OrbitalHub

ESA dixit:

“It’s the perfect meeting of old and new. Astronomers have combined recent data from ESA’s Gaia mission with a simple analysis technique from the 18th century to discover a massive star cluster that had previously escaped detection. Subsequent investigations are helping to reveal the star-forming history of our Galaxy, the Milky Way. “

Video credit: ESA

ESA dixit:

“INTEGRAL (from INTErnational Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory) observes the ever-changing, powerful, and violent cosmos. It is the first space observatory that can simultaneously observe objects in gamma rays, X-rays, and visible light. The spacecraft travels in a geosynchronous highly eccentric orbit with high perigee in order to provide long periods of uninterrupted observation with nearly constant background and away from the radiation belts. Over time, the perigee and apogee have changed, as has the plane of the orbit.

In 2015, spacecraft operators conducted four thruster burns that were carefully designed to ensure that the satellite’s eventual entry into the atmosphere in 2029 will meet the Agency’s guidelines for minimising space debris. The orbital changes introduced during these manoeuvres are highlighted in blue. Making these disposal manoeuvres so early also minimises fuel usage, allowing ESA to exploit the satellite’s lifetime to the fullest.

By revealing both the diffuse emission from our Galaxy, the Milky Way, and the population of individual sources that shine brightly at these energies in our Galaxy and beyond, INTEGRAL has broadened our understanding of the high-energy Universe.”

Video credit: ESA/ScienceOffice.org

NASA Goddard dixit:

“A team from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is developing a new, third-generation facility science instrument for the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, SOFIA.

The High Resolution Mid-InfrarEd Spectrometer (HIRMES), is a spectrometer optimized to detect neutral atomic oxygen, water, as well as normal and deuterated (or “heavy”) hydrogen molecules at infrared wavelengths between 25 and 122 microns (a micron is one-millionth of a meter). These wavelengths are key to determining how water vapor, ice, and oxygen combine at different times during planet formation, and will enable new observations of how these elements combine with dust to form the mass that may one day become a planet.

HIRMES will provide scientists with a unique opportunity to study this aspect of planetary formation, as SOFIA is currently the only NASA observatory capable of accessing these mid-infrared wavelengths. Infrared wavelengths between 28 and 112 microns do not reach ground-based telescopes because water vapor and carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere block this energy. SOFIA is able to access this part of the electromagnetic spectrum by flying between 39,000 feet and 45,000 feet, above more than 99 percent of this water vapor.”

Francis Reddy (Syneren Technologies): Science Writer

Rob Andreoli (AIMM): Videographer

John Caldwell (AIMM): Videographer

Scott Wiessinger (USRA): Animator

Music credit: “Sparkle Shimmer” and “The Orion Arm”, both from Killer Tracks.

Video credit: NASA Goddard/Scott Wiessinger

NASA Goddard dixit:

“A team of scientists led by Laura Hayes –a solar physicist who splits her time between NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland – investigated a connection between solar flares and Earth’s atmosphere. They discovered pulses in the electrified layer of the atmosphere – called the ionosphere – mirrored X-ray oscillations during a July 24, 2016 flare.”

Genna Duberstein (USRA): Lead Producer

Kathalina Tran (Wyle Information Systems): Lead Science Writer

Jack Ireland (ADNET Systems): Scientist

Laura Hayes (Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland): Lead Scientist

Music: “Good Chat” by Richard Anthony D Pike

Video credit: NASA Goddard

NASA dixit:

“Though the Webb telescope will focus on stars and galaxies approximately 13.5 billion light-years away, its sight goes through a similar process as you would if you underwent laser vision correction surgery to be able to focus on an object 10 feet across the room. In orbit at Earth’s second Lagrange point (L2), far from the help of a terrestrial doctor, Webb will use its near-infrared camera (NIRCam) instrument to help align its primary mirror segments about 40 days after launch, once they have unfolded from their unaligned stowed position and cooled to their operating temperatures.

Laser vision correction surgery reshapes the cornea of the eye to remove imperfections that cause vision problems like nearsightedness. The cornea is the surface of the eye; it helps focus rays of light on the retina at the back of the eye, and though it appears to be uniform and smooth, it can be misshapen and pockmarked with dents, dimples, and other imperfections that can affect a person’s sight. The relative positioning of Webb’s primary mirror segments after launch will be the equivalent of these corneal imperfections, and engineers on Earth will need to make corrections to the mirrors’ positions to bring them into alignment, ensuring they will produce sharp, focused images.”

Eric Villard (InuTec, LLC): Writer

Michael McClare (KBRwyle): Producer

Michael P. Menzel (AIMM): Producer

Michael P. Menzel (AIMM): Video Editor

Video credit: NASA Goddard

NASA dixit:

“When the Hubble Space Telescope observed Mars near opposition in May, 2016, a sneaky companion photobombed the picture. Phobos, the Greek personification of fear, is one of two tiny moons orbiting Mars. In 13 exposures over 22 minutes, Hubble captured a timelapse of Phobos moving through its 7-hour 39-minute orbit.”

Music credit: “Neighborhood Conspiracy” by Brice Davoli [SACEM]; Koka Media [SACEM], Universal Publishing Production Music (France) [SACEM]; Killer Tracks Production Music

Video credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Katrina Jackson