Mercury Makes Precise Measurement of the Sun
In what sounds like an astronomical “David and Goliath” tale, the smallest planet in the solar system (no, not Pluto, the other one) has helped astronomers precisely measure the width of the largest thing in the solar system — the sun.
Wait. I hear you cry. Do astronomers have nothing better than to measure the girth of our nearest star? Besides, we should know that already… shouldn’t we?
In the sage words of Bad Astronomer Phil Plait: “Sometimes the simplest things can be the hardest, I suppose.” And he’d be right.
The Horsehead Nebula
Credit & Copyright: Nigel Sharp (NOAO), KPNO, AURA, NSF
Solar Flare, March 6, 2012
http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/07/10596987-solar-blast-could-have-earthly-impact?chromedomain=cosmiclog
(Source: under-dark-stars)
Little Ghost Nebula
Image courtesy ESA/NASA
Backyard astronomers often make friends with the Little Ghost Nebula, officially known as NGC 6369. The object can be seen from Earth as a faint cloud surrounding the corpse of a dead star in the constellation Ophiuchus.
In this 2004 Hubble Space Telescope picture, the nebula can be seen in greater detail, revealing the evolution of gas being ejected from the dying star.
As ultraviolet radiation pours from the star, it strips electrons from atoms in the gas, ionizing—electrically charging—the closest regions and creating the bright, blue-green ring. Redder areas on the outer edges of the nebula are places where ionization is less advanced.
