Cosmic Witch Head © Utkarsh Mishra

Lynds’ Dark Nebulae

l Shawn Nielsen l Aygen l JkbSahner l Reinhold Wittich l Adam Block l Astromet

Best Conditions for Stargazing

Stargazing

So you want to go stargazing...but when...and where?

Follow what I call the 3 C's:

1. Clear skies

You definitely want to go stargazing only when the night skies are clear because otherwise, you won't be able to see anything. What does it mean to be clear? Well, you want to make sure that the stars are easily visible and there's no dust, moisture, or anything else that could make the stars hazy or difficult to see. Another important thing to think about is the brightness of the moon; if the moon is too bright it might outshine the stars and make them harder to view--that's why New Moons are optimal times to go stargazing.

2. Close to sky

Stargazing is best done high up and closer to the stars, and far, far away from city lights. Light pollution can seriously ruin your experience, so plan ahead and go somewhere high up and with low levels of light pollution. Locations good for stargazing usually include mountains, the tops of buildings, and beaches (usually the cliffs by the ocean are great).

3. Cold air

This isn't a requirement, but generally, visibility is better during the winter when the air is cold and the Artic sends cleaner air southwards. Plus, you can bring hot chocolate and roast s'mores!

Pro tip: Google good locations in your area to go stargazing--your five minutes of google searching will definitely pay off!

bro i can’t come to the phone right now, neptune has a moon that shines like a star.

can't tell which is more confusing: random names that don't really follow a pattern but are relatively easy to learn and remember OR random set of numbers and letters that sometimes make sense but is impossible to remember

SQUISHY PHYSICS- I-

Star Formation: Omega/Carina/Lagoon 

© Hubble/Chandra

Since I’ve been posting/reposting images that referencing the James Webb Space Telescope, I thought I’d add some comments (from Wikipedia) about it.

JWST was launched on December 25, 2021 is intended to succeed the Hubble. It’s first images were released on July 11, 2022.

Paraphrased from Wiki, “JWST was is a designed to conduct infrared astronomy. Its the largest optical telescope in space with greatly improved resolution and sensitivity that allows it to view objects too old, distant, or faint for the Hubble Space Telescope. “

Webb's First Deep Field image of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 (released on 11 July 2022)

Scientists find remains of cannibalized baby planets in Jupiter's cloud-covered belly

The finding settles a long-standing debate about the gas giant's formation.

Jupiter’s innards are full of the remains of baby planets that the gas giant gobbled up as it expanded to become the behemoth we see today, scientists have found. The findings come from the first clear view of the chemistry beneath the planet’s cloudy outer atmosphere.

Despite being the largest planet in the solar system, Jupiter has divulged very little about its inner workings. Telescopes have captured thousands of images of the swirling vortex clouds in the gas giant’s upper atmosphere, but these Van Gogh-esque storms also act as a barrier blocking our view of what’s below.

“Jupiter was one of the first planets to form,” in the first few million years when the solar system was taking shape around 4.5 billion years ago, lead researcher Yamila Miguel, an astrophysicist at Leiden University in The Netherlands, told Live Science. However, we know almost nothing for certain about how it formed, she added.

In the new study, researchers were finally able to peer past Jupiter’s obscuring cloud cover using gravitational data collected by NASA’s Juno space probe. This data enabled the team to map out the rocky material at the core of the giant planet, which revealed a surprisingly high abundance of heavy elements. The chemical make-up suggests Jupiter devoured baby planets, or planetesimals, to fuel its expansive growth.

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