New Dwarf Planet Ceres Images Snapped By NASA Dawn Probe | Video – Video


New Dwarf Planet Ceres Images Snapped By NASA Dawn Probe | Video
NASA #39;s Dawn mission snapped imagery of Ceres at a distance of 238000 miles (about the same distance between the Earth and the Moon) on Jan. 13th, 2015. The images show #39;hint of craters #39; ...

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New Dwarf Planet Ceres Images Snapped By NASA Dawn Probe | Video - Video

NASA's new Ceres images

Published January 20, 2015

This processed image, taken Jan. 13, 2015, shows the dwarf planet Ceres as seen from the Dawn spacecraft. The image hints at craters on the surface of Ceres. Dawn's framing camera took this image at 238,000 miles from Ceres.(NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)

NASAs Dawn spacecraft is approaching the dwarf planet Ceres and new images released Monday show a closer view of the planets surface.

"We know so much about the solar system and yet so little about dwarf planet Ceres. Now, Dawn is ready to change that," said Marc Rayman, Dawn's chief engineer and mission director, according to a news release from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The NASA spacecraft is scheduled to conduct a 16-month study of Ceres and will send increasingly better and better images as it gets closer to the planet. It is the first time a spacecraft has ever visited a dwarf planet.

"Already, the [latest] images hint at first surface structures such as craters," said Andreas Nathues, lead investigator for the framing camera team at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Gottingen, Germany.

The images, taken by Dawn 238,000 miles from Ceres on January 13, are at about 80 percent the resolution of Hubble Space Telescope images taken in 2003 and 2004. The next set of images to be released by Dawn at the end of January will be the clearest yet, NASA says.

Ceres, which lies between Mars and Jupiter, has an average diameter of 590 miles and is the largest body in the main asteroid belt. It is believed to contain a large amount of ice and scientists say the surface of the planet could be concealing an ocean.

"The team is very excited to examine the surface of Ceres in never-before-seen detail," said Chris Russell, principal investigator for the Dawn mission. "We look forward to the surprises this mysterious world may bring."

The Dawn spacecraft has already delivered more than 30,000 images of Vesta the second largest body in the main asteroid belt during an orbit in 2011 and 2012.

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NASA's new Ceres images

NASA has new images of 'Texas-sized' planet

Story highlights NASA's Dawn spacecraft delivers new images of the dwarf planet Ceres Dawn will enter the dwarf planet's orbit in March

The images of Ceres, the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, were taken by the Dawn spacecraft from a distance of 238,000 miles on January 13. With a diameter of about 590 miles, NASA describes the dwarf planet as "Texas-sized."

"We know so much about the solar system and yet so little about dwarf planet Ceres. Now, Dawn is ready to change that," Marc Rayman, Dawn's chief engineer and mission director, said in a release from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope took the best images to date of Ceres in 2003 and 2004. While the latest set of images is only at about 80% of Hubble's resolution, NASA expects the decade-old images to be eclipsed when the spacecraft has another imaging opportunity at the end of this month.

Dawn, which was launched in 2007, is expected to enter the dwarf planet's orbit around March 6 for the first time. Scientists have long thought the surface contains vast portions of ice or even an ocean, and have previously detected water vapor.

Ceres falls into the same unique category of dwarf planets as Pluto. According to the International Astronomical Union, this classification is for a celestial body that "is in orbit around the sun," "has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape" but is not able to "clear the neighborhood around its orbit," meaning the body is big enough to clear objects like asteroids and debris out of its orbital way.

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NASA has new images of 'Texas-sized' planet

NASA's Dawn Draws Closer To Potentially Habitable Dwarf Planet Ceres

NASAs Dawn spacecraft has already delivered the first details of craters on the surface ofCeres as it draws closer to itshistorical rendezvous with the dwarf planet.

Dawn will be the first ever probe to visit a dwarf planet and has been heading for Ceres, the largest body in the main asteroid belt, since it left its first mission objective, Vesta, in 2012.

Its new images show the dwarf planet at 27 pixels across, around three times better than the calibration images taken in early December. The pictures are still only around 80 per cent of the resolution of images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2003 and 2004, but Dawn is about to get much closer to the dwarf world.

At the end of January, its images will surpass Hubble resolution, bringing scientists the first clues about this icy body in the asteroid belt, which some academics believe may harbor a subsurface ocean. That puts Ceres in the same bracket as Jupiters moon Europa and Saturns moon Enceladus warm, wet planetary bodies that are potentially habitable.

The Dawn spacecraft observed Ceres for an hour on Jan. 13, 2015, from a distance of 238,000 miles. A little more than half of its surface was observed at a resolution of 27 pixels. This animated GIF shows bright and dark features. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA/PSI)

said Marc Rayman, Dawns chief engineer and mission director, based at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

Already, the [latest] images hint at first surface structures such as craters, added Andreas Nathues, lead investigator for the framing camera team at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Gottingen, Germany.

Ceres sits in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, has an average diameter of 590 miles and is thought to be made up of a large proportion of water though how much of that water is liquid is still in question.

The dwarf planet is Dawns second port of call, after it delivered over 30,000 pictures and huge amounts of data and insight into Vesta, the second most massive object in the same asteroid belt. The probe orbited the 326-mile diameter space rock from 2011 to 2012, but thanks to its ion propulsion system, still has enough juice to be the first ever spacecraft to orbit two deep-space destinations.

Ceres has offered tantalising hints about its make-up, including the presence of water vapour in its thin atmosphere and these first hints of craters on its surface.

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NASA's Dawn Draws Closer To Potentially Habitable Dwarf Planet Ceres

NASA's solar observatory marks 100 millionth image

The Solar Dynamics Observatory celebrates five years of sun-worshipping by releasing its impressive 100 millionth image of our closest star.

The Solar Dynamics Observatory's 100 millionth image of the sun taken by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. NASA/SDO/AIA/LMSAL

The Solar Dynamics Observatory first stared into the depths of the sun when it launched in early 2010. NASA tasked the SDO with studying that giant fiery ball of star that helps make our very existence on Earth possible. Over the course of five years, the observatory has delivered memorable data and images, ranging from the sun making a jack-o'-lantern face to footage of massive solar flares.

A new landmark was reached when NASA released the observatory's 100 millionth image of the sun, taken January 19. The image was captured by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly, an instrument that NASA describes as using "four telescopes working parallel to gather eight images of the sun -- cycling through 10 different wavelengths -- every 12 seconds."

The SDO generates 1.5 terabytes of data each day, with about half of that coming from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. It's a busy instrument, cranking out 57,600 images every day.

The 100 millionth image is a lovely one, showing swirling waves of activity in the solar atmosphere. The dark spots are coronal holes, areas of lower gas levels, that are constantly shifting and reshaping. The SDO data is helping scientists understand what causes changes across the sun and how it impacts Earth.

NASA also created a mosaic of the 100 millionth image, using previous images the observatory has captured in extreme ultraviolet light. Each tile in the mosaic is 50 pixels across.

This mosaic of the 100 millionth Atmospheric Imaging Assembly image consists of many other Solar Dynamics Observatory images. NASA/SDO/Mosaic created with AndreaMosaic

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NASA's solar observatory marks 100 millionth image

NASA's Dawn spacecraft ready for historic contact with dwarf planet

NASA's Dawn spacecraft is currently in the final stages of its historic mission to place a satellite in orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres. The primary mission will take 16 months and will see the robotic explorer capture detailed images and measurements of Ceres, greatly improving our knowledge of the solar system.

Launched in 2007 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Base atop a Delta II rocket, Dawn carries a state-of-the-art suite of scientific equipment. This is designed to allow the spacecraft to unlock some of the mysteries surrounding the formation of our early solar system via a detailed observation of the rocky body Vesta, and the dwarf planet Ceres.

The spacecraft is powered by an ion thruster an engine that accelerates ion molecules to create forward momentum. This enduring propulsion system makes efficient use of fuel and electricity, and will allow Dawn to become the first spacecraft to orbit two deep space destinations.

To date, Dawn has traveled around 1.7 billion miles, using the gas giant Jupiter to give the robotic explorer a gravity assist as it made its way towards its first target, Vesta, gaining orbit in July 2011. During its year-long stay around the giant asteroid, Dawn took in excess of 30,000 images of Vesta, gaining many valuable insights in the process. Finally, on Sept. 7, 2012, the robotic pioneer set sail for her final destination, Ceres a rocky minor planet that is believed to contain large amounts of ice, and possibly even a hidden ocean under its enigmatic outer shell.

Processed image of Ceres as captured from the Dawn spacecraft (Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)

However, mission controllers have not had things all their own way. Over the course of its epic voyage through deep space, Dawn suffered a number of malfunctions, the most recent of which, caused by a collision with a high-energy radiation particle, forced the probe to enter a safe mode, shutting down the spacecraft's active ion thruster in the process. NASA personnel swiftly implemented a recovery protocol, switching to another ion engine as they implemented a work-around, allowing Dawn to quickly resume her burn towards Ceres with little to no detriment to the mission.

The most detailed images of the dwarf planet are currently provided by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, and whilst Dawn's images cannot yet match the resolution of the legendary telescope (currently snapping images at around 80 percent the quality of NASA's flagship platform), she is getting closer. The spacecraft has already returned some stunning images, the most recent of which captured Ceres at a resolution of 27 pixels across, roughly three times better than her previous attempts. Before long, Dawn will be close enough to its quarry to outstrip the ability of humanity's most famous telescope, as she races towards orbit capture, an event expected to take place March 6.

"The team is very excited to examine the surface of Ceres in never-before-seen detail," says principal investigator for Dawn, Chris Russel. "We look forward to the surprises this mysterious world may bring."

Source: NASA

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NASA's Dawn spacecraft ready for historic contact with dwarf planet

ANSI Nanotechnology Standards Panel to Hold Free Webinar on its New Nanotechnology Standards Database

Registration is now open for an upcoming webinar hosted by the American National Standards Institute Nanotechnology Standards Panel (ANSI-NSP). The webinar, which will take place on Thursday, October 10, 2013, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EDT, will provide an introduction to the ANSI-NSP Nanotechnology Standards Database. This database is a powerful new tool that is intended to serve as a free, comprehensive resource for individuals and groups worldwide seeking information about standards and other relevant documents related to nanomaterials and nanotechnology.

The creation of the database is part of a larger ongoing effort by the ANSI-NSP and its members and partners to bolster the visibility of existing and in-development nanotechnology guidance documents, best practices, and standards. To make the database relevant to the needs of the user community and help it grow, SDOs, government bodies, and other stakeholder organizations are encouraged to contribute information about their current and in-progress documents and projects. Organizations are required to register before submitting.

The October 10 webinar will cover the various ways that the database can be effectively used by groups and individuals as a resource, and will provide information about the short-term and long-term goals associated with the creation of the database.

There is no charge to take part in the webinar, which is open to all interested parties worldwide; however, advance registration is required. To register for the webinar, click here.

To access the database, register, or submit information about relevant documents, click here.

Formed in 2004, ANSI-NSP serves as the cross-sector coordinating body for the facilitation of standards development in the area of nanotechnology. For more information about ANSI-NSP and its work, visit its official webpage or contact Heather Benko (hbenko@ansi.org), ANSI senior manager, nanotechnology standardization activities.

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ANSI Nanotechnology Standards Panel to Hold Free Webinar on its New Nanotechnology Standards Database

Microscopic machines travel inside a living ANIMAL for the first time – and could one day be used to deliver drugs in …

Tiny motors delivered nano-particles to the stomach lining of a mouse They are made of polymer tubes and coated in zinc When they come into contact with stomach acid, the zinc produces bubbles of hydrogen, which propels them into the stomachs lining When they reach the lining, they attach and dissolve, to drop their delivery It's hoped the tech could be used to deploy drugs into locations in humans

By Sarah Griffiths for MailOnline

Published: 05:33 EST, 20 January 2015 | Updated: 10:40 EST, 20 January 2015

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Microscopic machines have travelled inside a living animal for the first time.

The minute motors delivered nano-particles to the stomach lining of a mouse, with no toxic effects.

Its hoped the technology could one day be used to deploy drugs into certain locations in the human body.

'Micromotors' have travelled inside a living mouse for the first time to deliver nano-particles to its stomach lining. They can be seen in a scannning electron microscopy (SEM) image on the left, while the right-hand image with added x-ray data shows their zinc coating

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Microscopic machines travel inside a living ANIMAL for the first time - and could one day be used to deliver drugs in ...

Are These Self-Propelled Micro-Machines The Future Of Medicine?

nanomachine image from shutterstock

From 1966sThe Fantastic Voyageto Marvels upcomingAnt Man, weve spent decades entertaining ourselves with fantastical stories about sciences ability to make bigthings small, and small thingsextraordinary. Now, in a case of life imitating art, we may be poised on the cusp of a nano-revolutionthat breaks free from science fiction, and into the realm of science fact.

Writing in theAmerican Chemical SocietysACSNanoJournal, agroup of scientists from the University Of California, San Diegos Nanoengineering departmentannouncedthat, for the first time ever, they have successfully testeda series of orally-ingestedmicro-machineswhich self-propelinto the stomach liningof their living host a feat that, up until now, had only been accomplished on laboratory tissue samples.Explains the BBC:

The machines, made of polymer tubes coated with zinc, are just 20 micrometers long - the width of a strand of human hair.

In stomach acid, the zinc reacts to produce bubbles of hydrogen, which propel the machines into the lining of the stomach, where they attach.

As the machines dissolve, they deliver their cargoes into the stomach tissue.

Before you shudder at the ideaof an army of robots going to work in (and on)your stomach, keep in mind that the science has a ways to go before it reachesInnerspace-levels of sci-ficomplexity. Still,the development of edible, self-destructingnanites, capable of pin-point medicinalaccuracy inside a living body, representsa significant step towarda world where yourhealth isnt monitored and managedthroughwearable tech,but instead through ingestiblesmedical machinesworkinginsideyou, rather thanon your wrist.

Its a disquieting thought for some, but for doctors constantly on the lookoutfor new ways of effectively deliveringmedicine to where your body needs it most, this could very well be abreakthrough.

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Are These Self-Propelled Micro-Machines The Future Of Medicine?

Soul Medicine Sunday – Seeing the Lessions – Part 5: Rooting in Higher Consciousness – Video


Soul Medicine Sunday - Seeing the Lessions - Part 5: Rooting in Higher Consciousness
The information is coming to you in many forms. The spiritual books talk about Heaven or Nirvana. What is Heaven and Nirvanoa. What glimpses have we gotten through the spiritual books for ages....

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Soul Medicine Sunday - Seeing the Lessions - Part 5: Rooting in Higher Consciousness - Video

Tai Nguyen – Taking Rejection As A Medicine | Tai Nguyen | TEDxTheHague – Video


Tai Nguyen - Taking Rejection As A Medicine | Tai Nguyen | TEDxTheHague
This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. In december 2014, our TEDxTheHague Salon was all about our regular visitors. We invited them to step...

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Tai Nguyen - Taking Rejection As A Medicine | Tai Nguyen | TEDxTheHague - Video