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Brilliant star in a colorful neighborhood
A spectacular new image shows the brilliant and unusual star WR 22 and its colorful surroundings. WR 22 is a very hot and bright star that is shedding its atmosphere into space at a rate many millions of times faster than the Sun. It lies in the outer part of the dramatic Carina Nebula from which it formed.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Planets found in unusually intimate dance around dying star
Astronomers have found two extrasolar planetary systems with gas giant planets locked in an orbital embrace. In one system -- a planetary pair orbiting the massive, dying star HD 200964, located roughly 223 light-years from Earth -- the intimate dance is closer and tighter than any previously seen.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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NASA simulates space exploration at remote Arctic crater site
NASA personnel are among a group of international researchers who are in the Canadian Arctic assessing concepts for future planetary exploration as part of the Haughton-Mars Project, or HMP-2010. Scientists are using the arid, rocky environment of the Haughton Crater on Devon Island, Canada to simulate conditions that might be encountered by explorers on other planetary bodies. The latest edition of the HMP-2010 began July 19 and includes three weeks of crew and mission control activities and robotic testing.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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Blowing in the wind: Cassini helps with dune whodunit on Saturn's moon Titan
The answer to the mystery of dune patterns on Saturn's moon Titan did turn out to be blowing in the wind. It just wasn't from the direction many scientists expected.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Brown dwarf found orbiting a young sun-like star
Astronomers have imaged a very young brown dwarf, or failed star, in a tight orbit around a young nearby sun-like star. The discovery is expected to shed light on the early stages of solar system formation.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Martian dust devil whirls into Opportunity's view
In its six-and-a-half years on Mars, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity had never seen a dust devil before this month, despite some systematic searches in past years and the fact that its twin rover, Spirit, has seen dozens of dust devils at its location halfway around the planet.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Rocks on Mars may provide link to evidence of living organisms roughly 4 billion years ago
A new paper reveals groundbreaking research on the hydrothermal formation of Clay-Carbonate rocks in the Nili Fossae region of Mars. The findings may provide a link to evidence of living organisms on Mars, roughly 4 billion years ago in the Noachian period.
[Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Clean technology in 'hot water'
What if work performed in space could improve the treatment of household and nuclear waste on Earth? That's what investigators are hoping to do with the results of a fluid physics study in progress on the International Space Station. The experiment, called DECLIC-HTI, is studying supercritical water that could lead to spin-offs in the field of clean technologies for treating waste here on Earth.
[Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EDT]
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Unexplained pattern of cosmic rays discovered
Researchers saw an unusual pattern when they looked at a "skymap" of the relative intensity of cosmic rays directed toward the Earth's Southern Hemisphere, with an excess of cosmic rays detected in one part of the sky and a deficit in another. A similar lopsidedness, called "anisotropy," has been seen from the Northern Hemisphere by previous experiments, but its source is still a mystery.
[Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Engineers prove space pioneer's 25-year-old theory
When American space pioneer, Dr. Robert L. Forward, proposed in 1984 a way of greatly improving satellite telecommunications using a new family of orbits, some claimed it was impossible. But now engineers in Scotland have proved that Forward was right.
[Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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NASA tests launch abort system at supersonic speeds
Aerospace engineers at NASA's Ames Research Center are conducting a series of wind tunnel tests to develop technology for future human space exploration. Using a six percent scale Orion model, featuring complex moving parts, engineers are simulating various launch abort conditions the spacecraft might encounter during ascent to characterize the effects of launch abort and control motor plumes on the aerodynamics of the Orion spacecraft.
[Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Potentially hazardous asteroid might collide with the Earth in 2182
The potentially hazardous asteroid ‘(101955) 1999 RQ36’ has a one-in-a-thousand chance of impacting the Earth, and more than half of this probability indicates that this could happen in the year 2182, according to a new study. Knowing this fact may help design in advance mechanisms aimed at deviating the asteroid’s path.
[Tue, 27 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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NASA moves forward on commercial partnership for rocket engine testing
Engineers at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center recently installed an Aerojet AJ26 rocket engine for qualification testing as part of a partnership that highlights the space agency's commitment to work with commercial companies to provide space transportation. Stennis has partnered with Orbital Sciences Corporation to test the AJ26 engines that will power the first stage of the company's Taurus® II space launch vehicle. Orbital is working in partnership with NASA under the agency's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) joint research and development project. The company is under contract with NASA through the Commercial Resupply Services program to provide eight cargo missions to the International Space Station through 2015.
[Mon, 26 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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NASA spacecraft camera yields most accurate Mars map
A camera aboard NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft has helped develop the most accurate global Martian map ever. Researchers and the public can access the map via several websites and explore and survey the entire surface of the Red Planet.
[Sat, 24 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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New technique for studying dark energy
A new but technically challenging observational "shortcut" will help make large-scale cosmic maps that can yield clues to to the nature of the mysterious "dark energy" that pervades the universe.
[Fri, 23 Jul 2010 17:00:00 EDT]
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European Space Agency develops radar to watch for space hazards
As part of the European Space Agency's Space Situational Awareness activities, a new radar system will be developed to help safeguard space missions. The radar will detect hazardous objects in Earth orbit and trigger warnings that enable satellite operators to avoid collisions, making spaceflight safer for all.
[Fri, 23 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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NASA telescope finds elusive buckyballs in space for first time
Astronomers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have discovered carbon molecules, known as "buckyballs," in space for the first time. Buckyballs are soccer-ball-shaped molecules that were first observed in a laboratory 25 years ago.
[Fri, 23 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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Pounding particles to create Neptune's water in the lab
An international group of physicists has drawn up plans to use the new Facility for Antiprotons and Ion Research in Germany to expose water molecules to heavy ion beams and generate the same level of pressure on the water molecules that they experience within the very inhospitable core of Neptune.
[Fri, 23 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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Hyperfast star was booted from Milky Way
A hundred million years ago, a triple-star system was traveling through the bustling center of our Milky Way galaxy when it made a life-changing misstep. The trio wandered too close to the galaxy's giant black hole, which captured one of the stars and hurled the other two out of the Milky Way. Adding to the stellar game of musical chairs, the two outbound stars merged to form a super-hot, blue star.
[Thu, 22 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EDT]
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Evidence of water in lunar rocks: Water on moon may be widespread, similar to Earth's
That dry, dusty moon overhead? Seems it isn't quite as dry as it's long been thought to be. Although you won't find oceans, lakes, or even a shallow puddle on its surface, a team of geologists has found structurally bound hydroxyl groups (i.e., water) in a mineral in a lunar rock returned to Earth by the Apollo program.
[Thu, 22 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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Black hole jerked around twice
Scientists have found evidence that a giant black hole has been jerked around twice, causing its spin axis to point in a different direction from before. This discovery, made with new data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, might explain several mysterious-looking objects found throughout the Universe.
[Thu, 22 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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Final instruments on NASA climate/weather satellite integrated
The last of five instruments slated to fly on the upcoming NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) climate and weather satellite have been successfully integrated, according to NASA officials. The polar-orbiting satellite is scheduled to launch in late 2011.
[Thu, 22 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Cometary impact on Neptune: Herschel data point to collision about two centuries ago
A comet may have hit the planet Neptune about two centuries ago. This is indicated by the distribution of carbon monoxide in the atmosphere of the gas giant that researchers have now studied. The scientists analyzed data taken by the research satellite Herschel, that has been orbiting the Sun in a distance of approximately 1.5 million kilometers since May 2009.
[Wed, 21 Jul 2010 23:00:00 EDT]
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Finding frugal aliens: 'Benford beacons' concept could refocus search for signs of intelligent extraterrestrial life
By looking at the point-of-view of ET civilizations sending beacons, an astrophysicist and microwave-expert brother advocate new approach for SETI to find signals of intelligent alien life.
[Wed, 21 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EDT]
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Stars just got bigger: A 300-solar-mass star uncovered
Using a combination of instruments on the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope, astronomers have discovered the most massive stars to date, one weighing at birth more than 300 times the mass of the Sun, or twice as much as the currently accepted limit of 150 solar masses. The existence of these monsters — millions of times more luminous than the Sun, losing weight through very powerful winds — may provide an answer to the question “how massive can stars be?”
[Wed, 21 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Cassini sees moon building giant snowballs in Saturn ring
While orbiting Saturn for the last six years, NASA's Cassini spacecraft has kept a close eye on the collisions and disturbances in the gas giant's rings. They provide the only nearby natural laboratory for scientists to see the processes that must have occurred in our early solar system, as planets and moons coalesced out of disks of debris.
[Wed, 21 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EDT]
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Video camera will show Mars rover's touchdown
A downward-pointing camera on the front-left side of NASA's Curiosity rover will give adventure fans worldwide an unprecedented sense of riding a spacecraft to a landing on Mars.
[Wed, 21 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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Dark matter may be lurking at heart of the sun
A scientist in the UK believes dark matter is lurking at the center of the sun and cooling down its core temperature.
[Wed, 21 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Engineers work on rocket demonstrator for Mars missions
Engineers in the UK are working on a dual fuel rocket which could provide technology suitable for a rocket for Mars and will have a negative carbon footprint.
[Tue, 20 Jul 2010 23:00:00 EDT]
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Fourth property of electrons? Electric dipole moment would explain creation of universe
Do electrons have a fourth property in addition to mass, charge and spin, as popular physics theories such as supersymmetry predict? Researchers from Germany, the Czech Republic and the United States want to find the answer to this fundamental question of physics. In order to improve the precision of previous measurements, they have created a new material with the aid of the Juelich supercomputer JUROPA.
[Tue, 20 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Orbiter puts itself into standby safe mode
NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter put itself into a safe standby mode on Wednesday, July 14, and the team operating the spacecraft has begun implementing careful steps designed to resume Odyssey's science and relay operations this week.
[Tue, 20 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Refining a cosmic clock: Particle accelerator research helps narrow down the age of our galaxy
A study of processes that affect the abundance of osmium will reduce the uncertainty that has plagued measurements of the age of the Milky Way.
[Mon, 19 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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NASA's WISE mission completes extensive sky survey
NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, completed its first survey of the entire sky on July 17, 2010. The mission has generated more than one million images so far, of everything from asteroids to distant galaxies.
[Mon, 19 Jul 2010 05:00:00 EDT]
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See beautiful Ontario Lacus: Cassini's guided tour
Ontario Lacus, the largest lake in the southern hemisphere of Saturn's moon Titan, turns out to be a perfect exotic vacation spot, provided you can handle the frosty, subzero temperatures and enjoy soaking in liquid hydrocarbon.
[Mon, 19 Jul 2010 02:00:00 EDT]
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Quantum simulations uncover hydrogen's phase transitions
Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe and is a major component of giant planets such as Jupiter and Saturn. But not much is known about what happens to this abundant element under high-pressure conditions when it transforms from one state to another.
[Sat, 17 Jul 2010 17:00:00 EDT]
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Astronomers discover an unusual cosmic lens
Astronomers have discovered the first known case of a distant galaxy being magnified by a quasar acting as a gravitational lens.
[Fri, 16 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EDT]
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New revelations about Mercury's volcanism, magnetic substorms and exosphere from MESSENGER
Analysis of data from MESSENGER's third and final flyby of Mercury in September 2009 has revealed evidence of younger volcanism on the innermost planet than previously recognized, new information about magnetic substorms, and the first observations of emission from an ionized species in Mercury's very thin atmosphere or exosphere.
[Fri, 16 Jul 2010 02:00:00 EDT]
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Insights into the largely invisible interaction between the Sun and Earth provided by ESA's Cluster mission
ESA's pioneering Cluster mission is celebrating its 10th anniversary. During the past decade, Cluster's four satellites have provided extraordinary insights into the largely invisible interaction between the Sun and Earth.
[Fri, 16 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Herschel: The first science highlights
Astronomy & Astrophysics is publishing a special feature devoted to the first science results obtained with Herschel, an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA. It includes 152 articles dealing with various subjects based on the first few months of science observing. A few papers describe the observatory and its instruments, and the rest are dedicated to observations of many astronomical targets from bodies in the Solar System to distant galaxies.
[Fri, 16 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Giant antenna propped up, ready for joint replacement
Workers at NASA's Deep Space Network complex in Goldstone, Calif., have been making precise, laser-assisted measurements to ensure a flat surface for pouring new grout as part of a major renovation on the 70-meter-wide (230-foot-wide) "Mars antenna." While officially dubbed Deep Space Station 14, the antenna picked up the Mars name from its first task: tracking NASA's Mariner 4 spacecraft, which had been lost by smaller antennas after its historic flyby of Mars.
[Thu, 15 Jul 2010 23:00:00 EDT]
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Super-hot planet with unique comet-like tail discovered
Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have confirmed the existence of a baked object that could be called a "cometary planet." The gas giant planet, named HD 209458b, is orbiting so close to its star that its heated atmosphere is escaping into space. Observations taken with Hubble's Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) suggest powerful stellar winds are sweeping the cast-off atmospheric material behind the scorched planet and shaping it into a comet-like tail.
[Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Unravelling the mystery of massive star birth: All stars are born the same way
Astronomers have obtained the first image of a dusty disc closely encircling a massive baby star, providing direct evidence that massive stars form in the same way as their smaller brethren.
[Wed, 14 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EDT]
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Record-breaking X-ray blast briefly blinds space observatory
A blast of the brightest X-rays ever detected from beyond our Milky Way galaxy's neighborhood temporarily blinded the X-ray eye on NASA's Swift space observatory earlier this summer, astronomers now report. The X-rays traveled through space for 5-billion years before slamming into and overwhelming Swift's X-ray Telescope. The blinding blast is by far the brightest light source ever seen in X-ray wavelengths at cosmological distances.
[Wed, 14 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EDT]
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Juno spacecraft armored up to go to Jupiter
NASA's Juno spacecraft will be forging ahead into a treacherous environment at Jupiter with more radiation than any other place NASA has ever sent a spacecraft, except the sun. In a specially filtered cleanroom in Denver, where Juno is being assembled, engineers recently added a unique protective shield around its sensitive electronics.
[Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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NASA and Microsoft provide Mars 3-D close encounter
NASA and Microsoft Research are bringing Mars to life with new features in the WorldWide Telescope software that provide viewers with a high-resolution 3-D map of the Red Planet.
[Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EDT]
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Astronomers discover star-studded galaxy tail
NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer has discovered a galaxy tail studded with bright knots of new stars. The tail, which was created as the galaxy IC 3418 plunged into the neighboring Virgo cluster of galaxies, offers new insight into how stars form.
[Wed, 14 Jul 2010 05:00:00 EDT]
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Fascinating images from a new world: Close-ups of the asteroid Lutetia
The ESA space probe Rosetta flew past the Lutetia planetoid on July 10, 2010. The OSIRIS camera system provided unique images of this rendezvous. They not only show a large number of craters on the surface of the celestial body, but also individual rocks and parallel grooves.
[Wed, 14 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EDT]
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Report on controlling NASA mission costs
NASA should develop a broad, integrated strategy to contain costs and maintain schedules as earth and space science missions are planned and designed, says a new report by the National Research Council.
[Tue, 13 Jul 2010 23:00:00 EDT]
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