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Active Galaxy Hercules A in 3D: Visible & Radio Comparison

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This is the stereo 3D version of “Active Galaxy Hercules A: Visible & Radio Comparison.”

The active galaxy Hercules A was given that name because it is the brightest radio source in the constellation of Hercules. Astronomers found that the double-peaked radio emission corresponded to a giant elliptical galaxy cataloged as 3C 348. Unusually, this behemoth galaxy is not found within a large cluster of hundreds of galaxies, but rather within a comparatively small group of dozens of galaxies. The ‘active’ part of the galaxy is the supermassive black hole in its core, which spews out strong jets of energetic particles that produce enormous lobes of radio emission. Some astronomers suspect that Hercules A may be the result of two galaxies merging together.

This video envisions a three-dimensional look at the combined visible light (Hubble Space Telescope) and radio emission (Very Large Array) from Hercules A. The size of these radio lobes dwarfs the large galaxy and extends throughout the volume of the galaxy group. This visualization is intended only to be a scientifically reasonable illustration of the three-dimensional structures. In particular, the galaxy distances within the group are based on a statistical model, and not measured values.

For more information or to download this video, visit: http://hubblesite.org/videos/video_details/10-active-galaxy-hercules-a-in-3d-visible-radio

For more videos, visit: http://hubblesite.org/videos/

Tonight’s Sky: March 2014

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Backyard stargazers get a monthly guide to the northern hemisphere’s skywatching events with “Tonight’s Sky.” In March, the constellations of spring mark the change of seasons.

“Tonight’s Sky” is produced by HubbleSite.org, online home of the Hubble Space Telescope. This is a recurring show, and you can find more episodes — and other astronomy videos — at HubbleSite.org.

Visit Tonight’s Sky on HubbleSite.
http://hubblesite.org/explore_astronomy/tonights_sky

Galaxy Collisions: Simulation vs Observations

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Galaxies are vast swarms of billions of stars along with huge interstellar clouds of gas and dust. A spiral galaxy has a broad, thin disk shape, with a bulge of stars in its core, Within the disk are winding arms of dark dust lanes and bright star-forming regions, This structure is stable when left alone, but is relatively easily disturbed when another galaxy passes near. Astronomers have studied galaxy interactions for decades, and Hubble’s keen vision has been particularly useful for examining new details.

A 2008 Hubble press release unveiled 59 images of galaxy interactions. Each image, however, captures only one moment in a billion-year-long collision process. This visualization of a galaxy collision supercomputer simulation shows the entire collision sequence, and compares the different stages of the collision to different interacting galaxy pairs observed by Hubble. The two spiral galaxies in the simulation distort, twist, and merge together, matching different images at different times and different viewing angles. With this combination of research simulations and high resolution observations, these titanic crashes can be better illustrated and understood.

For more information or to download this video, visit: http://hubblesite.org/videos/video_details/17-galaxy-collisions-simulation-vs-observations

For more videos, visit: http://hubblesite.org/videos/

What Are NASA’s Astrophysics Priorities?

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Every 10 years, astronomers get together to decide what questions they would MOST like answered.

The results are compiled in a document known as the Decadal Survey.  This survey is usually the starting point for deciding what missions NASA would like to get involved in and fund.

For example in the 2000 Decadal Survey, The James Webb Space Telescope was the top priority to the science community.  In the more recent 2010 Survey, WFIRST was at the top of the list.

But these surveys describe the science opportunities that face us now and help greatly in prioritizing programs for the next decade.

But what about the even larger picture?

NASA is developing a long-range view that highlights the science possibilities over the next 30 years and provides the inspiration and rationale for continuing American leadership and investment in NASA’s astrophysics programs.

They call it the NASA Astrophysics Roadmap and they have just completed it.

If you are interested in the long-term astrophysics mission of NASA over the next 30 years, please join +Tony Darnell and +Jason Kalirai as they discuss these plans with the Chair of the Road Map Committee and many of it’s members.

This hangout will provide you with unprecedented access to many of the people who help shape NASA’s science future, and it promises to be very exciting.

We hope you can make it! If not, as always, it will be archived on our YouTube Channel for later viewing.

We will have the Q&A app running during the event so you can communicate with us and we’ll also be looking at your comments on Twitter ( #Hubblehangouts and #hubble ) and you can always leave comments on this event page and the YouTube Video.

Jupiter Globe Rotation – Loop

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This version of “Jupiter Globe Rotation” does not have titles or credits, in order to allow it to be played continuously in a loop.

The giant planet Jupiter has a diameter of more than 10 times Earth’s diameter. Its striped and dynamic atmosphere, dotted with massive, powerful storms, has been a continuing Hubble target over the years.

A collection of images from 2007 have been combined to get full, even coverage of Jupiter. The resulting mosaic has been mapped onto a sphere, and one full rotation is presented in the visualization.

For more information or to download this video, visit: http://hubblesite.org/videos/video_details/7-jupiter-globe-rotation-loop

For more videos, visit: http://hubblesite.org/videos/

Citizen Science: Update on Stardate: M83 Zooniverse Project

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Last January, Stardate: M83 was launched on +The Zooniverse

This joint project was designed to enlist citizen scientists to help uncover the ages of star clusters in the Southern Pinwheel Galaxy (M83).

It is possible to estimate the age of a star cluster based on its appearance, and since humans are very good at discerning these sorts of details, participants helped astronomers identify which of the clusters in the Southern Pinwheel Galaxy had certain key characteristics, such as clouds of hydrogen gas around them.

So, after six week, how did it go?  What did the astronomers learn?

Please join +Tony Darnell as he discusses the success of the project and what is coming next.

As an added bonus, we’ve invited the top 10 citizen science classifiers to acknowledge their contributions and get their feedback.

We will have the Q&A app running during the event and we also encourage you to ask any questions or comments here on this event page or use twitter and the hashtags #hubble and #hubblehangout .

Hope to see you there!