Latest news with #VirtualTelescopeProject
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Mars cozies up to one of the brightest stars in the sky in 'mind-blowing' conjunction photo
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A new photo shows Mars shining like a red star in the night sky, alongside the blue-tinged "Heart of the Lion" star, Regulus. Despite their drastic differences, the two objects currently look remarkably similar. Regulus is the brightest star in the constellation Leo. The point of light is coming from a system containing four stars, arranged into two pairs of two, shining approximately 79 light-years from Earth — or around 2.8 million times farther from our planet than Mars. The system's blue tinge comes from its largest star, a blue subgiant around 4.5 times more massive than the sun. It often appears alongside, or gets eclipsed by, other solar system planets and Earth's moon, because it is situated near the ecliptic — the plane in the night sky where all solar system worlds orbit the sun. Mars and Regulus currently appear very close to one another. This conjunction peaked on June 17, when the pair was less than one degree apart, which is equal to around 1.5 times the diameter of the moon in the night sky. The Red Planet is currently shining very brightly at night because of its position relative to Earth and the sun, making it look like a red star. On June 16, the Virtual Telescope Project captured an incredible image of the two objects with nearly identical brightness, using a 14-inch telescope in Italy. The stellar objects look like perfect mirror images of each other, aside from their striking color contrast. "The beauty of their colors is mind-blowing," Gianluca Masi, an astronomer and founder of the Virtual Telescope Project, told Related: Parisian photographer produces phenomenal, perfectly-proportioned 'planetary parade' portrait If you look hard at the image, you may be able to see a fuzzy, faint spot of light between Mars and Romulus, located slightly closer to the blue star. This is the ghostly trace of the Leo I dwarf galaxy, about 820,000 light-years away: "Capturing it in the same frame as Mars and Regulus is something rare and deeply evocative," Masi said. RELATED STORIES —Mars rises over the moon's horizon at the best possible time —Eerie photo of Mars' horizon took NASA 3 months to capture —See Mars 'peek out' from behind the moon in stunning eclipse photo Mars and Romulus will remain close to one another until June 22, when this conjunction officially ends, according to the BBC's Sky at Night Magazine. The conjunction began on June 11. The two bodies are no longer as close as they were, but they can still be seen together with the naked eye. But you can get a better look at the pair using a decent telescope or a pair of stargazing binoculars. The best time to see it is just after twilight under totally clear skies, according to Live Science's sister site 2025 has already seen several noteworthy conjunctions, including a rare "planetary parade" in February, when all seven solar system worlds were near-perfectly aligned in the night sky. Mars and Mercury will also have close conjunctions with the moon later this month.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Watch the stunning Mars and Regulus conjunction today with this free livestream
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Mars and the star Regulus are set to put on a dazzling show tonight as the Red Planet passes remarkably close to Leo's brightest star in a striking celestial pairing — and you can watch it live online. The conjunction between Mars and the bright blue star Regulus began on Monday (June 16) and will bring the two objects side by side in the night sky. A conjunction occurs when two celestial bodies appear very close together from our perspective on Earth. Using its robotic telescopes in Manciano, Italy, the Virtual Telescope Project is offering a free online livestream (weather permitting) of the conjunction beginning at 3:45 p.m. EDT (1945 GMT) today (June 17). You can watch the livestream here on courtesy of the Virtual Telescope Project or directly on their WebTV page or YouTube channel. At their closest point, Mars and the bright star will be just 0.7 degrees apart — roughly the width of your little finger held at arm's length against the night sky — which is incredibly close for two celestial objects. The pair will remain in close visual proximity through Wednesday night (June 18). During conjunction, both Mars and Regulus — the 21st brightest star in the night sky — will shine at 1.4 magnitude. Although virtually equal in brightness, the two celestial objects differ dramatically in color. "They will offer a superb show, offering very different colours: Mars will bring its legendary red hue, while Regulus will shine like a blue diamond," Gianluca Masi, Virtual Telescope Project founder and astronomer, told in an email. Although Mars and Regulus will look strikingly close, it's just a trick of perspective from our viewpoint on Earth. In reality, Mars lies within our solar system about 171 million miles away, while Regulus is nearly 80 light-years from us in the constellation Leo, the Lion. Nonetheless, the pair will appear close and bright enough in the night sky to be seen by the naked eye. For a more detailed view, binoculars or a small telescope with low magnification can be used, Masi said. The best time to catch Mars and Regulus — known as the "Heart of the Lion"— will be just after twilight fades and the stars become visible under clear, dark skies. Viewers can look toward the western sky, near the constellation Leo, to spot the dazzling pair meet up.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Watch June's full Strawberry Moon skim the southern horizon with these free livestreams tonight
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. This month's full Strawberry Moon is upon us! Here's how you can watch the lowest full moon in a decade grace the sky on June 11 from the comfort of your couch. June's full moon rides surprisingly low across the southern sky thanks to a rare phenomenon known as a major lunar standstill, which occurs when the sun's gravitational influence drags the moon's tilted orbit into its greatest inclination relative to our planet's celestial equator. During this time, the moon's orbit is at its most extreme, causing it to ride unusually low — or high — across the sky depending on the time of year, while rising and setting at its most southerly and northerly points on the horizon. Despite being the brightest object in the night sky, Earth's moon can be a surprisingly tricky target to spot for skywatchers in metropolitan areas, where high-rise buildings can dramatically reduce your field of view. It'll be even tougher to spot the full moon on June 11, when the low-riding lunar disk climbs to a maximum altitude of 20 degrees above the horizon for viewers in New York City. Thankfully, there's no need to panic if you can't find a spot with a clear view of the southern horizon, or if clouds turn up to entirely obscure your view of the sky above. Here's how to watch the Strawberry Moon rise online via livestream on June 11, without ever leaving your house. The Virtual Telescope Project (VTP) will hold its own live stream starting at 3:30 p.m. ET (1930 GMT) on June 11, featuring views from the organization's robotic telescopes situated in Tuscany, Italy. The VTP was founded in 2006 by astrophysicist Gianluca Masi with the goal of "bringing the universe down to Earth", according to the organization's website. It regularly hosts livestreams of major astronomical events including planetary conjunctions and meteor showers, while providing real-time views of potentially hazardous asteroids as they make a close approach to our planet. The famous Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles will also host a live stream of the Strawberry Moon rising from its most southerly position on the eastern horizon in 18 years. The observatory will go live on YouTube starting at 11:42 p.m. ET on June 11 (0342 GMT on June 12). Both live streams are completely free and require nothing but a smart device/computer and an active internet connection to watch! Editor's Note: If you capture a picture of the Strawberry Moon and want to share it with readers, then please send it along with your comments, name and shooting time/location to spacephotos@
The Herald Scotland
11-05-2025
- Science
- The Herald Scotland
Soviet spacecraft returns to Earth. Crashes into Indian Ocean
The European Space Agency is monitoring Cosmos 482's uncontrolled descent. The spacecraft was last spotted on radar over Germany between 12:30 a.m. ET and 2:04 a.m. ET. "We have not received so far any reports on visual direct observations of the final re-entry, or on any impacts on ground," the ESA said. Skywatching: May 2025 full moon is a flower moon and micromoon. Here's when to see it. The EU Space Surveillance and Tracking agency said, "Object Cosmos-482 Descent Craft decayed within the last estimated re-entry window." Scientists had not been concerned about Cosmos 482's return to Earth causing a danger risk to humans because of the craft's small size - about 3 feet in diameter and around 1,190 pounds, reported. The space news site reported that Virtual Telescope Project astronomer Gianluca Masi posted an image of the spacecraft as it passed over Rome early May 10. The probe was "visible as a trail entering the field of view from the top and pointing to the bottom right corner," Masi wrote on his website. What happened to Cosmos 482? Cosmos 482, also known as Kosmos 482, was one of a pair of identical Venus atmospheric lander probes launched by the Soviet Union in 1972. The other spacecraft, Venera 8, arrived at Venus and made scientific measurements of the planet's soil before ceasing operation. According to NASA, Cosmos 482 suffered an apparent launch malfunction and failed to achieve the velocity needed to reach Venus' atmosphere. Cosmos 482 separated into four pieces, two of which remained in Earth's low orbit and decayed within 48 hours, and the other two pieces went into a higher orbit. Contributing: Greta Cross, Eric Lagatta and Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY Mike Snider is a reporter on USA TODAY's Trending team. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @ & @mikesnider & msnider@ What's everyone talking about? Sign up for our trending newsletter to get the latest news of the day
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Stadium-sized asteroid approaching Earth May 9, how to see in Texas
A stadium-sized asteroid will pass by Earth on Friday, May 9. And if you're interested, you could see it happen in real time, thanks to a livestream from The Virtual Telescope Project. Known as the main belt asteroid 612356 2002 JX8 is not expected to post a threat to Earth during the 2025 flyby, according to NASA. Scientists at the Center for Near Earth Object Studies who track the long-term potential orbits of near-Earth objects have said it is unlikely that a large asteroid capable of causing widespread damage will strike Earth in the next 100 years. With that being said, the Virtual Telescope Project's YouTube channel will go live at 2:30 p.m. MT (4:30 p.m. ET), just a few hours before 2002 JX8 makes its closest approach to Earth at (11:02 GMT). The stream will also show views of the asteroid Vesta, which reached opposition on May 2, and is still relatively bright in the night sky. The asteroid is expected to safely come as close as 4.2 million kilometers or 2.6 million miles, according to Gianluca Masi, the founder of The Virtual Telescope Project. Masi's organization has successfully captured several images of 2002 JX8 in the run up to its Friday, May 9, flyby, in which the asteroid appears as a distinct dot of light that could be seen shifting position relative to the stars behind it. The Virtual Telescope Project offers free online observing sessions for the public for asteroid flybys and similar events, as well as access to individual robotic telescopes. Potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs) such as 2002 JX8 are categorized as such based on their brightness (magnitude +22.0 or lower/brighter) and their ability to perform a "threatening close approach to Earth," according to NASA, which is defined as coming within 0.05 astronomical units, or 4.6 million miles (7.5 million km) of our planet. For reference, 1 AU is the equivalent of 93 million miles (150 million km), the average distance separating Earth and the sun. More: What time is the ETA Aquarids? Here's when to see meteor shower in Texas Source: This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Watch stadium-sized asteroid approach Earth live today on YouTube
