Two models of the dark matter distribution in the halo of a galaxy like the Milky Way, separated by the white line are shown. The colors represent the density of dark matter, with red indicating high-density and blue indicating low-density. On the left is a simulation of how non-interacting cold dark matter produces an abundance of smaller satellite galaxies. On the right the simulation shows the situation when the interaction of dark matter with other particles reduces the number of satellite galaxies we expect to observe around the Milky Way. (Credit: Durham University)
via forbes
Cassini spied just as many regular, faint clumps in Saturn’s narrow F ring (the outermost, thin ring), like those pictured here, as Voyager did. But it saw hardly any of the long, bright clumps that were common in Voyager images. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI)
via discovery
Oscillations of photons create an image of frozen light. At first, photons in the experiment flow easily between two superconducting sites, producing the large waves shown at left. After a time, the scientists cause the light to “freeze,” trapping the photons in place. Fast oscillations on the right of the image are evidence of the new trapped behavior. (Credit: Princeton University)
via phys.org
Erlangen-based physicists have sent bright pulses in sensitive quantum states through the window of a technical services room on the roof of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light to a building of the University Erlangen-Nürnberg. These types of light flashes are easy to receive even when the sun is shining brightly, unlike the signals of individual photons used to date. (Credit: MPI for the Science of Light)
via sciencecodex
The gravity of a black hole swallows the matter around it. The link between tensor networks and quantum entanglement may prove useful in studying the physics of black holes, some physicists propose. (Credit: M. Weiss, Chandra X -ray Center/NASA)
via sciencenews
Square, cage-shaped molecules called diamondoids (left) linked to soccer-ball shaped buckyballs (right) create a new molecule called a buckydiamondoid, center, in this illustration. These new hybrid molecules may be useful for developing molecular electronic devices in the future. (Credit: Manoharan Lab/Stanford University)
via sciencenews
Machines have surpassed humans in physical strength, speed and stamina. What if they surpassed human intellect as well? Science fiction movies have explored this question. In the classic “2001: A Space Odyssey,” astronaut David Bowman, played by Keir Dullea, struggles for control of the spacecraft against the sentient computer HAL 9000.
via cnn
High temperatures expanding the seal material could have either impeded the flow, or have precluded the latch valve from opening even with the microswitch indicated to telemetry that the valve was open. (Credit: Farquhar, R, Muhonen, D, Church, L, Curtis, M.S)
via wattsupwiththat
This photo by NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover shows the huge iron meteorite “Lebanon” (7 feet wide) and its smaller companion “Lebanon B.” The two meteorites were found by Curiosity on May 25, 2014. The circular insets are more detailed views by Curiosity’s Chem-Cam instrument overlaid on an image by the rover’s Remote Micro-Imager. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/LPGNantes/CNRS/IAS/MSSS)
via space.com
The clear central eye of the storm is about 2000 km across – ten times the typical size on Earth – and clouds at the outer edge of the hurricane on Saturn are moving at more than 500 kph – rather faster than on Earth. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI)
via dailygalaxy
This map shows the distribution of dark matter (black) in the Universe, overlapping with optical measured clusters of galaxies (red circles). The mass peaks in the map contain significant cosmological information, will provide us with an improved understanding about the dark side of the Universe. The size of this map is about 4 square degrees corresponding to only 2.5% of the full CS82 survey footprint shown in the next figure. (Credit: CS82, SDSS)
via phys.org
A new shape model of the Homunculus Nebula reveals protrusions, trenches, holes and irregularities in its molecular hydrogen emission. The protrusions appear near a dust skirt seen at the nebula’s center in visible light (inset) but not found in this study, so they constitute different structures. (Credit: NASA Goddard, ESA, Hubble SM4 ERO Team)
via astronomy.com
Engineers failed to resolve fuel system problems on NASA’s retired ISEE-3 satellite Wednesday. An artist’s rendition shows the spacecraft during a close lunar pass. (Credit: NASA)
A solar flare erupted on the far side of the sun on June 4, 2011, and sent solar neutrons out into space. Solar neutrons don’t make it to all the way to Earth, but NASA’s MESSENGER, orbiting Mercury, found strong evidence for the neutrons, offering a new technique to study these giant explosions. (Credit: NASA/STEREO/Helioviewer)
via nasa
Cassini will end its historic mission with 22 breathtaking loops passing through the gap between Saturn and its innermost ring. (Credit: NASA)
via scientificamerican
This artist’s concept shows the Voyager 1 spacecraft entering the space between stars. Interstellar space is dominated by plasma, ionized gas (illustrated here as brownish haze), that was thrown off by giant stars millions of years ago. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)
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Twin spacecraft, named Ebb and Flow — about the size of washing machines — chased each other around the moon for three months. (Credit: NASA)via businessinsider
Venus can be seen as a black dot eclipsing the Sun in this image from 2012. Venus orbits too close to the Sun to the planet to be habitable for life as we know it. Venus experiences a runaway greenhouse and the average surface temperatures are thought to be around 864ºF. (Credit: NASA/SDO & the AIA, EVE, and HMI teams; Digital Composition: Peter L. Dove)
via phys.org
Titan, Saturn’s largest moon appears before the planet as it undergoes seasonal changes in this natural color view from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft in this handout released by NASA August 29, 2012. (Credit: Reuters/NASA)
via rt.com
Hubble Space Telescope picture of galaxy NGC 3081. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA; acknowledgement: R. Buta (Credit: University of Alabama)
via universetoday
Summary of the spacetime issues discussed in this article. One can use photons and astronomical objects as test particles to measure spacetime over 22 orders of magnitude in scale, ranging from the cosmic horizon (probing the global topology of and curvature of space – top) to distant supernovae (giving evidence of dark energy) down to galaxies (giving evidence for dark matter), galactic nuclei and binary stellar systems (giving evidence for black holes) (Credit: Max Tegmark)
via dailygalaxy
