AAVSO Alert Notice 510The AAVSO is requesting observations of the symbiotic nova candidate ASAS J174600-2321.3 during the predicted upcoming eclipse of this system. Observers are asked to begin observing immediately (2015 March 5), and continue observations through the end of July 2015. Both visual and instrumental observations are encouraged; … Read the rest of this article
Dwarf planet Ceres continues to puzzle scientists as NASA’s Dawn spacecraft gets closer to being captured into orbit around the object. The latest images from Dawn, taken nearly 29,000 miles (46,000 kilometers) from Ceres, reveal that a bright spot that stands out in previous images lies close to yet another bright area.
“Ceres’ bright spot can now be seen to … Read the rest of this article
NASA’s Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) and ESA’s (European Space Agency) XMM-Newton telescope are showing that fierce winds from a supermassive black hole blow outward in all directions — a phenomenon that had been suspected, but difficult to prove until now.
This discovery has given astronomers their first opportunity to measure the strength of these ultra-fast winds and prove they … Read the rest of this article
I enjoy watching documentaries on a wide variety of topics. This visual medium is more concise than reading books but imparts a lot of information through two senses simultaneously – sight and hearing. Books, at best, can provide only static images whereas documentaries provide sweeping vistas, views from a distance as well as close-up, words in people’s own voices and … Read the rest of this article
AAVSO Alert Notice 508Event: Nova Scorpii 2015 = PNV J17032620-3504140
Discovered by: Tadashi Kojima, Gunma-ken, Japan
Discovery magnitude: unfiltered DSLR magnitude 8.1, using a 150-mm f/2.8
lens and digital camera
Discovery date: 2015 February 11.837 UT
Coordinates: RA: 17 03 26.18 , Decl: -35 04 17.6
Spectra: Echelle spectra by … Read the rest of this article
During 10 years of discovery, NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has pulled back the smoggy veil that obscures the surface of Titan, Saturn’s largest moon. Cassini’s radar instrument has mapped almost half of the giant moon’s surface; revealed vast, desert-like expanses of sand dunes; and plumbed the depths of expansive hydrocarbon seas. What could make that scientific bounty even more amazing? Well, … Read the rest of this article
Droughts in the U.S. Southwest and Central Plains during the last half of this century could be drier and longer than drought conditions seen in those regions in the last 1,000 years, according to a new NASA study.
The study, published Thursday in the journal Science Advances, is based on projections from several climate models, including one sponsored by NASA. … Read the rest of this article
Replay of the liftoff of Vega VV04 with ESA’s Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle, IXV, launched from Kourou, French Guiana on 11 February 2015.
IXV was launched 340 km into space atop a Vega rocket, VV04, from Kourou in French Guiana on 11 February 2015. After separation from Vega, IXV coasted to 412 km before beginning a punishing glide back through … Read the rest of this article
Astronomers tinkering with ice and organics in the lab may have discovered why comets are encased in a hard, outer crust.
Using an icebox-like instrument nicknamed Himalaya, the researchers show that fluffy ice on the surface of a comet would crystalize and harden as the comet heads toward the sun and warms up. As the water-ice crystals form, becoming denser … Read the rest of this article
NASA experts, including crew members aboard the International Space Station, will answer questions about science, technology, education and mathematics (STEM) disciplines during a forum called “Women in STEM: STEM in the Global Science Community” from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 17.
The event will be carried live on NASA Television and the agency’s website, and take … Read the rest of this article
The Sun Now (Visible light)
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The Sun Now (H-Alpha light)
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Aurora Oval
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Aurora Oval
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