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The International Space Station, flying over the Space Coast, seen from Satellite Beach, Florida at 4:33am on Mother's Day, May 8, 2016. This is a 2-shot composite, each frame exposed for 25 seconds. I was trying to better expose the Milky Way but there was too much light around me. Also, there are two cruise ships returning to Port Canaveral on the horizon, each throwing an unexpected amount of light into the frame: in the center is the Carnival Valor, and to the left, lit up like a Christmas tree is the aptly named Carnival Sunshine.

Beluso, pueblo marinero

NASA’s Orion spacecraft is another step closer to launching on its first mission to deep space atop the agency’s Space Launch System rocket. On Jan. 13, technicians at Michoud Assembly Facility finished welding together the primary structure of the Orion spacecraft destined for deep space, marking another important step on the journey to Mars. via NASA ift.tt/1OPBnPJ

At the NASA Kennedy Space Center on Cape Canaveral in Florida.

Why would the sky look like a giant fan? Airglow. The featured intermittent green glow appeared to rise from a lake through the arch of our Milky Way Galaxy, as captured last summer next to Bryce Canyon in Utah, USA. The unusual pattern was created by atmospheric gravity waves, ripples of alternating air pressure that can grow with height as the air thins, in this case about 90 kilometers up. Unlike auroras powered by collisions with energetic charged particles and seen at high latitudes, airglow is due to chemiluminescence, the production of light in a chemical reaction. More typically seen near the horizon, airglow keeps the night sky from ever being completely dark. via NASA ift.tt/1lRVIJA

The 2017 NASA astronaut candidates class (Group 22) visited NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Sept. 26, 2018.

 

These individuals were selected by NASA as candidates for the NASA astronaut corps and are currently undergoing a candidacy training program at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. The newest class of 2017 astronaut candidates was announced June 7, 2017.

 

NASA's 2017 Astronaut Candidate Class includes: Zena Cardman, U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Jasmin Moghbeli, U.S. Navy Lt. Jonny Kim, U.S. Army Maj. Francisco “Frank” Rubio, U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Dominick, Warren “Woody” Hoburg, Robb Kulin, U.S. Navy Lt. Kayla Barron, Bob Hines, U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Raja Chari, Loral O’Hara, and Jessica Watkins.

 

Credit: NASA/Goddard/Debbie McCallum

 

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NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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The majestic Lagoon Nebula is filled with hot gas and the home for many young stars. Spanning 100 light years across while lying only about 5000 light years distant, the Lagoon Nebula is so big and bright that it can be seen without a telescope toward the constellation of the Archer (Sagittarius). Many bright stars are visible from NGC 6530, an open cluster that formed in the nebula only several million years ago. The greater nebula, also known as M8 and NGC 6523, is named "Lagoon" for the band of dust seen to the right of the open cluster's center. The featured image was taken in the light emitted by Hydrogen (shown in brown), Sulfur (red), and Oxygen (blue) and displayed in enhanced color. The featured picture is a newly processed panorama of M8, capturing twice the diameter of the Full Moon. Star formation continues in the Lagoon Nebula as witnessed by the many globules that exist there. via NASA ift.tt/1S1LYdR

NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI/CICLOPS/Kevin M. Gill

Black/white/red images are Terra thermal band image captured October 11, 2017.

 

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As wildfires burn across California, NASA satellites help gather data about where the fires are and how smoke travels across the state.

 

The smoke from the fires is even visible a million miles away from Earth, captured by NASA's Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) onboard NOAA's Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR). The Terra spacecraft can see fires in both daylight and at night, helping aid firefighters in tracking and stopping the blazes. NASA's unique vantage point in space helps better understand our home planet.

 

NASA image use policy.

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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What are those streaks of light in the sky? First and foremost, the arching structure is the central band of our Milky Way galaxy. Visible in this galactic band are millions of distant stars mixed with numerous lanes of dark dust. Harder to discern is a nearly vertical beam of light rising from the horizon, just to the right of the image center. This beam is zodiacal light, sunlight scattered by dust in our Solar System that may be surprisingly prominent just after sunset or just before sunrise. In the foreground are several telescopes of the Bosque Alegre Astrophysical Station of the National University of Cordoba in Argentina. The station schedules weekend tours and conducts research into the nature of many astronomical objects including comets, active galaxies, and clusters of galaxies. The featured image was taken early this month. via NASA ift.tt/1WeYpCs

The distinctive blue bubble appearing to encircle WR 31a is a Wolf–Rayet nebula — an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen, helium and other gases. Created when speedy stellar winds interact with the outer layers of hydrogen ejected by Wolf–Rayet stars, these nebulae are frequently ring-shaped or spherical. via NASA ift.tt/1oEvGez

The Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) is a collaboration between NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey that will continue the Landsat Program's 40-year data record of monitoring Earth's landscapes from space. LDCM will expand and improve on that record with observations that advance a wide range of Earth sciences and contribute to the management of agriculture, water and forest resources.

 

The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey. The first Landsat satellite launched in 1972 and the next satellite in the series, the Landsat Data Continuity Mission – LDCM, is scheduled to launch on February 11, 2013.

 

LDCM will launch from Vandenburg Air Force Base using an Atlas V-401 rocket from ULA.

 

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

 

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Managers have given the "go" to proceed toward a Feb.11 launch of NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) spacecraft atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

 

The Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) is the future of Landsat satellites. It will continue to obtain valuable data and imagery to be used in agriculture, education, business, science, and government.

 

The mission will extend more than 40 years of global land observations that are critical in many areas, such as energy and water management, forest monitoring, human and environmental health, urban planning, disaster recovery and agriculture.

 

To learn more about LDCM and Landsat go to: 1.usa.gov/XSYBZ2

 

NASA image use policy.

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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Denoise, vibrance, exposure, crop, rotate.

 

NASA/Artemis II/JSC/ESRS/University of Texas at El Paso/Kevin M. Gill

 

Image Source: eol.jsc.nasa.gov/SearchPhotos/photo.pl?mission=ART002&amp...

Galaxies consist of a number of different structures, and the particulars of these structures drive the evolution of a given galaxy. One such structure in spiral galaxies like Caldwell 40 (or NGC 3626) is the galactic bulge. This structure is a densely packed region of stars that encompasses the heart of a spiral galaxy. Most galactic bulges host supermassive black holes, with the masses of the black hole and the bulge typically linked (bigger bulges harbor more monstrous black holes).

 

The two main types of galactic bulges are “classic bulges,” which develop after a merger with another galaxy, and “pseudobulges,” which form out of material from the galaxy’s own outer region. Recent studies suggest that “composite bulges,” which are formed by a combination of these two processes, might be common. The visible, ultraviolet, and infrared observations used to create this image of Caldwell 40 were made using Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 to help astronomers better understand the prevalence of “composite bulges” in the universe.

 

Caldwell 40 was discovered by astronomer William Herschel in 1784. It is located 70 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Leo and has an apparent magnitude of 10.6. The best time of year to observe Caldwell 40 is during the Northern Hemisphere’s spring and the Southern Hemisphere’s autumn. It can be spotted using a small telescope, but the galaxy is one of the smallest Caldwell objects in the sky, so a larger telescope is best for observing the dim and compact galaxy.

 

Credit: NASA, ESA, and P. Erwin (Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

 

For Hubble's Caldwell catalog website and information on how to find these objects in the night sky, visit: www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/hubble-s-caldwell-catalog

 

Have you ever seen the Man on the Moon? This common question plays on the ability of humans to see pareidolia -- imagining familiar icons where they don't actually exist. The textured surface of Earth's full Moon is home to numerous identifications of iconic objects, not only in modern western culture but in world folklore throughout history. Examples, typically dependent on the Moon's perceived orientation, include the Woman in the Moon and the Rabbit in the Moon. One facial outline commonly identified as the Man in the Moon starts by imagining the two dark circular areas -- lunar maria -- here just above the Moon's center, to be the eyes. Surprisingly, there actually is a man in this Moon image -- a close look will reveal a real person -- with a telescope -- silhouetted against the Moon. This featured well-planned image was taken in mid-January in Cadalso de los Vidrios in Madrid, Spain. Do you have a favorite object that you see in the Moon? via NASA ift.tt/1QBUFZn

The Tarantula Nebula is more than a thousand light-years in diameter, a giant star forming region within nearby satellite galaxy the Large Magellanic Cloud, about 180 thousand light-years away. The largest, most violent star forming region known in the whole Local Group of galaxies, the cosmic arachnid sprawls across this spectacular composite view constructed with space- and ground-based image data. Within the Tarantula (NGC 2070), intense radiation, stellar winds and supernova shocks from the central young cluster of massive stars, cataloged as R136, energize the nebular glow and shape the spidery filaments. Around the Tarantula are other star forming regions with young star clusters, filaments, and blown-out bubble-shaped clouds In fact, the frame includes the site of the closest supernova in modern times, SN 1987A, at the lower right. The rich field of view spans about 1 degree or 2 full moons, in the southern constellation Dorado. But were the Tarantula Nebula closer, say 1,500 light-years distant like the local star forming Orion Nebula, it would take up half the sky. via NASA ift.tt/1XPFyyp

Spacelab employed a modular system of pallets and even an Instrument Pointing System that aimed instruments toward the Earth, sun or stars. Here, Spacelab 2 uses pallets and the pointing system. Before Spacelab, instruments were pointed toward particular celestial objects or areas by maneuvering the shuttle to an appropriate attitude. The Spacelab pointing system aimed instruments more accurately than the shuttle and kept them fixed on a target as the shuttle moved. Spacelab 2 was flown on the STS-51F launched on July 29, 1985, aboard the space shuttle Challenger. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala, managed the Spacelab Program and the Spacelab 2 mission.

 

Image credit: NASA

  

Marshall Space Flight Center History, Flickr photoset:

www.flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/sets/72157636868630444/

  

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These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...

 

This interstellar canine is formed of cosmic dust and gas interacting with the energetic light and winds from hot young stars. The shape, visual texture, and color, combine to give the region the popular name Fox Fur Nebula. The characteristic blue glow on the left is dust reflecting light from the bright star S Mon, the bright star just below the top edge of the featured image. Textured red and black areas are a combination of the cosmic dust and reddish emission from ionized hydrogen gas. S Mon is part of a young open cluster of stars, NGC 2264, located about 2,500 light years away toward the constellation of the Unicorn (Monoceros). via NASA ift.tt/1RRhE5q

A massive winter storm was coming together as two low pressure systems were merging over the U.S. East Coast. This composite satellite image from NASA's Aqua satellite on Feb. 8 shows a western frontal system approaching the coastal low pressure area.

 

The visible image was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. The image shows clouds associated with the western frontal system stretching from Canada through the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, into the Gulf of Mexico. The comma shaped low pressure system located over the Atlantic, east of Virginia, is forecast to merge with the front and create a powerful nor'easter. The National Weather Service expects the merged storm to move northeast and drop between two to three feet of snow in parts of New England.

 

Image: NASA/MODIS

 

Caption: NASA Goddard/Rob Gutro

 

NASA image use policy.

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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This schlieren image of a T-38C aircraft was captured using the patent-pending BOSCO technique and then processed with NASA-developed code to reveal shock wave structures. Researchers at Armstrong and NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California, have developed new schlieren techniques based on modern image processing methods. via NASA ift.tt/1KPgwer

via NASA Earth Observatory Image of the Day ift.tt/2ajC5F0

This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows the spiral galaxy NGC 4845, located over 65 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo (The Virgin). The galaxy’s orientation clearly reveals the galaxy’s striking spiral structure: a flat and dust-mottled disk surrounding a bright galactic bulge. via NASA ift.tt/1S8lWWe

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying Orbital ATK's Cygnus spacecraft on a resupply mission to the International Space Station lifts off from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 11:05 p.m. EDT on March 22, 2016. via NASA ift.tt/1q1rw1q

Satellite data reveal how the new record low Arctic sea ice extent, from Sept. 16, 2012, compares to the average minimum extent over the past 30 years (in yellow). Sea ice extent maps are derived from data captured by the Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer aboard NASA's Nimbus-7 satellite and the Special Sensor Microwave Imager on multiple satellites from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program.

 

Credit: NASA/Goddard Scientific Visualization Studio

 

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The frozen cap of the Arctic Ocean appears to have reached its annual summertime minimum extent and broken a new record low on Sept. 16, the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) has reported. Analysis of satellite data by NASA and the NASA-supported NSIDC at the University of Colorado in Boulder showed that the sea ice extent shrunk to 1.32 million square miles (3.41 million square kilometers).

 

The new record minimum measures almost 300,000 square miles less than the previous lowest extent in the satellite record, set in mid-September 2007, of 1.61 million square miles (4.17 million square kilometers). For comparison, the state of Texas measures around 268,600 square miles.

 

NSIDC cautioned that, although Sept. 16 seems to be the annual minimum, there's still time for winds to change and compact the ice floes, potentially reducing the sea ice extent further. NASA and NSIDC will release a complete analysis of the 2012 melt season next month, once all data for September are available. To read more go to: www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/2012-seaicemin.html

 

NASA image use policy.

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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When i got the idea stuck in my head i thought the tag would be "Unimaginable".

 

more on my cargo collective - www.cargocollective.com/theoryandcraft

NASA image acquired December 17, 2010

 

In mid-December 2010, suspended sediments transformed the southern end of Lake Michigan. Ranging in color from brown to green, the sediment filled the surface waters along the southern coastline and formed a long, curving tendril extending toward the middle of the lake. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured these natural-color images on December 17, 2010 (top), and December 10, 2010 (bottom).

 

Such sediment clouds are not uncommon in Lake Michigan, where winds influence lake circulation patterns. A scientificpaper published in 2007 described a model of the circulation, noting that while the suspended particles mostly arise from lake-bottom sediments along the western shoreline, they tend to accumulate on the eastern side. When northerly winds blow, two circulation gyres, rotating in opposite directions, transport sediment along the southern shoreline. As the northerly winds die down, the counterclockwise gyre predominates, and the smaller, clockwise gyre dissipates. Clear water—an apparent remnant of the small clockwise gyre—continues to interrupt the sediment plume.

 

George Leshkevich, a researcher with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, explains that the wind-driven gyres erode lacustrine clay (very fine lakebed sediment) on the western shore before transporting it, along with re-suspended lake sediments, to the eastern shore. On the eastern side, the gyre encounters a shoreline bulge that pushes it toward the lake’s central southern basin, where it deposits the sediments.

 

The sediment plume on December 17 followed a windy weather front in the region on December 16.

 

NASA image courtesy MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Michon Scott.

 

Instrument: Aqua - MODIS

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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To read more about this image go to: earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=48511

Giant elliptical galaxy M60 and spiral galaxy NGC 4647 do look like an odd couple in this sharp cosmic portrait from the Hubble Space Telescope. But they are found in a region of space where galaxies tend to gather, on the eastern side of the nearby Virgo Galaxy Cluster. About 54 million light-years distant, bright M60's simpler egg-like shape is created by its randomly swarming older stars, while NGC 4647's young blue stars, gas and dust are organized into winding arms rotating in a flattened disk. Spiral NGC 4647 is estimated to be more distant than M60, some 63 million light-years away. Also known as Arp 116, the pair of galaxies may be on the verge of a significant gravitational encounter, though. M60 (aka NGC 4649) is about 120,000 light-years across. The smaller NGC 4647 spans around 90,000 light-years, about the size of our own Milky Way. via NASA ift.tt/1ZVsRBG

All of the other aurora watchers had gone home. By 3:30 am in Iceland, on a quiet night last September, much of that night's auroras had died down. Suddenly though, a new burst of particles streamed down from space, lighting up the Earth's atmosphere once again. This time, unexpectedly, pareidoliacally, they created an amazing shape reminiscent of a giant phoenix. With camera equipment at the ready, two quick sky images were taken, followed immediately by a third of the land. The mountain in the background is Helgafell, while the small foreground river is called Kaldá, both located about 30 kilometers north of Iceland's capital Reykjavik. Seasoned skywatchers will note that just above the mountain, toward the left, is the constellation of Orion, while the Pleiades star cluster is also visible just above the frame center. The new aurora lasted only a minute and would be gone forever -- possibly dismissed as an embellished aberration -- were it not captured in the featured, digitally-composed, image mosaic. via NASA ift.tt/254533W

A dark Sun hangs in the clearing sky over a volcanic planet in this morning sea and skycape. It was taken during this week's total solar eclipse, a dramatic snapshot from along the narrow path of totality in the dark shadow of a New Moon. Earth's Indonesian isle of Ternate, North Maluku lies in the foreground. The sky is still bright near the eastern horizon though, beyond the region's flattened volcanic peaks and outside the Moon's umbral shadow. In fact, near the equator the dark lunar umbra is rushing eastward across Earth's surface at about 1,700 kilometers (1,100 miles) per hour. Shining through the thin clouds, around the Sun's silhouette is the alluring glow of the solar corona, only easily seen during totality. An inspiring sight for eclipse watchers, this solar corona is the tenuous, hot outer atmosphere of the Sun. via NASA go.nasa.gov/1P35ZtF

A large prominence swirled and twisted above the Sun's surface before breaking away and launching itself into space (Oct. 6-7, 2012). This image and movie are a combination of the Sun itself, observed in extreme UV light (from the STEREO Ahead spacecraft) and STEREO's view of the corona in white light taken by its COR1 instrument. Prominences are clouds of cooler plasma that hover above the Sun, tethered by unstable magnetic forces, which often break away or fade within days or weeks. The movie covers one day of activity.

 

Credit: NASA/GSFC/STEREO

 

NASA image use policy.

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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Early spring in the northern hemisphere is good season for aurora hunters. Near an equinox Earth's magnetic field is oriented to favor interactions with the solar wind that trigger the alluring glow of the northern lights. On March 28/29 the skies over Kaunispää Hill, Lapland, Finland did not disappoint. That night's expansive auroral curtains are captured in this striking panoramic view that covers a full 360 degrees. Local skywatchers were mesmerized by bright displays lasted throughout the dark hours, shimmering with colors easily visible to the naked eye. via NASA ift.tt/1SjdtKS

This schlieren image of a T-38C aircraft was captured using the patent-pending BOSCO technique and then processed with NASA-developed code to reveal shock wave structures. Researchers at Armstrong and NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California, have developed new schlieren techniques based on modern image processing methods. via NASA ift.tt/1KPgwer

For the first time in almost 40 years, a NASA human-rated rocket has completed all steps needed to clear a critical design review (CDR). The agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) is the first vehicle designed to meet the challenges of the journey to Mars and the first exploration class rocket since the Saturn V. via NASA ift.tt/1DOoofc

What surrounds a hotbed of star formation? In the case of the Orion Nebula -- dust. The entire Orion field, located about 1600 light years away, is inundated with intricate and picturesque filaments of dust. Opaque to visible light, dust is created in the outer atmosphere of massive cool stars and expelled by a strong outer wind of particles. The Trapezium and other forming star clusters are embedded in the nebula. The intricate filaments of dust surrounding M42 and M43 appear brown in the featured image, while central glowing gas is highlighted in red. Over the next few million years much of Orion's dust will be slowly destroyed by the very stars now being formed, or dispersed into the Galaxy. via NASA ift.tt/1PuLd9H

Crediti: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS - Processing: Elisabetta Bonora & Marco Faccin / aliveuniverse.today

What's that in the sky? Although there was much to see in this spectacular panorama taken during the early morning hours of a day in late September, the brightest object in the sky was clearly the planet Venus. In the featured image, Venus was captured actually through a natural rock bridge, itself picturesque, in Spitzkoppe, Namibia. The planet, on the left of the opening, was complemented by a silhouette of the astrophotographer on the right. Above and beyond the rock bridge were many famous icons of a dark night sky, including, from left to right, the Pleiades star cluster, the Orion Nebula, the bright star Sirius, and the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. This week, Venus remains visible to the east in the pre-dawn sky, being complemented by Mars, which is angularly quite close. via NASA go.nasa.gov/1l76Lz3

What's that in the sky? Earlier this month, in the sky high above Hong Kong, China, not just one unusual type of cloud appeared -- but two. In the foreground was a long lenticular cloud, a cloud that forms near mountains from uprising air and might appear to some as an alien spaceship. Higher in the sky, and further in the background, was a colorful iridescent cloud. Iridescent clouds are composed of water droplets of similar size that diffract different colors of sunlight by different amounts. Furthest in the background is the Sun, blocked from direct view by the opaque lenticular, but providing the light for the colors of the iridescent. Either type of cloud is unusual to see in Hong Kong, and unfortunately, after only a few minutes, both were gone. via NASA ift.tt/1LUWz3j

NASA's Earth Observatory has tracked down images resembling all 26 letters of the English alphabet using only NASA satellite imagery and astronaut photography. In this image, the letter 'Y' is for yardangs, elongated landforms sculpted by erosion and similar to sand dunes, but instead comprised of sandstone or siltstone. via NASA ift.tt/1ZzD7Bo

Funny the vast fortune paid by us, NASA conveniently cuts live feeds at the right time that puts them in the position of explaining something that might be hard to explain.

 

Better pulling the plug that ruins an otherwise boring image when something cruises past a camera that's not part of NASA'S program.

I thought NASA was about learning and exploring , at best we get panic mode sudden camera failure. I just find it funny.

NASA image acquired November 9, 2012

 

In early November 2012, a wintery nor’easter followed on the heels of Hurricane Sandy. When that second storm cleared out of the region, it left behind snow stretching from New Jersey to Massachusetts. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color view of the region on November 9, 2012.

 

The National Weather Service’s Philadelphia / Mt. Holly (N.J.) forecast office reported that snowfall from the storm was “considerably worse than forecast for portions of northern and central New Jersey,” but less than forecast in other areas.

 

From the vantage point of MODIS, snowfall was the visible impact of the storm. But the areas blanketed in white were not the only ones affected by the storm. The National Weather Service also observed wind gusts up to 65 miles (105 kilometers) per hour; high waves and minor coastal flooding in New Jersey and Delaware; and 1.5 inches (4 centimeters) of rain along the New Jersey coast. Similar conditions were reported in coastal New England.

 

The nor’easter hit areas already struggling in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, including those suffering through ongoing power outages. The Associated Press reported that tens of thousands of customers in New York and New Jersey remained without electricity two weeks after Sandy’s landfall.

 

NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Michon Scott.

 

Instrument:

Aqua - MODIS

 

Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

 

NASA image use policy.

 

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

 

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Earth's annual Geminid meteor shower did not disappoint, peaking before dawn on December 14 as our fair planet plowed through dust from active asteroid 3200 Phaethon. Captured in this southern hemisphere nightscape the meteors stream away from the shower's radiant in Gemini. To create the image, many individual frames recording meteor streaks were taken over period of 5 hours. In the final composite they were selected and registered against the starry sky above the twin 6.5 meter Magellan telescopes of Carnegie Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. Rigel in Orion, and Sirius shine brightly as the Milky Way stretches toward the zenith. Near Castor and Pollux the twin stars of Gemini, the meteor shower's radiant is low, close to the horizon. The radiant effect is due to perspective as the parallel meteor tracks appear to converge in the distance. Gemini's meteors enter Earth's atmosphere traveling at about 22 kilometers per second. via NASA ift.tt/22acbu1

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