|
|
Forensic Evidence of a Galac
| Title |
Forensic Evidence of a Galactic Collision |
| Description |
Astronomers have new evidence that the Andromeda spiral galaxy was involved in a violent head-on collision with the neighboring dwarf galaxy Messier 32 (M32) more than 200 million years ago. Infrared photographs taken with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope revealed a never-before-seen dust ring deep within the Andromeda galaxy. When combined with a previously observed outer ring, the presence of both dust rings suggests that M32 plunged through the disk of Andromeda along Andromeda's polar axis approximately 210 million years ago. This image was obtained by the Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) at a wavelength of 8.0 microns. |
|
Forensic Evidence of a Galac
| Title |
Forensic Evidence of a Galactic Collision |
| Description |
Astronomers have new evidence that the Andromeda spiral galaxy was involved in a violent head-on collision with the neighboring dwarf galaxy Messier 32 (M32) more than 200 million years ago. Infrared photographs taken with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope revealed a never-before-seen dust ring deep within the Andromeda galaxy. When combined with a previously observed outer ring, the presence of both dust rings suggests that M32 plunged through the disk of Andromeda along Andromeda's polar axis approximately 210 million years ago. This image was obtained by the Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) at a wavelength of 8.0 microns. |
|
Hubert Curien
| Description |
Hubert Curien |
| Full Description |
Hubert Curien was born on 30 October 1924 in the Vosges region of eastern France. While a student, he enlisted in the French resistance and was commended for bravery in action. He entered the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris and went on to pursue a research career in crystallography, joining the Sorbonne Mineralogy Laboratory. He was always keen to encourage collaboration between mineralogists and physicists. He was appointed lecturer at the University of Paris in 1949, obtained his PhD in 1951, and became professeur in 1956. From 1968 onwards, he continued with his teaching career at the 'Pierre et Marie Curie/Paris VI' University, which he left only in 1994, despite all his political duties. Aside from his scientific career, Hubert Curien is known mostly for his managerial and political responsibilities, pursued with commitment, efficiency and vision both in France and in Europe. He left his mark on an impressive number of scientific institutions. From 1966 to 1969, he was Scientific Director for Physics at the CNRS, France's scientific research centre, becoming its Director General in 1969. In 1973, he was given responsibility for reorganising research in France. From 1976 to 1984, he was President of the French space agency (CNES), and from 1984 to1993, served as Minister of Research and Space under four different governments. From 1981 to 1984, he was Chairman of the ESA Council, and he is now still remembered ¿ among his many achievements ¿ as one of the fathers of the Ariane programme and as a promoter of a Europe united through science. From 1994 to 1996, he also headed the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), and in 1993, was elected to the French Academy of Science. For his work, Hubert Curien received the highest distinctions and awards. He was known for his great intelligence and managerial and political abilities, but also for his simplicity, modesty, sense of humour and willingness to listen to others. He died on 6 February 2005, and is survived by his wife, Perrine, and their sons, Nicolas, Christophe and Pierre-Louis. *Credits:* ESA |
| Date |
March 7, 2007 |
|
N81 in the Small Magellanic
| Title |
N81 in the Small Magellanic Cloud |
| Full Description |
A NASA Hubble Space Telescope "family portrait" of young, ultra-bright stars nested in their embryonic cloud of glowing gases. The celestial maternity ward, called N81, is located 200,000 light-years away in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a small irregular satellite galaxy of our Milky Way. Hubble's exquisite resolution allows astronomers to pinpoint 50 separate stars tightly packed in the nebula's core within a 10 light- year diameter - slightly more than twice the distance between earth and the nearest star to our sun. The closest pair of stars is only 1/3 of a light-year apart (0.3 arcseconds in the sky). This furious rate of mass loss from these super-hot stars is evident in the Hubble picture that reveals dramatic shapes sculpted in the nebula's wall of glowing gases by violent stellar winds and shock waves. A pair of bright stars in the center of the nebula is pouring out most of the ultraviolet radiation to make the nebula glow. Just above them, a small dark knot is all that is left of the cold cloud of molecular hydrogen and dust the stars were born from. Dark absorption lanes of residual dust trisect the nebula. The nebula offers a unique opportunity for a close-up glimpse at the firestorm' accompanying the birth of extremely massive stars, each blazing with the brilliance of 300,000 of our suns. Such galactic fireworks were much more common billions of years ago in the early universe, when most star formation took place. The "natural- color" view was assembled from separate images taken with the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2, in ultraviolet light and two narrow emission lines of ionized Hydrogen (H-alpha, H-beta). |
| Date |
09/24/1997 |
| NASA Center |
Hubble Space Telescope Center |
|
Lt. Col. Jean Soulez-Larivie
| Title |
Lt. Col. Jean Soulez-Lariviere |
| Full Description |
Lt. Col. Jean Soulez-Lariviere of the French Air Ministry from Paris, France is visiting Langley Research Center (shown on left). Mr. Richard E. Kuhn, from LaRC is at right. |
| Date |
2/6/1964 |
| NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Hubble Provides the First Im
| Title |
Hubble Provides the First Images of Saturn's Aurorae |
|
Nearby Massive Star Cluster
| Title |
Nearby Massive Star Cluster Yields Insights into Early Universe |
|
Massive Infant Stars Rock th
| Title |
Massive Infant Stars Rock their Cradle |
|
A Butterfly-Shaped "Papillon
| Title |
A Butterfly-Shaped "Papillon" Nebula Yields Secrets of Massive Star Birth |
|
Hubble Sends Season's Greeti
| Title |
Hubble Sends Season's Greetings from the Cosmos to Earth |
|
Hubble Peeks into a Stellar
| Title |
Hubble Peeks into a Stellar Nursery in a Nearby Galaxy |
| General Information |
What is Hubble Heritage? A monthly showcase of new and archival Hubble images. Go to the Heritage site. Back to top [ #top ] |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Too Close for Comfort: Hubbl
| Title |
Too Close for Comfort: Hubble Discovers an Evaporating Planet |
|
Astronomers Find Smallest Ex
| Title |
Astronomers Find Smallest Extrasolar Planet Yet Around Normal Star |
|
Oxygen and Carbon Found in A
| Title |
Oxygen and Carbon Found in Atmosphere of an Extrasolar Planet |
| General Information |
What is a News Nugget? News Nuggets are bulletins from the world of astronomy. NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has detected, for the first time ever, the presence of oxygen and carbon in the atmosphere of a planet outside our solar system. Read more: * Release Text [ http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2004/44/text/ ] |
|
Hubble Finds that Extrasolar
| Title |
Hubble Finds that Extrasolar Planet Has a Hazy Sunset |
|
Paris Flyby
| Title |
Paris Flyby |
| Completed |
1999-04-09 |
|
Paris Flyby
| Title |
Paris Flyby |
| Completed |
1999-04-09 |
|
Shuttle Enterprise Mated to
| Photo Description |
The Space Shuttle Enterprise, the nation's prototype space shuttle orbiter, before departing NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, at 11:00 a.m., 16 May 1983, on the first leg of its trek to the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport, Paris, France. Seen here atop the huge 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), the first stop for the Enterprise was Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Piloting the 747 on the Europe trip were Joe Algranti, Johnson Space Center Chief Pilot, Astronaut Dick Scobee, and NASA Dryden Chief Pilot Tom McMurtry. Flight engineers for that portion of the flight were Dryden's Ray Young and Johnson Space Center's Skip Guidry. The Enterprise, named after the spacecraft of Star Trek fame, was originally carried and launched by the 747 during the Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) at Dryden Flight Research Center. |
| Project Description |
470,000 pounds. The engines burn a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. In orbit, the Space Shuttles circle the earth at a speed of 17,500 miles per hour with each orbit taking about 90 minutes. A Space Shuttle crew sees a sunrise or sunset every 45 minutes. When Space Shuttle flights began in April 1981, Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, was the primary landing site for the Shuttles. Now Kennedy Space Center, Florida, is the primary landing site with Dryden remaining as the principal alternate landing site., Space Shuttles are the main element of America?s Space Transportation System and are used for space research and other space applications. The shuttles are the first vehicles capable of being launched into space and returning to Earth on a routine basis. Space Shuttles are used as orbiting laboratories in which scientists and mission specialists conduct a wide variety of scientific experiments. Crews aboard shuttles place satellites in orbit, rendezvous with satellites to carry out repair missions and return them to space, and retrieve satellites and return them to Earth for refurbishment and reuse. Space Shuttles are true aerospace vehicles. They leave Earth and its atmosphere under rocket power provided by three liquid-propellant main engines with two solid-propellant boosters attached plus an external liquid-fuel tank. After their orbital missions, they streak back through the atmosphere and land like airplanes. The returning shuttles, however, land like gliders, without power and on runways. Other rockets can place heavy payloads into orbit, but, they can only be used once. Space Shuttles are designed to be continually reused. When Space Shuttles are used to transport complete scientific laboratories into space, the laboratories remain inside the payload bay throughout the mission. They are then removed after the Space Shuttle returns to Earth and can be reused on future flights. Some of these orbital laboratories, like the Spacelab, provide facilities for several specialists to conduct experiments in such fields as medicine, astronomy, and materials manufacturing. Some types of satellites deployed by Space Shuttles include those involved in environmental and resources protection, astronomy, weather forecasting, navigation, oceanographic studies, and other scientific fields. The Space Shuttles can also launch spacecraft into orbits higher than the Shuttle?s altitude limit through the use of Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) propulsion units. After release from the Space Shuttle payload bay, the IUS is ignited to carry the spacecraft into deep space. The Space Shuttles are also being used to carry elements of the International Space Station into space where they are assembled in orbit. The Space Shuttles were built by Rockwell International?s Space Transportation Systems Division, Downey, California. Rockwell?s Rocketdyne Division (now part of Boeing) builds the three main engines, and Thiokol, Brigham City, Utah, makes the solid rocket booster motors. Martin Marietta Corporation (now Lockheed Martin), New Orleans, Louisiana, makes the external tanks. Each orbiter (Space Shuttle) is 121 feet long, has a wingspan of 78 feet, and a height of 57 feet. The Space Shuttle is approximately the size of a DC-9 commercial airliner and can carry a payload of 65,000 pounds into orbit. The payload bay is 60 feet long and 15 feet in diameter. Each main engine is capable of producing a sea level thrust of 375,000 pounds and a vacuum (orbital) thrust of |
| Photo Date |
1982 |
|
Shuttle Enterprise Mated to
| Photo Description |
The Space Shuttle Enterprise, the nation's prototype space shuttle orbiter, departed NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, at 11:00 a.m., 16 May 1983, on the first leg of its trek to the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport, Paris, France. Carried by the huge 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), the first stop for the Enterprise was Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Piloting the 747 on the Europe trip were Joe Algranti, Johnson Space Center Chief Pilot, Astronaut Dick Scobee, and NASA Dryden Chief Pilot Tom McMurtry. Flight engineers for that portion of the flight were Dryden's Ray Young and Johnson Space Center's Skip Guidry. The Enterprise, named after the spacecraft of Star Trek fame, was originally carried and launched by the 747 during the Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) at Dryden Flight Research Center. |
| Project Description |
470,000 pounds. The engines burn a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. In orbit, the Space Shuttles circle the earth at a speed of 17,500 miles per hour with each orbit taking about 90 minutes. A Space Shuttle crew sees a sunrise or sunset every 45 minutes. When Space Shuttle flights began in April 1981, Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, was the primary landing site for the Shuttles. Now Kennedy Space Center, Florida, is the primary landing site with Dryden remaining as the principal alternate landing site., Space Shuttles are the main element of America?s Space Transportation System and are used for space research and other space applications. The shuttles are the first vehicles capable of being launched into space and returning to Earth on a routine basis. Space Shuttles are used as orbiting laboratories in which scientists and mission specialists conduct a wide variety of scientific experiments. Crews aboard shuttles place satellites in orbit, rendezvous with satellites to carry out repair missions and return them to space, and retrieve satellites and return them to Earth for refurbishment and reuse. Space Shuttles are true aerospace vehicles. They leave Earth and its atmosphere under rocket power provided by three liquid-propellant main engines with two solid-propellant boosters attached plus an external liquid-fuel tank. After their orbital missions, they streak back through the atmosphere and land like airplanes. The returning shuttles, however, land like gliders, without power and on runways. Other rockets can place heavy payloads into orbit, but, they can only be used once. Space Shuttles are designed to be continually reused. When Space Shuttles are used to transport complete scientific laboratories into space, the laboratories remain inside the payload bay throughout the mission. They are then removed after the Space Shuttle returns to Earth and can be reused on future flights. Some of these orbital laboratories, like the Spacelab, provide facilities for several specialists to conduct experiments in such fields as medicine, astronomy, and materials manufacturing. Some types of satellites deployed by Space Shuttles include those involved in environmental and resources protection, astronomy, weather forecasting, navigation, oceanographic studies, and other scientific fields. The Space Shuttles can also launch spacecraft into orbits higher than the Shuttle?s altitude limit through the use of Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) propulsion units. After release from the Space Shuttle payload bay, the IUS is ignited to carry the spacecraft into deep space. The Space Shuttles are also being used to carry elements of the International Space Station into space where they are assembled in orbit. The Space Shuttles were built by Rockwell International?s Space Transportation Systems Division, Downey, California. Rockwell?s Rocketdyne Division (now part of Boeing) builds the three main engines, and Thiokol, Brigham City, Utah, makes the solid rocket booster motors. Martin Marietta Corporation (now Lockheed Martin), New Orleans, Louisiana, makes the external tanks. Each orbiter (Space Shuttle) is 121 feet long, has a wingspan of 78 feet, and a height of 57 feet. The Space Shuttle is approximately the size of a DC-9 commercial airliner and can carry a payload of 65,000 pounds into orbit. The payload bay is 60 feet long and 15 feet in diameter. Each main engine is capable of producing a sea level thrust of 375,000 pounds and a vacuum (orbital) thrust of |
| Photo Date |
1983 |
|
Eclipse and Ecliptic
| Title |
Eclipse and Ecliptic |
| Explanation |
When [ http://www.inconstantmoon.com/cyc_phas.htm ] a Full Moon lies near the ecliptic there can be a lunar eclipse [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_eclipse ]. That cosmic alignment is well illustrated in this composite of eclipse images [ http://spaceweather.com/eclipses/ gallery_03mar07_page6.htm ] recorded last Saturday near Paris, France. The projection of the ecliptic plane [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050503.html ], the plane of planet Earth's orbit around the Sun, is traced by the long blue line running diagonally through the picture. At a small angle to the ecliptic, along the Moon's orbit, are a series of images from the eclipse itself following the Moon [ http://www.phy6.org/stargaze/Shipprc2.htm ] as it moves (down and left) through Earth's shadow [ http://www.pixheaven.net/photo_us.php?nom=070303_shadow ]. A small blue circle centered on the ecliptic outlines the extent of the dark region of the shadow or umbra [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060909.html ]. Above, the principal stars of Leo [ http://www.coldwater.k12.mi.us/lms/planetarium/myth/ leo.html ] are highlighted, while at the far right lies another celestial wanderer that stays close to the ecliptic - Saturn [ http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070305 ]. |
|
An Airplane in Front of the
| Title |
An Airplane in Front of the Sun |
| Explanation |
Sometimes, good planes come to those who wait. Experienced solar photographer Thierry Lagault [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010129.html http://perso.club-internet.fr/legault/ ] had noticed planes crossing in front of the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/sun.html ] from his home in suburban Paris [ http://www.paris-france.org/ ]. He then got the idea for the above photograph, but had to wait through many near misses. About two weeks ago, he got his wish: a jet crossed directly in front of the Sun when his solar imaging equipment was set up. The resulting image, shown above, was taken in a specific color of red light called Hydrogen-Alpha [ http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/light/absorption.html ], and the picture's contrast has been digitally enhanced. Dark prominences [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000403.html ] can be seen lacing the Sun's busy surface [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970127.html ]. The airplane is an MD-11 [ http://www.boeing.com/commercial/md-11family/ ]. |
|
Happy Birthday Charles Messi
| Title |
Happy Birthday Charles Messier: M1 |
| Explanation |
French astronomer Charles Messier was born on June 26, 1730 [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/biograph.html ]. Inspired by childhood sightings of comets and a solar eclipse visible from his home town of Badonvillier, he became an astronomer and comet hunter who kept careful records of his observations [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/m-charts.html ]. While hunting for comets in the skies above France he made a now famous list of the positions [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/messier/xtra/history/m-cat.html ] of about 100 fuzzy, diffuse looking objects which appeared at fixed positions in the sky. Although these objects looked like comets, Messier knew [ http://www.msd.org/cm.htm ] that since they did not move with respect to the background stars they could not be the comets he was searching for. These objects are now well known to modern astronomers to be among the brightest and most striking nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies [ http://www.seds.org/messier/ ]. Objects on Messier's list are still referred to by their "Messier number" [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/lib/messier.html ]. The first object in his catalog, M1 pictured above [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m001.html ] - also known as the Crab Nebula [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960531.html ], was recorded during his search for the return of comet Halley [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960327.html ] in 1758. Messier died in his home in Paris in 1817. |
|
A New Storm on Saturn
| Title |
A New Storm on Saturn |
| Explanation |
Presently at opposition [ http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/images/ image-details.cfm?imageID=1972 ] in planet Earth's sky, Saturn is well placed [ http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/viewing.cfm ] for telescopic observations [ http://soc.jpl.nasa.gov/history.cfm ]. On Wednesday two amateur astronomers took full advantage of the situation from Melun, near Paris, France. With a 12 inch diameter telescope and web cam [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010714.html ] they recorded this sharp image of the ringed gas giant [ http://www.nineplanets.org/saturn.html ] and made an exciting discovery [ http://jldauvergne.club.fr/storm.htm ] -- a new storm on Saturn. The storm [ http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/ PIA06507 ] appears as the white spot visible here in Saturn's southern hemisphere (south is toward the top in the picture). In particular, the storm seems to correspond with an outburst of radio noise detected by the Cassini spacecraft. The phenomenon is likely similar to the Dragon Storm [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050225.html ] recorded by Cassini's instruments [ http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/ inst-cassini-rpws-details.cfm ] early last year. That storm is thought to be analogous to a terrestrial thunderstorm [ http://thunder.msfc.nasa.gov/primer/ ], with radio noise produced in high-voltage lightning [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040818.html ] discharges. |
|
Lt. Colonel Jean Soulez-Lari
| Title |
Lt. Colonel Jean Soulez-Lariviere |
| Description |
Lt. Col. Jean Soulez-Lariviere of the French Air Ministry from Paris, France is visiting Langley Research Center (shown on left). Mr. Richard E. Kuhn, from LaRC (shown on right). |
| Date |
02.06.1964 |
|
Shuttle Enterprise Mated to
| Title |
Shuttle Enterprise Mated to 747 SCA in Flight |
| Description |
International Space Station into space where they are assembled in orbit. The Space Shuttles were built by Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division, Downey, California. Rockwell's Rocketdyne Division (now part of Boeing) builds the three main engines, and Thiokol, Brigham City, Utah, makes the solid rocket booster motors. Martin Marietta Corporation (now Lockheed Martin), New Orleans, Louisiana, makes the external tanks. Each orbiter (Space Shuttle) is 121 feet long, has a wingspan of 78 feet, and a height of 57 feet. The Space Shuttle is approximately the size of a DC-9 commercial airliner and can carry a payload of 65,000 pounds into orbit. The payload bay is 60 feet long and 15 feet in diameter. Each main engine is capable of producing a sea level thrust of 375,000 pounds and a vacuum (orbital) thrust of 470,000 pounds. The engines burn a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. In orbit, the Space Shuttles circle the earth at a speed of 17,500 miles per hour with each orbit taking about 90 minutes. A Space Shuttle crew sees a sunrise or sunset every 45 minutes. When Space Shuttle flights began in April 1981, Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, was the primary landing site for the Shuttles. Now Kennedy Space Center, Florida, is the primary landing site with Dryden remaining as the principal alternate landing site., The Space Shuttle Enterprise, the nation's prototype space shuttle orbiter, departed NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, at 11:00 a.m., 16 May 1983, on the first leg of its trek to the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport, Paris, France. Carried by the huge 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), the first stop for the Enterprise was Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Piloting the 747 on the Europe trip were Joe Algranti, Johnson Space Center Chief Pilot, Astronaut Dick Scobee, and NASA Dryden Chief Pilot Tom McMurtry. Flight engineers for that portion of the flight were Dryden's Ray Young and Johnson Space Center's Skip Guidry. The Enterprise, named after the spacecraft of Star Trek fame, was originally carried and launched by the 747 during the Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) at Dryden Flight Research Center. Space Shuttles are the main element of America's Space Transportation System and are used for space research and other space applications. The shuttles are the first vehicles capable of being launched into space and returning to Earth on a routine basis. Space Shuttles are used as orbiting laboratories in which scientists and mission specialists conduct a wide variety of scientific experiments. Crews aboard shuttles place satellites in orbit, rendezvous with satellites to carry out repair missions and return them to space, and retrieve satellites and return them to Earth for refurbishment and reuse. Space Shuttles are true aerospace vehicles. They leave Earth and its atmosphere under rocket power provided by three liquid-propellant main engines with two solid-propellant boosters attached plus an external liquid-fuel tank. After their orbital missions, they streak back through the atmosphere and land like airplanes. The returning shuttles, however, land like gliders, without power and on runways. Other rockets can place heavy payloads into orbit, but, they can only be used once. Space Shuttles are designed to be continually reused. When Space Shuttles are used to transport complete scientific laboratories into space, the laboratories remain inside the payload bay throughout the mission. They are then removed after the Space Shuttle returns to Earth and can be reused on future flights. Some of these orbital laboratories, like the Spacelab, provide facilities for several specialists to conduct experiments in such fields as medicine, astronomy, and materials manufacturing. Some types of satellites deployed by Space Shuttles include those involved in environmental and resources protection, astronomy, weather forecasting, navigation, oceanographic studies, and other scientific fields. The Space Shuttles can also launch spacecraft into orbits higher than the Shuttle's altitude limit through the use of Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) propulsion units. After release from the Space Shuttle payload bay, the IUS is ignited to carry the spacecraft into deep space. The Space Shuttles are also being used to carry elements of the |
| Date |
01.01.1983 |
|
Shuttle Enterprise Mated to
| Title |
Shuttle Enterprise Mated to 747 SCA on Ramp |
| Description |
The Space Shuttle Enterprise, the nation's prototype space shuttle orbiter, before departing NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, at 11:00 a.m., 16 May 1983, on the first leg of its trek to the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport, Paris, France. Seen here atop the huge 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), the first stop for the Enterprise was Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Piloting the 747 on the Europe trip were Joe Algranti, Johnson Space Center Chief Pilot, Astronaut Dick Scobee, and NASA Dryden Chief Pilot Tom McMurtry. Flight engineers for that portion of the flight were Dryden's Ray Young and Johnson Space Center's Skip Guidry. The Enterprise, named after the spacecraft of Star Trek fame, was originally carried and launched by the 747 during the Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) at Dryden Flight Research Center. Space Shuttles are the main element of America's Space Transportation System and are used for space research and other space applications. The shuttles are the first vehicles capable of being launched into space and returning to Earth on a routine basis. Space Shuttles are used as orbiting laboratories in which scientists and mission specialists conduct a wide variety of scientific experiments. Crews aboard shuttles place satellites in orbit, rendezvous with satellites to carry out repair missions and return them to space, and retrieve satellites and return them to Earth for refurbishment and reuse. Space Shuttles are true aerospace vehicles. They leave Earth and its atmosphere under rocket power provided by three liquid-propellant main engines with two solid-propellant boosters attached plus an external liquid-fuel tank. After their orbital missions, they streak back through the atmosphere and land like airplanes. The returning shuttles, however, land like gliders, without power and on runways. Other rockets can place heavy payloads into orbit, but, they can only be used once. Space Shuttles are designed to be continually reused. When Space Shuttles are used to transport complete scientific laboratories into space, the laboratories remain inside the payload bay throughout the mission. They are then removed after the Space Shuttle returns to Earth and can be reused on future flights. Some of these orbital laboratories, like the Spacelab, provide facilities for several specialists to conduct experiments in such fields as medicine, astronomy, and materials manufacturing. Some types of satellites deployed by Space Shuttles include those involved in environmental and resources protection, astronomy, weather forecasting, navigation, oceanographic studies, and other scientific fields. The Space Shuttles can also launch spacecraft into orbits higher than the Shuttle's altitude limit through the use of Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) propulsion units. After release from the Space Shuttle payload bay, the IUS is ignited to carry the spacecraft into deep space. The Space Shuttles are also being used to carry, elements of the International Space Station into space where they are assembled in orbit. The Space Shuttles were built by Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division, Downey, California. Rockwell's Rocketdyne Division (now part of Boeing) builds the three main engines, and Thiokol, Brigham City, Utah, makes the solid rocket booster motors. Martin Marietta Corporation (now Lockheed Martin), New Orleans, Louisiana, makes the external tanks. Each orbiter (Space Shuttle) is 121 feet long, has a wingspan of 78 feet, and a height of 57 feet. The Space Shuttle is approximately the size of a DC-9 commercial airliner and can carry a payload of 65,000 pounds into orbit. The payload bay is 60 feet long and 15 feet in diameter. Each main engine is capable of producing a sea level thrust of 375,000 pounds and a vacuum (orbital) thrust of 470,000 pounds. The engines burn a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. In orbit, the Space Shuttles circle the earth at a speed of 17,500 miles per hour with each orbit taking about 90 minutes. A Space Shuttle crew sees a sunrise or sunset every 45 minutes. When Space Shuttle flights began in April 1981, Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, was the primary landing site for the Shuttles. Now Kennedy Space Center, Florida, is the primary landing site with Dryden remaining as the principal alternate landing site. |
| Date |
01.01.1982 |
|
Paris, France: Image of the
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
A crisp, clear winter day ov
ISS016_E_21564
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2008-01-07 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ISS016_E_21564 |
|
The Topography of France: Im
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
This image of France was gen
PIA03393
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2000-02-11 |
| creator |
NASA -- Image Courtesy www.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm/ SRTM Team NASA/JPL/NIMA |
| identifier |
PIA03393 |
|
2006 Tour de France Stage 17
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
Each year in July, close to
morzine_etm_2001202
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2001-07-21 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image by Robert Simmon, based on data provided by the landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/ Landsat science team and the UMD glcf.umiacs.umd.edu/index.shtml Global Land Cover Facility . |
| identifier |
morzine_etm_2001202 |
|
Paris, France: Image of the
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
With its broad, tree-lined a
Paris_L720000824
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2000-08-24 |
| creator |
NASA -- Image courtesy Ron Beck, edc.usgs.gov/ USGS Land Processes Data Center, Satellite Systems Branch |
| identifier |
Paris_L720000824 |
|
France, Shaded Relief and Co
PIA03393
Sol (our sun)
C-Band Interferometric Radar
| Title |
France, Shaded Relief and Colored Height |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
This image of France was generated with data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM). For this broad view the resolution of the data was reduced to 6 arcseconds (about 185 meters north-south and 127 meters east-west), resampled to a Mercator projection, and the French border outlined. Even at this decreased resolution the variety of landforms comprising the country is readily apparent. The upper central part of this scene is dominated by the Paris Basin, which consists of a layered sequence of sedimentary rocks. Fertile soils over much of the area make good agricultural land. The Normandie coast to the upper left is characterized by high, chalk cliffs, while the Brittany coast (the peninsula to the left) is highly indented where deep valleys were drowned by the sea, and the Biscay coast to the southwest is marked by flat, sandy beaches. To the south, the Pyrenees form a natural border between France and Spain, and the south-central part of the country is dominated by the ancient Massif Central. Subject to volcanism that has only subsided in the last 10,000 years, these central mountains are separated from the Alps by the north-south trending Rhone River Basin. Two visualization methods were combined to produce the image: shading and color coding of topographic height. The shade image was derived by computing topographic slope in the northwest-southeast direction, so that northwest slopes appear bright and southeast slopes appear dark. Color coding is directly related to topographic height, with green at the lower elevations, rising through yellow and tan, to white at the highest elevations. Elevation data used in this image were acquired by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour, launched on Feb. 11, 2000. SRTM used the same radar instrument that comprised the Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR) that flew twice on the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1994. SRTM was designed to collect 3-D measurements of the Earth's surface. To collect the 3-D data, engineers added a 60-meter (approximately 200-foot) mast, installed additional C-band and X-band antennas, and improved tracking and navigation devices. The mission is a cooperative project between NASA, the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) of the U.S. Department of Defense and the German and Italian space agencies. It is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., for NASA's Earth Science Enterprise,Washington, D.C. Location: 42 to 51.5 degrees North latitude, 5.5 West to 8 degrees East longitude Orientation: North toward the top, Mercator projection Image Data: shaded and colored SRTM elevation model Original Data Resolution: SRTM 1 arcsecond (about 30 meters or 98 feet) Date Acquired: February 2000 |
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Venice, Italy & the Alps fro
PIA00546
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Venice, Italy & the Alps from the Shuttle KidSat Camera |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Earth and Space Science., This KidSat image spans the region of Venetia from the city of Venice, Italy, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea north to the snow-capped Alps. Venice appears in the lower left part of the image, and the Alps appear in the lower right. This image is 97.78 km long by 146.31 km wide and is centered at 45.56 degrees north latitude, 11.48 degrees east longitude. Due to shuttle orientation, north is located at approximately ten o'clock in this image. It was taken by the KidSat electronic still camera, using a 50 mm lens, from the Space Shuttle Atlantis at an altitude of 264.57 km. The image was requested by the Buist Academy Student Mission Operations Center in Charleston, South Carolina. The students will use the image in their classrooms to study the rivers and channels of Venice and to compare the cities of Venice and Paris, France. Venice's Grand Canal is barely visible in the image. Venice was one of the centers of science, knowledge and art during the Renaissance, as well as a major trade center for goods from Asia. Located near fishing and forest resources, it was first settled by a variety of people that included war refugees from Troy and immigrants from what are now the Slavic nations. The first settlement, consisting mostly of wood buildings, was destroyed after a massive sea quake, little remains of the original city. Settlements spread to encompass the islands in the mouth of the river Brenta and now cover a total 117 islands. In the nearby Alps are several waterfalls which, since 1977, have been the site of many ice climbing missions. KidSat gives students across the country a chance to view and learn about Earth using and commanding their own instruments in space. The KidSat project is a result of the effort and collaboration of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University's Institute for Academic Advancement of Youth and the University of California, San Diego. Kidsat includes a payload of digital still and video cameras that fly on the Space Shuttle. Students operate these cameras from their classrooms, sending instructions to the Kidsat Mission Control Center at UC San Diego via the Internet to photograph specific regions of Earth they wish to study. Image data are sent to the Kidsat Data System at JPL during the mission and these images are accessible in the classroom in near-real time, again using the Internet. At JPL, students on the exploration team research the images. The KidSat project allows students to explore Earth from space and learn about its past and its fragile, ever-changing environment. Images and student results will be posted on the KidSat home page. Interested public school districts, teachers, and students may view the images and information provided by students during the mission via this World Wide Web site: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat pilot program is sponsored by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education, with support from the Offices of Space Flight, Mission to Planet |
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Alba Patera
PIA03774
Sol (our sun)
Thermal Emission Imaging Sys
| Title |
Alba Patera |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
(Released 22 April 2002) The Science This image, centered near 46.5 N and 119.3 W (240.7 E), is on the northwestern flank of a large, broad shield volcano called Alba Patera. This region of Mars has a number of unique valley features that at first glance look dendritic much in the same pattern that rivers and tributaries form on Earth. A closer look reveals that the valleys are quite discontinuous and must form through a different process than surface runoff of liquid water that is common on Earth. A number of processes might have taken place at some point in the Martian past to form these features. Some of the broad valley features bear some resemblance to karst topography, where material is removed underground by melting or dissolving in groundwater causing the collapse of the surface above it. The long narrow valleys resemble surfaces where groundwater sapping has occurred. Sapping happens when groundwater reaches the surface and causes headward erosion, forming long valleys with fewer tributaries than is seen with valleys formed by surface water runoff. The volcano itself might have been a source of heat and energy, which played a role in producing surfaces that indicate an active groundwater system. The Story Fluid, oozing lava poured somewhat lazily over this area long ago. It happened perhaps thousands of times, over hundreds of thousands of Martian years, creating the nearly smooth, plaster-of-Paris-looking terrain seen today. (Small craters also dent the area, though they may deceive you and look like raised bumps instead. That's just a trick of the eye and the lighting - tilt your head to your left shoulder, and you should see the craters pit the surface as expected.) The lava flows came from a Martian "shield" volcano named Alba Patera. Shield volcanoes get their name from their appearance: from above, they look like large battle shields lying face up to the sky as if a giant, geological warrior had lain them down. Perhaps one did if you think of a volcano as a "geologic warrior," that is. These volcanoes aren't too fierce, however. Because of the gentle layering of lava over time, they don't stand tall and angry against the horizon, but instead have relatively gentle slopes and are spread out over large areas. (On Earth, the Hawaiian Islands are examples of shield volcanoes, but you can't see much of their expanse, since they rise almost three miles from the ocean floor before popping out above the water's surface.) What's most interesting in this picture are all of the branching features that lightly texture the terrain. The patterns may look like those caused by rivers here on Earth, but geologists say that no surface streams on Mars were responsible. That's no disappointment, however, to those who'd like to find water on Mars, because there are still intriguing water-related possibilities here. Some of the broad valley features in this image look like karsts, a terrain found on Earth in Karst, a limestone area on the Adriatic, Sea in modern-day Croatia, and in other world regions including France, China, the American Midwest, Kentucky, and Florida. Karst terrain on Earth is barren land with all kinds of caves, sinkholes, and underground rivers that excavate the subsurface, causing the surface above it to collapse. So, perhaps it's like that in this region on Mars as well. Future Martian spelunkers should be excited, because most caves on Earth are in karst areas. Other suggestions of water here are some long, narrow valleys that resemble Earth surfaces where groundwater has sapped away the terrain. Sapping occurs when groundwater erodes slopes, creating valleys. Water action can be concentrated at valley heads, leading to what is called their "headward growth." That may be what has happened here on Alba Patera as well. All of these features suggest the action of liquid water, but Mars is so cold, you might wonder if any water would have to be as frozen as the world it is on. Well . . . that depends! Remember that this area is part of a volcano, and volcanoes can put out enough heat and energy below the surface to keep water warm enough to flow - if not now, then at least in the past when the volcano was more active. |
|
Alba Patera
PIA03774
Sol (our sun)
Thermal Emission Imaging Sys
| Title |
Alba Patera |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
(Released 22 April 2002) The Science This image, centered near 46.5 N and 119.3 W (240.7 E), is on the northwestern flank of a large, broad shield volcano called Alba Patera. This region of Mars has a number of unique valley features that at first glance look dendritic much in the same pattern that rivers and tributaries form on Earth. A closer look reveals that the valleys are quite discontinuous and must form through a different process than surface runoff of liquid water that is common on Earth. A number of processes might have taken place at some point in the Martian past to form these features. Some of the broad valley features bear some resemblance to karst topography, where material is removed underground by melting or dissolving in groundwater causing the collapse of the surface above it. The long narrow valleys resemble surfaces where groundwater sapping has occurred. Sapping happens when groundwater reaches the surface and causes headward erosion, forming long valleys with fewer tributaries than is seen with valleys formed by surface water runoff. The volcano itself might have been a source of heat and energy, which played a role in producing surfaces that indicate an active groundwater system. The Story Fluid, oozing lava poured somewhat lazily over this area long ago. It happened perhaps thousands of times, over hundreds of thousands of Martian years, creating the nearly smooth, plaster-of-Paris-looking terrain seen today. (Small craters also dent the area, though they may deceive you and look like raised bumps instead. That's just a trick of the eye and the lighting - tilt your head to your left shoulder, and you should see the craters pit the surface as expected.) The lava flows came from a Martian "shield" volcano named Alba Patera. Shield volcanoes get their name from their appearance: from above, they look like large battle shields lying face up to the sky as if a giant, geological warrior had lain them down. Perhaps one did if you think of a volcano as a "geologic warrior," that is. These volcanoes aren't too fierce, however. Because of the gentle layering of lava over time, they don't stand tall and angry against the horizon, but instead have relatively gentle slopes and are spread out over large areas. (On Earth, the Hawaiian Islands are examples of shield volcanoes, but you can't see much of their expanse, since they rise almost three miles from the ocean floor before popping out above the water's surface.) What's most interesting in this picture are all of the branching features that lightly texture the terrain. The patterns may look like those caused by rivers here on Earth, but geologists say that no surface streams on Mars were responsible. That's no disappointment, however, to those who'd like to find water on Mars, because there are still intriguing water-related possibilities here. Some of the broad valley features in this image look like karsts, a terrain found on Earth in Karst, a limestone area on the Adriatic, Sea in modern-day Croatia, and in other world regions including France, China, the American Midwest, Kentucky, and Florida. Karst terrain on Earth is barren land with all kinds of caves, sinkholes, and underground rivers that excavate the subsurface, causing the surface above it to collapse. So, perhaps it's like that in this region on Mars as well. Future Martian spelunkers should be excited, because most caves on Earth are in karst areas. Other suggestions of water here are some long, narrow valleys that resemble Earth surfaces where groundwater has sapped away the terrain. Sapping occurs when groundwater erodes slopes, creating valleys. Water action can be concentrated at valley heads, leading to what is called their "headward growth." That may be what has happened here on Alba Patera as well. All of these features suggest the action of liquid water, but Mars is so cold, you might wonder if any water would have to be as frozen as the world it is on. Well . . . that depends! Remember that this area is part of a volcano, and volcanoes can put out enough heat and energy below the surface to keep water warm enough to flow - if not now, then at least in the past when the volcano was more active. |
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Ghost Head Nebula
PIA04226
Wide Field Planetary Camera
| Title |
Ghost Head Nebula |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Looking like a colorful holiday card, a new image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope reveals a vibrant green and red nebula far from Earth. The image of NGC 2080, taken by Hubble's Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2, designed and built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., is available online at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/wfpc . Images like this help astronomers investigate star formation in nebulas. NGC 2080, nicknamed "The Ghost Head Nebula," is one of a chain of star-forming regions lying south of the 30 Doradus nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. 30 Doradus is the largest star-forming complex in the local group of galaxies. This "enhanced color" picture is composed of three narrow-band-filter images obtained by Hubble on March 28, 2000. The red and blue light come from regions of hydrogen gas heated by nearby stars. The green light on the left comes from glowing oxygen. The energy to illuminate the green light is supplied by a powerful stellar wind, a stream of high-speed particles coming from a massive star just outside the image. The central white region is a combination of all three emissions and indicates a core of hot, massive stars in this star-formation region. Intense emission from these stars has carved a bowl-shaped cavity in surrounding gas. In the white region, the two bright areas (the "eyes of the ghost") - named A1 (left) and A2 (right) -- are very hot, glowing "blobs" of hydrogen and oxygen. The bubble in A1 is produced by the hot, intense radiation and powerful stellar wind from one massive star. A2 contains more dust and several hidden, massive stars. The massive stars in A1 and A2 must have formed within the last 10,000 years, since their natal gas shrouds are not yet disrupted by the powerful radiation of the newborn stars. The Space Telescope Science Institute is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., for NASA, under contract with the Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international co-operation between the European Space Agency and NASA. The California Institute of Technology in Pasadena manages JPL for NASA. |
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| General Description |
International Space Station Imagery |
|
View of Soyuz spacecraft whi
| Title |
View of Soyuz spacecraft which was part of exhibit |
| Description |
A close-up view of the Soyuz spacecraft which was part of the Apollo Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) exhibit at the 30th International Aeronautics and Space Exhibition held May 24 - June 3, 1973 at the Le Bourget Airport in Paris, France. At the far left a mock-up of a Docking Module connects the Apollo spacecraft (not visible) with the Soyuz. The spherical-shaped portion of the Soyuz is called the orbital section. The middle section with the lettering "CCCP" (USSR) on it is called the Cosmonauts cabin. Two solar panels extend out from the machine and panel section. |
| Date Taken |
1973-06-07 |
|
City of Paris, France
| Title |
City of Paris, France |
| Description |
This highly detailed view of the City of Paris 49.0N, 0.0E) shows a varied land use pattern in great detail. Several airports are clearly seen such as the two major international airports of Orly and Le Bourget. Paris was founded in pre-Roman times on an island in the Seine River and continued as a Roman outpost. The easily defensible location was one of the keys to growth. Other factors include easy access by river and the productive hinterland. |
| Date Taken |
1992-09-20 |
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