Picture of the Day #6

Caption: Goddard technicians working with the ISIM Test Structure or ITS. ISIM will sit atop this during space environmental testing.

Credit: NASA, Chris Gunn

Picture of the Day #5

Caption: Prototype NIRSpec Demonstration Model without its protective cover. The NIRSpec Demonstration Model is mechanically representative of the flight instrument, but only the pick-off mirror and Foreoptics are optically functional and a near-IR detector array has been placed in the position of the Micro-Shutter Array.
Credit: Eads Astrium

Picture of the Day #4

Caption: A mock-up of the Optical Telescope Element (OTE) will be used to simulate handling, installation and alignment, and to check for clearance problems in advance of moving the real telescope between Northrop Grumman’s facility in Redondo Beach California and the Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland. Pictured with the OTE mockup is Josh Levi, the OTE Integration and Test lead.
Credit: Northrop Grumman

Picture of the Day #3

These images taken with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope are close-up views of four galaxies from a large survey of nearby galaxies.

The galaxies have very different masses and sizes and showcase the diversity of galaxies found in the ANGST study. Although the galaxies are separated by many light-years, they are presented as if they are all at the same distance to show their relative sizes.

The images, taken with Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys, reveal rich detail in the stellar populations and in the interstellar dust scattered between the stars. Hubble's sharp views reveal the colors and brightnesses of individual stars, which astronomers used to derive the history of star formation in each galaxy.

In the composite image at the top, NGC 253 is ablaze with the light from thousands of young, blue stars. The spiral galaxy is undergoing intense star formation. The image demonstrates the sharp "eye" of the Advanced Camera, which resolved individual stars. The dark filaments are clouds of dust and gas. NGC 253 is the dominant galaxy in the Sculptor Group of galaxies and it resides about 13 million light-years from Earth.

In the view of the spiral galaxy NGC 300, second from top, young, blue stars are concentrated in spiral arms that sweep diagonally through the image. The yellow blobs are glowing hot gas that has been heated by radiation from the nearest young, blue stars. NGC 300 is a member of the Sculptor Group of galaxies and it is located 7 million light-years away.

The dark clumps of material scattered around the bright nucleus of NGC 3077, the small, dense galaxy at bottom, left, are pieces of wreckage from the galaxy's interactions with its larger neighbors. NGC 3077 is a member of the M81 group of galaxies and it resides 12.5 million light-years from Earth.

The image at bottom, right, shows a swarm of young, blue stars in the diffuse dwarf irregular galaxy NGC 4163. NGC 4163 is a member of a group of dwarf galaxies near our Milky Way and is located roughly 10 million light-years away.

These galaxies are part of a detailed survey called the ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury program (ANGST). In the census, Hubble observed roughly 14 million stars in 69 galaxies. The survey explored a region called the "Local Volume," and the galaxy distances ranged from 6.5 million light-years to 13 million light-years from Earth. The Local Volume resides beyond the Local Group of galaxies, an even nearer collection of a few dozen galaxies within about 3 million light-years of our Milky Way Galaxy.

The natural-color images were constructed using observations taken in infrared, visible, and blue light. The observations of NGC 253 and NGC 300 were taken in September 2006; of NGC 3077 in November 2006; and of NGC 4163 in December 2006.

Credit: NASA, ESA, J. Dalcanton and B. Williams (University of Washington)

Picture of the Day #2

The High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board ESA's Mars Express has returned images of Echus Chasma, one of the largest water source regions on the Red Planet. Echus Chasma is the source region of Kasei Valles which extends 3000 km to the north. The data was acquired on 25 September 2005. The pictures are centred at about 1° north and 278° east and have a ground resolution of approximately 17 m/pixel.

An impressive cliff, up to 4000 m high, is located in the eastern part of Echus Chasma. Gigantic water falls may once have plunged over these cliffs on to the valley floor. The remarkably smooth valley floor was later flooded by basaltic lava.

Credits: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin (G. Neukum)

Picture of the Day #1

Shadow of a Martian Robot
Credit: Mars Exploration Rover Mission, JPL, NASA

Explanation: What if you saw your shadow on Mars and it wasn't human? Then you might be the Opportunity rover currently exploring Mars. Opportunity and sister robot Spirit have been probing the red planet since January, finding evidence of ancient water, and sending breathtaking images across the inner Solar System. Pictured above, Opportunity looks opposite the Sun into Endurance Crater and sees its own shadow. Two wheels are visible on the lower left and right, while the floor and walls of the unusual crater are visible in the background. Opportunity is cautiously edging its way into this enigmatic crater, hoping to find new clues into the wet ancient past of our Solar System's second most habitable planet.