Topic: Nature

NASA’s Herschel Space Observatory sees Two Galaxies Merge

May 26, 2013 |

Written by Whitney Clavin
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – A massive and rare merging of two galaxies has been spotted in images taken by the Herschel space observatory, a European Space Agency mission with important NASA participation.

Follow-up studies by several telescopes on the ground and in space, including NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and Spitzer Space Telescope, tell a tale of two faraway galaxies intertwined and furiously making stars. Eventually, the duo will settle down to form one super-giant elliptical galaxy.

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NASA funded study shows rain from Saturn’s Rings falls across the Planet

April 14, 2013 |

Written by Jia-Rui Cook
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – A new study tracks the “rain” of charged water particles into the atmosphere of Saturn and finds there is more of it and it falls across larger areas of the planet than previously thought.

The study, whose observations were funded by NASA and whose analysis was led by the University of Leicester, England, reveals that the rain influences the composition and temperature structure of parts of Saturn’s upper atmosphere. The paper appears in this week’s issue of the journal Nature.

This artist’s concept illustrates how charged water particles flow into the Saturnian atmosphere from the planet’s rings, causing a reduction in atmospheric brightness. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/University of Leicester)

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NASA’s Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) helps scientists measure the spin rate of a Black Hole

March 4, 2013 |

Written by Whitney Clavin
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – Two X-ray space observatories, NASA’s Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) and the European Space Agency’s XMM-Newton, have teamed up to measure definitively, for the first time, the spin rate of a black hole with a mass 2 million times that of our sun.

The supermassive black hole lies at the dust- and gas-filled heart of a galaxy called NGC 1365, and it is spinning almost as fast as Einstein’s theory of gravity will allow. The findings, which appear in a new study in the journal Nature, resolve a long-standing debate about similar measurements in other black holes and will lead to a better understanding of how black holes and galaxies evolve.

This artist’s concept illustrates a supermassive black hole with millions to billions times the mass of our sun. Supermassive black holes are enormously dense objects buried at the hearts of galaxies. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

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NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope spots new Planetary System with Small Planets

February 21, 2013 |

Written by Dr. Tony Phillips
Science at NASA

Washington, D.C. – NASA’s Kepler mission scientists have discovered a new planetary system that is home to the smallest planet yet found around a star similar to our sun.

The planets are located in a system called Kepler-37, about 210 light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra. The smallest planet, Kepler-37b, is slightly larger than our moon, measuring about one-third the size of Earth. It is smaller than Mercury, which made its detection a challenge.

This line up compares artist’s concepts of the planets in the Kepler-37 system to the Moon and planets in our own solar system.

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NASA’s Cassini spacecraft observes Atmosphere Circulation change on Saturn’s moon Titan

November 29, 2012 |

Written by Jia-Rui C. Cook
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – Data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft tie a shift in seasonal sunlight to a wholesale reversal, at unexpected altitudes, in the circulation of the atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan. At the south pole, the data show definitive evidence for sinking air where it was upwelling earlier in the mission.

So the key to circulation in the atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan turned out to be a certain slant of light. The paper was published today in the journal Nature.

This artist’s impression of Saturn’s moon Titan shows the change in observed atmospheric effects before, during and after equinox in 2009. The Titan globes also provide an impression of the detached haze layer that extends all around the moon (blue). This image was inspired by data from NASA’s Cassini mission. (Image Credit: ESA)

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NASA’s Cassini Spacecraft spots Methane Lakes on Saturn’s Moon Titan

June 15, 2012 |

Written by Jia-Rui C. Cook
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has spied long-standing methane lakes, or puddles, in the “tropics” of Saturn’s moon Titan. One of the tropical lakes appears to be about half the size of Utah’s Great Salt Lake, with a depth of at least 3 feet (1 meter).

The result, which is a new analysis of Cassini data, is unexpected because models had assumed the long-standing bodies of liquid would only exist at the poles. The findings appear in this week’s issue of the journal Nature.

Saturn's rings lie in the distance as the Cassini spacecraft looks toward Titan and its dark region called Shangri-La, east of the landing site of the Huygens Probe. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute)

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NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Detects Changes in Martian Sand Dunes

May 11, 2012 |

Written by Guy Webster
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has revealed that movement in sand dune fields on the Red Planet occurs on a surprisingly large scale, about the same as in dune fields on Earth.

This is unexpected because Mars has a much thinner atmosphere than Earth, is only about one percent as dense, and its high-speed winds are less frequent and weaker than Earth’s.

This is a picture of a sand dune on Mars. A study of images shows that Martian sand dunes have a movement similar to that of dunes in Antarctica on Earth. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona/JHU-APL)

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NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope Discovers New Double-Star Planet Systems

January 23, 2012 |

Written by Michele Johnson
NASA Ames Research Center

Moffett Field, CA – While long anticipated in both science and science fiction, the existence of a circumbinary planet — a planet orbiting two stars – like “Tatooine” portrayed in the film Star Wars more than 30 years ago, was not definitively established until the discovery of Kepler-16b, announced in September 2011.

Using data from NASA’s Kepler mission, astronomers announced the discovery of two new double-star planet systems – Kepler-34 and Kepler-35 – at the 219th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Austin, Texas, January 8th-12th, 2012.

A New Class of Planetary Systems: This artistic rendition depicts the Kepler-35 planetary system. In the foreground, Kepler-35b, a Saturn-size world orbits its host stars every 131 days. (Image credit: © Mark A. Garlick / space-art.co.uk)

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Study Shows Our Galaxy Has at Least 100 Billion Planets

January 13, 2012 |

Written by Whitney Clavin
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Pasadena, CA – Our Milky Way galaxy contains a minimum of 100 billion planets, according to a detailed statistical study based on the detection of three planets located outside our solar system, called exoplanets.

The discovery reported in the January 12th issue of Nature, was made by an international team of astronomers, including co-author Stephen Kane of NASA’s Exoplanet Science Institute at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA.

This artist's illustration gives an impression of how common planets are around the stars in the Milky Way galaxy. The planets, their orbits, and their host stars are all vastly magnified compared to their real separations. A six- year search that surveyed millions of stars using the microlensing technique concluded that planets around stars are the rule rather than the exception. The average number of planets per star is greater than one. (Image credit: NASA/ESA/ESO)

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Montgomery County Agricultural Extension Office to hold Natural Playgrounds: Fun, Food and Learning workshop

By Karla Kean | January 5, 2012 |

A TSU Cooperative Extension Workshop

Clarksville, TN- Tennessee State University Cooperative Extension Specialist Dr George Smith will host a workshop titled Natural Playgrounds: Fun, Food and Learning from 9:30am  – 11:30pm on January 24th 2012.

Natural Playgrounds are outdoor spaces for learning and discovery, having fun and growing things! Natural playgrounds are a proven safe, healthy alternative to traditional playground facilities.  This workshop will be interactive and will cover topics including natural playgrounds 101 (introduction), funding opportunities, planning and design of natural playgrounds, and how to start/what to expect! «Read the rest of this article»

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