Space Pictures This Week: Martian Vista, Neil Armstrong

Reflection Nebula

Image courtesy Rector/Schweiker/Pakzad, UAA/WIYN/NOAO/NSF

This pretty astral feature, called NGC 1788 by scientists, is an unusual reflection nebula (the bluish white at the center of the image) surrounded by a glowing red ring of hydrogen gas. A reflection nebula means the light is produced outside the feature but reflects off it, instead of being produced by the feature itself.

The stars inside the nebula are thought to be around a million years old, which is relatively young as far as stars go.

The image was made with blue, orange, and red filters, with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the Mayall 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. The observatory is 56 miles (90 kilometers) southwest of Tucson, Arizona.

(See aurora pictures.)

Published August 29, 2012

Space Pioneer Passes

Photograph courtesy NASA

Aerospace great Neil Armstrong appears in this newly released photo from 1964, with the cockpit of the Bell VTOL X-14. The craft was an experimental plane used extensively at the NASA Ames Research Center in Northern California to test vertical takeoffs and landings, in preparation for the Apollo lunar missions.

On July 20, 1969, as leader of the Apollo 11 mission, Armstrong would become the first person to walk on the moon, after nearly a decade of research and development by the U.S. space program. Before becoming an astronaut, Armstrong was a seasoned Navy and test pilot and an engineer.

Armstrong passed away on August 25 in Cincinnati, Ohio, due to cardiovascular problems. Born in 1930, he was 82 years old. Armstrong is remembered as a major figure of space exploration and a hero to many around the world.

(See the incredible story of Apollo 11 in pictures.)

Published August 29, 2012

Seeing Stars Spin

Photograph by Kim Eijdenberg, Your Shot

This gorgeous image required an all-night exposure, made on a night with no moon and clear skies. It was shot on Blackcomb Mountain in British Columbia, Canada.

The photographer, Kim Eijdenberg, told National Geographic's My Shot, "It's amazing to think it's really us who are spinning in relation to the stars." That's because the Earth rotates on its axis and revolves around the sun.

(See tips on how to photograph the Milky Way.)

Published August 29, 2012

The Seven Sisters

Image courtesy T.A. Rector and Richard Cool, UA/UAA/WIYN

The Pleiades (the Seven Sisters, or officially M45) is a tight cluster of stars that is visible to the naked eye on dark nights. Here, the group is shown through the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the WIYN 0.9-meter telescope on Kitt Peak, Arizona. Blue, green, and red filters were applied.

The cluster of hot, big stars is accented by blue nebulae that are formed as the starlight scatters off dust particles in the interstellar space between the luminous bodies. The stars of Pleiades are considered middle-aged, and they are located in the constellation Taurus. The cluster is among the nearest to Earth.

The Pleiades are known as Subaru in Japan, a name that was adopted by the car company. Many cultures had rich folklore about the star cluster, from the Norse people to the Berbers, Arabs, Hebrews, and of course the Greeks, who called them the Seven Sisters.

(See star photos.)

Published August 29, 2012

Walk Like a Cosmonaut

Photograph courtesy NASA

Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, Expedition 32 commander, works outside the International Space Station in what's called an extravehicular activity (EVA), or spacewalk. Over nearly six hours, Padalka and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko moved equipment to prepare for upcoming installation of a new Russian multipurpose laboratory module.

The two cosmonauts also installed micrometeoroid debris shields and released a small science satellite.

With the recent ending of the U.S. Space Shuttle program, Russian cosmonauts will likely have to shoulder added responsibilities on the International Space Station for some time.

(Learn about the final Space Shuttle mission.)

Published August 29, 2012

Melting Sea Ice

Image courtesy NASA

Arctic sea ice is photographed from the Operation IceBridge aerial survey. NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center announced this week that Arctic sea ice is now smaller than ever recorded since consistent satellite measurements began more than three decades ago.

Arctic ice melts each summer, before refreezing in the colder months. But over the past few years, the summer melt has been more extensive than previously seen, thanks to a warming climate. Before this year the previous minimum was seen in the summer of 2007.

Scientists expect the ice to continue to shrink over the next few weeks.

(Read more about extreme weather in National Geographic magazine.)

Published August 29, 2012

Dark Nebula

Image courtesy T.A. Rector and H. Schweiker, UAA/WIYN/NOAO/NSF

A dark nebula called LDN 810 is visible through the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the Mayall 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. The dark part in the center of the image is made up of gas and dust and is a place where new stars are forming. A faint trail of dust and gas extends from the center of the image to the upper-left corner.

The astral feature was first described in 1962 by B.T. Lynds. This image was made with violet, blue, green, and red filters.  

(See more on dark galaxies.)

Published August 29, 2012

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Image courtesy Caltech/NASA

Published August 29, 2012