Tuesday 13 January 2015

Cone Nebula NGC 2264 Taken by the Hubble Telescope iPad Mini Cases

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tagged with: nebula, cone, cone nebula, ngc 2264, hubble, astronomy, space, outer space, hubble telescope, hubble space telescope, monoceros

Resembling a nightmarish beast rearing its head from a crimson sea, this monstrous object is actually an innocuous pillar of gas and dust. Called the Cone Nebula (NGC 2264) — so named because, in ground-based images, it has a conical shape — this giant pillar resides in a turbulent star-forming region. This picture, taken by the newly installed Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) aboard NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, shows the upper 2.5 light-years of the nebula, a height that equals 23 million roundtrips to the Moon. The entire nebula is 7 light-years long. The Cone Nebula resides 2,500 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros. Radiation from hot, young stars [located beyond the top of the image] has slowly eroded the nebula over millions of years. Ultraviolet light heats the edges of the dark cloud, releasing gas into the relatively empty region of surrounding space. There, additional ultraviolet radiation causes the hydrogen gas to glow, which produces the red halo of light seen around the pillar. A similar process occurs on a much smaller scale to gas surrounding a single star, forming the bow-shaped arc seen near the upper left side of the Cone. This arc, seen previously with the Hubble telescope, is 65 times larger than the diameter of our solar system. The blue-white light from surrounding stars is reflected by dust. Background stars can be seen peeking through the evaporating tendrils of gas, while the turbulent base is pockmarked with stars reddened by dust. Over time, only the densest regions of the Cone will be left. Inside these regions, stars and planets may form. The Cone Nebula is a cousin of the M16 pillars, which the Hubble telescope imaged in 1995. Monstrous pillars of cold gas, like the Cone and M16, are common in large regions of star birth. Astronomers believe that these pillars are incubators for developing stars. Sign up to Mr. Rebates for FREE and save 12% on any zazzle order in addition to a $5.00 sign up bonus All Rights Reserved; without: prejudice, recourse or notice (U.C.C. 1-308) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cone_Nebula_%28NGC_2264%29_Star-Forming_Pillar_of_Gas_and_Dust.jpg nebula cone "cone nebula" "ngc 2264" hubble astronomy space "outer space" "hubble telescope" "hubble space telescope" Monoceros

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Lead islands in a sea of graphene magnetize the material of the future

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Researchers in Spain have discovered that if lead atoms are intercalated on a graphene sheet, a powerful magnetic

The post Lead islands in a sea of graphene magnetize the material of the future has been published on Technology Org.

 
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Wonder material silicene still stands just out of reach

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Silicene is the thinnest form of silicon. It is metallic, has graphene-like mobile carriers and can behave like a semiconductor. The wonder material could lead to even smaller electronics but challenges remain.

via Science Daily

Nothing to squirm about: Space station worms help battle muscle, bone loss

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Two investigations on the space station help researchers seek clues to physiological problems found in astronauts by studying C. elegans -- a millimeter-long roundworm that is widely used as a model organism. This simple, tiny roundworm could lead to a cure for symptoms affecting millions of the aging and infirm population of Earth, and the astronauts orbiting it, potentially offering a solution to a major problem in an extremely small package, scientists say.

via Science Daily

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copernicus quote print

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What would it take for humans to build a settlement on Mars?

Science Focus

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Do we have the technological know-how to send humans on a one-way trip to Mars? Bas Lansdorp, cofounder and CEO of Mars One, seems to think so. The Dutch entrepreneur and his Mars One team plan on establishing what could be the first human colony on Mars.

"The first humans that are going to Mars are going there to stay," said Lansdorp. "They need to stay in order for this mission to be feasible."

The plan is to send robotic rovers out in 2020 to find the best location for a settlement. Rovers will prepare the location for the arrival of life support units, space suits, and living units, which would land in 2022, with the humans showing up in 2025.

"We plan to have systems operating on Mars for several years before humans arrive," Lansdorp explains. "But it's a mission with plenty of opportunity for delays."

Once everything is set up on Mars, four people — two men and two women — would travel on a compact space station that will hold enough food rations and water for the 7- to 8-month journey to the Red Planet.

There won't be any cool Star Trek–type of technology used for the mission though. Lansdorp is relying on his aerospace partners to come up with simple solutions, using existing technology. "If you're going to Mars, you don't want to bet your life on something that has not been tested for at least a decade," he said.

Powered by solar panels, the life support units will feed oxygen, nitrogen, and argon into the living unit — about 538 square feet of living space — to create a breathable atmosphere for the crew. The living unit will also have an airlock system to ensure the settlement is sealed when the crew leaves to explore the planet.

Space suits — or, in Mars One parlance, "Mars Suits" — are basically the same as the ones used by the Apollo astronauts on the moon. They will be worn by the crew to protect them from the thin atmosphere and the harsh weather, which averages a rather chilly -81 degrees Fahrenheit.

Assuming that the solar panels are successfully supplying the colony with electricity and the life support systems are fully operational, the crew will set up their new home upon arrival. According to the Mars One website, the settlement will have bedrooms, a living room, showers, a kitchen, and plant production units that will grow their food. The crew's source of water will be extracting water from the planet's soil.

If that sounds farfetched, you're not alone. Engineers at MIT aren't convinced the mission's plan will work.

In a recent report, researchers created an analysis tool that examined the Mars One mission model. They discovered that unless new technology is developed for the mission, the chances for human survival would be slim.

For example, growing crops as the main food supply would produce unsafe levels of oxygen within the colony, eventually causing the humans to suffocate. To avoid this, a system that can remove excess oxygen would have to be implemented, a technology that hasn't been developed for use in space.

"We do have the technology to extract oxygen from the air on earth," explains Sydney Do, a research assistant in the Department of Aeronautics and astronautics at MIT and one of the authors of the study. "But we don't yet have a technology that can do that in space or on Mars, and do it to last a lifetime."

Another problem is how much food the colonists will need to survive. Based on the work and activity levels of astronauts on the International Space Station, Do found that the crew would need to consume about 3,000 calories a day to stay alive on Mars. That's a lot of food to grow in a such limited space.

Do's recommendation is to bring food to Mars rather than bring supplies to grow and maintain it, especially if Mars One plans on sending more colonists in 2026.

"They would need more land to grow more food," he said. "Expansion would require more infrastructure and more water."

Accessing enough water could also be a challenge. Extracting water from the planet's soil by "baking" it could be used on Mars, according to the report, but such a device has not been developed to the scale required to sustain a human colony.

"We're all supporters of Mars exploration and colonization. However we are intimately familiar with challenges and risks of doing something like this," said Do.

A roundtrip mission seems more feasible to Do. "There would be less risk, and more opportunity to thoroughly test the technology on the planet prior to longer missions," he said.

But Lansdorp disagrees.

"A return mission is so immensely complex, it's almost impossible," he said.

He argues that successfully launching rockets from Earth already requires a huge number of highly skilled engineers, so how can that work on different planet with only four crew members?

Despite the report's findings, Lansdorp is confident about the mission's plan.

"We've discussed the MIT report, and most of it we already knew, but our suppliers are taking it into account," he said. "We know that landing on Mars isn't going to be easy."

 
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 » see original post http://theweek.com/articles/442174/take-humans-build-settlement-mars
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National Weather Service will boost its supercomputing capacity tenfold

Science Focus

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The National Weather Service said Monday that it was boosting its supercomputing capacity tenfold this year, and the organization will triple its computational abilities this month alone.

By October, the service's two operational supercomputers could perform 5,000 trillion calculations a second, up from 426 million. The goal is to offer better weather forecasts.

"By increasing our overall capacity, we’ll be able to process quadrillions of calculations per second that all feed into our forecasts and predictions. This boost in processing power is essential as we work to improve our numerical prediction models for more accurate and consistent forecasts required to build a Weather Ready Nation,” said Louis Uccellini, National Weather Service director.

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 » see original post http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/science/~3/BRODlPahH0A/
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Historic Leap: U.S. Navy Shipboard Laser Operates in Persian Gulf

Science Focus

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Officials at the Office of Naval Research (ONR) announced today that the laser weapon system (LaWS)—a cutting-edge weapon that

The post Historic Leap: U.S. Navy Shipboard Laser Operates in Persian Gulf has been published on Technology Org.

 
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 » see original post http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TechnologyOrgPhysicsNews/~3/QhKQ4d17Xn0/
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Crab Pulsar Time Lapse - Neutron Star Square Stickers

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Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series Multiple observations made over several months with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope captured the spectacle of matter and antimatter propelled to near the speed of light by the Crab pulsar, a rapidly rotating neutron star the size of Manhattan.

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image code: crbplsr

Image credit: NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope

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The Soap Bubble Nebula

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Zazzle Space Gifts for young and old

Heart and Soul nebulae infrared mosaic NASA Wall Graphic

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The Heart and Soul nebulae are seen in this infrared mosaic from NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE. Also visible near the bottom of this image are two galaxies, Maffei 1 and Maffei 2. Maffei 1 is the bluish elliptical object and Maffei 2 is the spiral galaxy. All four infra-red detectors aboard WISE were used to make this image. Colour is representational: blue and cyan represent infra-red light at wavelengths of 3.4 and 4.6 microns, which is dominated by light from stars. Green and red represent light at 12 and 22 microns, which is mostly light from warm dust.

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Hubble Ultra Deep Field Image Constellation Fornax iPad Mini Case

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Hubble Ultra Deep Field is an image of a Small region of space in the constellation Fornax Sign up to Mr. Rebates for FREE and save 12% on any zazzle order in addition to a $5.00 sign up bonus All Rights Reserved; without: prejudice, recourse or notice (U.C.C. 1-308) http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hubble_ultra_deep_field.jpg fornax hubble galaxies space astronomy

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Nanoshaping method points to future manufacturing technology

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A new method that creates large-area patterns of three-dimensional nanoshapes from metal sheets represents a potential manufacturing system

The post Nanoshaping method points to future manufacturing technology has been published on Technology Org.

 
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The central region of the Milky Way galaxy Poster

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The central region of the Milky Way galaxy featured with starlight.

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Crab Pulsar Time Lapse - Neutron Star Stickers

Here's a great sheet of stickers featuring a beautiful image from deep space


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Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series Multiple observations made over several months with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope captured the spectacle of matter and antimatter propelled to near the speed of light by the Crab pulsar, a rapidly rotating neutron star the size of Manhattan.

more items with this image
more items in the Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series

image code: crbplsr

Image credit: NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope

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Whimsical Purple Nebula Cat Pink Galaxy Stars Wall Graphics

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A cute whimsical kitten cat animal featuring bright purple and pink nebula and galaxy photography with bright stars. Get this original and modern outer space design with a cool cat vector on a white, beige vintage background. perfect gift for anyone, for the pet lover, the geek who loves space and cosmos. Girly Road is a collaboration between Girly Trend and Railton Road

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