Posted on Jul 13, 2022 in Astrobiology, Astronomy, Cosmology, Dark Matter, Exoplanets, Extraterrestrial Life, James Webb Space Telescope, James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), Milky Way Galaxy, quantum physics, Science, Science News, Space News, Technology, Universe
Today’s stories range from the headline to The Gaia Spacecraft has identified two giant new planets in the Milky Way to James Webb Space Telescope team quietly releases a picture of Jupiter to Building Blocks of RNA Spotted at the Center of the Milky Way to Dark Matter Doesn’t Exist, and much more.
Webb Telescope Reveals a New Vision of an Ancient Universe--“On Tuesday the James Webb Space Telescope, the most powerful space observatory yet built, offered a spectacular slide show of our previously invisible nascent cosmos. Ancient galaxies carpeting the sky like jewels on black velvet. Fledgling stars shining out from deep within cumulus clouds of interstellar dust. Hints of water vapor in the atmosphere of a remote exoplanet,” reports The New York Times.
The massive, strange Comet K2 is touring the solar system, surprising scientists as it goes, reports Space.com. “It’s kind of like being able to touch something from the beginning of the solar system.”
The Gaia Spacecraft has identified two giant new planets in the Milky Way –Tel Aviv University team who led the research say Gaia’s innovative technology is sparking a true revolution in the world of astronomy, reports THe Jerusalem Post. “The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Gaia space observatory has for the first time identified two new, giant planets – named Gaia-1b and Gaia-2b – in remote solar systems.”
Quantum signals could allow aliens to communicate across Milky Way, reports The Express. “theoretical physicist Professor Arjun Berera told Express.co.uk, it is quite possible that alien civilizations may have progressed to more advanced forms of communication — and we should be looking for signs of a quantum approach.”
He Fixed NASA’s Giant Space Telescope, Reluctantly –-Gregory Robinson was enjoying another job when NASA persuaded him to take on an enormous astronomy project that was billions of dollars over budget and years behind schedule, reports the New York Times.
James Webb Space Telescope team quietly releases a picture of Jupiter–On top of the first high-resolution science images that NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope team has just released, there was also a picture of Jupiter hidden in a document about telescope testing, reports New Scientist.
How the James Webb Space Telescope’s first color images were made –Joseph DePasquale, the lead image processor for the James Webb Space Telescope, says seeing its first color picture was an “overwhelming” experience, reports New Scientist.
Meet the Woman Who Makes the James Webb Space Telescope Work, reports Scientific American. Jane Rigby, Webb’s operations project scientist, discusses how NASA plans to wring as much science as possible from the $10-billion observatory
James Webb Space Telescope Set to Study Two Strange Super-Earths –Space agency officials promise to deliver geology results from worlds dozens of light-years away, reports Scientific American. “The James Webb Space Telescope plans to explore strange, new rocky worlds in unprecedented detail. The telescope’s scientific consortium has an ambitious agenda to study geology on these small planets from “50 light-years away.”
Building Blocks of RNA Spotted at the Center of the Milky Way –The finding could add credence to the ‘RNA world’ hypothesis about the origin of life on Earth, reports Gizmodo. “A team of researchers say they’ve found some building blocks of RNA in a molecular cloud close to the center of the Milky Way. The discovery has implications for theories about how life began on Earth—and perhaps elsewhere.”
Dark Matter Doesn’t Exist–Cosmology’s collective delusion, reports the IAI–“A host of other observational tests support the conclusion: dark matter is not there. The implications of this are nothing short of a revision of Einstein’s theory of gravitation. Why the scientific community is in denial about the falsification of the dark matter model is a question that requires both a sociological and philosophical explanation, argues Pavel Kroupa.”
James Webb’s first science images: before-and-after — “The first five science targets for the James Webb Space Telescope were chosen in secret, and the data was finally released on July 12, 2022. From star-forming regions to its first spectrum of an exoplanet to a stellar remnant to a galaxy group to a deep-field image, we’re seeing a panoply of JWST’s capabilities right away. It’s an audacious and impressive start to what should be a 20+ year science mission for JWST, with a slew of impressive new discoveries to kick things off, reports Big Think.
Massive Black Holes Existed Before the First Stars of the Universe, reports The Daily Galaxy. “Supermassive black holes formed very, very quickly in the early Universe over very, very short periods of time and then suddenly, they stop.”
Scientists Marvel at NASA Webb Telescope’s New Views of the Cosmos –On Tuesday, NASA rolled out a series of unforgettable scenes of the universe captured by the largest space observatory ever built, reports The New York Times
World’s Astronomers Share Their Expectations for the James Webb Space Telescope reports The Daily Galaxy. “I hope that we can glimpse the first signs of life on rocky planets orbiting different stars.
The Lonely Work of Picking the Universe’s Best Astronomy Pictures, reports Jonathan Sokol for The New York Times. In June, specialists gathered in Baltimore to select images from the James Webb Space Telescope to share with the public. Keeping the results to themselves hasn’t been easy.
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