Starship Asterisk*

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100318.jpg Fermi Catalogs the Gamma ray Sky Explanation: What shines in the gamma-ray sky? The most complete answer yet to that question is offered by the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope's first all-sky catalog . Fermi's sources of cosmic gamma-rays feature natu...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100317.jpg Phobos from Mars Express Explanation: Why is this small object orbiting Mars? The origin of Phobos , the larger of the two moons orbiting Mars, remains unknown. Phobos and Deimos appear very similar to C-type asteroids , yet gravitationally capturing ...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100316.jpg Detailed View of a Solar Eclipse Corona Explanation: Only in the fleeting darkness of a total solar eclipse is the light of the solar corona easily visible. Normally overwhelmed by the bright solar disk, the expansive corona , the sun's outer atmosphe...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100315.jpg Illuminated Cloud Trails Above Greece Explanation: It may appear to be day, but it's night. Those wondrous orange streaks may appear to be rays from the setting Sun, but they're actually thin clouds illuminated by the Moon as they quickly streaked tow...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100314.jpg Binary Black Hole in 3C 75 Explanation: What's happening in the middle of this massive galaxy? There, two bright sources at the center of this composite x-ray (blue)/ radio (pink) image are thought to be co-orbiting supermassive black holes powering t...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100313.jpg Centaurus A Explanation: Only 11 million light-years away, Centaurus A is the closest active galaxy to planet Earth. Spanning over 60,000 light-years, the peculiar elliptical galaxy, also known as NGC 5128 , is featured in this sharp color image. Cent...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100312.jpg JWST: Mirrors and Masked Men Explanation: Who are these masked men? Technicians from Ball Aerospace and NASA at Marshall Space Flight Center's X-ray and Cryogenic Facility, of course, testing primary mirror segments of the James Webb Space Telescope (...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100311.jpg Yukon Aurora with Star Trails Explanation: Fixed to a tripod, a camera can record graceful trails traced by stars as planet Earth rotates on its axis. But at high latitudes during March and April, it can also capture an aurora shimmering in the night....

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100310.jpg Saturns Moon Helene from Cassini Explanation: What's happening on the surface of Saturn's moon Helene? The moon was imaged in unprecedented detail last week as the robotic Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn swooped to within two Earth diameters of the...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100309.jpg Galaxies Beyond the Heart: Maffei 1 and 2 Explanation: The two galaxies on the far left were unknown until 1968. Although they would have appeared as two of the brighter galaxies on the night sky, the opaque dust of the central band of our Milky Way G...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100308.jpg Mars Over the Allalinhorn Explanation: What's that bright object in the sky? A common question with answers that vary by time and season , the quick answer just after sunset in middle of last month, from the norther hemisphere, was Mars. The above pic...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100307.jpg Spirit Rover at Engineering Flats on Mars Explanation: Is it art? If so, the paintbrush was the Spirit robotic rover , the canvas was the soil on Mars , and the artists were the scientists and engineers of the Mars Exploration Rover Mission. This pano...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100306.jpg Pillar at Sunset Explanation: Reddened light from the setting Sun illuminates the cloud banks hugging this snowy, rugged terrain. Inspiring a moment of quiet contemplation, the sunset scene included a remarkable pillar of light that seemed to connect ...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100305.jpg Deep Auriga Explanation: The plane of our Milky Way Galaxy runs right through Auriga , the Charioteer . A good part of the ancient northern constellation's rich collection of nebulae and star clusters is featured in this expansive, 10 degree wide skys...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100304.jpg NGC 4565: Galaxy on Edge Explanation: Magnificent spiral galaxy NGC 4565 is viewed edge-on from planet Earth. Also known as the Needle Galaxy for its narrow profile, bright NGC 4565 is a stop on many telescopic tours of the northern sky, in the faint ...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100303.jpg The International Space Station from Above Explanation: The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest human-made object ever to orbit the Earth . The ISS is so large that it can be seen drifting overhead with the unaided eye , and is frequently...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100302.jpg M78 and Reflecting Dust Clouds in Orion Explanation: An eerie blue glow and ominous columns of dark dust highlight M78 and other bright reflection nebula in the constellation of Orion . The dark filamentary dust not only absorbs light, but also reflec...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100301.jpg Slope Streaks in Acheron Fossae on Mars Explanation: What creates these picturesque dark streaks on Mars? No one knows for sure. A leading hypothesis is that streaks like these are caused by fine grained sand sliding down the banks of troughs and crat...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100228.jpg Pauli Exclusion Principle: Why You Don't Implode Explanation: Why doesn't matter just bunch up? The same principle that keeps neutron stars and white dwarf stars from imploding also keeps people from imploding and makes normal matter mostly empty spac...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100227.jpg Dawn's Endeavour Explanation: On February 21st, the Space Shuttle Endeavour and the International Space Station (ISS) flew through the sky near dawn over Whitby, Ontario, Canada. Along with star trails, both were captured in this single time exposure....

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100226.jpg Chasing Carina Explanation: A jewel of the southern sky, the Great Carina Nebula , aka NGC 3372, spans over 300 light-years. Near the upper right of this expansive skycape , it is much larger than the more northerly Orion Nebula . In fact, the Carina ...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100225.jpg Edge on Spiral Galaxy NGC 891 Explanation: This beautiful cosmic portrait features NGC 891 . The spiral galaxy spans about 100 thousand light-years and is seen almost exactly edge-on from our perspective. In fact, about 30 million light-years distant ...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100224.jpg Astronaut Installs Panoramic Space Window Explanation: This space job was almost complete. Floating just below the International Space Station , astronaut Nicholas Patrick put some finishing touches on the newly installed cupola space windows last wee...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100223.jpg Exceptional Rocket Waves Destroy Sun Dog Explanation: What created those rocket waves, and why did they destroy that sun dog? Close inspection of the above image shows not only a rocket rising near the center, but unusual air ripples around it and a c...

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_100222.jpg Galaxy Group Hickson 31 Explanation: Will the result of these galactic collisions be one big elliptical galaxy ? Quite possibly, but not for another billion years. Pictured above , several of the dwarf galaxies of in the Hickson Compact Group 31 are s...