Disclosure And First Contanct Oct 31, 2009
There are billions of galaxies, each with billions of star, some of which have planets and moons (and all teeming with intelligent life). So as you can see, the universe is infinitely extensive. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
3,000 images combine for Milky Way portrait Oct 31, 2009
"This shows stars 1,000 times fainter than the human eye can see, as well as hundreds of galaxies, star clusters and nebulae," Mellinger said ... Catch a blast from the sun, a clash between galaxies and other outer-space highlights from October. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Fermi caps first year with glimpse at space-time Oct 31, 2009
Amongst the bounty are numerous blazars, distant galaxies whose black holes are directing jets of matter towards us. Fermi has brought the blazar count to over 500. (Astronomy Now Online)
Balancing use of the radio spectrum Oct 31, 2009
Scientists monitor passive radio-wave emissions from diverse objects such as hurricanes and distant galaxies to study Earth's environment and climate and learn more about the universe. However, the radio spectrum is also used by radiating or "active" services -- ranging from aircraft radars to consumer products such as cellular telephones and wireless Internet -- which can interfere with or drown out the weak signals from these passive natural transmissions used for scientific research. (EurekAlert!)
Distant GRB blueprint of early Universe Oct 31, 2009
The primal cosmic darkness was being pierced by the light of the first stars and the first galaxies were beginning to form. The star that exploded in this event was a member of one of these earliest generations of stars. (Astronomy Now Online)
Dark matter sleuths to design world's largest WIMP catcher Oct 30, 2009
Scientists believe that WIMPs could have been born of the Big Bang, stream through us by the billion every second and provide the mass needed to keep galaxies, including our Milky Way, from flying apart ... That theory was bolstered by NASA's observations of two distant galaxies colliding in 2006 ... Detecting a WIMP would go a long way toward understanding how the universe works and confirm the dark matter theory that unseen matter must exist or galaxies would lack the mass to form, cluster and... (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
Scientists See Blast From 13 Billion Years Ago Oct 30, 2009
In this case, the star's death long ago was bright enough to outshine even galaxies and will help scientists understand what happened in the early days of the universe. 2009 Reuters. (Newsmax)
Physicist Makes New High-resolution Panorama Of Milky Way Oct 30, 2009
"This panorama image shows stars 1000 times fainter than the human eye can see, as well as hundreds of galaxies, star clusters and nebulae," Mellinger said. Its high resolution makes the panorama useful for both educational and scientific purposes, he says. (Science Daily)
An intergalactic race in space and time Oct 29, 2009
General explains gravity and the motion of large objects such as planets, stars and galaxies, whereas quantum-mechanics explains the behaviour of very small things such as atoms. Both theories do well at explaining their respective worlds, but they don t fit together mathematically. (Scientific American)
Astronomical Artifact: Most Distant Object Yet Detected Carries Clues from Early Universe Oct 29, 2009
"We have very little idea of what galaxies were like at that time. We have only very sketchy ideas.". . (Scientific American)
Blast From Past: Clues About Early Universe Oct 29, 2009
"This explosion provides an unprecedented look at an era when the Universe was very young and also was undergoing drastic changes. The primal cosmic darkness was being pierced by the light of the first stars and the first galaxies were beginning to form. The star that exploded in this event was a member of one of these earliest generations of stars," said Dale Frail of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory ... 25, 2009) Astronomers have discovered more than a hundred dusty galaxies in the... (Science Daily)
The strangest moments in space launch history Oct 28, 2009
Catch a blast from the sun, a clash between galaxies and other outer-space highlights from October. more photos. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Dark energy rips cosmos and agencies Oct 28, 2009
The effect was announced in 1998 after astronomers precisely measured the distances to supernovae in other galaxies. But the cause remains baffling. (Scientific American)
Scientists use world's fastest supercomputer to model origins of the unseen universe Oct 27, 2009
The model's basic unit is a particle with a mass of approximately one billion suns (in order to sample galaxies with masses of about a trillion suns), and it includes 64 billion and more of those particles. The model is one of the largest simulations of the distribution of matter in the universe, and aims to look at galaxy-scale mass concentrations above and beyond quantities seen in state-of-the-art sky surveys. (EurekAlert!)
Night Sky Viewing for November 2009 Oct 27, 2009
Astronomers now know that the two galaxies, the Andromeda and the Milky Way, are drawing together and will eventually collide in about 5 billion years. The copyright of the article Night Sky Viewing for November 2009 in is owned by. (Suite101.com)
How To See a Black Hole Oct 27, 2009
Avery Broderick This is true even for the largest black holes we know the ones that reside at the centers of galaxies. The nearest of these lies some 30,000 light-years away, in the core of the Milky Way. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
Unknown Force Acting On Dark Matter? Oct 23, 2009
23, 2009) An international team of astronomers have found an unexpected link between mysterious 'dark matter' and the visible stars and gas in galaxies that could revolutionise our current understanding of gravity ... Stars and gas in galaxies move so fast that astronomers have speculated that the gravity from a hypothetical invisible halo of dark matter is needed to keep galaxies together ... Now the team believes that the interactions between dark and ordinary matter could be more important... (Science Daily)
Towards Other Earths: 32 New Exoplanets Found Oct 20, 2009
19, 2009) Today, at an international ESO/CAUP exoplanet conference in Porto, the team who built the High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher, better known as HARPS, the spectrograph for ESO's 3. 6-metre telescope, reports on the incredible discovery of some 32 new exoplanets, cementing HARPS's position as the world s foremost exoplanet hunter. (Science Daily)
Obituaries in the news Oct 16, 2009
Astronomers call it the Dark Ages, and now they're building huge new radio telescopes with thousands of detectors that they hope will let them peer back into the period, when the first stars and galaxies began turning on their lights. Telescopes, Galileo texts on view at Vatican. (Fresno Bee -- Nation)
Milky Way's Tiny But Tough Galactic Neighbor Oct 15, 2009
The strange shapes of these cosmic misfits help researchers understand how galaxies interact, evolve and occasionally "cannibalize" each other, leaving behind radiant, star-filled scraps ... 6 million light-years, Barnard's Galaxy is a member of the Local Group, the archipelago of galaxies that includes our home, the Milky Way ... Even though Barnard's Galaxy lacks the majestic spiral arms and glowing, central bulge that grace its big galactic neighbours, the Milky Way, the Andromeda and the... (Science Daily)
Strange shapes seen in Milky Ways neighbor Oct 15, 2009
6 million light-years, is a member of the Local Group, an archipelago of galaxies that includes our home, the ... Irregular dwarf galaxies like Barnard's Galaxy get their random, blob-like forms from close encounters with or "digestion" by other galaxies ... When , their gravitational interaction can warp the shapes of the galaxies. (MSNBC -- Technology)
SPACE PHOTOS THIS WEEK: Moon Crash, Galaxy Merger, More Oct 14, 2009
October 13, 2009--If our home galaxy, the Milky Way, got into a tussle with its twin, the result might look like NGC 2623, a pair of colliding galaxies about 250 million light-years away ... The composite image reveals that the galaxies have merged at their cores, but huge clusters of young stars continue to form in the tails of gas and dust that trail what's left of each galaxy. (National Geographic)
Bizarre Galaxy Result Of Cosmic Collision Oct 14, 2009
Bizarre Galaxy Is Result Of Pair Of Spiral Galaxies Smashing Together ... Bizarre Galaxy Is Result Of Pair Of Spiral Galaxies Smashing Together ... 14, 2009) A recent NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image captures what appears to be one very bright and bizarre galaxy, but is actually the result of a pair of spiral galaxies that resemble our own Milky Way smashing together at breakneck speeds. (Science Daily)
The Milky Way's tiny but tough galactic neighbor Oct 14, 2009
6 million light-years, Barnard's Galaxy is a member of the Local Group (), the archipelago of galaxies that includes our home, the Milky Way ... Even though Barnard's Galaxy lacks the majestic spiral arms and glowing, central bulge that grace its big galactic neighbours, the Milky Way, the Andromeda and the Triangulum galaxies, this dwarf galaxy has no shortage of stellar splendour and pyrotechnics ... In the Local Group, as elsewhere in the Universe, however, dwarf galaxies outnumber their... (EurekAlert!)
> read more Oct 14, 2009
After I'd spent more than an hour straining to see the 14th-magnitude galaxies described in the November Deep-Sky Wonders, I got to unwind with a lovely succession of relatvely easy double stars, the magnificent carbon star TX Piscium (which I often view), and a charming asterism that I never would have stumbled on if Sue hadn't mentioned it. But don't take my word for it. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
* A looming data glut threatens computer science Oct 14, 2009
For example, Andrew Connolly, an associate professor at the University of Washington, has turned to the high-powered computers to aid his work on the evolution of galaxies. Connolly works with data gathered by large telescopes that inch their way across the sky taking pictures of various objects. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Einstein's theory of General Relativity may have been flawed Oct 13, 2009
Far-off galaxies are tugging each other more tightly than Einstein's gravity theory predicts, suggests an analysis of light from distant stars. Now available in an online physics paper archive, the by Cornell cosmologist Rachel Bean looks at how galaxies attract one another roughly one billion light-years away ... Light bending less than galaxies under gravity's pull would offer a first real hint about the mysterious "dark energy" pulling galaxies apart at an accelerating rate, say both Bean and... (USA Today -- Tech)
Gravity-mapping satellite to help predict climate Oct 13, 2009
Oct. 13: Dr. J explains the scientific wonders behind two crashing galaxies known as NGC 2623 in a "Hubblecast" from the European Space Agency. Most popular. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Iridium flares light up evening sky Oct 9, 2009
Tonight, the BCC planetarium is proud to present a free lecture on What Lies in the Heart of Galaxies by Dr. Eric Perlman of the Physics and Space Sciences Department, Florida Institute of Technology. October is the premiere of Two Small Pieces of Glass at the BCC planetarium. (Florida Today)
Vampires, Vulcans and Villains Descend Upon the Greek Theatre for Spike TV's 4th Annual 'SCREAM' Oct 6, 2009
NEW YORK, Oct. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- As twilight descends upon The Greek Theatre, Spike TV presents "SCREAM 2009," an evening where galaxies collide and genres unite for the ultimate celebration of all things sci-fi, fantasy, horror and comic book. The 4(th) annual "SCREAM" is the first and only global event of its kind to honor and celebrate the hottest films, TV shows, comics, actors, creators, icons and pioneers who have influenced and shaped these genres. (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Balloon probe seeks clues to universes start Oct 6, 2009
If even a single particle of antihelium was discovered, it raises the prospect that entire galaxies of antimatter exist as well. BESS was one of nine suborbital astrophysical research projects selected from 25 proposals for funding. (MSNBC -- Technology)
All Eyes on Nobel Physics Prize Oct 6, 2009
- 2006: Americans John C. Mather and George F. Smoot for work examining the infancy of the universe, aiding the understanding of galaxies and stars and increasing support for the Big Bang theory of the beginning of the universe. - 2005: Americans John L. Hall and Roy J. Glauber and German Theodor W. Haensch, for research explaining the behavior of light particles and determining the frequency of light with great precision. (CBS News)
SARS spurs China to act on AIDS Oct 5, 2009
More than two dozen galaxies of all shapes and sizes show the same ratio of dark matter to normal matter in their central regions current theories can't explain why. Most read. (Yahoo News -- SARS)
New Kind Of Search For Dark Energy: First Light For BOSS Oct 3, 2009
BOSS's first exposure was made after many nights of clouds and rain in the Sacramento Mountains when spectroscopy was obtained of some 800 galaxies and 200 quasars in the constellation Aquarius ... The same density variations left their mark as the Universe evolved, in the periodic clustering of visible matter in galaxies, quasars, and intergalactic gas, as well as in the clumping of invisible dark matter ... 4 million luminous red galaxies at redshifts up to 0. (Science Daily)
Heart of a galaxy emits gamma rays Oct 3, 2009
Quite a few distant galaxies turn out to be cosmic delivery rooms. Large numbers of massive stars are born in the hearts of these starburst galaxies, and later explode as supernovae ... At a distance of some twelve million light years away, NGC 253 is one our closest spiral galaxies outside the so-called local group of our Milky Way and its companions. (EurekAlert!)
On moonless nights, look for the not-so-bright sights among stars Oct 3, 2009
The growth of Los Angeles put an end to Mount Wilson s glory days of determining the distances of galaxies and the expansion rate of the universe. However, its 100-inch telescope, a near-antique from 1917, has been outfitted with a 21st-century imaging system that enables it to see fine detail through Earth s rippling atmosphere, almost as if the atmosphere weren t there. (Boston Globe)
Facebook: 54 Oct 2, 2009
Space is probably infinite, but we can see only the part that contains stars or galaxies whose light has been able to reach us, says Francis Halzen, a professor of physics. AmazingSeptember 4 at 5:05am. (Why Files)
Its fall and a young mans fancy turns to ... Stonehenge? Oct 2, 2009
Paul W. Mailloux is a retired teacher in charge of the Dunn Planetarium at Danvers High School, where the public is invited to learn more about the galaxies on Friday nights at 7 p.m. Tickets are $2. 50. (Danvers Herald, MA)
Seeing stars Oct 2, 2009
5m diameter mirror is the largest ever flown in space Herschel can probe clouds of gas and dust to see stars being born It will investigate how galaxies have evolved through time The mission will end when its helium refrigerant boils off. The telescope was looking towards the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy, in the direction of the Southern Cross constellation. (BBC News -- Europe)
Speeding galaxies warped by space winds Oct 1, 2009
Hubble shows how galaxies get bent when they zoom at 6 million mph ... A new set of images from the Hubble Space Telescope, taken before its recent overhaul by astronauts, has revealed strong winds ripping through a pair of galaxies, distorting their shape and halting star formation ... The galaxies, members of the Virgo Cluster, are being affected by a process called "ram pressure stripping." As galaxies in the cluster move through hot gas lurking in the gaps between them, winds caused by their... (MSNBC -- Technology)
'Ram Pressure' Stripping Galaxies, Hubble Space Telescope Scientists Find Oct 1, 2009
Ram Pressure' Stripping Galaxies, Hubble Space Telescope Scientists Find ... Ram Pressure' Stripping Galaxies, Hubble Space Telescope Scientists Find ... 30, 2009) A newly released set of images, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope before the recent Servicing Mission, highlight the ongoing drama in two galaxies in the Virgo Cluster affected by a process known as "ram pressure stripping", which can result in peculiar-looking galaxies. (Science Daily)
James Webb Space Telescope Begins To Take Shape At Goddard Oct 1, 2009
The MIRI instrument will provide information on the formation and evolution of galaxies, the physical processes of star and planet formation, and the sources of life-supporting elements in other solar systems. The NIRCam will detect the first galaxies to form in the early universe, map the morphology and colors of galaxies; detect distant supernovae; map dark matter and study stellar populations in nearby galaxies ... NIRSpec's microshutter cells can be opened or closed to view or block a... (Science Daily)
World's Most Sensitive Astronomical Camera Developed Oct 1, 2009
11, 2005) Fitted with a new compound eye, the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico last week began a multiyear effort to survey all the galaxies in a large swath of sky out to a distance of 800 million light. (May 19, 2006) The continuing disintegration of Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 has allowed ESA scientists to see into the interior of the comet. (Science Daily)
Galaxies far, far, far away Oct 1, 2009
These new images of distant galaxies come from the newly installed Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. Clockwise from top left: NGC 6302, a butterfly-shaped nebula surrounding a dying star; a group of galaxies called Stephan's Quintet; a star-forming region in the Carina Nebula; a group of 100,000 stars residing in the crowded core of Omega Centauri, a giant globular cluster ... New pictures taken by a telescope in space show ancient galaxies that blow those numbers away. (Science News for Kids)
This Week's Sky at a Glance Sep 30, 2009
Both atlases include many hundreds of deep-sky targets galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae to hunt among the stars. Once you get a telescope, to put it to good use you'll need a detailed, large-scale sky atlas (set of charts; the standards are or the smaller ) and good deep-sky guidebooks (such as by Strong and Sinnott, the more detailed and descriptive Night Sky Observer's Guide by Kepple and Sanner, or the classic Burnham's Celestial Handbook). (SkyAndTelescope.com)
ALMA Dish Takes the High Road Sep 26, 2009
Among these are the dense clouds of gas and dust where stars form, and distant, dusty, star-forming galaxies near the edge of the observable universe. See. (SkyAndTelescope.com)
ALMA Telescope Reaches New Heights Sep 25, 2009
These include cold clouds of gas and dust where new stars are being born and remote galaxies towards the edge of the observable universe ... Astronomers removed light from closer and better known galaxies and stars from pictures taken with the Spitzer Space Telescope. (Science Daily)
Leave Zita Alone!!! Sep 23, 2009
Should she conjure facts from the galaxies. The truth of the matter is, it is only in our country, which this will be a concern, because our politics has become 99% talk with 1% action. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Zooming To The Center Of The Milky Way: GigaGalaxy Zoom Phase 2 Sep 23, 2009
5, 2009) To celebrate the 100 Hours of Astronomy, ESO is sharing two stunning images of unusual galaxies, both belonging to the Sculptor group of galaxies. The images, obtained at two of ESO s. (Science Daily)
ESO unveils interactive 360 degree view of night sky Sep 22, 2009
From this vantage point, the general components of our spiral galaxy come clearly into view, including its disc, marbled with both dark and glowing nebulae, which harbors bright, young stars, as well as the Galaxy s central bulge and its satellite galaxies. The painstaking production of this image came about as a collaboration between ESO, the renowned French writer and astrophotographer Serge Brunier, and his fellow Frenchman Frederic Tapissier. (Astronomy Now Online)
Swift's portrait of Andromeda Sep 22, 2009
This so-called 'ring of fire' is thought to result from tides raised by the many small satellite galaxies in orbit around M31, which help boost the interactions within gas clouds that triggers new star formation. Swift is surveying nearby galaxies like M31 so astronomers can better understand star formation conditions and relate them to conditions in the distant galaxies where we see gamma-ray bursts occurring, says Neil Gehrels, the mission s principal investigator at NASA Goddard. (Astronomy Now Online)
Cosmic Ninjas: In Search Of Dark Asteroids Sep 22, 2009
WISE will also help answer questions about the formation of stars and the evolution and structure of galaxies, including our own Milky Way galaxy ... For example, one theory posits that most of the stars in the universe were formed in the press of colliding galaxies ... When galaxies collide, interstellar clouds of gas and dust smash together, compressing the clouds and starting a self-perpetuating cycle of gravitational collapse. (Science Daily)
LOOKING UP: How to use a star map Sep 21, 2009
Star atlases help telescope users find star clusters, galaxies and much more in the deep sky. These atlases are plotted with a much deeper magnitude of faint stars, below the normal +6th magnitude naked eye limit and shows thousands of stars you can only find with optical aid. (Medfield Press, MA)
HINGHAM COLLEGE KID: Eagan mixes math, astronomy Sep 21, 2009
He conducted a research project this summer titled Quantifying the Evolution of Ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs). ULIRGs are very bright galaxies that emit most of their total energy through infrared waves ... That s why he is studying astrophysics the application of graph theory and statistics to the study of galaxies will put him ahead of other graduate students who have not yet learned to channel their mathematical talents into something practical or research-oriented. (Hingham Journal, MA)
Planck Sees Ancient Cosmic Light Sep 20, 2009
Astronomers removed light from closer and better known galaxies and stars from pictures taken with the Spitzer Space Telescope. The remaining images. (Science Daily)
'Extraordinary results' expected from Hubble Sep 19, 2009
Hubble has already started making new observations after its three-month checkout phase, with showing distant clusters of galaxies, an eerie "pillar of creation," a densely packed star cluster, and a "butterfly" nebula ... The new Deep Field will continue that effort in the hopes of seeing some of the earliest galaxies or proto-galaxies in the universe ... A big question in both astronomy and physics is the nature of dark matter and dark energy, Leckrone said: "What's causing the universe's... (MSNBC -- Technology)
The challenges of working with NeXters Sep 19, 2009
Generation NeXters, according to Dr. Mark Taylor, a nationally recognized educator and expert on this group of young people, definitely bring to the table a set of personal characteristics that would tax even the most skilled professor, let alone one from the baby boomer generation who can seem galaxies apart from his students' world. Taylor, who has worked as a college professor, medical administrator and clinical psychotherapist, writes in Generation NeXt Goes to Work: Issues in Workplace... (Herald Online, SC -- Opinion)
Invading Black Holes Explain Cosmic Flashes Sep 19, 2009
7, 2009) Peering deep into the early universe, astronomers may have solved a longstanding cosmic chicken-and-egg problem -- which forms first -- galaxies or the black holes at their. . (Science Daily)
NASA captures amazing view of Andromeda Sep 17, 2009
Previous studies have shown that tides raised by the many small satellite galaxies in orbit around M31 help boost the interactions within gas clouds that result in new stars ... "We expect an average of about one supernova per century in galaxies like M31," Immler said. (MSNBC -- Technology)
Best Ultraviolet Portrait Of Andromeda Galaxy Sep 17, 2009
Previous studies have shown that tides raised by the many small satellite galaxies in orbit around M31 help boost the interactions within gas clouds that result in new stars ... "We expect an average of about one supernova per century in galaxies like M31," Immler said ... "Swift is surveying nearby galaxies like M31 so astronomers can better understand star- formation conditions and relate them to conditions in the distant galaxies where we see gamma-ray bursts occurring," said Neil Gehrels,... (Science Daily)
Telescope Camera Peeks At Nest Of Black Holes Sep 16, 2009
Astronomers will use FLAMINGOS-2 (FLAMINGOS is short for the Florida Array Multi-object Imaging Grism Spectrometer) to hunt the universe s first galaxies, view stars as they are being born, reveal black holes and investigate other phenomena ... Uniquely, FLAMINGOS-2 can take spectra of up to 80 different objects simultaneously, speeding astronomers hunt for old galaxies, black holes or newly forming stars and planets ... The second will probe the formation and evolution of galaxies across time,... (Science Daily)
Interactive, 360-degree Panoramic View Of Entire Night Sky Sep 16, 2009
From this vantage point, the general components of our spiral galaxy come clearly into view, including its disc, marbled with both dark and glowing nebulae, which harbours bright, young stars, as well as the Galaxy s central bulge and its satellite galaxies ... From this vantage point, the general components of our spiral galaxy come clearly into view, including its disc, marbled with both dark and glowing nebulae, which harbours bright, young stars, as well as the Galaxy s central bulge and its... (Science Daily)
Astrophysics: High Energy Galactic Particle Accelerator Located Sep 15, 2009
Galaxies of this kind are referred to as active galactic nuclei. The MAGIC telescope. (Science Daily)
Double Nucleus Galaxies: Ravenous Black Holes Sep 15, 2009
In a study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Swinburne researchers examined 50 regular galaxies to determine their composition and structure. The researchers, Associate Professor Alister Graham and Dr Lee Spitler, found that 12 of these galaxies contained a double nucleus -- that is, they had both a super massive black hole and a dense star cluster containing up to ten million stars at their centre ... Traditionally astronomers believed that most small galaxies... (Science Daily)
Refurbished Hubble gets off to a flying start Sep 12, 2009
New instruments included the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) which is set to map out the cosmic web of galaxies and gas clouds that span the Universe. It will gather the ultraviolet light of brilliant quasars that can be seen shining through this intervening cosmic web, and spectroscopy will reveal the composition of these galaxies and gas clouds ... By studying galaxies like Markarian 817, they can ascertain how massive a black hole needs to be before its radiation jets become so powerful... (Astronomy Now Online)
