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nasasapod:

M27: Not a Comet
Image Credit & Copyright: Martin Pugh

Explanation: While hunting for comets in the skies above 18th century France, astronomer Charles Messier diligently kept a list of the things he encountered that were definitely not comets. This is number 27 on his now famous not-a-comet list. In fact, 21st century astronomers would identify it as a planetary nebula, but it’s not a planet either, even though it may appear round and planet-like in a small telescope. Messier 27 (M27) is an excellent example of a gaseous emission nebula created as a sun-like star runs out of nuclear fuel in its core. The nebula forms as the star’s outer layers are expelled into space, with a visible glow generated by atoms excited by the dying star’s intense but invisible ultraviolet light. Known by the popular name of the Dumbbell Nebula, the beautifully symmetric interstellar gas cloud is over 2.5 light-years across and about 1,200 light-years away in the constellation Vulpecula. This impressive color composite highlights details within the well-studied central region and fainter, seldom imaged features in the nebula’s outer halo. It incorporates broad and narrowband images recorded using filters sensitive to emission from sulfur, hydrogen and oxygen atoms.

(Source: enkiseshat)

Scientists Discover an ‘Instant Cosmic Classic’ Supernova

ScienceDaily (Aug. 25, 2011):

A supernova discovered August 24 is closer to Earth — approximately 21 million light-years away — than any other of its kind in a generation. Astronomers believe they caught the supernova within hours of its explosion, a rare feat made possible with a specialized survey telescope and state-of-the-art computational tools.

Read more.

The Fairy of Eagle Nebula
Image Credit: The Hubble Heritage Team, (STScI/AURA), ESA, NASA

Explanation: The dust sculptures of the Eagle Nebula are evaporating. As powerful starlight whittles away these cool cosmic mountains, the statuesque pillars that remain might be imagined as mythical beasts. Pictured above is one of several striking dust pillars of the Eagle Nebula that might be described as a gigantic alien fairy. This fairy, however, is ten light years tall and spews radiation much hotter than common fire. The greater Eagle Nebula, M16, is actually a giant evaporating shell of gas and dust inside of which is a growing cavity filled with a spectacular stellar nursery currently forming an open cluster of stars. The above image in scientifically re-assigned colors was released in 2005 as part of the fifteenth anniversary celebration of the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope.

(via wilderspace)

TrES-2b: Dark Planet

Why is this planet so dark? Planet TrES-2b reflects back less than one percent of the light it receives, making it darker than any known planet or moon, darker even than coal. Jupiter-sized TrES-2b orbits extremely close to a sun-like star 750 light years away, and was discovered producing slight eclipses in 2006 using the modest 10-cm telescopes of the Trans-Atlantic Exoplanet Survey (TrES). The alien world’s strange darkness, however, was only uncovered recently by observations indicating its slight reflective glow by the Sun-orbiting Kepler satellite. An artist’s drawing of planet is shown above, complete with unsubstantiated speculation on possible moons. Reasons for TrES-2b’s darkness remain unknown and are an active topic of research.

NASA today released a portrait of the glowing green remnants of a dying binary star system called the Necklace Nebula.

Astronomers discovered the system, also known as PN G054.2-03.4, during the 2005 IPHAS sky survey. It is 9 light-years-wide and located 15,000 light years away in the constellation Sagitta.

Read more

An asteroid dsicovered late in 2010 has now been revealed to be the Earth’s first known Trojan asteroid. The video shows how pretty freakin’ groovy its orbit is.

From Scientific American:

The first in a long-sought type of asteroid companion to Earth has now been discovered, a space rock that always dances in front of the planet along its orbital path, just beyond its reach…read more

Some more cool info about it here by Paul Wiegert, who was one of the astronomers who found it. Also, on that page, if you scroll down to the Video Clips bit, there are some even more cool videos of its orbit!

(via)

Mission Specialist Bruce McCandless II, is seen further away from the confines and safety of his ship than any previous astronaut has ever been. This space first was made possible by the Manned Manuevering Unit or MMU, a nitrogen jet propelled backpack. After a series of test maneuvers inside and above Challenger’s payload bay, McCandless went “free-flying” to a distance of 320 feet away from the Orbiter. This stunning orbital panorama view shows McCandless out there amongst the black and blue of Earth and space.

This just blows my mind! Imagine how it would feel to be that far above the Earth without being connected to anything, just floating in a lethal nothing! Pretty fucking scary, I bet.

This was taken on the Challenger Space Shuttle mission STS-41B mission in 1984.

It makes me kinda sad that the final Space Shuttle mission was a few weeks ago. Goddamit, America! *shakes fist*

Wow. Just…wow!

I urge you to watch this full screen in 720p. Seriously now.

Stéphane Guisard and José Francisco Salgado from the European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Music: “We Happy Few” - The Calm Blue Sea

(Source: youtube.com)

This is an image of the Carina Nebula showing a (50-light-year-wide) region of tremendous star birth and death 7,500 light years away from Earth. The nebula is home to Eta Carinae, one of the most massive stars in the universe, prone to unpredictable, violent outbursts.

(Source: hubblesite.org)

This is the Tarantula Nebula which is an H II region in the Large Magellanic Cloud.

Picture taken by the Hubble Telescope