October 2018 – Page 3 – Astronomy Now

Gamma ray burst sheds light on gravity wave event

18 October 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers studying the aftermath of a gamma ray burst say it may represent a new class of events that generate powerful, short-lived jets of energetic particles.

Now you see it, now you don’t – a solar transit by the space station

18 October 2018 Astronomy Now

Catching the International Space Station as it crosses the face of the Sun in less than one second is a challenge for even accomplished photographers, but Dani Caxete of Spain captured a potential prize-winner for the Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition.

Infant galactic supercluster found in early universe

18 October 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have found a proto-supercluster of galaxies in the very early universe, the most massive structure yet found in the immediate aftermath of the Big Bang.

See the Moon get close to Mars on 18 October

17 October 2018 Ade Ashford

Skywatchers in Western Europe looking in the southern sky at dusk on Thursday, 18 October can see the 9-day-old waxing gibbous Moon close to the upper left of Mars, the pair fitting comfortably in the same field of view of typical binoculars. This is also a good night for spotting some prominent martian features telescopically – seeing permitting!

How did a very young star end up with four gas giants?

15 October 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have discovered evidence of three more gas giant worlds orbiting a star already known to host a ‘hot Jupiter’ in an extremely close orbit. The observations raise new questions about how solar systems form.

Final NASA workshop considers Mars 2020 landing sites

15 October 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA is staging a fourth and final workshop to debate four proposed landing sites for the agency’s Mars 2020 rover. A decision on where to target the rover is expected by the end of the year.

Chandra X-ray Observatory to resume observations after gyro swap

15 October 2018 William Harwood

The Chandra X-ray Observatory should be out of ‘safe mode’ and back in operation soon after engineers traced a recent problem to one of the telescopes gyroscopes. A backup has been activated that should resolve the matter.

Up close and personal with ‘Pulsar in a Box’ simulation

14 October 2018 Astronomy Now

Computer simulations are giving astronomers a detailed view showing how the electric and magnetic fields surrounding fast-spinning pulsars spew out electrons and positrons, accelerating them to near light speed in a complex interplay that dominates the nearby environment.

Opaque voids in early universe tied to galaxy scarcity

14 October 2018 Astronomy Now

New research indicates vast voids in the extremely early universe did not contain large amounts of gas, blocking light from background galaxies. They actually contain little mass, with fewer nearby galaxies than expected.

Chandra X-ray Observatory joins Hubble in protective safe mode

12 October 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory entered protective safe mode 10 October, the second of NASA’s “Great Observatories” to be sidelined in one week by a technical issue. Engineers are studying telemetry to pinpoint the problem.