Category Astronomy/Space

Animated map of Orion’s Horsehead Nebula showing 100 separate views in sequence. The yellow and white areas have the most intense radiation from carbon atoms. Credits: NASA/DLR/USRA/DSI/SOFIA/GREAT Consortium

NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA, has released a new map of the interstellar cloud called the Horsehead Nebula, in constellation Orion. This map is made of 100 separate views of the nebula, each mapping carbon atoms at different velocities. When combined, these different views create a multi-faceted representation of the nebula. Each location on this new SOFIA map of the nebula contains a far-infrared spectrum of the gas and dust there, allowing astronomers to examine the dynamics, chemistry, temperatures, and velocity within the nebula...

Occator Crater, measuring 57 miles (92 kilometers) across and 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) deep, contains the brightest area on Ceres. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA/PSI

Scientists from NASA’s Dawn mission unveiled new images from the spacecraft’s lowest orbit at Ceres, including highly anticipated views of Occator Crater, at the 47th annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in The Woodlands, Texas, on Tuesday. Occator Crater, measuring 57 miles across and 2.5 miles deep, contains the brightest area on Ceres, the dwarf planet that Dawn has explored since early 2015. The latest images, taken from 240 miles above the surface of Ceres, reveal a dome in a smooth-walled pit in the bright center of the crater...

Penn State researchers found a better way to use satellite data in hurricane prediction models, which could revolutionize future hurricane predictions. Pictured is satellite imagery of Hurricane Karl, which was the focus of the researchers’ proof-of-concept study. Credit: NOAA

The launch of the GOES-R geostationary satellite in October 2016 could herald a new era for predicting hurricanes. The wealth of information from this new satellite, at time and space scales not previously possible, combined with advanced statistical hurricane prediction models, could enable more accurate predictions in the future.

“For decades, geostationary satellites such as the GOES series have been the primary tool to monitor severe weather like storms and hurricanes in real time,” said Fuqing Zhang, professor o...

Artist impression of a magnetar boosting a super-luminous supernova and gamma-ray burst. Credit: Kavli IPMU

Calculations by scientists have found highly magnetized, rapidly spinning neutron stars called magnetars could explain the energy source behind 2 extremely unusual stellar explosions. Stellar explosions known as supernovae usually shine a billion times brighter than the Sun. Super-luminous supernovae (SLSNe) are a relatively new and rare class of stellar explosions, 10 – 100 times brighter than normal supernovae. But the energy source of their super-luminosity, and explosion mechanisms are a mystery and remain controversial amongst scientists.

A group of researchers tested a model that suggests that the energy to power the luminosity of two recently discovered SLSNe, SN 2011kl and AS...