Japan's Subaru Telescope in Hawaii: 25 Years of Achievements & Beyond | NAOJ

Japan's Subaru Telescope in Hawaii: 25 Years of Achievements & Beyond | NAOJ

Enjoy the video commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Subaru Telescope! 

In January 1999, the Subaru Telescope started observations on Maunakea, Hawai‘i, and has achieved many significant milestones, such as the discovery of distant galaxies and direct imaging of extrasolar planets.

The Subaru Telescope is an astronomical observation facility operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). It is located at the summit of Mauna Kea at an altitude of 4,200 meters in the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Learn more about Japan's Subaru Telescope: 
https://subarutelescope.org/en/

Video Credit: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ)
Duration: 5 minutes, 27 seconds
Release Date: July 22, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #SubaruTelescope #すばる望遠鏡 #NAOJ #国立天文台 #Stars #Planets #Exoplanets #StarClusters #Nebulae #Galaxies #Cosmos #Universe #Japan #日本 #MaunaKea #Hawaii #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #History #HD #Video

Interacting Galaxy NGC 474 in Pisces | Subaru Telescope

Interacting Galaxy NGC 474 in Pisces | Subaru Telescope

NGC 474 is more than twice the size of the Milky Way Galaxy with its 100,000 light-year diameter stellar disk. Although it is classified as an elliptical galaxy, typically smooth and lacking features, this galaxy has arc-like and elongated tail-like features. These features are thought to have formed at a head-on collision with a dwarf galaxy hundreds of millions of years ago.

Distance from Earth: About 100 million light-years

Compared to their more intricate spiral cousins, elliptical galaxies resemble soft, hazy clouds. These galaxies have smooth, undefined boundaries, and bright cores surrounded by a fuzzy, diffuse glow. However, looks can be deceiving. At least 10% of ellipticals extend much further out into the cosmos than you might expect, and possess a range of far finer structures than first meets the eye—features such as loops and shells. 

NGC 474 is a stunning example of a shell elliptical galaxy; enormous wispy tails flick around the galaxy’s main body, while the inner structure is formed of a series of nested concentric rings. In fact, the full extent of the galaxy cannot even be contained in this field of view. The tendril-like outer regions of NGC 474 billow and wisp away like smoke, extending outwards for large distances from the galaxy’s main bulk. 

Astronomers are unsure why galaxies take on this kind of appearance and structure, but they believe it concerns gravity—namely, how nearby galaxies gravitationally interact with one another. It is possible that the spiral galaxy to the lower-right, NGC 470, has been tugging on its larger friend for billions of years, causing density waves to reshape its structure. 

The Subaru Telescope is an astronomical observation facility operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). It is located at the summit of Mauna Kea at an altitude of 4,200 meters in the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Learn more about Japan's Subaru Telescope: 
https://subarutelescope.org/en/

Credit: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ); Image provided by Masayuki Tanaka
Release Date: Jan. 2, 2025

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #SubaruTelescope #すばる望遠鏡 #NAOJ #国立天文台 #Galaxies #Galaxy #NGC474 #EllipticalGalaxy #ShellEllipticalGalaxy #NGC470 #SpiralGalaxy #InteractingGalaxies #Pisces #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #Japan #日本 #MaunaKea #Hawaii #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Distant Globular Star Cluster Palomar 12 in Capricornus | Hubble

Distant Globular Star Cluster Palomar 12 in Capricornus | Hubble

Panta rhei is a simplified version of the famous greek philosopher Heraclitus' teachings. It basically means, everything flows. And everything in the Universe is indeed continually on the move, spiralling and shifting through space.

There are cosmic objects move a little further than others—take the subject of this NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope image, a globular cluster of stars known as Palomar 12. 

Although it currently lies on the outskirts of the Milky Way’s halo, Palomar 12 was not born here. When astronomers first studied this cluster, they were puzzled by its strangely young age when compared to the other clusters in the galaxy. It appeared to be around 30% younger than other Milky Way globulars. Surely if it had been born within our galaxy, it would have sprung to life at a similar time to its cluster companions?

A bit more digging revealed that Palomar 12 was actually ripped from its initial home, the Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical galaxy, around 1.7 billion years ago via tidal interactions between its former home and our galaxy. The dwarf galaxy that Palomar 12 once called home is a satellite galaxy to ours, and closely orbits around us—even occasionally passing through the plane of our galaxy. In fact, it is being slowly torn apart and consumed by the Milky Way.

Distance from Earth: 60,000 light years

The sparkling stars in this picture were imaged by Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys.

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA

Image Processing: Judy Schmidt
Release Date:  Feb. 16, 2015

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarClusters #GlobularStarClusters #Capricornus #Constellations #MilkyWayGalaxy #SagittariusDwarfEllipticalGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #JudySchmidt #CitizenScience #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

The 'Jellyfish' Galaxy in Virgo (UGC 9326 & UGC 9327) | Subaru Telescope

The 'Jellyfish' Galaxy in Virgo (UGC 9326 & UGC 9327) | Subaru Telescope

Vast cosmic images were captured through the Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program (HSC-SSP), a large-scale survey spanning 330 nights of Subaru Telescope operations that started in 2014 and lasted over seven years. Many interacting or colliding galaxies were captured. These affect each other’s shapes through mutual gravitation.

This image shows two interacting spiral galaxies in the Virgo constellation that resemble jellyfish. The galaxy corresponding to the jellyfish bell is UGC 9327, and another galaxy in the tail-looking tentacles is UGC 9326. The HSC staff member who discovered the pair of galaxies named them the ‘Jellyfish Galaxy’ due to their striking appearance.

Distance from Earth: about 770 million light-years

The Subaru Telescope is an astronomical observation facility operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). It is located at the summit of Mauna Kea at an altitude of 4,200 meters in the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Learn more about Japan's Subaru Telescope: 
https://subarutelescope.org/en/

Credit: NAOJ; image provided by Masayuki Tanaka
Release Date: July 3, 2024

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #SubaruTelescope #すばる望遠鏡 #HSC #NAOJ #国立天文台 #Galaxies #InteractingGalaxies #UGC9326 #UGC9327 #Virgo #Constellations #Cosmos #Universe #Japan #日本 #MaunaKea #Hawaii #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Tracking Satellites at The Speed of Light | European Space Agency

Tracking Satellites at The Speed of Light | European Space Agency

2025 marks a landmark year for Europe’s ‘bridge between Earth and space’. The European Space Agency’s Estrack satellite tracking network turns 50.

Since its inception in 1975, Estrack—ESA’s global network of ground stations—has been the communication bridge between satellites in orbit and mission control at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, Germany.

Now comprising six stations spanning six countries, Estrack has grown into a strategic asset for Europe, enabling communication with spacecraft, transmitting commands and receiving scientific data.

The network keeps an eye on satellites no matter their location: tracking them across Earth orbit, voyaging to comets or asteroids, keeping station at the scientifically important Sun-Earth Lagrange points, and deep into our Solar System. It even keeps tabs on European launchers as they travel to Earth orbit, ensuring no rocket is ever out of reach.

This year, ESA is also expanding its deep space communication capabilities with the construction of a new 35-meter deep space antenna—the fourth of its kind. It will be joining the existing one at New Norcia station, Australia, to help meet the Agency's fast increasing data download needs.

Credits: European Space Agency (ESA)
Duration: 7 minutes, 44 seconds
Release Date: Oct. 10, 2025

#NASA #ESA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Europe #Estrack #SatelliteCommunications #SatelliteTracking #SpacecraftTracking #EarthOrbit #DeepSpace #GroundStations #ESOC #Germany #Deutschland #NewNorcia #Australia #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Planet Mars Image 2025 | United Arab Emirates Hope Mission

Planet Mars Image 2025 | United Arab Emirates Hope Mission

The Emirates Mars Mission is a United Arab Emirates Space Agency uncrewed space exploration mission to Mars. The Hope orbiter was launched on July 19, 2020, and went into orbit around Mars on February 9, 2021. The mission design, development, and operations are led by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC). The spacecraft was assembled in the United States at the University of Colorado Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) with support from Arizona State University (ASU) and the University of California, Berkeley.

Learn more about the Emirates Mars Mission:
https://emiratesmarsmission.ae

Image Credit: Emirates Mars Mission (EMM) / CU/LASP /EXI ITF
Processing: Kevin Gill

Text Credit: Wikipedia
Image Date: Feb. 24, 2025

#NASA #Space #Science #Planets #Mars #RedPlanet #UAE #Dubai #HopeMission #EmiratesMarsMission #EMM #MarsOrbiter #InterplanetarySpacecraft #Geology #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #Emirates #UnitedArabEmirates #KevinGill #CitizenScience #STEM #Education  #مشروع الإمارات لاستكشاف المريخ  #مسبار الأمل 

Massive Star G79.29+0.46 & Stellar Companions in Gas & Dust | Hubble

Massive Star G79.29+0.46 & Stellar Companions in Gas & Dust | Hubble

Close-up of the luminous blue variable candidate star G79.29+0.46 (near top, right of center) and its associated dusty, red ejecta shells. Also visible is a bright pillar of gas and a dark tendril of thick dust containing numerous young stellar objects.

Luminous Blue Variable (LBV) candidates are rare, massive stars that exhibit unpredictable and dramatic variations in their spectra and brightness. They are known for their complex circumstellar environments and are significant in the evolution of massive stars. Recent studies have identified numerous LBV candidates in the Milky Way and other galaxies with characteristics, such as broad hydrogen lines and strong polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon features in their spectra. These candidates play a crucial role in understanding the evolution of massive stars and their eventual fates, such as becoming neutron stars or black holes. 

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA
Image Processing: Judy Schmidt
Text Credits: Judy Schmidt/Wikipedia
Release Date: Aug. 13, 2016

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #G7929046 #LuminousBlueVariables #Nebulae #Cygnus #Constellations #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #JudySchmidt #CitizenScience #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

Close-up: A Noteworthy Nearby Spiral Galaxy in Hydra—NGC 2835 | Hubble

Close-up: A Noteworthy Nearby Spiral Galaxy in Hydra—NGC 2835 | Hubble

This NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope picture offers a closeup of a nearby spiral galaxy. The subject is NGC 2835. It lies 35 million light-years away in the constellation Hydra (The Water Snake). Regions of this galaxy are bright in a wavelength of red light called H-alpha emission. It can be seen along NGC 2835’s spiral arms, where dozens of bright pink nebulae appear like flowers in bloom. Astronomers are interested in H-alpha light because it signals the presence of several types of nebulae that arise during stages of a star’s life. Newborn massive stars create nebulae called H II regions that are particularly brilliant sources of H-alpha light, while dying stars can leave behind supernova remnants or planetary nebulae that can also be identified by their H-alpha emission.

By using Hubble’s sensitive instruments to survey 19 nearby galaxies, researchers aim to identify more than 50,000 nebulae. These observations will help to explain how stars affect their birth neighborhoods through intense starlight and winds.

Image Description: A spiral galaxy seen face-on. Its center is a bright glowing yellow. The galaxy’s spiral arms contain sparkling blue stars, pink spots of star formation, and dark threads of dust that follow the arms.

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, R. Chandar, J. Lee and the PHANGS-HST team

Duration: 30 seconds
Release Date: Aug. 18, 2025

#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Galaxies #NGC2835 #SpiralGalaxies #HAlphaEmissions #Hydra #Constellations #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #STScI #GSFC #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon Image Collection: Sept. 8-Oct. 9, 2025

Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon Image Collection:  Sept. 8-Oct. 9, 2025

Image Credit: Petr Horálek on October 9, 2025 

Location: Hoješín, Seč, Czech Republic

Image Credit: Petr Horálek on October 9, 2025 
Location: Hoješín, Seč, Czech Republic

Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon September 8-October 8, 2025 

Image Credit: Rolando Ligustri 

Location: New Mexico, USA, Astrottica Observatory

Image Details: NW 300/1140 (Astroptics) CDD ASI 2600MM

Comet Lemmon is brightening and moving into morning northern skies. Besides Comet SWAN25B and Comet ATLAS, Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) is now the third comet currently visible with binoculars and on long camera exposures. Comet Lemmon was discovered early this year and is still headed into the inner Solar System. The comet will round the Sun on November 8, but first it will pass its nearest to the Earth—at about half the Earth-Sun distance—on October 21. 

Although the brightnesses of comets are notoriously hard to predict, optimistic estimates have Comet Lemmon then becoming visible to the unaided eye. The comet should be best seen in predawn skies until mid-October, when it also becomes visible in evening skies.

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast.

New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also borders the state of Texas to the east and southeast, Oklahoma to the northeast, and shares an international border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora to the south.

Image#1-2 Credit: Petr Horálek (Czech Republic)
Image#3 Credit: Rolando Ligustri (New Mexico, USA via Astrottica Observatory

Petr Horálek's website:

https://www.facebook.com/astrottica

Rolando's website: 

https://www.facebook.com/astrottica

Capture Dates: Sept. 8-Oct. 9, 2025

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Comets #CometC2025A6Lemmon #Coma #CometaryTails #SolarSystem #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Astrophotography #Astrophotographers #RolandoLigustri #NewMexico #UnitedStates #PetrHorálek #CzechRepublic #CentralEurope #STEM #Education

Planet Mars Images: Oct. 5-9, 2025 | NASA's Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Planet Mars Images: Oct. 5-9, 2025 | NASA's Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Mars 2020 - sol 1646

Mars 2020 - sol 1646

Mars 2020 - sol 1645

MSL - sol 4683

Mars 2020 - sol 1646

Mars 2020 - sol 1646

Mars 2020 - sol 1647

Support FriendsofNASA.org

Celebrating 13+ 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 4+ 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: Oct. 5-9, 2025

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

SpaceX Starship: Super Heavy Moved to Pad Pre-11th Flight Test | Starbase Texas

 SpaceX Starship: Super Heavy Moved to Pad Pre-11th Flight Test | Starbase Texas

"Flight-proven Super Heavy booster moved to the pad at Starbase ahead of launch."

"The eleventh flight test of Starship is preparing to launch as soon as Monday, October 13, 2025. The launch window will open at 6:15 p.m. CT.

A live webcast of the flight test will begin about 30 minutes before liftoff. You can watch it here: 

https://t.co/YmvmGZTV8o

As is the case with all developmental testing, the schedule is dynamic and likely to change, so be sure to check in here and stay tuned to our X account for updates.

The upcoming flight will build on the successful demonstrations from Starship’s tenth flight test with flight experiments gathering data for the next generation Super Heavy booster, stress-testing Starship’s heatshield, and demonstrating maneuvers that will mimic the upper stage’s final approach for a future return to launch site.

The booster on this flight test previously flew on Flight 8 and will launch with 24 flight-proven Raptor engines. Its primary test objective will be demonstrating a unique landing burn engine configuration planned to be used on the next generation Super Heavy. It will attempt this while on a trajectory to an offshore landing point in the Gulf of America and will not return to the launch site for catch.

Super Heavy will ignite 13 engines at the start of the landing burn and then transition to a new configuration with five engines running for the divert phase. Previously done with three engines, the planned baseline for V3 Super Heavy will use five engines during the section of the burn responsible for fine-tuning the booster’s path, adding additional redundancy for spontaneous engine shutdowns. The booster will then transition to its three center engines for the end of the landing burn, entering a full hover while still above the ocean surface, followed by shutdown and dropping into the Gulf of America. The primary goal on the flight test is to measure the real-world vehicle dynamics as engines shut down while transitioning between the different phases.

The Starship upper stage will target multiple in-space objectives, including the deployment of eight Starlink simulators, similar in size to next-generation Starlink satellites. The Starlink simulators will be on the same suborbital trajectory as Starship and are expected to demise upon entry. A relight of a single Raptor engine while in space is also planned.

The flight test includes several experiments and operational changes focused on enabling Starship’s upper stage to return to the launch site on future flights. For reentry, tiles have been removed from Starship to intentionally stress-test vulnerable areas across the vehicle. Several of the missing tiles are in areas where tiles are bonded to the vehicle and do not have a backup ablative layer. To mimic the path a ship will take on future flights returning to Starbase, the final phase of Starship’s trajectory on Flight 11 includes a dynamic banking maneuver and will test subsonic guidance algorithms prior to a landing burn and splashdown in the Indian Ocean."

SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket—collectively referred to as Starship—represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond. Starship is currently the "world’s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed", capable of carrying up to 150 metric tonnes fully reusable and 250 metric tonnes expendable.

Key Starship Parameters:

Height: 123m/403ft
Diameter: 9m/29.5ft
Payload to LEO: 100–150t (fully reusable)

"Starship is essential to both SpaceX’s plans to deploy its next-generation Starship system as well as for NASA, which will use a lunar lander version of Starship for landing astronauts on the Moon during the Artemis III mission through the Human Landing System (HLS) program."

Learn more about Starship:

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

Download the Free Starship User Guide (PDF):

https://www.spacex.com/media/starship_users_guide_v1.pdf

Image Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)
Release Date: Oct. 8, 2025

#NASA #SpaceX #Space #Earth #Mars #Moon #MoonToMars #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIII #Starship #StarshipSpacecraft #Starship11 #StarshipTestFlight11 #SuperHeavyBooster #SuperHeavyRocket #ElonMusk #Engineering #SpaceTechnology #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #SpaceExploration #StarbaseTexas #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Speed of The New Simonyi Survey Telescope | Vera C. Rubin Observatory

The Speed of The New Simonyi Survey Telescope | Vera C. Rubin Observatory

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, a Program of the National Science Foundation (NSF) NOIRLab jointly funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science (DOE/SC), began collecting its first on-sky engineering data on April 15, 2025. In this long-exposure image, the Simonyi Survey Telescope, equipped with the LSST Camera, created a mesmerizing neon glow as it spun around scanning the sky.

The Rubin Observatory is packed with new technology. The Simonyi Survey Telescope’s drive system, rigid design, and compact shape give it incredible speed, forming the streaks of light showcased in this image. Thanks to these features, the telescope can be ready for its next image in only five seconds—faster than any other telescope of its size. The LSST Camera, constructed by DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is the world’s largest digital camera. The camera is roughly the size of a small car and weighs almost 6600 lbs (3000 kg). Its size and design allow it to view vast areas of the sky, capturing 45 times the area of the full Moon in the sky with each exposure. Together, the innovative technologies in the Simonyi Survey Telescope and the LSST Camera is expected to make many discoveries.

Other telescopes can detect changes in a star’s brightness, but Rubin is the only one that can simultaneously catch multiple faint, steady pulses of RR Lyrae stars across huge swaths of the sky and also detect them very far away from Earth. Rubin's sensitive camera captures variations so subtle that our eyes can barely detect them when looking at the images. Rubin will collect nearly a thousand measurements for each variable star, ensuring that scientists focused on variable stars can amass huge samples to study. Rubin’s wide view and fast survey speed will give us data on far more of these stars than ever before—even those way out in the outskirts of the Milky Way—giving us a much clearer picture of what our Galaxy looks like. 

Simonyi Survey Telescope

https://noirlab.edu/public/programs/vera-c-rubin-observatory/simonyi-survey-telescope/

The LSST Camera (LSSTCam)

https://lsstcam.lsst.io/

An Introduction to Vera Rubin:

https://rubinobservatory.org/about/vera-rubin

Hernán Stockebrand, the photographer, is a NOIRLab Audiovisual Ambassador.

Credit: NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory/NSF/DOE/NOIRLab/SLAC/AURA/H. Stockebrand 

Release Date: Oct. 1, 2025

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Cosmos #Universe #SimonyiSurveyTelescope #SST #LSSTCam #RubinObservatory #VeraRubin #CerroPachón #Chile #NOIRLab #NSF #DOE #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Example of SpaceX Starlink "Trains" in Low-Earth Orbit | International Space Station

Example of SpaceX Starlink "Trains": Low-Earth Orbit | International Space Station

NASA astronaut Don Pettit: "My best sighting of a Starlink satellite 'train' from orbit!"

The “Starlink satellite train” is a series of SpaceX satellites launched together, appearing as a line of lights in the sky. These trains are most visible shortly after sunset or before sunrise when the satellites are lit by the sun but the ground is dark.

Starlink satellite dimensions and features:
Size and weight: Each Starlink satellite measures approximately 2.8 meters (9.2 feet) in length and 1.4 meters (4.6 feet) in width, with a thickness of about 0.2 meters (0.7 feet). The weight of each satellite is roughly 260 kilograms (573 pounds).

Solar panels: Each satellite is equipped with a single solar array that unfolds once in orbit. This solar panel measures approximately 8 meters (26 feet) in length, significantly extending the satellite’s total span.

Antenna and phased array: The satellites feature a phased array antenna system for communication with Earth stations and user terminals. These antennas are critical for maintaining high-speed data transmission and low latency.

Ion thrusters: For maneuvering in space, Starlink satellites use a krypton-powered ion thruster system. This propulsion technology allows the satellites to adjust their orbits, avoid collisions, and eventually deorbit at the end of their operational life.

This video from low-Earth orbit was captured by experienced NASA astronaut and former Expedition 71/72 flight engineer, Don Pettit. NASA astronaut Don Pettit returned to Earth on April 19, 2025, concluding a seven-month science mission aboard the International Space Station. Pettit spent 220 days in space, earning him a total of 590 days in space over the course of his four spaceflights. He orbited the Earth 3,520 times, traveling 93.3 million miles in low-Earth orbit.

Follow Expedition 73:

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

Expedition 73 Crew

Station Commander: Sergey Ryzhikov (Roscosmos)

JAXA Flight Engineer (Japan): Kimiya Yui

Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Alexey Zubritskiy, Oleg Platonov

NASA Flight Engineers: Jonny Kim, Zena Cardman, Mike Fincke

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/D. Pettit
Text Credits: Starlinkinstallationpros[dot]com, TechAnnouncer[dot]com
Time: 11 seconds
Release Date: Oct. 7, 2025

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Sun #Planets #Earth #SpaceX #Starlink #Satellites #CommercialSpace #Astronauts #DonPettit #AstronautVideography #UnitedStates #Japan #JAXA #Cosmonauts #Russia #Roscosmos #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #InternationalCooperation #Expedition71 #Expedition72 #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Pillars of Creation: A 3D Multiwavelength Exploration | STScI

The Pillars of Creation: A 3D Multiwavelength Exploration | STScI

This scientific visualization explores the iconic Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula using data from the Hubble and Webb Space Telescopes. 

Based on scientific results, astronomers and artists modeled this striking formation in three dimensions and created a movie that flies past and amongst the pillars. What looks like 3 pillars in a two-dimensional image separates into four dust clouds with ionized gas streaming away from each.

As the virtual camera files through the model, the view shifts back and forth between the visible light and infrared light perspectives. Viewers gain an appreciation of the contrasting observations seen by Hubble and Webb, and how the telescopes complement each other by probing different scientific aspects of the clouds.

The Pillars of Creation nickname derives from the fact that stars are forming within these dust clouds. The visual tour highlights various stages of star formation including an embedded protostar at the top of the central pillar, bipolar jets from a unseen forming star in the upper part of the left pillar, and a newborn star in the middle of the left pillar.

This visualization is a product of the AstroViz Project of NASA's Universe of Learning. A longer and explanatory visualization, including narration detailing the structures and science, is available as "The Pillars of Creation and the Interplay of Stars and Dust".

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #EagleNebula #PillarsOfCreation #SerpensCauda #Constellations #SpaceTelescopes #JWST #InfraredAstronomy #HST #OpticalAstronomy #Universe #ESA #Europe #CSA #Canada #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Art #Visualization #HD #Video

Duration: Oct. 8, 2025

Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon: View from New Mexico

Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon: View from New Mexico

Comet Lemmon is brightening and moving into morning northern skies. Besides Comet SWAN25B and Comet ATLAS, Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) is now the third comet currently visible with binoculars and on long camera exposures. Comet Lemmon was discovered early this year and is still headed into the inner Solar System. The comet will round the Sun on November 8, but first it will pass its nearest to the Earth—at about half the Earth-Sun distance—on October 21. 

Although the brightnesses of comets are notoriously hard to predict, optimistic estimates have Comet Lemmon then becoming visible to the unaided eye. The comet should be best seen in predawn skies until mid-October, when it also becomes visible in evening skies.

New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also borders the state of Texas to the east and southeast, Oklahoma to the northeast, and shares an international border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora to the south.

Image Credit: Rolando Ligustri

Image Details: Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon, 08/10/2025 at 10:30 UT, from New Mexico USA, TelescopeNetwork.astrottica.it, with a NM 300/1140 (Astrottica) CCD ASI 2600 MM in bin2 RGB=3x30s L=20x30s field of view 44'x66', processed by Astroart Software and PS. The presence of the Moon is starting to be "heavy", causing a loss of contrast and an increase in gradients.

Location: Astrottica Observatory, New Mexico, USA

Rolando's website: 

https://www.facebook.com/astrottica

Capture Date: Oct. 8, 2025

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Comets #CometC2025A6Lemmon #Coma #CometaryTails #SolarSystem #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Astrophotography #RolandoLigustri #Astrophotographers #NewMexico #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

The Orion Nebula: Infrared View | Subaru Telescope

The Orion Nebula: Infrared View | Subaru Telescope

Located 1,500 light years away, the Orion Nebula (Messier 42) shows a host of treasures when viewed in infrared light. There are stars in the Trapezium, an open cluster of stars at the center, that are only visible in infrared light. The orange feature above center is called the Kleinman-Low Nebula, and appears greatly affected by the newly forming central star IRc2. The blue emission in this representative color photograph is caused by hot gas ionized by the Trapezium stars. This is one of the first photographs ever taken through Japan's Subaru Telescope.

At the center of the image is the Trapezium, a group of four bright stars. Many stars seen around the Trapezium are young stars embedded in the Orion molecular cloud located behind the Orion Nebula. Many of them are seen only at infrared wavelengths. Blue, faint, and diffuse emission extending over the entire region is due to hot gas ionized by strong ultraviolet radiation emitted by the Trapezium stars. The bright bar seen in the lower left part of the image is an ionization front.

Above the Trapezium, a butterfly-like red feature is seen in the image, containing the Kleinman-Low (KL) nebula. It is deeply embedded in the Orion molecular cloud. At the center of the KL nebula is a star called IRc2 that is in the process of forming. This star is believed to be thirty times more massive than the Sun, and its activities are the cause of the large butterfly feature.

This false-color image was synthesized from three images taken with J (1.25 micron), K' (2.15 micron), and H 2 -line (2.12 micron, narrow band) filters, assigning blue for J, green for K', and red for H 2 -line images. Nine images of contiguous fields were obtained with the Subaru Telescope's Cooled Infrared Spectrograph and Camera for OHS (CISCO). It has a 2 arcmin by 2 arcmin field of view, and were combined to make this image.  Ghost (false) images from very bright stars are also visible.

The Subaru Telescope is an astronomical observation facility operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). It is located at the summit of Mauna Kea at an altitude of 4,200 meters in the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Learn more about Japan's Subaru Telescope: 
https://subarutelescope.org/en/

Credit: CISCO, Subaru 8.3-m Telescope, NAOJ
Release Date: Jan. 29, 1999

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