APOD 4.3

Young Stars in the Rho Ophiuchi Cloud 

Dust clouds and embedded newborn stars glow at infrared wavelengths in this false-color composition from WISE. This features one of the closest star-forming regions , part of the Rho Ophicuhi cloud complex some 400 light years distant. After forming along a large cloud of molecular hydrogen gas, young stars heat the surrounding dust to produce the infrared glow. Stars in the process of formation, called young stellar objects, (YSOs) are embedded in the pinkish nebulae seen here . 

Observations

Last night I went out in my driveway at about 10pm. Of course I saw Orion, Betelgeuse, and Rigel. I also managed to identify Gemini, and its two main sequence stars Castor and Pollux. I spotted Sirius and perhaps Lepus, but I'm not really sure.

APOD 4.2

The Milky Way Over Tenerife 

In a clear sky from a dark location at the right time, a faint band of light, the disk of our spiral galaxy, is visible across the sky. Since we are inside this disk, the band appears to encircle the earth. The image is actually a deep digital fusion of nine photos that create a panorama fully 360 across. Also depicted is a waxing moon, Barnard's loop, and the Pleiades. 

APOD 4.1

Valles Marineris 

Valles Marineris is the largest canyon in the solar system extending over 3,000 kilometers long and spanning as much 600 kilometers across and delving as much as 8 kilometers deep. The origin remains unknown, although a hypothesis stands that it started as a crack billions of year ago as the planet cooled. This pictured was compiled from over 100 images of Mars taken by Viking Oribiters in the 1970s.

APOD 3.8

NGC 6384: Spiral Beyond the Stars

To see galaxies within the universe, astronomers must look out beyond the stars of our galaxy, the milky way. The image above shows spiral galaxy NGC 6384 abour 80 million light years away in the direction of the constellation Ophiuchus. It spans an approximate 150,000 light-years. You can see the galaxy's blue spiral arms and yellowish core.

Observation 3/17/11

I went outside on my driveway at about 9:30 pm. Directly overhead was a bright full moon. What was special about this observation today, was that there was a lighter aura circling the moon - an effect of the atmosphere. When I saw the star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion, I couldn't stop thinking about The Universe Video we watched in class today and how at any moment - tomorrow, 100 years - Betelgeuse will explode into a supernova!! Pretty neat.

APOD 3.7

Saturn's Hyperion: A Moon with Odd Craters

Nobody is sure what lies at the bottom of Hyperion's strange craters. The robot Cassini spacecraft (which is now orbiting Saturn) swooped past the the sponge-textured moon in 2005 and 2010 and took images with unprecedented detail. The picture above is an image from 2005 shown in false color and depicts a remarkable world strewn with strange craters and a generally odd surface. The slight differences in color most likely show differences in surface composition. Hyperion is about 250 kilometers across, roatates chaotically, and has a density so low it might house a vast system of caverns inside.