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Collection:
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NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Collection
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Alien Asteroid Belt Compared to our Own
Title
Alien Asteroid Belt Compared to our Own
Title
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Original Caption Released with Image:
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Figure 1: Band of Light Comparison
This artist's concept illustrates what the night sky might look like from a hypothetical alien planet in a star system with an asteroid belt 25 times as massive as the one in our own solar system (alien system above, ours below; see Figure 1).
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope found evidence for such a belt around the nearby star called HD 69830, when its infrared eyes spotted dust, presumably from asteroids banging together. The telescope did not find any evidence for a planet in the system, but astronomers speculate one or more may be present.
The movie begins at dusk on the imaginary world, when HD 69830, like our Sun, has begun to set over the horizon. Time is sped up to show the onset of night and the appearance of a brilliant band of light. This light comes from dust in a massive asteroid belt, which scatters sunlight.
In our solar system, anybody observing the skies on a moonless night far from city lights can see the sunlight that is scattered by dust in our asteroid belt. Called zodiacal light and sometimes the "false dawn," this light appears as a dim band stretching up from the horizon when the Sun is about to rise or set. The light is faint enough that the disk of our Milky Way galaxy remains the most prominent feature in the sky. (The Milky Way disk is shown perpendicular to the zodiacal light in both pictures.)
In contrast, the zodiacal light in the HD 69830 system would be 1,000 times brighter than our own, outshining even the Milky Way.
Original_Caption_Rel eased_with_Image
Figure 1: Band of Light Comparison
This artist's concept illustrates what the night sky might look like from a hypothetical alien planet in a star system with an asteroid belt 25 times as massive as the one in our own solar system (alien system above, ours below; see Figure 1).
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope found evidence for such a belt around the nearby star called HD 69830, when its infrared eyes spotted dust, presumably from asteroids banging together. The telescope did not find any evidence for a planet in the system, but astronomers speculate one or more may be present.
The movie begins at dusk on the imaginary world, when HD 69830, like our Sun, has begun to set over the horizon. Time is sped up to show the onset of night and the appearance of a brilliant band of light. This light comes from dust in a massive asteroid belt, which scatters sunlight.
In our solar system, anybody observing the skies on a moonless night far from city lights can see the sunlight that is scattered by dust in our asteroid belt. Called zodiacal light and sometimes the "false dawn," this light appears as a dim band stretching up from the horizon when the Sun is about to rise or set. The light is faint enough that the disk of our Milky Way galaxy remains the most prominent feature in the sky. (The Milky Way disk is shown perpendicular to the zodiacal light in both pictures.)
In contrast, the zodiacal light in the HD 69830 system would be 1,000 times brighter than our own, outshining even the Milky Way.
Original Caption Released with Image
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note:
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Alien Asteroid Belt Compared to our Own [ http //photojournal.jpl.n asa.gov/animation/PI A07853 ]
Click on graphic to obtain download options
note
Alien Asteroid Belt Compared to our Own [ http //photojournal.jpl.n asa.gov/animation/PI A07853 ]
Click on graphic to obtain download options
note
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Image Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech
Image_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech
Image Credit
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Produced By:
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California Institute of Technology
Produced_By
California Institute of Technology
Produced By
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Mission:
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Spitzer Space Telescope (SST)
Mission
Spitzer Space Telescope (SST)
Mission
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Spacecraft:
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Spitzer Space Telescope (SST)
Spacecraft
Spitzer Space Telescope (SST)
Spacecraft
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Target Name:
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HD 69830
Target_Name
HD 69830
Target Name
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Product Size:
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3200 samples x 2400 lines
Product_Size
3200 samples x 2400 lines
Product Size
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facet_what:
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Sun
facet_what
Sun
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Dawn
facet_what
Dawn
facet_what
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facet_what:
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SST
facet_what
SST
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
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facet_where:
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California
facet_where
California
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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Image #:
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PIA07853
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UID:
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SPD-PHOTJ-PIA07853
UID
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA07853
UID
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orignial url:
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orignial_url
orignial url
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