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Fireworks! Celebrants this Fourth of July will enjoy the dazzling lights and booming shock waves from the explosions of fireworks. A similarly styled event is taking place in the galaxy Messier 106. Energetic jets, which blast from Messier 106's central black hole, are heating up material in the galaxy and thus making it glow, like the ingredients in a firework. The jets also power shock waves that are driving gases out of the galaxy's interior. A galaxy about 23 million light years away is the site of this impressive, ongoing fireworks. Rather than paper, powder and fire, this galactic light show involves a giant black hole, shock waves and vast reservoirs of gas. This galactic fireworks display is taking place in NGC 4258, also known as M106, a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way. This galaxy is famous, however, for something that our galaxy doesn't have - two extra spiral arms that glow in X-ray, optical and radio light. These features, or anomalous arms, are not aligned with the plane of the galaxy, but instead intersect with it. Image Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Caltech/P.Ogle et al; Optical: NASA/STScI; IR: NASA/JPL-Caltech; Radio: NSF/NRAO/VLA #independenceday #4thofjuly #july4th #galaxy #nasa #space #science #fourthofjuly #4thofjuly2014; -
Infrared View of a Comet and Distant Galaxy: Our NEOWISE mission captured this series of pictures of comet C/2012 K1 -- also known as comet Pan-STARRS -- as it swept across our skies on May 20, 2014. The comet is relatively close to us -- it was only about 143 million miles (230 million kilometers) from Earth when this picture was taken. It is seen passing a much more distant spiral galaxy, called NGC 3726, which is about 55 million light-years from Earth, or 2 trillion times farther away than the comet. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech #nasa #galaxy #comet #astronomy #space #science; -
Tropical Storm Arthur churns in the Atlantic: The storm's center was east of Florida's northeast coast. By 5 a.m. EDT on July 3, Arthur's eye had formed but remained cloud covered even as the storm hit hurricane-strength with maximum sustained winds near 75 mph. This visible image of Tropical Storm Arthur was taken by the MODIS instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite on July 2 at 18:50 UTC (2:50 p.m. EDT). A cloud-covered eye is clearly visible. Image Credit: NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid Response Team #nasa #iss #spacestation #space #arthur #tsarthur #weather #climate #nhc #nws; -
Tropical Storm Arthur appears to be ramping up, and astronaut Reid Wiseman aboard the space station captured this image and wrote, "Just flew over TS #Arthur - hoping it heads to sea. Looks mean." Heavy rains are expected to affect the southern U.S. coastline over the next several days as the National Hurricane Center expects Arthur to strengthen into a hurricane. On July 2, the NHC issued a Hurricane Watch for Bogue Inlet to Oregon Inlet, North Carolina and Pamlico Sound. In addition, a Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for the east coast of Florida from Sebastian Inlet to Flagler Beach, South Santee River South Carolina to south of Bogue Inlet, North Carolina, north of Oregon Inlet, North Carolina to the North Carolina/Virginia Border, and the Eastern Albemarle Sound. Image Credit: NASA #nasa #iss #spacestation #space #arthur #tsarthur #weather #climate #nhc #nws; -
NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) spacecraft is safely in space, successfully deployed its solar arrays and is processing power. OCO-2 is NASA’s first mission dedicated to studying atmospheric carbon dioxide, the leading human-produced greenhouse gas driving changes in Earth’s climate. OCO-2 will provide a new tool for understanding the human and natural sources of carbon dioxide emissions and the natural “sinks” that absorb carbon dioxide and help control its buildup. The observatory will measure the global geographic distribution of these sources and sinks and study their changes over time. Seen here is the United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket launching with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 satellite onboard from Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. on Wednesday, July 2, 2014. Photo Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls #space #nasa #satellite #launch #rocketlaunch #oco2 #earthrightnow;
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Live coverage of the launch of NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) mission is underway from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, where preparations for the liftoff of ULA’s Delta II rocket carrying OCO-2 to space are happening. Launch is targeted for the opening of a 30-second window at 5:56:23 a.m. EDT (2:56:23 a.m. PDT) from Space Launch Complex 2. There is a 100 percent chance of favorable weather for launch with no range safety launch commit criteria violations predicted. Visibility is forecast to be 1-2 miles with fog and a northerly wind of 4-7 knots. Based on the weather forecast and no technical issues, NASA Launch Manager Tim Dunn has given a “go” to load liquid oxygen into the Delta II rocket first stage at Space Launch Complex 2. The launch team has completed troubleshooting a water suppression system issue that resulted in the scrub of a launch attempt Tuesday. A valve that is part of the launch pad pulse suppression water system, which had operated properly during tests shortly before the countdown, failed to function properly during the final minute before launch. The failed valve was replaced with a spare and the system was retested in preparation for today’s launch attempt. OCO-2 is NASA’s first mission dedicated to studying atmospheric carbon dioxide, the leading human-produced greenhouse gas driving changes in Earth’s climate. OCO-2 will provide a new tool for understanding the human and natural sources of carbon dioxide emissions and the natural “sinks” that absorb carbon dioxide and help control its buildup. The observatory will measure the global geographic distribution of these sources and sinks and study their changes over time. Watch online at http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv Image credit: NASA #OCO2 #space #earthrightnow #carbon #earthscience #earth; -
Twas the night before launch... Our Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) is perched atop a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket, which is scheduled to launch Wednesday at 5:56 a.m. EDT (2:56 a.m. PDT) from Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The OCO-2 mission will produce the most detailed picture to date of natural sources of carbon dioxide, as well as their "sinks" -- places on Earth’s surface where carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere. The observatory will study how these sources and sinks are distributed around the globe and how they change over time. Image credit: NASA / Randy Beaudoin / Vandenberg Air Force Base #OCO2 #NASA #Space #Satellite #Rocket #Rocketlaunch #Carbon; -
Today’s launch attempt of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 was scrubbed because of a failure in a Vandenberg Air Force Base Space Launch Complex 2 pad water system. The system provides sound suppression to dampen acoustic waves at liftoff and protects a launch pad flame duct. The #OCO2 spacecraft is on external power and the #DeltaII rocket first stage liquid oxygen is being offloaded. Both the spacecraft and rocket are in a safe configuration. Managers and engineers are assessing the issue to determine the cause of the failure and when they next can reschedule the launch. The United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite onboard, is seen at the Space Launch Complex 2, Monday, June 30, 2014, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Image credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls #OCO2 #NASA #Space #Satellite #Rocket #Rocketlaunch #Carbon; -
NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) spacecraft is poised for launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base Space Launch Complex 2 in California. OCO-2 will be delivered to space by a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. Liquid oxygen has been fully loaded into the Delta II first stage, completing the fueling process. At liftoff, the Delta will stand about 127 feet tall and weigh approximately 165.5 tons. The first stage uses an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-27A main engine burning RP-1 fuel, a rocket-grade kerosene, and liquid oxygen for the first 64 seconds of flight. The total thrust is about 237,000 pounds. Three solid rocket motors will add another 109,000 pounds of thrust each. The Delta II second stage features a restartable Aerojet Rocketdyne AJ10 engine burning Aerozine 50, which is a mixture of hydrazine and dimethyl hydrazine reacting with nitrogen tetroxide to produce 9,750 pounds of thrust. There are no technical issues with either OCO-2 or the Delta II and weather remains green. Liftoff is scheduled for the opening of a 30-second launch window at 5:56:44 a.m. EDT. Image credit: NASA #OCO2 #space #satellite #rocket #rocketlaunch #nasa #earthrightnow #earthscience #carbon; -
OCO-2 Ready for Launch! The launch gantry is rolled back to reveal the United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite onboard, at the Space Launch Complex 2, Monday, June 30, 2014, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. OCO-2 will measure the global distribution of carbon dioxide, the leading human-produced greenhouse gas driving changes in Earth’s climate. OCO-2 is set for launch on July 1, 2014 at 5:56 a.m. EDT. Photo Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls #OCO2 #NASA #Space #earth #carbon #satellite #rocketlaunch #rocket;
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It has been a decade since a robotic traveler from Earth first soared over rings of ice and fired its engine to fall forever into the embrace of Saturn. Today the Cassini mission celebrates 10 years of exploring the planet, its rings and moons. The Cassini spacecraft, carrying the European Space Agency's Huygens probe, arrived in the Saturn system on June 30, 2004, for a four-year primary mission. Since 2008, NASA has granted the mission three extensions, allowing scientists an unprecedented opportunity to observe seasonal changes as the planet and its retinue completed one-third of their nearly 30-year-long trek around the sun. After 10 years at Saturn, the stalwart spacecraft has beamed back to Earth hundreds of gigabytes of scientific data, enabling the publication of more than 3,000 scientific reports. While Cassini was originally approved for a four-year study of the Saturn system, the project's engineers and scientists had high hopes that the mission might carry on longer, and designed the system for endurance. The spacecraft has been remarkably trouble-free, and from an engineering standpoint, the main limiting factor for Cassini's lifetime now is how much propellant is left in its tanks. The mission owes a great deal of its longevity to skillful and efficient piloting by the mission's navigation and operations teams. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech #Cassini10 #NASA #space #saturn #solarsystem #cassini; -
Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 Satellite at Launch Pad The upper levels of the launch gantry, surrounding the United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite onboard, are seen at Space Launch Complex 2, Sunday, June 29, 2014, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. OCO-2 will measure the global distribution of carbon dioxide, the leading human-produced greenhouse gas driving changes in Earth’s climate. OCO-2 is scheduled to launch on July 1 at 5:56 a.m. EDT, 2:56 a.m. PDT. Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls #space #nasa #oco2 #earthscience #earth #carbon; -
First LDSD Test Flight a Success A high-altitude balloon launch occurred at 8:45 a.m. HST (11:45 a.m. PDT/2:45 p.m. EDT) on June 28, 2014 with the near-space test flight of the agency's Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD). At 11:05 a.m. HST (2:05 p.m. PDT/5:05 p.m. EDT), the LDSD test vehicle dropped away from the balloon as planned and began powered flight. The balloon and test vehicle were about 120,000 feet over the Pacific Ocean at the time of the drop. The vehicle splashed down in the ocean at approximately 11:35 a.m. HST (2:35 p.m. PDT/5:35 p.m. EDT), after the engineering test flight concluded. The test vehicle hardware, black box data recorder and parachute were all recovered later in the day. This test was the first of three planned for the LDSD project, developed to evaluate new landing technologies for future Mars missions. While this initial test was designed to determine the flying ability of the vehicle, it also deployed two new landing technologies as a bonus. Those landing technologies will be officially tested in the next two flights, involving clones of the saucer-shaped vehicle. Seen here is the saucer-shaped test vehicle being lifted aboard the Kahana recovery vessel, hours after the June 28, 2014 test of NASA's Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator over the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech #ldsd #nasa #space #saucer #flyingsaucer; -
This bright spiral galaxy is known as NGC 2441, located in the northern constellation of Camelopardalis (The Giraffe). However, NGC 2441 is not the only subject of this new Hubble image; the galaxy contains an intriguing supernova named SN1995E, visible as a small dot at the approximate centre of this image. Supernova SN1995E, discovered in 1995 as its name suggests, is a type Ia supernova. This kind of supernova is found in binary systems, where one star — a white dwarf — drags matter from its orbiting companion until it becomes unstable and explodes violently. White dwarf stars all become unbalanced once they reach the same mass, meaning that they all form supernovae with the same intrinsic brightness. Because of this, they are used as standard candles to measure distances in the Universe. But SN1995E may be useful in another way. More recent observations of this supernova have suggested that it may display a phenomenon known as a light echo, where light is scattered and deflected by dust along our line of sight, making it appear to “echo” outwards from the source. In 2006, Hubble observed SN1995E to be fading in a way that suggested its light was being scattered by a surrounding spherical shell of dust. These echoes can be used to probe both the environments around cosmic objects like supernovae, and the characteristics of their progenitor stars. If SN1995E does indeed have a light echo, it would belong to a very elite club; only two other type Ia supernovae have been found to display light echoes (SN1991T and SN1998bu). Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Acknowledgement: Nick Rose #hubble #space #universe #galaxy #supernova; -
"Our world is beautiful," so tweeted astronaut Reid Wiseman from the International Space Station. Astronauts don't just take beautiful images from orbit. They conduct scientific research to prepare future astronauts to venture farther into the solar system than ever before and provide real benefits to life on Earth. Image Credit: NASA #ISS #spacestation #exp40 #astronauts #science #nasa #space #exp40;
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