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Astronomy Picture Of the Day (APOD)
The Eskimo Nebula from the Newly Fixed Hubble
23.01.2000
In 1787, astronomer William Herschel discovered the Eskimo Nebula. From the ground, NGC 2392 resembles a person's head surrounded by a parka hood. In 2000, just after being fixed, the Hubble Space Telescope imaged the Eskimo Nebula. From space, the nebula displays gas clouds so complex they are not fully understood.
A Message From Earth
22.01.2000
What are these Earthlings trying to tell us? The above message was broadcast from Earth towards the globular star cluster M13 in 1974. During the dedication of the Arecibo Observatory - still the largest radio telescope in the world - a string of 1's and 0's representing the
Magnetar In The Sky
21.01.2000
Indicated on this infrared image of the galactic center region is the position of SGR 1900+14 - the strongest known magnet in the galaxy. SGR 1900+14 is believed to be a city-sized, spinning, super-magnetic neutron star, or Magnetar. How strong is a Magnetar's magnetic field?
X For Andromeda
20.01.2000
A big beautiful spiral galaxy 2 million light-years away, Andromeda (M31) has long been touted as an analog to the Milky Way, a distant mirror of our own galaxy. The popular 1960s British sci-fi series, A For Andromeda, even postulated that it was home to another technological civilization that communicated with us.
X-Rays From The Galactic Center
19.01.2000
Exploring quasars and active galaxies in the distant universe, astronomers have come to believe that most galaxies have massive black holes at their centers. Swirling stars and a strong, variable radio source offer convincing evidence that even our own Milky Way galaxy's center harbors such a bizarre object, a mere 30,000 light-years away.
A Big Black Hole Floats By
18.01.2000
A black hole glides silently through space. Is there any way to know it's there? Until last week, all objects that might be black holes in our Galaxy were part of binary star systems.
NGC 7635: The Bubble Nebula
17.01.2000
What created this huge space bubble? A massive star that is not only bright and blue, but also emitting a fast stellar wind of ionized gas. The Bubble Nebula is actually the smallest...
V4641 Sgr: The Closest Black Hole Candidate
16.01.2000
An object many astronomers believe is a black hole has been found only 1500 light-years from Earth, making it the closest black hole candidate. Although dramatic explosions emanate from the object, it is far enough away so that we are in no danger.
The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory
15.01.2000
The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) was the most massive instrument ever launched by a NASA Space Shuttle in 1991 and continues to revolutionize gamma-ray astronomy. Before Compton loses more stabilizing gyroscopes, NASA is considering firing onboard rockets to bring it on a controlled reentry into the ocean.
The Sun Also Rises
14.01.2000
Sunrise seen from low Earth orbit can be very dramatic indeed (and the authors don't apologize to Hemingway for using his title!). In this breathtaking view from the space shuttle Endeavor, the Sun is just visible peaking over towering anvil-shaped storm clouds.
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