| Piú votate - The Universe Inside |
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Morning.jpgThe Pink-fingered Dawn...79 visiteMareKromium
(12 voti)
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Vortex.jpgInside the Vortex...69 visiteFix your camera to a tripod, lock the shutter open, and you can make an image of star trails - graceful concentric arcs traced by the stars as planet Earth rotates on its axis. Of course, the length of the star trails will depend on the exposure time. While exposures lasting just five minutes produce a significant arc, in about 12 hours a given star would trace out half a circle. But in any long exposure, the background glow from light-polluted skies can build up to wash out the trails. Still, astronomer Josch Hambsch produced this stunning composite of star trails around the South Celestial Pole with an effective "all night" exposure time of almost 11 hours. To do it, he combined 128 consecutive five minute long digital exposures recorded in very dark night skies above Namibia. In his final image, the background glow on the right is due in part to the faint, arcing Milky Way.
(12 voti)
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Dreaming Together.jpgFirst Dream and Today's Reality83 visitenessun commento
(12 voti)
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M 31 and Hale Bopp.jpgTemporary Sky...70 visiteDa "NASA - Picture of the Day" del 13 Agosto 2006:"The Moon almost ruined this photograph. During late March and early April 1997, Comet Hale-Bopp passed nearly in front of the Andromeda Galaxy.
Here the Great Comet of 1997 and the Great Galaxy in Andromeda were photographed together on 1997 March 24th. The problem was the brightness of the Moon. The Moon was full that night and so bright that long exposures meant to capture the tails of Hale-Bopp and the disk of M31 would capture instead only moonlight reflected off the Earth's atmosphere. By the time the Moon would set, this opportunity would be gone. That's why this picture was taken during a total lunar eclipse".
(12 voti)
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Skylab-1973.jpgThe "unforgettable" Skylab...90 visiteDa "NASA - Picture of the Day", del 29 Aprile 2006:"Skylab was an orbiting laboratory launched by NASA in May 1973. Skylab, pictured above, was visited 3 times by NASA Astronauts who sometimes stayed as long as two and a half months. Many scientific tests were performed on Skylab, including astronomical observations in ultraviolet and X-ray light. Some of these observations yielded valuable information about Comet Kohoutek, our Sun and about the mysterious X-ray Background Radiation that (apparently) comes from all over the sky.
Skylab fell back to Earth on July, 11, 1979".
(12 voti)
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ALANBEAN-FANTASY.jpg"Buddies" forever104 visitePete Conrad, Dick Gordon and I were assigned by head astronaut Deke Slayton as the backup crew for Apollo 9. This was super news because this meant we would fly three missions subsequent and make one of the first Moon landings.
The most experienced astronaut was designated commander, in charge of all aspects of the mission including flying the lunar module. Prudent thinking suggested that the next most experienced crew member be assigned to take care of the command module since it had a heat shield and was our only way back home. This left the least experienced to accompany the commander. Pete Conrad had flown two Gemini flights, the second with Dick Gordon as his crew mate. I had not flown at all.
During training, Pete and I frequently practiced our lunar surface activities such as emplacing experiments, gathering rock samples, or making observations. We were excited. We were going to have the ultimative adventure someone in our profession could experience. But while we did, Dick Gordon would be orbiting 60 miles above us. We often fantasized Dick joining us on the Moon for all the fun, but we could never really find a way. But now I'm an artist and in my paintings I can have it my way. Now, at last, our best friend has come the last 60 miles.
One last story. Dick was the more experienced astronaut, yet I got the prize assignment. In the three years of training preceding our mission, he never once said: "It's not fair, I wish I could walk on the Moon too." I do not have his unwavering discipline or strength of character.
(12 voti)
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ZZ-ZZ-The Sun over K.jpgIs this Earth?89 visiteAvevamo proposto un'immagine altrettanto enigmatica nella Sezione dedicata al Pianeta Venere, allorchè la "Stella della Sera" veniva ripresa dalla sommità di una montagna in compagnia della Luna, così generando un effetto davvero molto particolare.
Ora è la volta di un'alba, vista dal Monte Kilimanjaro. Sono stati usati filtri speciali? Forse i colori sono stati ritoccati al computer? No, su tutta la linea. Questa è una foto scattata dalla Terra, in colori reali, che riprende l'alba. Capite sempre meglio perchè la problematica dei 'Colori dello Spazio' non è accademica nè peregrina? Se, in determinate condizioni di illuminazione, ergo a diverse ore del giorno, anche la Terra può apparire un Mondo Alieno (tipo Marte o Venere) allora, date le medesime variabili, anche un Mondo Alieno potrebbe, a diverse ore del giorno, apparire come la Terra e non ci sarebbe nulla di straordinario nel dirlo e nel mostrarlo. Ma, a quanto pare, la NASA non "vede" (ed è proprio il caso di dirlo...) le cose come le vediamo noi...
(12 voti)
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ZZ-ZZ-SunFromMaunaKea.jpgThe Sun from Mauna Kea: an alien landscape170 visiteDa "NASA - Picture of the Day" del 4 Luglio 2005:"Typically, views from Mauna Kea are up and dark. That's because the famous dormant volcano in Hawaii is arguably Earth's premier observing platform of the complex and ever changing night sky. However, this daytime view is across and bright. White snow and white clouds seem to blend together to make an alien landscape. Cinder cones from extinct volcanic outbursts dominate the foreground. Scrolling right will reveal structures visually incongruous even here: an armada of the largest optical telescopes on Earth. The observatories seen include Subaru and Keck. In the distance on the far left is Mauna Loa, Earth's largest volcano".
(12 voti)
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Aurora_Borealis-Coronal_Aurora.jpgCoronal Aurora near Warrensbourg - Missouri (USA)82 visiteIn relazione a quanto detto e scritto solo pochi giorni fa, ecco una nuova Aurora la quale, oltre ad essere stata particolarmente intensa (come potete ben vedere), è accaduta ad un latitudine che di Polare o presso-Polare non ha proprio nulla. La NASA dice che è un fenomeno inusuale ma "normale", vista l'attività solare di questi giorni. Permetteteci, a questo riguardo, una battuta: è proprio il fatto che sia la NASA a dire di non preoccuparci che ci fa preoccupare... EccoVi il commento originale da "NASA - Picture of the Day" del giorno 12.11.2004: "(...) Amazing! Unbelievable!, The best I've ever seen! ... They aren't talking about a movie, though. Instead, even casual sky critics are remarking on November's stunning auroral displays, visible with surprising intensities well beyond the confines of high latitudes where auroral activity is normally observed (...)". Vedete?!? Entusiasmo, eccitazione, linguaggio più da show che da Scienza e dintorni: è il nuovo corso della NASA...
(12 voti)
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Aurora_Borealis-Coronal_Aurora-1.jpg"Auroral Corona" from l'Observatoire de la Découverte in Val Belair near Quebec - Canada81 visiteDa "NASA - Picture of the Day" del 9 Novembre 2004: "...This fisheye picture captures a particularly active and colorful 'Auroral Corona' that occurred on November 7, 2004 (...) The above aurora has an unusually high degree of detail, range of colors and breadth across the sky. The vivid green, red, and blue auroral colors are likely caused by high atmospheric oxygen and hydrogen reacting to incoming electrons. The trigger events were magnetically induced explosions on the Sun from sunspot region 696 over the past few days. Continued activity from this active solar region could mean more auroras visible to northern observers over the next few days. Early in the morning but far in the background, planets, stars and the Moon will be simultaneously putting on their own show".
Una piccola (nostra) nota di commento: dietro la vivace bellezza dell'immagine ed i "romantici" commenti, c'è un nuovo incremento dell'attività solare in un periodo in cui, invece, il nostro Sole è usualmente calmo.
(12 voti)
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Max-019.jpgDreams never die...158 visitenessun commentoMareKromium
(11 voti)
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