Explore Astronomy

The Moon takes on a reddish hue during an eclipse. Credit: Fred Espenak

Two to four times a year, the Moon passes through a portion of the Earth’s shadow, causing an eclipse. On August 28, skywatchers will be treated to a total lunar eclipse starting at 4:30 a.m. EST. All of North America will be able to see some portion of the eclipse. From the eastern USA, the Great Lakes region and Ontario, the Moon will sets while total eclipse. Only observers to the west of the Rockies (including Alaska) will be treated to the entire event.

• NASA's Eclipse Home Page.

Researchers are looking into the effects of a trip to the red planet.

The European Space Agency (ESA) is seeking volunteers for a simulated trip to Mars. Six crew members will spend 17 months in an isolation tank, simulating a round trip to the Red Planet. The crew will live and work in series of interlocked modules at a research institute in Moscow. Once the hatches close, their only contact with outside world will be through a radio link to “Earth.”

• ESA's call for volunteers.

Saturn's moon, Hyperion, is riddled with deep pits. Credit: NASA

One of the solar system’s strangest looking moons is Hyperion, which orbits the ringed planet Saturn. The Cassini spacecraft, now orbiting Saturn, photographed Hyperion a few years ago and revealed a moon that looks more like a sponge or coral than rock or ice. Now scientists think they know what causes the strange appearance.

• The Cassini mission's Hyperion page.

Scientists warn that life elsewhere may not mirror that on our own planet. Credit: National Research Council

When we are planning research to look for biological activity elsewhere, are we — to borrow a lyric — “looking for life in all the wrong places?”

A recent report from the National Academy of Science (NAS) points out that researchers are concerned that the assumption that life is water-based and uses DNA to encode important life information will limit our ability to recognize life elsewhere. The report advises NASA and other research agencies to expand research beyond conventional views.

• Space.com discusses the report.
• The NAS Report

Pluto-like object Eris is circled by its own moon, Dysnomia. The discovery of Eris helped provoke debate about Pluto's planetary status.

New details about some of the interesting smaller objects in the solar system are shedding some light on the “planet controversy.” Astronomers have been trying to establish what constitutes a planet, taking size, orbit and other factors into consideration.

One of the important objects astronomers have been studying is Eris, discovered in 2005. Astronomers suspected Eris was bigger than Pluto, but now they know for sure that Eris has 1.27 times more mass that Pluto. Eris appears to have a density similar to Pluto’s, and probably contains rocky material as well as ice.

Another object of interest is the asteroid Ceres. Astronomers have imaged Ceres with the Hubble Space Telescope in preparation for the launch of the DAWN mission in 2007. DAWN will travel to and orbit Ceres as well as another large body in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter – Vesta.

• Astronomers Measure Mass of Largest Dwarf Planet
• Hubble Images of Asteroids Help Astronomers Prepare for Spacecraft

The opening to a possible Martian cave stands out in this picture.

New images from Mars reveal football field-sized openings in the planet’s surface that likely lead to caves. Seven entrances to subterranean caves range from about 330 to 820 feet across, and there is absolutely nothing visible inside the holes, indicating that they are very deep. Perhaps one day robots will be able to explore the caves, revealing their now-hidden contents.

• Space.com on exploring the caves.
• The Planetary Society highlights pictures of the cave openings.
• Home page of the Home page for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
• Astrobiology Magazine talks about the caves' potential for harboring life.

This new image of Altair shows unprecedented detail. Credit: Ming Zhao, University of Michigan

For the first time, researchers have taken a picture of surface of Altair, a star like our own Sun. Even to the largest telescopes, stars look like mere points of light, but a new technique by the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy allows us to see detail on this distant star. And a strange star it is – orbiting so fast that it’s distorted, wider at its equator than at its poles.

• The National Science Foundation news release on the Altair picture.
• Solstation gives background on Altair.
• Home page of the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy.

SOFIA is an airliner modified to carry an infrared telescope.

NASA’s new Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a highly modified 747 airliner that carries a 45,000-pound infrared telescope system. SOFIA’s purpose is to fly above the water vapor in the Earth’s atmosphere that impedes infrared light, allowing its telescope to make powerful infrared observations. NASA recently commemorated the 80th anniversary of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh’s historic transatlantic flight by bestowing the name Clipper Lindbergh on the flying observatory.

• SOFIA completes its first test flight.
• SOFIA is dedicated in honor of Charles Lindbergh.