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Pulsar wind nebula called the “Hand of God”

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Pulsar wind nebula - NASA
X-ray image of a pulsar wind nebula called the “Hand of God”

This dramatic x-ray image is of a pulsar wind nebula, which is  powered by the leftover, dense core of a star that blew up in a supernova explosion. Electromagnetic radiation is being expelled and the interaction with magnetic fields creates a cloud that looks like an open hand. The actual pulsar is the smaller, highly magnetized white area in the picture  while the blueish portion is the structure of the high energy x-rays.  The red cloud at the end of the finger region is referred to as  RCW 89. NASA’s Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, was used along with the Chandra X-ray Observatory to compile this image.

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Jupiter’s North Pole

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Jupiter North Pole - NASA
Composite picture of Jupiter’s north pole, compiled by the Cassini-Huygens mission

Cassini Orbiter spacecraft, which is a collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency and Italian Space agency’s Cassini-Huygens mission, was used to come up with this composite view of Jupiter’s North Pole – while on its way to explore the planet Saturn and its moons. The onboard narrow-angle camera took numerous pictures over a period of two days in December 2000 and 36 of them were used to create this view, with a grid overlayed to divide the planet. The smallest visible features on this map are about 120 kilometers across and show a variety of colorful cloud features. The Great Red spot, the multi-coloured (red, brown and white) bands, and some small vortices are visible in this unique picture “looking down” on Jupiter.

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Trifid Nebula’s stars

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Trifid Nebula - NASA
A storm of stars in the Trifid Nebula (NGC 6514) in the constellation of Sagittarius

The Trifid Nebula (cataloged as NGC 6514 or M20) was discovered by the famous French astronomer Charles Messier on June 5, 1764. This interstellar cloud is located about 5,400 light-years away in the Sagittarius constellation. The above picture, taken by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), shows a storm of stars brewing in the Trifid Nebula. The intense yellow and orange parts of the picture are new stars being born while the blue stars scattered around the picture are the older stars in this nebula. The main green cloud overlapping the many stars is made up of hydrogen gas.

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Strange light captured by Curiosity camera on Mars

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NASA’s curiosity rover recently reached a spot on Mars referred to as “the Kimberley” to continue its study of the multiple rock formations in that area. But what caught the eye of many space observers/enthusiasts also brought in special interest from UFO and alien followers – a strange light.

Mars Light - NASA
Strange light caught by Curiosity camera on Mars

What was that strange (white) light captured by one of Curiosity’s dual NAVCAM cameras? An artificial light from a UFO or alien beings that inhabit Mars? Or is it more likely that this light was the camera capturing cosmic rays or sunlight reflecting off the rocks in that area; a malfunction with the camera; or some other artifact? You can bet that there are plenty of theories and analysis trying to establish both these trains of thought. For now, its time to go back to review all the older Mars pictures and wait for the next set of pictures beamed by Curiosity from Mars.

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Near Earth asteroid Eros

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Eros - NASA
Near Earth asteroid Eros photographed by NEAR Shoemaker

Johns Hopkins University’s Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous – Shoemaker (NEAR Shoemaker) robotic space probe was launched in 1996 to study the asteroid Eros. This picture is a mosaic of six pictures, stitched together and layered over a computer model of the asteroid’s shape. The NEAR Shoemaker probe was about 200 kilometers from Eros at the time of these photos. Several large craters are clearly visible. At the end of its mission in February 2001, the spacecraft landed on Eros.

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