New photos from the Webb telescope and upcoming launch

[Breanna]

Hi everyone!

The full moon will grace us with her presence this Saturday so with that in mind, I thought I'd have a look at the recent "Space News" and was definitely not disappointed!

On August 22nd, 2022, NASA released two new composite images of Jupiter, including its rings and satellites and even some distant galaxies.

It's not as simple as taking a picture though. Using the observatory’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam), massive amounts of data are collected, packaged and sent to the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). The raw data then has to be translated into an image based on the brightness detected by the space telescope. On top of all that, processing this data to create a static image is made even harder because Jupiter rotates really fast.

If you want to read more about it, check out the NASA press release.

Webb NIRCam composite image from two filters – F212N (orange) and F335M (cyan) – of Jupiter system, unlabeled (top) and labeled (bottom). Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Jupiter ERS Team; image processing by Ricardo Hueso (UPV/EHU) and Judy Schmidt.

As you may have seen by now, the Artemis I mission will be staying a little closer to home. It's the first test mission that should see astronauts back on the moon by 2024. There won't be any humans onboard this time but the capsule itself will go on a 42 day journey and orbit the moon 1.5 times before plunging back into earth's atmosphere.

The capsule was originally set to launch on August 29th but was scrubbed due to an engine malfunction and again on September 3rd when they couldn't troubleshoot a liquid nitrogen leak in time for lift-off. There are two launch windows coming up through Autumn but they hope the rocket will launch on September 19th. Many hope that the Artemis missions will inspire a new generation of scientists, much like those who were inspired by the Apollo missions over 50 years ago. 

Credits: NASA/Ben Smegelsky

 Lots of neat information about the Artemis program over here.

If you ever have the chance to visit the Kennedy Space Center, definitely take the time to go. It sounds a bit boring but the absolutely massive scale of these rockets will blow your mind.

Visitors to Florida might even get treated to a bizarrely disturbing "space jellyfish" along with their Disney World fireworks display. Very cool, but very alarming to see while driving down the motorway!

[RunrigForever]

Thank you for posting @Breanna 

I am interested in Space Exploration, probably since the late Sir Patrick Moore presented the tv programme The Sky At Night ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... and clearly remember where I was when NASA put an astronaut on the moon ... = ... Neil Armstrong

btw, I was sitting in the little rocking chair in the dining room of my family's home in West Yorkshire en-wrapt as to what was on the tv screen ... in monochrome then

Harvest Moon this weekend as @Breanna has informed us above xx

[Cleoriff]

I have been to the Kennedy Space centre twice. As @Breanna said, the size of the place in breathtaking.Thanks for the latest info on Artemis @Breanna. Certainly need to get everything working correctly before it's launched. Such an expensive project.

[Breanna]

@RunrigForever I was fascinated by space as a child. It's unbelievable now how many fewer visible stars there seem to be. We could see the bands of stars and even the auroras and now the same spot is just dark 😢. I did see a very sparkly something in the sky last night so I still love it. My husband was more concerned with taking out the bins.

@Cleoriff I hope they get it right too! I'm not really sold on spending all this money and resources on space exploration since Earth is in rather rough shape. I remember when the Columbia Shuttle went down. I was at my grandmother's house for the week and pieces of it fell into her garden. 

[RunrigForever]

The results of NASAspace exploration should be shared with the World. India should spend its money on looking after the many many poor people who live at below subsistence level. *Rant over*

Yes, @Breanna I can remember as a little girl looking out of my bedroom window looking at the stars and learning the constellations. 

[Breanna]

I would like to add that all developed countries should do that. The United States is among the worst in income, poverty, food, medical, etc. disparities and yet the money goes to more "important" places.