幽灵状的面纱星云

幽灵状的面纱星云

2019 October 31 The Ghostly Veil Nebula Image Credit & Copyright: Anis Abdul Explanation: A ghostly visage on a cosmic scale, these remains of shocked, glowing gas haunt planet Earth’s sky toward the constellation of Cygnus and form the Veil Nebula. The nebula itself is a large supernova remnant, an expanding cloud born of the death explosion of a massive star. Light from the original supernova explosion likely reached Earth over 5,000 years ago. Also known as the Cygnus Loop, the Veil Nebula now spans nearly 3 degrees or about 6 times the diameter of the full Moon. That translates to over 70 light-years at its estimated distance of 1,500 light-years. In fact, the Veil is so large its brighter parts are recognized as separate…

安塔瑞斯火箭的正面

安塔瑞斯火箭的正面

A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket is seen as it rolls out to Pad-0A, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019, at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Northrop Grumman’s 12th contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver about 8,200 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. Launch is scheduled for 9:59 a.m. EDT Saturday, Nov. 2. Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls 2019年10月29日,星期二,诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司的安塔瑞斯火箭在维吉尼亚州的瓦勒普斯飞行基地的OA发射平台滑出。格鲁曼公司与美国国家航空航天局(NASA)签订的第12次货物再补给任务,将向轨道实验室及其宇航员运送约8200磅的科学和研究、船员用品和车辆硬件。发射时间定于美国东部时间11月2日周六上午9点59分。 图片来源: NASA/Bill Ingalls

木星的云顶:由高到低

木星的云顶:由高到低

This view from NASA’s Juno spacecraft captures colorful, intricate patterns in a jet stream region of Jupiter’s northern hemisphere known as “Jet N3.” Jupiter’s cloud tops do not form a simple, flat surface. Data from Juno helped scientists discover that the swirling bands in the atmosphere extend deep into the planet, to a depth of about 1,900 miles (3,000 kilometers). At center right, a patch of bright, high-altitude “pop-up” clouds rises above the surrounding atmosphere. Citizen scientist Gerald Eichstädt created this enhanced-color image using data from the spacecraft’s JunoCam imager. The original image was taken on May 29, 2019, at 1:01 a.m. PDT (4:01 a.m. EDT) as the Juno spacecraft performed its 20th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time the image was taken, the…

国际空间站的夜间灯光轨迹

国际空间站的夜间灯光轨迹

This image of star trails was compiled from time-lapse photography taken by NASA astronaut Christina Koch from aboard the International Space Station, taken in July 2019. This composite image was made from more than 400 individual photos taken over a span of about 11 minutes as the station traveled from Namibia toward the Red Sea. The image includes many natural and artificial lights that an astronaut may see during an orbit at night. On the ground, stationary features like cities appear as pale yellow-white dotted streaks; with each dot marking another frame captured. Many of the thinner dotted lines with darker orange hues are fires burning across Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Image Credit: NASA/Caption by Andrea Meado 这张星迹图是由NASA宇航员克里斯蒂娜·科赫于2019年7月在国际空间站拍摄的延时摄影合成的。这张合成图像是由400多张独立的照片组成的,这些照片是在空间站从纳米比亚前往红海的11分钟内拍摄的。 该图像包括许多自然和人造光,宇航员可能在夜晚的轨道上看到。在地面上,像城市这样的固定特征以淡黄白色的斑点条纹出现,每个点都标记着另一个被捕获的画面。在这些用深橙色的点线组成的较细的点线中,有一圈是燃烧在安哥拉和刚果民主共和国上空的火焰。 图片来源:NASA/Caption by…

好奇号探测车在火星上发现粘土块

好奇号探测车在火星上发现粘土块

2019 October 29 Curiosity Rover Finds a Clay Cache on Mars Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, MSSS Explanation: Why is there clay on Mars? On Earth, clay can form at the bottom of a peaceful lake when specific minerals trap water. At the pictured site on Mars, the robotic rover Curiosity drilled into two rocks and found the highest concentration of clay yet. The clay cache is considered addition evidence that Gale Crater once held water in the distant past. Pictured, 57 images taken by Curiosity have been combined into a selfie. The images were taken by a camera at the end of its robotic arm. Many details of the car-sized rover are visible, including its rugged wheels, numerous scientific instruments, and a high mast that…

NASA将4个RS-25引擎中的第一个安装在“阿尔特弥斯1号”火箭上

NASA将4个RS-25引擎中的第一个安装在“阿尔特弥斯1号”火箭上

Engineers and technicians at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans have structurally mated the first of four RS-25 engines to the core stage for NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket that will help power the first Artemis mission to the Moon. Integration of the RS-25 engines to the recently completed core stage structure is a collaborative, multistep process for NASA and its partners Boeing, the core stage lead contractor, and Aerojet Rocketdyne, the RS-25 engines lead contractor. To complete the installation, the technicians will now integrate the propulsion and electrical systems. The installation process will be repeated for each of the four RS-25 engines. The four RS-25 engines used for Artemis I were delivered to Michoud from Aerojet Rocketdyne’s facility at NASA’s Stennis Space…

仙王座内黑暗的海马星云

仙王座内黑暗的海马星云

2019 October 24 Dark Seahorse in Cepheus Image Credit & Copyright: Sergio Kaminsky Explanation: Light-years across, this suggestive shape known as the Seahorse Nebula appears in silhouette against a rich, luminous background of stars. Seen toward the royal northern constellation of Cepheus, the dusty, obscuring clouds are part of a Milky Way molecular cloud some 1,200 light-years distant. It is also listed as Barnard 150 (B150), one of 182 dark markings of the sky cataloged in the early 20th century by astronomer E. E. Barnard. Packs of low mass stars are forming within from collapsing cores only visible at long infrared wavelengths. Still, colorful stars in Cepheus add to the pretty, galactic skyscape. 仙王座内黑暗的海马星云 影像来源与版权: Sergio Kaminsky 说明:这个跨越数光年、具有暗示性外形结构的天体被称为海马星云,在繁星点点的明亮背景衬托下呈现出黑暗的轮廓。这个满是尘埃的模糊星云位于北天仙王座方向,是距离约我们1200光年远的银河系分子云的一部分。它的编录号为巴纳德150 (B150),是天文学家巴纳德在20世纪初编录的182个暗星云之一。大量的低质量恒星正在坍缩的星核中形成,这仅在长波红外波段下才能看到。此外,仙王座内五彩缤纷的恒星为这片美丽的银河星空增添了色彩。

第谷超新星:恒星的死亡

第谷超新星:恒星的死亡

In 1572, Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe was among those who noticed a new bright object in the constellation Cassiopeia. Adding fuel to the intellectual fire that Copernicus started, Tycho showed this “new star” was far beyond the Moon, and that it was possible for the universe beyond the Sun and planets to change. Astronomers now know that Tycho’s new star was not new at all. Rather it signaled the death of a star in a supernova, an explosion so bright that it can outshine the light from an entire galaxy. This particular supernova was a Type Ia, which occurs when a white dwarf star pulls material from, or merges with, a nearby companion star until a violent explosion is triggered. The white dwarf star is…

星际访客2I/Borisov彗星

星际访客2I/Borisov彗星

2019 October 18 Interstellar Interloper 2I/Borisov Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and D. Jewitt (UCLA) et al. Explanation: After the 2017 detecton of 1I/’Oumuamua, comet 2I/Borisov has become the second recognized interstellar interloper. Like ‘Oumuamua, Borisov’s measured hyperbolic trajectory and speed as it falls toward the Sun confirm that its origin is from beyond our Solar System. But while detailed observations indicate ‘Oumuamua is a rocky body with differences from known Solar System objects, Borisov is definitely a far wandering comet. Taken on October 12, 2019 this Hubble Space Telescope image of Borisov reveals a familiar looking comet-like activity and concentration of dust around around its nucleus. Not resolved in the image, some estimates suggest the nucleus could be between 2 and 16 kilometers in diameter….

美国宇航局的X-59奎斯特飞机在洛克希德马丁臭鼬工厂成型

美国宇航局的X-59奎斯特飞机在洛克希德马丁臭鼬工厂成型

In the high desert of California, some of the most important aircraft in aviation history have been built and flown. NASA’s X-59 QueSST (short for Quiet SuperSonic Technology) is an experimental piloted aircraft designed to fly faster than sound without producing the annoying – if not alarming – sonic booms of previous supersonic aircraft. It is the latest craft to take shape at Skunk Works, a renowned Lockheed Martin division that for the past 76 years has used a unique approach to design and manufacturing that has produced the nation’s most advanced airplanes. This artist’s concept of NASA’s QueSST jet reflects the airplane’s final configuration following years of research and design engineering. The jet is now under construction by Lockheed Martin at the company’s Skunk…