September 2018 – Astronomy Now

Galaxies leave a trail as they plunge into massive cluster

28 September 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory captures a detailed view showing a small group of galaxies being pulled into a massive galactic cluster trailing a long stream of hot gas in their wake.

Tracking ‘Oumuamua back to its home star – a major challenge

26 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Researchers analyzing the trajectory and behavior of ‘Oumuamua, an interstellar body passing through Earth’s solar system, have identified four candidate stars where the unusual comet-like body might have originated.

Mars’ moon Phobos may be a chip off the old block

26 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Re-evaluating data collected 20 years ago by NASA’s now retired Mars Global Surveyor, researchers say the martian moon Phobos could have originated in the aftermath of a titanic planetary collision that blasted surface material into space.

A deep look back in cosmic time courtesy of Hubble

26 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Among the Hubble Space Telescope’s most iconic images are jaw-dropping “deep field” views of the universe, images showing thousands of galaxies strewn across time and space that illustrate the rapid evolution of the cosmos in the wake of the Big Bang birth of time and space. This “eXtreme Deep Field” view is no exception.

Mars orbiter photographs still-silent Opportunity rover

25 September 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has spotted the Opportunity rover on the surface of the red planet where it remains out of contact with Earth in the wake of a global dust storm in June.

Cassini data show dust storms blowing across Titan

24 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Researchers studying the atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan using archived data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft have spotted infrared signatures of what appear to be giant dust storm blowing across the large moon’s surface.

SDO captures impressive view of holes in the Sun’s super-heated corona

24 September 2018 Astronomy Now

The Solar Dynamics Observatory captured a spectacular view of two coronal holes on the surface of the Sun, one already well formed and another developing nearby, cooler regions where open magnetic field lines facilitate the movement of the solar wind.

Ancient Mars could have supported sub-surface biosphere

24 September 2018 Astronomy Now

A new study indicates Mars had more than enough sub-surface hydrogen, from the breakdown of water due to radioactive decay, to support a global microbial biosphere that could have persisted for hundreds of millions of years.

Japan’s Hayabusa2 lands two rovers on asteroid Ryugu

24 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Japan’s Hayabusa2 sample return spacecraft successfully deployed two small landers that dropped to the surface of an astroid known as Ryugu and then began hopping about in a major milestone for the ambitious mission.

Star-hop your way to viewing planets Uranus and Neptune at their best

23 September 2018 Ade Ashford

Clear nights of early Northern Hemisphere autumn offer ideal opportunities to track down the two outermost planets of the solar system, Uranus and Neptune. What’s more, you don’t need a big telescope to find them. We show you how to locate these gas giants using binoculars. The Moon also passes close to Neptune on 20 October.