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| Flying Saucers! (July 29, 2010) |
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Two moons of Saturn are shaped a bit like flying saucers, as seen in these images from the orbiting Cassini spacecraft. The top images show Atlas from the side (left) and almost above, while the bottom images show Pan (at right, bisected by Saturn's rings). These small moons acquired their saucer shapes by pulling in bits of ring material, which build up around their waists. [NASA/JPL/SSI] For more information, see our July 29 program. |
| Big (Foot) Lake (July 27, 2010) |
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Ontario Lacus, the largest lake in the southern hemisphere of Saturn's moon Titan, looks like a footprint in this image from the Cassini spacecraft. The image was compiled from observations made with radar, which peers through the haze that surrounds Titan. It shows rivers and streams flowing into the lake, which is about as large as Lake Ontario here on Earth. Titan is so cold, however, that the lake is filled not with water, but with liquid methane. [NASA/JPL] |
| Cosmic Bullets (July 20, 2010) |
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This giant cluster of galaxies and hot gas, known as the Bullet Cluster, provides strong evidence of dark matter, a mysterious form of matter that produces no detectable energy but that exerts a strong gravitational influence on the visible matter around it. Two big groups of galaxies have passed through each other relatively undisturbed. Gas in the galaxies has rammed together and remained in the center of the cluster. The gas has heated to millions of degrees, producing X-rays (shown in red). The gravity of the galaxies "bends" the light of galaxies behind it. From this effect, astronomers calculate that the cluster must contain enormous amounts of dark matter (the densest concentrations of dark matter are shown in blue). Like the visible galaxies, the clouds of dark matter around them have passed through each other with no effect. [NASA/CXC/CfA/M.Markevitch; STScI/Magellan/U.Arizona/D.Clowe; ESO WFI] For more information, see our July 20 program. |
| Stellar Sculptors (July 15, 2010) |
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Hot young stars carve beautiful shapes in surrounding clouds of gas and dust in this newly released image from Hubble Space Telescope. The image shows NGC 2467, a stellar nursery about 13,000 light-years away in the southern constellation Puppis. The clouds span dozens of light-years. They form a "nursery" that has given birth to many stars. Some of these stars are big and hot. Radiation and winds from these stars blow away much of the surrounding gas and dust, carving the clouds into fantastic shapes. This process also prevents the clouds from giving birth to more stars. [NASA/ESA/Orsola De Marco (Macquarie University)]
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| Dusty Skies (July 12, 2010) |
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A thick dust storm blows across Mars in this image from Mars orbit. Thin clouds are also visible in the image at top right and bottom center. Mars is one of several worlds in the solar system that produces weather. [NASA/JPL] For more information, see our July 12 program. |
| Still Going? (July 9, 2010) |
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A false-color image of Idunn Mons indicates that the Venusian volcano is still active. Measurements by Venus Express, a European orbiter, show that the mountain's summit (orange) is hotter than its base (purple). The most likely explanation is recent volcanic activity, according to project scientists. Other Venusian volcanoes may still be active as well. [ESA/NASA/JPL] For more information, see our July 9 program. |
| A Little of Everything (July 6, 2010) |
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The Milky Way galaxy and the afterglow of the Big Bang make up this all-sky image from a Planck, a European space observatory. Planck is observing microwave energy, which carries the imprint of the very early universe. Part of that imprint is visible in the top and bottom portions of the image in red and orange. Tiny variations in this energy show where the first stars and galaxies took shape. Most of the image, which was compiled from a full year of observations. is dominated by the Milky Way, which forms the bright streak across the center and the wispy clouds of blue, white, and hot pink. Over the coming years, Planck will continue to map the microwave afterglow of the Big Bang, producing the most detailed map to date of the early universe. [ESA/HFI and LFI Consortia] |
| Just Passing By (June 30, 2010) |
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Dione, one of the moons of Saturn, passes in front of the larger moon Titan in this image from the Cassini spacecraft, which has been orbiting Saturn since 2004. Dione has no atmosphere, and its surface is covered with ice. Titan is enwrapped in a cold, organic-rich atmosphere that is thicker than Earth's. |
| Western Lineup (June 27, 2010) |
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Three bright planets and two bright stars form a beautiful lineup in the western sky over the next few evenings. This is the view about one hour after sunset. [Tim Jones] For more information, see our June 27 radio program. |
| Breath of Life (June 22, 2010) |
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A hot, massive star 'exhales' a breath of oxygen in this recent image from WISE, an orbiting infrared satellite that is surveying the entire sky. The oxygen forms the small red circle at the center of the image. The star, V385 Carinae, is 35 times as massive as the Sun and more than one million times brighter. It is manufacturing oxygen and other elements, and some of them flow out into space. Eventually, the star will explode as a supernova, seeding the galaxy with more oxygen and other life-giving elements. [NASA/JPL/UCLA] |
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