Astronomy Now – Page 246

Rosetta’s OSIRIS camera captures Philae’s bounce across comet

17 November 2014 Astronomy Now

A stunning sequence of images from Rosetta’s narrow-angle OSIRIS camera shows the dramatic journey of the Philae lander as it approaches and bounces on Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko on 12th November 2014.

Rosetta imagery shows Philae at first landing site

16 November 2014 Astronomy Now

Images recorded by Rosetta’s navigation camera appear to show the lander, its shadow and the dust cloud kicked up by its first touchdown.

NASA map shows 20-year global distribution of asteroid impacts

15 November 2014 Astronomy Now

A new map released by NASA shows the distribution and intensity of more than 500 separate day and nighttime bolide (fireball) events recorded by U.S. government sensors in the period 1994-2013.

Lander manager says Philae is doing well but battery life is low

14 November 2014 Astronomy Now

The lander project manager Stephan Ulamec says tremendous science has been collected during Philae’s short time on the surface but battery life is now limited and it is unlikely to last much longer.

Chandra X-ray Observatory image of Sagittarius A*

Milky Way’s supermassive black hole a neutrino factory?

14 November 2014 Astronomy Now

A research team from the University of Wisconsin has correlated data from three NASA satellites and a ground-based neutrino detector to show that Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way, is most likely a powerful neutrino generator.

Mission scientist reacts to historic first images from the surface of a comet

13 November 2014 Astronomy Now

Rosetta mission scientist Matt Taylor says the science team is jubilant after the Philae lander captured the historic, first close up images of the surface of a comet and began returning data from its science instruments.

Rosetta camera captures Philae’s descent to the comet

13 November 2014 Astronomy Now

Rosetta’s OSIRIS camera witnessed Philae’s descent to the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

Jupiter’s ‘sunburnt’ Great Red Spot

12 November 2014 Astronomy Now

A new analysis of data from NASA’s Cassini mission in combination with lab experiments contradicts the leading theory that the striking colour of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is due to reddish chemicals upwelling from below.

Lander manager provides update on Philae status

12 November 2014 Astronomy Now

Philae manager Stephan Ulamec provides an update on the status of the lander following it’s arrival on the surface.

Video: Mission control celebrates separation but anxiety builds over landing

12 November 2014 Astronomy Now

Paolo Ferri, ESA’s Head of Mission Operations, expresses relief at the apparently successful release of Philae from the Rosetta mothership but the potential loss of a crucial touchdown system has caused increased anxiety about the landing.