The Astronomy Files

The Many Faces Of Galaxies

Any fairly experienced observer knows that no two galaxies look exactly alike.  Spirals seen face on are exceedingly beautiful and even seen edge on some can be awe inspiring.  But the shape of galaxies can also be an indicator of what's happening in the local neighborhood.  Starburst galaxies are an example.  In spirals the arms are usually where all the action takes place and new stars born.  The universe is an exciting place but don't get too excited.  It can take millions of years for the action from beginning to end.

Lakes Of Titan

Nothing you would want to swim in though.

The Earth Is Gaining Weight

Every year we receive about 40,000 tons of dust from outer space.  Scientists know that this infall has been pretty much constant over the last 30,000 years.  How do they know?  Find out here.

Hiding Black Holes

Where do you hide super massive black holes?  Almost anywhere according to this report from the ESA.

Comets and Planets

New articles at Science Daily about the makeup of comets and how exo-planets form and effect their parent stars,

Cold Gas In M31

Ionized hydrogen (H2) emits in the IR band and, for the most part, the emissions are absorbed by the atmosphere and cannot be observed by ground based radio astronomers.  But H2 has a counterpart, carbon monoxide (CO), that emits at 2.6 mm and can be observed by ground based radio telescopes.  So, astronomers are able to determine how much cold gas exists in galaxies and to what extent new stars are forming.

STS 121 Mission Complete

This Space Shuttle mission landing had a really cool video from the cockpit as it was returning to Earth.  I've scoured the NASA web site for it but no sign of the video yet.  There was a thick cloud deck over Canaveral and once the shuttle entered the clouds, they switched to ground based video.  This is the 115th flight for the shuttle and I've watched it land many times.  And I always hold my breath as it's touching down.

There's not enough detail in this photo to show it well (NASA had another one but it was 3 megabytes in size), but it's obvious how much heat the spacecraft is subject to by examining the sides and nose for blackened areas.  You could probably compare a shuttle descent to a controlled meteor entering the atmosphere.

Venus Express

The latest mission to Venus is performing well and, on July 4, was certified as becoming functional.  One problem has cropped up, the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer which is designed to measure chemical composition and temperature of the atmosphere has malfunctioned.  Much more here at Science Daily.

Wierdo Neutron Star

There is a bizarre object embedded in supernova remnant, RCW103, that astronomers have not been able to identify.  Some think it's a magnetar but there's no consensus.  The mystery continues.

Sun Sounds

Hear the sound of sunspot 898 right here.