Friday, March 31, 2017

Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Laserium



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows the use of lasers for image-sharpening. Anybody remember Pink Floyd under a planetarium dome with lasers?

Monday, March 27, 2017

Down Down Down Down



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day brings us beyond the blue event horizon. A supermassive black hole consumes a star, the accretion disk heats up and produces a jet. Astounding universe we live in!

Sunday, March 26, 2017

Persistence of Life



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows a tardigrade. An alien on Earth? Probably not, but a good example of the ability of life to adapt at the extremes.

Saturday, March 25, 2017

Shadow and Moons



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is a Damien Peach wonder. Jupiter with intricate cloudscape, Ganymede (and shadow) and Io overhead.

Friday, March 24, 2017

Nice Grouping



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day features an owl and galaxy and a local interloper. Comet 41P/Tuttle–Giacobini–Kresak encounters galaxy Messier 108 and nebula Messier 97 (the "Owl Nebula").

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Saturday, March 18, 2017

JWST



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows the James Webb Space Telescope in the clean room at Goddard. I really hope this thing works!

Friday, March 17, 2017

Odometer



For a mission slated for a mere ninety "sols", Opportunity is doing pretty good.

Phasing



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows several months on phase changes for Venus. Which phase is the brightest in the evening (or morning) sky?

Thursday, March 16, 2017

Starlight Moon



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day brings us the starlit face of Mimas. Another wonderful image courtesy of the hard-working Cassini orbiter!

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Winter Composite



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows a composite of visible stars and enhanced nebula in the winter skies. "Mouseover" the image in the link for a guide.

Monday, March 13, 2017

Closeup: New Worlds



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day brings us the best view ever of Saturn's tiny moon Pan. The detail comes at a price, we're in the final stages of Cassini's extended mission.

Sunday, March 12, 2017

Heart of the Nebula



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day brings us one of my favorite sites in the night sky. Christoph Kaltseis brings us the heart of Messier 42, The Great Nebula n Orion.

Thursday, March 9, 2017

Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Swirling Complexity

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows the complexity found in the Great Nebula of Orion. This one is worth making into your desktop image!

Saturday, March 4, 2017

Day Job



Still in the midst of a product cycle that is slowly reducing my SAN. Hence low productivity on reading and gaming and such. Zounds.

Dark and Light



Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day shows dark dusty lanes and bright emitting lanes in NGC 2170 in Monoceros.

Wednesday, March 1, 2017