Telescopes

Thirty years ago, an 11-day space shuttle mission involving seven veteran astronauts performed the first servicing mission to correct the Hubble Space Telescope's blurred vision.The unprecedented flight involved five spacewalks and would not have been possible without the assistance of the shuttle's robotic Canadarm.The multi-billion dollar Hubble Space Telescope was a crown jewel of NASA's space program. At the time, it was the largest and most capable astronomical observatory in orbit, with a clear view of the universe…

Recent research has uncovered surprising characteristics of galaxies formed 2 to 3 billion years after the Big Bang. Utilizing the JWST, they examined 33 ancient galaxies and discovered unusually high temperatures and the presence of elements like nickel. Their findings, part of the CECILIA survey, offer new insights into the evolution and chemical makeup of early galaxies, contributing to our understanding of galactic development over cosmic history. Studying “teenage galaxies” from the ancient universe can teach…

Three New Brunswickers are enjoying an astronomical surprise: an asteroid has been named after them.It's called Mipach — using the first two letters from the names of Saint Johners Mike Powell, Paul Owen and Chris Curwin."I saw the email and the other two guys hadn't seen it yet. So I was frantically on the phone and messaging them back and forth, getting them to take a look. So it was just overwhelming," Curwin said.The asteroid is 6.37 kilometres in diameter and resides in the main belt, between the orbit of Mars and…

Scientists from the Telescope Array Collaboration have detected an ultrahigh-energy cosmic ray, a discovery that’s challenging our current understanding of exotic cosmic phenomena and their origins.Who’s This Thing Actually for? | PlayStation Portal Hands OnIn a study published today in the journal Science, the Telescope Array Collaboration has reported the detection of an ultrahigh-energy cosmic ray (UHECR for short), which exhibits an energy level of approximately 244 exa-electron volts, or roughly 40 Joules. This…

Consider this: Astronomers think of the Hubble Space Telescope as small.That may surprise you, since after three decades of taking images with depth and detail most ground-based telescopes couldn’t achieve, popular conception holds that Hubble must be one of the biggest telescopes ever built.But its mirror is only 2.4-meters wide. That’s not terribly large. Even the newer JWST, now taking images evoking gasps similar to Hubble’s, has a mirror that’s 6.5 meters wide, which only puts it in medium-to-big territory among…

Scientists leading the European Space Agency’s Euclid space telescope mission have just released its breathtaking first science images, taken only four months after launch. These new space photos reveal spectacular snapshots of the vast structure of the cosmos, including a massive galaxy cluster in the Perseus constellation, an object nicknamed the “Hidden Galaxy,” an irregularly structured galaxy, a globular cluster packed with myriad stars, and the gorgeous Horsehead Nebula.Euclid mission leaders announced the first…

We've heard the tale of an asteroid crashing on Earth nearly 65 million years ago and wiping out the dinosaurs since our childhood. But did you know that it is backed up by a hypothesis? According to the Alvarez hypothesis, this extinction was caused by a massive asteroid that crashed on Earth. Scientists have also discovered the origin of the asteroid. It would've originated between the orbit of Mars and Jupiter. The asteroid terraformed the planet and is likely the reason that started the extinction of dinosaurs.…

A majority of asteroids can be found in the region of space situated between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. These celestial bodies follow elliptical paths around the Sun, exhibiting irregular movements and rotations. Their orbits can be influenced by the gravitational force of Jupiter and occasional close encounters with other celestial objects. Resultantly, they may be ejected from the main asteroid belt and redirected onto diverse orbits. Now, NASA reports that one of these monster rocks from the asteroid belt is…

The first anniversary image from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope displays star birth like it’s never been seen before, full of detailed, impressionistic texture. The subject is the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex, the closest star-forming region to Earth. It is a relatively small, quiet stellar nursery, but you’d never know it from Webb’s chaotic close-up. Jets bursting from young stars crisscross the image, impacting the surrounding interstellar gas and lighting up molecular hydrogen, shown in red. Some stars display the…

Asteroids are described as ancient space rocks left over from the early formation of our solar system around 4.6 billion years ago. These objects pass Earth occasionally at safe distances. NASA has carried out several missions to these rocks to study them up close. While the DART Test was in the news last year as the first-ever planetary defense test, the space agency also carried out missions like Dawn, OSIRIS-REx, and Hayabusa2. The purpose of these missions is to study asteroids, minimize any uncertainties around…