Astronomy Now – Page 219

Celestron boosts UK presence

24 June 2015 Astronomy Now

American telescope manufacturer Celestron has unveiled a new distribution centre to better serve astronomers in the UK.

New Horizons sees Pluto’s close approach hemisphere and Charon’s ‘dark pole’

24 June 2015 Astronomy Now

NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft doesn’t pass Pluto until July 14th — zipping by about 7,800 miles (12,500 kilometres) above the surface of the dwarf planet after a journey of almost 3 billion miles — but the mission team is making tantalising new discoveries as the piano-sized probe bears down on the Pluto system.

Nonphotosynthetic pigments could be biosignatures of life on other worlds

23 June 2015 Astronomy Now

Researchers have found that if organisms with nonphotosynthetic pigments — those that process light for tasks other than energy production — cover enough of a distant exoplanet’s surface, their spectral signal could be strong enough to be detected by powerful future telescopes now being designed.

Triple crescents

22 June 2015 Astronomy Now

A single crescent moon is a familiar sight in Earth’s sky, but with Saturn’s many moons, you can see three or even more. Rhea (top), Titan and Mimas (bottom) align for this image from NASA’s ongoing Cassini mission.

The mysterious ‘lakes’ on Saturn’s moon Titan

21 June 2015 Astronomy Now

Titan is home to seas and lakes filled with liquid hydrocarbons, but what forms the depressions on the surface? A new study using data from the joint NASA and European Space Agency (ESA) Cassini mission suggests the moon’s surface dissolves in a process that’s similar to the creation of sinkholes on Earth.

The Astronomy Bible

20 June 2015 Astronomy Now

Small, chunky and handy enough to be stuffed in a rucksack for quick facts and tips on the go, six of the book’s eight chapters cover the Solar System, the remainder being devoted to all that lies beyond. An easy-reading book that won’t swamp the reader with complicated terminology and a waffling narrative, writes reviewer Kerry Hebden.

Introducing the Planets and their Moons

20 June 2015 Astronomy Now

An excellent summary of the planets with the right amount of facts, writes reviewer Ian Welland. It uses a geological approach and each chapter deals with specific topics rather than being devoted to one planet in turn. “A super value book that will appeal to more than the beginner or younger reader,” he says.

Quasars result from violent galactic mergers

20 June 2015 Astronomy Now

Using the Hubble Space Telescope’s infrared vision, astronomers have unveiled some of the previously hidden origins of quasars, the brightest objects in the universe. A new study finds that quasars are born when galaxies crash into each other and fuel supermassive, central black holes.

Hot lava flows discovered on Venus

19 June 2015 Astronomy Now

The European Space Agency’s Venus Express spacecraft has found the best evidence yet for active volcanism on Earth’s neighbour planet. Seeing the planet’s surface is extremely difficult due to its thick atmosphere, but radar observations by previous missions to Venus have revealed it as a world covered in volcanoes and ancient lava flows.

Brightest early galaxy likely to contain first generation stars discovered

18 June 2015 Astronomy Now

Astronomers using the several of the largest telescopes on Earth and in space have discovered CR7, a galaxy three times brighter than the brightest distant galaxy in the early universe known up to now. The scientists also found strong evidence that examples of the first generation of stars lurk within it.