Lizzy and I seem to be stuck on throwing a little love back out into the universe this week. When we were chatting about the planets, we stated to discuss all of the other amazing events that are occurring right now in the vastness of space. Recently, I watched a documentary on NOVA about the retirement of the Hubble space telescope and the launching of the Kepler spacecraft. The Hubble images that I've seen are amazing- it's like watching science and magic mix together, and then explode into a brilliant array of color and light. The Kepler mission will be able to see even further into space, and who knows what we'll find- the possibilities are limitless! ~ F
The DMS wants to know:
If you could look through a space telescope, what heavenly event would you want to see? (i.e. a comet, a planet, a star, a nebula, an alien... : )
We'll tell you ours, if you tell us yours!
Here's a little about the Kepler space telescope:
The Kepler instrument is a specially designed 0.95-meter diameter telescope called a photometer or light meter. It has a very large field of view for an astronomical telescope — 105 square degrees, which is comparable to the area of your hand held at arm's length. It needs that large a field in order to observe the necessary large number of stars. It stares at the same star field for the entire mission and continuously and simultaneously monitors the brightnesses of more than 100,000 stars for the life of the mission—3.5 or more years.
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| http://www.pdnphotooftheday.com/2010/04/4141 |
This magnificent image from NASA’s Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes shows the Orion Nebula in an explosion of infrared, ultraviolet, and visible-light colors. It was “painted” by hundreds of baby stars on a canvas of gas and dust, with intense ultraviolet light and strong stellar winds as brushes. At the heart of the nebula, in the brightest part of the image, is a group of monstrously massive stars, collectively called the Trapezium. Located 1,500 light-years from Earth, the Orion Nebula is the brightest “star” in the sword of the Hunter constellation.
What an awesome post! I love the picture of the nebula. I can't get enough of space because there is so much to see and learn about. I love it all. It is hard to pick what I would like to see, but I have seen meteor showers, I saw Saturn's rings through my telescope, I look at the Moon regularly with my telescope, I have seen quite a few amazing events. I guess I would like to see the Aurora Borealis. The northern lights look so beautiful in pictures that I would like to see them for myself.
ReplyDeletei concur - a great post, indeed! i, too, love having spontaneous conversations about the uknowns about space. and the pictures, as well as the not-yet-understood events fascinate me tenfold!
ReplyDeletei've always had a thing for the ethereal :) and that photo you posted of the nebula just reinforces why. this isn't a subject many people around me are interested in, so i'm forced to just dream on the inside. in any case, i don't mind. it's a beautiful thing; and thank you for sharing!
dorothy
http://theymaysaythatimadreamer.blogpsot.com
I love this post- the picture is so cool. I think about the solar system all the time- and I always check out the sky. There are so many things I would like to see- but I would really like to see the Sun though a telescope with a filter on it. I have seen pictures from a filtered telescopes and I could see Sunspots and flares. I would love to see it for myself.
ReplyDeletewow..isn't is just mind boggling! the definition of infinity.
ReplyDelete@Trey- Wow! You have been able to see some amazing sights. I agree with you- The Northern Lights would be a treat!
ReplyDelete@Dorothy- I am glad you enjoyed the photo. Lizzy and I love talking about space (we have a post from a couple days ago about our favorite planets). I think more people should want to chat about the universe- it is amazing! Thanks for stopping by!
@Flex- I thin it would be awesome to look through a filtered telescope at the Sun. How cool!
@momto8- I agree. It is mind boggling! :)
Hmm, I think I would love to see a supernova exploding, but most of all I love looking at our own Milky Way. Thanks for stopping by my book blog! I am getting ready to post again today about this awesome space book I dug up that was signed by Jim Lovell!!!
ReplyDelete@Sophie- Ooooh- a supernova exploding would be amazing. Our galaxy is also fascinating to see. I enjoyed your blog and love all the posts you had this week related to space! How cool that you found that space book. I guess we were on the same wavelength this week! Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteThere is so much that I would love to see. Honestly- I loved reading everyone's answers and found myself nodding along with them. I have always found the Northern Lights to be breathtaking. I live somewhere where they are not usually seen- but I hope to one day see them from somewhere I visit. To see those colors in the night sky would seem so magical to me. I try to view anything I can in the night sky. Lots of planets are visible this month!
ReplyDeleteHappy viewing! ~L
I would love to see a black hole- I think they are so fascinating! ~ F ( I'm watching a program on the science channel right now about Saturn's rings- and they just showed pictures of Jupiter- how amazing! )
ReplyDelete