"Spring Sprouts" of The Martian North | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

"Spring Sprouts" of The Martian North | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

The sun is rising in Mars’ Northern Hemisphere, and spring activity is starting as the seasonal polar cap begins to sublimate (going from ice directly to gas). A layer of dry ice covers the sand dunes in this image.

Gas jets sprout through the ice layer carrying dust and sand from the surface, showing up as dark fans. At this time in early Martian spring, the fans are visible between the sand dunes. The ground between the dunes is on the scale of tens of centimeters, and ice in places where the sun hits more directly will thin fastest, releasing the jets. Later, the ice over and around the dunes will rupture and more fans will appear on the dunes.

This image was acquired on December 24, 2020, by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) at an altitude of 271 km from the planet's surface. The image is less than 1 km across. 

The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) instrument, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. 

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

“For 17 years, MRO has been revealing Mars to us as no one had seen it before,” said the mission’s project scientist, Rich Zurek of JPL.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

Narration: Tre Gibbs

Duration: 47 seconds

Caption Credit: Candy Hansen 

Image Date: Jan. 22, 2021

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Mars #Planet #RedPlanet #Science #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #NorthernHemisphere #SandDunes #GasJets #DarkFans #MRO #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISE #HiRISECamera #JPL #Caltech #UniversityOfArizona #BallAerospace #STEM #Education

"Spring Sprouts" of The Martian North | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

"Spring Sprouts" of The Martian North | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

The sun is rising in Mars’ Northern Hemisphere, and spring activity is starting as the seasonal polar cap begins to sublimate (going from ice directly to gas). A layer of dry ice covers the sand dunes in this image.

Gas jets sprout through the ice layer carrying dust and sand from the surface, showing up as dark fans. At this time in early Martian spring, the fans are visible between the sand dunes. The ground between the dunes is on the scale of tens of centimeters, and ice in places where the sun hits more directly will thin fastest, releasing the jets. Later, the ice over and around the dunes will rupture and more fans will appear on the dunes.

This image was acquired on December 24, 2020, by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) at an altitude of 271 km from the planet's surface. The image is less than 1 km across. 

The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) instrument, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. 

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

“For 17 years, MRO has been revealing Mars to us as no one had seen it before,” said the mission’s project scientist, Rich Zurek of JPL.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

Caption Credit: Candy Hansen 

Image Date: Dec. 24, 2020

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Mars #Planet #RedPlanet #Science #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #NorthernHemisphere #SandDunes #GasJets #DarkFans #MRO #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISE #HiRISECamera #JPL #Caltech #UniversityOfArizona #BallAerospace #STEM #Education

Shenzhou-16 Mission: Long March Rocket Launch | China Space Station

Shenzhou-16 Mission: Long March Rocket Launch | China Space Station

The Shenzhou-16 crew spacecraft was successfully launched by a Long March-2F Y16 launch vehicle from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Gansu Province, China, on May 30, 2023, at 01:31 UTC (09:31 China Standard Time). Shenzhou-16 is the fifth crew of three astronauts on a mission to the China Space Station: Jing Haipeng (景海鹏, commander), Zhu Yangzhu (朱杨柱) and Gui Haichao (桂海潮).

Credit: China National Space Administration (CNSA)/China Central Television (CCTV)/China Global Television Network (CGTN)

Acknowledgement: SciNews

Duration: 6 minutes

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #Space #China #中国 #LongMarch2FRocket #长征二号F遥十六 #SpaceLaboratory #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #Shenzhou16 #神舟十六 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #Commander #JingHaipeng #ZhuYangzhu #GuiHaichao #CMSA #国家航天局 #Science #Technology #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video

China's Shenzhou-16 Mission & Crew | China Space Station

China's Shenzhou-16 Mission & Crew | China Space Station

A Long March-2F carrier rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-16 spacecraft with three astronauts on board, successfully blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Tuesday morning, May 30, 2023.

The Shenzhou-16 manned mission, the first since the China Space Station entered its application and development stage, will conduct a fast automated rendezvous in orbit and dock at the radial port of the Tianhe core module, forming a combination of three modules and three spaceships. China unveiled its crew members for the Shenzhou-16 spaceflight mission on Monday, May 29, 2023 with the astronauts meeting the press a day before their scheduled launch. 

Taikonauts Jing Haipeng (Commander), Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao will carry out the mission to the China Space Station (CSS), the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced at the press conference. Gui Haichao makes history as China's first civilian astronaut and payload specialist.

Gui Haichao, born in November 1986, was also selected as a member of China's third batch of astronauts in 2020, serving as a payload specialist.

"The word 'astronaut' was sacred and far from me in the past, and I've been dreaming of moving my research work into space one day," he said. "I didn't hesitate to sign up when I learned in 2018 that the country was about to select payload specialists."

With Gui's arrival, the China Space Station will welcome its first payload specialist.

The Shenzhou-15 crew will return to north China's Dongfeng landing site after completing an in-orbit rotation mission with the Shenzhou-16 crew.

Credit: China Global Television Network (CGTN)

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #Space #China #中国 #Earth #MicrogravityExperiments #SpaceResearch #SpaceLaboratory #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #天和核心舱 #Shenzhou16 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #Commander #JingHaipeng #ZhuYangzhu #GuiHaichao #CNSA #CMSA #国家航天局 #Science #Technology #HumanSpaceflight #Infographics #STEM #Education

China's Shenzhou-16 Crew Training | China Space Station

China's Shenzhou-16 Crew Training | China Space Station

China unveiled its crew members for the Shenzhou-16 spaceflight mission on Monday, May 29, 2023, with the astronauts meeting the press a day before their scheduled launch. 

Taikonauts Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao will carry out the mission to the China Space Station (CSS), the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced at a press conference. Gui Haichao makes history as China's first civilian astronaut.

What did they do in their training? 

The Shenzhou-16 manned mission, the first since the China Space Station entered its application and development stage, will conduct a fast automated rendezvous in orbit and dock at the radial port of the Tianhe core module, forming a combination of three modules and three spaceships.

The Shenzhou-15 crew will return to north China's Dongfeng landing site after completing an in-orbit rotation mission with the Shenzhou-16 crew.

Credit: China Global Television Network (CGTN)

Duration: 3 minutes, 34 seconds

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #Space #China #中国 #Earth #MicrogravityExperiments #SpaceResearch #SpaceLaboratory #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #天和核心舱 #Shenzhou16 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #Training #Commander #JingHaipeng #ZhuYangzhu #GuiHaichao #CNSA #CMSA #国家航天局 #Science #Technology #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Star Forming Region N90: Wide-field View (ground-based image)

Star Forming Region N90: Wide-field View (ground-based image)

This image shows the area around nebula N90. N90 is a rich star-forming region in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way.

Distance: 200,000 light years

This is a color composite made from Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2) exposure. The field of view is 3.1x2.8 degrees.

Credit: Davide De Martin (ESA/Hubble), the ESA/ESO/NASA/Digitized Sky Survey 2

Release Date: Jan. 8, 2007

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Nebulae #N90 #Nebula #OpenStarCluster #NGC602 #MagellanicCloud #SMC #Hydrus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Open Star Cluster NGC 602 in The Small Magellanic Cloud | NASA Chandra

Open Star Cluster NGC 602 in The Small Magellanic Cloud | NASA Chandra

NGC 602 is a young, bright open cluster of stars located in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC)—a satellite galaxy close to the Milky Way. It is embedded in a nebula known as N90.

Distance: 200,000 light years

Credit: NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: April 8, 2013

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Stars #MagellanicCloud #SMC #Hydrus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Spitzer #SpaceTelescopes #Infrared #Hubble #HST #ChandraObservatory #Xray #JPL #Caltech #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #ESA #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Zoom into Star Forming Region N90 & Star Cluster NGC 602 | Hubble

Zoom into Star Forming Region N90 & Star Cluster NGC 602 | Hubble

Bright blue newly formed stars are blowing a cavity in the center of a fascinating star-forming region known as N90. NGC 602 is a young, bright open cluster of stars located in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a satellite galaxy to the Milky Way. It is embedded in the nebula N90.

Distance: 200,000 light years

The high energy radiation blazing out from the hot young stars in N90 is eroding the outer portions of the nebula from the inside, as the diffuse outer reaches of the nebula prevent the energetic outflows from streaming away from the cluster directly. Because N90 is located far from the central body of the Small Magellanic Cloud, numerous background galaxies in this picture can be seen, delivering a grand backdrop for the stellar newcomers. The dust in the region gives these distant galaxies a reddish-brown tint.

Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), and G. Bacon and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

Duration: 27 seconds

Release Date: Dec. 31, 2014

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Stars #StarCluster #NGC602 #N90 #Nebula #MagellanicCloud #SMC #Hydrus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Hubble #SpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #ESA #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Star Forming Region N90 & Star Cluster NGC 602 | Hubble

Star Forming Region N90 & Star Cluster NGC 602 | Hubble

This image depicts bright blue newly formed stars that are blowing a cavity in the center of a fascinating star-forming region known as N90.

Distance: 200,000 light years

The high energy radiation blazing out from the hot young stars in N90 is eroding the outer portions of the nebula from the inside, as the diffuse outer reaches of the nebula prevent the energetic outflows from streaming away from the cluster directly. Because N90 is located far from the central body of the Small Magellanic Cloud, numerous background galaxies in this picture can be seen, delivering a grand backdrop for the stellar newcomers. The dust in the region gives these distant galaxies a reddish-brown tint.

Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA) and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration

Release Date: Jan. 8, 2007

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Stars #StarCluster #NGC602 #N90 #Nebula #MagellanicCloud #SMC #Hydrus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Hubble #SpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #ESA #Europe #STEM #Education

Shenzhou-15 Crew Makes History with Six-Month Mission | China Space Station

Shenzhou-15 Crew Makes History with Six-Month Mission | China Space Station

The Shenzhou-15 crew is finishing their six-month long duration stay at the China Space Station. The trio, Fei Junlong, Deng Qingming and Zhang Lu, started their mission with fanfare. Their time at the China Space Station has earned them even more respect.

Shenzhou-15 Crew Members: 

Fei Junlong (commander), Zhang Lu (taikonaut), and Deng Qingming (taikonaut)

Credit: China Global Television Network (CGTN)

Duration: 1 minute, 33 seconds

Release Date: May 28, 2023

#NASA #Space #China #中国 #Earth #MicrogravityExperiments #SpaceResearch #SpaceLaboratory #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #天和核心舱 #Shenzhou15 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #Commander #FeiJunlong #ZhangLu #DengQingming #CNSA #CMSA #国家航天局 #Science #Technology #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Milky Way & Bioluminescent Plankton in Earth's Indian Ocean

The Milky Way & Bioluminescent Plankton in Earth's Indian Ocean

A shoreline glowing with blue bioluminescent plankton is shown, with a stand of trees in the distance. Above all is a starry sky which includes red nebulae and the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy.

What glows there? The answer depends: sea or sky? In the sea, the unusual blue glow is bioluminescence. Specifically, the glimmer arises from Noctiluca scintillans, single-celled plankton stimulated by the lapping waves. The plankton use their glow to startle and illuminate predators. This mid-February display on an island in the Maldives was so intense that the astrophotographer described it as a turquoise wonderland. In the sky, by contrast, are the more familiar glows of stars and nebulas. The white band rising from the artificially-illuminated green plants is created by billions of stars in the central disk of our Milky Way Galaxy. Also visible in the sky is the star cluster Omega Centauri, toward the left, and the famous Southern Cross asterism in the center. Red-glowing nebulas include the bright Carina Nebula, just right of center, and the expansive Gum Nebula on the upper right.

Image Credit & Copyright: Petr Horálek/Institute of Physics in Opava, Sovena Jani

Petr Horálek's website: www.petrhoralek.com

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Maldives #IndianOcean #Plankton #NoctilucaScintillans #Bioluminescence #Biology #Stars #MilkyWayGalaxy #Nebulae #CarinaNebula #GumNebula #StarCluster #OmegaCentauri #Astrophotography #PetrHoralek #STEM #Education #APoD

India's GSLV-F12 Rocket Launches Navigation Satellite NVS-01 | ISRO

India's GSLV-F12 Rocket Launches Navigation Satellite NVS-01 | ISRO

A Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk II (GSLV-F12) launched the NVS-01 navigation satellite into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit from the Second Launch Pad (SLP) at Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC SHAR), Sriharikota, on May 29, 2023, at 05:12 UTC (10:42 IST). NVS-01 (~2232 kg) is the first of the second-generation satellites envisaged for the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) services.

Credit: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

Acknowledgement: SciNews

Duration: 3 minutes

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #ISRO #Space #Science #Rocket #GSLVMkII #GSLVF12 #Satellite #NavigationSatellite #NVS01Mission #SatishDhawanSpaceCentre #SDSC #Sriharikota #India #BhāratGaṇarājya #Technology #Engineering #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Spiral Galaxy NGC 298: Type II Supernova Host | Hubble

Spiral Galaxy NGC 298: Type II Supernova Host | Hubble

The spiral galaxy NGC 298 basks in this image from the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope. NGC 298 lies around 89 million light-years away in the constellation Cetus, and appears isolated in this image—only a handful of distant galaxies and foreground stars accompany the lonely galaxy. While NGC 298 seems peaceful, in 1986 it was host to one of astronomy's most extreme events: a catastrophic stellar explosion known as a Type II supernova. 

Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys captured NGC 298 as part of an investigation into the origins of Type II supernovae. All Type II supernovae are produced by the collapse and subsequent explosion of young, massive stars, but they can produce a spectacular diversity of brightnesses and spectral features.

Image Description: A spiral galaxy. It is tilted diagonally, and slightly towards the viewer, making its core and disc separately visible. Its disc is speckled by small stars, has threads of dark reddish dust and bubbles of bright, glowing gas. The core shines brightly in a warmer colour. Several tiny stars and small galaxies are included in the black background.

Astronomers suspect that the diversity of this cosmic firework show might be due to gas and dust being stripped from the stars that will eventually produce Type II supernovae. Observing the region surrounding supernova explosions can reveal traces of the progenitor star’s history preserved in this lost mass, as well as revealing any companion stars that survived the supernova. Hubble used the brief periods between scheduled observations to explore the aftermath of a number of Type II supernovae, hoping to piece together the relationship between Type II supernovae and the stellar systems which give rise to them.

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #NGC298 #Galaxy #TypeIISupernova #Spiral #Cetus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HST #SpaceTelescope #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Vela Supernova Remnant: Giant Cosmic Networks of Filaments | ESO

The Vela Supernova Remnant: Giant Cosmic Networks of Filaments | ESO

Sometimes dramatic events are needed to create something stunning. This beautiful structure of filaments and clouds in the southern constellation of Vela are all that remains of a massive star that died in a powerful explosion known as supernova. 

Even though bright stars populate this image, it is hard to not be captivated by the pink gaseous clouds filling up the frame. Some tiny, others thicker, the filaments stretch outwards like tentacles. As they intertwine and cling together, an intricate network is formed which mixes with blurred clouds. However, how did they come to be like this?

Around 11,000 years ago, a massive star exploded as a supernova, ejecting its outer layers. The explosion also generated shock waves which traveled outwards, compressing the gas around the star and creating the intricate network visible in the image. The result of such explosions are called supernova remnants. At 800 light years away from Earth, the Vela supernova remnant is one of the closest known to us.

At the center of the image, there is a pink network of filaments, which extends towards the right. Around it, filamentary orange clouds fill the space. Spread all over the picture, bright yellow, blue and reddish stars populate the image. The dark background is almost completely hidden by all these features.

This is a small section of a larger image taken using the wide-field camera OmegaCAM at the VLT Survey Telescope (VST). Hosted at the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory in the Chilean desert, the VST is one of the best telescopes in the world to take large images of the sky in visible light.

Credit: European Southern Observatory/VPHAS+ team

Acknowledgement: Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit

Release Date: May 29, 2023

#NASA #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #SupernovaRemnant #Vela #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #VST #OmegaCAM #ParanalObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education

Mars: Dune & Ripple Migration in Nili Patera | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Mars: Dune & Ripple Migration in Nili Patera | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Nili Patera is a region on Mars in which sand dunes and ripples are moving rapidly. NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter continues to monitor this area every couple of months to see changes over seasonal and annual time scales.

Here we see obvious activity over a span of less than two Earth years. Three prominent changes are obvious: 1) the dunes are migrating, with position differences of a few meters in some areas; 2) the ripples on the surfaces of the dunes have undergone so much change that they cannot be reliably tracked over this time interval; and 3) the lee faces of the dunes exhibit new avalanches.

These results show that Nili Patera, and other regions on Mars, are areas of active sand migration and landscape erosion.

These images were acquired on August 31, 2012, by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) at an altitude of 271 km from the planet's surface. The image is less than 1 km across. 

The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) instrument, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. 

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

“For 17 years, MRO has been revealing Mars to us as no one had seen it before,” said the mission’s project scientist, Rich Zurek of JPL.

Video Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

Narration: Tre Gibbs

Duration: 51 seconds

Release Date: Oct. 1, 2014

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Mars #Planet #RedPlanet #Science #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #NiliPatera #SandDunes #DuneMigration #RippleMigration #WindErosion #MRO #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISE #HiRISECamera #JPL #Caltech #UniversityOfArizona #BallAerospace #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Mars: Dune & Ripple Migration in Nili Patera | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Mars: Dune & Ripple Migration in Nili Patera | NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Nili Patera is a region on Mars in which sand dunes and ripples are moving rapidly. NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter continues to monitor this area every couple of months to see changes over seasonal and annual time scales.

Here we see obvious activity over a span of less than two Earth years. Three prominent changes are obvious: 1) the dunes are migrating, with position differences of a few meters in some areas; 2) the ripples on the surfaces of the dunes have undergone so much change that they cannot be reliably tracked over this time interval; and 3) the lee faces of the dunes exhibit new avalanches.

These results show that Nili Patera, and other regions on Mars, are areas of active sand migration and landscape erosion.

This image was acquired on August 31, 2012, by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) at an altitude of 271 km from the planet's surface. The image is less than 1 km across. 

The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates  the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) instrument, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. 

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

“For 17 years, MRO has been revealing Mars to us as no one had seen it before,” said the mission’s project scientist, Rich Zurek of JPL.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

Image Date: August 31, 2012

Release Date: May 28, 2023

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Mars #Planet #RedPlanet #Science #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #NiliPatera #SandDunes #DuneMigration #RippleMigration #WindErosion #MRO #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISE #Camera #JPL #Caltech #UniversityOfArizona #BallAerospace #STEM #Education