June 2018 – Page 4 – Astronomy Now

Let Saturn be your guide to finding asteroid Vesta at its brightest

8 June 2018 Ade Ashford

Many of you may have tracked down an asteroid with binoculars or a telescope, but have you ever seen one with the naked eye? If not, then June presents you with an opportunity to see the brightest, 4 Vesta, at a close opposition. What’s more, ringed planet Saturn lies close by to act as a convenient guide.

Curiosity rover finds more evidence of Martian habitability

8 June 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has detected a wide range of organic compounds on the red planet along with signs of seasonal variations in background methane levels, a possible indicator of biological activity.

Mystery objects whizzing about in Milky Way’s core

8 June 2018 Astronomy Now

Spectrographic data indicates several unusual compact dusty objects are circling the supermassive black hole at the core of the Milky Way, the possible result of stellar mergers triggered by the hole’s titanic gravity.

X-rays, at least, no problem for planets orbiting Alpha Centauri AB

7 June 2018 William Harwood

More than a decade of observations shows any planets orbiting the two main stars in the nearby Alpha Centauri system are not being blasted by dangerous levels of radiation that would be hostile to life.

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spots recent impact crater

7 June 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has spotted a recent impact crater that will remain a distinctive blemish for decades to come. Finding new craters is not uncommon with six satellites currently orbiting the Red Planet.

Lightning at Jupiter is just like Earth’s. Except where it’s not

6 June 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Juno spacecraft finds lightning bolts in Jupiter’s atmosphere are similar to discharges on Earth, but they only occur at high latitudes thanks to the giant planet’s distance from the sun

New Horizons wakes up for New Year’s Day flyby

5 June 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s New Horizons probe, three years outbound from Pluto, has woken from electronic hibernation, healthy and on course for a New Year’s Day flyby of an even more remote Kuiper Belt object nicknamed Ultima Thule.

‘Planet Nine’ may not be needed to explain strange orbits

5 June 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers are searching for a presumed “Planet Nine” in the extreme outer solar system whose gravity could explain unusual orbits of several remote bodies. New research suggests Planet Nine may not be necessary.

Small asteroid tracked to atmospheric impact and breakup

4 June 2018 Astronomy Now

Detection of a small boulder-size asteroid hurtling toward Earth 2 June served as a real-world test of the advance warning systems in place to find, track and characterise potentially threatening bodies.

‘Corduroy’ sand dunes enhance Mars’ permanent polar cap

4 June 2018 Astronomy Now

High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment – HiRISE – camera aboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this intriguing view of “corduroy” dunes on Mars permanent polar cap, an image seemingly as much art as science.