Space Odyssey”, where the large flat face of the monolith points towards Earth and the solar panel protrudes outward like the fin on the back of a Dimetrodon. These bright flashes are not directed towards Earth and are strikingly bright from orbit. The second photo shows the whole frame of this star trail photograph."

Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by Starlink Services, LLC, an international telecommunications provider that is a wholly owned subsidiary of American aerospace company SpaceX, providing coverage to over 100 countries and territories.

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.

Unlike auroras, which are episodic and fleeting, airglow constantly shines throughout Earth’s atmosphere, and the result is a tenuous bubble of light that closely encases our entire planet. (Auroras, on the other hand, are usually constrained to Earth’s poles.) Just a tenth as bright as all the stars in the night sky, airglow is far more subdued than auroras, too dim to observe easily except in orbit or on the ground with clear, dark skies and a sensitive camera. However, it is a marker nevertheless of the dynamic region where Earth meets space . . .

Image details: Nikon Z9, Arri-Zeiss 15mm T1.8 master prime lens, 30 second exposures compiled into an effective 30 minute exposure, T1.8, ISO 200, assembled with Photoshop (levels, color, some spot tool).

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.

Image Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)
Release Date: Nov. 15, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Stars #Earth #Airglow #Satellites #SpaceX #Starlink #Astronauts #DonPettit #AstronautPhotography #StarTrails #Timelapse #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #InternationalCooperation #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #UnitedStates #Expedition72 #STEM #Education