Astronomy – Page 4 – The Saturn Herald

Space X launches 18th ISS resupply mission and recovers booster

Elon Musk led aerospace startup SpaceX has successfully launched its 18th mission for NASA to deliver equipment, research and supply material to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission was launched using twice-flown dragon capsule and marked SpaceX’s 44th successful recovery of a Falcon 9 rocket booster. SpaceX had used the booster two months ago…

Gas Hydrates protecting an ocean inside Pluto

According to a global research team an insulating layer of gas hydrates could be protecting an ocean on Pluto. A Texas-sized white-coloured basin with an icy surface named Sputnik Planitia, was revealed in Pluto’s first ever close-up images. Scientists said the gas layer could exist beneath the icy surface, backing their claim with computer…

3rd planet discovered in two-solar system

Astronomers from the San Diego University has discovered a third planet in a two-star system named Kepler -47 which is seven times the size of the Earth and the largest in its system. The team used NASA’s Kepler space telescope to find the Neptune-to-Saturn -size planet orbiting between two previously known planets. Kepler-47 is 3,…

The Black hole of M87 galaxy

Astronomers have captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) the first ever image of a black hole, which is located in a distant galaxy, 500 million trillion Km away and was photographed by a network of 8 telescopes across the world. The black hole measures 40 billion km across – three million times the size…

Super blood wolf moon

Skygazers were treated to a rare astronomical spectacle of a “ super blood wolf moon” , when the moon turned a deep shade of red, part of a lunar eclipse makes the surface of the moon appear a reddish hue and won’t be seen again for another 18 years. The red moon was visible for…

Snowman shape of distant Ultima Thule revealed by Nasa’s New Horizon

A new picture returned from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft shows it to be two objects joined together – to give a look like a “snowman” the small icy world known as Ultima Thule. New Horizons encountered Ultima 6.5 billion km from Earth and set a record of the most distant ever exploration of a Solar…

Chang'e-4 Lunar probe lands on the far side of the Moon

China’s probe Lands on the unexplored far side of the Moon

A Chinese robot Chang’e-4 probe on January 3rd successfully landed on the back of the Moon at a distance of 117.6 degrees east longitude and 45.5 degrees south latitude and started exploring the far side of the Moon surface and carry out geological experiments. The photograph passed back to the world’s first close range through…

Detailed picture of one strom in the shape of a dolphin

NASA’s Jupiter mission Juno shows giant polar storms

NASA’s Juno mission to the gas giant Jupiter has now reached halfway mark and has shown new views of cyclones at the poles. Juno performs a science gathering dive, scanning from pole to pole as it orbits the planet every 53 days. It is mapping the magnetic and gravity fields and expose Jupiter’s structure and…

Artist’s conception of SIMP JO1365663+0933473. An object with 12.7 times the mass of Jupiter. National Radio Astronomy Observatory

Rogue planet found drifting through space 12 times larger than Jupiter

A rogue planet bigger than Jupiter found drifting through space with a mysterious glow. The planet which is 12 times as large as Jupiter, sits around 20 light years away from Earth. This rogue planet is the first object of its kind to be spotted using a radio telescope, according to the National Radio Astronomy…

Blood Moon, total Lunar eclipse takes over Friday skies

The century’s longest total lunar eclipse “Blood Moon” of the 21st century lasted for 103 minutes as the Earth’s natural satellite turned a striking shade of red or ruddy brown. In the UK where the weather allowed the Moon could be seen to turn red –fully eclipsed by Earth –from when it rose from…