Glaretum - Glaretum

En septiembre de 2006 como parte de la Misión STS-115, el astronauta de la CSA, Steve MacLean se convirtió en el primer canadiense en operar Canadarm2 en el espacio y el segundo canadiense en realizar una caminata espacial.

Crédito: @NASA

Las estrellas más brillantes incrustadas en nebulosas a lo largo de nuestra galaxia derraman un torrente de radiación que devora vastas nubes de gas hidrógeno, la materia prima para construir nuevas estrellas. Este proceso de grabado esculpe un paisaje de fantasía donde la imaginación humana puede ver todo tipo de formas y figuras. Esta nebulosa en la constelación de Cassiopeia tiene velos fluidos de gas y polvo que le han valido el sobrenombre de "Nebulosa Fantasma".

Oficialmente conocida como IC 63, esta nebulosa se encuentra a 550 años luz de distancia en la constelación de Cassiopeia the Queen.

Crédito: NASA, ESA y STScI / Universidad de Estrasburgo

How the Sun Affects Asteroids in Our Neighborhood

It’s no secret the Sun affects us here on Earth in countless ways, from causing sunburns to helping our houseplants thrive. The Sun affects other objects in space, too, like asteroids! It can keep them in place. It can move them. And it can even shape them.

Asteroids embody the story of our solar system’s beginning. Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids, which orbit the Sun on the same path as the gas giant, are no exception. The Trojans are thought to be left over from the objects that eventually formed our planets, and studying them might offer clues about how the solar system came to be.

Over the next 12 years, NASA’s Lucy mission will visit eight asteroids—including seven Trojans— to help answer big questions about planet formation and the origins of our solar system. It will take the spacecraft about 3.5 years to reach its first destination.

How does the Sun affect what Lucy might find?

Place in Space

Credits: Astronomical Institute of CAS/Petr Scheirich

The Sun makes up 99.8% of the solar system’s mass and exerts a strong gravitational force as a result. In the case of the Trojan asteroids that Lucy will visit, their very location in space is dictated in part by the Sun’s gravity. They are clustered at two Lagrange points. These are locations where the gravitational forces of two massive objects—in this case the Sun and Jupiter—are balanced in such a way that smaller objects (like asteroids or satellites) stay put relative to the larger bodies. The Trojans lead and follow Jupiter in its orbit by 60° at Lagrange points L4 and L5.

Pushing Asteroids Around (with Light!)

The Sun can move and spin asteroids with light! Like many objects in space, asteroids rotate. At any given moment, the Sun-facing side of an asteroid absorbs sunlight while the dark side sheds energy as heat. When the heat escapes, it creates an infinitesimal amount of thrust, pushing the asteroid ever so slightly and altering its rotational rate. The Trojans are farther from the Sun than other asteroids we’ve studied before, and it remains to be seen how sunlight affects their movement.

Cracking the Surface (Also with Light!)

The Sun can break asteroids, too. Rocks expand as they warm and contract when they cool. This repeated fluctuation can cause them to crack. The phenomenon is more intense for objects without atmospheres, such as asteroids, where temperatures vary wildly. Therefore, even though the Trojans are farther from the Sun than rocks on Earth, they’ll likely show more signs of thermal fracturing.

Solar Wind-Swept

Like everything in our solar system, asteroids are battered by the solar wind, a steady stream of particles, magnetic fields, and radiation that flows from the Sun. For the most part, Earth’s magnetic field protects us from this bombardment. Without magnetic fields or atmospheres of their own, asteroids receive the brunt of the solar wind. When incoming particles strike an asteroid, they can kick some material off into space, changing the fundamental chemistry of what’s left behind.

Follow along with Lucy’s journey with NASA Solar System on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and be sure to tune in for the launch at 5 a.m. EDT (09:00 UTC) on Saturday, Oct. 16 at nasa.gov/live.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

Gemínidas desde Australia

Crédito: Claire Gore

Vía Láctea en Isla Mujeres.

Esta isla se encuentra en el mar Caribe a 13 kilómetros de la ciudad de Cancún, el cual es el principal centro turística de la región.

Crédito: Robert Fedez

https://instagram.com/robert_fedez

~Antares

Check out tiny-house-looking satellite Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich

It might look like something you’d find on Earth, but this piece of technology has a serious job to do: track global sea level rise with unprecedented accuracy. It’s #SeeingTheSeas mission will:

Provide information that will help researchers understand how climate change is reshaping Earth’s coastlines – and how fast this is happenin.

Help researchers better understand how Earth’s climate is changing by expanding the global atmospheric temperature data record

Help to improve weather forecasts by providing meteorologists information on atmospheric temperature and humidity.

Tune in tomorrow, Nov. 21 at 11:45 a.m. EST to watch this U.S.-European satellite launch to space! Liftoff is targeted for 12:17 p.m. EST. Watch HERE. 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Esta es la primera imagen del Rover Perseverance de la NASA en la superficie de Marte desde la cámara del Experimento de Imágenes de Alta Resolución (HiRISE) a bordo del Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) de la NASA muestra las muchas partes del sistema de aterrizaje de la misión Marte 2020 que puso al rover a salvo en tierra. La imagen fue tomada el 19 de febrero de 2021.

Eclipse Solar Total desde Neuquen, Argentina 🇦🇷

Crédito: Matias Cordero

Matias Cordero Fotografía

Vía Láctea capturada a través de un lente ojo de pescado o fisheye.

Un objetivo ojo de pez es una lente de ángulo ultra ancho que produce una distorcion visual fuerte con la intención de crear una imagen panorámica  o hemisférica ancha.

Crédito: Dr. Sebastian Voltmer

https://instagram.com/sebastianvoltmer

~Antares

Hemisferio sur de Júpiter captado por la sonda Juno en febrero del 2019. Esta nave entró en órbita alrededor de Júpiter el 5 de Julio de 2016.

Crédito: NASA/JLP-Caltech /SwRI/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill

~Antares