One of our greatest astronomers, Galileo Galilei, was born February 15, 1564. His discoveries with the improved telescopes he made changed the way we view the universe – and got him in trouble with the church. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/galileos-birthday-feb-15-1564…
Tag: Moons of Jupiter
InSight and Juno Keep on Trucking
NASA’s InSight lander on Mars and the Juno orbiter at Jupiter have new leases on life. From a report: The spacecraft are expected to continue gathering data about their respective planetary targets during their newly extended missions, allowing scientists to learn more about seismic activity on Mars and turn their attention to the moons of Jupiter. Juno’s mission has been extended…
How Jupiter’s moon Io gets its hellish atmosphere
Hot, active volcanoes produce almost half of Jupiter’s moon Io’s sulfur atmosphere, according to new observations using the ALMA telescope. The rest comes from cold sulfur deposits that freeze on the surface, then sublimate in sunlight. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/io-sulfur-volcanoes-hot-so2-cold-so2…
Meet the Pi planet. It orbits its star every 3.14 days
In a fun cosmic coincidence, researchers used old Kepler spacecraft data to discover an Earth-sized exoplanet with an orbital period of 3.14 days, a number that matches the mathematical constant pi. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/pi-exoplanet-k2-315b-has-3-14-day-orbit…
The moon, Jupiter and Saturn September 23 to 26
On September 23, 24, 25 and 26, 2020, the moon can guide your eye to the solar system’s 2 biggest gas giant planets, Jupiter and Saturn. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/moon-jupiter-saturn-september-23-26…
Juno’s new images reveal Ganymede’s north pole
These are the first spacecraft images yet acquired of the north pole of Ganymede, largest moon of the giant planet Jupiter. NASA’s Juno spacecraft – now orbiting Jupiter – obtained them. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/ganymede-north-pole-infrared-images-juno-spacecraft-jupiter…
Steam-powered bot could explore icy moons
Scientists have conceived of a steam-powered robotic hopper bot that could explore Europa and Enceladus. While the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn rem… Source: https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/337824/steam-powered-bot-could-explore-icy-moons…
Why icy moons like Europa are our best bet for finding alien life
Vast oceans within the moons of Jupiter and Saturn could be hidden hotspots for life. NASA astrobiologist Kevin Hand reveals his plans to find it Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24632871-600-why-icy-moons-like-europa-are-our-best-bet-for-finding-alien-life/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Top tips for binocular stargazing
Whether you’re a beginning stargazer or a veteran of thousands of starry nights, binoculars can be your best friend. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/top-tips-for-using-ordinary-binoculars-for-stargazing…
New names for 5 Jupiter moons
The naming suggestions in a contest – which ran from last February to April – ranged from the scholarly to the silly, these scientists said. We think you’ll like the winners. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/new-names-5-jupiter-moons-contest-winners…