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Dawn and Moon of Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
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Phoebe's Radiation
| Description |
Phoebe's Radiation |
| Full Description |
This image shows thermal radiation from the day and night sides of Saturn's moon Phoebe, taken by the composite infrared spectrometer onboard Cassini 1.8 hours before the spacecraft's closest approach to Phoebe on June 11, 2004. The left-hand panel displays the image in grayscale format, showing the brightness of Phoebe's radiation in the wavelength range 15-17 microns, which is about 25 times the longest wavelength visible to the naked eye. In the middle panel this brightness is used to estimate the surface temperature distribution across Phoebe. Temperatures are given in degrees Kelvin, and vary from a relatively toasty 107 Kelvin (-267 Fahrenheit), in the late morning near the equator (white, lower right), to less than 75 Kelvin (-324 Fahrenheit) in the northern hemisphere in the pre-dawn hours (dark blue, upper left). The "ragged edge" of Phoebe in this region is an instrumental artifact. Temperatures are affected strongly by topography, as can be seen by comparison with the visible-wavelength image (right). Some of the coldest temperatures are found in the shadowed region inside the large depression in the northern hemisphere (upper right). The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The composite infrared spectrometer team is based at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission, visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and the Cassini composite infrared spectrometer home page at http://cirs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ . Image Credit: NASA/JPL/Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Phoebe Temperature Maps
| Description |
Phoebe Temperature Maps |
| Full Description |
A montage of maps of Saturn's moon Phoebe shows surface temperatures at various times of day as determined by the composite infrared spectrometer onboard Cassini during the June 11, 2004, Phoebe flyby. The asterisk on each map shows the location of the subsolar point, where the Sun is directly overhead. This point moves across the surface as Phoebe rotates. It is morning in regions to the left of the subsolar point, and afternoon in regions to the right. Like a newspaper weather map, different colors indicate different temperatures, though Phoebe's temperatures are distinctly cooler than even the coldest January day on Earth. Equatorial temperatures peak in the early afternoon near 112 Kelvin (-257 Fahrenheit), plunging to 78 Kelvin (-319 Fahrenheit) before dawn, and are even colder at higher latitudes. The large day/night temperature contrasts imply that Phoebe's surface is covered in loose dust or ice particles that store little heat and thus cool off rapidly at night. Regions of Phoebe's surface that were not observed are shown in black. Most of the maps show the effect on surface temperatures of the large crater-like depression seen in Cassini's visible-wavelength images of Phoebe, which is located just left of center in these maps. Crater walls that are shadowed and cold in the early morning in the first map are sunlit and warm in the late afternoon in the final map. The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The composite infrared spectrometer team is based at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission, visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and the Cassini composite infrared spectrometer home page at http://cirs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ . Image Credit: NASA/JPL/Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Total solar eclipse over Ant
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| Title |
Total solar eclipse over Antarctica |
| Description |
The moon cast a long shadow over Antarctica on November 23, 2003, in a total solar eclipse. The sun typically hangs low on the horizon during the southernmost continent's almost-summer months, so when the Moon moved between the Sun and the Earth, its shadow fell in a roughly 500-kilometer long oval like the long shadows of a early summer dawn. At the time this image was taken, the sun was at approximately 15 degrees above the horizon. The shadow's long circular shape is the same pattern a flashlight casts an the floor when held at a similar angle. The moon's shadow has two parts: the fuzzy outer shadow, the penumbra, and the dark inner shadow, the umbra. Within the umbra, the sun is completely blocked. A person standing on the ground sees a glowing black disk in front of the sun?the disk is the moon, and the glow is the sun's corona. In the penumbra, the ground observer sees the moon covering part of the sun. Both the penumbra and the umbra are visible in this true-color image. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image of the eclipse between 23:15 and 23:20 UTC. The Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured a similar image [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2003327-1123/Antarctica.A2003327.2255 ] of the eclipse. The eclipse started at 22:08 UTC, and the shadow passed from the surface of the earth a little over an hour later at 23:20 UTC. The sun's light was completely blocked at 22:49 for one minute and 55 seconds. At the time this image was taken, the sun was just rising over Antarctica, tinting the mountains a delicate pink, even within the shadow of the eclipse. Beyond the dark upper left corner, the sun has not yet driven away night's darkness. The bluish tones of the snow reveal how Antarctica appears from space without atmospheric correction. The shadow covers Queen Maud Land, Antarctica, with its tip pointing towards Africa. The South Pole is just beyond the right corner of the image. The moon is not the only thing throwing shadows across the landscape in this image. On the top left, the Pensacola Mountains make long horizontal shadows on the ice. Patches of low cloud along the left side of the umbra are also leaving a dark smudge on the surface. This image is available in multiple resolutions [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2003327-1123/Antarctica2.A2003327.2320 ]. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC |
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Total solar eclipse over Ant
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| Title |
Total solar eclipse over Antarctica |
| Description |
The moon cast a long shadow over Antarctica on November 23, 2003, in a total solar eclipse. The sun typically hangs low on the horizon during the southernmost continent's almost-summer months, so when the Moon moved between the Sun and the Earth, its shadow fell in a roughly 500-kilometer long oval like the long shadows of a early summer dawn. At the time this image was taken, the sun was at approximately 15 degrees above the horizon. The shadow's long circular shape is the same pattern a flashlight casts an the floor when held at a similar angle. The moon's shadow has two parts: the fuzzy outer shadow, the penumbra, and the dark inner shadow, the umbra. Within the umbra, the sun is completely blocked. A person standing on the ground sees a glowing black disk in front of the sun?the disk is the moon, and the glow is the sun's corona. In the penumbra, the ground observer sees the moon covering part of the sun. Both the penumbra and the umbra are visible in this true-color image. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image of the eclipse between 23:15 and 23:20 UTC. The Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured a similar image [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2003327-1123/Antarctica.A2003327.2255 ] of the eclipse. The eclipse started at 22:08 UTC, and the shadow passed from the surface of the earth a little over an hour later at 23:20 UTC. The sun's light was completely blocked at 22:49 for one minute and 55 seconds. At the time this image was taken, the sun was just rising over Antarctica, tinting the mountains a delicate pink, even within the shadow of the eclipse. Beyond the dark upper left corner, the sun has not yet driven away night's darkness. The bluish tones of the snow reveal how Antarctica appears from space without atmospheric correction. The shadow covers Queen Maud Land, Antarctica, with its tip pointing towards Africa. The South Pole is just beyond the right corner of the image. The moon is not the only thing throwing shadows across the landscape in this image. On the top left, the Pensacola Mountains make long horizontal shadows on the ice. Patches of low cloud along the left side of the umbra are also leaving a dark smudge on the surface. This image is available in multiple resolutions [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2003327-1123/Antarctica2.A2003327.2320 ]. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC |
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Sky and Planets
| Title |
Sky and Planets |
| Explanation |
On February 10th, an evocative [ http://www.jps.net/ssumner/ ] evening sky above Rocklin, California, USA inspired astrophotographer Steve Sumner to record this remarkable sight - five planets and the Moon. Near its first quarter phase, the bright Moon [ http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov/ ] was intentionally overexposed but Saturn [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini/ ], Jupiter [ http://galileo.jpl.nasa.gov/ ], Mars [ http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/ ], and Mercury [ http://sd-www.jhuapl.edu/MESSENGER/ ] (and, of course, planet Earth's [ http://www.earth.nasa.gov/ ] horizon) are all clearly visible in the deepening twilight. Notably absent in this grouping of naked-eye planets is Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ] which is still putting in an early appearance as the morning star [ http://ispec.scibernet.com/station/morn_star.html ]. This month, Mercury has joined Venus in the dawn twilight while Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars still shine brightly in the western sky at nightfall [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/sights.shtml ] making another gorgeous close grouping with the crescent Moon [ http://www.inconstantmoon.com/ ]. |
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Messier Marathon
| Title |
Messier Marathon |
| Explanation |
Gripped by an astronomical spring fever [ http://www.zzotto.com/rfc/CFTrip.htm ], it's once again time for many amateur stargazers to embark on a Messier Marathon [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/marathon.html ]! The Vernal Equinox [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960922.html ] occurs March 20, marking the first day of Spring for the Northern Hemisphere. It also marks a favorable celestial situation [ http://www.reflector.org/MESSIER.HTM ] for potentially viewing all the objects in 18th century French astronomer Charles Messier's catalog [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/biograph.html ] in one glorious dusk to dawn [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/hall.html ] observing run. This year [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/mm2000.html ] a bright full moon will interfere with dark skies near the actual equinox, so good nights near new moon for weekend marathoners are March 11/12 and April 1/2. (As an added bonus all the planets [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000310.html ] in the solar system can be viewed on these dates.) Astronomer Paul Gitto has created this masterful Messier Marathon [ http://www.cometman.com/messier.html ] grid with 11 rows and 10 columns of Messier catalog objects [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/m-cat.html ]. In numerical order, the grid begins with M1, the Crab Nebula, [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960626.html ] at upper left and [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m102.html ] ends with M110 [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m110.html ], a small elliptical galaxy in Andromeda (lower right). Gitto's images were made with a digital camera and a 10-inch diameter reflecting telescope. |
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Moon And Venus Share The Sky
| Title |
Moon And Venus Share The Sky |
| Explanation |
July is drawing to a close and in the past few days, some early morning risers [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990714.html ] could have looked east and seen a crescent Moon sharing the pre-dawn [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast25jul_1m.htm ] skies with planets Jupiter and Saturn. Planet Mercury will also pass about 2 degrees from the thin waning crescent Moon [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/faq/docs/moon_phases.html ] just before sunrise near the eastern horizon on Saturday, July 29. And finally, on the evening of July 31st, Venus will take its turn near the crescent Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991108.html ]. But this time it will be a day-old crescent Moon near the western horizon, shortly after sunset [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000507.html ]. In fact [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/JoeAlmanac2000.html ], on July 31 (August 1 Universal Time) the Moon will occult [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/occultations/lunar/ 0001lunarocc.html ] (pass in front of) Venus for northwestern observers [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/images2000/ 0008moonvenus_big.jpg ] in North America. This telescopic picture taken on 31 December 1997, shows a lovely young crescent Moon and brilliant crescent Venus in [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ] the early evening sky near Bursa, Turkey [ http://www.mersina.com/Turkey/Marmara/Bursa/index.html ]. And what about the Sun? On Sunday, July 30, a partial eclipse of the Sun [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/extra/ PSE2000Jul31.html ] will be visible from some locations [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/ PSE2000Jul.gif ] in North America. |
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A Perseid Meteor
| Title |
A Perseid Meteor |
| Explanation |
This weekend, the annual Perseid Meteor Shower [ http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast08aug_1.htm ] reaches its maximum. Grains of cosmic sand and gravel shed from Comet Swift-Tuttle [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960219.html ] will streak across the sky as they vaporize during entry into Earth's atmosphere [ http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/space/atmosphere.html ]. The Perseids [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960809.html ] result from the yearly crossing of the Earth through Comet Swift-Tuttle's orbit. The Perseids [ http://comets.amsmeteors.org/meteors/showers/ perseids.html ] are typically the most active meteor shower [ http://www.imo.net/index.html ] of the year. In a clear dark sky, an observer might see a meteor a minute near peak times [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991124.html ], but this year a bright moon will overwhelm the glow from many perseid meteors until moonset [ http://tycho.usno.navy.mil/srss.html ] in the early morning hours. Pictured above [ http://aibn47.astro.uni-bonn.de/~gallery/atmosphere/perseide.html ] is a Perseid meteor from 1993. The colors are representative but digitally enhanced. As the meteor [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/meteorites.html ] streaked across the night sky, different excited atoms emitted different colors of light. The origin of the green tinge visible at the right is currently unknown, however, and might result from oxygen [ http://pearl1.lanl.gov/periodic/elements/8.html ] in Earth's atmosphere. Perseid meteors can best be seen from a relaxing position, away from lights, just before the dawn twilight. |
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NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom
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| Title |
NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula |
| Explanation |
Ten thousand years ago, before the dawn of recorded human history [ http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_334000/334517.stm ], a new light must suddenly have appeared in the night sky and faded after a few weeks. Today we know this light was an exploding star [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/know_l1/supernovae.html ] and record the colorful expanding cloud as the Veil Nebula [ http://nineplanets.org/twn/cygnusx.html ]. Pictured above [ http://robgendler.astrodigitals.com/Nebulas.html ] is the west end of the Veil Nebula [ http://www.astropix.com/HTML/E_SUM_N/VEIL.HTM ] known technically as NGC [ http://www.ngcic.com/dss/dss_images.htm ] 6960 but less formally as the Witch's Broom Nebula. The rampaging gas gains its colors by impacting and exciting existing [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960307.html ] nearby gas. The supernova remnant [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/supernova_remnants.html ] lies about 1400 light-years away towards the constellation of Cygnus [ http://www.multimania.com/cdadfs/constellation/cygne/cygnus.htm ]. This Witch's Broom actually spans over three times the angular size of the full Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/moon.html ]. The bright blue star 52 Cygnus [ http://www.seds.org/Maps/Stars_en/Fig/cygnus.html ] is visible with the unaided eye from a dark location but unrelated to the ancient supernova [ http://www.chapman.edu/oca/benet/intro_sn.htm ]. |
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Minotaur Dawn
| Title |
Minotaur Dawn |
| Explanation |
Last Saturday [ http://www.wff.nasa.gov/news/story96.html ], some colorful dawn skies along the US east coast featured the Moon and a Minotaur rocket climbing [ http://www.sungazer.net/minotaur.html ] into low Earth orbit. The 7AM launch [ http://www.launchphotography.com/Minotaur_TacSat.html ] of the four stage Air Force Minotaur I rocket [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minotaur_rocket ] took place at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility [ http://www.wff.nasa.gov/index.html ] on Virginia's eastern shore. Looking east, the rocket is visible beyond the top of the twisting exhaust plume in this wide angle view, with the waning crescent Moon at the upper right. The snapshot was taken from Alexandria, Virginia, some 100 miles northwest of Wallops Island. Orbital launches [ http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/en/kids/ds1_mgr.shtml ] from Wallops have so far been relatively rare, the last two taking place in 1995 and 1985. As a result, many early morning risers reported the unusual spectacle. The rocket's payload was the Air Force Research Laboratory's TacSat-2 [ http://www.wff.nasa.gov/tacsat2/ ] satellite and NASA's GeneSat-1 [ http://tia.arc.nasa.gov/genesat1/ ] microsatellite. |
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NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom
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| Title |
NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula |
| Explanation |
Ten thousand years ago, before the dawn of recorded human history [ http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_334000/334517.stm ], a new light must suddenly have appeared in the night sky and faded after a few weeks. Today we know this light was an exploding star [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/know_l1/supernovae.html ] and record the colorful expanding cloud as the Veil Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010928.html ]. Pictured above [ http://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/html/im0852.html ] is the west end of the Veil Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030204.html ] known technically as NGC [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_General_Catalog ] 6960 but less formally as the Witch [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061211.html ]'s Broom [ http://www.broomshop.com/history/ ] Nebula. The rampaging gas gains its colors by impacting and exciting existing [ http://www.seds.org/billa/twn/cygnusx.html ] nearby gas. The supernova remnant [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/supernova_remnants.html ] lies about 1400 light-years [ http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/questions/question19.html ] away towards the constellation of Cygnus [ http://www.multimania.com/cdadfs/constellation/cygne/cygnus.htm ]. This Witch's Broom actually spans over three times the angular size [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/YBA/HTCas-size/more-ang_size.html ] of the full Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030810.html ]. The bright star 52 Cygnus [ http://www.seds.org/Maps/Stars_en/Fig/cygnus.html ] is visible with the unaided eye from a dark location but unrelated to the ancient supernova [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova ]. |
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Shepard Flies Freedom 7
| Title |
Shepard Flies Freedom 7 |
| Explanation |
Forty years ago today (May 5, 1961 [ http://www.thespaceplace.com/history/mercury/ mercury03.html ]), at the dawn of the space age [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/ index.html ], NASA controllers "lit the candle" and sent Alan Shepard arcing into space atop a Redstone rocket [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980404.html ]. The picture shows the pressure-suited Shepard before launch in his cramped space capsule [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/diagrams/ mercury.html ] dubbed "Freedom 7" [ http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/images/pao/MR3/ 10073523.htm ]. Broadcast live to a global television audience, the flight of Freedom 7 [ http://www.nasm.edu/galleries/attm/nojs/rm.ey.f7.1.html ] - the first space flight by an American - followed less than a month after the first human venture into space by Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010414.html ]. Freedom 7's historic flight [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/40thmerc7/ intro.htm ] was suborbital, lasting only about 15 minutes, but during it Shepard demonstrated manual control of his capsule. Naval aviator [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/40thmerc7/ shepard.htm ] Shepard was chosen as one of the original seven Mercury Program [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4201/ toc.htm ] astronauts. He considered this first flight [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4201/ch11-4.htm ] the greatest challenge and actively sought the assignment. Shepard's career as an astronaut spanned a remarkable period in human achievement and in 1971 he walked on the moon [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/a14/ a14.crew.html ] as commander of the Apollo 14 mission. A true pioneer and intrepid explorer, Alan Shepard died in 1998 [ http://www.nasa.gov/shepard.html ] at age 74. |
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Moon, Mars, Venus, and Spica
| Title |
Moon, Mars, Venus, and Spica |
| Explanation |
Gliding toward today's total eclipse [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/ eclipse/TSE2002/TSE2002.html ] of the Sun, the crescent Moon has been rising early, just before dawn. And as a prelude to its close solar alignment [ http://www.mreclipse.com/ Special/SEprimer.html ], the Moon also completed a lovely celestial triangle, closing with bright planets Mars and Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020524.html ] on the morning of December 1. While [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap021203.html ] the total solar eclipse can only [ http://profjohn.com/el/el2002/index.html ] be seen [ http://www.csiro.au/helix/eclipse/ ] from a [ http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/solar_eclipse_2002/ ] narrow corridor, skygazers around the globe could appreciate this [ http://www.spaceweather.com/planets/ gallery_01dec02.html ] lunar-planetary conjunction. This view is from near Nashville Tennessee, USA, and finds brilliant Venus at the lowest corner of the triangle with a much fainter Mars immediately to the right of the Moon. The Moon's sunlit crescent is overexposed, but details of the lunar night side are revealed by earthshine [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020419.html ]. Above and to the right of the trio is Spica [ http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/ hr/5056.html ], brightest star in the constellation Virgo. |
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NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom
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| Title |
NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula |
| Explanation |
Ten thousand years ago, before the dawn of recorded human history [ http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_334000/334517.stm ], a new light must suddenly have appeared in the night sky and faded after a few weeks. Today we know this light was an exploding star [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/know_l1/supernovae.html ] and record the colorful expanding cloud as the Veil Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010928.html ]. Pictured above [ http://starryscapes.com/nebula/ngc6960.html ] is the west end of the Veil Nebula [ http://www.astropix.com/HTML/E_SUM_N/VEIL.HTM ] known technically as NGC [ http://www.ngcic.com/dss/dss_images.htm ] 6960 but less formally as the Witch's Broom Nebula. The rampaging gas gains its colors by impacting and exciting existing [ http://www.seds.org/billa/twn/cygnusx.html ] nearby gas. The supernova remnant [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/supernova_remnants.html ] lies about 1400 light-years [ http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/questions/question19.html ] away towards the constellation of Cygnus [ http://www.multimania.com/cdadfs/constellation/cygne/cygnus.htm ]. This Witch's Broom actually spans over three times the angular size [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/YBA/HTCas-size/more-ang_size.html ] of the full Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/moon.html ]. The bright blue star 52 Cygnus [ http://www.seds.org/Maps/Stars_en/Fig/cygnus.html ] is visible with the unaided eye from a dark location but unrelated to the ancient supernova [ http://www.chapman.edu/oca/benet/intro_sn.htm ]. |
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Wisps of the Veil Nebula
| Title |
Wisps of the Veil Nebula |
| Explanation |
These wisps of gas are all that remain visible of a Milky Way [ http://www.seds.org/messier/more/mw.html ] star. Many thousands of years ago that star exploded in a supernova [ http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/snr.html ] leaving the Veil Nebula [ http://www.skyhound.com/sh/archive/aug1/NGC_6960.html ], pictured above [ http://www.astropix.com/HTML/E_SUM_N/VEIL.HTM ]. At the time, the expanding cloud [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010928.html ] was likely as bright as a crescent Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010218.html ] toward the constellation [ http://www.dibonsmith.com/constel.htm ] of Cygnus [ http://www.dibonsmith.com/cyg_con.htm ], visible for weeks to people living at the dawn of recorded history [ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/334517.stm ]. The remaining supernova remnant [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/supernova_remnants.html ] lies about 1400 light-years [ http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/cosmic_distance.html ] away and covers over five times the size of the full Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020316.html ]. The bright wisp on the right is known as the Witch's Broom Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030101.html ] and can be seen with a small telescope. The Veil Nebula [ http://www.lfc.edu/~daidoje/ ] is also known as the Cygnus Loop [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010623.html ]. |
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Eclipse in the Mist
| Title |
Eclipse in the Mist |
| Explanation |
The Sun and Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010907.html ] rose together over much of Europe on the morning of May 31st [ http://www.xs4all.nl/~carlkop/zoneclips/eclipse.html ] with the first solar eclipse of 2003 already in progress. And while sightings of the full annular phase of the eclipse were restricted to far northern [ http://eclipse.span.ch/2003ase.htm ] regions, early morning risers were still treated to inspiring views [ http://astrosurf.com/avex/eclipse.html ] of two celestial bodies which are most important to life [ http://www.astronomytoday.com/astronomy/ earthmoon.html ] on planet Earth. Following the dawn's spectacle from Charneux, Belgium, astrophotographer Olivier Meeckers recorded this evocative image of the partially eclipsed Sun rising above a primeval apparition of mists and trees [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap021122.html ]. Last month was indeed a rewarding one for eclipse watchers [ http://www.eurospacecenter.be/eclipses2003.htm ] as May's full Moon and (second) new Moon lined up for their respective lunar [ http://www.spaceweather.com/eclipses/ gallery_15may03.html ] and solar [ http://www.spaceweather.com/eclipses/ gallery_31may03.html ] eclipses. November 2003 [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/ OH2003.html ] will also host both a total lunar and total solar eclipse [ http://www.earthview.com/tutorial/causes.htm ]. |
|
NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom
…
| Title |
NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula |
| Explanation |
Ten thousand years ago, before the dawn of recorded human history [ http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_334000/334517.stm ], a new light must suddenly have appeared in the night sky and faded after a few weeks. Today we know this light was an exploding star [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/know_l1/supernovae.html ] and record the colorful expanding cloud as the Veil Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010928.html ]. Pictured above [ http://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/html/im0852.html ] is the west end of the Veil Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030204.html ] known technically as NGC [ http://www.ngcic.com/dss/dss_images.htm ] 6960 but less formally as the Witch [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031229.html ]'s Broom [ http://www.broomshop.com/history/ ] Nebula. The rampaging gas gains its colors by impacting and exciting existing [ http://www.seds.org/billa/twn/cygnusx.html ] nearby gas. The supernova remnant [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/supernova_remnants.html ] lies about 1400 light-years [ http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/questions/question19.html ] away towards the constellation of Cygnus [ http://www.multimania.com/cdadfs/constellation/cygne/cygnus.htm ]. This Witch's Broom actually spans over three times the angular size [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/YBA/HTCas-size/more-ang_size.html ] of the full Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030810.html ]. The bright star 52 Cygnus [ http://www.seds.org/Maps/Stars_en/Fig/cygnus.html ] is visible with the unaided eye from a dark location but unrelated to the ancient supernova [ http://www.chapman.edu/oca/benet/intro_sn.htm ]. |
|
Good Morning Sydney
| Title |
Good Morning Sydney |
| Explanation |
Rising before dawn on May 5th, Stephen Thorley looked out [ http://www.asnsw.com/info/index.html ] across the skyline of Sydney, Australia [ http://www.nla.gov.au/ ]. And while a leisurely lunar eclipse [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040506.html ] was clearly in progress, from his vantage point [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2003/ 04nov_lunareclipse2105.htm ] on planet Earth the Moon set as the total phase [ http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/eclipses/ article_1219_1.asp ] of the eclipse began. Still, before the setting Moon was hidden by the cityscape he captured this striking image of a nearly eclipsed lunar disk sliding [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030515.html ] past the beacon and lights of Centerpoint Tower [ http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an23301253 ], one of Sydney's familiar landmarks. So what's that star just visible above and to the right of the reddened Moon? That's Zubenelgenubi [ http://www.astro.uiuc.edu/~kaler/sow/ zubenel.html ], of course. |
|
Alan B. Shepard Jr. 1923-199
…
| Title |
Alan B. Shepard Jr. 1923-1998 |
| Explanation |
On another Friday (May 5, 1961), at the dawn of the space age [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/index.html ], NASA controllers "lit the candle" and sent Alan B. Shepard Jr. arcing into space atop a Redstone rocket [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980404.html ]. The picture shows the pressure-suited Shepard before the launch in his cramped space capsule [ http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/images/pao/MERC_OV/10073402.htm ] dubbed "Freedom 7" [ http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/images/pao/MR3/10073523.htm ]. This historic flight [ http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/history/mercury/mr-3/mr-3.html ] - the first spaceflight by an American - made Shepard a national hero [ http://www.nasm.edu/GALLERIES/GAL114/SpaceRace/ ]. Born in East Derry, New Hampshire on November 18, 1923, Shepard graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1944 and went on to train and serve as a Naval Aviator. Chosen as one of the original seven Mercury Program [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4201/toc.htm ] astronauts, he considered this first flight [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4201/ch11-4.htm ] the greatest challenge and actively sought the assignment. Shepard's accomplishments in his career as an astronaut spanned a remarkable period in human achievement and in 1972 he walked on the moon [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/ ] as commander of the Apollo 14 mission. A true pioneer and intrepid explorer, Alan Shepard died Tuesday [ http://www.nasa.gov/shepard.html ] at age 74 after a lengthy illness. |
|
Shadow Set
| Title |
Shadow Set |
| Explanation |
A nearly full Moon [ http://www.inconstantmoon.com/ ] and planet Earth's [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030424.html ] shadow set together in this scene captured Monday from snowy Mt. Jelm, home of the Wyoming Infrared Observatory [ http://faraday.uwyo.edu/observatories/wiro/ ]. For early morning risers (and late to bed astronomers [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030313.html ]), shadow set in the western sky is a daily apparition [ http://webexhibits.org/causesofcolor/14E.html ] whose subtle beauty is often overlooked in favor of the more colorful eastern horizon. Extending through [ http://www.sundog.clara.co.uk/atoptics/ earshad.htm ] the dense atmosphere, Earth's setting shadow is seen [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030822.html ] in this picture as a dark blue band along the distant horizon, bounded above by a pinkish glow or antitwilight [ http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/ glossary/search?id=antitwilight-arch1 ] arch. Also known as the Belt of Venus, the arch's lovely color [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/joemoon/ MoonPlanets_040206_34.html ] is due to backscattering of reddened light from the rising Sun. The setting Moon's light is also reddened [ http://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/ blue_sky.html ] by the long sight-line through the atmosphere and echoes the dawn sky's yellow-orange hues [ http://webexhibits.org/ causesofcolor/14B.html ]. |
|
Messier Marathon
| Title |
Messier Marathon |
| Explanation |
Gripped by an astronomical spring fever [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/marathon.html ], this week many amateur stargazers embark on a Messier Marathon [ http://www.reflector.org/MESSIER.HTM ]. The Vernal Equinox [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960922.html ] occurs Saturday, March 20, marking the first day of Spring for the Northern Hemisphere. It also marks a favorable celestial situation for potentially viewing all the objects in 18th century French astronomer Charles Messier's catalog [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/biograph.html ] in one glorious dusk to dawn [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/results.html ] observing run. This year, interference from bright moonlight will be minimal as the the moon is near its dark or new phase. Astronomer Paul Gitto has created this masterful Messier Marathon [ http://www.cometman.com/messier.html ] grid with 11 rows and 10 columns of Messier catalog objects [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/m-cat.html ]. In numerical order, the grid begins with M1, the Crab Nebula, [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960626.html ] at upper left and ends with M110 [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m110.html ], a small elliptical galaxy in Andromeda (lower right). Gitto's images were made with a digital camera and a 10-inch diameter reflecting telescope. |
|
Moon, Planets, and Rocket Tr
…
| Title |
Moon, Planets, and Rocket Trails |
| Explanation |
Are you an early riser [ http://redfrog.norconnect.no/~poems/poems/09560.html ]? Over the last month or so, the bright planets [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990325.html ] Jupiter and Saturn have come to adorn eastern skies before sunrise [ http://redfrog.norconnect.no/~poems/poems/17572.html ]. In fact, astrophotographer Joe Orman [ http://home.cwix.com/~pam.orman@cwix.com/JoeGallery.html ] anticipated that an early bird's reward for looking east on June 10 would be this pleasing arrangement of Jupiter (top right), a crescent Moon, and Saturn (near center), but he was surprised to also find these eerie, iridescent clouds wafting through the pre-dawn sky over suburban Phoenix, Arizona, USA. The clouds turned out to be rocket [ http://www-istp.gsfc.nasa.gov/stargaze/Srockhis.htm ] engine [ http://www.wff.nasa.gov/ ] trails [ ftp://pao.gsfc.nasa.gov/pub/PAO/Releases/1999/W99-013.htm ] from defense missile tests at the range in White Sands [ http://ruidoso.net/chamber/outdoors/whitesan.html ], New Mexico ... about 300 miles away. While the Moon's phase [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/data/docs/MoonPhase.html#ninetynine ] is just past new moon [ http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov/history/mythologyh.html ], gone now from the pre-dawn horizon, brilliant Jupiter [ http://galileo.ivv.nasa.gov/ ] and Saturn [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini/ ] can still be seen high toward the southeast in the constellation [ http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/extra/ constellations.html ] Aries. |
|
The Veil Nebula Unveiled
| Title |
The Veil Nebula Unveiled |
| Explanation |
These wisps of gas are all that remain visible of a Milky Way [ http://www.seds.org/messier/more/mw.html ] star. Many thousands of years ago that star exploded in a supernova [ http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/snr.html ] leaving the Veil Nebula [ http://www.skyhound.com/sh/archive/aug1/NGC_6960.html ], pictured above [ http://www.leif.org/mikael/veil.html ]. At the time, the expanding cloud [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010928.html ] was likely as bright as a crescent Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap051113.html ] toward the constellation [ http://www.dibonsmith.com/constel.htm ] of Cygnus [ http://www.dibonsmith.com/cyg_con.htm ], visible for weeks to people living at the dawn of recorded history [ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/334517.stm ]. The supernova remnant [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/supernova_remnants.html ] lies about 1400 light-years [ http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/cosmic_distance.html ] away and covers over five times the size of the full Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020316.html ]. The above image [ http://www.leif.org/mikael/veil.html ] of the Veil [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veil ] was made clearer by digitally dimming stars in the frame. The bright wisp at the top is known as the Witch's Broom Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030101.html ] and can be seen with a small telescope. The Veil Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/ apod_search?veil+nebula ] is also known as the Cygnus Loop [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010623.html ]. |
|
Total solar eclipse over Ant
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
The moon cast a long shadow
…
Eclipse2.AMO2003327
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2003-11-23 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Eclipse2.AMO2003327 |
|
Total solar eclipse over Ant
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
The moon cast a long shadow
…
Eclipse2.AMO2003327
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2003-11-23 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Eclipse2.AMO2003327 |
|
Phoebe Temperature Maps
PIA06403
Saturn
Composite Infrared Spectrome
…
| Title |
Phoebe Temperature Maps |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
A montage of maps of Saturn's moon Phoebe shows surface temperatures at various times of day as determined by the composite infrared spectrometer onboard Cassini during the June 11, 2004, Phoebe flyby. The asterisk on each map shows the location of the subsolar point, where the Sun is directly overhead. This point moves across the surface as Phoebe rotates. It is morning in regions to the left of the subsolar point, and afternoon in regions to the right. Like a newspaper weather map, different colors indicate different temperatures, though Phoebe's temperatures are distinctly cooler than even the coldest January day on Earth. Equatorial temperatures peak in the early afternoon near 112 Kelvin (-257 Fahrenheit), plunging to 78 Kelvin (-319 Fahrenheit) before dawn, and are even colder at higher latitudes. The large day/night temperature contrasts imply that Phoebe's surface is covered in loose dust or ice particles that store little heat and thus cool off rapidly at night. Regions of Phoebe's surface that were not observed are shown in black. Most of the maps show the effect on surface temperatures of the large crater-like depression seen in Cassini's visible-wavelength images of Phoebe, which is located just left of center in these maps. Crater walls that are shadowed and cold in the early morning in the first map are sunlit and warm in the late afternoon in the final map. The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The composite infrared spectrometer team is based at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. For more information, about the Cassini-Huygens mission visit, http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov [ http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] and the Cassini imaging team home page, http//cirs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ [ http://cirs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]. |
|
Phoebe's Radiation
PIA06402
Saturn
Composite Infrared Spectrome
…
| Title |
Phoebe's Radiation |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
This image shows thermal radiation from the day and night sides of Saturn's moon Phoebe, taken by the composite infrared spectrometer onboard Cassini 1.8 hours before the spacecraft's closest approach to Phoebe on June 11, 2004. The left-hand panel displays the image in grayscale format, showing the brightness of Phoebe's radiation in the wavelength range 15-17 microns, which is about 25 times the longest wavelength visible to the naked eye. In the middle panel this brightness is used to estimate the surface temperature distribution across Phoebe. Temperatures are given in degrees Kelvin, and vary from a relatively toasty 107 Kelvin (-267 Fahrenheit), in the late morning near the equator (white, lower right), to less than 75 Kelvin (-324 Fahrenheit) in the northern hemisphere in the pre-dawn hours (dark blue, upper left). The "ragged edge" of Phoebe in this region is an instrumental artifact. Temperatures are affected strongly by topography, as can be seen by comparison with the visible-wavelength image (right). Some of the coldest temperatures are found in the shadowed region inside the large depression in the northern hemisphere (upper right). The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The composite infrared spectrometer team is based at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. For more information, about the Cassini-Huygens mission visit, http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov [ http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] and the Cassini imaging team home page, http//cirs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ [ http://cirs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]. |
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