Picture This

Into the Shadow

28 September 2019 Astronomy Now

Hungarian photographer László Francsics’ composite image of a total lunar eclipse was declared winner of the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Insight Investment Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2019 and is now on display at a special exhibition at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.

Colourful clouds of star-forming gas and dust host stellar nurseries

23 September 2019 Astronomy Now

A massive young star in a molecular cloud in Scorpius features a surrounding disc of dusty material and a supersonic jet blowing out into space, both contrary to expectations for high-mass suns.

Junocam captures stunning view of Io’s shadow during Jovian eclipse

18 September 2019 Astronomy Now

From its perch in orbit around Jupiter, NASA’s Juno spacecraft routinely provides stunning views of the giant planet’s turbulent atmosphere and the Great Red Spot. But a jaw-dropping close-range look at Io’s shadow during an eclipse is yet another show stopper.

ESO’s VISTA captures detailed look at galactic neighbour

15 September 2019 Astronomy Now

The European Southern Observatory’s VISTA telescope captures a stunning near-infrared view of the Large Magellanic Cloud in a survey to characterize the dwarf galaxy’s structure, stellar population and dynamics.

Hubble captures Saturn’s rings in razor-sharp glory

12 September 2019 Astronomy Now

The Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera 3 captures a razor-sharp view of Saturn and its vast ring system as part of an ongoing program to monitor the atmospheres of the outer planets.

Hubble studies effects of monster black hole

5 September 2019 Astronomy Now

The Hubble Space Telescope observes the relativistic effects of a supermassive black hole at the heart of a face-on spiral galaxy where material in the core is whipping around at 10 percent the speed of light.

James Webb Space Telescope mirror, instruments mated with spacecraft

28 August 2019 Astronomy Now

James Webb Space Telescope’s mirrors and science instruments have been mechanically attached to the observatory’s sunshield and subsystems, a major milestone for engineers building the infrared telescope. Launch from French Guiana remains targeted for 2021.