In the Sky This Week – December 3, 2019
At last night's meeting of the Warren Astronomical Society, the topic of the Starlink satellite constellation came up during the "In the News" segment, and a groan of dismay could be heard from the entire audience. If you are unfamiliar with Starlink, it is a constellation of potentially tens of thousands of communication satellites created by SpaceX with the goal of providing global high-speed internet - that concept sounds great!
Starlink satellites during a meteor shower on Nov. 22. pic.twitter.com/wJVk1qu49E
— Patrick Treuthardt, Ph.D. (@PTreuthardt) November 25, 2019
The first time I became aware of Starlink was after the 2nd satellite deployment mission of May of 2019, when 60 satellites were put into a 53° Earth orbit. Almost immediately satellite sightings started pouring in from around the world. Videos show a long trail of lights traversing the sky, virtually painting the orbits of the satellites in your mind's eye, and literally painting them in the cameras of astronomers and astrophotographers - who have started complaining loudly!
The NGC 5353/4 galaxy group is obscured by more than 25 Starlink satellite trails in this May 2019 image, taken from Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. Credit: Victoria Girgis/Lowell Observatory
The International Astronomical Union posted this statement on June 3, 2019:
Over the past decades, considerable effort has gone into designing, building, and deploying satellites for many important purposes. Recently networks, known as satellite constellations, have been deployed and are planned in ever greater numbers in mainly low-Earth orbits for a variety of purposes, including providing communication services to underserved or remote areas. Until this year, the number of such satellites was below 200, but that number is now increasing rapidly, with plans to deploy potentially tens of thousands of them. In that event, satellite constellations will soon outnumber all previously launched satellites.
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) is concerned about these satellite constellations. The organisation, in general, embraces the principle of a dark and radio-quiet sky as not only essential to advancing our understanding of the Universe of which we are a part, but also as a resource for all humanity and for the protection of nocturnal wildlife. We do not yet understand the impact of thousands of these visible satellites scattered across the night sky and despite their good intentions, these satellite constellations may threaten both.
The scientific concerns are twofold. Firstly, the surfaces of these satellites are often made of highly reflective metal, and reflections from the Sun in the hours after sunset and before sunrise make them appear as slow-moving dots in the night sky. Although most of these reflections may be so faint that they are hard to pick out with the naked eye, they can be detrimental to the sensitive capabilities of large ground-based astronomical telescopes, including the extreme wide-angle survey telescopes currently under construction. Secondly, despite notable efforts to avoid interfering with radio astronomy frequencies, aggregate radio signals emitted from the satellite constellations can still threaten astronomical observations at radio wavelengths. Recent advances in radio astronomy, such as producing the first image of a black hole or understanding more about the formation of planetary systems, were only possible through concerted efforts in safeguarding the radio sky from interference.
The IAU is a science and technology organisation, stimulating and safeguarding advances in those areas. Although significant effort has been put into mitigating the problems with the different satellite constellations, we strongly recommend that all stakeholders in this new and largely unregulated frontier of space utilisation work collaboratively to their mutual advantage. Satellite constellations can pose a significant or debilitating threat to important existing and future astronomical infrastructures, and we urge their designers and deployers as well as policy-makers to work with the astronomical community in a concerted effort to analyse and understand the impact of satellite constellations. We also urge appropriate agencies to devise a regulatory framework to mitigate or eliminate the detrimental impacts on scientific exploration as soon as practical.
The IAU’s Commission B7 Protection of Existing and Potential Observatory Sites welcomes the opportunity to work proactively with everyone involved in these efforts. - IAU
Elon Musk initially dismissed astronomer's complaints, but has since agreed to take steps to reduce the albedo of the satellites; I've seen comments by supporters (or quite possibly internet trolls) accusing detractors of being Luddites - these Luddites would include astronomers who use high-tech multi-million dollar equipment... While I was researching the Starlink launch date for this post, I was surprised at the rather lengthy history section of the Wikipedia entry, and embarrassed at my near total lack of knowledge of that history. This story certainly has my attention now; I'm certain this story will be on-going and developing over the next several years.
The Moon appears in the sky at 3:00 PM for several days this week - about the time schools get out. If it's clear, I want to bring my 'scope to my after-school club and have the students see it.
The Moon appears above the east-southeastern horizon at 3:00 PM from Dec. 3-6th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mercury, Mars and the star Spica align above the southeastern horizon before sunrise this week.
Mercury, Mars and the star Spica align above the southeastern horizon before dawn this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Several planets appear above the southwestern horizon shortly after sunset this week. Jupiter sets soon after sunset, leaving Saturn and Venus above the southwestern horizon - great observing targets!
-
- Jupiter is very low, Venus and Saturn are higher above the southwestern horizon after sunset this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
-
- Shortly after sunset, Venus and Saturn appear above the southwestern horizon this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears high above the south-southeastern horizon after sunset for several days this week - this is an ideal time to observe the Moon with binoculars or a telescope.
The Moon high above the south-southeastern horizon after sunset for several days this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Andromeda galaxy appears almost directly overhead around 8:30 PM this week - as do the constellations Andromeda and Pegasus.
The constellations Pegasus and Andromeda appear directly overhead around 8:30 PM this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Starlink Satellites
Let me know if you have an observing session this week where you do NOT see a Starlink satellite.
The Moon is a waxing crescent, visible toward the southwest in early evening - the Moon is a great observing target this week!
The Moon will be at first quarter on Dec. 4th, it will be visible high in the southern sky in early evening.
After Dec. 4th, the Moon will be a waxing gibbous, visible to the southeast in early evening, up for most of the night.
Moon News
These fractures in Komarov crater were made by magma – yes, you read that right – magma. Molten material bubbled up below the surface, pushing the Moon’s crust up and fracturing it in the process. This image shows an area just over 9 miles (15 km) wide. https://t.co/SCN9z6S1C3 pic.twitter.com/jzuVbLU92B
— NASA Moon (@NASAMoon) December 3, 2019
The Sun has been spotless for 20 days; large coronal holes appear at both poles - the southern hole has gotten very large .
The Sun seen in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Dec. 2, 2019:
Several prominences on the Sun's l today! I'm going to have to crack out my solar telescope when I finish this post!
The Sun seen in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Dec. 2, 2019:
Videos courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
The solar wind speed is 297.0 km/sec (↓), with a density of 4.5 protons/cm3 (↑) at 1550 UT.
Facebook: SolarActivity
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
On Dec. 4, scientists are sharing new discoveries about the Sun from #ParkerSolarProbe — and we’ll discuss with experts during #NASAScience Live!
🗓️ Dec. 4
🕒 3pm ET / 12pm PT
🔗 https://t.co/Uqi7MpLDD7
❓ #askNASA pic.twitter.com/sx31rGLa11— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) December 3, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2019 WW |
2019-Dec-05
|
8.6 LD
|
9.8
|
43
|
| 2019 WB5 |
2019-Dec-06
|
18.7 LD
|
22
|
48
|
| 2019 WR3 |
2019-Dec-06
|
14.2 LD
|
7.5
|
98
|
| 2019 WJ6 |
2019-Dec-07
|
7.5 LD
|
21.1
|
47
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
| 2019 VH5 |
2019-Dec-08
|
18 LD
|
9.8
|
73
|
| 2019 XB |
2019-Dec-09
|
17.4 LD
|
7.9
|
67
|
| 2019 WT3 |
2019-Dec-09
|
9.8 LD
|
11
|
41
|
| 2019 WO2 |
2019-Dec-09
|
4.8 LD
|
7.6
|
34
|
| 2019 XF |
2019-Dec-18
|
9.5 LD
|
24.4
|
78
|
| 216258 |
2019-Dec-20
|
15.3 LD
|
11.8
|
324
|
| 2013 XY20 |
2019-Dec-21
|
18.3 LD
|
1.9
|
28
|
| 2017 XQ60 |
2019-Dec-22
|
11 LD
|
15.6
|
47
|
| 310442 |
2019-Dec-26
|
19 LD
|
12.3
|
372
|
| 2019 WR4 |
2019-Dec-31
|
11.7 LD
|
4.3
|
21
|
| 2019 AE3 |
2020-Jan-02
|
4.9 LD
|
8.2
|
13
|
| 2019 UO |
2020-Jan-10
|
11.8 LD
|
9.4
|
361
|
| 2019 WC5 |
2020-Jan-11
|
6.4 LD
|
13
|
112
|
| 2011 EP51 |
2020-Jan-15
|
19.6 LD
|
7.1
|
32
|
| 2017 RZ15 |
2020-Jan-15
|
12.1 LD
|
7.4
|
14
|
| 2009 BH2 |
2020-Jan-18
|
14.6 LD
|
17.9
|
118
|
| 2013 DU |
2020-Jan-20
|
15.3 LD
|
6.4
|
59
|
| 2019 TF2 |
2020-Jan-23
|
16.2 LD
|
1.6
|
18
|
| 2018 BM5 |
2020-Jan-23
|
13.1 LD
|
8.6
|
12
|
| 2018 AL12 |
2020-Jan-30
|
18.2 LD
|
17.7
|
39
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 0, this year: 2239 (-398), all time: 21631 (+88)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 840,470 (+178)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 840,470 (+178)
Asteroid News: Hera Mission to Deflect an Asteroid Funded!
So proud! The #HeraMission was just approved by @esa during #Space19plus. Here is our official statement! Representing 1,600 scientists includibg Lord Martin Rees and @DrBrianMayhttps://t.co/stCiOINFCd pic.twitter.com/W8tOnvDeMP
— supportHera (@SupportHera) November 28, 2019
More on the Hera Mission:
Go for Didymoon! ESA's #asteroid #HeraMission for #PlanetaryDefense has been approved by Europe's space ministers at #Space19plus. The spacecraft will be Europe's contribution to the international #AIDA4Asteroids endeavour, teamed with @NASA's DART mission https://t.co/vEcmuPbfQw pic.twitter.com/PBBBurDRM1
— ESA Technology (@ESA_Tech) November 29, 2019
#HeraMission will be an extremely agile, 'self-driving' spacecraft to navigate around the double #DidymosAsteroid system, with a 780 m body orbited by a 160 m moon - seen here by #SagradaFamília in #Barcelona. It will carry 2 tiny #CubeSats to go closer https://t.co/vEcmuPbfQw pic.twitter.com/P3xZ6oZzud
— ESA Technology (@ESA_Tech) November 29, 2019
On Dec. 3, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 50 fireballs.
(47 sporadics, 2 Nov. omega Orionids, 1 Quadrantids)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Interstellar comet 2I/Borisov might break apart as it goes around the Sun - https://t.co/XIn47xQxTn pic.twitter.com/PkNq8cHNdg
— Fraser Cain (@fcain) December 3, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Dec. 3, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Dec. 3, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, transneptunian object (TNO) and possible dwarf planet 420356 Praamzius is highlighted in red:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Dec. 3, 2019, with the orbit of transneptunian object 2012 BX85 / (420356) Praamzius highlighted. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
420356 Praamzius, provisional designation 2012 BX85, is a trans-Neptunian object from the classical Kuiper belt, located in the outermost region of the Solar System, approximately 190–320 kilometers (120–200 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 23 January 2012, by astronomers Kazimieras Černis and Richard Boyle with the Vatican's VATT at Mount Graham Observatory in Arizona, United States. The cold classical Kuiper belt object is a weak dwarf planet candidate and possibly very red in color. It was named after the chief god Praamžius from Lithuanian mythology. - Wikipedia
Artist conception of transneptunian object 2012 BX85 / (420356) Praamzius. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
Solar System News
Space Debris orbiting Earth
Credit: Technical University Braunschweig pic.twitter.com/UJSYe7oSR8
— Universal-Sci (@universal_sci) December 2, 2019
Another resource for space junk is http://stuffin.spaceli
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
Wowza. Today marks one full year at Bennu 🎉
Celebrating everything that’s happened so far! #ToBennuAndBack pic.twitter.com/REekmfkjGG
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) December 3, 2019
International Space Station
The Exp 61 crew is focusing on U.S. and Russian space shipments after completing a spacewalk on Monday. Read more... https://t.co/JkBWZSseHX pic.twitter.com/zt7JreFOKH
— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) December 3, 2019
Juno Mission at Jupiter
Today, our @NASAJuno spacecraft orbits Jupiter, studying its magnetic field, atmosphere and deep interior. Image processed by Gerald Eichstädt.https://t.co/MrABgEFES8 pic.twitter.com/SFYhee52No
— NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem) December 3, 2019
NASA Climate
A vast animal migration – the largest on the planet and a critical part of Earth’s climate system – has been observed globally for the first time, thanks to an unexpected use of a space-based laser: https://t.co/8HtvKD4vTZ pic.twitter.com/NhNN1lfoh0
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) December 3, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
We're in good company on this list of 13 nonprofits working on pollution solutions! Luckily, #lightpollution is the easiest form of pollution to reverse; the actions we take today have an impact on our night tomorrow. @1PercentFTP https://t.co/4xW4iskAKg
— IDA Dark-Sky (@IDADarkSky) November 27, 2019
NASA Using Virtual Reality in 1993!
In preparation for STS-61, the first @NASAHubble Space Telescope servicing mission, which launched #OTD in 1993, @NASA Astronaut Jeff Hoffman wears a virtual reality helmet and gloves to practice positioning the Space Shuttle Endeavour's robotic arm.
VR - not new for NASA. pic.twitter.com/Sx73qKlIcd
— NASA History Office (@NASAhistory) December 2, 2019
New, Scattered-Light View of Planet-Forming Disks
A New, Scattered-Light View of Planet-Forming Disks https://t.co/xb9Ebex9hC pic.twitter.com/VP2VROwgxw
— Prof. Abel Méndez (@ProfAbelMendez) December 3, 2019
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Kerbal Space Program: Create and manage your own space program; build and launch rockets, aircraft, space planes, space probes, landers, rovers and more!
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
Light Pollution - NASA's Black Marble
The Universe - Universe Today
In the Sky This Week – November 26, 2019
Last week I had students in my after-school astronomy and space science club build and fly rockets in Kerbal Space Program. I had them launch and recover a small pre-made rocket, and build-from-scratch a sub-orbital crewed rocket, similar to a Mercury Redstone. The very next day, I gave the "In the News" report at the meeting of the Warren Astronomical Society - I shamelessly pulled material from my previous "In the Sky" post; I included a slide about the Europa Clipper mission, and a couple about mid-ocean rift ecosystems and extremophiles.
There will be a conjunction of Venus and Jupiter low on the southwestern horizon all week; Saturn continues to appear high above the southwestern horizon, and makes for an excellent observing target after Jupiter and Venus have set.
Saturn is high, and Venus and Jupiter are both very low and near each other above the the southwestern horizon after sunset this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Kerbal Space Program has been posting bits of astronomy news and space history on their social media feeds lately - I approve!
There's a Venus & Jupiter conjunction on Nov 24th. A conjunction is when any two astronomical objects appear closer together in the sky, as observed from Earth. Look for this impressive sight in the western sky just after sunset. #LessonsWithLinus pic.twitter.com/ZVkdpSTUBg
— Kerbal Space Program (@KerbalSpaceP) November 23, 2019
A very thin waxing crescent Moon joins the conjunction of Venus and Jupiter on November 28th.
The Moon appears near Venus low above the southwestern horizon after sunset on Nov. 28th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob TrembleyOn Nov. 29th, the Moon appears near Saturn; Jupiter and Venus will have moved away from each other.
The Moon appears near Saturn high above the southwestern horizon after sunset on Nov. 29th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mercury appears above the southeastern horizon before sunrise this week, with Mars and the star Spica lining up with each other. I actually went outside to see if I could see Mercury this morning, but there was so much haze in the air that I could barely see Mars - the horizon was completely obscured.
Mercury, Mars and the star Spica appear in a line above the southeastern horizon before dawn this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
What's that bright star in the southern sky after sunset? Fomalhaut.
The star Fomalhaut is the bright star to the south after sunset this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The constellation Canis Major and Sirius, the brightest star in our skies, rises in the southeastern sky at midnight.
The constellation Canis Major rising in the southeastern horizon at midnight on Nov. 26, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
As I was writing this post, I wondered what the sky from the south pole would look like, so I set Stellarium's location there, and had a eye-blink moment when I saw "north" as the only cardinal coordinate all the way around me.
M 41
Messier 41 (also known as M41 or NGC 2287) is an open cluster in the constellation Canis Major. It was discovered by Giovanni Batista Hodierna before 1654 and was perhaps known to Aristotle about 325 BC. M41 lies about four degrees almost exactly south of Sirius, and forms a triangle with it and Nu2 Canis Majoris—all three can be seen in the same field in binoculars. The cluster itself covers an area around the size of the full moon. It contains about 100 stars including several red giants, the brightest being a spectral type K3 giant of apparent magnitude 6.3 near the cluster's center, and a number of white dwarfs. The cluster is estimated to be moving away from us at 23.3 km/s. The diameter of the cluster is between 25 and 26 light years. It is estimated to be 190 million years old, and cluster properties and dynamics suggest a total life expectancy of 500 million years for this cluster, before it will have disintegrated. - Wikipedia
Messier 41. Credit: WikiSky
Location of M 41 in the constellation Canis Major. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The new Moon occurs on Nov. 26th, and will not be visible for a couple days.
After Nov. 26th, the Moon will be a waxing crescent, visible toward the southwest in early evening.
The Moon from Nov. 26-Dec. 2, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
Kerbonauts, which moon phase is best for viewing faint stellar objects?
🌚We'll give you a hint, it's happening tomorrow!#LessonsWithLinus pic.twitter.com/RcbTS567Ew— Kerbal Space Program (@KerbalSpaceP) November 25, 2019
Moon News
OK... this would completely creep-out my arachnophobic wife, but I can see why multi-legged insect-like robot designs would have a lot of potential for planetary exploration.
The UK is sending a small, four-legged robot to the Moon in 2021. The tiny rover, which looks like a cross between a spider and a children’s toy, will be the first Moon rover for the U.K. It will also be the first rover with legs to walk on the Moon. https://t.co/KB9VMf4T9y
— Dylan Taylor (@SpaceAdvisor) November 25, 2019
The Sun has been spot-free for 13 days; the northern coronal hole seems to have enlarged from last week, and there is a large southern hole this week. A smaller coronal hole appears below the equator - where there is also a region of coronal loop activity.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 19, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
A rather large set of prominences on one limb of the Sun today! I'm going to have to crack out my solar telescope when I finish this post!
Sun in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 19, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
Facebook: SolarActivity
The solar wind speed is 412.1 km/sec (↑), with a density of 4.4 protons/cm3 (↓) at 1550 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
Each second, 1.5 million tons of solar material shoot off the Sun into space. The magnetosphere shields Earth, but the solar wind can get in near the poles and disrupt satellite, radio & GPS signals. 3 new missions aim to improve this technology problem: https://t.co/EER7pSZWZM pic.twitter.com/YO3CuTXnHi
— NASA (@NASA) November 24, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 WN1 |
2019-Dec-01
|
4.3 LD
|
10.1
|
18
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2019 WW |
2019-Dec-05
|
8.6 LD
|
9.8
|
41
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
| 2019 VH5 |
2019-Dec-08
|
18 LD
|
9.8
|
72
|
| 216258 |
2019-Dec-20
|
15.3 LD
|
11.8
|
324
|
| 2013 XY20 |
2019-Dec-21
|
18.4 LD
|
1.9
|
28
|
| 2017 XQ60 |
2019-Dec-22
|
11 LD
|
15.6
|
47
|
| 310442 |
2019-Dec-26
|
19 LD
|
12.3
|
372
|
| 2019 AE3 |
2020-Jan-02
|
4.9 LD
|
8.2
|
13
|
| 2019 UO |
2020-Jan-10
|
11.8 LD
|
9.4
|
367
|
| 2011 EP51 |
2020-Jan-15
|
19.6 LD
|
7.1
|
32
|
| 2017 RZ15 |
2020-Jan-15
|
12.1 LD
|
7.4
|
14
|
| 2009 BH2 |
2020-Jan-18
|
14.6 LD
|
17.9
|
118
|
| 2013 DU |
2020-Jan-20
|
15.3 LD
|
6.4
|
59
|
| 2019 TF2 |
2020-Jan-23
|
16.2 LD
|
1.6
|
18
|
| 2018 BM5 |
2020-Jan-23
|
13.1 LD
|
8.6
|
12
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 135 (+28), this year: 2637 (+29), all time: 21543 (+27)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 840,292 (+164)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 840,292 (+164)
Asteroid News: Possible Asteroid Impact Ejecta Blanket on Mars
HiPOD 25 Nov 2019: Asymmetry
With an asymmetric, butterfly pattern-like, ejecta blanket, this may be indicative of a low angle asteroid impact. Our imaging will allow us to determine if that’s the case, or if the asymmetry is due to erosional processes.https://t.co/QXY4KswIcg pic.twitter.com/bagY2p2VZ2
— HiRISE (NASA) (@HiRISE) November 25, 2019
On Nov. 25, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 25 fireballs.
(20 sporadics, 3 omicron Eridanids, 1 Leonids, 1 Nov. omega Orionid)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
#Meteor over #Madison #LakeMendota Saturday night! Captured by rooftop cameras on our building at @UWMadison. HT @PTH1 for finding the footage! https://t.co/rqegt1vM21 pic.twitter.com/xD8USej8U5
— UW-Madison CIMSS (@UWCIMSS) November 24, 2019
Another day, another meteor caught on MCTS bus cameras! Check out the view looking north over Milwaukee around 5:42 p.m. on Saturday, November 23rd. https://t.co/EYMCE08Iw4 pic.twitter.com/ojtZblnN4q
— RideMCTS (@RideMCTS) November 24, 2019
It's great to announce that @DrBrianMay is joining our mission's science team! ESA Study Scientist for Comet Interceptor @mggtTaylor welcomes Brian on board... pic.twitter.com/DPvHqvkaRx
— CometInterceptor (@CometIntercept) November 26, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Nov. 26, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Nov. 26, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Nov. 26, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of binary transneptunian object (TNO) and possible dwarf planet 38628 Huya and its satellite in the outer solar system:
Orbit of transneptunian object Huya. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
38628 Huya (/huːˈjɑː/ hoo-YAH), provisional designation 2000 EB173, is a trans-Neptunian object with a large satellite. It is located in the Kuiper belt, a region of icy objects orbiting beyond Neptune in the outer Solar System. Huya is classfied as a plutino, a dynamical class of trans-Neptunian objects with orbits in a 3:2 orbital resonance with Neptune. It was discovered by the Quasar Equatorial Survey Team and was identified by Venezuelan astronomer Ignacio Ferrín in March 2000. It is named after Juyá, the mythological rain god of the Wayuu people native to South America.
Huya's surface is moderately red in color due to the presence of complex organic compounds on its surface. Water ice has been suspected to be also present on its surface, although water ice has not been directly detected on Huya. Huya is considered as a mid-sized trans-Neptunian object, with an estimated diameter of about 400 km (250 mi). Huya was considered to be a possible dwarf planet, though its relatively small size and dark surface imply that it never collapsed into a truly solid body and thus may never have been in hydrostatic equilibrium. - Wikipedia
Like Pluto and Charon, Huya and its satellite orbit around a barycenter; the Huya system's barycenter is just below the surface of Huya:
Artist conception of the Huya System: the orbit of its satellite S/2012(38628) 1 is shown in red - the system's barycenter also shown in red. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
Huya's satellite, S/2012 (38628) 1, orbits about 1,740 km from Huya - that's pretty close! Huya would appear huge on the horizon of S/2012 (38628) 1:
Artist conception of transneptunian object Huya and the Sun seen from Huya's satellite S/2012(38628) 1. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
Solar System News
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
The team is in the midst of selecting the final primary and backup sample collection sites! Each site has its particular perks — and its own obstacles. The team is mulling over all of these as they make their decision.
So… how’s Sandpiper looking?https://t.co/hXZgFdKL9x pic.twitter.com/xaA02v1nux
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) November 22, 2019
Next up for the judges…
Site Osprey 🔎👀
Learn more: https://t.co/EA5JlSSRgO pic.twitter.com/OyUnofF1lZ
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) November 25, 2019
International Space Station
The three NASA astronauts on board the station, @Astro_Christina, @Astro_Jessica and @AstroDrewMorgan, share what #Thanksgiving means to them and get a look at what the holiday in space will be like in 2019. pic.twitter.com/fEgZIHIrf7
— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) November 25, 2019
NASA Climate
Last month's global average concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) was nearly 412 parts per million (ppm), up approximately 24 ppm from October 2009. #2009vs2019 https://t.co/qjYgQZqqbL
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) November 19, 2019
NASA, NOAA & European agencies are preparing to launch a joint 10-year satellite mission to continue to study the clearest sign of global warming — rising sea levels. The Sentinel-6/Jason-CS mission will extend sea level records to nearly 40 years. https://t.co/Lbcib7au87
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) November 21, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley: Brown Dwarf Luhman 16 A
Artist conception of brown dwarf Luhman 16 A, its companion is highlighted in the distance. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
A brown dwarf is a type of substellar object occupying the mass range between the heaviest gas giant planets and the lightest stars, having a mass between approximately 13 and 75–80 times that of Jupiter (MJ), or approximately 2.5×1028 kg to about 1.5×1029 kg. Below this range are the sub-brown dwarfs (sometimes referred to as rogue planets), and above it are the lightest red dwarfs. Brown dwarfs may be fully convective, with no layers or chemical differentiation by depth.
Unlike the stars in the main sequence, brown dwarfs are not massive enough to sustain nuclear fusion of ordinary hydrogen (1H) to helium in their cores. They are, however, thought to fuse deuterium (2H) and to fuse lithium (7Li) if their mass is above a threshold of 13 MJ and 65 MJ, respectively. It is also debated whether brown dwarfs would be better defined by their formation processes rather than by their nuclear fusion reactions.
Stars are categorized by spectral class, with brown dwarfs designated as types M, L, T, and Y. Despite their name, brown dwarfs are of different colors. Many brown dwarfs would likely appear magenta to the human eye, or possibly orange/red. Brown dwarfs are not very luminous at visible wavelengths.
There are planets known to orbit brown dwarfs: 2M1207b, MOA-2007-BLG-192Lb, and 2MASS J044144b.
At a distance of about 6.5 light years, the nearest known brown dwarf is Luhman 16, a binary system of brown dwarfs discovered in 2013. HR 2562 b is listed as the most-massive known exoplanet (as of December 2017) in NASA's exoplanet archive, despite having a mass (30±15 MJ) more than twice the 13-Jupiter-mass cutoff between planets and brown dwarfs. - Wikipedia
Orbits of Binary Brown Dwarfs of the Luhman 16 System:
Orbits of binary brown dwarfs Luhman 16 A and Luhman 16 B. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
Brown Dwarf News
Figure 21 says it all. When you split up the population of substellar imaged companions by mass or mass ratio, the eccentricity distributions are distinct. This points to different formation mechanisms. pic.twitter.com/hIPTz7ab28
— Sarah Blunt (@SarahCBlunt) November 26, 2019
In an urban environment, people sometimes forget about the beauty of the night sky. A new exhibit called "Chicago's Night Sky" at the Adler Planetarium wants to change that. https://t.co/fYJcmiHc2q
— Chicago Tribune (@chicagotribune) November 25, 2019
Hubble Deep Field South!
#HubbleClassic Have you heard of the Hubble Deep Field, showing galaxies in a tiny part of sky near the Big Dipper? Did you know there's a Hubble Deep Field South? This image, released in November 1998, shows galaxies in the southern constellation Tucana. pic.twitter.com/i0y6IXxEcr
— Hubble (@NASAHubble) November 26, 2019
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Kerbal Space Program: Create and manage your own space program; build and launch rockets, aircraft, space planes, space probes, landers, rovers and more!
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
Light Pollution - NASA's Black Marble
The Universe - Universe Today
In the Sky This Week – November 19, 2019
In last week's session of my after-school club, the Endeavour Space Academy, I ran the students through a very quick tour of the solar system using both NASA's Eyes on the Solar System app, and the NASA Solar System Exploration website. Only a couple of the students knew anything at all about the solar system, so I covered the most important points in the 25 minutes available... I wish I had several more hours to cover everything! I asked the students if any of them knew about the Earth's mid-ocean rifts - one said they were covering that in science class. I asked the student if she heard about the ecosystems that exist around the mid-ocean rifts, and extremophiles? I talked about the students about the possibility that similar sub-ocean rift systems might exist on several of the icy moons in the outer solar system, and what that might mean for the search for life.
Saturn appears high above the southwestern horizon after sunset this week, Venus and Jupiter appear much lower towards the horizon.
Venus is very low on the horizon, Jupiter a bit higher and Saturn high above the southwestern horizon after sunset this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mercury is low above the southeastern horizon, and Mars a bit higher and near-ish the star Spica before sunrise this week.
Mercury and Mars are low on the southeastern horizon before dawn this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears very near the star Regulus in a conjunction occurring in the eastern sky early in the morning of Nov. 20th.
Conjunction of the Moon and the star Regulus in the eastern sky early in the morning of Nov. 20, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The waning crescent Moon shares the eastern horizon with the star Arcturus before sunrise this weekend.
A thin waning crescent moon appears low on the eastern horizon before sunrise this weekend. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The constellation Gemini appears above the eastern horizon around 10:00 PM this week.
The constellation Gemini above the eastern horizon at 10:00 PM this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
IC 444
IC 444 is a small, 32 square arcminute reflection nebula in the constellation Gemini.
IC 444. Credit: Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona
Location of IC 444. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon is at third quarter on Nov. 19th, rising around midnight, and visible to the south after sunrise.
After Nov. 19th, the Moon will be a waning crescent, visible low to the east before sunrise - keep an eye out for earthshine!
The Moon from Nov. 19-25, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
Moon News
Join Andrea Jones from @NASAGoddard and NASA’s LRO mission and Dr. @rachelbconnolly, WGBH Director of STEM Education, for a webinar on lunar science & digital media to connect students w/the Moon. Free #edWebinar for K–12 educators on 11/19 at 7pm EST: https://t.co/VaAKuWLms2 pic.twitter.com/AopaxVACXo
— NASA Moon (@NASAMoon) November 18, 2019
The Sun has been spotless for 6 days; the northern coronal hole remains large, and a rather large coronal hole appears along the equator. There is a prominent region of coronal loop activity south of the equator.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 19, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
"WOW! Just WOW!" Those were the first words to come to mind when seeing all the prominences on the Sun today!
Sun in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 19, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
The solar wind speed is 345.2 km/sec (↓), with a density of 4.6 protons/cm3 (↑) at 1300 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
Ny-Ålesund falls directly below Earth’s magnetic cusp once a day, so particles have a direct path between our planet and space, funneled by Earth’s magnetic field — making this spot uniquely suited for studying how our planet’s oxygen is slowly leaking into space. pic.twitter.com/WBiBq3jw13
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) November 15, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 UK6 |
2019-Nov-20
|
15.4 LD
|
7.8
|
64
|
| 2019 WF |
2019-Nov-20
|
1.6 LD
|
11.6
|
15
|
| 2019 WE |
2019-Nov-20
|
3.3 LD
|
8.5
|
16
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2019 VK |
2019-Nov-21
|
5.8 LD
|
7.6
|
43
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2019 VF1 |
2019-Nov-25
|
13.3 LD
|
17.2
|
89
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
| 2019 VH5 |
2019-Dec-08
|
18.1 LD
|
9.8
|
70
|
| 216258 |
2019-Dec-20
|
15.3 LD
|
11.8
|
324
|
| 2013 XY20 |
2019-Dec-21
|
18.4 LD
|
1.9
|
28
|
| 2017 XQ60 |
2019-Dec-22
|
11 LD
|
15.6
|
47
|
| 310442 |
2019-Dec-26
|
19 LD
|
12.3
|
372
|
| 2019 AE3 |
2020-Jan-02
|
4.9 LD
|
8.2
|
13
|
| 2019 UO |
2020-Jan-10
|
11.8 LD
|
9.4
|
377
|
| 2011 EP51 |
2020-Jan-15
|
19.6 LD
|
7.1
|
32
|
| 2017 RZ15 |
2020-Jan-15
|
12.1 LD
|
7.4
|
14
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 107 (+13), this year: 2608 (+13), all time: 21516 (+13)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 840,1828 (+404)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 840,1828 (+404)
Asteroid News
A fair number of the science fiction stories I've listened to recently have a basis in the exploitation of asteroid mineral and outer-system ice resources. Imagine the consequences, both societal and economic, of a single entity (corporation, human, free AI or whatever) having access to that much wealth and resources. The old tabletop role-playing game Traveller called them Megacorporations, as does the more recent "Grand Strategy" game Stellaris.
This asteroid could be the most valuable thing in our entire Solar System. It's valued at $700 quintillion -- that's many billion times more valuable than all of the money in the world today pic.twitter.com/Fm25G6UA7x
— CNET (@CNET) November 17, 2019
On Nov. 18, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 26 fireballs.
(12 sporadics, 11 Leonids, 3 northern Taurids)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
A rock from space enters Earth's atmosphere at 50,000 mph lightning up the skies over Tasmania.
Credit: Aussie mom from victoria pic.twitter.com/V0QA7A8rru
— MilkyWay Astronomers✨ (@MAstronomers) November 17, 2019
Now that's a #fireball recorded from Loughborough and Norman Lockyer Observatory stations at 23:35 pic.twitter.com/fFGmB902R3
— UK Meteor Network (@UKMeteorNetwork) November 18, 2019
Astronomers have managed to find images of interstellar comet #2IBorisov up to almost a year before it was discovered, stretching back to December 2018 when it was beyond the orbit of Jupiter. Pretty neat!https://t.co/akMJNGSrqS pic.twitter.com/BPk14DxLCU
— Jonathan O’Callaghan (@Astro_Jonny) November 15, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Nov. 19, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system - the orbit of comet 103P/Hartley 2 is highlighted:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Nov. 19, 2019- the orbit of comet Hartley 2 is highlighted. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Comet 103P/Hartley 2
Comet 103P/Hartley (Hartley 2) is a small, oval (or peanut) shaped comet -- its nucleus measures approximately one mile (1.6 kilometers) in diameter. It takes Hartley 2 about 6.47 years to orbit the Sun once. Hartley 2 last reached perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) in 2017.
Hartley 2 orbits the Sun within the asteroid belt, which lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Hartley 2 is a Jupiter-family comet. A Jupiter-family comet is defined as having an orbital period of less than 20 years and one that has been modified by close passages with the gas giant.
One spacecraft has encountered this comet: Deep Impact (EPOXI) in 2010. During its flyby, the spacecraft came within 431 miles (694 kilometers) of the comet. Hartley 2 was the fifth comet to be visited by spacecraft and was the second encounter made by this particular spacecraft. Deep Impact had previously visited comet 9P/Tempel 1 in 2005. - NASA
-
- Comet Hartley 2 imaged by NASA’s EPOXI spacecraft between Nov. 3-4, 2010. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UMD
-
- Artistic rendition of Comet Hartley 2. Credit: NASA’s Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Nov. 19, 2019- the orbit of TNO 2014 MU69 is highlighted. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
Solar System News
This is so very cool: Astronomers have confirmed that Europa blasts out geysers of water, sourced from the ocean deep beneath its surface!https://t.co/f98tneRLLU
— Phil Plait (@BadAstronomer) November 19, 2019
A Kuiper Belt object spotted by @NASAHubble & visited by @NASANewHorizons was officially named this week. With consent from Powhatan Tribal elders and representatives, it is now known as "Arrokoth," meaning “sky” in the Powhatan/Algonquian language. Watch: https://t.co/MfxVuac4kf pic.twitter.com/jqGSC2KLHB
— NASA (@NASA) November 17, 2019
🌐 A dynamic world of dunes, plains, craters & terrains is revealed in this first-ever geologic map of Saturn's moon, Titan. Lakes and seas are marked blue, but they aren't water! What rains down is methane and ethane in Titan's frigid climate. Zoom in: https://t.co/ufdpxYNEqP pic.twitter.com/lNoA7lkhjo
— NASA (@NASA) November 19, 2019
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
Here’s a 3D printed Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of site Sandpiper. The crater’s steep slopes stand out, along with the ruggedness of Bennu’s southern hemisphere where Sandpiper is located. pic.twitter.com/r45uZbaReK
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) November 18, 2019
JAXA Hayabusa 2 Asteroid Sample Return Mission
Our “Goodbye Ryugu” Campaign #SAYONARA_Ryugu:
We have been introducing messages from the Hayabusa2 Project staff, and the “Goodbye Ryugu” campaign will end today (11/19).
Everyone, please send us a message!https://t.co/13jELgeTrx
— HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) November 19, 2019
International Space Station
The Exp 61 crew researched advanced tech and space biology today while readying to deploy small satellites by midweek. Read more... https://t.co/jXQtWDycWP pic.twitter.com/z6cvkSVPMQ
— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) November 19, 2019
Attention media:
On 11/20 we will hold a telecon to discuss research launching to @Space_Station including:🔥A study analyzing flame behavior in confined spaces
⚛️A new tool for the Cold Atom Lab
🌱A study analyzing barely seeds in microgravitySign up: https://t.co/qZ7lArgte7 pic.twitter.com/XOjEF7Od5D
— ISS Research (@ISS_Research) November 18, 2019
NASA Climate
The monthly GISTEMP surface temperature analysis update has been posted. The global mean temperature anomaly for October 2019 was 1.04°C above the 1951-1980 October average. https://t.co/EDTZWL4pYk pic.twitter.com/8d83bhLBMa
— NASA GISS (@NASAGISS) November 15, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley
I looked at the "list of nearest terrestrial exoplanet candidates," and saw Ross 128 b; I've never been there in SpaceEngine, so I went there:
Artist conception of exoplanet Ross 128 b. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
Ross 128 b is a confirmed Earth-sized exoplanet, likely rocky, orbiting within the inner habitable zone of the red dwarf Ross 128, at a distance of about 11 light-years from Earth. The exoplanet was found using a decade's worth of radial velocity data using the European Southern Observatory's HARPS spectrograph (High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher) at the La Silla Observatory in Chile. Ross 128 b is the nearest exoplanet around a quiet red dwarf, and is considered one of the best candidates for habitability. The planet is only 35% more massive than Earth, receives only 38% more sunlight, and is expected to be a temperature suitable for liquid water to exist on the surface, if it has an atmosphere.
The planet does not transit its host star, which will make atmospheric characterization very difficult until larger telescopes like the European Extremely Large Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope come online. - Wikipedia
"Visiting a Dark Sky Park can get into your soul by allowing you to experience darkness and a solitude and quiet that few places can offer."
- Keith Muir of Forestry
The UK's Galloway Forest National Park is celebrating its 10th anniversary as an International Dark Sky Park! Congratulations to Galloway for ten years of night sky protection and advocacy. Here's to many more! https://t.co/Uh7zSyjN9Y
— IDA Dark-Sky (@IDADarkSky) November 18, 2019
Galaxy NGC 772
#HubbleFriday Many galaxies we see with Hubble look similar: spiral arms, a glowing center, & bright specks of star formation with dark ripples of dust weaving throughout. Spiral galaxy NGC 772 is no exception: https://t.co/kREt8UURb8 pic.twitter.com/ELwmg4cTmH
— Hubble (@NASAHubble) November 15, 2019
Kerbal Space Program v1.8 Sandbox Mode: The Vatican Advanced Technology Space Telescope
I haven't played much KSP this past week, but in working on the upcoming VOF newsletter I'm adding some info on the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope, and thought about the evolution of Vatican Observatories, and what the "next logical step" might be. My first thought was "Space Telescopes!" My second thought was that space telescopes are really expensive to build, launch and maintain... but hey! I can dream!
The Next Logical Step? The Vatican Advanced Technology Space Telescope. Credit: Kerbal Space Program / Bob Trembley
Update:
First detection of sugars in meteorites gives clues to origin of life @NASA @PNASNews https://t.co/HHnrgJISBF
— Phys.org (@physorg_com) November 19, 2019
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Kerbal Space Program: Create and manage your own space program; build and launch rockets, aircraft, space planes, space probes, landers, rovers and more!
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
Light Pollution - NASA's Black Marble
The Universe - Universe Today
In the Sky This Week – November 12, 2019
I hope you had better luck than I did seeing the transit of Mercury... a good portion of North America was shrouded in clouds - I got several inches of snow!
Cloud cover over North America on Nov. 11, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Earth.
Even the website I pointed readers to last week to view the transit online was not broadcasting due to clouds. I ended up watching it on NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory's (SDO) Eclipse website - clouds are never a problem for the SDO.
Mercury Transit Nov. 11, 2019 seen in multiple frequencies from the Solar Dynamics Observatory. Images courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams, edited by Bob Trembley.
Venus and Jupiter appear very low and Saturn appears high in the southwestern sky after sunset this week over the week. Jupiter moves slightly towards the horizon, and Venus moves slightly southward toward Jupiter.
Venus and Jupiter low and Saturn high above the southwestern horizon after sunset on Nov. 12th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
By the beginning of next week Mercury returns, appearing low and Mars a bit higher above the eastern horizon before sunrise this week. If you are having trouble spotting Mercury, you can use Mars and the star Spica to star-hop in the general direction of Mercury.
The planets Mercury and Mars are low on the southeastern horizon before dawn this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears high in the sky at midnight, and moves across the sky from south to east this week.
The Moon moving through the constellations Taurus, and Gemini this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears near the star Aldebaran at midnight on Nov. 14th.
The Moon near the star Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus on Nov. 14th at midnight. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears near the star Pollux at midnight on Nov. 17th.
The Moon near the star Pollux on Nov. 17, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
From the southern hemisphere, the planets that appear across our southwestern sky near sunset appear nearly vertically!
The planets seen from Tual, Indonesia in the southern hemisphere 5:00 PM Nov. 12, 2019 . Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon is Full, rising at sunset, visible high in the sky around midnight, and visible all night.
After Nov. 12th, the Moon will be a waning gibbous heading towards last quarter on Nov. 19th; before the Nov. 19th, the Moon will rise after sunset, be visible high in the sky after midnight, and be visible to the southwest after sunrise.
The Moon from Nov. 12-18, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
Moon News
A special thank you today to our veterans. We wouldn’t have made it to the Moon without you. #HappyVeteransDay2019 pic.twitter.com/HYolIdzcoI
— NASA Moon (@NASAMoon) November 11, 2019
The Sun has a spot; a new sunspot is emerging from the Sun's limb. At the time of this writing, the sunspot has no AR designation.
Coronal holes appear at both poles, and a weird smaller coronal is snaking its way up from te south pole.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 12, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
A a couple large prominences on the Sun's limb today - look at that monster on the upper right! The unnamed Active Region can be seen on the lower left.
Sun in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 12, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
The solar wind speed is 349.1 km/sec (↓), with a density of 0.1 protons/cm3 (↓) at 1700 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
Science data from #ParkerSolarProbe's first two solar encounters is now available to the public! 📈🛰 Details: https://t.co/5pspomUoEY
📷 This image was captured by the spacecraft's WISPR instrument in November 2018, during the mission's first solar flyby. pic.twitter.com/YJIHGTVlaL
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) November 12, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 VN |
2019-Nov-11
|
3.1 LD
|
13.6
|
32
|
| 2010 JG |
2019-Nov-12
|
19.6 LD
|
14.9
|
235
|
| 2019 UB14 |
2019-Nov-12
|
4.9 LD
|
15.4
|
22
|
| 2019 UH1 |
2019-Nov-13
|
9.5 LD
|
9.1
|
50
|
| 2019 UN12 |
2019-Nov-13
|
3.8 LD
|
28.8
|
141
|
| 2019 VX |
2019-Nov-13
|
4.1 LD
|
10.8
|
31
|
| 2019 UE8 |
2019-Nov-15
|
7.7 LD
|
6.6
|
27
|
| 2019 UR2 |
2019-Nov-18
|
18 LD
|
13.4
|
126
|
| 2019 UK6 |
2019-Nov-20
|
15.4 LD
|
7.7
|
63
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2019 VK |
2019-Nov-21
|
5.8 LD
|
7.6
|
43
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2019 VF1 |
2019-Nov-25
|
13.4 LD
|
17.3
|
87
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
| 216258 |
2019-Dec-20
|
15.3 LD
|
11.8
|
324
|
| 2013 XY20 |
2019-Dec-21
|
18.4 LD
|
1.9
|
28
|
| 2017 XQ60 |
2019-Dec-22
|
11 LD
|
15.6
|
47
|
| 310442 |
2019-Dec-26
|
19 LD
|
12.3
|
372
|
| 2019 AE3 |
2020-Jan-02
|
4.9 LD
|
8.2
|
13
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 94 (+53), this year: 2595 (+55), all time: 21503 (+64)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 839,778 (-141)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 839,778 (-141)
Asteroid News: Newly Named Asteroids
(188693) Roosevelt = 2005 TO14
Discovered 2005 Oct. 3 by R. A. Kowalski at the Catalina Sky Survey.
Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) was the 26th President of the United States and is one of the most admired leaders in American history. Among his many accomplishments he is well known for his conservationism, having established the US Forest Service, five National Parks, 18 National Monuments, and 150 National Forests.
(35394) Countbasie = 1997 XD9
Discovered 1997 Dec. 7 at Caussols.
William James “Count” Basie (1904–1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader and composer. One of the greatest jazz musicians of the 20th century,
he founded the Count Basie Orchestra in 1935 and left an impressive discography.
(5773) Hopper = 1989 NO
Discovered 1989 July 2 by E. F. Helin at Palomar.
Grace Hopper (1906–1992) was an American computer scientist and rear admiral in the United States Navy. A pioneer in programming, she invented one of the first compilers and was instrumental in the development of COBOL. She was awarded over 40 honorary degrees in her lifetime, as well as the Presidential Medal of Freedom in
2016.
(6486) Anitahill = 1991 FO
Discovered 1991 Mar. 17 by E. F. Helin at Palomar.
Anita Hill (b. 1956) is an American attorney and professor. Her testimony in the confirmation hearings of US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas inspired
generations of women to speak out against harassment and led to more women in US politics. She continues to advocate for human rights.
From: https://minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/2019/MPC_20191108.pdf
On Nov. 12, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 13 fireballs.
(10 sporadics, 3 northern Taurids)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
#ICYMI! A #meteor lit up the sky over #StLouis, #Missouri last night. This awesome display was captured with #EarthCam’s St. Louis webcam!@MWMMemorialPark #MWMMP https://t.co/g2XZP9HeAY pic.twitter.com/44o3ByTjha
— EarthCam (@EarthCam) November 12, 2019
Caught this on doorbell tonight. #meteor #MeteorShower pic.twitter.com/Bc7KcWckG1
— Cindy Parres (@CindyParres) November 12, 2019
In other astronomy news, an unknown comet may have shed a big pile of material that the Earth will plunge through next week, causing a meteor storm.
No, I’m not kidding. Bonus: They’ll appear to come from a constellation depicting a unicorn.https://t.co/w61vTlMLDx
— Phil Plait (@BadAstronomer) November 11, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Nov. 12, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Nov. 12, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system, asteroid 471143 Dziewanna is highlighted:
Outer Solar System Nov. 12, 2019 - orbit of asteroid 471143 Dziewanna is highlighted in red. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Asteroid 471143 Dziewanna
Artist conception of asteroid and possible dwarf planet 471143 Dziewanna. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
471143 Dziewanna /dʒɪˈvænə/, provisional designation 2010 EK139, is a trans-Neptunian object in the scattered disc, orbiting the Sun in the outermost region of the Solar System.
It was discovered on 13 March 2010, by astronomers Andrzej Udalski, Scott Sheppard, Marcin Kubiak and Chad Trujillo at the Las Campañas Observatory in Chile. The discovery was made during the Polish OGLE project of Warsaw University. Based on its absolute magnitude and assumed albedo, it is possibly a dwarf planet with a calculated diameter of approximately 470 kilometers.
It was named after Devana (Polish form: Dziewanna), a Slavic goddess of the wilderness, forests and the hunt. - Wikipedia
Artist conception from above the surface of asteroid 471143 Dziewanna. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission - 2019 Commemorative Poster
Available from: https://www.asteroidmission.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Sample-Site-Selection-Poster-2019.pdf
NASA InSight Mars Lander
I’ve moved my arm away from the mole to snap pictures of the pit. Lighting at different angles can help show us the material we’re up against within the Martian subsurface. @NASA and @DLR_en teams are analyzing results.🔎
FAQ: https://t.co/wnhp7c1gPT pic.twitter.com/H3S0ulLhAK— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) November 6, 2019
Falcon Launch Dove
When I saw this image, it got an immediate "Oh! WOW!" So I HAD to post it:
"A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted off, carrying 60 Starlink satellites, telling this little bird it was time to leave." Credit: Stephen Marr (Twitter: spacecoast_stve)
I got this image from this tweet.
NASA Climate
How might planting hundreds of billions of 🌲 impact climate change & our planet? We look at some of the pros & cons of planting trees as one climate mitigation strategy & how NASA is contributing to research on the viability of global forest restoration. https://t.co/fuqSPa4ZCD
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) November 7, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley
I saw this tweet about exoplanet 51 Eri b, and went to that exoplanet in SpaceEngine:
A new exoplanet orbit movie just in time for #ExoCup2019. A 4-year time-lapse of 51 Eri b, the coolest directly imaged exoplanet to date! We just published the updated orbit from the Gemini @PlanetImager in a paper led by Rob De Rosa (https://t.co/x8LpOGJECb). https://t.co/bbb29aV8il pic.twitter.com/vQws75qDfR
— Jason Wang (@semaphore_P) November 9, 2019
51 Eridani b is a "Jupiter-like" planet that orbits the young star 51 Eridani, in the constellation Eridanus. It is 96 light years away from the solar system, and it is approximately 20 million years old. - Wikipedia
Artist conception of exoplanet 51 Eridani b. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Tallinn, Estonia uses highly directional street lights to illuminate pedestrian crossings. Good for pedestrian safety and prevents the need to over-illuminate the street as whole. Minimises light pollution and helps residents trying to sleep. pic.twitter.com/H75dndONQi
— Robert Kwolek (@RobertKwolek) November 12, 2019
Galaxy NGC 3717
[RPT] NGC 3717: A Nearly Sideways Spiral Galaxy: https://t.co/n8ubXoI283 by @esa @hubble_space & @NASA ,sProcessing:sD. Rosario pic.twitter.com/SPaPaWWYh6
— Astronomy Picture Of The Day (@apod) November 12, 2019
Kerbal Space Program v1.8 Career Mode: Orbital Space Station Construction
I got a contract in my career-mode sim to expand an existing space station by adding a science lab; this requires a spacecraft that can lift the lab (left) and a remote guidance unit capable of performing orbital rendezvous and docking maneuvers.
Docking a new science lab to an orbiting space station. Credit: Kerbal Space Program / Bob Trembley.
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Kerbal Space Program: Create and manage your own space program; build and launch rockets, aircraft, space planes, space probes, landers, rovers and more!
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
Light Pollution - NASA's Black Marble
The Universe - Universe Today
In the Sky This Week – November 5, 2019
Jupiter is low on the horizon, and Saturn is high in the southwestern sky after sunset this week.
Saturn is high and Jupiter low above the southwestern horizon after sunset this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mars appears low in the eastern sky just before sunrise.
The planet Mars low on the eastern horizon before dawn this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears in the south-southeastern sky after sunset this week - going from first quarter, to a waxing gibbous, to full early next week.
The Moon moves eastward each day in the south-southeastern sky - going from first quarter, to waxing gibbous, to full this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The full Moon appears high in the southeastern sky above the constellation Orion at 10:00 PM on Nov. 11th.
The full Moon appears high in the southeastern sky at 10:00 PM on Nov. 11th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Pleiades star cluster (M 45) and the constellation Taurus with the bright red star Aldebaran appear nearly overhead at midnight all week.
The Pleiades (M 45) and the constellation Taurus appear nearly overhead at midnight this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Venus appears low on the southwestern horizon after sunset
Venus appears low on the horizon just after sunset on Nov. 5th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Transit of Mercury
Transits occur when a planet or another body moves in between another distant body and an observer; transits of our Sun are rare and fascinating astronomical events, and one is happening on November 11, 2019 from 7:36 AM-1:04 PM EST! You will need a telescope to see Mercury cross the face of the Sun; the NASA Night Sky Network has a list of Mercury Transit events and observing locations: [LINK].
Mercury transit on May 9, 2016. Credit: Tom Polakis of Tempe AZ.
If it's cloudy at your location, you can follow the transit online at: https://www.virtualtelescope.eu/webtv/. More information on the eclipse is available at Fred Espenak's website: http://eclipsewise.com/oh/tm2019.html
The first-quarter Moon occurred on Nov. 4th; the Moon is a waxing gibbous, visible to the southeast in early evening, up for most of the night.
The full Moon occurs on Nov. 11th, the Moon rises at sunset, is visible high in the sky around midnight, and visible all night.
The Moon from Nov. 5-11, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
Moon News
What’s the Moon made of? 🤔
Lunar scientist Sarah Noble answers questions about the 🌛 & our plans to send humans there with #Artemis, in preparation for eventual trips to Mars. Watch now: https://t.co/bmYnhNdO9j pic.twitter.com/nUXNd3haeW
— NASA (@NASA) November 4, 2019
The sun has been spot-free for only 2 days; a spot from a few days ago has faded. Coronal holes appear at both poles, and a couple smaller coronal holes pepper the surface of the Sun.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 5, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
It looks like there are a couple large prominences on the Sun's limb today!
Sun in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Nov. 5, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
The solar wind speed is 415.4 km/sec (↑), with a density of 5.4 protons/cm3 (↓) at 1700 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
Earth’s radiation belts are full of charged particles, which sometimes get knocked out of place and fall into our atmosphere — but what pushes them out? A tiny NASA satellite uncovered some clues about this process. 🔍 https://t.co/l6P4IbyajG pic.twitter.com/OfNXqkyf4f
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) November 5, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 UE13 |
2019-Nov-06
|
8.3 LD
|
8.9
|
26
|
| 2019 UM13 |
2019-Nov-06
|
11.5 LD
|
5.9
|
17
|
| 2019 UL4 |
2019-Nov-07
|
16.7 LD
|
9
|
30
|
| 2019 UO7 |
2019-Nov-07
|
3.8 LD
|
4.1
|
10
|
| 2019 VM1 |
2019-Nov-08
|
11.3 LD
|
6.1
|
19
|
| 2019 UM12 |
2019-Nov-08
|
1.3 LD
|
13.6
|
41
|
| 2019 UR4 |
2019-Nov-08
|
7.3 LD
|
4.5
|
15
|
| 2019 UB7 |
2019-Nov-10
|
13.7 LD
|
17.5
|
56
|
| 2019 VN |
2019-Nov-11
|
3.1 LD
|
13.6
|
32
|
| 2010 JG |
2019-Nov-12
|
19.6 LD
|
14.9
|
235
|
| 2019 UB14 |
2019-Nov-12
|
4.9 LD
|
15.4
|
22
|
| 2019 UH1 |
2019-Nov-13
|
9.5 LD
|
9.1
|
50
|
| 2019 UN12 |
2019-Nov-13
|
3.8 LD
|
28.8
|
141
|
| 2019 VX |
2019-Nov-13
|
4.1 LD
|
10.8
|
31
|
| 2019 UE8 |
2019-Nov-15
|
7.7 LD
|
6.6
|
27
|
| 2019 UR2 |
2019-Nov-18
|
18 LD
|
13.4
|
126
|
| 2019 UK6 |
2019-Nov-20
|
15.4 LD
|
7.7
|
63
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2019 VK |
2019-Nov-21
|
5.8 LD
|
7.6
|
43
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2019 VF1 |
2019-Nov-25
|
13.4 LD
|
17.3
|
87
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
| 216258 |
2019-Dec-20
|
15.3 LD
|
11.8
|
324
|
| 2013 XY20 |
2019-Dec-21
|
18.4 LD
|
1.9
|
28
|
| 2017 XQ60 |
2019-Dec-22
|
11 LD
|
15.6
|
47
|
| 310442 |
2019-Dec-26
|
19 LD
|
12.3
|
372
|
| 2019 AE3 |
2020-Jan-02
|
4.9 LD
|
8.2
|
13
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 41, this year: 2540 (+98), all time: 21439 (+92)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 839,919 (+7469)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 839,919 (+7469)
Asteroid News
.@Livermore_Lab research shows that a #nuclear impulse could deflect an #asteroid from hitting Earth. ☄https://t.co/Uc02EJOtSo pic.twitter.com/Dez3dZQQ2Q
— NNSA (@NNSANews) November 5, 2019
On Nov. 5, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 83 fireballs.
(69 sporadics, 11 northern Taurids, 2 Orionids, 1 chi Taurid)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
Fireball over Hampshire at 00:43 this morning (28/10/2019) pic.twitter.com/PnAKY6IDPo
— Richard (@nova_foresta) October 28, 2019
Comet News
The interstellar comet 2I/Borisov contains alien water, @sciam reports: https://t.co/pMIULvH9EN
Though it comes from another planetary system, 2I/Borisov bears a remarkable resemblance to local space rocks. https://t.co/R0bMG6qT3o
— NOVA | PBS (@novapbs) November 2, 2019
I’m getting a little miffed that the interstellar comet 2I/Borisov doesn’t have pointy ears or nose ridges or *anything*.
Some alien visitor it’s turning out to be.https://t.co/IsoJ0SJB0F
— Phil Plait (@BadAstronomer) November 5, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Nov. 5, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
It looks almost like these three spacecraft want to get together:
The Kepler Space Telescope, STEREO Ahead and the Parker Solar Probe in the inner solar system look like they are rendezvousing for a spacecraft party - Nov. 5, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Nov. 5, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Universe Sandbox has a recent update which includes the 20 new moons of Saturn, and an impressive tour of the historical timeline of the discovery of Saturn's moons:
Update to Universe Sandbox includes Saturn's recently discovered moons. Credit: Universe Sandbox / Bob Trembley
SpaceEngine has a recent update with new textures for Saturn's moon Titan:
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system, ringed-centaur asteroid 10199 Chariklo is highlighted:
Outer Solar System Nov. 5, 29019 - the orbit of 10199 Chariklo is highlighted in red, asteroids and trans-neptunian objects appear as white dots, and comets appear as blue dots. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley.
10199 Chariklo
Artist's conception of 10199 Chariklo and its rings. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
10199 Chariklo (/ˈkærɪkloʊ/ or /kəˈrɪkloʊ/; Ancient Greek: Χαρικλώ; provisional designation 1997 CU26) is the largest confirmed centaur (small body of the outer Solar System). It orbits the Sun between Saturn and Uranus, grazing the orbit of Uranus. On 26 March 2014, astronomers announced the discovery of two rings (nicknamed Oiapoque and Chuí) around Chariklo by observing a stellar occultation, making it the first minor planet known to have rings.
Chariklo was discovered by James V. Scotti of the Spacewatch program on February 15, 1997. Chariklo is named after the nymph Chariclo (Χαρικλώ), the wife of Chiron and the daughter of Apollo.
Michael Brown's website lists it as possibly a dwarf planet with a measured diameter of 232 km. - Wikipedia
Artist's conception of the surface of 10199 Chariklo - its rings can faintly be seen. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
In the latest episode of @NASAJPL's "On a Mission" podcast, our principal investigator @DSLauretta highlights a few of Bennu’s surprises and the answers it may hold. Listen now!https://t.co/kGfdA8IyHR pic.twitter.com/gLv6vo4pyv
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) November 5, 2019
NASA InSight Mars Lander
Encouraging news: after my latest small arm moves, the mole looks to still be stable in the ground. Now I can move my arm again to get some more detailed images of the situation. #SaveTheMole #Teamwork pic.twitter.com/qnA22oLVEa
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) October 31, 2019
NASA Climate
#ICYMI: @NASAClimate sizes up humanity's impacts on Earth's 🌍 changing atmosphere in a new five-part series: https://t.co/gNlyOG1UOg
— NASA Earth (@NASAEarth) November 2, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
This is a recent presentation I attended at the Warren Astronomical Society - Dr Sally Oey talked about #LightPollution. I have been in communication with Dr. Oey since this presentation.
Galaxy NGC 1706
#HubbleFriday Galaxies may seem lonely, floating alone in the vast, inky blackness of the sparsely populated cosmos — but looks can be deceiving. NGC 1706 belongs to a galaxy group, which is a group of up to 50 galaxies which are gravitationally bound: https://t.co/44tvS13Nmb pic.twitter.com/QjBXyAlm6z
— Hubble (@NASAHubble) November 1, 2019
Kerbal Space Program v1.8 Career Mode: Asteroid-Hunting Space Telescope Launched
I launched a SENTINEL Infrared Telescope to search for potentially hazardous asteroids, and asteroid-mining targets. The image below shows the space telescope leaving orbit after a burn to put it into a solar orbit; it will take several days for the space Telescope to leave the planet's Sphere of Influence. The name SENTINEL is a reference to the real-life Sentinel Space Telescope, which the B612 Foundation proposed to put in Solar orbit near Venus to hunt for asteroids that might threaten the Earth.
A SENTINEL Infrared Space Telescope Leaving Orbit. Credit: Kerbal Space Program / Bob Trembley.
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Kerbal Space Program: Create and manage your own space program; build and launch rockets, aircraft, space planes, space probes, landers, rovers and more!
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
Light Pollution - NASA's Black Marble
The Universe - Universe Today
In the Sky This Week – October 29, 2019
The Moon appears near both Jupiter and Saturn this week in the southwestern sky at dusk. Saturn and Jupiter are excellent observing targets; Jupiter is getting lower towards the horizon each evening, and will be lost in the glare of the Sun in early December. Note: This region of the sky will have a conjunction of the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn and Venus in late November - stay tuned!
The Moon passes close to Saturn and Jupiter in the southwestern sky after sunset from Oct. 29 - Nov. 2. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mars appears low in the eastern sky just before sunrise.
The planet Mars low on the eastern horizon before dawn this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon joins Venus and Mercury low on the southwestern sky at dusk on Oct. 29th - Mercury may be challenging to see. See if you can catch a glimpse of earthshine on the Moon for the next couple evenings.
A thin crescent Moon appears near Venus and Mercury just after sunset on Oct. 29th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The constellation Ursa Major and the very familiar "Big Dipper" asterism appear in the north-northwestern sky a few hours after sunset this week
The constellation Ursa Major and the "Big Dipper" asterism in the north-northwestern sky a few hours after sunset this week. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
We get a LOT of clouds here in Michigan, and thunderstorms are not unusual; I saw this article on SpaceWeather.com when I was writing this post - "Gigantic Jets" are pretty rare, and very hard to see from the ground.
Close Encounter with a Gigantic Jet https://t.co/gDig6lnnM8 via @wordpressdotcom
— AstroBalrog (@AstroBalrog) October 29, 2019
M 106
Messier 106 (also known as NGC 4258) is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781. M106 is at a distance of about 22 to 25 million light-years away from Earth. M106 contains an active nucleus classified as a Type 2 Seyfert, and the presence of a central supermassive black hole has been demonstrated from radio-wavelength observations of the rotation of a disk of molecular gas orbiting within the inner light-year around the black hole. NGC 4217 is a possible companion galaxy of Messier 106. A Type II supernova was observed in M106 in May 2014.
Working with astronomical image processors at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Md., renowned astrophotographer Robert Gendler has taken science data from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) archive and combined it with his own ground-based observations to assemble a photo illustration of the magnificent spiral galaxy M106.
Credit: NASA, ESA, the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA), and R. Gendler (for the Hubble Heritage Team); Acknowledgment: J. GaBany
Here is where M 106 is located in the constellation Canes Venatici - very near Ursa Major:
Location of M106. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon is a waxing crescent, visible toward the southwest in early evening.
The first-quarter Moon occurs on Nov. 4th, it will be visible high in the southern sky in early evening.
The Moon from Oct. 29-Nov. 4, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
Moon News
Good news: NASA's cancelled Resource Prospector has been reborn as VIPER, a rover that will roll across the Moon's south pole & drill for frozen water in 2022. https://t.co/zIM7KUWJv9 pic.twitter.com/G2WbrnvI1b
— Corey S. Powell (@coreyspowell) October 25, 2019
The sun has been spotless for 26 days; the south pole coronal hole has reopened, and coronal holes now appear at both poles. There is a disconnected set of coronal holes below the equator.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Oct. 29, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
More impressive prominences on the Sun's limb over the last couple days; there is a bright area rotating into view - possible a new active region.
The solar wind speed is 397.5 km/sec (↑), with a density of 5.9 protons/cm3 (↑) at 1539 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
It's #SunDay! ☀️ Even our star celebrates the spooky season — in 2014, active regions on the Sun created this jack-o'-lantern face, as seen in ultraviolet light by our Solar Dynamics Observatory satellite. 🎃🛰 Download in high resolution: https://t.co/GVWPlfb1h2 #Halloween pic.twitter.com/3QlSFHWIYO
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) October 27, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 UC |
2019-Oct-29
|
2.9 LD
|
8.9
|
52
|
| 2019 TR2 |
2019-Oct-29
|
19.4 LD
|
13.8
|
75
|
| 2019 UB8 |
2019-Oct-29
|
0.5 LD
|
10.6
|
6
|
| 2019 UL5 |
2019-Oct-29
|
3.9 LD
|
5.3
|
11
|
| 2019 UT8 |
2019-Oct-29
|
2.8 LD
|
15.7
|
13
|
| 2019 UB2 |
2019-Oct-29
|
15.2 LD
|
8.4
|
24
|
| 2019 UH7 |
2019-Oct-30
|
10 LD
|
6.2
|
10
|
| 2019 UM8 |
2019-Oct-30
|
5.9 LD
|
7
|
7
|
| 2019 UJ3 |
2019-Oct-31
|
7.3 LD
|
8.6
|
23
|
| 2019 UF9 |
2019-Oct-31
|
2 LD
|
10.3
|
8
|
| 2019 UP7 |
2019-Nov-01
|
15.4 LD
|
9.4
|
24
|
| 2019 UM4 |
2019-Nov-01
|
11.1 LD
|
9.2
|
22
|
| 2019 UU3 |
2019-Nov-02
|
13.2 LD
|
13.8
|
28
|
| 2015 JD1 |
2019-Nov-03
|
12.9 LD
|
11.9
|
269
|
| 2019 UL8 |
2019-Nov-03
|
2.8 LD
|
12.8
|
19
|
| 2019 UH3 |
2019-Nov-03
|
10.4 LD
|
8.5
|
24
|
| 2019 UH5 |
2019-Nov-05
|
13.4 LD
|
3.5
|
12
|
| 2019 UL4 |
2019-Nov-07
|
16.6 LD
|
9
|
29
|
| 2019 UO7 |
2019-Nov-07
|
3.8 LD
|
4.1
|
10
|
| 2019 UR4 |
2019-Nov-08
|
7.4 LD
|
4.5
|
15
|
| 2019 UB7 |
2019-Nov-10
|
13.7 LD
|
17.5
|
53
|
| 2010 JG |
2019-Nov-12
|
19.6 LD
|
14.9
|
235
|
| 2019 UH1 |
2019-Nov-13
|
9.5 LD
|
9.1
|
50
|
| 2019 UE8 |
2019-Nov-15
|
7.7 LD
|
6.7
|
27
|
| 2019 UR2 |
2019-Nov-18
|
18 LD
|
13.4
|
122
|
| 2019 UK6 |
2019-Nov-20
|
15.4 LD
|
7.7
|
64
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
| 216258 |
2019-Dec-20
|
15.3 LD
|
11.8
|
324
|
| 2013 XY20 |
2019-Dec-21
|
18.4 LD
|
1.9
|
28
|
| 2017 XQ60 |
2019-Dec-22
|
11 LD
|
15.6
|
47
|
| 310442 |
2019-Dec-26
|
19 LD
|
12.3
|
372
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 311 (+193) , this year: 2442 (+133), all time: 21347 (+147)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 832,450 (+3008)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 832,450 (+3008)
Asteroid News - Another Possible Dwarf Planet
ESO: Asteroid Hygiea Could Be the Smallest Dwarf Planet Yet in the Solar System https://t.co/ffIuEiZQZ1
— AAS Press Office (@AAS_Press) October 28, 2019
I wasn't sure where Hygiea was in the asteroid belt, so I found it in SpaceEngine:
Orbit of Hygiea. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
On Oct. 28, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 31 fireballs.
(23 sporadics, 5 Orionids, 3 southern Taurids)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
Stunning dash cam footage of a fireball spotted in Fermoy, Co Cork just after 7pm. VIDEO BY Lisa Donegan @UKMeteorNetwork @skyatnightmag @deric_tv @rtenews @petertgallagher @DIASAstronomy pic.twitter.com/qHCKmGdyEf
— Ian Carruthers (@HurricanesArt) October 28, 2019
Comet News
Had comet C/2019 Q4 entered our Solar System a few years later, it could have been a potential candidate for ESA’s ‘Comet Interceptor’ mission (although the primary target is a comet in the Oort cloud)
Find out more here: https://t.co/EJjPy9vULT pic.twitter.com/jav3IVv0pv— ESA Operations (@esaoperations) September 12, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Oct. 29 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Oct. 29 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Oct. 29 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Orbit of binary Trans-neptunian Object (TNO) 229762 Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà (2007 UK126):
Orbit of Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà (2007 UK126). Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
229762 Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà, provisional designation 2007 UK126, is a trans-Neptunian object and binary system from the extended scattered disc, located in the outermost region of the Solar System. It was discovered on 19 October 2007 by American astronomers Megan Schwamb, Michael Brown, and David Rabinowitz at the Palomar Observatory in California and measures approximately 600 kilometers (400 miles) in diameter, and is representative of mid-sized objects under approximately 1000 km that do not appear to have collapsed into fully solid bodies. Its 100-kilometer moon was discovered by Keith Noll, Will Grundy, and colleagues with the Hubble Space Telescope in 2008.
The name Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà is from the Juǀʼhoansi (ǃKung) people of Namibia. Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà is the Beautiful Aardvark Girl of Juǀʼhoan mythology, who sometimes appears in the stories of other San peoples as a python girl or elephant girl; she defends her people and punishes wrongdoers using gǁámígǁàmì spines,[15] a rain-cloud full of hail, and her magical oryx horn. The name "Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà" derives from gǃkún 'aardvark', ǁʼhòm mà 'young woman' and the feminine suffix dí. The moon Gǃòʼé ǃHú is named after her horn: it means simply 'oryx' (gǃòʼé) 'horn' (ǃhú).
In the Juǀʼhoan language, the names are pronounced [ᶢᵏǃ͡χʼṹ ᵑ̊ǁʰòmdí mà] (
listen) and [ᶢǃòˀé ǃʰú] (
-
- Gǃòʼé ǃHú and Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà (2007 UK126). Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
-
- Shadow of Gǃòʼé ǃHú on Gǃkúnǁʼhòmdímà (2007 UK126). Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
Another 3D view, this time of site Osprey. Check out how steep those crater walls look.
This view illustrates just how rocky the terrain is that surrounds the crater where the site is located.
The anaglyph is oriented south up.
Anaglyph details: https://t.co/62UrUf8gPo pic.twitter.com/Dvk17qWuh7
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) October 28, 2019
NASA InSight Mars Lander: Mars Says "No."
Mars continues to surprise us. While digging this weekend the mole backed about halfway out of the ground. Preliminary assessment points to unexpected soil properties as the main reason. Team looking at next steps. #SaveTheMole #Teamwork pic.twitter.com/UURvU8VTwZ
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) October 27, 2019
NASA Climate
At 15, NASA's Aura mission is still making important contributions to studying Earth’s ozone layer, air quality and climate. We look at some of the ways it has benefitted both science and society. https://t.co/Fj4Lr4eqTe
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) October 23, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley: Kepler-452 b (Coruscant )
I went to Wikipedia's List of exoplanets in the conservative habitable zone, and my eye was drawn to and entry with a star very similar to our Sun.
Kepler-452b (a planet sometimes quoted to be an Earth 2.0 or Earth's Cousin based on its characteristics; known sometimes as Coruscant by NASA, also known by its Kepler Object of Interest designation KOI-7016.01) is an exoplanet orbiting the Sun-like star Kepler-452 about 1,402 light-years (430 pc) from Earth in the constellation Cygnus. It was identified by the Kepler space telescope, and its discovery was announced by NASA on 23 July 2015. However, a study in 2018 by Mullally et al. implied that statistically, Kepler-452b has not been proven to exist and must still be considered a candidate. It is the first potentially rocky super-Earth planet discovered orbiting within the habitable zone of a star very similar to the Sun.
The planet is about 1,400 light-years away from the Solar System.
Artist's conception of exoplanet Kepler-452 b. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Artist's conception of sunrise on exoplanet Kepler-452 b. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Searching for ET with TESS
Non-profit research organization Breakthrough Listen is entering into a partnership with the NASA Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission.
Breakthrough Listen and NASA Team Up to Look for Signs of Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence! - Universe Today https://t.co/s6zDE6hN3d @universetoday @storybywill pic.twitter.com/jadctsJ7Ts
— Universe Today (@universetoday) October 27, 2019
Gravitational Smile
This @NASA_Hubble image of galaxy cluster SDSS J1038+4849 seems to be all smiles: http://t.co/J0CuA8Mmkd pic.twitter.com/pxqAdA6B7R
— NASA (@NASA) February 10, 2015
Kerbal Space Program v1.8 Career Mode: Mun Station
I mentioned in my previous post that an update was released for KSP; I started a new career-mode game, and I now have 4 space stations orbiting the planet, and 2 around the Mun.
Space Station orbiting the Mun in Kerbal Space Program. Credit: Bob Trembley
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium/ Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
The Universe - Universe Today
In the Sky This Week – October 22, 2019
Saturn and Jupiter continue to be excellent observing targets in the southern sky after sunset; this last weekend. The Warren Astronomical Society hosted a boatload of girl and boy scouts at their Stargate Observatory this last weekend - I was with the girl scouts before dusk showing them a virtual reality fly-over of Saturn, another member was talking to the girls about meteorites.
Saturn and Jupiter in the southwestern sky after sunset on Oct. 22, 2019 - the teapot asterism in the constellation Sagittarius is highlighted. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mars appears low in the eastern sky just before sunrise.
The planet Mars low on the eastern horizon before dawn. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon passes through the constellations Cancer and Leo in the mornings of Oct. 22-24th.
The Moon passing through the constellations Cancer and Leo from Oct. 22-24, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
A very VERY thin waning crescent Moon appears near to Mars above the eastern horizon before dawn on Oct. 26th.
A very thin waning crescent Moon near(ish) Mars above the eastern horizon before dawn on Oct. 26th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Venus and Mercury appear very close to each other in the southwestern sky at dusk on Oct. 22nd - if you use binoculars, and get Venus in your right field-of-view, Mercury will be in your left. Observing this may be a challenge if you have anything obscuring your view of the horizon.
Venus and Mercury appear very near each other before sunset on Oct. 22nd. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The constellations Cygnus and Lyra are directly overhead after sunset this week.
Constellation lines for Cygnus and Lyra. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Cygnus (the swan) is occasionally referred to as the "northern cross," and Lyra (the lyre) is host to M57 - the Ring Nebula, this weeks observing target.
Western artwork for the constellations Cygnus and Lyra. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
M57 - The Ring Nebula
The Ring Nebula (also catalogued as Messier 57, M57 or NGC 6720) is a planetary nebula in the northern constellation of Lyra. Such objects are formed when a shell of ionized gas is expelled into the surrounding interstellar medium by a star at in the last stages of its evolution before becoming a white dwarf.
M57 is an example of the class of planetary nebulae known as bipolar nebulae, whose thick equatorial rings visibly extend the structure through its main axis of symmetry. It appears to be a prolate spheroid with strong concentrations of material along its equator. From Earth, the symmetrical axis is viewed at about 30°. Overall, the observed nebulosity has been currently estimated to be expanding for approximately 1,610 ± 240 years.- Wikipedia
M57, The Ring Nebula in Lyra. Image Credit: NASA/Hubble Heritage
Here's the location of the Ring Nebula in Lyra - I've found it fairly easily with my 8" Dobsonian telescope by just scanning around the middle area between the two stars in Lyra.
Constellation Lyra with the location of M57 highlighted. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Here's the Ring Nebula seen in multiple frequencies:
In this composite image, visible-light observations by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope are combined with infrared data from the ground-based Large Binocular Telescope in Arizona to assemble a dramatic view of the well-known Ring Nebula. Credit: NASA, ESA, C.R. O'Dell (Vanderbilt University), and D. Thompson (Large Binocular Telescope Observatory)
The Moon is a waning crescent, visible low to the east before sunrise.
The new Moon occurs on Oct. 28th.
The Moon from Oct. 22-28, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
The sun has not had a spot for 19 days; the northern coronal hole remains huge, the southern hole has diminished and appears almost closed. There is a large and almost cross-shaped coronal hole in the middle of the Sun's face.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Oct. 22, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
Again there have been some impressive prominences on the Sun's limb over the last couple days.
The solar wind speed is 357.4 km/sec (↓), with a density of 3.1 protons/cm3 (↑) at 1539 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
Today marks 11 years in space for our IBEX mission, which maps our solar system’s boundary to interstellar space! 🎉 A new mission IMAP will launch in 2024 to continue the work IBEX began years ago: understanding this boundary that shields and protects us https://t.co/b3VgGyDvUG
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) October 19, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 UG1 |
2019-Oct-22
|
5.7 LD
|
8.9
|
20
|
| 2019 UT |
2019-Oct-22
|
2.4 LD
|
11.2
|
9
|
| 2019 UF1 |
2019-Oct-22
|
6.5 LD
|
16.8
|
25
|
| 2019 UJ1 |
2019-Oct-23
|
4.5 LD
|
12
|
11
|
| 2019 UZ |
2019-Oct-23
|
5.7 LD
|
9.6
|
9
|
| 2019 UH |
2019-Oct-24
|
5 LD
|
13.2
|
25
|
| 2019 UD |
2019-Oct-24
|
8.6 LD
|
3.1
|
15
|
| 2019 UA2 |
2019-Oct-25
|
9.3 LD
|
8.7
|
16
|
| 2019 TQ2 |
2019-Oct-25
|
12.8 LD
|
12.4
|
35
|
| 2019 UQ |
2019-Oct-25
|
4.3 LD
|
13
|
21
|
| 162082 |
2019-Oct-25
|
16.2 LD
|
11.2
|
589
|
| 2017 TG5 |
2019-Oct-25
|
14.4 LD
|
11.9
|
34
|
| 2019 UC2 |
2019-Oct-27
|
16.6 LD
|
6.6
|
15
|
| 2019 UT1 |
2019-Oct-28
|
4.7 LD
|
8.8
|
11
|
| 2019 UE1 |
2019-Oct-28
|
8.6 LD
|
6.8
|
24
|
| 2019 UC |
2019-Oct-29
|
2.9 LD
|
8.9
|
53
|
| 2019 TR2 |
2019-Oct-29
|
19.4 LD
|
13.8
|
75
|
| 2019 UB2 |
2019-Oct-29
|
15.1 LD
|
8.4
|
23
|
| 2015 JD1 |
2019-Nov-03
|
12.9 LD
|
11.9
|
269
|
| 2010 JG |
2019-Nov-12
|
19.6 LD
|
14.9
|
235
|
| 2019 UH1 |
2019-Nov-13
|
9.5 LD
|
9.1
|
47
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 118 (+62) , this year: 2309 (+57), all time: 21200 (+31)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 829,442 (+108)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 829,442 (+108)
Asteroid News
One step closer to launch 🚀Our upcoming Lucy mission has passed a major milestone, and the team is now ready to begin building hardware. Lucy will be the first space mission to study the Trojan asteroids, which orbit the Sun at the distance of Jupiter: https://t.co/R0w5joddoW pic.twitter.com/Gr7igbOHvF
— NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem) October 21, 2019
On Oct. 21, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 44 fireballs.
(21 sporadics, 19 Orionids, 2 epsilon Geminids, 1 southern Taurid, 1 Leonis Minorid)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News - Orinid Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight
The Orionid Meteor Shower peaks tonight. We will be LIVE streaming the shower from 3 of our All Sky stations starting at sun set local time.
Hawley TX :https://t.co/BCmsHYr4CL
Prescott AZ:https://t.co/4QD1YKEXrr
El Cajon, CAhttps://t.co/INDxtpsOfO
— AMSMETEORS (@amsmeteors) October 21, 2019
Comet C/2019 Q4
#2IBorisov is a severely C2-depleted interstellar comet, from WHT & INT spectra Sep 30 & Oct 13. CN production and dust coma colours are consistent through time. Starting to limit how far from its origin star 2I formed...
Opitom et al, A&A Letters sub'd https://t.co/RsnkKtqAcO pic.twitter.com/eTLhfCuN6H— Michele Bannister (@astrokiwi) October 22, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Oct. 22 2019 - the orbit of asteroid 101955 Bennu is highlighted. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Oct. 22, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Oct. 22, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Orbit of asteroid (and possible dwarf planet) 28978 Ixion:
Orbit of 28978 Ixion (red). Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
28978 Ixion (/ɪkˈsaɪ.ən/ ik-SY-ən), provisional designation 2001 KX76, is a plutino (an object that has a 2:3 orbital resonance with Neptune). Brown and Tancredi calculate that it is very likely to be a dwarf planet, although the IAU has not officially classified it as such. It was discovered on May 22, 2001 by the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory. It is named after Ixion, a figure from Greek mythology.
Analysis of the lightcurve's brightness variation shows only small deviations, which suggests that Ixion is a spheroid with small albedo spots and hence a dwarf planet. It has a diameter of approximately 650 km, making it about the fifth-largest plutino. It is moderately red in visible light and has a surface made of a mixture of tholin and water ice. -Wikipedia
-
- Artist’s conception of 28978 Ixion, a trans-Neptunian object (TNO), a plutino and a possible dwarf planet. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
-
- Artist’s conception a rugged surface on 28978 Ixion. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
-
- Artist’s conception of the surface of 28978 Ixion. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
Solar System News
HiRISE Views NASA’s InSight and Curiosity on Mars https://t.co/3OeZXhaOVU
— ✨The Solar System✨ (@The_SolarSystem) October 19, 2019
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
This image shows a variety of rocks with different textures and sizes located near Bennu’s equator. It was taken on August 5, from 0.4 miles (0.6 km) away. The longest axis of the bright boulder in the upper right is 11 ft (3.3 m), about the size of a patio umbrella.
holy rock-a-mole.
image details: https://t.co/ciRmzQmd3T pic.twitter.com/X3kUudrReQ
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) October 21, 2019
NASA InSight Mars Lander
The mole is digging deeper into #Mars thanks to the tremendous efforts by my team. Unofficial depth is ~38 cm down in the ground, almost the length of the mole (40 cm). This may be the last time we see the mole, more drilling later this week. #SaveTheMole #DiggingMars pic.twitter.com/c1sZsGSLxj
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) October 21, 2019
Landsat
The Dewey Soper Bird Sanctuary in #Canada is marked by its diverse terrain and the large number of snow #geese that gather there. https://t.co/rT6TvmlfAG #NASA #Landsat pic.twitter.com/pDT4tkNnzZ
— NASA Earth (@NASAEarth) October 12, 2019
Climate
Learn about the causes and effects of extreme weather – hurricanes, wildfires, drought, snowstorms and more – plus how @NASA studies them and students can, too, in our latest #TeachableMoment! https://t.co/BclLOl5Vr9@NASAClimate
— NASAJPL Edu (@NASAJPL_Edu) October 21, 2019
While a growing Greenland glacier may seem like good news, there’s no evidence it means global warming is slowing down. https://t.co/trfkp6AmLx
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) October 21, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley: TRAPPIST-1 f
You may remember the multiple-exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 system discovered a few years ago:
Artist's concept shows what the TRAPPIST-1 planetary system may look like, based on available data about the planets' diameters, masses and distances from the host star. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
I visited TRAPPIST-1 in SpaceEngine and flew-around it looking for a photogenic planet. After finding one, I time-accelerated until the inner planets appeared on the same side of the star.
-
- Artist’s conception of 3exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 f. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
-
- Artist’s conception of sunrise on exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 f – a conjunction of the other TRAPPIST-1 exoplanets can be seen. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
NGC 4380: A Grand Spiral
The galaxy NGC 4380 looks like a special effect straight out of a science fiction or fantasy film in this Hubble Picture of the Week, swirling like a gaping portal to another dimension. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, P. Erwin
I found this image from this tweet:
This NASA/ESA @HUBBLE_space Telescope image of galaxy NGC 4380 looks like it's straight out of a #SciFi film. But, in the grand scheme of things, it's actually quite ordinary. Spiral galaxies are the most common type of #galaxy in the #Universe 👉 https://t.co/ChJZl79Vdi pic.twitter.com/gaqVswlkzi
— ESA (@esa) October 14, 2019
Kerbal Space Program v1.8 Released
Kerbal Space Program 1.8: "Moar Boosters!!!" is here! A few features included in this update are improvements to game performance, celestial body revamps and of course new solid rocket boosters to the VAB!
🚀Read more details here: https://t.co/W0oiW1EYj0 pic.twitter.com/h14jOaMcAY— Kerbal Space Program (@KerbalSpaceP) October 16, 2019
I've been waiting for weeks for this update to be released - the upgrade to the underlying graphics engine has made KSP a LOT faster! As with all major KSP updates, most mods were broken, and a new career-mode game needed to be started - here's my first (manually-landed) crewed Moon (Mun) lander:
First manual Mun landing in a new @KerbalSpaceP v1.8 career-mode game.
Streaming on: https://t.co/AWLEN3TVqk pic.twitter.com/Tf6rAxzJ0y
— AstroBalrog (@AstroBalrog) October 20, 2019
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium/ Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
The Universe - Universe Today
The 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon was July 20, 2019.
In the Sky This Week – October 15, 2019
Saturn and Jupiter are excellent observing targets all week after sunset - Jupiter is getting lower towards the horizon each evening. I'm also noting that it's getting darker earlier each evening.
Saturn and Jupiter in the southwestern sky after sunset on Oct. 15, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon appears in the predawn sky this week, moving from west to east; the waning gibbous Moon appears high in the western sky before sunrise on Oct. 15 & 16th.
The waning gibbous Moon high in the western sky before sunrise on Oct. 15 & 16th. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
On Oct. 17 and 18th, the waning gibbous Moon appears near the star Aldebaran in the southwestern predawn sky.
-
- The waning gibbous Moon near the star Aldebaran on Oct. 17, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
-
- The waning gibbous Moon near the star Aldebaran on Oct. 18, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The third-quarter Moon appears high in the southern predawn sky near the star Pollux on Oct. 21st.
The thrid-quarter Moon high in the southern sky on Oct. 21, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mars appears low in the eastern sky just before sunrise.
The planet Mars appears low on the eastern horizon before dawn. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Orion was again impossible to miss high in the southern predawn sky.
The constellation Orion, high in the southern predawn sky. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Betelgeuse
Betelgeuse is generally the ninth-brightest star in the night sky and second-brightest in the constellation of Orion (after Rigel). It is a distinctly reddish, semiregular variable star whose apparent magnitude varies between +0.0 and +1.3, the widest range of any first-magnitude star. At near-infrared wavelengths, Betelgeuse is the brightest star in the night sky. It has the Bayer designation α Orionis, which is Latinised to Alpha Orionis and abbreviated Alpha Ori or α Ori.
Classified as a red supergiant of spectral type M1-2, Betelgeuse is one of the largest stars visible to the naked eye. If Betelgeuse were at the center of the Solar System, its surface would extend past the asteroid belt, engulfing the orbits of Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, and possibly Jupiter. However, there are several other red supergiants in the Milky Way that are larger, such as Mu Cephei and VY Canis Majoris. Calculations of its mass range from slightly under ten to a little over twenty times that of the Sun. It is calculated to be 640 light-years away, yielding an absolute magnitude of about −6. Less than 10 million years old, Betelgeuse has evolved rapidly because of its high mass. Having been ejected from its birthplace in the Orion OB1 Association—which includes the stars in Orion's Belt—this runaway star has been observed moving through the interstellar medium at a speed of 30 km/s, creating a bow shock over four light-years wide. Betelgeuse is in the last stages of its evolution, and it is expected to explode as a supernova within the next million years. - Wikipedia
This is the first direct image of a star other than the Sun, made with the Hubble Space Telescope. Called Alpha Orionis, or Betelgeuse, it is a red supergiant star marking the shoulder of the winter constellation Orion the Hunter. The Hubble image reveals a huge ultraviolet atmosphere with a mysterious hot spot on the stellar behemoth's surface. The enormous bright spot, more than ten times the diameter of Earth, is at least 2, 000 Kelvin degrees hotter than the surface of the star. Credit: Andrea Dupree (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA), Ronald Gilliland (STScI), NASA and ESA
Deep-sky objects in the constellation Orion. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Moon will be a waning gibbous, rising after sunset, visible high in the sky after midnight, and visible to the southwest after sunrise.
The third-quarter Moon occurs on October 21st, rising around midnight, and visible to the south after sunrise.
The Moon from Oct. 15-21, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
The sun has been spotless for 12 days; coronal holes appear at both poles - with a tendril stretching up towards the equator from the south pole.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Oct. 15, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
[Link to 48-hour video of the Sun in 193 angstroms]
Some impressive prominences on the Sun's limb! I enlarged a couple below.
Sun in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Oct. 15, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
Prominences on the Sun - Oct. 15 2019 see in 304 Angstroms. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams, edited by Bob Trembley.
[Link to 48-hour video of the Sun in 304 angstroms]
The solar wind speed is 361.4 km/sec (↓), with a density of 2.8 protons/cm3 (↑) at 1342 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
Our Ionospheric Connection Explorer launched to space on Thursday night at 9:59pm ET! 🛫🚀🛰 https://t.co/p6pZS8iO4l
⬇️ View from the underside of the @northropgrumman L-1011 Stargazer aircraft, which dropped the Pegasus rocket carrying #NASAICON from 39,000 feet over the ocean. pic.twitter.com/YsiYJiQJW1
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) October 12, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 SR8 |
2019-Oct-16
|
13.5 LD
|
9.8
|
26
|
| 2019 TE2 |
2019-Oct-18
|
8.2 LD
|
10.1
|
29
|
| 2019 TW6 |
2019-Oct-18
|
14.8 LD
|
5.6
|
19
|
| 2019 TP5 |
2019-Oct-18
|
8.2 LD
|
18.6
|
29
|
| 2019 TA1 |
2019-Oct-18
|
15.5 LD
|
6.4
|
22
|
| 2019 TM7 |
2019-Oct-18
|
10.9 LD
|
23.8
|
57
|
| 2019 TK5 |
2019-Oct-19
|
2.5 LD
|
5.8
|
11
|
| 2019 TG7 |
2019-Oct-19
|
16.8 LD
|
7.6
|
23
|
| 2019 SJ8 |
2019-Oct-19
|
11.6 LD
|
7.4
|
48
|
| 2019 TQ2 |
2019-Oct-25
|
12.8 LD
|
12.4
|
35
|
| 162082 |
2019-Oct-25
|
16.2 LD
|
11.2
|
589
|
| 2017 TG5 |
2019-Oct-25
|
14.4 LD
|
11.9
|
34
|
| 2019 TR2 |
2019-Oct-29
|
19.4 LD
|
13.9
|
73
|
| 2015 JD1 |
2019-Nov-03
|
12.9 LD
|
11.9
|
269
|
| 2010 JG |
2019-Nov-12
|
19.6 LD
|
14.9
|
235
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
| 2018 XW2 |
2019-Dec-07
|
17.4 LD
|
13
|
28
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 116 (+52) , this year: 2252 (+54), all time: 21169 (+60)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 829,334 (+588)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 829,334 (+588)
Asteroid News
LIVE NOW: Asteroid deflection will soon be a reality. Find out how with Alan Fitzsimmons #Planetarydefence #hera https://t.co/RP7eOdOfgR
— ESA Operations (@esaoperations) October 13, 2019
On Oct. 14, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 8 fireballs.
(8 sporadics)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
Bright Fireball over Northeast of France 2019 October 13 - https://t.co/9YthSLxBg8 Sunday morning, October 13th , a bright fireball appeared over the French districts Champagne and Lorraine at 06:50:13 CEST (04:50:13 UTC).
It started to brighten at an elevation of 90 km ne... pic.twitter.com/GpaQPelPxO
— MeteorNews (@eMeteorNews) October 14, 2019
Comet C/2019 Q4
@NASAHubble observes interstellar #comet #C2019Q4 #borisov. https://t.co/cJaHN50SdK@Tom_Ruen @nrco0e @tony873004 @cosmos4u pic.twitter.com/MDO3hVDS9e
— Daniel Bamberger (@renerpho) October 12, 2019
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Oct. 15 2019 - the orbit of asteroid 101955 Bennu is highlighted. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Oct. 15, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Oct. 15, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
2014 UZ224 a trans-neptunian object (TNO) and possible dwarf planet orbiting in the scattered disc. As of October 2018, it was approximately 90.7 astronomical units (1.357×1010 km) from the Sun, and will slowly decrease in distance until it reaches its perihelion of 38 AU sometime near 2142. The discoverers have nicknamed it "DeeDee" for "Distant Dwarf".
2014 UZ224 was discovered by a team led by David Gerdes using data collected by the large camera Dark Energy Camera (DECam). It has a diameter of ~635 km (395 mi) and reflects just 13 percent of the sunlight that hits it on its 1,136 year orbit around the sun. Since the numbering of (532037) 2013 FY27 in May 2019, 2014 UZ224 is the largest unnumbered object in the Solar System. -Wikipedia
Orbit of Trans-neptunian object 2014 UZ224 - Oct. 15, 2019. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Artist's conception of 2014 UZ224, a trans-Neptunian object (TNO) and possible dwarf planet orbiting in the scattered disc. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Artist's conception of the surface of 2014 UZ224, looking towards the Sun - the band of the Milky Way on the left. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
Solar System News
Pole-to-pole flyover of Jupiter using imagery from @NASAJuno Perijove 22 - https://t.co/f6j6uKrW7C pic.twitter.com/4IXxQeP9K8
— Kevin M. Gill (@kevinmgill) October 14, 2019
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
Pictured: large, similar textured boulders located in asteroid Bennu’s northern hemisphere. The image was taken on August 2, from 0.4 miles (0.7 km) away. The long, horizontal boulder (right center) is 18 ft (5.5 m) long, about the length of a full-size pickup truck.
The way these boulders are stacked is rather satisfying.
Image details: https://t.co/qa991dSMWl pic.twitter.com/ROfGe6Udfy
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) October 14, 2019
Landsat
Our latest Earth As Art collection is now live!
Earth As Art 6 includes three images derived from Unmanned Aircraft System (drone) footage.
Read more and find it all here:https://t.co/QTqTdJ44CN#EarthAsArt #Landsat pic.twitter.com/fYQvzCwg2Q— Earth Resources Observation and Science Center (@USGS_EROS) October 10, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley: Cat's Eye Gas Giant
This hypothetical Neptune-like exoplanet orbits the smaller of two stars in a binary star system; for a short period during the exoplanet's orbit, the larger star appears on the opposite side of the sky from the exoplanet's host star - creating very thin band of shadow on the exoplanet.
Hypothetical Cat's Eye Exoplanet. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
When the two stars are about 90° apart, the shadow spreads into a wedge - I guess this would be the Startled Cat's Eye Gas Giant!
Hypothetical Cat's Eye Exoplanet when the stars are at an 90° angle in the sky. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Alexei Leonov, First Human To Walk in Space, Passes at Age 85
We’re saddened by the loss of legendary @roscosmos cosmonaut Alexei Leonov who became the first human to walk in space on March 18, 1965. His venture into the vacuum of space began the history of extravehicular activity that makes today’s @Space_Station maintenance possible. pic.twitter.com/8EavxJd5R1
— NASA (@NASA) October 11, 2019
I'm embarrassed to admit that I was unaware that cosmonaut Leonov was also an artist!
Besides his outstanding role in space exploration, #Leonov was a talented artist, and first man to paint in space. May he rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/HiyasbmicM
— Русское наследие (@RusHeritageUK) October 11, 2019
https://twitter.com/HumanoidHistory/status/1183338488483270656/photo/1
https://twitter.com/HumanoidHistory/status/1183805637081391105/photo/1
https://twitter.com/RusHeritageUK/status/1182741827256029189/photo/1
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium/ Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
The Universe - Universe Today
The 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon was July 20, 2019.
World Space Week Lander on the Mun. Credit: Kerbal Space Program / Bob Trembley
Endeavour Space Academy – 2019 Session #2: An Unexpected Lesson in Light Pollution
I started off our last club meeting by showing my "In the Sky" post I'd written the day before - hey... why not!? Several of the students said that they had seen Ursa Major, and a couple said they could see the Mizar/Alcor double star! This week's constellation was Cassiopeia; I showed the students where to find the constellation, and some deep-sky objects in the Cassiopeia, including the open cluster M103.
The constellation Cassiopeia in the northwestern predawn sky on Oct. 1, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
I discussed the differences between open and globular star clusters, and showed a few examples of each.
-
- Open Star Cluster Messier 103. Credit: Bill McSorley / Sky at Night
-
- Globular Cluster M3. Credit: Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona
We discussed galaxy mergers, and I showed this animation of galaxy mergers seen from different perspectives:
We then discussed how the Andromeda galaxy and the Milky Way will collide in several billion years; I showed this PBS video about the collision:
During the video, one of the students asked my wife "What is that band of stars behind the narrator?" I stopped the video, and brought up a photo of the Milky Way as seen from a dark sky site, and asked my students if any of them had ever seen this:
Time-exposure of the Milky Way from northern lower Michigan. Credit: Doug Bock (Twitter: Mars_1956).
Of the 15 students in the club that day, only one had ever seen the Milky Way. I hung my head and sighed. I proceeded to show the students images of the structure of the Milky Way galaxy: top-down showing the spiral arms, and a side view showing the galaxy's disk and bulge, and where the Sun is located.
Annotated artist's concept of a top-down view of the Milky Way galaxy. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC/Caltech)
Edge-on spiral galaxy ESO 121-6. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA
So here our solar system is, in the middle of this enormous flat disk of stars, gas and dust; from our viewpoint, that disk stretches completely us around in the sky, and looks like a silvery band. Unless you are far away in space, half of that band is hidden by the Earth. From the dawn of human civilization until about 100 years ago, every human on Earth could see the Milky Way, every night. What happened? Light pollution.
"... more than 80% of the world and more than 99% of the U.S. and European populations live under light-polluted skies. The Milky Way is hidden from more than one-third of humanity, including 60% of Europeans and nearly 80% of North Americans." - The new world atlas of artificial night sky brightness
Light Pollution in the Chicago Skyline in 2012. Credit: Bob Trembley
For the next several minutes, my wife and I discussed light pollution with the students, and we showed them nighttime images of Earth from NASA's Black Marble site - the students gasped!
Midwest and Northeastern U.S. at night from NASA's Black Marble website.
My wife and I related the story of the 1994 power outage in Los Angeles where residents called observatories asking what the weird silvery band of light they were seeing in the sky... This story actually tells me two things: 1) those people have never seen the night sky from a dark sky site, and 2) those people didn't know the Milky Way was there in the first place - which speaks volumes about the quality of basic astronomy education they've received.
In an odd bit of serendipity, the main presentation at the recent meeting of the Warren Astronomical Society was given by Dr. Sally Oey, Professor of Astronomy at the University of Michigan, about light pollution! Dr. Oey is involved with Michigan Dark Skies; I walked away with several pamphlets from the International Dark Sky Association. Dr. Oey told the audience that if they had a non-shielded streetlight near their home that they would like replaced to simply call DTE customer service. I've contacted them via Twitter and am having a conversation with support as I'm writing this.
Here's what you're missing:
In the Sky This Week – October 8, 2019
This week is World Space Week! Held annually every October 4-10th, it is the largest space event on Earth, with more than 5,000 events in over 80 countries. The theme for 2019 is: “The Moon: Gateway to the Stars.”
“The General Assembly declares 4 to 10 October World Space Week to celebrate each year at the international level the contributions of space science and technology to the betterment of the human condition” - UN General Assembly resolution, 6 December 1999
Saturn, Jupiter and the Moon continue to be excellent observing targets all week after sunset.
The waxing gibbous Moon with Saturn and Jupiter in the southern sky after sunset, Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The waxing gibbous Moon is in the southwestern sky at midnight on Oct. 8th.
The waxing gibbous Moon in the southwestern sky at midnight, Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
At midnight on Oct. 11th, the waxing gibbous Moon is high in the southern sky.
The waxing gibbous Moon high in the southern sky at midnight, Oct. 11, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The full Moon appears in the southeastern sky at midnight, Oct. 14th.
The full Moon in the southeastern sky at midnight, Oct. 14, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Mars appears a bit higher each morning in the eastern sky just before sunrise.
Mars very low in the eastern predawn sky, Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Constellation Pegasus
Pegasus is a constellation in the northern sky, named after the winged horse Pegasus in Greek mythology. It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, and is one of the 88 constellations recognised today.
With an apparent magnitude varying between 2.37 and 2.45, the brightest star in Pegasus is the orange supergiant Epsilon Pegasi, also known as Enif, which marks the horse's muzzle. Alpha (Markab), Beta (Scheat), and Gamma (Algenib), together with Alpha Andromedae (Alpheratz, once also designated Delta Pegasi) form the large asterism known as the Square of Pegasus. Twelve star systems have been found to have exoplanets. 51 Pegasi was the first Sun-like star discovered to have an exoplanet companion. - Wikipedia
Continuing with my plan to get students in my after-school club to recognize constellations in the nighttime sky just after sunset, I've moved to the eastern sky where Pegasus should be easy to spot above the Moon on Oct. 13th - look for the "Great Square."
Constellation Pegasus in the eastern sky after sunset on Oct. 13, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The Western artwork for the constellation Pegasus is that of a winged horse.
Constellation Pegasus with (with Western artwork shown) in the eastern sky after sunset on Oct. 13, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
The globular cluster M15 is in Pegasus, just above the horse's snout.
Globular Cluster M15. Credits: NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
The Moon is a waxing gibbous, visible to the southeast in early evening, and up for most of the night.
The full Moon occurs on October 14th, rising at sunset, high in the sky around midnight, and visible all night.
After October 14th, the Moon will be a waning gibbous, rising after sunset, visible high in the sky after midnight, and visible to the southwest after sunrise.
The Moon from Oct. 8-14, 2019. Visualizations by Ernie Wright / NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio.
Moon News
In a request for bids to build a human-rated lunar lander to deliver astronauts to the moon’s south pole in 2024, NASA has dropped requirements for lander reusability and using the planned Gateway mini-space station in lunar orbit. FULL STORY: https://t.co/m5RAK7Fic1 pic.twitter.com/M37FXHZfUg
— Spaceflight Now (@SpaceflightNow) October 8, 2019
That emerging spot from last week got a designation: AR2749, but is near impossible to see in visible light. The active region is moving across the face of the Sun, and is visible in ultraviolet light just below the equator offset from the center of the Sun's face in both images below. The northern coronal hole has remained open and huge for weeks - the southern hole is much less pronounced.
Sun in 193 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Oct. 1, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
[Link to 48-hour video of the Sun in 193 angstroms]
Prominences, prominences everywhere!
Sun in 304 angstroms (extreme ultraviolet) Oct. 1, 2019. Image courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
[Link to 48-hour video of the Sun in 304 angstroms]
The solar wind speed is 385.3 km/sec (↓), with a density of 1.4 protons/cm3 (↑) at 1127 UT.
Animated LASCO C2 Coronograph showing the solar corona above the Sun's limb (the white circle). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
You can view the Sun in near real-time, in multiple frequencies here: SDO-The Sun Now.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
You can create your own time-lapse movies of the Sun here: AIA/HMI Browse Data.
You can browse all the SDO images of the Sun from 2010 to the present here: Browse SDO archive.
Sun News
ICON heads to space on Wednesday evening! Mark your calendar for live ICON coverage on https://t.co/U8T7pZsiWZ. #NASAICON
🛰 Tuesday, Oct. 8, 1pm ET: Tune in for the mission briefing from @NASAKennedy.
🚀 Wednesday, Oct. 9, 9:15pm ET: Join us for coverage of the launch! pic.twitter.com/eeWjJ8Oa0e
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) October 7, 2019
Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT)
|
Miss Distance
|
Velocity (km/s)
|
Diameter (m)
|
| 2019 TU |
2019-Oct-08
|
4.4 LD
|
9.8
|
22
|
| 2019 TW1 |
2019-Oct-08
|
1.5 LD
|
11.7
|
10
|
| 2019 RK |
2019-Oct-08
|
16.7 LD
|
3
|
30
|
| 2019 TC1 |
2019-Oct-08
|
3.5 LD
|
13.1
|
12
|
| 2019 SB6 |
2019-Oct-08
|
7.8 LD
|
7.8
|
16
|
| 2019 TM |
2019-Oct-08
|
9.4 LD
|
12.9
|
38
|
| 2019 TS |
2019-Oct-08
|
8.4 LD
|
7.8
|
29
|
| 2019 TV1 |
2019-Oct-09
|
17.1 LD
|
9
|
23
|
| 2019 TZ |
2019-Oct-09
|
8.1 LD
|
11.6
|
18
|
| 2019 SL7 |
2019-Oct-09
|
1.4 LD
|
17.1
|
22
|
| 2019 SX5 |
2019-Oct-10
|
17.7 LD
|
21.8
|
83
|
| 2019 TN1 |
2019-Oct-12
|
12.9 LD
|
8.6
|
15
|
| 2019 SK8 |
2019-Oct-12
|
10.5 LD
|
8.4
|
21
|
| 2019 SV9 |
2019-Oct-12
|
8.6 LD
|
13.5
|
30
|
| 2019 SE2 |
2019-Oct-12
|
19.2 LD
|
10.2
|
55
|
| 2019 TH2 |
2019-Oct-13
|
9.3 LD
|
7.8
|
19
|
| 2019 TT1 |
2019-Oct-13
|
2.9 LD
|
13.3
|
23
|
| 2019 SR8 |
2019-Oct-16
|
13.5 LD
|
9.8
|
26
|
| 2019 TE2 |
2019-Oct-18
|
8.3 LD
|
10.1
|
27
|
| 2019 TA1 |
2019-Oct-18
|
15.5 LD
|
6.4
|
22
|
| 2019 SJ8 |
2019-Oct-19
|
11.6 LD
|
7.4
|
47
|
| 2019 TQ2 |
2019-Oct-25
|
12.8 LD
|
12.4
|
35
|
| 162082 |
2019-Oct-25
|
16.2 LD
|
11.2
|
589
|
| 2017 TG5 |
2019-Oct-25
|
14.4 LD
|
11.9
|
34
|
| 2019 TR2 |
2019-Oct-29
|
19.4 LD
|
13.9
|
73
|
| 2015 JD1 |
2019-Nov-03
|
12.9 LD
|
11.9
|
269
|
| 2010 JG |
2019-Nov-12
|
19.6 LD
|
14.9
|
235
|
| 481394 |
2019-Nov-21
|
11.3 LD
|
7.9
|
372
|
| 2008 EA9 |
2019-Nov-23
|
10.5 LD
|
2.2
|
10
|
| 2017 AP4 |
2019-Dec-03
|
8.5 LD
|
7.5
|
15
|
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. Red highlighted entries are asteroids that either pass very close, or very large with high relative velocities to the Earth. Table from SpaceWeather.com
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) discovered this month: 64 (-153), this year: 2198 (+110), all time: 21109 (+111)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 828,746 (+5945)
Potentially hazardous asteroids: 2018 (last updated Oct. 1, 2019)
Minor Planets discovered: 828,746 (+5945)
On Oct. 7, 2019, the NASA All Sky Fireball Network reported 12 fireballs.
(12 sporadics)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). From: Spaceweather.com
Fireball News
Still managed to get some meteors last night. Exeter and Bideford cameras pic.twitter.com/B2GfV04bKi
— UK Meteor Network (@UKMeteorNetwork) October 6, 2019
Comet C/2019 Q4
Position of the planets and a couple spacecraft in the inner solar system:
Position of the planets and some spacecraft in the inner solar system, Oct. 8 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a couple bodies in the middle solar system:
Position of the planets in the middle solar system, Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
Position of the planets and a several bodies in the outer solar system:
Position of the planets in the outer solar system, Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley.
90482 Orcus is a trans-neptunian object (TNO) with a very large moon.
Orbits of trans-neptunian object (TNO) 90482 Orcus, Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: JPL Small Body Database.
Last week, I mentioned that I spent rather more time there than I thought playing around in the Pluto system in SpaceEngine.... yeaaaa.... Same thing with the 90482 Orcus system...
Artist's conception of 90482 Orcus (right) and Asteroid Vanth (left) in the year 2019. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
Vanth could be tidally-locked with Orcus, with an orbital period of 9.7 days; the rotation period of 90482 Orcus is unknown.
Artist's conception of Vanth seen from 90482 Orcus in the year 2019. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
As with Pluto's moons, 90482 Orcus' moon Vanth currently orbits at a very steep angle compared to the plane of the ecliptic. However, in 2174 the orbital plane will be flat-on to the plane of the ecliptic, and the two bodies will eclipse each other with each orbit - just like Pluto and Charon will in 2103! (See my last post for images.)
Artist's conception of an eclipse shadow of Vanth on 90482 Orcus in the year 2174. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
As Vanth's shadow crosses 90482 Orcus it creates this bizarre teardrop shape:
Artist's conception of a teardrop eclipse shadow of Vanth on 90482 Orcus in the year 2174. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
At totality, the shadow of 90482 Orcus completely covers the smaller Vanth.
Artist's conception of an eclipse shadow from 90482 Orcus on Vanth in the year 2174. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
In real-time, the eclipse shadows of both these bodies race over the surface of the other:
Artist's conception of an eclipse shadow from 90482 Orcus on the surface of Vanth in the year 2174. Credit: SpaceEngine / Bob Trembley
NASA's Interactive Real-Time Web-based Orrery:
Solar System News
Hidden no more: 60 years ago, the Luna 3 spacecraft returned the first images revealing the far side of the Moon. Today, our @LRO_NASA mission continues to map it in detail. See more: https://t.co/Qj8em4vpt6 pic.twitter.com/VPnw5rTJ8E
— NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem) October 8, 2019
OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission
Evening shadows pour onto Bennu’s surface
Image details: https://t.co/9LKniiybw8 pic.twitter.com/YbOp0SRb6Y
— NASA's OSIRIS-REx (@OSIRISREx) October 7, 2019
Orbit of OSIRIS-REx Oct. 8, 2019. Credit: NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
NASA Climate
Check out our "Earth Minute" whiteboard animation series, which explains Earth science to the science-curious. https://t.co/mvvEbrvXqq
— NASA Climate (@NASAClimate) October 4, 2019
Landsat Wants YOUR Pictures of Clouds
Get ready to share your pictures📸of clouds☁️-- you could be recognized by a @NASA scientist.
Starts Tuesday, October 15th✏️📅
More details and how to join: https://t.co/T7XMFMYDKB
#EarthScienceWeek pic.twitter.com/sjjJU2iRbF— NASA Earth (@NASAEarth) October 4, 2019
Data from the NASA Exoplanet Archive
* Confirmed Planets Discovered by TESS refers to the number planets that have been published in the refereed astronomical literature.
* TESS Project Candidates refers to the total number of transit-like events that appear to be astrophysical in origin, including false positives as identified by the TESS Project.
* TESS Project Candidates Yet To Be Confirmed refers to the number of TESS Project Candidates that have not yet been dispositioned as a Confirmed Planet or False Positive.
2019 Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded to Exoplanet Researchers
Here's the same post on Twitter: [LINK]
Exoplanet Artwork by Bob Trembley: 51 Pegasi b
51 Pegasi b (abbreviated 51 Peg b), unofficially dubbed Bellerophon /bɛˈlɛrəfɒn/, later formally named Dimidium /dɪˈmɪdiəm/, is an extrasolar planet approximately 50 light-years away in the constellation of Pegasus. It was the first exoplanet to be discovered orbiting a main-sequence star, the Sun-like 51 Pegasi, and marked a breakthrough in astronomical research. It is the prototype for a class of planets called hot Jupiters.
In 2017, traces of water were discovered in the planet's atmosphere. - Wikipedia
Artist's concept of exoplanet Dimidium (51 Pegasi b). Credit: SpaceEngine/Bob Trembley
NASA Infographic: Profile of planet 51 Pegasi b
The first exoplanet discovered around a sun-like star, 51 Pegasi b made us question what we knew of our universe and launched the search for new worlds. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
JPL "Visions of the Future" Retro Travel Poster for 51 Pegasi b:
While there is much debate over which exoplanet discovery is considered the "first," one stands out from the rest. In 1995, scientists discovered 51 Pegasi b, forever changing the way we see the universe and our place in it. The exoplanet is about half the mass of Jupiter, with a seemingly impossible, star-hugging orbit of only 4.2 Earth days. Not only was it the first planet confirmed to orbit a sun-like star, it also ushered in a whole new class of planets called Hot Jupiters: hot, massive planets orbiting closer to their stars than Mercury. Today, powerful observatories like NASA's Kepler space telescope will continue the hunt of distant planets. Credit: JPL
"Chesley Bonestell - A Brush With The Future" screens in Champaign Illinois
The space art of Chesley Bonestell was something I loved during my childhood - I wish I could make this showing!
2 DAYS until "Chesley Bonestell" screens at @StaerkelPlanet at @parklandcollege! #Champaign, Illinois residents can buy their tickets 30 minutes before the movie starts. https://t.co/MeXTWh7OtE pic.twitter.com/jdTfYY0sDC
— Chesley Bonestell: A Brush With The Future (@CKBonestell) October 7, 2019
Here's one of my favorites:
Happy #WorldSpaceWeek everybody! When thinking about the origins of space exploration, does Chesley Bonestell come to mind? He was an artist that helped inspire America's #space program with his #spaceart. We made a movie about him! https://t.co/Cf5AeLfHX3
Courtesy Bonestell LLC pic.twitter.com/anr7TSTO7p
— Chesley Bonestell: A Brush With The Future (@CKBonestell) October 7, 2019
Apps used for this post:
NASA Eyes on the Solar System: an immersive 3D solar system and space mission simulator - free for the PC /MAC. I maintain the unofficial NASA Eyes Facebook page.
Stellarium: a free open source planetarium app for PC/MAC/Linux. It's a great tool for planning observing sessions. A web-based version of Stellarium is also available.
Universe Sandbox: a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and material interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. Includes VR support.
SpaceEngine: a free 3D Universe Simulator for Windows. Steam version with VR support available.
Section header image credits:
The Sky - Stellarium/ Bob Trembley
Observing Target - Turn Left at Orion / M. Skirvin
The Moon - NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Sun - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroids - NASA/JPL-Caltech
Fireballs - Credited to YouTube
Comets - Comet P/Halley, March 8, 1986, W. Liller
The Solar System - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Spacecraft News - NASA Eyes on the Solar System / Bob Trembley
Exoplanets - Space Engine / Bob Trembley
The Universe - Universe Today
The 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon was July 20, 2019.
World Space Week Lander on the Mun. Credit: Kerbal Space Program / Bob Trembley
Southeastern Michigan to Have Four ISS Fly-Overs from Oct. 7-10
The International Space Station will be visible four times over southeastern Michigan shortly after sunset from Oct.7-10, 2019.
-
- ISS fly-over southeastern Michigan 8:49pm Oct. 7 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
-
- ISS fly-over southeastern Michigan 8:01pm Oct. 8 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
-
- ISS fly-over southeastern Michigan 8:49pm Oct. 9, 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
-
- ISS fly-over southeastern Michigan 8:00pm Oct. 10 2019. Credit: Stellarium / Bob Trembley
Fly-over info from Heavens-Above.com (from my driveway in Chesterfield, MI):
| Date | Brightness | Start | Highest point | End | Pass type | ||||||
| (mag) | Time | Alt. | Az. | Time | Alt. | Az. | Time | Alt. | Az. | ||
| 07 Oct | -2.6 | 20:46:34 | 10° | WNW | 20:49:38 | 35° | SW | 20:50:12 | 32° | SSW | visible |
| 08 Oct | -3.4 | 19:57:52 | 10° | WNW | 20:01:10 | 62° | SW | 20:03:59 | 13° | SE | visible |
| 09 Oct | -0.9 | 20:47:14 | 10° | W | 20:48:55 | 13° | SW | 20:50:37 | 10° | SSW | visible |
| 10 Oct | -1.5 | 19:57:51 | 10° | W | 20:00:32 | 22° | SW | 20:03:11 | 10° | S | visible |
You can find and chart exact times for several different satellite fly-overs from your location on the Heavens-Above.com website.
ISS News:
.@Astro_Christina and @AstroDrewMorgan successfully wrapped up a seven-hour and one minute spacewalk today beginning the work to upgrade the station's power systems this month. Read more... https://t.co/J1ZplaY8Ex pic.twitter.com/r6M9Zm8zEw
— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) October 6, 2019
‘Hot Jupiter’ Exoplanet Found with 18-Hour Orbit
Astronomers have found an exoplanet that orbits its host star every 18 hours - a new record!
Artist's concept of exoplanet NGTS-10 b and host star (side view, close - star granulation visible, actual scale). Credit: SpaceEngine/Bob Trembley
Exoplanet NGTS-10 b has twice the mass of Jupiter, and orbits so close to its class K6V orange dwarf host star that the star's gravity will flatten the planet into an oblate spheroid. The planet is classified as a "Hot Jupiter" - with the star-facing side of the planet being incandescently bright!
Artist's concept of exoplanet NGTS-10 b. Credit: SpaceEngine/Bob Trembley
Using data from the announcement paper on arXiv.org and The Extrasolar Planet Encyclopaedia, I added the star and exoplanet into SpaceEngine and took some screenshots; I actually spent quite a bit of time fooling around in this system... I took some artistic liberty with the comet-like tail and wide auroras, but I figured being cooked by the star's heat, and blasted by the star's stellar wind will cause the planet's atmosphere to expand WAY out and be blown away, so why not?!
-
- Artist’s concept of exoplanet NGTS-10 b and its host star (side view, far – bright star, actual scale). Credit: SpaceEngine/Bob Trembley
-
- Artist’s concept of the orbit of exoplanet NGTS-10 b – from the planet’s perspective. Credit: SpaceEngine/Bob Trembley
Over 4000 exoplanets have been confirmed as of this writing, and there are thousands more awaiting confirmation. In my weekly "In the Sky" posts, I include exoplanet artwork - I really want to give the impression that these planets orbiting other stars are actual PLACES.
Artist's concept of a cyclone in the atmosphere of exoplanet NGTS-10 b. Credit: SpaceEngine/Bob Trembley
NGTS-10 b orbits it's host star at 1.46 times the Roche radius, beyond which gravitational forces will rip the planet apart - a fate likely to occur to this planet in an estimated 38 million years.
Animation of a moon being torn apart by gravitational forces after having crossed the Roche limit. Credit: BBC - The Planets.
NGTS stands for Next Generation Transit Survey (NGTS):
The primary goal of the NGTS is to search for transiting exoplanets around bright, nearby stars using a technique called transit photometry, which precisely measures the slight dimming of a star’s light when a planet passes in front of it. Recent discoveries of Neptune-sized planets and super-Earths in other planetary systems have revealed that low-mass planets around solar-type stars are very common, but their composition and structure are extraordinarily diverse and remain open areas of study. The NGTS is designed to fill this observation gap between Earth-sized planets and gas giants, by searching for planets with diameters between two and eight times that of Earth. - ESO
Update:
Not being satisfied with playing with NGTS-10 in only one simulator, I created the NGTS-10 system in Universe Sandbox too:
Simulation of exoplanet NGTS-10 b and its host star. Credit: Universe Sandbox/Bob Trembley
I've shared this Universe Sandbox simulation of the NGTS-10 system on Steam: [LINK]
Universe Sandbox can simulate the break-up of bodies that have crossed the Roche limit, so I tweaked the orbit of exoplanet NGTS-10 b in Universe Sandbox until it was just at the point where it started to break-up:
I've shared the break-up simulation of exoplanet NGTS-10 b on Steam: [LINK]