The Astronomy Thread

[mwightman]

I agree, as do the space or rather star whales called "Galeen"; these space whales - https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Star_whale,
. . . . . . . . . . not these space whales - http://www.spacewhales.net/

[Mercy Machine]

Space Angels too.

[Arioch]

Phobos transits the Sun, viewed from Mars' surface.

[GeoModder]

Now if only Phobos was four times larger...

[Arioch]

The new Event Horizon radio image of Sgr A* (our galaxy's central black hole) inset with x-ray (blue) and infrared (purple and orange) images from Chandra and Hubble of its immediate environment. The inset image of the black hole is about 10 light minutes across, and the main image of the environment is about 7 light years across. Sgr A* is about 27,000 light-years away.



From what I understand, the activity around Sgr A* is very variable; I hope they release a time lapse video of the different states.

[avatar576]

Here's a computer sim of stars orbiting Sgr A* based on a time lapse captured over a 20-year period. The actual time lapse video is at 0:58:

[Arioch]

I wonder how many hundreds or thousands of stellar mass block holes are also orbiting on the vicinity. I believe there's some evidence for at least some of them.

[Demarquis]

Ask and ye shall receive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvL2BAkEVGU

Your answer appears at about 38 seconds.

[Arioch]

Yeah, I'd seen that information (though not this specific video). I mean the JWST should be able to shed light on this with much higher resolution infrared surveys of that region.

[Arioch]

I love these things.

[GeoModder]

Its definitely spooky.

[Demarquis]

I once saw a recreation of a journey the entire universe in an IMAX theater. It felt like I was having a religious experience.

[icekatze]

hi hi

The first ever direct image of an exoplanet is captured by James Webb.

Previously, astronomers only had indirect methods, like waiting for a planet to pass in front of a star and measuring the change in brightness. While everyone else might be awed by the very photogenic images of galaxies and nebula, this is the image I've been waiting to see.

[Demarquis]

There have been other pictures of exoplanets before, but this is the first one by the Webb.

[Arioch]

There have been other pictures of exoplanets before, but this is the first one by the Webb.

Yes, there are some in this very thread.

[Arioch]

The gamma ray burst caused by the formation of a black hole.
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap221015.html

[Arioch]

A new theory to explain why most of the discovered inner exoplanet systems tend to be self-similar: that is, the terrestrial planets seem to be mostly the same size as other nearby planets.

[Demarquis]

IIUC, this should slightly increase the probability of two or more life bearing planets in the same system.

[Arioch]

IIUC, this should slightly increase the probability of two or more life bearing planets in the same system.

I think it has always been the assumption that inner planets are terrestrial (since the solar winds blow the volatiles away); I don't think whether an Earth is next to other Earth-sized planets or other Super-Earth-sized planets has any impact on Earth's potential habitability. (Venus and Mars being "Earth-sized" for the purposes of this theory.)

And I think astronomers' classification of "super-earths" is pretty sketchy, including a lot of planets that are probably more like Uranus than Earth.

[Demarquis]

I did say "slightly"!