Tag Archive | "stars"
Peering into the Beginnings of the Universe
Scheduled to launch in April 2009, the Herschel and Planck space telescopes bring capabilities never before available to study the origins of stars, galaxies and the universe. The expected data might revolutionize both astrophysics and philosophy.
Continue reading...Milky Way Observed Over Mauna Kea Volcano
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Our galaxy has been photographed many times, but this just released NASA panorama is a beauty! The Milky Way is a large spiral galaxy that contains 200-400 billion stars and is 13.2 billion years old. On Earth, we are inside the galactic disk of the Milky Way, which is the arc of uncountable 'milky stars' we see in the night sky.
Continue reading...Massive Exo-Planet 63 Light-Years Away Photographed
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Beta Pictoris is a fascinating star not far from our sun. It has two discs within which planetesimals collide and planets form. Its largest planet, is hot, young and the first close orbit planet to be photographed. First images of Beta Pictoris's disc were obtained in 1984. Such stellar discs are 'young' by astronomical standards and inside the disc of Beta Pictoris is a clear zone about the diameter of our solar system.
Continue reading...Are Jupiter and Saturn Brown Dwarfs, Not Planets?
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
COROT spacecraft approaching a star field that contains brown dwarfs Image by D Ducros/CNES Our early science classes taught us the difference between stars and planets, the description and properties of each were clear. Now astronomers have found objects in the Milky Way that are neither planets nor stars. [...]
Continue reading...An Ode to the Fading Eye of the Hubble Telescope
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
The legendary Hubble Space Telescope is set to be decommissioned in 2010. While the new telescope on the station, set to launch only a year later, will be far more advanced, many astronomy fanatics will always remember the Hubble as a source of great joy and frustration. In tribute, here are the top ten shots taken, or contributed to, by the Hubble Telescope.
Continue reading...Photograph of Alien World Makes History
Friday, September 26, 2008
Up until this point, the only planet-like objects scientists had clearly observed in space did not appear locked in orbit around a star much like our own sun. This could shake up some widely held astronomical theories though, since the supposed planet is located farther from it's 'sun' than researchers thought possible. That is, if continued observation can confirm that this large mass actually is orbiting the star.
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Wednesday, February 18, 2009
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