Octopus Overlords

The Hubble Space Telescope has been snapping pictures of the universe for the best part of 35 years, and now astronomers have completed a magnificent 417-megapixel photomosaic of the Andromeda galaxy. And the key takeaway? It's a galactic "trainwreck."

The 42,208 by 9,870 pixel panorama features 200 million stars, a mere fraction of the one trillion stars in the Andromeda galaxy overall (via PetaPixel). The galaxy was originally believed to be part of our very own Milky Way, but it was Edwin Hubble himself who first determined that it was a separate entity, confirming that the Milky Way was not the extent of the universe and furthering our understanding of the vast darkness in which we exist.

Now, thanks to over 1,000 Hubble orbits and a decade's worth of snaps, we've got our most complete view of it yet. And according to Daniel Weisz, associate professor of astronomy at the University of California: “Andromeda’s a train wreck. It looks like it has been through some kind of event that caused it to form a lot of stars and then just shut down.

“This was probably due to a collision with another galaxy in the neighborhood.”

wonderpug wrote: Sat Jan 18, 2025 2:11 pm Has the upcoming planetary alignment been mentioned? We've got 6 planets aligning (parading?) next Tuesday the 21st, then on February 28 we'll get 7 planets parading/aligning.

In a fascinating twist, a mini-moon temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity in late 2024 has been confirmed to have originated from the Moon. Named 2024 PT5, this asteroid not only reveals its lunar roots through its unique composition but also offers scientists an unprecedented opportunity to explore the Moon’s past.

In a discovery that blurs the line between Earth’s celestial neighbors, scientists have traced the origins of 2024 PT5, an asteroid temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity in late 2024, back to the Moon. This mini-moon, only about 10 meters (33 feet) wide, spent nearly two months orbiting near Earth before continuing on its Sun-bound path. What sets this object apart is its unique composition, confirming its lunar origin.
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The first clue that 2024 PT5 might have originated from the Moon came from its Earth-like orbit around the Sun, closely mirroring our planet’s path. Detected on August 7, 2024, by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) in South Africa, the object initially seemed like just another near-Earth asteroid. However, closer study revealed that it defied expectations.

“We had a general idea that this asteroid may have come from the Moon, but the smoking gun was when we found out that it was rich in silicate minerals — not the kind that are seen on asteroids but those that have been found in lunar rock samples,” said Dr. Teddy Kareta, an astronomer at Lowell Observatory.

“It looks like it hasn’t been in space for very long, maybe just a few thousand years or so, as there’s a lack of space weathering that would have caused its spectrum to redden,” noted Dr. Kareta.

This finding suggests that 2024 PT5 may have been ejected relatively recently by a significant lunar impact. Such fresh debris provides a unique window into the Moon’s more recent geological history, offering scientists a rare opportunity to study material that hasn’t been extensively altered by time.

A newly discovered asteroid, designated 2024 YR4, has a 1-in-83 chance of striking Earth in December of 2032. The asteroid is estimated to be 196 feet (60 meters) wide, and it is currently 27 million miles away.

The near-Earth object (NEO) discovered in 2024, which is around half as wide as a football field is long, will make a very close approach to Earth on Dec. 22, 2032. It's estimated to come within around 66,000 miles (106,200 kilometers) of Earth on that day, according to NASA's Center of NEO Studies (CNEOS). However, when orbital uncertainties are considered, that close approach could turn out to be a direct hit on our planet.

Such an impact could cause an explosion in the atmosphere, called an "airburst," or could cause an impact crater when it slams into the ground.

This is enough to see asteroid 2024 YR4 leap to the top of the European Space Agency's NEO impact Risk List and NASA's Sentry Risk Table.

The asteroid is rated three on the Torino risk scale, which indicates a close encounter that warrants close attention from astronomers and an over 1% chance of impact.

jztemple2 wrote: Tue Jan 28, 2025 7:32 pm Astronomers discover 196-foot asteroid with 1-in-83 chance of hitting Earth in 2032

A newly discovered asteroid, designated 2024 YR4, has a 1-in-83 chance of striking Earth in December of 2032. The asteroid is estimated to be 196 feet (60 meters) wide, and it is currently 27 million miles away.

The near-Earth object (NEO) discovered in 2024, which is around half as wide as a football field is long, will make a very close approach to Earth on Dec. 22, 2032. It's estimated to come within around 66,000 miles (106,200 kilometers) of Earth on that day, according to NASA's Center of NEO Studies (CNEOS). However, when orbital uncertainties are considered, that close approach could turn out to be a direct hit on our planet.

Such an impact could cause an explosion in the atmosphere, called an "airburst," or could cause an impact crater when it slams into the ground.

This is enough to see asteroid 2024 YR4 leap to the top of the European Space Agency's NEO impact Risk List and NASA's Sentry Risk Table.

The asteroid is rated three on the Torino risk scale, which indicates a close encounter that warrants close attention from astronomers and an over 1% chance of impact.

Nature had the conditions to "cook up" the chemical precursor ingredients for life before Earth formed, according to two studies published by the sample analysis team of NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission, which is led by Dante Lauretta at the University of Arizona.

The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft returned a sample from asteroid Bennu in 2023, and following a year of in-depth analyses in labs across the globe, researchers conclude that these conditions and ingredients may have been common across the solar system, increasing the odds of life forming on other planets and moons.
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Bennu coalesced from a small portion of the leftover rubble resulting from a giant collision of asteroids. Preserved in the vacuum of space since the solar system's formation about 4.5 billion years ago, the samples have provided scientists with unparalleled insights into the conditions of that era.
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Bennu’s molecular composition suggests the ice and organic compounds in its parent body originated in the extremely cold outermost disk of gas and dust that gave rise to the solar system.
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Given the right environment, ammonia can react with formaldehyde, which was also detected in the samples, to form complex molecules such as amino acids – the building blocks of proteins. Fourteen of the 20 amino acids that life on Earth uses to make proteins are found in the Bennu sample. The research team also found all five nucleobases that life on Earth uses to encode structural information in more complex biomolecules like DNA and RNA.