Space

Birth of Planets Revealed in Astonishing Detail in ALMA’s ‘Best Image Ever’

Astronomers have captured the best image ever of planet formation around an infant star as part of the testing and verification process for the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array’s (ALMA) new high-resolution capabilities.

This revolutionary new image reveals in astonishing detail the planet-forming disk surrounding HL Tau, a Sun-like star located approximately 450 light-years from Earth in the constellation Taurus.

ALMA uncovered never-before-seen features in this system, including multiple concentric rings separated by clearly defined gaps. These structures suggest that planet formation is already well underway around this remarkably young star.

"These features are almost certainly the result of young planet-like bodies that are being formed in the disk. This is surprising since HL Tau is no more than a million years old and such young stars are not expected to have large planetary bodies capable of producing the structures we see in this image," said ALMA Deputy Director Stuartt Corder.

QvrFJmT.jpg


 
The first bad news ....... a thruster system on Philae meant to keep it from rebounding from the comet's surface is apparently not working. The thruster atop Philae was designed to fire when the ship touched down, to prevent it from recoiling back into space. 15 minutes to go ..... success or fail ?

635513663432946907-458839748.jpg


approximately washing machine size

The comet's terrain also poses challenges. It is pocked with deep depressions and dotted with building-sized boulders, and it boasts slopes so steep that they make the toughest ski resort look tame. A lander that toppled onto its side would be worthless. So would a lander that bounced off the comet's surface.

UPDATE (10:25 CST): Success !! The European Space Agency confirms the Philae lander is on the surface of the comet and is sending back data to its mother ship Rosetta.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/cosmic-1st-european-spacecraft-lands-on-comet/ar-AA7HXAy

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hooked on Huskers said:
The first bad news ....... a thruster system on Philae meant to keep it from rebounding from the comet's surface is apparently not working. The thruster atop Philae was designed to fire when the ship touched down, to prevent it from recoiling back into space. 15 minutes to go ..... success or fail ?

635513663432946907-458839748.jpg


approximately washing machine size

The comet's terrain also poses challenges. It is pocked with deep depressions and dotted with building-sized boulders, and it boasts slopes so steep that they make the toughest ski resort look tame. A lander that toppled onto its side would be worthless. So would a lander that bounced off the comet's surface.

UPDATE (10:25 CST): Success !! The European Space Agency confirms the Philae lander is on the surface of the comet and is sending back data to its mother ship Rosetta.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/cosmic-1st-european-spacecraft-lands-on-comet/ar-AA7HXAy
Click to expand...
Pretty impressive stuff.

TUkKuhf.gif


 
Last night my wife read on the computer about the Geminid meteor shower. She asked me to go outside for her to see if I could see them before she went outside (she does have mobility issues)

I said, "Its misting when I took the dog for a walk" (I just got back shortly before this)

"So you don't want to go look?"

"I said its misting"

"Fine! I'll go do it myself"

Comes back in "You could have told me its cloudy!"

 
http://m.newser.com/story/201410/two-planets-may-lurk-beyond-pluto.html

“We consider that the most probable explanation is that other unknown planets exist beyond Neptune and Pluto,” says an astronomer from Complutense University of Madrid. It's just a theory at this point, and EarthSky points out two issues: "First, their proposal goes against the predictions of current models on the formation of the solar system, which state that there are no other planets moving in circular orbits beyond Neptune." (The astronomers suggest other research is disproving this anyway.) And second, the study sample of just 13 objects is small. More research on ETNOs is coming soon, however. “If it is confirmed, our results may be truly revolutionary for astronomy,” says the Madrid astronomer.
Click to expand...
 
Back
Top