Monday, September 16, 2024

APOD - Mercury's Vivaldi Crater from BepiColombo

Astronomy Picture of the Day

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2024 September 16
The cratered surface of a large body is shown: Mercury.  The largest feature visible is a large impact crater with two  rings, near the image center. Arms from the BepiColumbo   spacecraft that took the image are seen extending into the   image from the top and the right.   Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

Mercury's Vivaldi Crater from BepiColombo
Image Credit: ESA, JAXA, BepiColombo, MTM

Explanation: Why does this large crater on Mercury have two rings and a smooth floor? No one is sure. The unusual feature called Vivaldi Crater spans 215 kilometers and was imaged again in great detail by ESA's and JAXA's robotic BepiColombo spacecraft on a flyby earlier this month. A large circular feature on a rocky planet or moon is usually caused by either an impact by a small asteroid or a comet fragment, or a volcanic eruption. In the case of Vivaldi, it is possible that both occurred -- a heavy strike that caused a smooth internal lava flow. Double-ringed craters are rare, and the cause of the inner rings remains a topic of research. The speed-slowing gravity-assisted flyby of Mercury by BepiColombo was in preparation for the spacecraft entering orbit around the Solar System's innermost planet in 2026.

Tomorrow's picture: dusty heart


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Sunday, September 15, 2024

APOD - Find the Man in the Moon

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2024 September 15
Earth's Moon is shown just beyond a rocky hill. The Moon is  near full phase. On the hill the silhouette of a person looking  through a telescope can be seen. A rollover darkens part of the   Moon that looks to some like a human face.  Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

Find the Man in the Moon
Image Credit & Copyright: Dani Caxete

Explanation: Have you ever seen the Man in the Moon? This common question plays on the ability of humans to see pareidolia -- imagining familiar icons where they don't actually exist. The textured surface of Earth's full Moon is home to numerous identifications of iconic objects, not only in modern western culture but in world folklore throughout history. Examples, typically dependent on the Moon's perceived orientation, include the Woman in the Moon and the Rabbit in the Moon. One facial outline commonly identified as the Man in the Moon starts by imagining the two dark circular areas -- lunar maria -- here just above the Moon's center, to be the eyes. Surprisingly, there actually is a man in this Moon image -- a close look will reveal a real person -- with a telescope -- silhouetted against the Moon. This well-planned image was taken in 2016 in Cadalso de los Vidrios in Madrid, Spain.

Observe the Moon Night: NASA Coverage
Tomorrow's picture: near Mercury


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Saturday, September 14, 2024

[39+] Espace Vert Sérénité - Planets by Alexander Pohl - nerdy-heaven..

24+

APOD - The Moona Lisa

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2024 September 14
See Explanation.  Clicking on the picture will download  the highest resolution version available.

The Moona Lisa
Image Credit & Copyright: Gianni Sarcone and Marcella Giulia Pace

Explanation: Only natural colors of the Moon in planet Earth's sky appear in this creative visual presentation. Arranged as pixels in a framed image, the lunar disks were photographed at different times. Their varying hues are ultimately due to reflected sunlight affected by changing atmospheric conditions and the alignment geometry of Moon, Earth, and Sun. Here, the darkest lunar disks are the colors of earthshine. A description of earthshine, in terms of sunlight reflected by Earth's oceans illuminating the Moon's dark surface, was written over 500 years ago by Leonardo da Vinci. But stand farther back from your screen or just shift your gaze to the smaller versions of the image. You might also see one of da Vinci's most famous works of art.

Tonight: International Observe the Moon Night
Tomorrow's picture: lunar pronouns


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Friday, September 13, 2024

APOD - Aurora Australis and the International Space Station

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2024 September 13
See Explanation.  Clicking on the picture will download  the highest resolution version available.

Aurora Australis and the International Space Station
Image Credit: NASA, ISS Expedition 71

Explanation: This snapshot from the International Space Station was taken on August 11 while orbiting about 430 kilometers above the Indian Ocean, Southern Hemisphere, planet Earth. The spectacular view looks south and east, down toward the planet's horizon and through red and green curtains of aurora australis. The auroral glow is caused by emission from excited oxygen atoms in the extremely rarefied upper atmosphere still present at the level of the orbiting outpost. Green emission from atomic oxygen dominates this scene at altitudes of 100 to 250 kilometers, while red emission from atomic oxygen can extend as high as 500 kilometers altitude. Beyond the glow of these southern lights, this view from low Earth orbit reveals the starry sky from a southern hemisphere perspective. Stars in Orion's belt and the Orion Nebula are near the Earth's limb just left of center. Sirius, alpha star of Canis Major and brightest star in planet Earth's night is above center along the right edge of the southern orbital skyscape.

Looking Up: International Observe the Moon Night
Tomorrow's picture: If the Moon could smile


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Thursday, September 12, 2024

APOD - Young Star Cluster NGC 1333

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2024 September 12
See Explanation.  Clicking on the picture will download  the highest resolution version available.

Young Star Cluster NGC 1333
Image Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, A. Scholz, K. Muzic, A. Langeveld, R. Jayawardhana

Explanation: This spectacular mosaic of images from the James Webb Space Telescope peers into the heart of young star cluster NGC 1333. A mere 1,000 light-years distant toward the heroic constellation Perseus, the nearby star cluster lies at the edge of the large Perseus molecular cloud. Part of Webb's deep exploration of the region to identify low mass brown dwarf stars and free floating planets, the space telescope's combined field of view spans nearly 2 light-years across the dusty cluster's turbulent stellar nursery. In fact, NGC 1333 is known to harbor stars less than a million years old, though most are hidden from optical telescopes by the pervasive stardust. The chaotic environment may be similar to one in which our own Sun formed over 4.5 billion years ago.


Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space


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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
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