The European Southern Observatory (ESO) has released an absolutely gorgeous photo of the Cat’s Paw Nebula that I wanted to share. There’s some details here at¬†the ESO website¬†about the nebula that I found quite interesting, and I strongly encourage you to go take a read through.

The ESO, for those who aren’t familliar, is an “intergovernmental science and technology organisation in astronomy…” that “carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities for astronomy to enable important scientific discoveries.” They have some extremely powerful telescopes in three locations in Chile, and they have been taking some of the most amazing photos with them.

Jim

¬†NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has brought us¬†an incredible new infrared photograph of the Small Magellanic Cloud. There’s also a whole mess of information about the cloud and it’s bigger brother (aptly named the Large Magellanic Cloud), the Spitzer Space Telescope, the concept of infrared photography as it relates to astronomy, and how our understanding of the Small Magellanic Cloud is changing. It’s well worth the read, and the image is truly stunning. Give it an eyeballing!

Jim

This is an absolutely incredible six minute video that starts out on the highest reaches of the earth and then zooms us out to the cosmic horizon as we know it. It reminds me very much when I watch it of how amazingly large the universe around us is, and what an unexplored frontier it presents to us. Seeing things in this scale, it’s hard to imagine the odds on finding nothing else alive out there, and, at least for me, hard to imagine anyone thinking that this was all the product of some God who could create something so immense and still care if I say his name when I stub my toe.

Watch the video and read the information about it.

Jim

I was just reading a blurb on Science Dailyabout the latest release of findings from NASA’s most recent lunar mission. I know, you’re probably wondering how they can release this information because THEY FAKET TEH MOON LANDIN, but they did it anyway, probably just to spite you.

Some of the findings are really interesting. One thing in particular struck me as amazing, given that I’ve just sat through a nasty few days of cold winter weather. And it was nasty. It hovered around the -25 Celsius mark (-13 Fahrenheit, a balmy 248 Kelvin) for the most part, but with a nasty wind that sort of bit through you and tore out your lungs. However, that doesn’t hold a candle to what they’ve been recording on the moon:

LRO’s Diviner instrument has discovered that the bottoms of polar craters in permanent shadow can be brutally cold. Mid-winter nighttime surface temperatures inside the coldest craters in the north polar region dip down to 26 Kelvin (416 below zero Fahrenheit, or minus 249 degrees Celsius). “These are the coldest temperatures that have been measured thus far anywhere in the solar system,” said David Paige, Diviner principal investigator at the University of California, Los Angeles. “These regions are cold enough to trap a wide range of compounds such as water, carbon dioxide, and organic molecules. There could be all kinds of interesting compounds trapped there.”

26 KELVIN? Yikes!

To me, the more interesting part of that of course is the possibility for trapped organic molecules. I’m fascinated by the work that NASA has been doing of late! There’s so much that we have to learn about the moon, so much we’re only just now figuring out thanks to their diligence. But the real question is, if the moon is made of cheese, where’d they get the cow?

Jim

Two interesting articles from Science Daily today regarding the lovely cosmos we find ourselves in. The first is entitled Young Star Cluster Trumpler 14 Revealed in Stunning Image and entirely lives up to it’s name. It’s a photograph (pictured all tiny to the left) of the Trumpler 14 cluster in the Carina Nebula, and it’s quite stunning. Taken by the good folks at ESO with their Very Large Telescope!

The second is entitled First Direct Observation of a Planet-Like Object Orbiting Star Similar to Sun and offers some insight into some research from Hawaii’s Subaru Telescope focussed on GJ 758. It looks like a fairly near (in space-boy terms, 300 trillion miles is fairly near) planet or possibly a brown dwarf star.¬† At any rate, read the articles and find out more!

Jim

I just read a couple of great articles on ScienceDaily that I thought I’d share. Both are astronomical in nature, and are pretty damned neat.

The first is entitled Blushing Dusty Nebula, and talks about the image to the left,¬†a section of the Iris Nebula. It’s a fabulous clop of cosmic dust, and is lit up by a nearby star, and it appears that there’s something very special in this photograph, a section of the cloud appears to be made up of something new to us. Very cool stuff.

The second is entitled Black Hole Caught Zapping Galaxy Into Existence? and discusses an alternative theory on the relationship of black holes and galaxies. It’s quite a fascinating read, and definitely raises a few questions. This is a good summary of what they are discussing: Continue reading →

Interesting news from NASA and Cassini, though I’m not sure I grasp the importance of it. I’m at best a layperson in the world of astronomy, and in truth I wouldn’t even call myself that. I don’t know the names of the constellations, but I’ve been following some of the photographs coming from the firmament of late with awe.

Science Daily has a great article about some new findings that Cassini has shown us. These findings are (at least to my understanding) not going to redefine the study of the universe, but certainly change our opinion on the shape of our solar system, which should give us a more accurate understanding of how we move about, where we were, and where we are going.

“These new data from Cassini really redefine our sense of our home in the galaxy, and we can now do better studies of whether our solar system resembles those elsewhere,” Krimigis said.

The Voyagers have sent back rich data on the heliosphere and heliosheath, but just at two locations. Scientists want more context. One way to learn about the region is to track energetic neutral atoms streaming back toward the sun from the heliosheath.

It’s interesting stuff for sure. And again, I’m hesitant to comment on it due to my not having the necessary breadth of understanding on the issue, but perhaps some of our more astronomically-minded readers can take it to the comments section?

Jim

¬†I was reading an article just now on Science Daily that shows some incredibly cool photos from the ESO‘s NTT telescopeof Centaurus A, which is a giant elliptical galaxy near us. It is believed that the dust ring that surrounds it is the remnants from this system cannibalizing a smaller spiral galaxy.

Either way, the photos are amazing and I highly recommend you take a look at them. These were taken from from the NTT telescope, which is a giant telescope located in Chile. The have a fairly exceptional view of the Southern night sky, and have captured some absolutely amazing photos in the past. And this is no exception. Enjoy!

Jim

I found a fascinating high level explanation of NASA’s LCROSS findings on Science Daily. The much maligned OMG THEY R GOIN 2 BLOW UP TEH MOON mission was extremely successful and has resulted in all kinds of new answers and questions about the moon.

Last night, Boy Infidel and I had a pint in a pub and got to talking all about this mission. It was a blast. I think that the work of agencies like NASA is truly what will allow the human species to continue to thrive. These are the baby steps we are taking towards being able to move through our universe, finding new planets to explore, and ultimately we are learning an amazing amount about our own planet, our close neighbors, and distant worlds. It is truly breathtaking.

As Carl Sagan said, “The surface of the earth is the shore of the cosmic ocean. Recently we’ve waded a little way out. And the water seems inviting.” It amazes me just how true that statement is.

Jim