Astronomy photography

[Vulpix]

A nice astronomy picture like this one every day :):

http://img47.imageshack.us/img47/2214/horseheadcaelummv1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img47.imageshack.us/img47/horseheadcaelummv1.jpg/1/w640.png (http://g.imageshack.us/img47/horseheadcaelummv1.jpg/1/)



Discover the cosmos! (http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html) Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. Astronomy Picture of the Day Archive (http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html)

Today's Picture (http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html)

[Absinthe]

This isn't from the same source you provided but this is an important star :)


Tycho Brahe, born Tyge Ottesen Brahe (December 14, 1546 Knutstorp Castle – October 24, 1601 Prague), was a Danish nobleman known for his accurate and comprehensive astronomical and planetary observations. Coming from Scania, then part of Denmark, now part of modern-day Sweden, Brahe was well known in his lifetime as an astronomer and alchemist.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Tycho-supernova-xray.jpg



The 1572 supernova

The Chandra Space Telescope imaged Tycho's Supernova Remnant more than four centuries after its discoveryOn November 11, 1572, Tycho observed (from Herrevad Abbey) a very bright star, now named SN 1572, which had unexpectedly appeared in the constellation Cassiopeia. Because it had been maintained since antiquity that the world beyond the Moon's orbit was eternally unchangeable (celestial immutability was a fundamental axiom of the Aristotelian world-view), other observers held that the phenomenon was something in the terrestrial sphere below the Moon. However, in the first instance Tycho observed that the object showed no daily parallax against the background of the fixed stars. This implied it was at least farther away than the Moon and those planets that do show such parallax.[clarification needed] Moreover he also found the object did not even change its position relative to the fixed stars over several months as all planets did in their periodic orbital motions, even the outer planets for which no daily parallax was detectable. This suggested it was not even a planet, but a fixed star in the stellar sphere beyond all the planets. He published a small book, De Stella Nova (1573), thereby coining the term nova for a "new" star (we now classify this star as a supernova and we know that it is 7500 light-years from Earth). This discovery was decisive for his choice of astronomy as a profession. Tycho was strongly critical of those who dismissed the implications of the astronomical appearance, writing in the preface to De Stella Nova: "O crassa ingenia. O caecos coeli spectatores" ("Oh thick wits. Oh blind watchers of the sky").

Tycho's discovery was the inspiration for Edgar Allan Poe's poem, "Al Aaraaf."[15] In 1998, Sky & Telescope magazine published an article by Donald W. Olson, Marilynn S. Olson and Russell L. Doescher arguing, in part, that Tycho's supernova was also the same "star that's westward from the pole" in Shakespeare's Hamlet.

Source (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tycho_Brahe)

[Zyklop]

http://www.dump.com/wp-content/uploads/DO-NOT-PASTE-THIS-URL-ON-ANY-FORUM-BLOG-OR-WEBSITE--LINK-WILL-CEASE-TO-BE-FUNCTIONAL-SHORTLY--PLEASE-LINK-ONLY-TO-URLS-CONTAINED-IN-THE-ADDRESS-BAR--CODE-48918279417/space-500x3183.jpg

[Germanicus]

http://i339.photobucket.com/albums/n449/ruffusruffcut/galaxy.jpg

The galaxy that ate too much and got gas

[Hi-res version, Original source]

It’s been known for a long time that galaxies are not picky eaters. In fact, they’re cannibals.

Yes, they eat each other. If a little galaxy gets too close to a big one, the gravity of the beefier of the pair will rip the littler one apart, and the contents of the loser get absorbed into the winner. Most big galaxies show evidence of this, and our own Milky Way is eating at least one galaxy right now, and has probably swallowed down dozens before it.

But we’re pikers compared to NGC 1132, a monster elliptical galaxy over 300 million light years away. In visible light it’s 20% bigger in diameter than the Milky Way, and may outmass our galaxy by a factor of ten! It’s truly gargantuan. This Hubble image reveals the enormous extent of the galaxy, but even that’s only a part of the picture; most of the mass of this galaxy is in hot X-ray emitting gas and invisible dark matter.

[Radojica]

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2002-01-a-1920x1200_wallpaper.jpg
Dark clouds of dust, called globules, are silhouetted against nearby, bright stars. Little is known about the globules, except that they are generally associated with areas of star formation.

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-1999-20-a-1280x960_wallpaper.jpg
This picture of the nebula NGC 3603 shows globules of gas and dust; giant, gaseous pillars; young stars surrounded by debris disks; aging, massive stars; and a blue supergiant star . all various stages in star life.

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2004-46-a-large_web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-1997-38-f-web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2005-37-a-1280x768_wallpaper.jpg
The Crab Nebula is a supernova remnant, all that remains of a tremendous stellar explosion. Observers in China and Japan recorded the supernova nearly 1,000 years ago, in 1054.

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-1996-23-a-large_web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2009-25-aw-large_web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2004-07-g-large_web.jpg
HUbbles ultra deep field with dozen of galaxies

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2007-21-a-large_web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2004-07-a-large_web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2004-04-a-large_web.jpg

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2007-36-a-xlarge_web.jpg
Two galaxies swing past each other in a graceful performance choreographed by gravity. This is one of hundreds of interacting and merging galaxies known in our nearby universe.

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/images/hs-2000-33-b-large_web.jpg

[Zankapfel]

What's with everyone and their Crab Nebula lovage? ;p

I'll post some of my favourites, which are mainly star clusters and nebulae.

M50, an open cluster in Monoceros

http://imgs.icepic.de/m50.jpg

Antares and the Rho Ophiuchi Dark Cloud, on the lower half is the over-exposed image of the red supergiant star Antares.

http://www.freewebs.com/jezstar/RhomosaicM_mmg_f45.jpg

At the center of 30 Doradus region, the R136 star cluster.

http://www.phys.ncku.edu.tw/~astrolab/mirrors/apod/image/0705/r136_hst.jpg

The M45: Subaru, the Pleiades and the Seven Sisters, an open cluster in Taurus.

http://imgs.icepic.de/m45.jpg

The star forming region NGC 2170. Think stellar birth and burst: hydrogen emission nebulae, blue reflection and darkabsorption nebulae, newly formed stars and stardust all over.

http://webzoom.freewebs.com/jezstar/ngc2170_croman.jpg

NGC 7293 or Helix Nebula, located in Aquarius.

http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/182971main_image_feature_875_ys_full.jpg

B33 or Horsehead Nebula, a dark nebula across from red emission nebula IC434, both part of a large complex that is a stellar nursery near Sigma Orionis.

http://www.phys.ncku.edu.tw/~astrolab/mirrors/apod_e/image/0811/horsehead_caelum.jpg

Last but not least the Corona Australi, an area of young star formation.

http://halohalo.ph/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/space41.jpg

[Radojica]

My favorite constellation, Orion and its nebula..

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0701/oriondeepwide_gendler_f.jpg

[lei.talk]

http://survincity.com/wp-content/uploads/images/jupiter_convection.gif (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter#Cloud_layers)

[Radojica]

Wow! Very clear view of Jupiters atmosphere! Thanks for posting this :thumbs

http://www.mao.kiev.ua/eng/calendar/img/saturn_4_years.gif

:P

[Cato]

Supernova:

http://library.thinkquest.org/17940/texts/images/supernova.jpg

[Cato]

Supernova:

http://library.thinkquest.org/17940/texts/images/supernova.jpg

Not sure what the origin is, just a random grab of a supernova I found. :confused:

[lei.talk]

after four hours (http://forum.lef.org//default.aspx?f=40&m=23528&p=1#m23548), the girl-child and i awoke
for our next eight hours of training playing games.

she sprinted past...


"the cabinet of all knowledge"
https://i.imgur.com/SSXeT5v.png (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?p=94850#post94850)
containing close to forty-thousand flash-cards
previously memorised by our son
and, now, the crux
of the girl-child's home-schooling (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homeschooling)
...and out-side in search of my son's mother
and the goats (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Managed_intensive_rotational_grazing).

the contact of my pain-fully dry feet
with the rough concrete floor
informed me of the extremely dry atmospheric conditions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Ana_winds)
and concomitantly excellent star-gazing available that evening
for the two of us.

as the girl-child was across the valley,
i turned on the inter (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet)-webs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Wide_Web) and (hurriedly) reviewed the night-sky:


https://i.imgur.com/McaU3nw.png (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlvTYtBQRYAWnY5iH22VU04LHfn2hJCqy)

[Zankapfel]

Fresh from our beloved Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys: spiral galaxy Messier 66, the largest and third of the Leo triplets.
Its arms are asymmetrical which is quite odd, and they "creep" around the galaxy's main disc making the core look displaced. Most likely its peculiar anatomy is a result of the gravitational pull of the other two members of the trio that has caused it to stretch out.
This is a composite of images obtained through the following filters: 814W (near infrared), 555W (green) and H-alpha (showing the glowing of the hydrogen gas). They have been combined so to represent the real colors of the galaxy.
Galactic anomalies ftw :thumb001:

http://i.space.com/images/leo-triplet-100408-02.jpg

[Cato]

Not pure astronomy per se, but from the end of Empire Strikes Back:

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/f/fc/Empireendshot.jpg


And our lovely local star, aka the Sun:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Yohkohimage.gif

:)

[Lulletje Rozewater]

Lightning at Weikerscheim Observatory Astronomy only plays a tangential role in this picture… you can see stars in the sky, and the observatory is pretty obvious. But it’s the terrestrial drama that steals the show.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2256/2104943984_4de4a6e04a_o.jpg (http://www.kopfgeist.com/andere/blitze_sternwarte.jpg)

[Radojica]

Lightning at Weikerscheim Observatory Astronomy only plays a tangential role in this picture… you can see stars in the sky, and the observatory is pretty obvious. But it’s the terrestrial drama that steals the show.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2256/2104943984_4de4a6e04a_o.jpg (http://www.kopfgeist.com/andere/blitze_sternwarte.jpg)

:love: :love: :love:

I am crazy about lightnings and cumulunimbus clouds :eek: :eek: :eek:

[Radojica]

http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/446667main1_sdo-fulldisk-670.jpg

[Autobahn]

All Images Retrieved From:http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1984100,00.html

Black Hole 1990
http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/hubble_telescope/hubble_telescope_01.jpg

Eagle Nebula
http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/hubble_telescope/hubble_telescope_02.jpg

Saturn Aurora
http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/hubble_telescope/hubble_telescope_03.jpg

Butterfly Nebula
http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/hubble_telescope/hubble_telescope_04.jpg

Pluto
http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2010/hubble_telescope/hubble_telescope_06.jpg

More:http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1984100_2129323,00.html

[Zankapfel]

Just to necromance a lovely thread.
Not exactly what you'd expect from a serious astronomy lover but, alas.

Globular and open clusters, some serious hydrogen emission nebulae, a little of what appears to be supernova remnant, fluffy clouds of interstellar gas in the form of KITTEHS!

http://thefoxisblack.com/blogimages//celestialmoggy4RGB-small-576x814.jpg

http://thefoxisblack.com/blogimages//celestialmoggy1-RGB-small-576x814.jpg

http://thefoxisblack.com/blogimages//celestialmoggy3RGB-small-576x814.jpg

[Ushtari]

http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/166/6/1/Planet_2_by_Herakel.jpg

http://www.theapricity.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=198&pictureid=1469

Pic made by me. Obviously not photos, but my point is that many of the pics who you think are photos may very well be made using a 2D/3D software.

[Radojica]

http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/166/6/1/Planet_2_by_Herakel.jpg

http://www.theapricity.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=198&pictureid=1469

Pic made by me. Obviously not photos, but my point is that many of the pics who you think are photos may very well be made using a 2D/3D software.

When it comes to astronomy pictures 3D software would be useless since 3D view is becoming to disperse after some 50 to 100 meters and you are not able to see what is closer or farther from you. That's why we have Red shift for measurement of distances between us and distant stars, galaxies, nebulas...

As far as I know, astronomers are using software's for colouring according to spectrometers, to show objects as they really appear...

[Radojica]

The Photopic Sky Survey is a 5,000 megapixel photograph of the entire night sky stitched together from 37,440 exposures. Large in size and scope, it portrays a world far beyond the one beneath our feet and reveals our familiar Milky Way with unfamiliar clarity. When we look upon this image, we are in fact peering back in time, as much of the light—having traveled such vast distances—predates civilization itself.

Seen at a depth thousands of times more faint than the dimmest visible star, tens of millions of other suns appear, still perhaps only a hundredth of one percent thought to exist in our galaxy alone. Our Milky Way galaxy is the dominant feature, its dusty arms sweeping through the frame, punctuated by red clouds of glowing hydrogen. To the lower right are our nearest neighbors, each small galaxies themselves with their own hundreds of millions of stars.

http://media.skysurvey.org/interactive360/index.html
http://media.skysurvey.org/openzoom.html

*use your mouse to move the picture and zoom in and out*

[Radojica]

We need to reneview this thread!!! Zanki, what are you waiting for, for Christ sake :angry:? H*E*L*P**M*E**! :swl

http://jasekasp.com/random/high_resolution/space/total_solar_eclipse_2008.jpg

Total solar eclipse from 2008 :)

[Zankapfel]

With the winner of the 2011 Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition (http://www.nmm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/astronomy-photographer-of-the-year/) to be announced next month, here's a small selection of the best entries.

Judged by a panel of experts including Patrick Moore, the winning images will be on display at the Royal Observatory, London, from 9 September until February 2012.


_______________

http://www.newscientist.com/data/galleries/the-years-best-astronomy-photos/005015a510b.jpg

Star trails are photographed by pointing a camera skywards and waiting. As the Earth rotates, stars produce circular trails.

The star at the centre of this image is Polaris, better known as the North Star. This image was constructed from 681 individual photographs shot over a 12-hour period.

Image by Lorenzo Como


_______________

http://www.newscientist.com/data/galleries/the-years-best-astronomy-photos/0050168d1b2.jpg

Messier 51a, otherwise known as the Whirlpool galaxy, is one of amateur astronomers' most popular objects, because it can be seen easily with binoculars. The galaxy is around 23 million light years away, located within the constellation Canes Venatici. In this image, the Whirlpool is shown alongside Messier 51b, a dwarf galaxy with which it interacts.

On 31 May, a supernova was seen in M 51a. Observations by the Hubble Space Telescope suggested that it was the explosion of a yellow supergiant star 18 to 24 times the mass of our sun.

Image by Karelteuwen


_______________

http://www.newscientist.com/data/galleries/the-years-best-astronomy-photos/005012f573d.jpg

This image shows the Milky Way rising over Delicate Arch, Utah. It is a spiral galaxy, and our solar system sits in a spiral arm known as the Orion-Cygnus arm.

The Milky Way contains something between 200 and 400 billion stars, and is estimated to have at least 50 billion planets. It takes our sun 225 to 250 million years to complete a full orbit around the centre of the galaxy.

Its name comes from Greek mythology. According to legend, the galaxy is milk spilt by Zeus's wife Hera while suckling the infant Heracles.

Image by Brad Goldpaint


_______________

http://www.newscientist.com/data/galleries/the-years-best-astronomy-photos/005014dee25.jpg

The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are a natural light display caused by highly charged electrons in solar wind interacting with the Earth's atmosphere.

Solar winds stream away from the sun at speeds of around 450 kilometres per second. Upon reaching the Earth, some 40 hours later, they follow the lines of magnetic force generated by the Earth's core and flow through the magnetosphere, a teardrop-shaped area of highly charged electrical and magnetic fields. The electrons in the solar wind then interact with oxygen and nitrogen in the Earth's upper atmosphere, producing spectacular light displays.

In the southern hemisphere, the analogous phenomenon is known as aurora australis.

Image by Christian Salomonsen


_______________

http://www.newscientist.com/data/galleries/the-years-best-astronomy-photos/005013e3c83.jpg

Perseid meteors have been observed for over 2000 years; they are shed by the comet Swift-Tuttle. Because its orbit takes it close to Earth, astronomer Gerrit Verschuur described Swift-Tuttle as "the single most dangerous object known to humanity".

The showers occur from mid-July onwards each year and are best viewed in the northern hemisphere. Last year, at its peak, the shower produced over 100 meteors an hour.

In the foreground is St Michael's tower, atop Glastonbury Tor, UK, a site famously associated with Arthurian legend.

Image by Mike-DT6


_______________

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6028/6011279394_886cb4064a.jpg

NGC 281 is an H II region in the constellation of Cassiopeia. It includes the open cluster IC 1590 and several Bok globules (dark doo-dads at center of the Blue area). NGC 281 is also known as thePacman Nebula for its resemblance to the video game character from early 80's.

NGC281 spans over 80 light years at its estimated distance of 9500 light years.

Image by J-P Metsavainio

Source: New Scientist

[ElWolverine]

I like the pics. Universe is misteyous and I hope that someday we reach tecnology and resources to travel around the universe and explore every place in our galaxy, till take pictures ourselves of the universe.

[Zankapfel]

^ I miss my stargazing buddy Rade!

A fast-moving star, Alpha Camelopardalis, creates a stunning bow shock in this new image from WISE.

http://www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/WISE2011-010-med.jpg

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team

[Phil75231]

Hubble image of Fomalhaut b, the first planet detected via direct imaging of the planet's visible light. Orbits the star Fomalhaut, about 25 light years from earth, in the constellation Pisces Austrinus (visible in the S. Hemisphere and up to about latitude 40 in the N. Hem.)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Fomalhaut_with_Disk_Ring_and_extrasolar_planet_b.j pg

[lei.talk]

New app makes stargazing easy, informative

By MARC RITTER (http://www.nctimes.com/news/science/columnists/ritter/) North County Times | Posted: Monday, October 3, 2011 11:30 am




I honestly didn't see this day coming, a day when I could say that a person could hold a phone up to the skies to find out what was up there. Today's column is about an app I use for my iPhone and iPad called "Star Walk." I don't often write about applications, but I feel that this is something readers of this column can use ---- and it is dirt cheap.

"Star Walk (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/star-walk-5-stars-astronomy/id295430577?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D2)", an app by Vito Technology (http://vitotechnology.com/), allows any layperson to navigate the skies above, day or night, without having to spend a couple hundred bucks to do so.

"Star Walk" opens up with what is called Sky Live, a beautifully illustrated summary of information about the day's rising and setting of the sun, the phases of the moon, and the location of the naked-eye planets.

But the beauty doesn't end there by any means. The next window takes you right to the sky. When I first got the app, I just used the touch screen to move around the heavens and see the different constellations and stars and planets, a virtual star chart of the entire sky.

And when you hold your device up, the GPS and gyroscopes kick in to make your local skies alive. Suddenly, wherever you point the device, there is on your screen in full color, the very sky in front of you, illustrated and labeled. (And you can see even the skies below the horizon since Star Walk is not limited to the visible sky.)

That will keep you busy for long enough, but there's more. Tapping on a constellation or star or other point of interest will allow you to get information on that object. Using the search button will help you find all kinds of objects by directing you to them with an on-screen arrow. Want to know where Cygnus the Swan is? Enter it and "Star Walk" takes you there.

Other handy extras include a night vision mode to make it easier for your eyes to go between screen and dark sky. You can follow various satellites. A sliding clock can take your sky forward and backward in time. There is an adjustable visual magnitude bar for better representing how dark ---- or how light-polluted ---- your sky might be.

The latest version has a gift for us nerdy backyard astronomers ---- a full spectrum scroll. Here you can "see" how the heavens look in all kinds of wavelengths from gamma ray all the way down to radio waves.

The bad news for some readers is that Star Walk is only available for the iPhone (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPhone) and iPad (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPad). (The iPad version is stunning.) The good news is that it's just $3 for the iPhone, $5 for the iPad. You cannot beat that price.

It is available at the iTunes Store (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes_Store). Go get it and start exploring!

[Autobahn]

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1112/doomedgas_eso_900.jpg


The Diner at the Center of the Galaxy
Illustration Credit: ESO/MPE/Marc Schartmann

Explanation: The monster at the center of our Galaxy is about to get fed. Recent observations by the Very Large Telescopes indicate that a cloud of gas will venture too close to the supermassive black hole at the Galactic center. The gas cloud is being disrupted, stretched out, heated up, and some of it is expected to fall into the black hole over the next two years. In this artist's illustration, what remains of the blob after a close pass to the black hole is shown in red and yellow, arching out from the gravitational death trap to its right. The cloud's orbit is shown in red, while the orbits of central stars are shown in blue. The infalling nebula is estimated to contain several times the mass of our Earth, while the central black hole, thought to correspond to the radio source Sagittarius A*, contains about four million times the mass of our Sun. Once it falls in, nothing is expected to be heard from the doomed gas ever again.



Retrieved From:http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap111230.html

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1112/ISSLovejoy2panel.jpg


Comet Lovejoy and the ISS
Image Credit: Carlos Caccia, (Intendente Alvear, Argentina) / Right - Dan Burbank (ISS Expedition 30, NASA)

Explanation: On December 24, Comet Lovejoy rose in dawn's twilight, arcing above the eastern horizon, its tails swept back by the solar wind and sunlight. Seen on the left is the comet's early morning appearance alongside the southern Milky Way from the town of Intendente Alvear, La Pampa province, Argentina. The short star trails include bright southern sky stars Alpha and Beta Centauri near the center of the frame, but the long bright streak that crosses the comet tails is a little closer to home. Waiting for the proper moment to start his exposure, the photographer has also caught the International Space Station still glinting in the sunlight as it orbits (top to bottom) above the local horizon. The right panel is the near horizon view of Comet Lovejoy from the space station itself, captured only two days earlier. In fact, Dan Burbank, Expedition 30 commander, recorded Comet Lovejoy rising just before the Sun in a spectacular video (linked here). Even considering the other vistas available from low Earth orbit, Burbank describes the comet as "the most amazing thing I have ever seen in space."



Retieved From:http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap111231.html

[Radojica]

http://pds-rings.seti.org/saturn/images/ring_sat.gif


http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/images/Orion.jpg

http://evanpschneider.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/orion20nebula.jpg

[Autobahn]

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1204/conetree_grissinger_960.jpg


A Fox Fur, a Unicorn, and a Christmas Tree
Image Credit: Rolf Geissinger

Explanation: What do the following things have in common: a cone, the fur of a fox, and a Christmas tree? Answer: they all occur in the constellation of the unicorn (Monoceros). Pictured above as a star forming region cataloged as NGC 2264, the complex jumble of cosmic gas and dust is about 2,700 light-years distant and mixes reddish emission nebulae excited by energetic light from newborn stars with dark interstellar dust clouds. Where the otherwise obscuring dust clouds lie close to the hot, young stars they also reflect starlight, forming blue reflection nebulae. The above image spans about 3/4 degree or nearly 1.5 full moons, covering 40 light-years at the distance of NGC 2264. Its cast of cosmic characters includes the Fox Fur Nebula, whose convoluted pelt lies at the upper left, bright variable star S Mon immersed in the blue-tinted haze just below the Fox Fur, and the Cone Nebula near the tree's top. Of course, the stars of NGC 2264 are also known as the Christmas Tree star cluster. The triangular tree shape traced by the stars appears sideways here, with its apex at the Cone Nebula and its broader base centered near S Mon.

Retrieved From:http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

[lei.talk]

as mentioned, previously (http://theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?p=193739#post193739),
the (http://forums.skadi.net/showthread.php?t=76025) girl (http://forums.skadi.net/showthread.php?p=903684#post903684)-child (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5849)'s attention is sustained by detailed preparation.

here is an other reliable device
used to fascinate her
with regularity:


http://i48.tinypic.com/23i874i.gif

An easy trick to look smart

By MARK RITTER (http://www.nctimes.com/search/?l=25&sd=desc&s=start_time&f=html&q=:mark ritter") for the North County Times





A few weeks back, we took a look at satellites. This time we look specifically at one type of satellite which has a unique characteristic with which to wow your family and friends (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satellite_flare).

The Iridium satellites (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridium_satellite_constellation) are a "constellation" of dozens of communication satellites put in orbit by Iridium Communications, Inc. Not a big deal so far except that there is a part of each satellite which is highly reflective. On each are three very shiny antennae which, when the satellite is arranged just perfectly, can reflect sunlight with a vengeance.

Most of us who have seen satellites know they are not too much brighter than most of the stars up there. But the Iridium species can reflect so much light that they can register a magnitude -8. For the uninitiated, that is about 40 times brighter than Venus, that bright planet setting in the west after sundown.

Because they have to reflect at just the precise angle to the sun, they essentially appear and disappear within just a handful of seconds. But the fun thing is that you can predict exactly when and where in the sky this happens. And when it does happen on cue, it is a pretty cool sight to behold. Ready to try?

First you will need the coordinates of where you are. For the sake of example, let us assume you are at home. You can find your exact latitude and longitude many ways, but if you have access to the internet, you can just go to a site like iTouchMap.com (http://itouchmap.com/).

Along their top menu, you will see a selection called Lat-Long (http://itouchmap.com/latlong.html). Go to that page, enter your address, and write down the coordinates they give you.

Now go to heavens-above.com (http://heavens-above.com/). Under Configuration go to the Edit Manually link (http://heavens-above.com/ManualLocationInput.aspx?lat=0&lng=0&loc=Unspecified&alt=0&tz=UCT). There enter your latitude and longitude and your time zone - all critical information. Submit that.

You are taken back to the main page. Under Satellites see Iridium Flares (http://heavens-above.com/IridiumFlares.aspx?lat=0&lng=0&loc=Unspecified&alt=0&tz=UCT). Click "next 7 days." There you will see listed the dates and times for upcoming flares. Pick one with a low magnitude (remember the lower the magnitude (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnitude_(astronomy)#Apparent_magnitude), the brighter).

On that date and that exact time, look up in the sky at that angle above horizon (altitude) and in that compass direction (azimuth) and before your very eyes a point in the sky will flash in extraordinary brilliance.

This all can seem a little complicated at first, but can get very easy, very quickly. Then you can show friends and family. Or you can use it in situations like this with your spouse, "Dear, if a light appears in the sky right there in one minute, can I get the new iPad?" Or to your kids, "If there is a flash of light in the sky right there in 15 seconds, you will weed the entire backyard, OK?"

Want the lazy man way of doing it, like I do? Get Sputnik!, an app for the iPhone (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sputnik!/id393001070?mt=8) which automatically does all the above in seconds.

Have fun!
these moments easily segue in to a lesson
on geometry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geometry#History_of_geometry)/trigonometry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trigonometry#History)/astrophysics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrophysics#History).

practice this a few times
before performing in front of an audience
(a miss-timed gesture toward the sky
can be awkward). :embarrassed

[Kazimiera]

---> moved to Nature and Science

[Brendan223]

Wow that's amazing i am surprised to watch these photos how much difficult to make this Photos even by satellite i am also a beginner professional photographer and do not make this type photos now but anyways this si really very great and thumbs up for this info and phtoos ...........

[Aurora]

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2KI5ddq-IUs/TVhaugTf23I/AAAAAAAABzo/1ohK8AoPY5M/s1600/Sugarpine.jpg

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/373863_10151981971360321_1713065047_n.jpghttp://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/482304_10152576373185321_822924580_n.jpghttp://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/09/19/article-0-15178EB2000005DC-93_964x812.jpg

[hisn]

Slide-shows of Mars' surface (with dialog)...

http://youtu.be/r3DNbAVWRfE

http://youtu.be/58S8r3lNf8Q

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/q86/s720x720/539053_652699331417748_1723362925_n.jpg

This NASA image shows the aurora australis observed from the International Space Station on May 29, 2010. This aurora image was taken during a geomagnetic storm that was most likely caused by a coronal mass ejection from the sun on May 24.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Orion_Nebula_-_Hubble_2006_mosaic_18000.jpg/1024px-Orion_Nebula_-_Hubble_2006_mosaic_18000.jpg

Orion Nebula taken by the Hubble Space Telescope

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/NGC7293_%282004%29.jpg/1024px-NGC7293_%282004%29.jpg

Helix Nebula, NGC 7293 or "The Eye of God"

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/NGC_1672_HST.jpg/1024px-NGC_1672_HST.jpg

View of the nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC 1672 by NASA Hubble Space Telescope

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Milky_Way_IR_Spitzer.jpg/1280px-Milky_Way_IR_Spitzer.jpg

The centre of the Milky Way Galaxy seen through NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Nord_america.jpg/819px-Nord_america.jpg

North America Nebula (NGC 7000)

[Aurora]

Galaxies galore

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic0406a.jpg

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic1107a.jpg

Horsehead Nebula
http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic1307a.jpg

Sombrero Galaxy

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/opo0328a.jpg



Eagle Nebula

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic0506b.jpg

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic0910h.jpg

Mystic Mountain

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic1007a.jpg

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic0910i.jpg

http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/images/screen/heic0905a.jpg

http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/archive/top100/

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Messier-42-10.12.2004-filtered.jpeg

Orion Nebula

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/52/Hubble2005-01-barred-spiral-galaxy-NGC1300.jpg/1024px-Hubble2005-01-barred-spiral-galaxy-NGC1300.jpg

Barred spiral galaxy NGC 1300 photographed by Hubble telescope

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Iapetus_as_seen_by_the_Cassini_probe_-_20071008.jpg/1024px-Iapetus_as_seen_by_the_Cassini_probe_-_20071008.jpg

Iapetus (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Iapetus) as seen by the Cassini probe.

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc3/q72/s720x720/1234673_363905867075454_1714976626_n.jpg

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/NGC_6334.jpg/768px-NGC_6334.jpg

NGC 6334 "Cat's Paw Nebula", Scorpius Constellation

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/q77/s720x720/1234033_363908603741847_1860822852_n.jpg

[lei.talk]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Lunar_libration_with_phase_Oct_2007_450px.gif (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunter%27s_moon#Harvest_and_Hunter.27s_moons)

as mentioned, previously (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?14451&p=1191587&viewfull=1#post1191587), to prevent boredom (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?16595&p=383750&viewfull=1#post383750)
the (http://forums.skadi.net/showthread.php?t=76025) girl (http://www.imdb.com/user/ur3925839/boards/profile/)-child (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5849)'s attention is sustained by detailed preparation.

with a bright full-moon rising as the sun is setting
and illuminating our farm, untill sun-rise,

we enjoy many out-of-doors activities
through the night.

the over-head display in the sky
always draws her attention.

the international space station (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Space_Station#Sightings), while brighter than any star,
is noticeable for - at best - five minutes;
the iridium satellites (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satellite_flare) can flare thirty times brighter than venus,
but for less than half-a-minute;

in between such brilliances,
the multitude of dimmer satellites punctuate her sky-watching.

practicing my boy-scout motto: Be Prepared,
i daily consult both Heavens-Above (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavens-Above) and The Astronomical League (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_League)
for ideas to fascinate my protégée.





http://i40.tinypic.com/24kw5l1.png (http://www.heavens-above.com/Satellites.aspx?lat=0&lng=0&loc=Unspecified&alt=0&tz=UCT)http://i48.tinypic.com/2h3wu9k.pnghttp://i44.tinypic.com/2e5qvsp.png (http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/AlphabeticObservingClubs.html)
*

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/q71/s720x720/1390498_577105442336490_312260617_n.jpg

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc3/q91/1393472_542569032484287_759767540_n.jpg

[Kazimiera]

http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/732/cache/jellyfish-nebula-443_73284_600x450.jpg
The Jellyfish Nebula, the gas-filled remains of a distant stellar explosion, seems to swim away from remnants of its former home in a photo uploaded to Your Shot on November 2.

Some 5,200 light-years away, the nebula is joined on its left by an "emission nebula," a cloud of electrically charged gas thrown off an exploded star.


http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/732/cache/tharsis-tholus-mars-volcano_73288_600x450.jpg
A billowing blanket of dust swathes the flanks of Tharsis Tholus, an extinct volcano on Mars, in a photograph released November 6.

A lava channel boasts a thinner dust cover on the side of the volcano, pointing to a younger age for the time when it first flowed.


http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/732/cache/startrails-boeun-kenya_73287_600x450.jpg
Northern and Southern Hemisphere star trails meet in this striking photograph submitted to National Geographic's Your Shot on November 5.

The highway outside Boeun, South Korea, serves as a dividing line mirroring the one between hemispheres, as seen in the skies above.


http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/732/cache/quintet-saturn-moons_73285_600x450.jpg
A quintet of Saturn's moons dance elegantly above the planet's famed rings in this photo taken by the Cassini spacecraft and released November 4.

In orbit around the ringed planet since 2004, Cassini has offered unparalleled views of Saturn's rings and moons, including this picture shot from slightly above the plane of the rings.

On the right, the closest moon is Rhea, which is Saturn's second-largest satellite, and in the center is Enceladus, shining brightly with frost vented from its south pole geysers.


http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/732/cache/heart-nebula-starcluster_73283_600x450.jpg
A glowing star cluster, Melotte 15, illuminates the Heart Nebula in this photograph submitted to National Geographic's Your Shot on November 5.

Located in the constellation Cassiopeia, the nebula is also sometimes called the Running Dog Nebula because of its resemblance to a racing greyhound when viewed through a telescope.


http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/732/cache/solar-eclipse-kenya_73286_600x450.jpg
An annular eclipse flares briefly above Kenya's Lake Turkana last Sunday.

The solar eclipse was viewable from almost all of Africa, but only a narrow swath of the continent saw a total eclipse of the sun during the event.

Lake Turkana was one of those places that briefly saw the total eclipse. It also afforded views of an annular eclipse, which occurs when the moon almost but not quite covers the solar disc.

That allows the sun's corona to brightly rim the edges of the moon, as seen in this picture.


Source: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/11/pictures/131108-best-new-space-photos-270-eye-god-aurora-science/?rptregcta=reg_free_np&rptregcampaign=20131016_rw_membership_r1p_intl_dr_ w#/solar-eclipse-kenya_73286_600x450.jpg

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/db/Messier51_sRGB.jpg/1024px-Messier51_sRGB.jpg

The Whirlpool Galaxy (Spiral Galaxy M51, NGC 5194) is a classic spiral galaxy located in the Canes Venatici constellation.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Hubble_ultra_deep_field.jpg/1024px-Hubble_ultra_deep_field.jpg

Hubble Ultra Deep Field is an image of a small region of space in the constellation Fornax

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/PIA04866_modest.jpg/541px-PIA04866_modest.jpg

Jupiter as seen by the space probe "Cassini". This is the most detailed global color portrait of Jupiter ever assembled. It is produced from several high resolution images taken a little more than a day before Cassini's closest approach to Jupiter.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/NASA-Apollo8-Dec24-Earthrise.jpg/768px-NASA-Apollo8-Dec24-Earthrise.jpg

Taken by Apollo 8 crewmember Bill Anders on December 24, 1968, showing the Earth seemingly rising above the lunar surface.

[Kazimiera]

http://suite3d.com/painting/images/planetarysuite.jpg

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/Needle_Galaxy_4565.jpeg/812px-Needle_Galaxy_4565.jpeg

NGC 4565 is an edge-on spiral galaxy about 30 to 50 million light-years away in the constellation Coma Berenices.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/NGC2207%2BIC2163.jpg/1024px-NGC2207%2BIC2163.jpg

Near colliding NGC 2207 and IC 2163 as seen by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.

[Kazimiera]

http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/jqGVeh5eCFi6iW8DKfVAzA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTM1NDtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868905.jpg
Heart and soul nebulae - In this infrared mosaic, WISE captures the vast, star-forming heart and soul nebulae, located 6,000 light-years from Earth. Spanning nearly 580 light-years across, the soul nebula, also known as the embryo nebula, is located on the left and the heart nebula is located on the right

http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/QhgeFIGOw76xUYU4je0u4A--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTUwMDtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868921.jpg
Running chicken nebula - In the fourth photo released by NASA, the running chicken nebula, also known as nebula IC 2944 or Lambda Centauri, is shown. Located 5,800 light-years from Earth in the Centaurus constellation, this nebula is a stellar nursery of new star clusters born from a cloud 8 million years ago. The green ring structure near the center of the image is about 77 light-years across

http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Gz5yH4xpo5.r06ioJp2nhQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTUwMDtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868907.jpg
Flaming star nebula - This WISE image depicts the flaming star nebula, which is about 1,500 light-years from the Auriga constellation. The nebula gets its name from the star located at its center, the AE Aurigae, which appears to be blazing

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/QAcS8M5DKvTdXr_iiozs8Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTUwMDtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868923.jpg
Scorpion's claw - In this image released on Sept. 21, 2010, the WISE telescope captured an infrared view of nebula DG 129, gripped in the claw of the constellation Scorpius. The bright, greenish star on the right is Pi Scorpii, which marks one of the claws of the scorpion in the constellation Scorpius. DG 129 was first catalogued in 1963 by two German astronomers.

http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/ynGDgrZiy66RY6TP_x_pvA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTU2NTtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868919.jpg
Rosette nebula - This WISE image shows off the flower-shaped nebula, NGC 2237, also known as the rosette nebula. The nebula is a massive, star-forming cloud of gas and dust located within the constellation Monoceres, or the Unicorn.

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/JjzPeQ_jnz6L8gc5DXRf8Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTM3NTtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868911.jpg
Jellyfish nebula - This WISE images shows IC 443, also known as the jellyfish nebula, which is located 5,000 light-years away from Earth inside the Gemini constellation. About 5,000 to 10,000 years ago, a massive star at the center exploded, forming a jellyfish-shaped shell around its remains.

http://savoiaonline.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/runaway-star-menkhib-space94_20109_600x450.jpg?w=450&h=450
Menkhib star - In this image taken by WISE, a bright star called Menkhib from the constellation Perseus can be seen in the upper left corner near the red dust cloud. With a surface temperature of 66,000 degrees Fahrenheit (six times hotter than our Sun), Menkhib is one of the hottest stars visible in the night sky.

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/bm6KXvpBtIgiNurBf0D8YQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTM4MjtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868917.jpg
Pleiades cluster - In this mosaic image containing hundreds of image frames captured by WISE, the famous Pleiades star cluster shines through an immense cloud of dust 436 light-years from Earth in the constellation Taurus. The Pleiades is an open star cluster, which means that while its stars are bound loosely together right now, each star will eventually go its own way within a few hundred million years.

http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/JgFJvDPJ8_MMRJGXSN.hoQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTU4ODtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868915.jpg
Orion molecular cloud - Three nebulas contained inside the enormous Orion molecular cloud located 1,500 light-years from Earth are shown in this mosaic WISE image. The three nebulae include the flame nebula at the center, the horsehead nebula at the lower right side of the vertical dust ridge and nebula NGC 2023, which is the bright circle in the lower half of the image

http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/yCjfnCSEPn93DIwWm54_fg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTUwMDtweW9mZj0wO3E9Nz U7dz01MDA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-US/blogs/partner/1868909.jpg
Tycho's supernova - In this image taken by the WISE telescope, Tycho's supernova, the red globe shape in the upper left, can be seen. The supernova was named after the famous astronomer Tycho Brahe, who was one of the people who observed and recorded the supernova when it first appeared in the sky in November 1572. The exploding star was as bright as Venus and could even be seen in the daytime, but it dimmed completely over the course of two years. It wasn't until the 1950s that astronomers were able to observe the remnants of the supernova with the help of telescopes.


Source: http://za.news.yahoo.com/photos/10-dazzling-images-from-the-wise-telescope-slideshow/heart-soul-nebulae-photo-1868905-063500262.html

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc1/t1/1898212_462622350532403_775172794_n.jpg

[Kazimiera]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1/1896936_462665977194707_1919670354_n.jpg

Eye of the Cosmos taken from the Hubble Telescope.

[microrobert]

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/0a/ac/c1/0aacc1c7c29255c5d884b0b5a9491293.jpg

M1: The Crab Nebula from Hubble

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/00/dd/eb/00ddebe6013d50a8a527e22dbd85190d.jpg

M27: The Dumbbell Nebula

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/0f/cc/b1/0fccb13e0f886a08cb0889e92a89bc10.jpg

IC 2118: The Witch Head Nebula

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/7d/3b/ef/7d3bef6dd32d3893309ef13bee7a12eb.jpg

Helix Nebula

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/26/9a/9e/269a9e05415739d0ff3f0b1f929daffb.jpg

Aurigae Nebulae

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Olympus_Mons_alt.jpg/824px-Olympus_Mons_alt.jpg

A composite image of Olympus Mons on Mars, the tallest known volcano and mountain in the Solar System.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Saturn_during_Equinox.jpg/1024px-Saturn_during_Equinox.jpg


This captivating natural color view of the planet Saturn was created from images collected shortly after Cassini began its extended Equinox Mission in July 2008.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Martian_Dust_Devil_Trails.jpg/1024px-Martian_Dust_Devil_Trails.jpg

This picture from the HiRISE camera on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Mars_Reconnaissance_Orbiter) shows twisting dark trails criss-crossing light coloured terrain on the Martian surface. Newly formed trails like these had presented researchers with a tantalizing Martian mystery but are now known to be the work of miniature wind vortices (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex) known to occur on the red planet.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/The_hidden_fires_of_the_Flame_Nebula.jpg/631px-The_hidden_fires_of_the_Flame_Nebula.jpg

The spectacular star-forming region known as the Flame Nebula, or NGC 2024, in the constellation of Orion (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Orion) (the Hunter) and its surroundings. The famous Horsehead Nebula (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsehead_Nebula) is in the lower right part of the image.

[microrobert]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/360-degree_Panorama_of_the_Southern_Sky.jpg/1280px-360-degree_Panorama_of_the_Southern_Sky.jpg

The Milky Way (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Milky_Way) arches across this 360-degree panorama (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Panoramics) of the night sky above the Paranal Observatory (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranal_Observatory), home of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Very_Large_Telescope). The Moon (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Moon) is just rising and the zodiacal light (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Zodiacal_light) shines above it, while the Milky Way stretches across the sky opposite the observatory. To the right in the image and below the arc of the Milky Way, two of our galactic neighbours, the Small (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Small_Magellanic_Cloud) and Large (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Large_Magellanic_Cloud) Magellanic Clouds, can be seen. The open telescope domes of the world’s most advanced ground-based astronomical observatory are all visible in the image: the four smaller 1.8-metre Aŭiliary Telescopes that can be used together in the interferometric mode, and the four giant 8.2-metre Unit Telescopes.

[microrobert]

Hubble Goes High-Definition to Revisit Iconic 'Pillars of Creation'

http://i.huffpost.com/gen/2457764/thumbs/o-PILLARS-OF-CREATION-900.jpg

Although NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has taken many breathtaking images of the universe, one snapshot stands out from the rest: the iconic view of the so-called “Pillars of Creation.” The jaw-dropping photo, taken in 1995, revealed never-before-seen details of three giant columns of cold gas bathed in the scorching ultraviolet light from a cluster of young, massive stars in a small region of the Eagle Nebula, or M16.

http://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/hubble-goes-high-definition-to-revisit-iconic-pillars-of-creation/#.VKvuVWRlCSF

[ChristinaLadyBug]

Epsilon Aurigae

62765

[PHDNM]

What is Cydonia?

http://1-ps.googleusercontent.com/hk/gP1KfV-U-ecQffrBMTjma6A5b-/www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Face_on_Mars_with_Inset-700x432.jpg.pagespeed.ce.vEW9anzBRIHlY3dxuatw.jpg

The surface of Mars has been the subject of fascination for centuries. Even sinceGiovanni Schiaparelli first announced that he had observed the “Martian Canals” in 1877, the Red Planet has been a source of endless speculation. Even today, crystal-clear images sent directly from the surface by rovers are still the subject of pareidolia – where people see familiar patterns in random features.

http://www.universetoday.com/46538/what-is-cydonia/

[Ilma]

You should look at Milky Way Scientists on FB, everyday they share wonderful pics of sky :) Mostly shot by profesionnal photographers.

https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14717324_949806711797763_6561167698567152418_n.jpg ?oh=f8419cbcef02c884c96f0e777d55d20e&oe=58B1F873

The Carina Nebula imaged by the VLT Survey Telescope :heartbea:

[PHDNM]

http://cdn3.tecake.in/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/hubble-image-1.jpg

A Hubble image showing NGC 4707 — a spiral galaxy located 22 million light-years from Earth.

[PHDNM]

Earth from Space: New 'Blue Marble' Photo Is Jaw-Dropping

http://www.livescience.com/images/i/000/089/037/original/goes-16-blue-marble-earth.jpg

A new weather satellite has relayed its first images of Earth back to scientists, and the new collection, which includes an updated version of the iconic "Blue Marble" image of Earth, is simply stunning.

http://www.livescience.com/57599-spectacular-earth-photos-goes-16-satellite.html

[LouisFerdinand]

Blue Nebula
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341640321718526188

[Latinus]

Hubble Space Telescope image of NGC 6052, a pair of colliding galaxies that lies in the constellation of Hercules, about 230 million light-years away from Earth.
(Image: © ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Adamo et al.)
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jujHUa9fs8Fimcu7gqob6a-650-80.jpg

[lei.talk]

https://i.imgur.com/TmmdHjo.gif (https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/list.html)

as mentioned, previously (https://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?14451-Astronomy-photography&p=2013736&viewfull=1#post2013736), to prevent boredom (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?16595&p=383750&viewfull=1#post383750)
the (http://forums.skadi.net/showthread.php?t=76025) girl (http://www.imdb.com/user/ur3925839/boards/profile/)-child (http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5849)'s attention is sustained by detailed preparation.



http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Wikipedia_logo_3d_gold.png/120px-Wikipedia_logo_3d_gold.png (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvin_and_Hobbes)

[lei.talk]

400 Megapixel Moon (https://www.easyzoom.com/imageaccess/4b77cb0a226949ac9f4b462b2fa87677)

[lei.talk]

https://i.imgur.com/u7leimb.pnghttps://i.imgur.com/u7leimb.pnghttps://i.imgur.com/u7leimb.pnghttps://i.imgur.com/NS61DCp.png (https://i.imgur.com/Iy4K7Ay.jpg)










https://i.imgur.com/soqro4A.png (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_(planet))

[lei.talk]

https://i.imgur.com/gSwg45v.jpg (https://www.livescience.com/57596-earth-photos-goes-16-weather-satellite.html)

[lei.talk]

https://youtu.be/0jHsq36_NTU


slate.com/technology/vortex-motion-viral-video (https://slate.com/technology/2013/03/vortex-motion-viral-video-showing-suns-motion-through-galaxy-is-wrong.html)

[lei.talk]

2020 May 20

Moon, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Milky Way (https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200520.html)


It is not a coincidence that planets line up.
That's because all of the planets orbit the Sun
in (nearly) a single sheet called the plane of the ecliptic (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecliptic).

When viewed from inside that plane --
as Earth dwellers are likely to do --
the planets all appear confined to a single band.

It is a coincidence, though, when three of the brightest planets
all appear in nearly the same direction.

Such a coincidence was captured about a month ago.
Featured above, Earth's Moon, Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter were all imaged together,
just before sunrise, from the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria.

A second band is visible diagonally across this image --
the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy.

If you wake up early,
you will find that these same planets
remain visible in the morning sky this month, too.

https://i.imgur.com/XGes5Db.jpg (https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html)


Tomorrow's picture: and Venus (https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200521.html)

[lei.talk]

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49093640713_e8cb7353f7.jpg (https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49093640713_f83be82d14_6k_d.jpg)

[lei.talk]

https://i.imgur.com/943X160.jpg (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sverd_i_fjell)

[pulstar]

Not a photography, even better:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXi60-2W5PQ

[lei.talk]

https://youtu.be/SO92EPdeaEI

[PHDNM]

Hubble Captures Crisp New Image of Jupiter and Europa

https://cdn.spacetelescope.org/archives/images/newsfeature/heic2017a.jpg

17 September 2020

A unique and exciting detail of Hubble’s new snapshot appears at mid-northern latitudes as a bright, white, stretched-out storm moving at 560 kilometres per hour. This single plume erupted on 18 August 2020 and another has since appeared.

While it’s common for storms to pop up in this region, often several at once, this particular disturbance appears to have more structure behind it than observed in previous storms. Trailing behind the plume are small, counterclockwise dark clumps also not witnessed in the past. Researchers speculate this may be the beginning of a longer-lasting northern hemisphere spot, perhaps to rival the legendary Great Red Spot that dominates the southern hemisphere.

https://www.spacetelescope.org/news/heic2017/

[lei.talk]

https://i.imgur.com/D5vNiR1.png (https://youtu.be/DLOth-BuCNY)



A NASA camera aboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Space_Climate_Observatory) satellite captured a unique view of the moon as it moved in front of the sunlit side of Earth last month. The series of test images shows the fully illuminated “dark side” of the moon that is never visible from Earth.

The images were captured by NASA’s Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC), a four megapixel CCD camera and telescope on the DSCOVR satellite orbiting 1 million miles from Earth. From its position between the sun and Earth, DSCOVR conducts its primary mission of real-time solar wind monitoring for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).


https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/styles/full_width/public/thumbnails/image/dscovrepicmoontransitfull.gif?itok=m-pCEXqi

EPIC maintains a constant view of the fully illuminated Earth as it rotates, providing scientific observations of ozone, vegetation, cloud height and aerosols in the atmosphere. Once EPIC begins regular observations next month, the camera will provide a series of Earth images allowing study of daily variations over the entire globe. About twice a year the camera will capture the moon and Earth together as the orbit of DSCOVR crosses the orbital plane of the moon.

These images were taken between 3:50 p.m. and 8:45 p.m. EDT on July 16 2015, showing the moon moving over the Pacific Ocean near North America. The North Pole is in the upper left corner of the image. It is in the original orientation as taken by the spacecraft.

The lunar far side lacks the large, dark, basaltic plains, or maria, that are so prominent on the Earth-facing side. The largest far side features are Mare Moscoviense in the upper left and Tsiolkovskiy crater in the lower left. A thin sliver of shadowed area of moon is visible on its right side.

“It is surprising how much brighter Earth is than the moon," said Adam Szabo, DSCOVR project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goddard_Space_Flight_Center) in Greenbelt, Maryland. "Our planet is a truly brilliant object in dark space compared to the lunar surface.”


https://www.nasa.gov/sites/all/themes/custom/nasatwo/images/nasa-logo.svg (https://www.nasa.gov/)

[PHDNM]

https://sun9-50.userapi.com/impg/HiOBkaIzdTeH38PCmnsnTOY9NFdkKHi6vy3oxg/ogCUOjFyPPo.jpg?size=616x562&quality=96&sign=6eed5d9038b34955e6669f69b449808d&c_uniq_tag=pFMixogW4RMBOkogEbdhssWW6IfAyE_zskekwAU BSKg&type=album