I have just received word from OPT sales that the new Celestron Edge 800HD OTA has shipped. This telescope will be the scope most used in the new observatory building along with the Meade 80mm ED 5000 APO widefield refractor. The skies will certainly be cloudy for months now… I should be seeing its arrival some time …
Extension Cables
NASA IOTD
Remnant of a Supernova
Vital clues about the devastating ends to the lives of massive stars can be found by studying the aftermath of their explosions. In its more than twelve years of science operations, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has studied many of these supernova remnants sprinkled across the galaxy. The latest example of this important investigation is Chandra's new image of the supernova remnant known as G350.1-0.3. This stellar debris field is located some 14,700 light years from the Earth toward the center of the Milky Way. Evidence from Chandra and from ESA's XMM-Newton telescope suggest that a compact object within G350.1+0.3 may be the dense core of the star that exploded. The position of this likely neutron star, seen by the arrow pointing to "neutron star" in the inset image, is well away from the center of the X-ray emission. If the supernova explosion occurred near the center of the X-ray emission then the neutron star must have received a powerful kick in the supernova explosion. Data suggest this supernova remnant, as it appears in the image, is 600 and 1,200 years old. If the estimated location of the explosion is correct, this means the neutron star has been moving at a speed of at least 3 million miles per hour since the explosion. Another intriguing aspect of G350.1-0.3 is its unusual shape. Many supernova remnants are nearly circular, but G350.1-0.3 is strikingly asymmetrical as seen in the Chandra data in this image (gold). Infrared data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope (light blue) also trace the morphology found by Chandra. Astronomers think that this bizarre shape is due to stellar debris field expanding into a nearby cloud of cold molecular gas. The age of 600-1,200 years puts the explosion that created G350.1-0.3 in the same time frame as other famous supernovas that formed the Crab and SN 1006 supernova remnants. However, it is unlikely that anyone on Earth would have seen the explosion because of the obscuring gas and dust that lies along our line of sight to the remnant. These results appeared in the April 10, 2011 issue of The Astrophysical Journal. Image Credits: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/I. Lovchinsky et al; IR: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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Monthly Archive: December 2009
Dec
29
2009
Permanent link to this article: http://www.daltonskygazer.com/new-ota-has-shipped.html
Dec
27
2009
Some updates on DaltonSkyGazer
I have just heard that the observatory is almost ready to be relocated. I am in process of making arrangements to relocate the observatory to Dalton. Ray Shore of AstroPhotographyTonight will be posting articles from time to time on DaltonSkyGazer. Ray has been busy on his own site with some great reviews and instructions focusing on …
Permanent link to this article: http://www.daltonskygazer.com/some-updates-on-daltonskygazer.html
Dec
25
2009
Christmas night, humidity on the mind….
It is Christmas night and I am at work ensuring a supply of steam to the buildings and grounds. When I think of steam I think of moisture, humidity, accelerated oxidization. If you have rapid oxidization you have combustion, something I know a thing or two about! These are naturally occurring events which in time …
Permanent link to this article: http://www.daltonskygazer.com/christmas-night-and-at-work.html
Dec
24
2009
Early and unexpected Christmas Gift……….Observatory building
During the month of December with a little luck and through a friend I have managed to find an observatory for sale. The observatory is located about 3hrs. drive from my house. I have bought the observatory and will be making arrangements soon to relocate the building. I will pick up the building over the …
Permanent link to this article: http://www.daltonskygazer.com/observatory-building.html