Space and Telescope

Welcome to Space-and-Telescope.com. With up-to-the-minute space news, useful astronomical utilities and information, amateur images and much more in the fields of astronomy and space science. Including news updates from space agencies such as NASA and ESA, and links to live images of the Earth, Moon and Sun. The place for people with a general interest in space and also the amateur astronomer who wants to discuss and share their discoveries with others.

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Check out Amateur Astronomy - Images for the latest pictures including the lunar eclipse. Also I have just purchased a Coronado PST check out the new solar images as they get posted up.

News

ESA

Tue, 07 May 2013 14:00:00 UT
Herschel:Herschel reveals the Milky Way's warm heart
What heats gas near supermassive black holes at the centre of galaxies? Astronomers have looked at the centre of our Galaxy, the Milky Way, with ESA's Herschel Space Observatory and discovered a rich variety of molecules at surprisingly high temperatures - up to 1000 K. The new data suggest that the molecular gas is heated up by shocks, in addition to ultraviolet radiation from massive stars close to the Galactic Centre. Shocks develop in the gas as the material surges towards Sagittarius A*, the region harbouring the supermassive black hole at the heart of the Milky Way.
Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:17:00 UT
Venus Express:No. 256 – Continuation of the fourteenth Earth occultation season, start of the twenty-third eclipse season, and start of surface imaging campaign
Report for the period 6 January to 2 February 2013 This reporting period covers four weeks of Venus Express operations, from 6 January to 2 February 2013, and includes the continuation of the fourteenth occultation season, the start of the twenty-third eclipse season, and start of the Venus surface imaging campaign.
Tue, 05 Mar 2013 14:00:00 UT
Cosmic Vision:Call for White Papers for the definition of the L2 and L3 missions in the ESA Science Programme
The Director of Science and Robotic Exploration intends to define, in the course of 2013, the science themes and questions that will be addressed by the next two Large (L-class) missions in the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 plan, "L2" and "L3", currently planned for a launch in 2028 and 2034, respectively. This process starts with a consultation of the broad scientific community, in the form of the current Call, soliciting White Papers to propose science themes and associated questions that the L2 and L3 missions should address. The submission deadline for White Papers is 24 May 2013, 12:00 CEST (noon).
Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:02:00 UT
Herschel:Herschel Status Report - February 2013
Report for period 5 to 27 February 2013 Mission operations of the Herschel space observatory continued nominally during the reporting period, with the spacecraft and subsystems all performing as expected.
Thu, 09 May 2013 14:52:00 UT
Hubble:Hubble finds dead stars 'polluted' with planetary debris [heic1309]
The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has found signs of Earth-like planets in an unlikely place: the atmospheres of a pair of burnt-out stars in a nearby star cluster. The white dwarf stars are being polluted by debris from asteroid-like objects falling onto them. This discovery suggests that rocky planet assembly is common in clusters, say researchers.
Wed, 27 Mar 2013 08:38:00 UT
Herschel:Herschel Status Report - December 2012 and January 2013
Report for period 6 December 2012 to 4 February 2013Mission operations of the Herschel space observatory continued nominally during the reporting period, with the spacecraft and subsystems all performing as expected.
Thu, 02 May 2013 15:29:00 UT
Cluster:Cluster hears the heartbeat of magnetic reconnection
For the first time, scientists have resolved the detailed structure of the core region where magnetic reconnection takes place in the magnetosphere of Earth using unprecedented wave measurements. The study, based on data from ESA's Cluster mission, has mapped different types of electrostatic waves in this region. The waves trace populations of plasma particles that are involved in the different stages of a magnetic reconnection event.
Tue, 12 Mar 2013 12:35:00 UT
Venus Express:No. 255 - Start of the fourteenth Earth occultation season, completion of the tenth Atmospheric Drag Experiment campaign
Report for the period 9 December 2012 to 5 January 2013 This reporting period covers four weeks of Venus Express operations, including the start of the fourteenth occultation season, end of the tenth Atmospheric Drag Experiment campaign, and pericentre altitude raising using four orbit correction manoeuvres.
Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:40:00 UT
Herschel:Observation gives way to examination as Herschel coolant runs out
The liquid helium coolant that enabled instruments on board the Herschel space observatory to collect extraordinary images and spectra has finally run out. Launched in 2009, the ESA mission collected unprecedented data of the cool as well as of the distant Universe. Herschel's observations have exceeded expectations, enabling scientists to learn more about how stars form, about the rates of star formation in galaxies across the cosmos, and about the origin and presence of water in different celestial bodies. While observations have come to an end and the spacecraft is to be propelled to a stable parking orbit around the Sun, where it will remain indefinitely, the science mission will continue for several years with many discoveries still to be made in the treasure trove of images and spectra collected by the observatory.
Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:00:00 UT
Rosetta:No. 158 - Spin-up and entry into deep-space hibernation
Report for the period 6 to 14 June 2011This report covers nine days of Rosetta mission operations. The main activities were the spin-up of the spacecraft and entry into deep-space hibernation mode. The spacecraft will remain in this state until 20 January 2014 when the hibernation exit sequence will be initiated. The next Rosetta status report will be issued towards the end of January 2014.

NASA

Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA Probe Counts Space Rock Impacts On Mars
Scientists using images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) have estimated that the planet is bombarded by more than 200 small asteroids or bits of comets per year forming craters at least 12.8 feet (3.9 meters) across.
Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA Hosts Kepler Spacecraft Status Teleconference Today
NASA will host a news teleconference at 4 p.m. EDT, today, May 15, to discuss the status of the agency's Kepler Space Telescope.
Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
Deputy Administrator Tours NASA's Northeast Ohio Facilities, Meets Media Thursday
Media representatives are invited to join NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver as she visits the agency's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland on Thursday, May 16 and tours facilities advancing future spaceflight missions. The locations include Lewis Field and the Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio.
Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA Administrator Visits Houston, Meets Media
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden will be at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston on Thursday, May 16, to discuss the future of human space exploration and the critical role the International Space Station performs in support of those efforts.
Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA Honors Sally Ride with a National Tribute at Kennedy Center
NASA and Sally Ride Science are inviting the general public and journalists to "Sally Ride: A Lifetime of Accomplishment, A Champion of Science Literacy," an educational tribute to America's first woman in space on Monday, May 20. The special event will be held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street, N.W., Washington, D.C., at 7 p.m. EDT.
Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA's Google+ Hangout Connects Space Station, "Star Trek Into Darkness" Crews
The director and some actors in the film "Star Trek Into Darkness" will join NASA as it hosts a Google+ Hangout from noon to 12:45 p.m. EDT, May 16, about how work aboard the International Space Station is turning science fiction into reality.
Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
Space Station Expedition 35 Astronauts Land Safely in Kazakhstan, Expedition 36 Begins
Three members of the International Space Station Expedition 35 crew undocked from the orbiting laboratory and returned safely to Earth Monday, May 13, wrapping up a mission lasting almost five months. The departure marks the beginning of Expedition 36.
Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA'S Hubble Space Telescope Finds Dead Stars 'Polluted' With Planet Debris
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has found the building blocks for Earth-sized planets in an unlikely place-- the atmospheres of a pair of burned-out stars called white dwarfs.
Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA Awards Contract to Modify Mobile Launcher
NASA has awarded a contract to J.P. Donovan Construction Inc. of Rockledge, Fla., to modify the mobile launcher that will enable the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) heavy-lift rocket to send humans to an asteroid, Mars and other new destinations in the solar system.
Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT
NASA Television to Air Space Station Soyuz Landing
NASA Television will provide live coverage May 12-14 as three crew members aboard the International Space Station end five months in orbit and return to Earth for a scheduled landing May 13.
 
 

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