What did we do & why is this interesting? Deep technical dive ahead!
We learn about accreting #BlackHoles studying their spectra & short-term (~millisecond) variability, called timing. However, individually, both approaches leave us with a lot of puzzles - so we try to combine them in spectral-timing.
In the past, we could only do so above 3 keV using RXTE (and a bit using XMM, but not quiet that well - for this kind of study, one needs many short observations at different times and this is not the XMM observing strategy). Utilizing NICER, we can push down to 0.5 keV and thus finally, finally, probe details of the disk variability in different spectral states of the source!
Generally and kinda unsurprisingly, things are a lot more complex at low energies!
This image perfectly conveys just how huge the 100-m dish of the Green Bank Telescope is. I had the chance to visit it a few years ago, back when I lived in the US, and the view from the receiver room is stunning. Although I must admit that looking down through the mesh floor was... "an experience" 😵💫 😅
Citizen scientist Gerald Eichstädt made these images using raw data from the JunoCam instrument, applying processing techniques to enhance the clarity of the images.
Image credit:
Image data: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS
Image processing by Gerald Eichstädt
Copies of Worlds of IF Science Fiction Magazine #177, the relaunch issue, spotted in Paris. Front cover art by Bob Eggleton, back cover art by Andrew Stewart. Check out that table of contents.
Feels so good to read it in prints!
While we were all oohing and aahing over the Southern Lights on Saturday night I had my trusty Dwarfii with me. We'd been joined by a middle aged lady with a cellphone and enthusiasm but no knowledge, so between Aurora visits I cast about for an interesting galaxy to show her.
Rob suggested Centaurus A. This amazing celestial spectacle might be a spiral galaxy colliding with a larger elliptical galaxy, and there's a relativistic jet emitting from the supermassive black hole in the middle of it - heady stuff.
What is known for certain, from the party observing on Saturday night was that it looks a lot more like a hamburger than the galaxy nicknamed the Hamburger Galaxy ( NGC 3628 looks more like a hotdog to me) - specifically something from the Hungry Jack's / Burger King stable.
So I'm going to call it the Aussieburger Galaxy. It's possible that the supermassive black hole is the beetroot. We could definitely see the sesame seeds and the pickles.
This image is less than 200 frames, but with a bit of tweaking in Google photos it's acceptable viewing, and a bit of fun. I think the cloud coming in might have halted my stacking. I'd like to revisit this one again soon.
And the nice lady who'd wandered down to get a shot of the aurora with her old iphone? With the help of some advice and my monopod she caught it, and apparently is all fired up to get a Dwarfii of her own, and we have already set a stardate with her this week. Lovely!
Ma dernière session d'astrophoto de samedi soir. Un amas de galaxies (Abell 2151) dans la constellation d'Hercule. Plein de jolies petites tachounettes. Mais va falloir que je me résolve à nettoyer le capteur de ma caméra, il y a un gros pâté que je n'arrive pas à éliminer complètement pendant le traitement photo... 😱
Bon faut pas trop grossir non plus, les étoiles ne sont pas très rondes, je reprendrai le traitement + tard au calme... #astrodon#astronomie#astronomy#galaxies#siril#ekos
Sources of magnetic fields appear in this universe - which just samples the first ~1/10 of evolution of a big 2048^3 simulations running on LEONARDO at CINECA (using a customised version of the ENZO code), and it just samples a thin slice through the simulation.
Magnetic field strength on the left, gas density on the right.
The injection of magnetic fields here only follows the onset of star formation (and later on of active galactic nuclei).
M20 (The Trifid Nebula) this morning from Naples, Florida. About 40 minutes of subs. Lightly edited to increase contrast and saturation. #Seestar#Astronomy#Astrodon
Pas d'aurores cette nuit mais un joli ciel quand même. Une dernière séance photo, un amas de galaxies dans Hercule. Le contraste est saisissant avec la nuit dernière. Il a fait vraiment sombre cette nuit alors qu'hier la clarté était crépusculaire tout au long de la nuit.
Quatre nuits blanches, des belles photos, une dinguerie d'aurore, what a weekend, les zamis ! #Astrodon#AstroSmartphone#astronomy
One of the more intense patches of colour from the Aurora Australis I observed a couple of hours ago or so.
A huge event to show so well so far north, and in the light pollution. Could make it out with the naked eye, and my Pixel picked it up just fine in astrophotography mode.
I got some time lapse with moving sheets, but they're a bit artifacty. Do you want to see them or just enjoy all the better shots that people have been getting?
Do any of you do video editing ... perhaps for a podcast or maybe personal home videos? If so, what is the best, most easily used video editing software out there?
I don't need all the bells & whistles, but will need features like splicing video segments (from diff't sources) together, some nice (not over the top) transitions, ease of use, & good quality end results.
Was für eine Nacht. Mit Polarlicht war ja zu rechnen, aber die Intensität hat mich dann doch umgehauen!
Kleine Anmerkung zu den Bildern, das Auge nimmt die Farben nicht so intensiv wahr. Ich hänge euch noch eine andere Version an die mehr dem visuellen Eindruck entspricht. #Polarlichter#aurora#auroraborealis#Astrodon#Nachthimmel