Monthly Archives: July 2017

Jupiters Great Red Spot is a hurricane-like storm about 10,200 miles (16,500km) wide and at least 150 years old. On July 10, the Juno spacecraft will complete the first ever up-close study of this storm, flying 5,600 miles (9,000km) above the Great Red Spot. In preparation for this landmark opportunity to observe some of our solar systems most extreme weather, the Gemini and Subaru Telescopes on Mauna Kea have taken some stunning images of Jupiter to supplement the data Juno is expected to obtain.

Why are Earth-based observations so important, when Juno is sitting in orbit around the giant planet? Observations with Earth's most powerful telescopes enhance the spacecraft's planned observations by providing three types of additional context, Juno science team member Glenn Orton of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory explained in a press release. We get spatial context from seeing the whole planet. We extend and fill in our temporal context from seeing features over a span of time. And we supplement with wavelengths not available from Juno. The combination of Earth-based and spacecraft observations is a powerful one-two punch in exploring Jupiter.

The infrared image obtained with the Gemini North Telescopes Near-InfraRed Imager (NIRI) on May 18 allowed astronomers to probe the uppermost regions of Jupiters atmosphere. As one of the highest-altitude features on the planet, the Great Red Spot appears as a bright white oval with narrow streaks on either side. These streaks are thought to be atmospheric features undergoing stretching by the storms high winds.

On the same night, the Subaru Telescope imaged Jupiter using its Cooled Mid-Infrared Camera and Spectrometer (COMICS). This data revealed structures further down inside the storm, such as its cold and cloudy interior increasing toward its center, with a periphery that was warmer and clearer, said Orton.

Read this article:

NASA releases stunning views of Jupiter's Great Red Spot - Astronomy Magazine

July 4, 2017 by Tim Stephens A false color image shows the spiral galaxy NGC 3359, which is about 50 million light years from us. NGC 3359 appears to be devouring a much smaller gas-rich dwarf galaxy, nicknamed the Little Cub, which contains 10,000 times fewer stars than its larger companion. The contour lines show where the gas is being stripped from the Little Cub, whose stars are located in the central blue circle. Credit: SDSS Collaboration

A primitive galaxy that could provide clues about the early universe has been spotted by astronomers as it begins to be consumed by a gigantic neighboring galaxy.

The Little Cub galaxyso called because it sits in the Ursa Major or Great Bear constellationis being stripped of the gas needed to continue forming stars by its larger companion. The find means scientists now have a rare opportunity to observe a dwarf galaxy as its gas is removed by the effects of a nearby giant galaxy to learn more about how this process happens.

As the Little Cub has remained almost pristine since its formation, scientists also hope its elements will reveal more about the chemical signature of the universe just minutes after the Big Bang.

The research, carried out by UC Santa Cruz and Durham University, UK, is being presented on Tuesday, July 4, at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting.

The Little Cub and its larger neighbor, a spiral galaxy called NGC 3359, are about 200 to 300 thousand light years apart, and approximately 50 million light years from Earth. Gas from the Little Cub is being stripped away by its interaction with NGC 3359, which has up to 10,000 times as many stars as the Little Cub and is similar to our Milky Way. By observing this cosmic feast, scientists hope to understand more about how and when gas is lost from smaller galaxies.

"We may be witnessing the quenching of a near-pristine galaxy as it makes its first passage about a Milky Way-like galaxy," said lead author Tiffany Hsyu, a graduate student in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz. "It is rare for such a tiny galaxy to still contain gas and be forming stars when it is in close proximity to a much larger galaxy so this is a great opportunity to see just how this process works. Essentially the larger galaxy is removing the fuel that the Little Cub needs to form stars, which will eventually shut down star formation and lead to the smaller galaxy's demise."

The researchers also hope to gain an insight into the make-up of the very early universe by studying the hydrogen and helium atoms that are being illuminated by the small number of very bright stars within the Little Cub (which also has the less romantic name SDSS J1044+6306). Since this galaxy is so primitive, it may still preserve the hydrogen and helium atoms that were created minutes after the Big Bang.

Research coauthor Ryan Cooke, Royal Society University Research Fellow in Durham University's Centre for Extragalactic Astronomy, said, "We know by studying the chemistry of the Little Cub that it is one of the most primitive objects currently known in our cosmic neighborhood. Such galaxies, which have remained dormant for most of their lives, are believed to contain the chemical elements forged a few minutes after the Big Bang. By measuring the relative number of hydrogen and helium atoms in the Little Cub we might be able to learn more about what made up the Universe in the moments after it began 13.7 billion years ago."

The researchers hope further observations will find more pristine galaxies where the chemical signature of the early universe might be found.

The Little Cub was initially identified as a potentially pristine dwarf galaxy in data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Follow-up observations were conducted using the 3-meter Shane Telescope at Lick Observatory and the 10-meter Keck II telescope at the W.M. Keck Observatory.

"The Little Cub's discovery is a terrific example of using the smaller 3-meter-class Lick Observatory to scan through hundreds of candidates before focusing on the best sources with UC's 10-meter Keck telescope," said coauthor J. Xavier Prochaska, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz.

A paper describing the discovery of Little Cub has been submitted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Explore further: Hubble scopes out a galaxy of stellar birth

This image displays a galaxy known as ESO 486-21 (with several other background galaxies and foreground stars visible in the field as well). ESO 486-21 is a spiral galaxyalbeit with a somewhat irregular and ill-defined ...

This dramatic image shows the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope's view of dwarf galaxy known asNGC 1140, which lies 60 million light-years away in the constellation of Eridanus. As can be seen in this image NGC 1140 has an ...

Galaxies today fall roughly into two categories: elliptically-shaped collections of reddish, old stars that formed predominantly during a period early in the history of the universe, and spiral shaped objects dominated by ...

The Sculptor Dwarf Galaxy, pictured in this new image from the Wide Field Imager camera, installed on the 2.2-metre MPG/ESO telescope at ESO's La Silla Observatory, is a close neighbour of our galaxy, the Milky Way. Despite ...

Despite being less famous than their elliptical and spiral galactic cousins, irregular dwarf galaxies, such as the one captured in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image, are actually one of the most common types of galaxy ...

The drizzle of stars scattered across this image forms a galaxy known as UGC 4879. UGC 4879 is an irregular dwarf galaxyas the name suggests, galaxies of this type are a little smaller and messier than their cosmic cousins, ...

Please sign in to add a comment. Registration is free, and takes less than a minute. Read more

Here is the original post:

'Little Cub' gives astronomers rare chance to see galaxy demise - Phys.Org

Amy Templeman says her love of Saskatchewan's living skies instilled in hera love of astronomy so strong, she named her daughter Aurora.

It's also the reason she's been planning for five years to drive thousands of kilometres across North America to watch the day-time sky turn black for about two minutes.

On Aug. 21, Templeman, her partnerTravis and six-month-old daughter Aurora will be travelling to Missouri to watch the first total solar eclipse to cross the entire United States in 99 years.

"I've been interested in the sky since I was a little girl," she said.

"I would basically trick my dad into letting me stay up late if I asked him questions about astronomy."

In 2012, Templeman watched a partial solar eclipse over the spectacular mountain view at Lake Louise, Alta.

She and Travis shared the experience with some of the hospitality workers at the popular tourist spot, taking turns to look throughspecial eclipse glasses that make it safe to watch.

"The sun was setting over the mountains and it was a partial eclipse, so it looked like the cookie monster had taken a bite out of the sun," said Templeman.

Although it was fascinating to watch through the safety of the glasses, there was no noticeable difference in the daylight.

Templeman said she and Travis knew about this year's total solar eclipse at the time, and immediately decided to make sure they were were in the U.S. to see it.

The path of "totality," where the moon will completely obscure the sunlight, stretches from Oregon to South Carolina. In those states, millions of people will experience approximately 2 minutes of darkness in the middle of the day.

Templeman said her family chose the city of Columbia, Missouri because they have friends there.

However, it is also one of the places where the darkness is expected to last the longest. The feeling of night during the day is expected to be so convincing that birds and other animals will begin their evening routines.

A map of the the path of the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse. (CBC News)

Templeman said it was lucky she had booked accommodation early because she had heard many local hotels around Columbia had no vacancies, with numerous parties and events planned in the city that day.

Templeman is one of many Canadians travelling south for the event.

"It will be really interesting to see a bunch of like-minded people congregate," she said.

"It's a really small band across the U.S. that you'll be able to see, or not see, the sun."

Although the path of totality is entirely in the U.S., NASA predictions indicate that a partial eclipse will still be visible in parts of Canada. About 80 per cent of the sun is expected to be covered by the moon for those watching from Regina.

Looking at the eclipse can seriously damage a person's eyes. Anyone planning to watch needs special eclipse glasses, which can be found online or at some science stores or science centres. Do not look at the sun, even if a sliver of it is visible.

Templeman is not sure how she will feel when darkness falls over the crowd.

"I read other accounts of people feeling a sense of calm," she said.

"I've never heard of people being uneasy but, I don't know."

Here is the original post:

Love of astronomy born under living skies drives Sask. woman on road trip to view total eclipse - CBC.ca