News tagged with observatory

Solar Dynamics Observatory to observe Venus transit

On June 5, 2012 at 6:03 PM EDT, the planet Venus will do something it has done only seven times since the invention of the telescope: cross in front of the sun. This transit is among the rarest of planetary ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created 12 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Newly found asteroid buzzes Earth

A newly found space rock will give Earth a close shave on May 29, passing by at a distance of just 14,440 kilometers (8,950 miles). That distance puts the small asteroid, named 2012 KT42, in the top ten list ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 29, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 0

Astronomers seize last chance in lifetime for Venus Transit

Astronomers are gearing for one the rarest events in the Solar System: an alignment of Earth, Venus and the Sun that will not be seen for another 105 years.

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 26, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 3

Herschel reveals galaxy-packed filament

(Phys.org) -- A McGill-led research team using the Herschel Space Observatory has discovered a giant, galaxy-packed filament ablaze with billions of new stars. The filament connects two clusters of galaxies ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 17, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (9) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Celestial tapestry is born of uncertain parentage

(Phys.org) -- A new Legacy Image from the Gemini Observatory reveals the remarkable complexity of the planetary nebula Sharpless 2-71 (Sh 2-71). Embroiled in a bit of controversy over its “birth parents” ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 17, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

A deeper look at Centaurus A

(Phys.org) -- The strange galaxy Centaurus A is pictured in a new image from the European Southern Observatory. With a total exposure time of more than 50 hours this is probably the deepest view of this peculiar ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 16, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Nasa's new carbon-counting instrument leaves the nest

(Phys.org) -- Its construction now complete, the science instrument that is the heart of NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) spacecraft - NASA's first mission dedicated to studying atmospheric carbon ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created May 11, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 30

Early results of the GREAT instrument onboard the SOFIA airborne observatory

Astronomy & Astrophysics is publishing a special feature devoted to the early results obtained during the first science flights of the airborne observatory SOFIA with the GREAT far-infrared instrument. We pre ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Massive black holes halt star birth in distant galaxies

Astronomers, using the European Space Agency's (ESA) Herschel Space Observatory, have shown that the number of stars that form during the early lives of galaxies may be influenced by the massive black holes ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 09, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (7) | comments 34 | with audio podcast

A cluster within a cluster

(Phys.org) -- The star cluster NGC 6604 is shown in this new image taken by the Wide Field Imager attached to the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile. It is often overlooked in ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Spitzer finds galaxy with split personality

(Phys.org) -- While some galaxies are rotund and others are slender disks like our spiral Milky Way, new observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope show that the Sombrero galaxy is both. The galaxy, ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (3) | comments 11 | with audio podcast

Japan astronomers find most distant galaxy cluster

Japanese astronomers said Wednesday they had found a cluster of galaxies 12.72 billion light-years away from Earth, which they claim is the most distant cluster ever discovered.

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (15) | comments 34

James Webb Telescope spinoff technologies already seen in some industries

A critical component of the James Webb Space Telescope is its new technology. Much of the technology for the Webb had to be conceived, designed and built specifically to enable it to see farther back in time. ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Apr 18, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (17) | comments 5

Serious blow to dark matter theories? New study finds mysterious lack of dark matter in Sun's neighborhood

(Phys.org) -- The most accurate study so far of the motions of stars in the Milky Way has found no evidence for dark matter in a large volume around the Sun. According to widely accepted theories, the solar ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Apr 18, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (45) | comments 164 | with audio podcast

NASA selects science instrument upgrade for flying observatory

NASA has selected a science instrument upgrade to the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) airborne observatory. The instrument, the High-resolution Airborne Wideband Camera (HAWC), will provide a sensitive, ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Apr 18, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Observatory

An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial and/or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geology, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. Historically, observatories were as simple as containing an astronomical sextant (for measuring the distance between stars) or Stonehenge (which has some alignments on astronomical phenomena).

For more information about Observatory, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Related topics: earth , telescope , nasa , planets