Table of contents for No. 84 in All About Space

The glow of the early universe © ESA/Hubble & NASA Hidden in the sky is light that's invisible to our eyes. To the human eye, galaxies and stars shine bright on a black canvas in visible light, but now the MUSE spectrograph on the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope has revealed the otherwise discreet diffuse glow of Lyman-alpha emission. Lyman-alpha emission is essentially hydrogen emission from distant clouds of the most primitive element. By viewing the Lyman-alpha clouds present in such a small section of the sky, it is remarkable witnessing how much emission there is originating from the early universe.…

Lighting up Los Angeles © SpaceX On 7 October 2018 at 7:21pm PDT (8 October 2018 at 2:21am GMT), SpaceX lit up the night sky of southern California, United States, as it launched the SAOCOM 1A satellite from Vandenberg Air Force Base. This time-lapse shows the difference in main engine ignition of the Falcon 9 rocket, as it climbs into space with a striking orange-hued blast. At an altitude of around 90 kilometres (56 miles) the main engine separates, and the ignition of the second stage to carry it into low-Earth orbit begins (inset).…

LAUNCH PAD YOUR FIRST CONTACT WITH THE UNIVERSE Corona through the eclipse © ESO A collage of photographs taken of the solar eclipse on 21 August 2017, dubbed ‘The Great American Eclipse’, has led to this remarkable image. This picture flaunts the different stages of the Moon passing in front of the Sun, but what’s impressive about this picture is how the solar outer atmosphere, also known as the corona, is depicted surrounding the faint face of the Moon. The corona is the Sun’s hottest atmospheric layer and is shaped by the star’s powerful magnetic field, shown best when its bright body is blocked out, in this case by this breathtaking natural phenomenon.…

LAUNCH PAD YOUR FIRST CONTACT WITH THE UNIVERSE Make search for alien life integral to NASA, says report Astrobiologists say their scientific discipline should be more deeply considered when plotting future missions A recently published congressionally mandated report has called upon NASA to ramp up its efforts in the ongoing search for life on other worlds. Astrobiologists working with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine hope to influence NASA’s decision making on projects and missions and they want America’s space agency to put astrobiology at the forefront of its research. Among the recommendations is a call for ever more powerful telescopes and instruments that can block sunlight to allow for better views of exoplanets. The paper is also keen to make the question of habitability less binary. “Planetary…

Final dimension DOES SPACE HAVE A FINAL DIMENSION? There could be more to the universe than meets the eye with extra facets beyond space and time Reported by Colin Stuart © Tobias Roetsch Curiouser and curiouser!” cried Alice. In Lewis Carroll’s surreal Victorian story the eponymous character goes on adventures in Wonderland. There she meets a cast of quirky characters in a world that’s so alien it defies belief and common sense. To reach this otherworldly place she disappears down a rabbit hole and into another dimension. As wonderful and wacky as Alice in Wonderland is, some physicists believe something similar might be at play in our universe. “It all starts with the hierarchy problem,” says Kris Pardo from the Department of Astrophysical Sciences at Princeton University. Gravity, it seems,…

Bluffer's guide to string theory Your quick and easy guide to the ins and outs of superstring theory Gravity versus quantum Physics appears divided. You need gravity to explain the large-scale universe and quantum physics to describe the sub-atomic world. Try and combine them together and the result is often nonsense. Unless, that is, you invoke extra dimensions. Fermions versus bosons Sub-atomic particles fall into two categories called fermions and bosons depending on a property called spin. Bosons are the force carriers, but no boson for gravity has yet been found. Gravity is also considerably weaker than the other three fundamental forces. Is it testable? This is the major accusation levied at string theorists. At the moment it isn’t falsifiable through experiment, leading some to question whether it’s even science.…

Future Tech Lucy in the sky MISSION TO THE TROJAN ASTEROIDS This new NASA mission will search the uncharted chunks of space rock within the orbit of Jupiter In the first mission of its kind, NASA will venture to Jupiter's mysterious Trojan asteroids. These space rocks orbit in two groups – one ahead and one behind the gas giant – in a gravitational balancing act that occurs between the Sun and Jupiter, also known as a Lagrange point. The mission, named Lucy, was announced in January 2017 as the 13th mission of NASA’s Discovery Program, following such missions as InSight, Kepler and MESSENGER. This particular mission will be operated by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, United States and the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas. Although…

Misfit galaxies DARK MATTER DO MISFIT GALAXIES EXPLAIN IT? How the smallest galaxies in the universe could shine a light on the invisible stuff that makes up almost everything in the cosmos Reported by James Romero © Alexander Mitzkus We have no idea what 85 per cent of the stuff in the universe is. However, that hasn’t stopped scientists using mysterious ‘dark matter’ to explain everything from waltzing galaxies to the evolving structure of the entire universe. Now the first observational evidence of it being pushed around by violent star explosions could solve a 30-year mystery inside tiny dwarf galaxies. The earliest evidence of dark matter came from 1930s studies into the motion of galaxies in clusters. The relative speeds of these galaxies as they moved around each…

Focus on DID NASA DESTROY EVIDENCE FOR LIFE? NASA’s Viking landers were sent to find carbon-based compounds. However, they did quite the opposite… they incinerated their findings The first set of landers to ever land on the red, barren surface of Mars were NASA’s highly anticipated Viking landers: Viking 1 and Viking 2. The aim of the mission was to successfully touch Martian ground, collect rock samples and heat them up to extreme temperatures to release any presence of carbon-based organic compounds hidden within. This would paint an ancient picture of Mars and show us if there was any possibly of the world once being hospitable; a tantalising thought. © NASA/JPL; "COSMOS• A PERSONAL VOYAGE "/ Druyan-Sagan Associates, Inc. Unfortunately, after collecting four rock samples and heating them up in…

Water worlds The future of exoplanet exploration The pair will hunt down any exoplanets that could be hospitable for life, including water worlds JWST Transit spectroscopy The NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) will be able to dissect the incoming light as an exoplanet passes in front of its host star. This will reveal the atmosphere's chemical composition, structure and temperature. Coronagraph Using the JWST’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) coronagraph, exoplanets will be able to be directly imaged by blocking out the star’s light. Although they will only appear as a dot, a lot can be learnt through spectroscopy. TESS Transit watchers TESS is fitted with four CCDs that collectively create a 4,096 x 4,096-pixel detector. This is a masterpiece of exoplanet detection that will watch out for the transits of exoplanets, specifically Earth-like…

Moon tour Linné Track down one of the most infamously mysterious craters on the lunar surface After centuries of intensive study with the naked eye, through telescopes and more recently using the amazingly powerful cameras of orbiting satellites, we’re pretty clear on how the craters we see spattered across the face of the Moon formed – and it’s really not rocket science. Over millennia countless thousands of big rocks have come barrelling in from space, slamming into the Moon and blasting great big holes out of it. Some of these craters are huge, measuring hundreds of kilometres across; others are barely one kilometre from side to side. Some are surrounded by beautiful, bright rays – dust that sprayed away from the impact and then splashed back down across the Moon’s…

Ursa Major “Prowl carefully around the sleeping bear and you will be rewarded with fascinating views of some less known objects” 1 The Spindle Galaxy (NGC 5866) Large ’scopes show this magnitude 10 lenticular galaxy, seen edge-on, as a bright streak cut in half by a narrow, dark dust lane. Only its bright core will be seen through a small ’scope. 2 NGC 4236 This magnitude 9.7 barred-spiral galaxy is part of the M81 Group, but it has been seen by very few observers; its very low surface brightness makes it hard to pull out from the background sky, so large telescopes are needed to glimpse it. 3 NGC 4449 This irregular galaxy is 12 million light years away, and in both shape and size closely resembles the Large Magellanic…

Getting the right settings Obtain the best photo results through trial and error Take a look at your first image and change your settings if it’s not quite right: increase the ISO if it’s too dark, or reduce the exposure time if the stars have trailed. Experiment and have fun! Wander around your chosen site trying different viewpoints and photographing different constellations, too. Eventually you’ll find a perfect spot from where you can take portraits of the sky to be proud of. 1 Wrap up warm Make sure you dress for the cold. Gloves are vital to stop your fingers freezing, which will hinder you changing your camera’s focus and settings. 2 Seek a good location Choose somewhere that will give your star portraits an interesting and attractive foreground, such…

Back in time with a cosmic hourglass © ESO The hourglass-shaped remnant of CK Vulpeculae, first observed on 20 June 1670 by French monk and astronomer Anthelme Voituret, has been a mystery for centuries, but now astronomers believe they’ve found an answer to its origins. CK Vulpeculae was originally thought to be a nova, which is the continuous explosive behaviour observed by two close stars in a binary system. Now, by using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) to study the debris, it is thought to be the merger of a brown dwarf and white dwarf star.…

Sunrise from above © ESA/NASA This is not a still from Disney’s The Lion King; this is actually a picture taken by ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst captured from the International Space Station. He posted this image on social media along with his thoughts: “I don't know any words, in any language, to match the beauty of an orbital sunrise.” Watching the sunrise on top of the atmosphere is an experience only few in this world have had the privilege to see. On Earth, you can watch the sky turn from black to red and eventually to blue as the Sun rises, but it is extremely rare to see all three phases in the same shot.…

MASCOT’s descent to Ryugu ©JAXA/MASCOT Hayabusa2’s recent arrival has been well celebrated throughout the scientific community as it marks an impressive milestone in the mission to sample and study a distant asteroid. Ryugu, the targeted space rock located roughly 300 million kilometres (190 million miles) away from Earth, has recently had three visitors in the form of Hayabusa2’s two MINERVA-II rovers and the MASCOT rover. This image was taken only a few minutes after MASCOT’s separation from the main spacecraft, and if you look to the top-right of the image, the shadow of MASCOT can be spotted on the asteroid’s rocky surface.…

Fast stars may be joining us from other galaxies Gaia has helped astronomers spot hypervelocity stars that appear to come from outside the Milky Way © ESA Scientists studying stars travelling at high speeds within the Milky Way believe a good number of these celestial objects could actually be on a journey from another galaxy. Research using data from the European Space Agency’s Gaia mission shows that most observed hypervelocity stars are rapidly moving towards the galactic centre. It had previously been thought such stars moved outwards. The fresh findings have been reported by scientists at Leiden University in the Netherlands following observations made by the Gaia spacecraft between 25 July 2014 and 23 May 2016. By looking at the positions, distance indicators and motions of some seven million stars…

Changes planned for NASA’s biggest rocket The Space Launch System’s upper stages are being altered by Boeing Boeing is working on improvements to the upper stage of the Space Launch System, set to be the world’s most powerful rocket when it eventually launches. NASA is seeking better performance and an increase in capacity, with the aerospace company saying it will be boosting the amount of payload the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) can carry while looking at ways to lighten its weight. This will include modifying the stage so that it can carry up to two extra tons of co-manifested payload. © NASA/ESA; Boeing; Shizuoka University; When complete it will carry modules of NASA’s Lunar Orbital Platform Gateway – a proposed lunar-orbit space station that will be part science lab, part…

Hayabusa2's orbital loop 1. Launch from Earth On board the H-IIA launch vehicle from the Tanegashima Space Center, Minamitane, Japan, Hayabua2’s voyage to the near-Earth asteroid 162173 Ryugu began on 3 December 2014. 2. Earth swing-by On 3 December 2015, Hayabusa2 underwent a gravitational slingshot from Earth to send it on the right trajectory to the asteroid Ryugu. 3. Asteroid arrival On 27 June 2018, Ryugu finally came into shape. After three-and-a-half years in space, the analysis of a planetary time capsule could begin.…

Different kinds of galaxies They come in a range of shapes and sizes, but their dark matter compositions can vary even more © NASA/ESA/Hubble; NASA/JPL-Caltech; Pieter van Dokkum, Roberto Abraham, Gemini Observatory/AURA Dwarf galaxy 90 to 100% Containing hundreds of millions of stars, they are often found near larger galaxies, heavily influencing their activity and star formation. Elliptical galaxy 50% Unlike relatively flat spirals ellipticals are relatively structureless, three-dimensional ball-shaped galaxies. Spiral galaxy 50% Like Katherine wheels, spiral galaxies consist of a bright central bulge and spiral arms where stars, gas and dust are concentrated. Star cluster 0% Groups of only a few hundred or a few thousand stars that form from dense gas inside larger galaxies. Dark galaxy/low-surface-brightness galaxy 95%+ A theoretical galaxy with no, or very few stars.…

ASK Space Our experts answer your questions PLANETS Why does Mars have virtually no atmosphere? Mars has an atmosphere about one per cent as dense as Earth’s, but 4 billion years ago Mars could have had the more massive atmosphere. Mars’ deficit in air can be traced to its lower gravity, minimal magnetic field and quicker downshift in volcanic activity during its history. Mars’ lower gravity makes it easier for light gases like hydrogen to launch away from Mars like a rocket and sometimes drag heavier gases with them. Mars’ minimal magnetic field makes it easier for the solar winds to catch charged particles in the Red Planet’s atmosphere and strip them away. After volcanic activity dropped to the minimal level observed today, the atmosphere could not be renewed by…

How to… Take winter sky portraits The stars and constellations are beautiful to look at - and even more stunning to photograph. Here’s how to take your very own portraits of Orion and his sparkling neighbours… As autumn ends and the misty star clouds of the Milky Way sink beneath the horizon, winter offers observers a sky full of glittering wonders. Chilly days are often followed by perfectly still, frosty nights where the colourful stars of Orion, Gemini and Taurus sparkle and flash like finely cut jewels scattered across a cloak of black velvet, so it’s only natural that many stargazers reach for their cameras. Here’s how you can make sure your photos are faithful portraits of the winter sky and not just hasty snaps. “Winter offers observers a sky…

STARGAZER The Northern Hemisphere The darker, longer nights are officially here, offering a splendour of night sky objects for astronomers © Wil Tirion; WikiSky; Alexander Meleg; Hewholooks Andromeda, Cassiopeia and Sculptor are just some of the constellations offering a selection of targets for telescope and binocular-wielding astronomers this month. With the Sun dipping below the horizon at approximately 4pm (GMT), those wanting to catch new or favourite targets don’t have to wait long for dark skies to boast these treasures. Head over to Andromeda and you’ll be rewarded with not just its spiral galaxy M31, but also its dwarf elliptical galaxies M32 and M110. While the parent galaxy is easy to spot, you’ll need at least a medium-sized telescope to spot Andromeda’s satellites. Star clusters are a joy to behold…

STARGAZER Meade Infinity 76 Perfect as an introduction to astronomy, this beautifully finished telescope is suitable for observing the lunar surface and the planets Starting out on the right foot is essential in astronomy, and this introductory telescope from Meade ensures that the beginner is fully equipped for their first night under the stars. It comes complete with a low-power 9mm and high-power Plössl 20mm eyepiece for a variety of viewing situations, providing magnifications of 78x and 35x. For those wanting to get started in basic astrophotography, there’s a bonus feature in the shape of a smartphone holder, as well as a carry bag for those nights where the observer is looking to travel further afield. We are pleased to see that a red dot finder – rather than an…

LAUNCH PAD YOUR FIRST CONTACT WITH THE UNIVERSE Space station silhouette Seen here cruising across the Sun is the much-loved International Space Station (ISS), travelling at roughly eight kilometres (five miles) per second. This didn’t leave much time for the photographer to capture the nine frames that were needed to capture the station’s silhouette. On board at the time were just three astronauts, NASA’s Serena Auñón-Chancellor, Roscosmos’ Sergey Prokopyev and commander, ESA’s Alexander Gerst. While in Earth orbit, the commander has helped install a new life-support system (inset) - the Advanced Closed Loop System (ACLS) will recycle more carbon dioxide into oxygen, allowing more room on the supply missions and saving as much as 400 litres of water per year. © NASA; ESA…

LAUNCH PAD YOUR FIRST CONTACT WITH THE UNIVERSE Herschel’s view of our galaxy © ESA / NASA / JPL-Caltech Gas and dust block our view of the centre of the Milky Way, but it is this same material that provides the vast streak of faint light that divides the sky above us. In this image, the European Space Agency (ESA)’s defunct Herschel space observatory snapped a shot of the galactic centre in far-infrared. The blue within the image dictates warmer, denser gas and dust towards the centre of the galaxy. In comparison, the yellow represents colder, more diffuse gas and dust. The infinity-shaped loop you can see in this image holds a mind-boggling mass equivalent to 30 million-times the mass of our Sun, also known as a solar mass. u…

Battling space junk using satellites © NASA Space junk is littered throughout low-Earth orbit. From leftover satellites to seemingly insignificant specks of debris, any piece of junk hovvering above our atmosphere is harmful to anyone on the ground because of its unpredictability should it fall from space. This is why space agencies are finally starting to take the removal of space junk seriously and, on 20 June 2018, the Space Station released the NanoRacks-Remove Debris satellite from the Japanese Kibo laboratory module. The satellite’s aim is to map the location and speeds of debris using its 3D camera in order to understand any problems ahead.…

More evidence for Ceres’ ancient global ocean A wandering polar region on the dwarf planet has shed some substantial light on the world's past New research is suggesting that the dwarf planet Ceres experienced a polar shift at some point in the past, causing the pole to move from its original position before stabilising. Scientist Pasquale Tricarico from the Planetary Science Institute believes there may have been an indirect polar reorientation of approximately 36 degrees at some point in the past. He says it would explain topographical irregularities on Ceres’ crust, among them an overly dense equatorial region. It has long been thought that Ceres’ crust may be frozen, and Tricarico used that as the basis of his team’s study. Using data from NASA’s Dawn mission – which launched in…

Hayabusa2 Hayabusa2’s toolkit Near-Infrared Spectrometer Just one of the spectrometers on board the spacecraft, this instrument will gain spectroscopic information in the three-micron wavelength, corresponding to near-infrared. Thermal-Infrared Imager This will view Ryugu in the ten-micron wavelength band and it will be able to determine the surface temperature in the range –40 to 150 degrees Celsius (–40 to 302 degrees Fahrenheit). Ion engine This improved electric propulsion will convert xenon into plasma ions, generating the speeds needed for Hayabusa2 to travel around the Solar System. Sampler horn This will collect the samples from the surface of Ryugu during its touchdown. It will be used on three occasions. Laser altimeter This instrument is key in maintaining a certain altitude from the asteroid, while acquiring important data about the asteroid’s topography, gravity…

MARS Season 2 MARS SEASON 2 BEHIND-THE-SCENES EXCLUSIVE The National Geographic show about Martian exploration is back, and All About Space got a sneak peak at what’s to come from Budapest Reported by Lee Cavendish © National Geographic ;National Geographic Partners/Dusan Martincek Optimism and excitement are the feelings that permeate all around the set of National Geographic’s highly anticipated second season of MARS at Korda Studios in Budapest, Hungary. The first season gave its audience six exciting episodes with an innovative viewing experience, with half of the season being a documentary and the other being a drama series of a group of astronauts undertaking the incredible journey to colonise Mars. Now everyone is reunited again for season two, along with some new faces to the cast and crew for an…

WATER WORLDS They may be plentiful in the Milky Way galaxy, but scientists now think that they may not be suitable for life Reported by Lee Cavendish Imagine a world covered entirely in water – no land separating vast oceans. A recent discovery announced at the Goldschmidt Conference in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, has found that these ‘water worlds’ are more common than previously thought. This discovery comes courtesy of data collected by two very diligent missions that have studied the cosmos for years now – the European Space Agency’s Gaia and NASA’s Kepler. Of the 4,000 confirmed or candidate exoplanets, 35 per cent were found to be water worlds. The first discovery of exoplanets was announced in 1992 with the planets PSR B1257+12c and 12d. They were found to…

BACKYARD ASTRONOMY ON A BUDGET All About Space brings you all of the fun of observing the heavens… without breaking the bank When it comes to first choosing and purchasing equipment to observe the night sky, there’s a lot to take in. “Which telescope should I get?” “Which magnification is best for my first pair of binoculars?” “Do I need to buy extra eyepieces?” These are possibly just some of the questions that you may have found yourself puzzling over. It may be that the daunting task of selecting a telescope or pair of binoculars has put you off pursuing a hobby in astronomy. Maybe you bought a telescope that doesn’t meet your requirements or is too complicated for you to use. If you took the plunge before you…

How to… Choose binoculars for astronomy They're great for sky-watching and stargazing, but with so many different models available which should you buy? With Christmas around the corner, no doubt many of you will be wondering what to buy that special someone. If they are interested in astronomy the obvious gift would be a telescope, right? Wrong! They might not be ready for something as powerful and as complicated as that, especially if just starting out in the hobby. A great alternative is a pair of binoculars – they’re not so powerful that they can’t be used by an absolute beginner, and they’re cheaper and less complicated to use than a telescope too. But which pair to buy? The good news is that it is really easy to identify a…

STARGAZER Astroshots of the month Peter Louer Teide National Park, Tenerife “I retired to the beautiful island of Tenerife back in 2013. One of the top sites in the world for astronomy, the Caldera in Teide National Park is at an altitude of over 2,000 metres [6,562 feet]. With a dry atmosphere and limited light pollution it has proved to be the ideal location to combine my hobbies of photography and astronomy – here are a couple of shots of our Milky Way galaxy a true pleasure to image at such a fine location, completely free of light pollution.” Antoine & Dalia Grelin Nelson’s landing, Nevada “Myself and my wife Dalia took our first evening trip into the desert and were completely astonished by how many stars were visible. Las…

STARGAZER Christmas gift guide With the holiday season just around the corner, All About Space selects the space gifts sure to delight any fan of the universe Telescope Meade Infinity 76 Cost: £119 (~€136/$155) From: currys.co.uk Give someone the gift of infinity this Christmas and take them on an out-of-this-world journey through the wonders of the night sky. Easy to assemble, the Infinity 76 comes with everything you need to get started in one box, allowing both beginners and more advanced users to get set up and viewing within seconds. Know a budding astrophotographer? Perfect! Meade has exclusively included a universal smartphone mount to permit the capture and sharing of stunning celestial snapshots via most modern phones. Smooth tracking controls and the navigationally useful red dot finderscope mean there will…