News about PaperPanda, Open Access, and Research
The wait is finally over. The team behind NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope released some of the first images from the much-anticipated observatory on Friday (Feb. 11). The main photo, which doesn’t even hint at the power Webb will bring to the universe once it’s fully operational, shows a star called HD 84406 and is … Read more
NASA will unveil the first-ever images from the James Webb Space Telescope on today (Feb. 11) and you’ll be able to see them as they debut online. But don’t expect a dazzling view. The first images captured by Webb, the largest telescope ever flown in space, will be released today at 10:30 a.m. EST (1530 … Read more
In between its main mission, the Parker Solar Probe just made a novel contribution to Venusian science. New images from the sun-focused mission, captured during a close flyby of Venus, show the planet in visible light for the first time. With time and analysis, the new images will provide valuable information about the planet’s geology … Read more
New images recorded by NASA’s Parker Solar Probe have revealed the red-hot glow of Venus‘s surface radiating through its shroud of toxic clouds – a finding that could help us better understand the minerals making up this rocky and mysterious planet. Using data from the Wide-field Imager for Parker Solar Probe (WISPR) instrument, scientists … Read more
See the SpaceX booster? If you spot SpaceX’s Falcon 9 booster in a telescope before it hits the moon, let us know! Send images and comments in to [email protected]. A SpaceX rocket’s upper stage was caught on camera careening toward a collision course with the moon. Virtual Telescope Project founder Gianluca Masi caught the Falcon … Read more
It’s fun sometimes when your eyes play tricks on you, and you see a face that isn’t really there, staring back at you from a power plug or a potato. This phenomenon is called face pareidolia, and it’s something that humans, and even chimps, naturally do. But it looks like facial features aren’t the … Read more
Despite efforts to reduce light pollution from the satellites, their disruptions of astronomical observations are increasing at an alarming pace — Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
A prime ground-based observatory that scans the sky for exploding stars and dangerous near-Earth asteroids is struggling with disruptive light streaks from SpaceX’s Starlink internet satellite constellation, a new study revealed. The observatory, called the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), opened its telescope eye in California in 2017. Scanning the entire sky every two days, the … Read more
With the rapid expansion of commercial space, there is a growing number of satellites in orbit around our planet. Most of these are in low-Earth orbit, which is becoming increasingly crowded. This has led some to be concerned about a catastrophic rise of space debris, as well as a growing frustration by astronomers due … Read more
Tonga’s volcanic eruption has left behind damage so severe that satellites can see it from space. On Saturday (Jan. 15), the volcano erupted on the island Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai in the South Pacific kingdom of Tonga after it began brewing a couple of days earlier. It was the volcano’s second explosive event in two months, … Read more