Sunday, September 08, 2019

Jupiter: A New Portrait | Hubble

Jupiter: A New Portrait | Hubble
The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope reveals the intricate, detailed beauty of Jupiter’s clouds in this new image taken on June 27, 2019. It features the planet’s trademark Great Red Spot and a more intense color palette in the clouds swirling in the planet’s turbulent atmosphere than seen in previous years.

Among the most striking features in the image are the rich colors of the clouds moving toward the Great Red Spot. This huge anticyclonic storm is roughly the diameter of Earth and is rolling counterclockwise between two bands of clouds that are moving in opposite directions toward it.

As with previous images of Jupiter taken by Hubble, and other observations from telescopes on the ground, the new image confirms that the huge storm which has raged on Jupiter’s surface for at least 150 years continues to shrink. The reason for this is still unknown so Hubble will continue to observe Jupiter in the hope that scientists will be able to solve this stormy riddle. Much smaller storms appear on Jupiter as white or brown ovals that can last as little as a few hours or stretch on for centuries.

The worm-shaped feature located south of the Great Red Spot is a cyclone, a vortex spinning in the opposite direction to that in which the Great Red Spot spins. Researchers have observed cyclones with a wide variety of different appearances across the planet. The two white oval features are anticyclones, similar to small versions of the Great Red Spot.

The Hubble image also highlights Jupiter’s distinct parallel cloud bands. These bands consist of air flowing in opposite directions at various latitudes. They are created by differences in the thickness and height of the ammonia ice clouds; the lighter bands rise higher and have thicker clouds than the darker bands. The different concentrations are kept separate by fast winds which can reach speeds of up to 650 kilometers per hour.

These observations of Jupiter form part of the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program, which began in 2014. This initiative allows Hubble to dedicate time each year to observing the outer planets and provides scientists with access to a collection of maps, which helps them to understand not only the atmospheres of the giant planets in the Solar System, but also the atmosphere of our own planet and of the planets in other planetary systems.

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA.

Note:
This image was captured by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3, when the planet was 644 million kilometers from Earth.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)
Release Date: August 8, 2019


#NASA #Hubble #ESA #NASA #Astronomy #Space #Jupiter #Planet #Atmosphere #SolarSystem #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #STEM #Education

Friday, September 06, 2019

Keeping an eye on Hurricane Dorian from Space | This Week @NASA

Keeping an eye on Hurricane Dorian | This Week @NASA
Sept. 6, 2019: Keeping an eye on Hurricane Dorian, the next crew headed to the International Space Station, and a better understanding of Sun-driven space weather . . . a few of the stories to tell you about—This Week at NASA!

Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Duration: 2 minutes, 57 seconds
Release Date: September 6, 2019



#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Exploration #Dorian #Hurricane #HurricaneDorian #Artemis #Mars #Moon #Astronauts #ChristinaKoch #NickHague #AndrewMorgan #Expedition60 #Human #Spaceflight #SpaceX #Spacecraft #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Video

NASA's Space to Ground: Category 5 | Week of Sept. 6, 2019

NASA's Space to Ground: Category 5 | Week of Sept. 6, 2019
NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station.

As the week near its close, the crew of Expedition 60 caught up on maintenance activities while also continuing science investigations integral for the future of space exploration to destinations further into the solar system.

ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano performed servicing to the EXPRESS Rack located in the Columbus lab of the International Space Station. The EXPRESS Rack is instrumental in supporting science experiments, providing structural interfaces for power, data, cooling water and more to facilitate investigations in microgravity.

NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Andrew Morgan continued examinations for Fluid Shifts, conducting remotely guided ultrasounds to track the movement of fluids within the body. Spread out over several weeks, the various measurements investigate if long-duration spaceflight can cause severe and lasting physical damage to an astronaut’s eyes. Aboard the orbiting laboratory, a Lower Body Negative Pressure device is being evaluated as a possible intervention for any harmful effects.

Flight Engineer Christina Koch, meanwhile, spent time on Rodent Research habitat cleaning and feeding protocols. Such experiments, as a byproduct of learning how microgravity affects animals, provides relevant insight to human space exploration, basic biology and knowledge that can positively impact human health on Earth.

Crew members performed scheduled maintenance on the Space Moss investigation — a plant-growth experiment attached to the Cell Biology Experiment Facility incubator. Moss, tiny plants without roots, need only a small area to thrive, and thus have potential in space far beyond low-Earth orbit, like on future Moon or Martian bases.

The countdown is on for cosmonauts Alexander Skvortsov and Alexey Ovchinin, who will wrap up packing the Soyuz MS-14 with gear before the spaceship returns to Earth Friday, Sept. 6. Viewers can watch NASA Television as it follows the undocking of the unpiloted vehicle, which begins at 1:45 p.m. EDT for a scheduled undocking at 2:14 p.m. The vehicle is anticipated to land at 5:34 p.m. in Kazakhstan, but with no NASA TV coverage.

Learn more about the important research being operated on Station:
https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science

For more information about STEM on Station:
https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/stem_on_station/

Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)
Duration: 2 minutes, 27 seconds
Release Date: September 6, 2019


#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Hurricane #HurricaneDorian #Soyuz #Research #Microgravity #Astronauts #ChristinaKoch #NickHague #AndrewMorgan #ESA #LucaParmitano #Italia #Italy #Cosmonauts #AlexeyOvchinin #AlexanderSkvortsov #Russia #Россия #Expedition60 #Human #Spaceflight #Spacecraft #JSC #Houston #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Video

Wednesday, September 04, 2019

Mars: Avalanche Season [Video] | NASA MRO

Avalanche captured from Mars orbit by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft
Every spring the sun shines on the side of the stack of layers at the North Pole of Mars known as the north polar layered deposits. The warmth destabilizes the ice and blocks break loose.

When they reach the bottom of the more than 500 meter tall cliff face, the blocks kick up a cloud of dust. The layers beneath are different colors and textures depending on the amount of dust mixed with ice.

Imagery captured 318.2 km (197.8 miles) above the planet's surface
Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.

Mars Location:
Latitude (centered)
83.796°
Longitude (East)
237.006°

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado.

Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
Narration: Tre Gibbs (www.tregibbs.com)
Duration: 29 seconds
Capture Date: May 29, 2019
Release Date: September 3, 2019


#NASA #Mars #Space #Astronomy #Science #Planet #Avalanche #NorthPole #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #RedPlanet #MRO #Reconnaissance #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISE #Camera #JPL #University #Arizona #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Video

Mars: Avalanche Season | NASA MRO

Mars: Avalanche Season | NASA MRO
Avalanche captured from Mars orbit by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft
Every spring the sun shines on the side of the stack of layers at the North Pole of Mars known as the north polar layered deposits. The warmth destabilizes the ice and blocks break loose.

When they reach the bottom of the more than 500 meter tall cliff face, the blocks kick up a cloud of dust. The layers beneath are different colors and textures depending on the amount of dust mixed with ice.

Image captured 318.2 km (197.8 miles) above the planet's surface

Mars Location:
Latitude (centered)
83.796°
Longitude (East)
237.006°

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado.

Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
Image Date: May 29, 2019
Release Date: September 3, 2019

#NASA #Mars #Space #Astronomy #Science #Planet #Avalanche#NorthPole #Geology #Landscape #Terrain #Geoscience #RedPlanet #MRO#Reconnaissance #Orbiter #Spacecraft #HiRISE #Camera #JPL #University#Arizona #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Tuesday, September 03, 2019

Three Storms Brewing as Hurricane Season Heats Up

Three Storms Brewing as Hurricane Season Heats Up

While Hurricane Dorian lashed the Bahamas throughout Labor Day weekend, two other storms were brewing — one in the Atlantic, and another in the Eastern Pacific. In this GOES West view, captured at 1:20 p.m. EDT on Sept. 3, 2019, you can see all three storms.

Dorian, still a daunting Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph, is threatening the U.S. mainland as the storm slowly moves to the northwest. Hurricane warnings are in effect from Jupiter Inlet to Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida, as well as from north of Edisto Beach to South Santee River in South Carolina. Although Dorian isn’t forecast to make landfall along the East Coast, with the storm’s increasing size, any deviation to the left of the track could bring hurricane-force winds to portions of Florida’s east coast, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

As Dorian treks along the coast, Tropical Storm Fernand is slowly strengthening in the Gulf of Mexico. This storm, which currently has maximum sustained winds of nearly 40 mph, is forecast to reach the northeastern coast of Mexico late Tuesday or early Wednesday. A tropical storm warning is now in effect for Barra del Tordo to the mouth of the Rio Grande River, according to the latest NHC update.

Although Hurricane Juliette, a Category 3 storm as of 2 p.m. on Sept. 3, 2019, is packing wind speeds near 125 mph, this storm isn’t forecast to affect land. While the storm may gain some strength throughout the day, the NHC forecast shows the storm beginning to slowly fizzle by late Wednesday.

Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Release Date: September 3, 2019

#NASA #NOAA #Space #Satellite #Science #Earth #HurricaneDorian#Hurricane #Dorian #HurricaneJuliette #Tropical #Storm #Fernand #Atlantic#Pacific #Ocean #Florida #Bahamas #Weather #Meteorology #GOESWest#UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Dorian Pulling Away from Northwest Bahamas, Lashing Florida's East Coast

Dorian Pulling Away from Northwest Bahamas, Lashing Florida's East Coast
Dorian is tied for the strongest Atlantic hurricane landfall on record with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane by having maximum sustained winds of 185 mph (295 km/h), according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
Get the latest forecast here:
https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/#dorian

This GeoColor-enhanced imagery was created by NOAA's partners at the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere. The GOES East geostationary satellite, also known as GOES-16, provides coverage of the Western Hemisphere, including the United States, the Atlantic Ocean and the eastern Pacific. The satellite's high-resolution imagery provides optimal viewing of severe weather events, including thunderstorms, tropical storms, and hurricanes.

Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Release Date: September 3, 2019


#NASA #NOAA #Space #Satellite #Science #Earth #HurricaneDorian #Hurricane #Dorian #Storm #Atlantic #Ocean #Florida #Weather #Meteorology #GOESEast #CIRA #Geocolor #Goddard #GSFC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Monday, September 02, 2019

The Eye of Hurricane Dorian | International Space Station

The Eye of Hurricane Dorian | International Space Station
". . . You can feel the power of the storm when you stare into its eye from above. Stay safe everyone!"
—NASA Astronaut Nick Hague (ISS Expedition 60)
Sept. 2, 2019: In its 11:00 a.m. EDT advisory, the National Hurricane Center said Dorian was almost stationary, moving toward the west at just 1 mile an hour just over 100 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida, packing catastrophic sustained winds of 155 miles an hour.

A slow westward to west-northwestward motion is forecast during the next day or so, followed by a gradual turn toward the northwest and north. On this track, the core of extremely dangerous Hurricane Dorian will continue to pound Grand Bahama Island through much of today and tonight. The hurricane will move dangerously close to the east coast of Florida tonight through Wednesday evening and dangerously close to the Georgia and South Carolina coasts Wednesday night and Thursday.

Currently, Dorian is a category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Although gradual weakening is forecast, Dorian is expected to remain a powerful hurricane during the next couple of days while moving on a possible track up the southeastern U.S. seaboard.

Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)/Johnson Space Center (JSC)
Release Date: September 2, 2019

#NASA #Earth #Science #Space #ISS #Hurricane #Dorian #HurricaneDorian #Eye #Astronaut #NickHague #Expedition60 #Caribbean #Sea #Atlantic #Ocean #Bahamas #Florida #UnitedStates #Weather #Storm #Precipitation #ClimateChange #GlobalWarming #Environment #Planet #STEM #Education

Hurricane Dorian - Sept. 2, 2019 | International Space Station

Hurricane Dorian - Sept. 2, 2019 | International Space Station
Cameras outside the International Space Station captured views at 11:27 a.m. Eastern time September 2 of Hurricane Dorian from 260 miles in altitude as it churned over the over the northwestern Bahamas. In its 11:00 a.m. EDT advisory, the National Hurricane Center said Dorian was almost stationary, moving toward the west at just 1 mile an hour just over 100 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida, packing catastrophic sustained winds of 155 miles an hour.

A slow westward to west-northwestward motion is forecast during the next day or so, followed by a gradual turn toward the northwest and north. On this track, the core of extremely dangerous Hurricane Dorian will continue to pound Grand Bahama Island through much of today and tonight. The hurricane will move dangerously close to the east coast of Florida tonight through Wednesday evening and dangerously close to the Georgia and South Carolina coasts Wednesday night and Thursday.

Currently, Dorian is a category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Although gradual weakening is forecast, Dorian is expected to remain a powerful hurricane during the next couple of days while moving on a possible track up the southeastern U.S. seaboard.

Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Duration: 3 minutes, 11 seconds
Release Date: September 2, 2019


#NASA #Earth #Science #Space #ISS #Hurricane #Dorian#HurricaneDorian #Caribbean #Sea #Atlantic #Ocean #Bahamas #Florida#UnitedStates #Weather #Storm #Precipitation #Safety #Alert #Warning#ClimateChange #GlobalWarming #Environment #Planet #STEM#Education #Video

Galaxy NGC 3351: Caught in the Act | European Southern Observatory

Galaxy NGC 3351: Caught in the Act | ESO
NGC 3351, also known as Messier 95, was first discovered in 1781 by Pierre Méchain, a French astronomer and surveyor who worked alongside Charles Messier. NGC 3351 is a type of galaxy known as a barred spiral galaxy and it is located in the constellation of Leo (The Lion).

New observations of this object have shown stellar feedback in action. Stellar feedback is the process of redistributing energy into the interstellar medium (the space in between the stars) within star-forming galaxies. In this particular galaxy, star formation is occurring in the ring surrounding the galaxy nucleus at such a violent rate that massive bubbles of hot gas can actually be seen being ejected. This ejected gas can then contribute (both positively and negatively) to ongoing star formation within the galaxy.

The data for this observation were taken with ALMA, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and the Very Large Telescope, showing once again that scientific collaboration across multiple facilities can produce some wonderful results.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/ R. Leaman/ D. Gadotti/ K. Sandstrom/ D. Calzetti
Release Date: September 2, 2019


#ESO #Hubble #ESA #NASA #Astronomy #Space #Galaxy #Spiral#Barred #NGC3351 #Messier95 #Leo #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope#VLT #ALMA #Observatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education

Galaxy UGC 685 | Hubble Space Telescope

Galaxy UGC 685 | Hubble Space Telescope
Distance: 15 million light years
This Picture of the Week shows a dwarf galaxy named UGC 685. Such galaxies are small and contain just a tiny fraction of the number of stars in a galaxy like the Milky Way. Dwarf galaxies often show a hazy structure, an ill-defined shape, and an appearance somewhat akin to a swarm or cloud of stars—and UGC 685 is no exception to this. Classified as an SAm galaxy—a type of unbarred spiral galaxy—it is located about 15 million light-years from Earth.

These data were gathered under the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s LEGUS (Legacy ExtraGalactic UV Survey) Program, the sharpest and most comprehensive ultraviolet survey of star-forming galaxies in the nearby Universe.

LEGUS is imaging 50 spiral and dwarf galaxies in our cosmic neighborhood in multiple colors using Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3. The survey is picking apart the structures of these galaxies and resolving their constituent stars, clusters, groups, and other stellar associations. Star formation plays a huge role in shaping its host galaxy; by exploring these targets in detail via both new observations and archival Hubble data, LEGUS will shed light on how stars form and cluster together, how these clusters evolve, how a star’s formation affects its surroundings, and how stars explode at the end of their lives.

Credit:
ESA/Hubble & NASA; the LEGUS team, B. Tully, D. Calzetti
Acknowledgement: Judy Schmidt (Geckzilla)
Release Date: September 2, 2019


#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxy #UGC685 #Dwarf #Unbarred #Spiral #Pisces #Cosmos #Universe #Telescope #ESA #Goddard #GSFC #STScI #STEM #Education

Sunday, September 01, 2019

Earth Boat Lights & Starlight | International Space Station

Earth Boat Lights & Starlight | International Space Station
Did you see the lightning flashes over the ocean?

The orange hue enveloping Earth is known as airglow—diffuse bands of light that stretch 50 to 400 miles into our atmosphere.

Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. Or, it can happen when atoms and molecules that have been ionized by sunlight collide with and capture a free electron. In both cases, they eject a particle of light—called a photon—in order to relax again. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is energized by day-to-day solar radiation.

Original timelapse by Riccardo Rossi (ISAA)

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
Raw imagery courtesy of Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth: http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov

Timelapse HD 1080p video
Credit: AstronautiCAST/JSC
Capture Date: August 4, 2019
Release Date: August 7, 2019
Duration: 51 seconds

Music: "Cinematic Club Atmosphere" by realbustermedia
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Earth #ISS #Planet #Atmosphere #Lightning#Stars #Ships #Maritime #Spacecraft #Astronauts #Expedition60 #Night#Photography #Art #Science #Video #Timelapse #OrbitalPerspective#OverviewEffect #AstronautiCAST

Hurricane Dorian | NOAA Satellite

Hurricane Dorian | NOAA Satellite
NOAA's GOES East weather satellite captured this GeoColor view of Hurricane Dorian, a powerful Category 5 storm. Its maximum winds have increased to near 175 mph with gusts over 200 mph.

GeoColor is a multispectral product composed of True Color (using a simulated green component) during the daytime, and an Infrared product that uses bands 7 and 13 at night. During the day, the imagery looks approximately as it would appear when viewed with human eyes from space.

Geocolor was developed at the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) and STAR's Regional and Mesoscale Meteorology Branch (RAMMB).

Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/CIRA
Capture Date: September 1, 2019


#NASA #NOAA #Space #Satellite #Science #Earth #HurricaneDorian#Hurricane #Dorian #Storm #Atlantic #Ocean #Florida #Weather#Meteorology #GOESEast #CIRA #Geocolor #Goddard #GSFC#UnitedStates #STEM #Education 

Hurricane Dorian | International Space Station

Hurricane Dorian | International Space Station
Views of Hurricane Dorian (Category 5) on September 1, 2019
Cameras outside the International Space Station captured views on September 1 of Hurricane Dorian from 260 miles in altitude at 12:16 p.m. Eastern time as it churned over the Atlantic Ocean over the northern Bahamas. The storm, which is moving in a westerly direction with sustained winds of 180 miles an hour, is a dangerous Category 5 hurricane, carrying the strongest winds in recorded history for the northwestern Bahamas. The National Hurricane Center said in its 11 a.m. EDT advisory that Dorian is inflicting catastrophic damage to the Abacos and Grand Bahama Islands. Dorian is forecast to approach the east coast of Florida before taking a possible track up the southeastern U.S. seaboard later this week.

Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) 
Duration: 4 minutes, 34 seconds
Release Date: September 1, 2019

#NASA #Earth #Science #Space #ISS #Hurricane #Dorian #HurricaneDorian #Caribbean#Sea #Atlantic #Ocean #Bahamas #Florida #UnitedStates #Weather #Storm#Precipitation #Safety #Alert #Warning #ClimateChange #GlobalWarming#Environment #Planet #STEM #Education #Video

Skywatching: What's Up for September 2019 | NASA

Skywatching: What's Up for September 2019 | NASA

In this month's sky, look for lovely crescent Moons at the start and end of the month. The September equinox brings the beginning of fall in the Northern Hemisphere. And Mars is at solar conjunction, meaning it has disappeared from night skies! (When will it return?)

Additional information about topics covered in this episode of What's Up, along with still images from the video, and the video transcript, are available at https://go.nasa.gov/2Hx3bMn

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Duration: 2 minutes, 47 seconds
Release Date: August 29, 2019



#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Skywatching #Moon #Planets #Mars#Sun #SolarSystem #Stars #Constellations #MilkyWay #Galaxy #JPL#Pasadena #California #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Video

Saturday, August 31, 2019

Tonight's Sky: September 2019

Tonight's Sky: September 2019
In September, Pegasus becomes increasingly prominent in the southeastern sky, allowing stargazers to locate globular star clusters and a double star, Alpha Capricorni. Keep watching for space-based views of densely packed, spherical collections of ancient stars in visible and X-ray light.

About this Series
“Tonight’s Sky” is a monthly video of constellations you can observe in the night sky. The series is produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute, home of science operations for the Hubble Space Telescope, in partnership with NASA’s Universe of Learning.

This product is based upon work supported by NASA under award numbers NNX16AC65A to the Space Telescope Science Institute, working in partnership with Caltech/IPAC, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and Sonoma State University. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Credit: Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)
Duration: 5 minutes, 10 seconds
Release Date: August 27, 2019


#NASA #Astronomy #Hubble #Space #Science #Earth #Stars #Pegasus #Globular #Clusters #AlphaCapricorni #Galaxy #MilkyWay #Planets #SolarSystem #Skywatching #STEM #Education #UnitedStates #Canada #NorthernHemisphere #Video