Space and astronomy news
Ancient iron-loving bacteria may have scooped up evidence of a nearby supernova explosion 2.2 million years ago, leaving an extraterrestrial iron signature in the fossil record, according to German researchers presenting their findings at a recent meeting of the American Physical Society. In 2004, German scientists reported finding an isotope of iron in a core …
Continue reading “Cosmic Explosion Left Imprint in Fossil Record”
We’ve all been there. Well OK, all public star party telescope operators have been there. You’re set up and you’ve got a stunning view of Saturn centered in the field of view. But then the first member of the viewing public takes a quick glance and steps back from the eyepiece, stating “yeah, I saw that through the …
The planetary nebula Fleming 1, as seen with ESO’s Very Large Telescope. Credit: ESO/H. Boffin The neat thing about planetary nebulae is that they are like snowflakes: no two are quite the same. Some look like pools of hot water, some look like glowing eyes in the night and others, like this image of Fleming …
HiCIAO near-infrared image of the protoplanetary disk around PDS 70. The circular mask hides the star itself, as well as a smaller internal disk structure. (Credit: NAOJ) Over the past couple of decades astronomers have figured out several methods for finding planets around other stars in our galaxy. Some have revealed their presence by the …
Continue reading “Here There Be Planets: Stellar Disk Gap May Reveal Newborn Worlds”
“Shine on, shine on Harvest Moon… Up in the sky…” Oh! Howdy, fellow SkyWatchers! The seasons are most surely showing their changes in both hemispheres and this week marks the famous “Harvest Moon”. The Moon will very much be in the eyepiece this week, so enjoy some great studies. However, don’t put away your telescopes …
Continue reading “Weekly SkyWatcher’s Forecast: September 24-30, 2012”
How many times a week do we use the word “awesome” here on Universe Today? While we haven’t kept track, we admit it’s quite often. We feel privileged to be able to share with you the incredible — yes, awesome — images, videos and stories of our exploration of space. And it turns out, being …
Continue reading “Inspiring Video: The Biological Advantage of Being Awestruck”
Greetings, fellow SkyWatchers! What a great week to enjoy lunar features! We’ll celebrate many famous birthdays – including Charles Messier – and take on challenging double stars. If you’re in the mood to just kick back in a lawn chair and enjoy, then check out the June Draconid meteor shower. (sssssh… it may have been …
Continue reading “Weekly SkyWatcher’s Forecast: June 25 – July 1, 2012”
[/caption] Greetings, fellow SkyWatchers! Dark skies mean galactic studies and this is going to be a terrific week for sacrificing Viginis. But, hang on to your socks… Because it’s solar eclipse time! We’re talking about an annular event that occurs over a 240 to 300 kilometre-wide track which crosses eastern Asia, the northern Pacific Ocean …
Continue reading “Weekly SkyWatcher’s Forecast: May 14-20, 2012”
Loading player… 22 years ago today, the Hubble Space Telescope launched into orbit. After overcoming initial problems, Hubble has gone on to become legendary, helping scientists to rewrite astronomy textbooks. To celebrate Hubble’s 22nd anniversary, here’s a slideshow from ESA’s Hubblecast that shows some of the best images from over two decades in orbit, set …
Continue reading “The Best of Hubble: 22 Years of Amazing Images”
[/caption] Catching a ring – or accretion disk – around a star isn’t unusual. However, catching a sharply defined carbon-dioxide ring around a young, magnetic star that’s precisely 1 AU away with a width 0.32 AU or less might raise a few eyebrows. This isn’t just any disk, either… It’s been likened as a “rope-like …
Continue reading “Young Magnetic Star Possesses Precise Carbon Dioxide Ring”