Venus/Jupiter Align This Weekend +Galaxy Map of The Stars
Get Set to be Dazzled! Venus and Jupiter will Align This Weekend
-to Form a Glittering 'Double Star' on Monday Morning
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...erta_Canad.jpg A dazzling conjunction of Jupiter and Venus will be visible on Monday morning, shortly before sunrise in the UK. A 2012 conjunction over Canada is pictured A dazzling conjunction of Jupiter and Venus will provide an impressive light show on Sunday night and Monday morning. The two brightest planets in the sky will form a spectacular 'double star', hanging low on the north-eastern horizon. This will be visible shortly before sunrise at around 5am BST (midnight EST), on Sunday/Monday and will appear only 0.2 degrees apart - less than half the width of a little finger held out at arm's length. A number of similar conjunctions were captured in 2012, but this will be the closest and brightest conjunction of the two planets since 2000. Experts believe their combined brightness and low position in the sky could keep switchboards busy with reports of UFOs. Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy, said: 'They will be so close together that it's going to be quite a striking sight. 'Undoubtedly people could mistake them for a UFO, especially being so low down. 'They might appear to move around because of the distortion effect of the atmosphere.' Although the planets appear to be kissing-distance apart, as seen from the Earth, they are actually separated by hundreds of millions of miles. Venus and Jupiter pair up about once a year on average, but their conjunctions vary greatly in separation and visibility. Some are missed completely because they occur in daylight. The next Venus-Jupiter conjunction is due to occur on June 30 next year, but will be less close. During Monday's conjunction, Venus will appear six times brighter than Saturn, even though its diameter is less than a tenth that of the larger planet, which measures 86,881 miles (139,821km) across. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...age002_png.jpg The two brightest planets in the sky will form a 'double star', hanging low on the north-eastern horizon. This will be visible shortly before sunrise at around 5am BST (midnight EST) and will appear only 0.2 degrees apart (pictured) - less than half the width of a little finger held out at arm's length http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...erta_Canad.jpg During Monday's conjunction, Venus will appear six times brighter than Saturn, even though its diameter is less than a tenth that of the larger planet. Venus and Jupiter pair up about once a year on average, but their conjunctions vary greatly visibility. Venus and Jupiter at twilight in March 2012 in Canada are pictured Quote:
A pair of binoculars will heighten the conjunction experience, but even a small telescope should provide a dramatic view. Venus will mimic a tiny full moon, while Jupiter will appear three times wider. Jupiter will also be accompanied by its four brightest moons strung out in a row. Ideally the conjunction should be seen from a high unobstructed vantage point. 'People who have buildings, hills or trees in the way might miss it, but even a roof top in London should offer a good view,' said Mr Scagell. |
Re: Venus/Jupiter Align This Weekend +Galaxy Map of The Stars
Galactic Map Could Finally Solve the Mystery of 'Interstellar Bands':
-3D Model Reveals Clues About How Stars and Galaxies Form
Scientists have revealed the first ever 3D map of bizarre astronomical phenomenon that has baffled scientists for nearly a century. The new map could help scientists explain what makes up the material that creates 'diffuse interstellar bands' or Dibs. These are dark lines in space that hide in the light. Scientists have known they exist since 1922, but they still don't know much about them. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...e_map1_png.jpg Scientists hope to use the map to explain what makes up the material that creates 'diffuse interstellar bands'. These maps show the amount of light absorbed by the DIB (left) and dust (right). Red shows more absorbed light than blue. Top maps are for northern Galactic hemisphere and bottom for southern Galactic hemisphere Scientists believe cracking the mystery surrounding Dibs could arm them with valuable information on how stars and galaxies are created. To create the map, scientists focused on the single Dib 8620, one of over 400 absorption lines, with the goal of narrowing down its source. 'Dib 8620 does not seem special compared to other Dibs,' lead author Janez Kos, of the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia, told Space.com. But, as a spectral feature often used to measure stellar motion, it is 'the most observed DIB.' Dibs are absorption lines that appear throughout the electromagnetic spectrum. They are caused by the absorption of light by matter in space. Quote:
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...41_636x358.jpg Four hundred Dibs have been seen - in ultraviolet, visible and infrared wavelengths - throughout space. Researchers have speculated that the absorption of starlight that creates these dark bands points to the presence of unusually large complex molecules, but proof of this has remained elusive. Atoms in molecules give off light when their electrons change from one orbit to another. When the atoms crowd close to each other, one atom interferes with the spectrum of another. But as yet, nobody has found which molecules and atoms exactly correspond to the Dibs. The nature of this puzzling material is important to astronomers because it could provide clues about the physical conditions and chemistry of these regions between stars. In order to investigate Dib 8620, astronomers used the Radial Velocity Experiment (Rave) survey of stars in the Milky Way. Rave has the spectra of almost half a million stars across the galaxy, all located in the southern sky. The large size of the sample allowed mapmakers to determine the distances of the material that causes the Dibs, and how the material is distributed throughout space. The resulting maps showed the intriguing result that the complex molecules thought to be responsible for the Dibs are distributed differently than another known component of the interstellar medium - the solid particles known as dust. Future studies can use the techniques outlined in the new paper to assemble other maps that should further solve the mysteries surrounding where Dibs are located, and what materials cause them. 'To figure out what something is, you first have to figure out where it is, and that is what this paper does,' said Professor Rosemary Wyse, who is a professor of physics and astronomy at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. 'Larger surveys will provide more details in the future. This paper has demonstrated how to do that.' http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/..._dust2_PNG.jpg The nature of this puzzling material is important to astronomers because it could provide clues about the physical conditions and chemistry of these regions between stars. Such details serve as critical components in theories as to how stars (pictured) and galaxies formed |
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