Planet Mars Images: Jan. 17-22, 2025 | NASA's Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Planet Mars Images: Jan. 25-26, 2025 | NASA's Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Mars 2020 - sol 1398

MSL - sol 4434

MSL - sol 4434

MSL - sol 4434

Mars 2020 - sol 1399

MSL - sol 4432

MSL - sol 4432

MSL - sol 4432

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Celebrating 12+ Years on Mars (2012-2024)

Mission Name: Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)

Rover Name: Curiosity

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

Launch: Nov. 6, 2011

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

Celebrating 3+ Years on Mars

Mission Name: Mars 2020

Rover Name: Perseverance

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

Launch: July 30, 2020    

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

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

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

Processing: Kevin M. Gill

Image Release Dates: Jan. 25-Jan. 26, 2025

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

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center: Year 2024 in Review

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center: Year 2024 in Review

"Let’s take a look back at the biggest stories from 2024. Throughout the year, Marshall Space Flight Center showcased its ability to innovate and inspire for the benefit of all humanity. Marshall continues to lead the way in space exploration, making technological advancements and establishing partnerships that push the boundaries of what’s possible."

Learn more about NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center:

https://www.nasa.gov/marshall/about-marshall-space-flight-center/

Video Credit: NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC)
Duration: 2 minutes, 41 seconds
Release Date: Jan. 22, 2025

#NASA #ESA #CSA #Space #Earth #ISS #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIIMission #ArtemisII #SLSRocket #Astronauts #DeepSpace #MoonToMars #EuropaClipper #Science #Engineering #SpaceExploration #HumanSpaceflight #NASAMarshall #MSFC #Huntsville #Alabama #UnitedStates #Canada #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Comet G3 ATLAS versus Starlink over Argentina

Comet G3 ATLAS versus Starlink over Argentina

Astrophotographer Eduardo Schaberger Poupeau: "On Monday, January 20th, I captured this image of comet C/2024 G3 ATLAS on the horizon, its nucleus now disintegrated after venturing too close to the Sun at perihelion. Yet, it left behind a spectacular tail, a luminous reminder of its fleeting visit. The scene is enriched by elements deeply rooted in our region: an old, weathered windmill missing some of its blades, serving as a perch for a "Carancho" (Caracara plancus - Southern Caracara), a characteristic bird of the central Argentine plains. To the left, as a nod to modern times, the streaks of a Starlink satellite train cross the sky, adding an unexpected contrast between nature and technology. This image bridges the ephemeral and the eternal, a reminder that even though the comet will soon disappear, its story will continue to shine. The photo was taken with a Canon R6 Mark II camera and a Sigma 105mm f/1.4 lens mounted on a fixed tripod without tracking."

C/2024 G3 ATLAS is a non-periodic comet. It reached perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) on January 13, 2025, at a distance of 0.09 AU (13 million km) from the Sun. It is potentially the brightest comet of 2025, with an apparent magnitude reaching −3.8 on the day of its perihelion. The comet is visible in the southern hemisphere before and after perihelion. It can only be observed in the daytime sky around perihelion in the northern hemisphere.

Comet C/2024 G3 was found by the automated Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) on April 5, 2024, in images obtained with a 0.5-m reflector telescope located in Río Hurtado, Chile. ATLAS is funded by NASA's planetary defense office, and developed and operated by the University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy.

Starlink is a satellite Internet constellation operated by Starlink Services, LLC, an international telecommunications provider that is a wholly owned subsidiary of the United States-based aerospace firm SpaceX, providing coverage to over 100 countries and territories.

Image Credit: Eduardo Schaberger Poupeau
Eduardo's website: https://www.eduardoschaberger.ar
Capture Location: Rafaela, Provincia de Santa Fe, Argentina
Image Date: Jan. 20, 2025

#NASA #FoN #Astronomy #Space #Science #Planet #Earth #Comets #Comet #CometC2024G3ATLAS #OortCloud #SolarSystem #Astrophotography #Astrophotographer #EduardoSchabergerPoupeau #Rafaela #Argentina #SouthAmerica #STEM #Education

Astronaut Nick Hague Takes High-Flying "Space-Selfie" | International Space Station

Astronaut Nick Hague Takes High-Flying "Space-Selfie" | International Space Station

The NICER X-ray telescope is reflected on NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Nick Hague's spacesuit helmet visor in this high-flying "space-selfie." Also, visible in Hague's visor is the camera he is pointing toward himself to take this photograph. During a six-hour spacewalk, Hague patched several light leaks on NICER's 56 X-ray concentrators that block ultraviolet, infrared, and visible light while allowing X-rays to pass through to the mirrors underneath enabling the observation of neutron stars.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Nick Hague concluded their spacewalk at 2:01 p.m. EST on Thursday, January 16, 2025. It was the fourth spacewalk for Hague and the eighth for Williams, and it was the 273rd spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.

Williams and Hague completed their primary objectives, including removing and replacing a rate gyro assembly, installing patches to cover damaged areas of light filters on the Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) x-ray telescope, and replacing a reflector device on one of the international docking adapters. The pair also checked access areas and connector tools that astronauts will use for future Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer maintenance.

Expedition 72 Updates:

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

Expedition 72 Crew
Station Commander: Suni Williams
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA Flight Engineers: 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)/Nick Hague
Image Date: Jan. 16, 2025

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Earth #NICERXrayTelescope #Spacewalk #EVA #EVA273 #Astronauts #SuniWilliams #NickHague #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #InternationalCooperation #LongDurationMissions #SpaceLaboratory #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #Expedition72 #STEM #Education

Shenzhou-19 Crew Extends Spring Festival Wishes | China Space Station

Shenzhou-19 Crew Extends Spring Festival Wishes | China Space Station

As the Spring Festival approaches, China's Shenzhou-19 crew extended New Year wishes from space as they celebrated the completion of their mission's second series of extravehicular activities (EVAs).

The astronauts completed their second series of EVAs at 01:12 (Beijing Time) early Tuesday morning, January 21, 2025, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

Over the course of 8.5 hours, astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong, and Wang Haoze worked closely together, with the support of the space station's robotic arm and a ground team, to complete multiple tasks, including the installation of protection devices against space debris, and an extravehicular inspection.

According to the agency, the astronauts have completed nearly half of their space mission, with a series of in-orbit scientific experiments and technological tests still to come.

In just a few days, the Shenzhou-19 crew will celebrate the Spring Festival amid their busy work aboard the space station.

Astronaut Cai Xuzhe began by thanking Shuguang (meaning "Dawn" in Mandarin), a cross-system, cross-departmental EVA support team, as well as all ground personnel. He also extended his New Year wishes to the entire nation from China's Tiangong space station.

"Every spacewalk is a new challenge. As long as we open the hatch, step out, and set to work, we will discover new horizons and achieve success. Now early in the morning, I want to express my gratitude to Shuguang and all the ground support teams. Thank you for your hard work. On behalf of the Shenzhou-19 crew, I also want to wish everyone a happy New Year and prosperity. May all your dreams come true," Cai said.

"With the Spring Festival approaching, I wish everyone and your families smooth sailing and good luck, and our country prosperity in the new year. Let's chase our dreams in the starry space and move forward together," Song said.

"Completing our mission in this festive season feels like a double celebration. I wish everyone the fulfillment of their dreams in the coming year and the start of a new journey as we continue to explore the universe," Wang remarked.

"Thank you, Shenzhou-19 crew, for your blessings, and we deeply appreciate your dedication. I also want to send my congratulations: Together, let's welcome a prosperous era, and hand in hand, we'll make our dreams come true. With you aboard the space station, the future is full of promise," Shuguang responded with gratitude and encouragement.

The Spring Festival, marking the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year, is the most important annual holiday in China, when people across the country return to their hometowns for Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations and family reunion.

This year, the festival falls on Jan 29.

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: 2 minutes
Release Date: Jan. 21, 2025

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #China #中国 #SpringFestival2025 #Shenzhou19 #神舟十九号 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #Spacewalk #EVA #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #TiangongSpaceStation #SpaceLaboratory #CMSA #中国载人航天工程办公室 #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #History #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Photos of Eaton Fire Close to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Photos of Eaton Fire Close to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The Flight Projects Center at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California

California firefighting aircraft dropping red colored chemical flame retardants on the Eaton Fire close to The Flight Projects Center at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California

Fire trucks at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California

California firefighting helicopter water 'bomber' preparing to fill-up its tank from a well-placed temporary emergency water storage container

January 11, 2025 airborne view of Altadena and Pasadena, California, taken by an instrument on board a NASA aircraft. Charred vegetation shows up as brown in northern parts of Altadena. Burned landscape of the San Gabriel mountains appears orange and surrounding vegetation is green close to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) located in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1936 by California Institute of Technology (Caltech) researchers, the laboratory is now owned and sponsored by NASA and administered and managed by Caltech. Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, 11 miles (18 km) northeast of downtown Los Angeles.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Flight Projects Center is a six-story, 195,000-square-foot facility that expands the campus. It provides a state-of-the-art workspace for JPL teams. At a cost of 70 million dollars, this is a LEED Gold certified building. It was established for NASA in 2009. Interior spaces were designed to be flexible so JPL teams can assemble as required for a variety of scenarios. The building houses missions during their key design and development phases. It enables engineers and scientists from many countries to collaborate more closely during critical mission phases.

Learn more about the Flight Projects Center

at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory 

https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/jpl-building-321-gold-tagged.pdf

The Eaton Fire ignited in the hills of Eaton Canyon, near Altadena, on the evening of January 7, 2025. By 10:30 a.m. the next day, the fire had quickly grown to cover more than 10,000 acres (40 square kilometers), according to Cal Fire. Around the time of the aerial image on January 11, 2025, provided here, the Eaton Fire had expanded to 14,117 acres (57 square kilometers), and the Los Angeles County Fire Department reported it was about 15 percent contained.

NASA’s Disasters Response Coordination System has been activated to support agencies responding to the fires, including the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. Response activities are centered on two primary requests from the local emergency managers: damage assessment information on built infrastructure, and impacts of air quality and human health risks. 

Image Credits: JPL-Caltech, NASA Earth Observatory/Lauren Dauphin/Emily Cassidy
Release Dates: Jan. 16 & 21, 2025

#NASA #Earth #AirborneScience #AVIRIS3 #WildFires #EatonFire #EnvironmentalDisaster #PublicHealth #PublicSafety #JPL #FlightProjectsCenter #Caltech #Pasadena #Altadena #Arcadia #SierraMadre #LosAngeles #California #UnitedStates #Weather #ClimateChange #Infographics #STEM #Education

Blue Origin's New Glenn Rocket Launch: Flight NG-1 Recap

Blue Origin's New Glenn Rocket Launch: Flight NG-1 Recap

Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket successfully lifted off at 2:03 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral, Florida on January 16, 2025. It safely reached its intended orbit during today's NG-1 mission, accomplishing its primary objective.

About New Glenn

New Glenn stands more than 320 feet (98 meters) high and features a seven-meter payload fairing, enabling twice the volume of standard five-meter class commercial launch systems. Its reusable first stage aims for a minimum of 25 missions and will land on Jacklyn, a sea-based platform located several hundred miles downrange. Reusability is integral to radically reducing cost-per-launch.   

The vehicle is powered by seven of Blue Origin’s BE-4 engines, the most powerful liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled, oxygen-rich staged combustion engine ever flown. LNG is cleaner-burning and higher-performing than kerosene-based fuels, and the seven BE-4s generate over 3.8 million lbf of thrust. The vehicle’s second stage is powered by two BE-3Us, liquid oxygen (LOX)/liquid hydrogen (LH2) engines designed to together yield over 320,000 lbf of vacuum thrust.   

In addition to the BE-4 and BE-3U, Blue Origin manufactures BE-7 engines for our Blue Moon lunar landers and New Shepard’s BE-3PM engine. 

Learn more: https://www.blueorigin.com/new-glenn

Video Credit: Blue Origin
Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: Jan. 15, 2025

#NASA #Space #BlueOrigin #NewGlenn #NewGlennRocket #NG1 #FirstLaunch #CommercialSpace #ArtemisProgram #BlueMoonLanders #SpaceTechnology #HumanSpaceflight #LC36 #CapeCanaveral #Florida #UnitedStates #FortheBenefitofEarth #STEM #Education #HD #Video

3D Structure of Molecular Clouds in our Galaxy's Center | NASA Chandra

3D Structure of Molecular Clouds in our Galaxy's Center | NASA Chandra

This image represents a study using decades of data to learn about the 3D structure of molecular clouds in the center of the Milky Way. The panorama in this graphic contains radio data from the Submillimeter Array (green), and infrared from the European Space Agency's Herschel Space Telescope (red), and the Spitzer Space Telescope (blue). The inset shows the X-ray data from a molecular cloud from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. Billowy clouds, in shades of mostly red and blue, stretch across the middle of the image—wider than they are tall. Toward the right side of the image is a tiny, bright ball of light. This ball of light is Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the core of our galaxy.

Distance Estimate: About 26,000 light-years

Researchers have created the first 3D maps of molecular clouds, where stars form, in one of the most extreme environments in our Galaxy. They have studied previous flaring events from our Galaxy’s supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*). The center of the Milky Way Galaxy is an extreme environment where gas temperatures, densities, and turbulence are about ten times higher than the rest of the Galaxy. In this central region inflowing gas can sometimes find its way into the supermassive black hole at the very center. When Sgr A* feeds on this material it emits X-ray flares that propagate outwards in all directions. These flares interact with molecular clouds—gas clouds where stars form—in our Galaxy’s Center through the process of fluorescence. As the X-ray light travels, it illuminates slices of the molecular clouds over time, like an Xray scan.

The team developed a new X-ray tomography method to make 3D maps of two Galactic Center molecular clouds dubbed the “Stone” and the “Sticks” clouds. These maps are the first ever renderings of Galactic Center molecular clouds in three spatial dimensions. They used Chandra data spanning two decades to create their 3D models of the Stone and Sticks molecular clouds. While astronomers typically only see two spatial dimensions of objects in space, the X-ray tomography method allows us to measure the third dimension of the cloud because the X-rays illuminate individual slices of the cloud over time.

The researchers also used data from the Submillimeter Array and Herschel Space Observatory to compare the structures seen in the X-ray echoes to those seen in other wavelengths. Because X-ray data is not collected continuously, there are some structures seen in submillimeter wavelengths that are not seen in X-rays. However, these “missing” structures allowed the researchers to constrain the duration of the X-ray flare event illuminating the Stone Cloud. They determined that the X-ray flare couldn’t have been much longer than four to five months.

These results were presented by Danya Alboslani (University of Connecticut) at the 245th meeting of the American Astronomical Society meeting in National Harbor, MD. A paper describing these results is available: 
https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.07717

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center manages the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory's Chandra X-ray Center controls science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts.

The Submillimeter Array (SMA) is an 8-element radio interferometer located near the summit of Maunakea in Hawaii. Operating at frequencies from 180 GHz to 420 GHz, the 6 meter diameter dishes may be arranged into configurations with baselines as long as 509 meters, producing a synthesized beam of sub-arcsecond width. The Submillimeter Array is a joint project between the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics and is funded by the Smithsonian Institution and the Academia Sinica.

Submillimeter Array (SMA)
https://lweb.cfa.harvard.edu/sma/

NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope
https://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/mission

European Space Agency's Herschel Space Telescope:
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Herschel_overview

Image Credits: 
X-ray: NASA/CXC/UConn/D. Alboslani et al.; Infrared: NASA/ESA/JPL/CalTech/Herschel; NASA/ESA/JPL/CalTech/Spitzer; Radio: ASIAA/SAO/SMA; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk
Release Date: Jan. 15, 2025

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #BlackHole #SajAstar #SagittariusAstar #Sagittarius #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Astrophysics #NASAChandra #ChandraObservatory #Xray #SpitzerSpaceTelescope #SubmillimeterArray #MSFC #SAO #CXC #JPL #ESA #UnitedStates #Europe #Infographic #STEM #Education

Listen to The Sun! Transforming Heliophysics Data into Sound | NASA

Listen to The Sun! Transforming Heliophysics Data into Sound | NASA

Explore how data about the Sun from NASA's Parker Solar Probe, Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) and Wind spacecraft has been transformed into sound with NASA’s Coordinated Data Analysis Web (CDAWeb). Observe how audification can benefit heliophysics data analysis and uncover spectral features that the eyes overlook.

Heliophysics (from the prefix "helio", from Attic Greek hḗlios, meaning Sun, and the noun "physics": the science of matter and energy and their interactions) is the physics of the Sun and its connection with the Solar System. NASA defines heliophysics as "(1) the comprehensive new term for the science of the Sun—Solar System Connection, (2) the exploration, discovery, and understanding of Earth's space environment, and (3) the system science that unites all of the linked phenomena in the region of the cosmos influenced by a star like our Sun."

Sponsored by NASA's Heliophysics Digital Resource Library (HDRL) and Heliophysics Audified: Resonances in Plasmas (HARP) citizen science. 

For more information about data audification, visit:  

NASA’s CDAWeb: https://spdf.gsfc.nasa.gov/audification_readme.html

HARP Citizen Science: https://listen.spacescience.org/

00:12 Parker Solar Probe Encounters a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME)

ApJ Publication: Near-Sun In Situ and Remote-sensing Observations of a Coronal Mass Ejection and its Effect on the Heliospheric Current Sheet, O.M. Romeo et al., 2023

Data Audification: Robert Alexander

–

00:57 Ultra-Low Frequency Waves in Earth's Magnetosphere

 Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences Publication: Listening to the Magnetosphere: How Best to Make ULF Waves Audible, M.O. Archer et al., 2022

Data Sonification: The HARP Citizen Science Project

–

01:24 Binaural Audification of MMS Search Coil Magnetometer Data

International Conference on Auditory Display 2024: Auralization of Magnetic Multiscale Satellite Data: Toward Integrated Audification in Space Science

Authors:
Kristina Collins
Robert L. Alexander 
Jaye Verniero 
Robert M. Candey 
Video Production:
Robert L. Alexander 
Kristina Collins 

MMS Visualization: NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio 

Visualizer: Tom Bridgman (Global Science and Technology, Inc.)

Scientist: Tai Phan (University of California at Berkeley) 

Producer: Joy Ng (USRA)

Writer: Mara Johnson-Groh (Wyle Information Systems) 

–

02:40 Parker Solar Probe Crossing the Heliospheric Current Sheet (HCS)

Apj Publication: Parker Solar Probe Observations of Proton Beams Simultaneous with Ion-scale Waves,

J.L. Verniero et al., 2020 

Verniero et al. 2025 in prep 

Data Audification & Visualization: Robert Alexander 

–

04:07 Parker Solar Probe Captures a CME Interacting With the HCS

 Publications: 

Near-Sun In Situ and Remote-sensing Observations of a Coronal Mass Ejection and its Effect on the Heliospheric Current Sheet, O.M. Romeo et al., 2023

Parker Solar Probe Observations of Solar Wind Energetic Proton Beams Produced by Magnetic Reconnection in the Near-Sun Heliospheric Current Sheet, T.D. Phan et al., 2022 

Strong Perpendicular Velocity-space Diffusion in Proton Beams Observed by Parker Solar Probe,

J.L. Verniero et al., 2022

Verniero et al. 2025 in prep 

Data Audification: Robert Alexander 

–

04:43 Giant Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) Waves at the Boundary Layer of the Mother’s Day CME

GRL Publication: The Giant Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) Waves at the Boundary Layer of the Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) Responsible for the Largest Geomagnetic Storm in 20 Years, Katariina Nykyri, 2024 

Data Audification: Robert Alexander 

–

05:12 The Wind Spacecraft Encounters a Proton Cyclotron Wavestorm

ApJ Publication: A Proton-Cyclotron Wave Storm Generated by Unstable Proton Distribution Functions in the Solar Wind, R.T. Wicks, R.L. Alexander et al., 2016

Data Audification & Visualization: Robert Alexander 

 –

Video production: Robert Alexander 

Transition Audio:

Dawn Chorus Observed by the MMS Satellite Filtered OMNI Solar Wind Plasma Speed Measurements

Audified data from NASA’s CDAWeb

Video Credit: NASA
Duration: 5 minutes, 44 seconds
Release Date: Jan. 21, 2025

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Sun #SolarPlasma #SpaceWeather #ParkerSolarProbe #NASAMMS #NASAWindSpacecraft #SolarSystem #Heliophysics #Astrophysics #JHUAPL #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Visualization #Animation #Audification #Sonification #Audio #HD #Video

Extreme Supersonic Winds Raging on WASP-127b | ESO

Extreme Supersonic Winds Raging on WASP-127b | ESO

Astronomers have measured supersonic jet winds on WASP-127b, a giant gas planet located about 520 light-years from Earth. It is the fastest jetstream of its kind ever measured in the Universe with speeds up to 9 km per second. The team mapped the weather of WASP-127b using the CRIRES+ instrument on the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT).

WASP-127 b orbits a G-type star. Its mass is 0.1647 Jupiters, it takes 4.2 days to complete one orbit of its star, and is 0.0484 AU from its star. Its discovery was announced in 2016.

Science paper: "CRIRES+ transmission spectroscopy of WASP-127b. Detection of the resolved signatures of a supersonic equatorial jet and cool poles in a hot planet":
https://www.eso.org/public/archives/releases/sciencepapers/eso2502/eso2502a.pdf

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Directed by: Angelos Tsaousis and Martin Wallner
Editing: Angelos Tsaousis
Web and technical support: Gurvan Bazin and Raquel Yumi Shida
Written by: Alejandro Izquierdo Lopez , Hanna Huysegoms
Footage and photos: ESO / Luis Calçada, Angelos Tsaousis, Cristoph Malin, Babak Tafreshi
Scientific consultant: Paola Amico, Mariya Lyubenova
Release Date: Jan. 21, 2025

#NASA #ESO #Space #Astronomy #Science #Stars #Exoplanets #Exoplanet #WASP127b #ExoplanetAtmosphere #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #VLT #CRIRES #ParanalObservatory #Chile #SouthAmerica #Europe #STEM #Education

GoPro camera view: Blue Origin's New Glenn Flight NG-1 Rocket Launch

GoPro camera view: Blue Origin's New Glenn Flight NG-1 Rocket Launch

Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket successfully lifted off at 2:03 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral, Florida on January 16, 2025. It safely reached its intended orbit during the NG-1 mission, accomplishing its primary objective.

About New Glenn

New Glenn stands more than 320 feet (98 meters) high and features a seven-meter payload fairing, enabling twice the volume of standard five-meter class commercial launch systems. Its reusable first stage aims for a minimum of 25 missions and will land on Jacklyn, a sea-based platform located several hundred miles downrange. Reusability is integral to radically reducing cost-per-launch.   

The vehicle is powered by seven of Blue Origin’s BE-4 engines, the most powerful liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled, oxygen-rich staged combustion engine ever flown. LNG is cleaner-burning and higher-performing than kerosene-based fuels, and the seven BE-4s generate over 3.8 million lbf of thrust. The vehicle’s second stage is powered by two BE-3Us, liquid oxygen (LOX)/liquid hydrogen (LH2) engines designed to together yield over 320,000 lbf of vacuum thrust.   

In addition to the BE-4 and BE-3U, Blue Origin manufactures BE-7 engines for our Blue Moon lunar landers and New Shepard’s BE-3PM engine. 

Learn more: https://www.blueorigin.com/new-glenn

Image Credit: Blue Origin

Duration: 23 seconds
Image Date: Jan. 16, 2025

#NASA #Space #BlueOrigin #NewGlenn #NewGlennRocket #NG1 #FirstLaunch #CommercialSpace #ArtemisProgram #BlueMoonLanders #SpaceTechnology #HumanSpaceflight #LC36 #CapeCanaveral #Florida #UnitedStates #FortheBenefitofEarth #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Boogeyman Nebula: LDN 1622 in Orion

The Boogeyman Nebula: LDN 1622 in Orion

The silhouette of an intriguing dark nebula inhabits this cosmic scene. Lynds' Dark Nebula (LDN) 1622 appears against a faint background of glowing hydrogen gas only visible in long telescopic exposures of the region. In contrast, the brighter reflection nebula vdB 62 is more easily seen, just above and right of center. LDN 1622 lies near the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy, close on the sky to Barnard's Loop, a large cloud surrounding the rich complex of emission nebulae found in the Belt and Sword of Orion. 

With swept-back outlines, the obscuring dust of LDN 1622 is thought to lie at a similar distance, perhaps 1,500 light-years away. At that distance, this 1 degree wide field of view would span about 30 light-years. Young stars do lie hidden within the dark expanse and have been revealed in Spitzer Space telescope infrared images. Still, the foreboding visual appearance of LDN 1622 inspires its popular name, the Boogeyman Nebula.

Image Credit & Copyright: Pete_Xl

Pete's website: 

https://www.astrobin.com/users/pete_xl/

Image Date: Jan. 6, 2022

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #LDN1622 #DarkNebula #BogeymanNebula #Stars #StellarNursery #Orion #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #PeteXie #Astrophotographer #STEM #Education

Blue Origin's New Glenn Launch: Flight NG-1 Rocket Engine Exhaust

Blue Origin's New Glenn Launch: Flight NG-1 Rocket Engine Exhaust

Seven of Blue Origin New Glenn's first stage BE-4 rocket engines "cutting diamonds in the sky." The New Glenn rocket successfully lifted off at 2:03 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral, Florida on January 16, 2025. It safely reached its intended orbit during the NG-1 mission, accomplishing its primary objective.

About New Glenn

New Glenn stands more than 320 feet (98 meters) high and features a seven-meter payload fairing, enabling twice the volume of standard five-meter class commercial launch systems. Its reusable first stage aims for a minimum of 25 missions and will land on Jacklyn, a sea-based platform located several hundred miles downrange. Reusability is integral to radically reducing cost-per-launch.   

The vehicle is powered by seven of Blue Origin’s BE-4 engines, the most powerful liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled, oxygen-rich staged combustion engine ever flown. LNG is cleaner-burning and higher-performing than kerosene-based fuels, and the seven BE-4s generate over 3.8 million lbf of thrust. The vehicle’s second stage is powered by two BE-3Us, liquid oxygen (LOX)/liquid hydrogen (LH2) engines designed to together yield over 320,000 lbf of vacuum thrust.   

In addition to the BE-4 and BE-3U, Blue Origin manufactures BE-7 engines for our Blue Moon lunar landers and New Shepard’s BE-3PM engine. 

Learn more: https://www.blueorigin.com/new-glenn

Image Credit: Blue Origin
Image Date: Jan. 16, 2025

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Construction of The Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) in Chile: January 2025 | ESO

Construction of The Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) in Chile: January 2025 | ESO

The European Southern Observatory's Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) is a monumental project. Green light for the construction of the largest optical telescope on Earth started in 2006. As this image, taken in early January 2025 shows, the telescope is nearing its completion, step-by-step. 

The Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) has been appropriately dubbed the "Colosseum of Atacama". This mega-structure is seen in this picture under construction as of early 2025. The evening's sunlight traverses the ELT's dome, illuminating the altitude structure. This 50-meter-tall feat of engineering will carry all 5 mirrors of the ELT, including the giant M1 mirror on its base. The semicircular plate in the image is part of a hydrostatic frame that supports the altitude structure. It is perforated to allow air to flow from the mirror to the ambient air, preventing temperature differences. The ELT is not only a true Colosseum, but everything has been designed in extreme detail. 

This drone shot, dating from early January 2025, peers right into the dome of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). The dome is not yet fully covered in this image. Once finished, the ELT will be the world's biggest eye on the sky, thanks to its 39 meter diameter main mirror. It will be supported by the polygon structure inside the dome. The 'spider' on top of it will hold the telescope's secondary mirror at its center.

This image shows the inner frame of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), the main structure of the telescope. It will contain all five mirrors of the ELT. Taken in January 2025, the skeleton is completed but still needs to receive all the segments that make up the main 39-meter mirror, set on its honey-comb-shaped base and the other, smaller mirrors. It will be set inside the central tower. Once completed, the ELT will be a leading optical-to-infrared telescope.

The evening sun bathes the construction site of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) in red light. This drone image, taken early January 2025, reveals the metal altitude structure inside the dome. It is 50 meters high and will carry the ELT's five mirrors. It rotates so that it can be pointed at different parts of the sky. The 'spider' on top will hold the telescope's secondary mirror, the perforated structure below carries the main mirror, and the central tower supports the ELT's remaining three mirrors.

The European Southern Observatory's Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) is truly a massive building. These images show the construction stage of the ELT's dome and main structure on January 8, 2025. Despite their massive size, these structures are able to rotate and tilt the mirrors to the targeted observation with great precision. The ELT is almost as tall as London's Big Ben clock tower and larger than Rome's Colosseum. The construction materials used for the ELT include: 10,000 tonnes of steel, 30 million bolts or 500 km of cables. Even compared to other large telescopes, the ELT is a one-of-a-kind.

The ELT can be seen including its dome, central structure, and base of the M1 mirror. The ELT stands at Cerro Armazones in Chile's Atacama Desert and will be one of the main flagships of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) for the next two decades. 

Altitude: 3,046 meters

Planned year of technical first light: 2027

Learn more about ESO’s ELT at:

https://elt.eso.org/ 

In 2006, approval was given for the construction of the largest optical telescope on Earth. 

Image Credit: ESO/G. Vecchia

Image Date: Jan. 8, 2025

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Shenzhou-19 Crew Completes Second Spacewalk | China Space Station

Shenzhou-19 Crew Completes Second Spacewalk | China Space Station

Members of the Shenzhou-19 crew aboard China's orbiting space station completed their mission's second series of extravehicular activities (EVAs) at 1:12 a.m. (Beijing Time) on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

Shenzhou-19 astronauts arrived at the Tiangong Space Station in late October 2024.

In their first EVAs on December 17, 2024, Cai Xuzhe and Song Lingdong set a new world record for the longest single spacewalk, spending nine hours outside the Tiangong space station. They worked on several tasks including the installation of protection devices against space debris. This feat exceeded the previous spacewalk record set by two American astronauts two decades ago.

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: Xinhua TV
Duration: 1 minute, 12 seconds
Release Date: Jan. 20, 2025

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Planet Saturn with Moons Tethys, Mimas, & Janus | NASA Cassini Mission

Planet Saturn with Moons Tethys, Mimas, & Janus | NASA Cassini Mission

Image of planet Saturn with moons Tethys, Mimas, and Janus captured by NASA's Cassini spacecraft on March 13, 2006.

Tethys is Saturn’s fifth largest moon. Its irregular shape is 331 miles (533 kilometers) in mean radius, with dimensions 669 x 657 x 654 miles (1076.8 x 1057.4 x 1052.6 kilometers). This cold, airless and heavily scarred body is very similar to sister moons Dione and Rhea except that Tethys is not as heavily cratered as the other two. This may be because its proximity to Saturn causes more tidal warming, and that warming kept Tethys partially molten longer, erasing or dulling more of the early terrain.

Tethys’ density is 0.97 times that of liquid water. This suggests that Tethys is composed almost entirely of water ice plus a small amount of rock.

Less than 123 miles (198 kilometers) in mean radius, crater-covered Mimas is the smallest and innermost of Saturn’s major moons. It is not quite large enough to hold a round shape, so it is somewhat ovoid with dimensions of 129 x 122 x 119 miles (207 x 197 x 191 kilometers, respectively). Its low density suggests that it consists almost entirely of water ice. It is the only substance detected on Mimas.

At a mean distance just over 115,000 miles (186,000 kilometers) from the massive planet, Mimas takes only 22 hours and 36 minutes to complete an orbit. Mimas is tidally locked: it keeps the same face toward Saturn as it flies around the planet, just as our Moon does with Earth.

Janus is an inner satellite of Saturn. It is also known as Saturn X. It is named after the mythological Roman god, Janus. This natural satellite was first identified by French astronomer Audouin Dollfus on December 15, 1966, although it had been unknowingly photographed earlier by French optical engineer, Jean Texereau. 

NASA's Cassini spacecraft arrived in the Saturn system in 2004 and ended its mission in 2017 by deliberately plunging into Saturn's atmosphere. This method was chosen because it is necessary to ensure protection and prevent biological contamination to any of the moons of Saturn thought to offer potential habitability.

The Cassini-Huygens mission was a cooperative project of NASA, European Space Agency (ESA) and the Italian Space Agency. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter. The Cassini radar instrument was built by JPL and the Italian Space Agency, working with team members from the U.S. and several European countries.

NASA's Cassini Mission: 
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/cassini

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI/CICLOPS

Processing: Kevin M. Gill
Image Date: March 13, 2006
Release Date: Jan. 14, 2025

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