Nancy Atkinson, Author at Universe Today

September 14, 2021December 7, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Here’s What it Would Be Like to Fly Low Over Jupiter’s Cloudtops

Jupiter, via Juno. Picture shows lower elevation and uses standard perspective projection. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill

During Juno’s extended mission, every orbit is like a new adventure. Each orbit is a little different, and NASA says the natural evolution of Juno’s orbit around Jupiter provides a wealth of new science opportunities.

But for most of us, what we look forward to on every perijove – the point in each orbit where the Juno spacecraft comes closest to the gas giant – are the incredible images taken by the camera on board, JunoCam. As Juno’s “eyes,” the camera provides a unique vantage point no other spacecraft has been able to give us.

September 8, 2021September 8, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Pencil December 18th (tentatively) into your calendar. That’s when James Webb probably launches

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, scheduled for launch in Dec. 2021, will be capable of measuring the spectrum of the atmospheres of Earthlike exoplanets orbiting small stars. Credit: NASA, Northrop Grumman

You may have heard this one before, but encouraging news comes from NASA, ESA, and Arianespace today: they are now targeting December 18, 2021 as the new launch date for the oft-delayed James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

September 7, 2021September 7, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Here’s Lake Mead’s Record Low Water Levels Seen From Space

Lake Mead at record low levels, as seen on August 9, 2021 by the Landsat 8 satellite. Credit: NASA/NOAA

How bad is the drought in the western United States? A stunning depiction of the record dry spell comes in images of Lake Mead, the reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River. NASA satellite images, below, from Landsat 7 and Landsat 8 show the difference in lake levels between August 2000 and August 2021.

August 30, 2021August 31, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Thanks to Ingenuity’s Pictures, Perseverance Knows Where to Drive to Next

This image sand dunes, boulders, and rocky outcrops of the “South Séítah” region of Mars’ Jezero Crater was captured by NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter during its 12th flight, on Aug. 16, 2021. Ingenuity’s shadow is visible in the lower third of the image. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The Perseverance rover now has a new tool to help scientists and engineers figure out where the rover goes next. The new tool is the little rotorcraft that was tucked away in the rover’s belly, the Ingenuity helicopter. Ingenuity has now started doing aerial surveys to scout ahead for Perseverance.

August 30, 2021August 30, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

What a Perfect Gravitational Lens

Clustered at the centre of this image are six luminous spots of light, four of them forming a circle around a central pair. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Acknowledgment: J. Schmidt

A stunning new photograph from the Hubble Space Telescope shows a nearly perfect Einstein Ring, an effect caused by gravitational lensing. This is one of the most complete Einstein Rings ever seen.

August 27, 2021August 27, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Webb’s Testing is Complete. Now it Begins the Journey to the Launch Site.

With integration and testing formally concluded for the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s next giant leap into the cosmic unknown will soon be underway. Credits: NASA/Chris Gunn

Finally, it’s starting to get real for the James Webb Space Telescope. Engineers are now preparing the long-awaited landmark telescope for transport to its launch site at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

August 25, 2021August 25, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

An Asteroid has Been Discovered That Crosses Mercury’s Orbit

The fastest orbital period asteroid in the Solar System has been discovered at NOIRLab’s CTIO using the powerful 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam) in Chile — the Sun’s new nearest neighbor. The illustration shows the locations of the planets and asteroid on the discovery night of 13 August 2021, as they would be seen from a vantage point above the Solar System (north). Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva (Spaceengine)

Astronomers have spotted the fastest-ever asteroid orbiting Sun — and at times, it gets closer to the Sun than the planet Mercury.

August 24, 2021August 24, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Watch: 14 Hours of Enceladus Geyser Action

Artist's conception of the Cassini spacecraft flying amid geysers on Enceladus, a moon of Saturn. Credit: Karl Kofoed / NASA

What a parting gift the Cassini mission gave us.

Below is a movie sequence of images, garnered from the final dedicated observation of the Enceladus’ geysers by the imitable Cassini spacecraft.

August 20, 2021February 15, 2022 by Nancy Atkinson

Japan’s Mission to Phobos Will Also Bring a Sample Home by 2029

Phobos, the larger of Mars' two moons, with the Stickney crater seen on the right side. Credit: HiRISE, MRO, LPL (U. Arizona), NASA

Japan’s space agency (JAXA) is gearing up for its Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, with plans to have a sample from Mars’ moon Phobos return to Earth by 2029. Mission scientists say they hope to find clues to the origins of Mars two moons, as well as Mars itself, and possibly even traces of past life.

“We think that the Martian moon, Phobos, is loaded with material lifted from Mars during meteorite impacts,” the MMX team said on Twitter. “By collecting this Phobos sample, MMX will help investigate traces of Martian life and the new era of Martian habitability exploration in the 2020s will begin.”

August 19, 2021August 19, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Ingenuity’s Flight 12 was a Tricky one, Flying Over Hazardous Terrain

Image from Ingenuity's 12th flight on Mars. Credit: NASA/JPL.

The Ingenuity helicopter on Mars has now completed its 12th flight, where it acted as a scout, looking ahead for dangerous terrain for it’s partner in crime, the Perseverance rover.