Saturday, March 17, 2012

Revisiting The First Rover

Revisiting The First Rover:

LROC image of Lunokhod 1 at rest in Mare Imbrium (NASA/GSFC/ASU)
Before there was Curiosity, before Spirit, and Opportunity, and even long before Sojourner, there was Lunokhod 1, the Soviet Union’s lunar rover that explored Mare Imbrium from November of 1970 to September the following year. It was a curious-looking machine, a steampunk fantasy reminiscent of something out of a Jules Verne novel. But until the Mars Exploration Rovers nearly 40 years later, Lunokhod 1 held the record for the longest-operating robotic rover on the surface of another world.
These images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) are the most detailed yet of the now-silent Soviet rover and its lander, Luna 17.


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Skydiver Baumgartner Takes Test Jump from 21,000 Meters

Skydiver Baumgartner Takes Test Jump from 21,000 Meters:

Felix Baumgartner as he prepares to jump from over 21,000 meters on March 15, 2012. Credit: Red Bull Stratos
Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner took a practice jump today, (March 15, 2012) to help him prepare for his leap from the edge of space later this year where he hopes to not only break the sound barrier with his body, but also break the record for the longest freefall. In preparation for his Red Bull Stratos mission, Baumgartner rode his specially-made pressurized capsule via a helium balloon and jumped from an altitude of 21,818 meters (71,581 feet, 21 kilometers, 13.5 miles) from the skies near Roswell, New Mexico.
“Felix can consider himself part of a very exclusive club today,” said a spokesperson from the Red Bull Stratos mission, “joining Joe Kittinger and Eugene Andreev (USSR) all who have jumped from above 70,000 feet.”


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Astrophotos: Venus and Jupiter Conjunction

Astrophotos: Venus and Jupiter Conjunction:
Astrophotos: Venus and Jupiter Conjunction
Jupiter and Venus. Image Credit Kevin Jung
Though the skies may be a bit cloudy in some parts of the world, it did not prevent our awesome readers from taking a shot of the wonderful view of the conjunction of planets Venus and Jupiter. Here are some amazing photos of the planetary conjunction.
Above is a close-up image of the conjunction of Venus and Jupiter as seen by Kevin Jung in West Michigan on March 12, 2012. The image was shot using a Canon 40D DLSR, a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens at 200mm, f/5.0. It was a 2.5 second exposure. The camera was just on a tripod. Here’s a link to Kevin’s Flickr page.
More images below!(...)


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Neutrinos Obey The Speed Limit

Neutrinos Obey The Speed Limit, After All:

Inside the LHC's underground tunnel. (Credit: CERN)
Neutrinos have been cleared of allegations of speeding, according to an announcement issued today by CERN and the ICARUS experiment at Italy’s Gran Sasso National Laboratory. Turns out they travel exactly as fast as they should, and not a nanosecond more.


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Solving the Puzzle of Apollo 12′s Mysterious Magnetic Moon Rocks

Solving the Puzzle of Apollo 12′s Mysterious Magnetic Moon Rocks:

The moon's largest grouping of magnetic anomalies, on the left, is near the northern rim of the South Pole-Aitken basin, which scientists believe was created by the impact of a massive asteroid about 4.5 billion years ago. Image Credit: NASA/LRO/Science/AAAS
Ever since their discovery by the Apollo 12 crew, scientists have been puzzled by strongly magnetized rocks found on the Moon. Most Moon rocks that were brought back by the Apollo missions have very little iron, and therefore lack the ability to be strongly magnetized. At first, the magnetic oddities didn’t appear to be related to any lunar geology such as craters or lava flows. Over time, additional lunar missions have provided more data showing that only some portions of the Moon’s crust have magnetic fields. A team of scientists now theorize that the magnetized “patches” on the lunar surface may be the remains of an asteroid that crashed into the Moon shortly after its formation nearly 4.5 billion years ago. The impact crater, known as the South Pole-Aitken basin is one of the largest known in our Solar System.
Mark Wieczorek, (Paris Institute for Global Physics) describes the South Pole-Aitken basin as, “this huge, whopping crater that’s roughly half the size of the U.S,” and says it may hold the answers to the mystery of the Apollo 12 rocks.
(...)


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Astrophoto: Conjunction Symmetry

Astrophoto: Conjunction Symmetry by Rick Ellis:

Multiple images of the Venus-Jupiter conjuction on Mar. 13, 2012 from Toronto, Canada. Credit: Rick Ellis.
It’s poetry in motion! Rick Ellis from Toronto, Canada created this 27 frame-composite of the conjunction between Venus and Jupiter on March 13, 2012, with 6 second exposures five minutes apart. Rick used a Canon A460, ISO 80.
Beautiful!


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Friday, March 16, 2012

FLICKR PHOTO : Príncipe Negro By Fernando Paoliello

Príncipe Negro:
FernandoPaoliello postou uma foto:

Príncipe Negro

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Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Light Echoes: The Re-Run Of The Eta Carinae “Great Eruption”

Light Echoes: The Re-Run Of The Eta Carinae “Great Eruption”:

The color image at left shows the Carina Nebula, a star-forming region located 7,500 light-years from Earth. The massive double-star system Eta Carinae resides near the top of the image. The star system, about 120 times more massive than the Sun, produced a spectacular outburst that was seen on Earth from 1837 to 1858. The three black-and-white images at right show light from the eruption illuminating dust clouds near the doomed star system as it moves through them. The effect is like shining a flashlight on different regions of a vast cavern. The images were taken over an eight-year span by the U.S. National Optical Astronomy Observatory's Blanco 4-meter telescope at the CTIO. Credit: NASA, NOAO, and A. Rest (Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.)

In this modern age, we’re used to catching a favorite program at a later time. We use our DVR equipment and, not so long ago, a VCR to record now and watch later. Once upon a great time ago we relied upon a quaint customer called the “re-run” – the same program broadcast at a later date. However, a re-run can’t occur when it comes to astronomy event… Or can it? Oh, you’re gonna’ love this! (...)
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Astrophoto: Swirling Aurora by Jason Ahrns

Astrophoto: Swirling Aurora by Jason Ahrns:

Astrophoto: Swirling Aurora by Jason Ahrns

Swirling Aurora. Image Credit: Jason Ahrns

Jason Ahrns captured this beautiful image of the Aurora from Fort Yukon, Alaska. The aurora was caused by an unexpected geomagnetic storm that took place on February 15, 2012. He used a Nikon D7000 camera in taking this photo. Here’s a link to Jason’s Flickr page for more stunning pictures of the aurora.

Want to get your astrophoto featured on Universe Today? Join our Flickr group, post in our Forum or send us your images by email (this means you’re giving us permission to post them). Please explain what’s in the picture, when you took it, the equipment you used, etc.



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This Week’s Carnival of Space (#237) Right Here!

This Week’s Carnival of Space (#237) Right Here!:

Carnival of Space. Image by Jason Major.

It’s been awhile since Universe Today has hosted the Carnival of Space, so we’re happy to be home for this edition of space news from various space blogs and news sites from the past week. Just grab some cotton candy and step inside the Carnival!
(...)
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Dramatic Rocket Launch Into an Aurora

Dramatic Rocket Launch Into an Aurora:

A two-stage Terrier-Black Brant rocket arced through aurora 200 miles above Earth as the Magnetosphere-Ionosphere Coupling in the Alfvén resonator (MICA) mission investigated the underlying physics of the northern lights. Stage one of the rocket has just separated and is seen falling back to Earth. Photo by Terry E. Zaperach, NASA.

Over the weekend, a two-stage sounding rocket launched into a sky shimmering with green aurora. On board were instruments that will help shed new light on the physical processes that create the Northern Lights and further our understanding of the complex Sun-Earth connection.

“We’re investigating what’s called space weather,” said Steven Powell from Cornell University. “Space weather is caused by the charged particles that come from the Sun and interact with the Earth’s magnetic field. We don’t directly feel those effects as humans, but our electronic systems do.”
(...)
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A Beginner’s Guide to Photographing The International Space Station (ISS)

A Beginner’s Guide to Photographing The International Space Station (ISS):

Long Exposure Photograph of the ISS Credit: Mark Humpage


If you have seen the International Space Station (ISS) pass over a few times with your own eyes, (here’s our guide on seeing it) you may want to have a go at photographing it.

Photographing the ISS is very worthwhile and gratifying. There are two basic methods; one being easy and the other being a little more difficult. Both methods are incredibly rewarding and good results can be obtained fairly quickly, once you have mastered the basics. (...)
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Recent Geologic Activity on the Moon?

Recent Geologic Activity on the Moon?:

Newly detected series of narrow linear troughs are known as graben, and they formed in highland materials on the lunar farside. These graben are located on a topographic rise with several hundred meters of relief revealed in topography derived from LROC stereo images. Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University/Smithsonian Institution


Recent images from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera provide evidence that the lunar crust may be pulling apart in certain areas. The images reveal small trenches less than a kilometer in length, and less than a few hundred meters wide. Only a small number of these features, known as graben, have been discovered on the lunar surface.

There are several clues in the high-resolution images that provide evidence for recent geologic activity on the Moon.

(...)
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More Details from Hubble Reveal Strange Exoplanet is a Steamy Waterworld

More Details from Hubble Reveal Strange Exoplanet is a Steamy Waterworld:

GJ1214b, shown in this artist’s view, is a super-Earth orbiting a red dwarf star 40 light-years from Earth. Credit: NASA, ESA, and D. Aguilar (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)

Would Kevin Costner’s character in the movie “Waterworld” be at home on this exoplanet? The planet GJ 1214b was discovered in 2009 and was one of the first planets where an atmosphere was detected. In 2010, scientists were able to measure the atmosphere, finding it likely was composed mainly of water. Now, with infrared spectra taken during transit observations by the Hubble Space Telescope, scientists say this world is even more unique, and that it represents a new class of planet: a waterworld underneath a thick, steamy atmosphere.

“GJ 1214b is like no planet we know of,” said Zachary Berta of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA). “A huge fraction of its mass is made up of water.”
(...)
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A Mardi Gras Moon Crossing

A Mardi Gras Moon Crossing:

SDO AIA image of the Sun and Moon at 14:11 UT on Feb. 21, 2012

The Sun seems to be glowing in traditional Mardi Gras colors in this image, made from three AIA channels taken today at approximately 14:11 UT (about 9:11 a.m. EST) as the Moon passed between it and the Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft. Looks like it’s that time of year again!

(...)
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Chandra Spots a Black Hole’s High-Speed Hurricane

Chandra Spots a Black Hole’s High-Speed Hurricane:

Artist's impression of a binary system containing a stellar-mass black hole called IGR J17091-3624

Astronomers using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory have reported record-breaking wind speeds coming from a stellar-mass black hole.

The “wind”, a high-speed stream of material that’s being drawn off a star orbiting the black hole and ejected back out into space, has been clocked at a staggering 20 million miles per hour — 3% the speed of light! That’s ten times faster than any such wind ever measured from a black hole of its size!

(...)
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Wednesday, February 15, 2012

To The Extreme… NASA’s Fermi Gamma-Ray Telescope Gathers In High Energy

To The Extreme… NASA’s Fermi Gamma-Ray Telescope Gathers In High Energy:

This all-sky Fermi view includes only sources with energies greater than 10 GeV. From some of these sources, Fermi's LAT detects only one gamma-ray photon every four months. Brighter colors indicate brighter gamma-ray sources. Credit: NASA/DOE/Fermi LAT Collaboration

It scans the entire visible sky every three hours. Its job is to gather light – but not just any light. What’s visible to our eyes averages about 2 and 3 electron volts, but NASA’s Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope is taking a deep look into a higher realm… the electromagnetic range. Here the energy doesn’t need a boost. It slams out gamma-rays with energies ranging from 20 million to more than 300 billion electron volts (GeV). After three years of space time, the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has produced its first census of these extreme energy sources. (...)
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Planck Spacecraft Loses Its Cool(ant) But Keeps Going

Planck Spacecraft Loses Its Cool(ant) But Keeps Going:

Artist's impression of the Planck spacecraft. Credit: ESA

After two and a half years of observing the Cosmic Microwave Background, the ESA Planck spacecraft’s High Frequency Instrument ran out of its on-board coolant gases over this past weekend, reaching the end of its very successful mission. But that doesn’t mean the end for Planck observations. The Low Frequency Instrument, which does not need to be super-cold (but is still at a bone-chilling -255 C), will continue taking data.

“The Low Frequency Instrument will now continue operating for another year,” said Richard Davis, of the University of Manchester in the UK. “During that time it will provide unprecedented sensitivity at the lower frequencies.”
(...)
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The Eagle Nebula as You’ve Never Seen it Before

The Eagle Nebula as You’ve Never Seen it Before:

A new look at M16, the Eagle Nebula in this composite from the Herschel telescope in far-infrared and XMM-Newton in X-ray. Credits: far-infrared: ESA/Herschel/PACS/SPIRE/Hill, Motte, HOBYS Key Programme Consortium; X-ray: ESA/XMM-Newton/EPIC/XMM-Newton-SOC/Boulanger

Here’s a stunning new look deep inside the iconic “Pillars of Creation.” As opposed to the famous Hubble Space Telescope image (below) — which shows mainly the surface of the pillars of gas and dust — this composite image from ESA’s Herschel Space Observatory in far-infrared and XMM-Newton telescope in X-rays allows astronomers to peer inside the pillars and see more detail of the structures in this region. It shows how the hot young stars detected by the X-ray observations are carving out cavities, sculpting and interacting with the surrounding ultra-cool gas and dust.

But enjoy the view while you can. The sad part is that likely, this beautiful region has already been destroyed by a supernova 6,000 years ago. But because of the distance, we haven’t seen it happen yet.

(...)
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First-Ever Image of a Black Hole to be Captured by Earth-Sized Scope

First-Ever Image of a Black Hole to be Captured by Earth-Sized Scope:

Spitzer telescope view of the galactic center. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/S. Stolovy)

“Sgr A* is the right object, VLBI is the right technique, and this decade is the right time.”

So states the mission page of the Event Horizon Telescope, an international endeavor that will combine the capabilities of over 50 radio telescopes across the globe to create a single Earth-sized telescope to image the enormous black hole at the center of our galaxy. For the first time, astronomers will “see” one of the most enigmatic objects in the Universe.

And tomorrow, January 18, researchers from around the world will convene in Tucson, AZ to discuss how to make this long-standing astronomical dream a reality.

(...)
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Titan’s Layered Atmosphere is Surprisingly Earth-Like

Titan’s Layered Atmosphere is Surprisingly Earth-Like:

Titan's thick, smog-like upper atmosphere obscures our view of the lower atmosphere and surface. The much smaller moon Enceladus is also seen in this image. Credit: NASA/JPL

Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, is in some ways the most Earth-like world in the solar system, with a thick nitrogen atmosphere, rain, rivers, lakes and seas. Albeit it is much colder, and liquid methane/ethane takes the place of water, but the hydrological processes are quite similar to those here. There may, however, also be a liquid water-ammonia ocean below the surface. Now, new research suggests that Titan is Earth-like in another way as well, with a layered lower atmosphere similar to ours.

(...)
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Distant Invisible Galaxy Could be Made Up Entirely of Dark Matter

Distant Invisible Galaxy Could be Made Up Entirely of Dark Matter:

The gravitational lens B1938+666 as seen in the infrared when observed with the 10-meter Keck II telescope. Credit: D. Lagattuta / W. M. Keck Observatory

Astronomers can’t see it but they know it’s out there from the distortions caused by its gravity. That statement describes dark matter, the elusive substance which scientists have estimated makes up about 25% of our universe and doesn’t emit or absorb light. But it also describes a distant, tiny galaxy located about 10 billion light years from Earth. This galaxy can’t be seen in telescopes, but astronomers were able to detect its presence through the small distortions made in light that passes by it. This dark galaxy is the most distant and lowest-mass object ever detected, and astronomers say it could help them find similar objects and confirm or reject current cosmological theories about the structure of the Universe.

“Now we have one dark satellite,” said Simona Vegetti, a postdoctoral researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who led the discovery. “But suppose that we don’t find enough of them — then we will have to change the properties of dark matter. Or, we might find as many satellites as we see in the simulations, and that will tell us that dark matter has the properties we think it has.”
(...)
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Fly Me to the Moon — Twice!

Fly Me to the Moon — Twice!:

Two aircraft cross over the waxing gibbous Moon on January 6, 2012. Credit: John Chumack

Those darn airplanes that leave their contrails and ruin a good astrophoto….except, wait! This one is awesome! From John Chumack’s vantage point earlier this month, two aircraft met up in the sky to fly across the waxing gibbous Moon. John provided a cropped inset to make it easier for all to see the jets. Great capture, John!

John’s details: captured on 01-06-2012 at 17:47pm E.S.T.
Canon Rebel Xsi DSLR & 300mm Lens @ F8, ISO 400,
1/800 second exposure

Want to get your astrophoto featured on Universe Today? Join our Flickr group, post in our Forum or send us your images by email (this means you’re giving us permission to post them). Please explain what’s in the picture, when you took it, the equipment you used, etc.


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Could a ‘Death Star’ Really Destroy a Planet?

Could a ‘Death Star’ Really Destroy a Planet?:

The Death Star. Image Credit: Wookieepedia / Lucasfilm

Countless Sci-Fi fans vividly remember the famous scene in Star Wars in which the Death Star obliterates the planet Alderaan.

Mirroring many late night caffeine-fueled arguments among Sci-Fi fans, a University of Leicester researcher asks the question:

Could a small moon-sized battle station generate enough energy to destroy an Earth-sized planet?

(...)
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A New Look at the Helix Nebula — a Giant “Eye” in Space

A New Look at the Helix Nebula — a Giant “Eye” in Space:

This comparison shows a new view of the Helix Nebula acquired with the VISTA telescope in infrared light (left) and the more familiar view in visible light from the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope (right). The infrared vision of VISTA reveals strands of cold nebular gas that are mostly obscured in visible light images of the Helix. Credit: ESO/VISTA/J. Emerson. Acknowledgment: Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit

Who is looking at who here? A brand new image of the Helix Nebula (breathlessly called the “Eye of God” in viral email messages) was taken by ESO’s VISTA telescope, at the Paranal Observatory in Chile. In infrared light — compared previous images of the Helix Nebula taken in visible light — the “eye” appears to have put on a colored contact lens, changing the color from blue to brown. What infrared really reveals are strands of cold gases within the nebula, as well as highlighting a rich background of stars and galaxies.
(...)
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Who Will Be the Next Astronomy Photographer of the Year?

Who Will Be the Next Astronomy Photographer of the Year?:

'Blazing Bristlecone' by Tom Lowe of the USA, winner of the 2010 years Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition.

Attention all astrophotographers (as well as those of us who just enjoy looking at great astronomy images!): The Royal Observatory Greenwich is launching its annual Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition, and is searching for the most beautiful, dramatic and spectacular images of the cosmos. Anyone from around the world can enter and the winning images will be showcased at the Royal Observatory.

This is the 4th year of this competition, which began as part of the International Year of Astronomy in 2009.

“Astronomy is becoming increasingly popular with the public which is reflected in the big rise in entries we saw in 2011,” said Dr. Marek Kukula, Public Astronomer at the ROG. “Every year the competition has brought new surprises, I love the fact that we receive entries from people all around the world and from complete beginners as well as seasoned experts. All the judges are excited about what we’re going to see this time around.”
(...)
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British TV Audience Discovers Potential New Planet

British TV Audience Discovers Potential New Planet:

Artist concept of the new planet. Credit: BBC

A public “mass participation” push initiated on a UK television program to find planets beyond our Solar System has had an immediate result! On Monday, January 16, 2012 “BBC Stargazing LIVE” began its first of three nights of television programs live from Jodrell Bank Observatory in the UK. The series was hosted by Professor Brian Cox, comedian Dara O’Briain along with a number of other well known TV personalities, astronomers and scientists. There was even a guest appearance via satellite link from Captain Gene Cernan, the last man on the Moon.

As well as the main TV program, there were numerous local events across the UK and the viewers could “mass participate” in activities such as looking for extra solar planets with the citizen science project, Planethunters.org.

The website hosts data gathered by NASA’s Kepler space telescope, and asks volunteers to sift the information for anything unusual that might have been missed in a computer search. People are especially adept at seeing things that computers do not and the BBC Stargazing Live event was a golden opportunity to get many people looking. During the event, over a million classifications were made and 34 candidate planets found on the website in 48 hours.

On the last show of the series on Wednesday 18th January it was announced, that in particular, one planet candidate looks extremely promising, as it has been identified multiple times by PlanetHunter participants. (...)
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I Thought I Saw A UFO! Mystery Triangle On STEREO Image Explained…

I Thought I Saw A UFO! Mystery Triangle On STEREO Image Explained…:

Mystery diamond-shape “object” entering the field-of-view of the HI2 telescope on STEREO Behind around December 26, 2011. Credit: NASA

The STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory) is a two-year mission conducted by NASA. It employs nearly identical twin telescopes – one positioned ahead of Earth’s orbit and the other behind – designed to study the Sun’s activities spectroscopically. However, it can sometimes pick up some very unusual findings! On December 26, 2011, the STEREO Behind Observatory’s HI2 telescope captured an ambiguous triangle entering the field of view and moving from right to left just above the trapezoidal occulter as seen in the above movie. Just what is this “thing”?! (...)
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ISS Caught Between the Moon and New York City

ISS Caught Between the Moon and New York City:

The ISS passes across the face of a daytime Moon. © Alan Friedman.

Now as the theme from Arthur plays in your head you can enjoy this GIF animation of the ISS passing across the face of a daytime Moon, photographed by Alan Friedman from his location in upstate New York.

I know it’s crazy, but it’s true.

(...)
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Astrophoto: Approaching Mars by Efrain Morales

Astrophoto: Approaching Mars by Efrain Morales:

Astrophoto: Approaching Mars by Efrain Morales

Approaching Mars. Image Credit: Efrain Morales

This is an amazing image of Mars as it approaches the Earth captured by Efrain Morales on January 9, 2012. In this image, Mars shows off its largest volcano, Olympus Mons, which also happens to be the largest in the Solar System under orographic clouds and at the Tharsis Montes region at the limb.

Efrain used the following equipment and specs in taking this photo:
LX200ACF 12 in. OTA, F30, CGE mount, PGR Flea3 Ccd, TeleVue 3x barlows, Astronomik Ir, RGB filter set.

Check out Efrain’s website and Flickr page for more astrophotos.


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Astrophoto: Stunning Alaskan Sun Pillar

Astrophoto: Stunning Alaskan Sun Pillar:

A brilliant Sun pillar in Fairbanks, Alaska on January 17, 2012. Credit: Jason Ahrns

Cold enough for you? Jason Ahrns captured this brilliant Sun pillar, “reaching down into the trees just below the Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks on a nice -40 C (or F — its all the same) day,” Jason said.

A Sun (or solar) pillar is a vertical shaft of light extending upward or downward from the Sun, and are typically seen in cold weather when sunlight reflects off the surfaces of falling ice crystals associated with thin, high-level clouds.

Jason used a Nikon D7000 camera.

Want to get your astrophoto featured on Universe Today? Join our Flickr group, or send us your images by email (this means you’re giving us permission to post them). Please explain what’s in the picture, when you took it, the equipment you used, etc.


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NOAA: Largest Solar Radiation Storm Since 2005 Now in Progress

NOAA: Largest Solar Radiation Storm Since 2005 Now in Progress:

X-Ray image from a GOES satellite at 14:12 UTC on January 23, 2012. Credit: NOAA

Earth’s magnetic field is already full of activity from an Earth-directed Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) last week. But all indications are another blast is headed our way from the strongest solar radiation storm since September, 2005. NOAA says the storm is currently in progress and continues to get stronger, with a very fast CME headed towards Earth. Sunspot 1402 erupted, producing a long-duration M9-class solar flare. “Geomagnetic storming is a near certainty from this event,” reported NOAA. The associated solar flare peaked at about 0400 UTC on January 23 (11pm Jan 22 EST).”

A computer model just released by NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center forecasts the storm will arrive sometime on January 24, at about 14:18 UT (+/- 7 hours), as the CME is traveling at approx. 2,200 km per second. Click here to see the animated model.

We’ve already shown you a video of the auroral activity going on yesterday and will soon post a gallery of beautiful aurorae from around the world. And it looks like we’ll likely have more photos to share in the coming week! And NASA says skywatchers should be on the lookout for aurora in lower than normal latitudes. Scientists are also predicting that Mars will get hit too, several hours after Earth. At this point, there’s no way to predict the possible effect on Earth-orbiting satellites for communications, GPS, etc, or the effect on Mars spacecraft.

These kinds of events can cause problems for spacecrafts in geosynchronous, polar and other orbits passing could be affected by the cloud’s arrival. In addition, strong geomagnetic storms are possible, so high-latitude sky watchers should be alert for aurorae.

Below is a video from the Solar Dynamics Observatory of the event:
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Posted by Nelio Inacio at 5:27 PM 0 comments
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Stunning Auroras From Around the World (January 22-23, 2012)

Stunning Auroras From Around the World (January 22-23, 2012):

This photo was taken on January 22, 2012 in Fairbanks North Star Borough County, Alaska, US, using a Nikon D5000. The 'explodey' look is due to perspective from looking right up the magnetic field lines. The aurora in the middle of the explosion is pointing straight down at the camera. Credit: Jason Ahrns -- and 'regular' view of Jason's image of the aurora is below.

On January 22nd 2012, skywatchers in the northern hemisphere were rewarded with amazing displays of aurora. The cause of these displays was a Kp level 5.67 geomagnetic storm originating from solar activity on the 19th of January, produced visible aurorae throughout the northern hemisphere and viewers as far south as northeast England had great auroral views.

Here is a selection of aurora images and videos taken during the event.

More below!
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Posted by Nelio Inacio at 5:24 PM 0 comments
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Carnival of Space #233

Carnival of Space #233:

This week’s Carnival of Space is hosted by Bill Dunford at Riding with Robots on the High Frontier.

Click here to read the Carnival of Space #233, a variety of space news and images from around the web.

And if you’re interested in looking back, here’s an archive to all the past Carnivals of Space. If you’ve got a space-related blog, you should really join the carnival. Just email an entry to carnivalofspace@gmail.com, and the next host will link to it. It will help get awareness out there about your writing, help you meet others in the space community – and community is what blogging is all about. And if you really want to help out, sign up to be a host. Send and email to the above address



Posted by Nelio Inacio at 5:22 PM 0 comments
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Voyager Mission Is Cooling Its Jets

Voyager Mission Is Cooling Its Jets:

Artist's concept of NASA's Voyager spacecraft. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Or, more appropriately, Voyager 1 is cooling its instruments. To help conserve power, the mission managers at NASA have decided to cut the electricity to a heating element – one that’s part of the nearby infrared spectrometer that’s not been in operation for some 14 years. This power cut will lower the temperature of the ultraviolet spectrometer by about 23 degrees Celsius (41 degrees Fahrenheit)… a temperature that’s mild compared to the below minus 79 degrees Celsius (minus 110 degrees Fahrenheit) that the instrument has dropped to in previous times. It’s not a drastic measure, however, but all part of a crucial plan to manage electrical power to keep the spacecraft operational and transmitting data for another 13 years. (...)
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Posted by Nelio Inacio at 5:21 PM 0 comments
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Young Magnetic Star Possesses Precise Carbon Dioxide Ring

Young Magnetic Star Possesses Precise Carbon Dioxide Ring:

Artist's conception image of a young star surrounded by a disk (made up of rings) (Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Catching a ring – or accretion disk – around a star isn’t unusual. However, catching a sharply defined carbon-dioxide ring around a young, magnetic star that’s precisely 1 AU away with a width 0.32 AU or less might raise a few eyebrows. This isn’t just any disk, either… It’s been likened as a “rope-like structure” and there’s even more to the mystery. It’s encircling a Herbig Ae star. (...)
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Posted by Nelio Inacio at 5:20 PM 0 comments
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