Tag: ESA

Technology

NASA shares Hubble Space Telescope’s snap of LEDA 42160 galaxy that is 52 mn light-years away

In the vastness of space, galaxies journey through the cosmos, encountering mind-boggling challenges along the way. One such challenge is ram pressure, a force exerted by the gas and dust present in space. NASA and ESA-run Hubble Space Telescope recently captured an image showcasing the effects of this on a distant galaxy known as LEDA 42160.Situated approximately 52 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo, LEDA 42160 is a dwarf galaxy navigating through the dense gas within the Virgo cluster of galaxies. This intergalactic gas creates a pressure, known as ram pressure, which directly impacts the star formation processes within LEDA 42160. Ram pressure can have both positive and negative effects on galaxies. On one hand, it can strip a galaxy of its star-forming gas and dus...
Technology

Ukraine war at 2 years: Destruction seen from space through open-source data

As soldiers and citizens provide information from the front lines and affected areas of the war in Ukraine – two years old as of February 24, 2024 – in quasi-real time, an active open-source intelligence community has formed to keep track of troop activity, destruction and other aspects of the war.Remote sensing complements this approach, offering a safe means to study inaccessible or dangerous areas. For example, seismologists have documented the high pace of bombardments and firing of artillery around Kyiv during the first few months of the war. Previously, Teng Wang, a professor at the Peking University in China, and I – both Earth scientists – studied illegal nuclear tests in North Korea with satellite data. Putting our skills to good use once again, we, with graduate student Hang ...
Technology

Timelapse video of SpaceX Crew Dragon from International Space Station is simply mesmerising

ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen has treated the world to a mesmerizing timelapse video of the journey from space back to Earth. In a stunning timelapse video shared recently, viewers can see the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft gracefully undocking from the International Space Station (ISS) before its splashdown near the coast of Florida.Mogensen, along with his crewmates NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos astronaut Konstantin Borisov, have been on an almost six-month-long expedition aboard the ISS. Now, as their time in space draws to a close, the crew is gearing up for their own return to Earth. Scheduled to depart on March 8, 2024, the crew's return depends on the successful launch of Crew 8 on March 1 and favorable weather conditions at the l...
Technology

ESA is preparing for an asteroid strike and Apophis will play a big role in it; know how

A decade ago, the Earth was struck by the Chelyabinsk asteroid over Russia's Ural region. The asteroid exploded above the city and created a shockwave affecting 1500 people and destroying over 7300 buildings. It served to create fear, but more than that, it sent all the space agencies back to the drawing board to prepare contingency plans for such an event that may have far worse consequences. The fear of asteroid strike is always swings there as it had wiped out the dinosaurs from the face of Earth millions of years ago. Therefore, to study such potential Earth-striking asteroids and the impact they may have, the United Nations Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space created two international bodies: the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) and the Space Mission Planning Ad...
Technology

Love what ISRO, NASA, ESA are doing? Professional astronomer explains how to get into stargazing

ISRO, NASA, ESA and other space agencies have been in the news for a plethora of amazing launches that will serve to shed new light o the Universe. In fact, the Indian space agency ISRO, launched the XpoSat satellite yesterday to study black holes, Magnetars and more. Know how you too can get into stargazing.(The Conversation) There are few things more peaceful and relaxing than a night under the stars. Through the holidays, many people head away from the bright city lights to go camping. They revel in the dark skies, spangled with myriad stars. As a child, I loved such trips, and they helped cement my passion for the night sky, and for all things space. One of my great joys as an astronomer is sharing the night sky with people. There is something wondrous about helping people stare at...
Technology

Sunspots threaten to release a solar storm today directed at Earth

A huge spike in the cases of solar activity has raised concerns among researchers. Sunspots have always been a central point of research for space scientists as they can have a significant effect on our planet. That is why space agencies like ESA and NASA keep an eye on the Sun and solar activity with the help of their advanced instruments.Recently, NASA has observed a huge cluster of sunspots facing towards Earth. As per the reports, this sunspot region has started releasing a stream of solar storms, which can enter Earth's atmosphere anytime soon. Check here to know what reports have beenrevealed. Dense sunspots region causing solar stormsAccording to a report by spaceweather.com, the bunch of sunspots spotted consists of about 12 sunspots which are approximately 125,000 miles wide, ...
Technology

5 things about AI you may have missed today: Google’s AI Search comes to India; Baidu launches Ernie bot

The last day of August came with some major updates on generative artificial intelligence as big tech firms made significant advancements. Google expanded its AI-powered Search Generative Experience, also known as SGE, to India and made it available through Google's Search Labs. In other news, Baidu, China's Search giant, launched its AI chatbot Ernie to the public. Right after launch, it became the most downloaded free app on Apple's App Store in China. This and more in today's AI roundup. Let us take a look.Google brings AI-powered Search to IndiaToday, Google expanded its AI-powered Search Generative Experience (SGE) to two more countries, India and Japan. These two countries have also become the first outside the US to get the SGE feature. The feature is available through Google Se...
Technology

All about the fiery explosions on the Sun – know what are solar flares and CME

Over the past few months, as the volatility of the Sun increases, solar flares have been in the news constantly. Do you know what they are and how can they affect us? The Sun has been putting on a dazzling display of its power, and it's only going to get more exciting as we approach the peak of Solar Cycle 25, expected around 2025. But what's all the fuss about? Well, the Sun has some incredible phenomena like solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs), that can affect us here on Earth. They are said to even affect electric infrastructure on Earth.Understanding Solar FlaresImagine the Sun as a giant cosmic firework show. Sun shoots out bursts of energy called solar flares, which are like spectacular explosions on its surface. According to ESA, these flares happen when energy stored...
Technology

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope snaps a cosmic leviathan

It is always mesmerizing to see how the Hubble Space Telescope manages to capture fascinating images of space and galaxies that are millions and billions of light years away. Space agencies with such strong instruments can discover so many mysteries that are beyond our general comprehension and understanding. Yet again, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has snapped an image of a massive cosmic leviathan - the Abell 3322 galaxy cluster. Along with the cluster, the telescope was also able to feature galaxy 2MASX J05101744-4519179 in the same image.About Abell 3322According to a NASA report, the cosmic cluster named Abell 3322 was captured by ESA/ Hubble and NASA. The cluster is reported to be 2.6 billion light-years from Earth in the constellation Pictor. In the image, we can see soo much of...
Technology

Bug-eyed asteroid hunter: ESA’s Flyeye telescope

Each day we hear about gigantic asteroids or other near-earth objects rushing towards the Earth. Detecting celestial objects which can be hazardous to Earth can be tough due to the vastness of space. To solve this problem and prepare for the early spotting of asteroids, European Space Agency will be developing the automated Flyeye telescope.This will be the first time in history that an instrument will scan the sky thoroughly and will automatically detect dangerous near-earth objects. About Flyeye telescopeESA reports, the telescope will automatically detect the celestial object and then it will be examined by scientists to be sure they are real detections. Once the data is collected, it will then be sent to the Minor Planet Center for further observation for a better understanding of ...