The Solar System To Scale [Infographic]
The following is a huge infographic showing the true scale of the solar system with all its planets, minor bodies and the most famous probes we have sent out into deep space. Scientists measure distances in our solar system in astronomical units (AU).
Astronomy Picture of the Week – Rings of Uranus
This series of images of the rings of Uranus were taken by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. They were taken at different times when the rings were facing the Earth at slightly different angles. In the third image, the edge-on rings appear as two spikes above and below the planet.
Earth’s Size Compared to Other Astronomical Objects [Infographic]
The Earth is only a speck of dust in the grand scale of the universe. There are stars that would even dwarf our Sun. If you thought that Aldebaran was huge, wait until you see supergiant or hypergiant stars like Betelgeuse, Antares or VV Cephei!
Astronomy Picture of the Week – Mars as seen by Hubble
This is one of the best photos of Mars ever taken from Earth or Low Earth Orbit. NASA's Hubble Space Telescope took this close-up of the red planet Mars when it was just 88 million kilometers away. This color image was assembled from a series of exposures taken within 36 hours of the Mars closest approach…
Non-Rocket Spacelaunch – Advantages and Difficulties of a Launch Loop
Unlike conventional rockets, launch loops can have many launches per hour, independent of weather, and are not inherently polluting. Rockets create pollution such as nitrates in their exhausts due to high exhaust temperature, and can also create greenhouse gases depending on propellant choices. Launch loops require power in the form of electricity and as such it can be clean.
Non-Rocket Spacelaunch – Tether propulsion safety issues
The use of tethers in space poses many challenges and safety issues. This third part to the tether propulsion article will focus on those issues. A lot of the challenges and safety issues of a space tether system are similar to those of a space elevator described in a previous article, but some are unique to the space tether concept.
Non-Rocket Spacelaunch – Space Elevator Safety Issues
The space elevator is a gigantic concept and as such it has many safety issues that would have to be resolved before construction begins. A space elevator would present a navigational hazard, both to aircraft and spacecraft.
Non-Rocket Spacelaunch – Space Elevator
Why non-rocket spacelaunch? Because the current chemical rockets are really expensive. In order to further explore outer space and establish a permanent human presence in space we need more cost efficient spacelaunch methods.
Hartley 2 Comet
Comet Hartley 2 has made it to the news recently: first because of the comet's flyby near Earth and then due to it being visited by the Deep Impact spacecraft.
Astronomy Picture of the Week – Solar Eruption
This is a fairly old picture of the Sun since it has been taken on September 14, 1997 by the space-based SOHO observatory. It represents a massive solar eruption. Such a phenomenon occurs when magnetic fields arching from the solar surface twist and trap ionized gas, suspending it in huge looping structures, often expelling it into space. Occasionally that huge amount of solar plasma is ejected in the direction of Earth.
Astronomy Picture of the Week – Venus: Earth’s Cloudy Twin
Discover Venus, Earth's sister planet, in this captivating image by Galileo spacecraft. Learn about its extreme conditions and unmatched brilliance in the sky.
Astronomy Picture of the Week – The Copernicus Crater
Copernicus is one of the largest lunar impact craters on the visible hemisphere of the Moon. It was named after the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. The crater is estimated to have formed about 800 million years ago during the Copernican period of lunar history, which was named after the crater. Copernicus is visible using binoculars, and is located slightly northwest of the center of the nearside, in eastern Oceanus Procellarum. The crater has a diameter of 93 kilometers and a maximum depth of 3.8 kilometers. Copernicus also has a dozen satellite craters ranging between 3 and 7 kilometers in diameter. By convention they share the name of the main crater…