Astronomy Archives

March 11, 2010December 24, 2015 by Jean Tate

World-wide Campaign Sheds New Light on Nature’s “LHC”

Recent observations of blazar jets require researchers to look deeper into whether current theories about jet formation and motion require refinement. This simulation, courtesy of Jonathan McKinney (KIPAC), shows a black hole pulling in nearby matter (yellow) and spraying energy back out into the universe in a jet (blue and red) that is held together by magnetic field lines (green).

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In a manner somewhat like the formation of an alliance to defeat Darth Vader’s Death Star, more than a decade ago astronomers formed the Whole Earth Blazar Telescope consortium to understand Nature’s Death Ray Gun (a.k.a. blazars). And contrary to its at-death’s-door sounding name, the GASP has proved crucial to unraveling the secrets of how Nature’s “LHC” works.

“As the universe’s biggest accelerators, blazar jets are important to understand,” said Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC) Research Fellow Masaaki Hayashida, corresponding author on the recent paper presenting the new results with KIPAC Astrophysicist Greg Madejski. “But how they are produced and how they are structured is not well understood. We’re still looking to understand the basics.”

Blazars dominate the gamma-ray sky, discrete spots on the dark backdrop of the universe. As nearby matter falls into the supermassive black hole at the center of a blazar, “feeding” the black hole, it sprays some of this energy back out into the universe as a jet of particles.

Researchers had previously theorized that such jets are held together by strong magnetic field tendrils, while the jet’s light is created by particles spiraling around these wisp-thin magnetic field “lines”.

Yet, until now, the details have been relatively poorly understood. The recent study upsets the prevailing understanding of the jet’s structure, revealing new insight into these mysterious yet mighty beasts.

“This work is a significant step toward understanding the physics of these jets,” said KIPAC Director Roger Blandford. “It’s this type of observation that is going to make it possible for us to figure out their anatomy.”

Over a full year of observations, the researchers focused on one particular blazar jet, 3C279, located in the constellation Virgo, monitoring it in many different wavebands: gamma-ray, X-ray, optical, infrared and radio. Blazars flicker continuously, and researchers expected continual changes in all wavebands. Midway through the year, however, researchers observed a spectacular change in the jet’s optical and gamma-ray emission: a 20-day-long flare in gamma rays was accompanied by a dramatic change in the jet’s optical light.

Although most optical light is unpolarized – consisting of light with an equal mix of all polarizations – the extreme bending of energetic particles around a magnetic field line can polarize light. During the 20-day gamma-ray flare, optical light from the jet changed its polarization. This temporal connection between changes in the gamma-ray light and changes in the optical polarization suggests that light in both wavebands is created in the same part of the jet; during those 20 days, something in the local environment changed to cause both the optical and gamma-ray light to vary.

“We have a fairly good idea of where in the jet optical light is created; now that we know the gamma rays and optical light are created in the same place, we can for the first time determine where the gamma rays come from,” said Hayashida.

This knowledge has far-reaching implications about how a supermassive black hole produces polar jets. The great majority of energy released in a jet escapes in the form of gamma rays, and researchers previously thought that all of this energy must be released near the black hole, close to where the matter flowing into the black hole gives up its energy in the first place. Yet the new results suggest that – like optical light – the gamma rays are emitted relatively far from the black hole. This, Hayashida and Madejski said, in turn suggests that the magnetic field lines must somehow help the energy travel far from the black hole before it is released in the form of gamma rays.

“What we found was very different from what we were expecting,” said Madejski. “The data suggest that gamma rays are produced not one or two light days from the black hole [as was expected] but closer to one light year. That’s surprising.”

In addition to revealing where in the jet light is produced, the gradual change of the optical light’s polarization also reveals something unexpected about the overall shape of the jet: the jet appears to curve as it travels away from the black hole.

“At one point during a gamma-ray flare, the polarization rotated about 180 degrees as the intensity of the light changed,” said Hayashida. “This suggests that the whole jet curves.”

This new understanding of the inner workings and construction of a blazar jet requires a new working model of the jet’s structure, one in which the jet curves dramatically and the most energetic light originates far from the black hole. This, Madejski said, is where theorists come in. “Our study poses a very important challenge to theorists: how would you construct a jet that could potentially be carrying energy so far from the black hole? And how could we then detect that? Taking the magnetic field lines into account is not simple. Related calculations are difficult to do analytically, and must be solved with extremely complex numerical schemes.”

Theorist Jonathan McKinney, a Stanford University Einstein Fellow and expert on the formation of magnetized jets, agrees that the results pose as many questions as they answer. “There’s been a long-time controversy about these jets – about exactly where the gamma-ray emission is coming from. This work constrains the types of jet models that are possible,” said McKinney, who is unassociated with the recent study. “From a theoretician’s point of view, I’m excited because it means we need to rethink our models.”

As theorists consider how the new observations fit models of how jets work, Hayashida, Madejski and other members of the research team will continue to gather more data. “There’s a clear need to conduct such observations across all types of light to understand this better,” said Madejski. “It takes a massive amount of coordination to accomplish this type of study, which included more than 250 scientists and data from about 20 telescopes. But it’s worth it.”

With this and future multi-wavelength studies, theorists will have new insight with which to craft models of how the universe’s biggest accelerators work. Darth Vader has been denied all access to these research results.

Sources: DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Press Release, a paper in the 18 February, 2010 issue of Nature.

March 9, 2010December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Massive Repeated Explosions Halted Star Formation in Early Universe

An artist's representation showing outflow from a supermassive black hole inside the middle of a galaxy. Credit: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss

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Scientists have found evidence of a catastrophic event they believe was responsible for halting the birth of stars in a galaxy in the early Universe. According to their findings, just 3 billion years after the Big Bang, a massive galaxy exploded in a series of blasts trillions of times more powerful than any caused by an atomic bomb. The blasts happened every second for millions of years. “We are looking into the past and seeing a catastrophic event that essentially switched off star formation and halted the growth of a typical massive galaxy in the local Universe,” said lead author Dr. Dave Alexander from Durham University.

Using the Gemini Observatory’s Near-Infrared Integral Field Spectrometer (NIFS), scientists looked at SMM J1237+6203 and noticed properties seen in other massive galaxies near to our own Milky Way, which suggest that a major event rapidly turned off star formation in early galaxies and halted their expansion.

This is an observation showing gas in the galaxy SMM J1237+6203 seen using the Gemini Observatory’s Near-Infrared Integral Field Spectrometer (NIFS). The contours show how the blast of energy is traveling through the galaxy. Credit: Dave Alexander/Mark Swinbank, Durham University, and Gemini Observatory

This catastrophic event occurred when the Universe was a quarter of its present age. The explosions scattered the gas needed to form new stars by helping it escape the gravitational pull of the galaxy called, effectively regulating its growth, the scientists added.

They believe the huge surge of energy was caused by either the outflow of debris from the galaxy’s black hole or from powerful winds generated by dying stars called supernovae.

Theorists, including scientists at Durham University, have argued that this could be due to outflows of energy blowing galaxies apart and preventing further new stars from forming, but evidence of this has been lacking until now. The team hopes the new findings can increase our understanding about the formation and development of galaxies.

“Effectively the galaxy is regulating its growth by preventing new stars from being born,” said Alexander. “Theorists had predicted that huge outflows of energy were behind this activity, but it’s only now that we have seen it in action. We believe that similar huge outflows are likely to have stopped the growth of other galaxies in the early Universe by blowing away the materials needed for star formation.”

The Durham-led team now plans to study other massive star-forming galaxies in the early Universe to see if they display similar characteristics.

The research is published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Source: Royal Astronomical Society

March 8, 2010December 24, 2015 by Jean Tate

Universe Puzzle No. 4

As with last week’s Universe Puzzle, something that cannot be answered by five minutes spent googling, a puzzle that requires you to cudgel your brains a bit, and do some lateral thinking. This is a puzzle on a “Universal” topic – astronomy and astronomers; space, satellites, missions, and astronauts; planets, moons, telescopes, and so on.

What’s the next number in the sequence? 401, 172, 85.2

There are no prizes for the first correct answer – there may not even be just one correct answer – posted as a comment (the judge’s decision – mine! – will be final), but I do hope that you’ll have lots of fun.

Post your guesses in the comments section, and check back on Wednesday at this same post to find the answer. Good luck!

UPDATE: Answer has been posted below.

42.5 is the answer; it’s the mean orbital period of Io, in hours; the first three members of the sequence are the mean orbital periods of Callisto, Ganymede, and Europa (source)

Well done scibuff!

Check back next week for another Universe Puzzle.

March 7, 2010April 26, 2016 by Tammy Plotner

Taking The Pulse Of A Supernova – NGC 4490

NGC 4490/4485 – T. Grossman, D. Hager and R. Johnson

Way out yonder some 40 to 50 million light years away in the constellation of Canes Venetici is a pair of interacting galaxies sometimes referred to as “The Cocoon”. These two mis-shaped blobs of star stuff have already made their closest approach to each other and are now parting ways. Between them stretches a trail of stars that spans some 24,000 light years as they face each other showing off their numerous star-forming regions. But where there is life… There is death. Let’s put our finger right on the pulse of a supernova. Continue reading “Taking The Pulse Of A Supernova – NGC 4490”

March 5, 2010December 24, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Tsunami Wave Pictures

Deep Ocean Tsunami Waves off the Sri Lankan Coast

Here are some tsunami wave pictures. You can make any of these images into your computer desktop background. Just click on an image to enlarge it, and then right-click and choose “Set as Desktop Background”.

Here’s an image from space shortly after the Boxing Day 2004 earthquake that generated the terrible tsunami. You can see the large waves rippling in the ocean just off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.

This photo from space shows the devastation that occurred after the December 2004 tsunami struck Little Andaman Island, off the coast of India. You can see how a village was completely wiped out.

Here’s an image of Sumatra in Indonesia, after the 2004 tsunami struck the coast, wiping out a huge portion of the coastal forest. After the tsunami struck, the entire coast of the island looks like it was cleared back several hundred meters.

This photograph shows damage from the 2004 tsunami off the west coast of Sumatra.

Here’s an image of Phuket, an island off the coast of Thailand. It’s famous for its warm water and beautiful beaches, but it was slammed with a powerful tsunami in 2004, just an hour after the earthquake that generated the wave.

We’ve written many articles about tsunami for Universe Today. Here’s an article about why a recent tsunami was smaller than expected, and here are some tsunami pictures.

If you’d like more info on Earth, check out NASA’s Solar System Exploration Guide on Earth. And here’s a link to NASA’s Earth Observatory.

We’ve also recorded an episode of Astronomy Cast all about planet Earth. Listen here, Episode 51: Earth.

March 5, 2010December 24, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Apollo 13 Pictures

Here are some Apollo 13 pictures. You can make any of these pictures into your computer desktop background. Just click on an image to enlarge it, and then right-click and choose “Set as Desktop Background.

Here’s a photo of the Apollo 13 mission launching from Florida’s Cape Canaveral. It launched on April 11, 1970, just a few days before its accident in space, which has been turned into a popular movie.

This is an image of the Apollo 13 re-entry capsule returning to Earth, slowed by three large parachutes. Because of the accident, Apollo 13 kept its lunar lander attached to the Command Module for the entire trip around the Moon and back to Earth. They jettisoned it at the last minute just before re-entering the atmosphere.

Here’s a photo of the Apollo 13 capsule floating on the ocean after its landing. You can see command module pilot John L. Swigert Jr being lifted up by a helicopter.

And here’s a photo of Commander Jim Lovell being lifted up into the helicopter. He was the last of the three astronauts lifted up to safety after their capsule landed in the ocean.

This is an image of the Apollo 13 command module, which was normally used by the astronauts through the mission. Their command module had to be powered down to save power so they had to use the service module after the accident.

We’ve written many articles about Apollo 13 for Universe Today. Here’s an article about what really happened on Apollo 13, and here’s an article about the Apollo 13 launch.

If you’d like more information on Apollo 13, here’s a link to NASA’s Apollo 13 mission page, and here’s more information on the accident.

We’ve recorded an episode of Astronomy Cast about the NASA capsules. Listen here, Episode 124: Space Capsules.

March 5, 2010December 24, 2015 by Tammy Plotner

Weekend SkyWatcher’s Forecast: March 5-7, 2010

Greetings, fellow SkyWatchers! Are you ready for the weekend? Then let’s spend it “stellar” as we take a look at a great series of open galactic star clusters. Gathering a few photons will enrich both the spirit and the mind! If you’re ready for some history, science and challenges, then follow me…

March 5, 2010 – This date celebrates the 1512 birth of Gerardus Mercator. Mercator was the cartographer who created the Mercator map projection, the series of parallels and meridians drawn as straight lines to allow an accurate ratio of latitude to longitude. Mercator also designed the first celestial globe in 1551.

Tonight let’s take in a galactic star cluster! Find the area easily by aiming binoculars about halfway between Alpha Orionis and Gamma Geminorum (RA 06 13 42 Dec +12 48 06). Look for a faint pair of stars known as K Orionis, but don’t confuse them with slightly brighter Xi and Nu. Concentrate on the northernmost of the K pair, and you’ll pick up a slight condensation of faint stars— NGC 2194. While this Herschel ‘‘400’’ target is sufficiently bright to see in small optics, its true beauty shines in larger telescopes. This rich, young concentration of stars is over 3,700 light-years away and is less than 9,000 years old. Photometric studies of this neophyte cluster show it to be metal-poor for its age, but NGC 2194 is definitely a very pleasing sprinkling of stars to enjoy on a winter’s night!

Are you ready for an open cluster that’s suited for all optics? Then let’s take on NGC2287. Located about two finger-widths south of Alpha Canis Majoris (RA 06 46 00 Dec +20 46 00), only an open cluster this bright could stand up against brilliant Sirius. From a dark-sky location, your unaided eye can even spot this magnitude 4.5 star vault as a hazy patch. Aristotle saw it as early as 325 BC! Officially discovered by Hodierna, we know it best by the designation Messier Object 41.

Even from 2,300 light-years away, the cluster’s brightest star, an orange giant, stands out clearly from the stellar nest. With large aperture, you’ll notice other K-type stars, all very similar to Sol. Although small scopes and binoculars won’t reveal too much color, you might pick up on the blue signature of young, hot stars. NGC 2287 could be anywhere from 190 to 240 million years old, but its stars shine as brightly now as they did in Aristotle’s day!

March 6, 2010 – If you see sunshine today, then celebrate the 1787 birth on this date of Joseph Fraunhofer—a trailblazer in modern astronomy. His field? Spectroscopy. Fraunhofer developed scientific instruments and specialized in the area of applied optics. While designing the achromatic objective lens for a telescope, he saw the spectrum of sunlight as it passed through a thin slit and the dark emission lines. Fraunhofer recognized that they could be used as wavelength standards, so he began measuring, labeling the most prominent with the letters still used today. His skill in optics, mathematics, and physics led Fraunhofer to design and build the very first diffraction grating. You’ve probably seen these little rainbows hundreds of times in your life without even realizing what they are. Would you like to create your own grating? Take a piece of ordinary clear cellophane (a bit of clean food wrapping is fine) and scratch it lightly a few times in one direction only with a piece of sandpaper. Hold it adjacent to a bright light source and tilt it until you see hundreds of hair-fine lines of color. Yes, it’s crude. . . but it works! Did Fraunhofer’s telescope designs also succeed? Of course! His achromatic objective lens is still used in modern telescopes.

Tonight journey south of Orion to Lepus and its brightest star—Alpha. Named Arneb, this double star resides about 900 light-years away. Its wide separation of 35.500 means it’s probably not a true physical pair, but the 11th magnitude disparate companion is a nice challenge. For binoculars and small scopes, hop due east of Alpha about a finger-width for brilliant multiple-star system and open cluster NGC2017. The gravitationally bound stars in this small open cluster are a well-studied source of radio and infrared emission. NGC2017 produces a dense wind from a thin HII region hidden within it, which may come from a loose distribution of gas and dust. Power up, and the primary colorful members begin to split into disparate pairs as the combination of aperture and magnification increases resolution. It’s a much underrated jewel box!

March 7, 2010 – Today we celebrate two notable births. The year 1837 is Henry Draper’s, first to photograph the stellar spectrum; and 1792 is the year Sir William Herschel’s only child—John—was born. John Herschel began his astronomical career in 1816 when he built his first telescope. His path led him to eventual British knighthood for furthering his father’s work, and to South Africa to complete his father’s survey by cataloging the stars, nebulae, and other objects of the southern skies. In his own words, ‘‘He that on such quest would go must know not fear or failing.’’ John returned to England in 1838, published his work, fathered 12 children, named the moons of Saturn and Uranus, and expanded the field of photography. He was a prodigious author, and you’ll even find examples of his handiwork in the Encyclopedia Britannica!

Tonight let’s honor J. Herschel with a very beautiful open star cluster. Begin with Sirius and the southern upside down Y formation of Canis Major, whose crux is Delta. Hop northeast to Tau for open cluster NGC 2362 (RA 07 18 36 Dec 24 59 00). In binoculars, Caldwell 64 appears as two stars—Tau and the variable UW. At minor magnification, Tau shows a slight nebulosity, the many unresolved stars surrounding it. Now power up with a telescope and behold the ‘‘ Mexican Jumping Star!’’ This rich, 4,600 light-years distant gathering contains about 40 members and is one of the youngest of known star clusters. Many resolvable stars haven’t yet reached the main sequence!

Still pulling together, the cluster is estimated to be less than a million years old. The central star—Tau—is a true member and one of the most intrinsically luminous stars known. This group may last as long as the Pleiades but will pull apart long before reaching the Hyades’’ age. Tau’s immense stellar winds will blow away any accretion around the smaller stars. Magnify as much as skies will allow. As individual stars begin to resolve in and out around its bright central member, you can see how it got its nickname!

Now head for the eastern star, Eta Canis Majoris. Aim your binoculars about one field further south. Difficult for northern observers, this collection is visible unaided in the Southern Hemisphere. Collinder 140 (RA 07 23 18 Dec 32 04 00) is around magnitude 3.5 and is a rich open cluster. Located around 1,000 light-years away, and estimated to be 22 million years old, even small optics will enjoy this large, jewel-like collection of stars, which includes the double Dunlop 47 among its many binary systems. Studied for its unusual patterns of stellar evolution, Collinder 140 is worth some of your study time as well!

Until next week? Keep rockin’ the night away….

This week’s awesome cluster images are from the Palomar Sky Survey, Courtesy of Caltech. Thank you so much!

March 4, 2010December 24, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Thunderstorm Pictures

Here are some thunderstorm pictures. You can make any of these into your computer desktop wallpaper. Just click on an image to enlarge it, and then right-click and choose “Set as Desktop Background”.

Here’s a photo of thunderstorms above the Gulf Coast near Galveston Bay. These thunderstorms build in the morning out over the ocean and then move inland as the day warms up. This photo was taken from the space shuttle during mission STS-40.

This is a photo of some severe thunderstorms that formed in May, 2003. There were several very large tornadoes generated during this period that struck the midwest. This picture was taken by the space shuttle.

This is a world wide map of lightning. This shows the places in the world where lightning is mostly likely to happen. This is the total lightning accumulation over the course of a year.

Here’s an image of the Himalaya mountains seen from the space shuttle. You can see huge monsoon thunderstorms above Bangladesh and India. This is some of the regions that receive the most rainfall in the entire world.

This is a satellite photo of a severe storm that struck the Red Sea in 2006. It was so severe that it caused an Egyptian ferry to sink, carrying 1,300 people.

We have written many articles about storms for Universe Today. Here’s an article about dust storms on Mars, and here’s an article about storms on Saturn.

If you’d like more info on Earth, check out NASA’s Solar System Exploration Guide on Earth. And here’s a link to NASA’s Earth Observatory.

We’ve also recorded an episode of Astronomy Cast all about planet Earth. Listen here, Episode 51: Earth.

March 3, 2010December 24, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Supernova Pictures

Here are some cool supernova pictures. You can make any of these images into your computer desktop wallpaper. Just click an image to enlarge it, and then right-click and choose “Set as Desktop Background”.

This is an image of a supernova remnant N132D, as photographed by NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope. You can see how the shockwave of the supernova is colliding with the surrounding gas and dust in the nebula.

Here’s an image of supernovae seen by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. Astronomers found many supernovae like this to determine that the expansion of the Universe is actually accelerating.

This is an image of an expanding shell of hot gas blasting away from a supernova that exploded in 1987. This photo was taken by Hubble in 1994, 7 years after the supernova.

This is a small portion of the Cygnus loop supernova remnant, photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope. This picture was taken in 1991.

Astronomer Johannes Kepler recorded the brightening of a star in the sky in 1604. We now know that this was a supernova exploding in the sky. Here’s a photo of the supernova remnant, taken 400 years after the supernova exploded.

We’ve written many articles about supernovae for Universe Today. Here’s an article about a supernova that exploded in slow motion. And here’s an article about how supernovae might have generated dust in the early Universe.

If you’d like more info on supernovae, check out Hubblesite’s News Releases on Supernova, and here’s a link to the NASA Science Homepage: Supernova for recent stories and images.

We’ve done many episodes of Astronomy Cast about stars. Listen here, Episode 12: Where Do Baby Stars Come From?

March 1, 2010April 13, 2022 by Ken Kremer

Phoenix Still Silent as Martian Ice Recedes

Time lapse photo mosaic was assembled from Phoenix images taken of the lander deck and martian terrain. Panorama shows the robotic arm in action as it scoops up soil samples (right) and delivers the samples to the MECA and TEGA science instruments (left). Credit: Marco Di Lorenzo, Kenneth Kremer - NASA/JPL/UA/Spaceflight

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As expected, NASA’s February 2010 listening campaign for the Phoenix Mars Lander has failed to detect any signals emanating from the long silent vehicle. NASA’s attempts to reestablish contact with Phoenix were restarted in January 2010 and timed to coincide with the onset of springtime and disappearance of ice at her location in the martian north polar regions. In theory, the return of abundant sunshine striking the twin energy producing solar arrays could again power up the science lander sufficiently to revive itself and ‘phone home’ to Earth.

This just completed 2nd listening campaign consisted of 60 overflights conducted by NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter from Feb 22 to Feb 26. The first campaign was conducted in January and likewise yielded no signals of activity. But with each passing Sol, or martian day, the sun is now rising higher in the sky and impinging longer on the solar powered craft. A third campaign is scheduled for early April 2010 just in case the sun enables a miraculous revival. The sun will be continuously above the Martian horizon in April.

Check out the time lapse photo mosaic above, created by Marco Di Lorenzo and Ken Kremer, which shows Phoenix actively at work as she digs up Martian icy soil samples and delivers them to the MECA and TEGA science instruments on the lander deck for compositional analysis.

It’s currently mid-springtime at the landing site with about 22 hours of sunlight each Sol. That illumination is comparable to the period when Phoenix was in full swing in the middle of her mission.

“Each overflight lasts about 10 minutes”, says Doug McCuistion, the director of Mars Exploration at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC. But no one at NASA or on the science and engineering teams is under any illusions. “We think the chances are very low that Phoenix survived winter”, McCuistion told me in an interview.

NASA is using both of its Martian orbiting assets currently circling above the red planet to ascertain the condition of Phoenix. “Odyssey is the prime communications spacecraft. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) will try to image Phoenix about every 2 weeks”, McCuistion said to me. See the latest MRO images herein which show a receding ice layer.

Stages in the seasonal disappearance of surface ice from the ground around the Phoenix Mars Lander are visible in these images taken on Feb. 8, 2010, (left) and Feb. 25, 2010 by the HiRise Camera on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, during springtime on northern Mars. The views cover an area about 100 meters wide. North is toward the bottom. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

Phoenix was pre-programmed with a Lazarus mode to reawaken itself in the unlikely event that it survived the exceedingly harsh northern Martian winter during which it endured extremely low temperatures for longer than 1 earth year already. Furthermore, the spacecraft was potentially even partially encased in up to several feet of ice during several months of continuous arctic darkness. Unlike the rovers Spirit and Opportunity, Phoenix was not designed to withstand Martian winter.

After more than 5 months of intensive and breakthrough science investigations, all contact with Phoenix was lost on 2 November 2008 as increasing storm clouds blocked the waning sun from reaching the life giving solar arrays and the vehicle could no longer function.

Phoenix lasted more than 2 months beyond her planned primary mission design of 3 months. She discovered that Mars currently possesses a habitable environment with water and nutrients that could sustain potential past or current martian life forms, IF they exist. Read my earlier Phoenix report to learn about the robust science program that could be carried out to build on the initial results, if this bird rises again.

Earlier Mars article by Ken Kremer:

If Phoenix Arises, Science could flow quickly

Mars 2016 Methane Orbiter: Searching for Signs of Life

Phoenix mosaics by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo at Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)

Phoenix and the Holy Cow APOD 12 Nov 2008

Phoenix and the Snow Queen APOD 12 Jun 2008

Phoenix mosaics by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo at Spaceflightnow.com