Photographs of the planets from the telescope. The most fantastic pictures of the Hubble telescope (10 photos)
On December 26, 1994, NASA's largest space telescope, the Hubble, captured a huge white city floating in space. Photos hosted on the telescope's web server a short time became available to Internet users, but then were strictly classified.
After deciphering a series of images transmitted from the Hubble telescope, the films clearly showed a large white city floating in space.
NASA representatives did not have time to turn off free access to the telescope's web server, where all the images received from the Hubble get to be studied in various astronomical laboratories.
At first it was just a small hazy speck on one of the frames. But when University of Florida professor Ken Wilson decided to take a closer look at the photograph and, in addition to Hubble's optics, armed himself with a hand-held magnifier, he discovered that the speck had a strange structure that could not be explained either by diffraction in the lens set of the telescope itself, or by interference in communication channel when transmitting an image to Earth.
After a short operational meeting, it was decided to reshoot the section of the starry sky indicated by Professor Wilson with the maximum resolution for Hubble. Huge multi-meter lenses of the space telescope focused on the farthest corner of the universe, accessible to the telescope. Several characteristic clicks of the camera shutter sounded, with which the joker-operator sounded the computer command to fix the image on the telescope. And the "speck" appeared before the astonished scientists on the multi-meter screen of the projection installation of the Hubble control laboratory as a shining structure, similar to a fantastic city, a kind of hybrid of Swift's "flying island" of Laputa and science fiction projects of cities of the future.
The huge structure, spread out in the vastness of the Cosmos for many billions of kilometers, shone with an unearthly light. The Floating City was unanimously recognized as the Abode of the Creator, the place where only the throne of the Lord God can be located. A NASA representative stated that the City cannot be inhabited in the usual sense of the word, most likely, the souls of dead people live in it.
However, another, no less fantastic version of the origin of the cosmic City has the right to exist. The fact is that in search of extraterrestrial intelligence, the very existence of which has not even been questioned for several decades, scientists are faced with a paradox. If we assume that the universe is massively populated by many civilizations, standing on the most different levels development, then some super-civilizations will inevitably appear among them, not just entering the Cosmos, but actively populating the vast expanses of the Universe. And the activities of these supercivilizations, including engineering - to change the natural habitat (in this case, outer space and objects in the zone of influence) - should be noticeable at a distance of many millions of light years.
However, until recently, astronomers have not noticed anything like this. And now - a clear man-made object of galactic proportions. It is possible that the City, discovered by Hubble on Catholic Christmas at the end of the 20th century, turned out to be just such a desired engineering structure unknown and very powerful extraterrestrial civilization.
The size of the city is amazing. Not a single celestial object known to us is able to compete with this giant. Our Earth in this City would be just a grain of sand on the dusty side of the cosmic avenue.
Where does this giant move - and does it move at all? Computer analysis of a series of photographs taken from the Hubble showed that the movement of the City generally coincides with the movement of the galaxies surrounding it. That is, with respect to the Earth, everything happens within the framework of the Big Bang theory. The galaxies "scatter", the redshift increases with increasing distance, no deviations from the general law are observed.
However, during the three-dimensional modeling of the remote part of the Universe, a startling fact was revealed: it is not a part of the Universe that is moving away from us, but we are moving away from it. Why is the reference point moved to the City? Because it was this foggy speck in the photographs that turned out to be the “center of the Universe” in the computer model. The three-dimensional moving image clearly demonstrated that the galaxies somehow scatter, but precisely from that point of the Universe where the City is located. In other words, all galaxies, including ours, once came out of this very point in space, and it is around the City that the Universe rotates. And therefore, the first idea of the City, as the Abode of God, turned out to be extremely successful and close to the truth.
Let's take a look at the best images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope
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1. Galactic fireworks.
2. Center of the lenticular galaxy Centaurus A (NGC 5128). This bright galaxy is, by cosmic standards, very close to us - "only" 12 million light-years away.
3. Dwarf galaxy Large Magellanic Cloud. The diameter of this galaxy is almost 20 times smaller than the diameter of our own galaxy, the Milky Way.
4. Planetary nebula NGC 6302 in the constellation Scorpius. This planetary nebula has two more beautiful names: the Beetle Nebula and the Butterfly Nebula. A planetary nebula is formed when a star similar to our Sun dies and sheds its outer layer of gas.
5. Reflecting nebula NGC 1999 in the constellation Orion. This nebula is a giant cloud of dust and gas that reflects starlight.
6. Luminous nebula of Orion. You can find this nebula in the sky just below Orion's belt. It is so bright that it is clearly visible even to the naked eye.
7. Crab Nebula in the constellation Taurus. This nebula was formed as a result of a supernova explosion.
8. Nebula cone NGC 2264 in the constellation Monoceros. This nebula is part of a system of nebulae surrounding the star cluster.
9. Planetary Nebula Cat's Eye in the constellation Draco. The complex structure of this nebula has posed many mysteries to scientists.
10. Spiral galaxy NGC 4911 in the constellation Coma Berenices. This constellation contains a large cluster of galaxies called the Coma Cluster. Most of the galaxies in this cluster are elliptical.
11. Spiral galaxy NGC 3982 from the constellation Ursa Major. On April 13, 1998, a supernova exploded in this galaxy.
12. Spiral galaxy M74 from the constellation Pisces. There are suggestions that there is a black hole in this galaxy.
13. Eagle Nebula M16 in the constellation Serpens. This is a fragment of the famous photograph taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, called the Pillars of Creation.
14. Fantastic images of distant space.
15. Dying star.
16. Red giant B838. In 4-5 billion years, our Sun will also become a red giant, and in about 7 billion years, its expanding outer layer will reach Earth's orbit.
17. Galaxy M64 in the constellation Coma Berenices. This galaxy arose as a result of the merger of two galaxies rotating in different directions. Therefore, the inner part of the M64 galaxy rotates in one direction, and its peripheral part - in the other.
18. Mass birth of new stars.
19. Eagle Nebula M16. This column of dust and gas at the center of the nebula is called the Fairy region. The length of this pillar is approximately 9.5 light years.
20. Stars in the Universe.
21. Nebula NGC 2074 in the constellation Dorado.
22. Triplet of galaxies Arp 274. This system includes two spiral galaxies and one irregularly shaped one. The object is in the constellation Virgo.
23. Sombrero Galaxy M104. In the 1990s, it was found that there is a black hole of enormous mass at the center of this galaxy.
Original taken from osmiev in
Original taken from osmiev in
The Hubble Space Telescope is an automatic observatory in orbit around the Earth, named after Edwin Hubble. The Hubble Telescope is a joint project between NASA and the European Space Agency; it is part of NASA's Large Observatories. Placing a telescope in space makes it possible to register electromagnetic radiation in the ranges in which the earth's atmosphere is opaque; primarily in the infrared range. Due to the absence of the influence of the atmosphere, the resolution of the telescope is 7-10 times greater than that of a similar telescope located on Earth. We invite you now to see the best images from this unique telescope over the past few years. In the photo: the Andromeda Galaxy is the closest to ours. Milky Way from giant galaxies. Most likely our galaxy looks about the same as the Andromeda galaxy. These two galaxies dominate the Local Group of galaxies.
The hundreds of billions of stars that make up the Andromeda galaxy together give a visible diffuse glow. The individual stars in the image are actually stars in our galaxy, much closer than the distant object. The Andromeda Galaxy is often referred to as M31, as it is the 31st object in Charles Messier's catalog of diffuse celestial objects.
At the center of the "Doradus" star-forming region is a gigantic cluster of the largest, hottest, and most massive stars known to us. These stars form the R136 cluster shown in this image.
NGC 253. Brilliant NGC 253 is one of the brightest spiral galaxies we see, and at the same time one of the dustiest. Some call it the "Silver Dollar Galaxy" because it is shaped like that in a small telescope. Others simply call it "The Sculptor Galaxy" because it lies within the southern constellation Sculptor. This dusty galaxy is 10 million light-years away.
M83 is one of the closest spiral galaxies to us. From a distance that separates us from 15 million light years, it looks completely ordinary. However, if we look closer at the center of M83 with the largest telescopes, this area appears to us as a turbulent and noisy place.
Group of galaxies - Stephen's quintet. However, only four of the group of galaxies, located 300 million light-years away from us, participate in the cosmic dance, now approaching, then moving away from each other. Four interacting galaxies - NGC 7319, NGC 7318A, NGC 7318B and NGC 7317 - have a yellowish color and curved loops and tails, the shape of which is due to the influence of destructive tidal gravitational forces. The bluish galaxy NGC 7320, above left, is much closer than the others, only 40 million light-years away.
A giant cluster of stars distorts and splits the image of the galaxy. Many of them are images of a single unusual, bead-like blue ring galaxy, which by chance was located behind a giant cluster of galaxies. According to recent research, in total, at least 330 images of individual distant galaxies can be found in the picture. This stunning photograph of the galaxy cluster CL0024+1654 was taken in November 2004.
Spiral galaxy NGC 3521 lies just 35 million light-years away towards the constellation Leo. It has features such as ragged, irregular spiral arms adorned with dust, pinkish star-forming regions, and clusters of young, bluish stars.
Spiral galaxy M33 is a medium-sized galaxy from the Local Group. M33 is also called the Triangulum galaxy after the constellation in which it resides. M33 near the Milky Way, its angular dimensions are more than twice the size of full moon, i.e. it is perfectly visible with good binoculars.
Nebula Lagoon. The bright Lagoon Nebula contains many different astronomical objects. Objects of particular interest include a bright open star cluster and several active star forming regions. In visual observation, the light from the cluster is lost against the background of a general red glow caused by the emission of hydrogen, while dark filaments arise from the absorption of light by dense layers of dust.
The Cat's Eye Nebula (NGC 6543) is one of the most famous planetary nebulae in the sky.
The small constellation Chameleon is located near the south pole of the World. The picture reveals the amazing features of the humble constellation, which is full of dusty nebulae and colorful stars. Blue reflection nebulae are scattered across the field.
The dark dusty Horsehead Nebula and the glowing Orion Nebula contrast in the sky. They are located at a distance of 1500 light years from us in the direction of the most recognizable celestial constellation. The familiar Horsehead Nebula is a small dark cloud in the shape of a horse's head looming against the background of red glowing gas in the lower left corner of the picture.
Crab Nebula. This confusion remained after the explosion of the star. The Crab Nebula is the result of a supernova explosion that was observed in 1054 AD. At the very center of the nebula is a pulsar - a neutron star with a mass equal to the mass of the Sun, which fits in an area the size of a small town.
This is a mirage from a gravitational lens. The bright red galaxy (LRG) pictured here has its gravity warped light from a more distant blue galaxy. Most often, such a distortion of light leads to the appearance of two images of a distant galaxy, but in the case of a very precise superposition of the galaxy and the gravitational lens, the images merge into a horseshoe - an almost closed ring. This effect was predicted by Albert Einstein 70 years ago.
The star V838 Mon. For unknown reasons, in January 2002, the outer envelope of the star V838 Mon suddenly expanded, making it the brightest star in the entire Milky Way. Then she became weak again, also suddenly. Astronomers have never observed such stellar flares before.
The Ring Nebula. It really looks like a ring in the sky. Therefore, hundreds of years ago, astronomers named this nebula according to its unusual shape. The Ring Nebula is also designated M57 and NGC 6720.
Pillar and jets in the Carina Nebula. This cosmic column of gas and dust is two light years wide. The structure is located in one of the largest star-forming regions in our galaxy. The Carina Nebula is visible in the southern sky and is 7500 light-years away from us.
Trifid Nebula. The beautiful multicolored Trifid Nebula allows you to explore cosmic contrasts. Also known as M20, it lies some 5,000 light-years away in the nebula-rich constellation of Sagittarius. The size of the nebula is about 40 light years.
Known as NGC 5194, this large galaxy with a well-developed spiral structure may have been the first spiral nebula to be discovered. It is clearly seen that its spiral arms and dust lanes pass in front of its companion galaxy, NGC 5195 (left). This pair is about 31 million light-years away and officially belongs to the small constellation Canes Venatici.
Centaurus A. A fantastic bunch of young blue star clusters, gigantic glowing gas clouds, and dark dust lanes surround the central region of the active galaxy Centaurus A.
Nebula Butterfly. Bright clusters and nebulae in planet Earth's night sky are often named after flowers or insects, and NGC 6302 is no exception. The central star of this planetary nebula is exceptionally hot, with a surface temperature of around 250,000 degrees Celsius.
An image of a supernova that exploded in 1994 on the outskirts of a spiral galaxy.
The Sombrero Galaxy. The appearance of the M104 galaxy resembles a hat, which is why it was called the Sombrero galaxy. The image shows distinct dark dust lanes and a bright halo of stars and globular clusters. The reasons why the Sombrero Galaxy looks like a hat are an unusually large central stellar bulge and dense dark lanes of dust located in the disk of the galaxy, which we can see almost edge-on.
M17: view close-up. Shaped by stellar winds and radiation, these fantastic wave-like formations are found in the M17 Nebula (Omega Nebula). The Omega Nebula lies in the nebula-rich constellation of Sagittarius and is 5,500 light-years away. Ragged clumps of dense and cold gas and dust are illuminated by the radiation of the stars in the image at the top right, in the future they can become sites of star formation.
What illuminates the nebula IRAS 05437+2502? There is no exact answer. Particularly puzzling is the bright, inverted V-shaped arc that delineates the upper edge of mountain-like clouds of interstellar dust near the center of the image.
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This report is available in high definition.
Mysterious nebulae that are millions of light years away, the birth of new stars and the collision of galaxies. Compilation the best photos from the Hubble Space Telescope.
In the Large Magellanic Cloud. It is one of the brightest star formations in this galaxy. The two components of the cluster are also extremely hot young stars. The cluster located in the center is about 50 million years old, and the lower one is about 4 million years old:
Containing one of the hottest known white dwarfs, probably part of a binary star system. The speed of internal winds flowing from the stars in the center of the system, according to measurements, exceeds 1,000 kilometers per second. The Red Spider Nebula is located in the constellation Sagittarius. The distance to it is not exactly known, but according to some estimates it is about 4000 light years:
In the constellation Dorado.
formation of a system from clouds of gas and dust:
New image from the Hubble telescope: star system formation:
Storm of turbulent gases in the Cygnus Nebula, Sagittarius constellation. Among celestial objects, nebulae are the most diverse. Galaxies take on a spiral different forms, the stars are spherical. And only to nebulae the law is not written. They come in every shape, and the variety of nebulae is endless. Nebulae are, in fact, accumulations of dust and gas in interstellar space. Their shape is affected by supernova explosions, magnetic fields, stellar winds.
In a nearby galaxy:
Or NGC 2070. This is an emission nebula in the constellation Dorado. Belongs to the satellite galaxy of our Milky Way - the Large Magellanic Cloud:
In the constellation Canis Hounds, which is located at a distance of 37 million light years from Earth:
One of several "dust columns" Nebula M16 Eagle, in which the image of a mythical creature can be guessed. It has a size of about ten light years:
new stars and gas clouds:
in the constellation Taurus, located at a distance of about 6,500 light years from Earth, has a diameter of 6 light years and is expanding at a speed of 1,000 km / s. At the center of the nebula is a neutron star:
Or NGC 1976. It is located at a distance of about 1,600 light years from Earth and is 33 light years across. It is one of the most famous deep space objects. This is perhaps the most attractive winter object in the northern sky for astronomy lovers. With field binoculars, the nebula is already clearly visible as a fairly bright elongated cloud:
The biggest star in Orion Nebulae:
Spiral galaxy NGC 5457 "Pinwheel". A large and very beautiful galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major:
An open cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud in the constellation Toucan. It is about 200,000 light years away from us and has a diameter of about 65 light years:
In the constellation Ursa Major. At the center of the galaxy is a supermassive black hole, around which two less massive black holes revolve, weighing 12,000 and 200 suns. Now M 82 has become the most "fashionable" galaxy, as it first showed the existence of explosions on a galaxy scale:
Many galaxies have bars near their centers. Even our Milky Way Galaxy is supposed to have a small central bar. Light takes about 60 million years to cover the distance separating us from NGC 1672. The size of this galaxy is about 75 thousand light years:
The birth of new stars in Carina Nebula NGC 3372. Located at a distance of 6,500 to 10,000 light years from Earth:
In the constellation Cygnus is a huge and relatively dim supernova remnant. The star exploded approximately 5,000–8,000 years ago. The distance to it is estimated at 1400 light years:
Open cluster in the constellation Carina. Located 20 thousand light years from the Sun. The center of the cluster contains thousands of stars more massive than the Sun, formed 1-2 million years ago in a single burst of star formation:
In the constellation Pisces:
Located from us at a distance of approximately 235 million light years (72 megaparsecs) in the constellation Perseus. Each cluster of NGC 1275 contains from 100 thousand to 1 million stars:
Another photo galaxies NGC 1275:
Planet of the solar system:
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Space full of unexpected surprises and the incredible beauty of landscapes that today astronomers can capture in the photo. Sometimes space or terrestrial spacecraft make such unusual photos that scientists still long puzzled over what it is.
Space photos help make amazing discoveries, see the details of the planets and their satellites, draw conclusions about them physical properties, determine the distance to objects and much more.
1) The glowing gas of the Omega Nebula . This nebula, open Jean Philippe de Chezo in 1775, located in the area constellation Sagittarius galaxy Milky Way. The distance to this nebula to us is approximately 5-6 thousand light years, and in diameter it reaches 15 light years. The photo was taken by a special digital camera during the project Digitized Sky Survey 2.
New pictures of Mars
2) Strange bumps on Mars . This photo was taken by the panchromatic context camera of the automatic interplanetary station Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter that explores Mars.
The picture shows strange formations, which formed on lava flows interacting with surface water. Lava, flowing down the slope, encircled the bases of the mounds, then swelling. Lava Bloating- a process in which the liquid layer, which is under the hardening layer of liquid lava, slightly raises the surface, forming such a relief.
These formations are located on the Martian plain Amazonis Planitia- a huge area that is covered with solidified lava. The plain is also covered thin layer of reddish dust, which slides down steep slopes, forming dark stripes.
Planet Mercury (photo)
3) Beautiful colors Mercury . This colorful image of Mercury was obtained by combining a large number images taken by NASA's interplanetary station "Messenger" for a year of work in the orbit of Mercury.
Of course it is not real colors of the planet closest to the Sun, however, the colorful image allows you to see the chemical, mineralogical and physical differences in the landscape of Mercury.
4) space lobster . This picture was taken by the VISTA telescope. European Southern Observatory. It depicts a cosmic landscape, including a huge glowing cloud gas and dust that surrounds young stars.
This infrared image shows the nebula NGC 6357 in the constellation Scorpion presented in a new light. The picture was taken during the project Via Lactea. Scientists are currently scanning the Milky Way in an attempt to map the more detailed structure of our galaxy and explain how it was formed.
The mysterious mountain of the Carina Nebula
5) mysterious mountain . The image shows a mountain of dust and gas rising from the Carina Nebula. The upper part of a vertical column of chilled hydrogen, which has a height of about 3 light years, is carried away by radiation from nearby stars. Stars located in the area of pillars release jets of gas, which can be seen at the tops.
Traces of water on Mars
6) Traces of an ancient water stream on Mars . This is a high resolution photo that was taken January 13, 2013 using a spacecraft Mars Express of the European Space Agency, offers to see the surface of the Red Planet in real colors. This is a snapshot of the area southeast of the plains Amenthes Planum and north of the plain Hesperia planum.
The picture shows craters, lava channels and valley, which probably once flowed liquid water. The valley and bottom of the craters are covered with wind-blown dark deposits.
7) Dark space gecko . The picture was taken with a ground-based 2.2-meter telescope. MPG/ESO European Southern Observatory in Chile. The photo shows a bright star cluster NGC 6520 and his neighbor - a strangely shaped dark cloud Barnard 86.
This space couple is surrounded by millions of luminous stars in the brightest part of the Milky Way. The area is so filled with stars that one can hardly see the dark background of the sky behind them.
Star formation (photo)
8) Star Education Center . Several generations of stars are shown in an infrared image taken by space telescope NASA "Spitzer". In this smoky area known as W5, new stars are formed.
The oldest stars can be seen as bright blue dots. Younger stars emit pinkish glow. In brighter regions, new stars form. The heated dust is shown in red, and green color indicates dense clouds.
Unusual nebula (photo)
9) Nebula "Valentines Day" . This is an image of a planetary nebula, which may remind someone rosebud, was taken with a telescope Kitt Peak National Observatory in USA.
Sh2-174- an unusual ancient nebula. It was formed during the explosion of a low-mass star at the end of its existence. From the star remains its center - white dwarf.
Usually white dwarfs are located very close to the center, however, in the case of this nebula, its the white dwarf is on the right. This asymmetry is associated with the interaction of the nebula with the environment that surrounds it.
10) Heart of the Sun . In honor of the recently passed Valentine's Day, another unusual phenomenon appeared in the sky. More precisely, it was made photo of an unusual solar flare, which is pictured in the shape of a heart.
Satellite of Saturn (photo)
11) Mimas - Death Star . A photograph of Saturn's moon Mimas was taken spaceship NASA "Cassini" during its closest approach to the object. This satellite is something looks like the death star – space station from a fantasy saga "Star Wars".
Herschel Crater has a diameter 130 kilometers and covers most of the right side of the satellite in the image. Scientists continue to explore this impact crater and its surrounding areas.
Photos were taken February 13, 2010 from a distance 9.5 thousand kilometers, and then, like a mosaic, assembled into one sharper and more detailed shot.
12) Galactic duo . These two galaxies, shown in the same photo, have completely different shapes. Galaxy NGC 2964 is a symmetrical spiral, and the galaxy NGC 2968(top right) - a galaxy that has a fairly close interaction with another small galaxy.
13) Colored crater of Mercury . Although Mercury does not boast a particularly colorful surface, some areas on it still stand out for the contrast of colors. The pictures were taken during the mission of the spacecraft "Messenger".
Halley's Comet (photo)
14) Halley's comet in 1986 . This famous historical picture of the comet, when it last approached Earth, was taken 27 years ago. The photo clearly shows how the Milky Way is illuminated from the right by a flying comet.
15) Strange Hill on Mars . This image shows a strange spiky formation near the Red Planet's South Pole. It seems that the surface of the hill is layered and has traces of erosion. Its height is supposed 20-30 meters. Appearance dark spots and stripes on the hill is associated with seasonal thawing of the layer of dry ice (carbon dioxide).
Orion Nebula (photo)
16) Beautiful veil of Orion . This beautiful image includes cosmic clouds and stellar wind around the star LL Orionis, which is interacting with the stream. Orion Nebulae. The star LL Orionis produces a wind that is stronger than that of our own middle-aged star, the Sun.
Galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici (photo)
17) Spiral galaxy Messier 106 in the constellation Canes Venatici . NASA space telescope Hubble with the assistance of an amateur astronomer took one of the best pictures of a spiral galaxy Messier 106.
Situated at a distance of about 20 million light years from us, which is not too far in space terms, this galaxy is one of the brightest galaxies and also one of the closest to us.
18) Starburst galaxy . Galaxy Messier 82 or galaxy cigar located at a distance from us 12 million light years in the constellation Big Dipper. It has a fairly rapid formation of new stars, which puts it on certain phase evolution of galaxies, according to scientists.
Since intense star formation is taking place in the Cigar Galaxy, it 5 times brighter than our Milky Way. This picture was taken Mount Lemmon Observatory(USA) and demanded an exposure of 28 hours.
19) Ghost Nebula . This photo was taken with a 4m telescope. (Arizona, USA). An object called vdB 141 is a reflection nebula located in the constellation Cepheus.
Several stars can be seen in the region of the nebula. Their light gives the nebula a not-so-pleasant yellowish-brown color. Picture taken August 28, 2009.
20) Powerful hurricane of Saturn . This colorful picture taken by NASA "Cassini", depicts Saturn's strong northerly storm, which was at its strongest at the time. Image contrast has been increased to show troubled areas (in white) that stand out from other details. The photo was taken March 6, 2011.
Photo of the Earth from the Moon
21) earth from the moon . Being on the surface of the Moon, our planet will look like this. From this angle, the Earth too phases will be visible: part of the planet will be in shadow, and part will be illuminated by sunlight.
Andromeda galaxy
22) New images of Andromeda . In a new image of the Andromeda galaxy, obtained using Herschel Space Observatory, bright stripes where new stars are formed are visible in especially detail.
The Andromeda Galaxy or M31 is the closest large galaxy to our Milky Way. It is located at a distance of about 2.5 million years, therefore, is an excellent object for studying the formation of new stars and the evolution of galaxies.
23) Star cradle of the constellation Unicorn . This image was taken with a 4m telescope. Inter-American Observatory Cerro Tololo in Chile January 11, 2012. The image captures part of the Unicorn R2 molecular cloud. This is a site of intense new star formation, especially in the red nebula region just below the center of the image.
Satellite of Uranus (photo)
24) Ariel's Scarred Face . This image of Ariel, Uranus's moon, is a composite of 4 different images taken by spacecraft "Voyager 2". Pictures were taken January 24, 1986 from a distance 130 thousand kilometers from the object.
Ariel has a diameter about 1200 kilometers, most of its surface is covered with craters with a diameter of 5 to 10 kilometers. In addition to craters, the image shows valleys and faults in the form of long stripes, so the landscape of the object is very heterogeneous.
25) Spring "fans" on Mars . In high latitudes every winter carbon dioxide condenses from the atmosphere of Mars and accumulates on its surface, forming seasonal polar ice caps. In the spring, the sun begins to warm the surface more intensively and the heat passes through these translucent layers of dry ice, heating the ground below them.
Dry ice evaporates, immediately turning into a gas, bypassing the liquid phase. If the pressure is high enough, ice cracks and gas bursts out of cracks, forming "fan". These dark "fans" are small fragments of material that are blown away by gas escaping from cracks.
Merging galaxies
26) Stephen's Quintet . This group from 5 galaxies in the constellation Pegasus, located in 280 million light years from the earth. Four of the five galaxies are undergoing a violent merging phase, they will crash into each other, eventually forming a single galaxy.
The central blue galaxy appears to be part of this group, but this is an illusion. This galaxy is much closer to us - at a distance only 40 million light years. The picture was taken by the researchers Mount Lemmon Observatory(USA).
27) Nebula Soap bubble . This planetary nebula was discovered by an amateur astronomer Dave Jurasevich July 6, 2008 in the constellation Swan. The picture was taken with a 4m telescope. Mayall Kitt Peak National Observatory in June 2009. This nebula was part of another diffuse nebula, and it is also quite pale, so it has been hidden from the eyes of astronomers for a long time.
Sunset on Mars - photo from the surface of Mars
28) Sunset on Mars. May 19, 2005 nasa rover MER-A Spirit took this amazing picture of the sunset, being at this moment on the edge Gusev crater. The solar disk, as you can see, is slightly smaller than the disk that is visible from the Earth.
29) Hypergiant star Eta Carina . In this incredibly detailed image taken by NASA's Space Telescope Hubble, you can see huge clouds of gas and dust from the giant star Ety Kiel. This star is located at a distance of more than 8 thousand light years, and the overall structure is comparable in width to our solar system.
About 150 years ago supernova explosion was observed. This Carina became the second most luminous star after Sirius, but quickly faded away and ceased to be visible to the naked eye.
30) polar ring galaxy . amazing galaxy NGC 660 is the result of the merger of two different galaxies. It is located at a distance 44 million light years from us in the constellation Pisces. On January 7, astronomers announced that this galaxy has powerful flash, which is most likely the result of the activity of the massive black hole at its center.
