APOD: Novel Coronavirus Attacks Humanity (2020 Jun 02)

[APOD Robot]

Novel Coronavirus Attacks Humanity

Explanation: Humanity is under attack. The attack is not from large tentacle-flailing aliens, but from invaders so small they can barely be seen, and so strange they are not even clearly alive. All over planet Earth, the human home world, DNA-based humans are being invaded by the RNA-based SARS-CoV2. The virus, which creates a disease known as COVID-19, specializes in reprogramming human cells into zombies that manufacture and release copies of itself. Pictured here is a high magnification image of a human cell covered by attacking novel coronavirus SARS-CoV2 (orange). Epic battles where two species square off in a fight to the death are not unusual on Earth, with several just involving humans typically ongoing at any time. Even so, most humans are predicted to survive. After several years, humanity expects to win this war -- but only after millions of humans have died and trillions of coronaviruses have been destroyed.

<< Previous APOD

This Day in APOD

Next APOD >>

[Iksarfighter]

Hello,
What kind of human cell is this one please ?
TY

[WWW]

Now NASA's APOD decides to goes viral?

(Should we assume that no one took pictures of the manned space launch just a few days ago? )

[Ann]

I don't usually complain about APODs that deal with Earthly phenomena, because many things that happen on the Earth, like storms and volcanoes, most certainly happen on other planets too.

But the Corona virus, SARS-CoV-2, is an exclusively Earthly phenomenon. This virus is dependent on two or more Earthly hosts, and it is not going to be found anywhere else in the Universe.

I think there are better ways to display the uniqueness of Earth than highlighting the Corona virus.

Ann

[Ralphkayaker]

A frightening and thought-provoking picture. The real world is far more amazing and dangerous than any sci-fi alien imaginations. Thanks for showing this amazing image!

[Bill Bruehl]

You have done us all a service publishing this image. Why? Because the scary thing about humans is that we tend to disbelieve or discount a threat until we can see it. This image ought convince all those who shrug off Covid-19.

[orin stepanek]

It's as ugly as it is nasaty!

What's this? penis eater? Found when I clicked on zombies

p03d9r46.jpg (10.46 KiB) Viewed 11620 times

[Tszabeau]

So much for escapism.

[jambo]

I'm disappointed and ashamed today at the response of some of the APOD community's response. The universe is vast telescopically and microscopically. We are not subscribing to this delightful forum with big $$ and no one is obligated to view it. If you don't like the post, there's no need to throw rocks; just close it and move on.

[jaysmc]

What does this have to do with astronomy? Please remove this and hire some people who understand the difference between astronomy and health sciences.
And, the description is inane. Even child at the grade school level would know more than whoever wrote this description.

[Chris Peterson]

Some people need to get a life, or build their own apod site, if they can't deal with an editor tossing out something of general scientific interest, not just astronomy, a few times a year.

[wilhuf]

Today's APOD is so good that I need to praise the editors.

What is great about it?

1. The use of orange to portray the menacing threat of the virus. This helps the reader clearly identify the threat by color and how strange the contaminant is within its host.

2. The numerousness of the virus particles. The image clearly highlights the extent of the threat's viral adherents. And how effective the virus is at contaminating its hosts cells, converting them into unthinking zombie cell factories.

3. A tangible visualization of the conflict for control over the host, and how if ignored, the virus could control, overrun, and destroy its host.

Authors have hypothesized that some viruses arrived from meteors, and exist in low orbit over earth. It would be interesting to see a link to a report on this.

Well done, APOD, and I love the images and explanations. I always start my day with APOD first thing, because it gives me perspectives and insights I can't get anywhere else.

[skyrish]

Hello,
What kind of human cell is this one please ?
TY

Yes, please, I also would like to know.

And shame on the very aggressive attackers. There is no need for that level of disrespect. Grow up.

[orin stepanek]

Today's APOD is so good that I need to praise the editors.

Authors have hypothesized that some viruses arrived from meteors, and exist in low orbit over earth. It would be interesting to see a link to a report on this.

I've thought this; I don't think anything has been found to prove it though!

[Chris Peterson]

Hello,
What kind of human cell is this one please ?

Whatever kind of cell it is, the way it appears in this image isn't how it would appear if healthy. All of those complex extrusions and blebs are the product of apoptosis- programmed cell death. This cell is in the process of killing itself, which has drastically altered its morphology.

[TheZuke!]

Authors have hypothesized that some viruses arrived from meteors, and exist in low orbit over earth. It would be interesting to see a link to a report on this.

Another theory on the origin of virii is that they devolved from more complex organisms.
That is seen in a salmon virus that has vestiges of eyes.

[Chris Peterson]

Authors have hypothesized that some viruses arrived from meteors, and exist in low orbit over earth. It would be interesting to see a link to a report on this.

Another theory on the origin of virii is that they devolved from more complex organisms.
That is seen in a salmon virus that has vestiges of eyes.

A virus is a sort of parasite. It depends entirely on other organisms in order to propagate itself. So it seems like something that would have only evolved after the more complex organisms it depends upon. Either evolving from those organisms, or from scratch. I can believe a living microorganism might arrive on a meteorite, but a virus seems very unlikely (unless it is from someplace like Mars, already hosting a nucleic acid based system of life).

[Sa Ji Tario]

Shortly after the epidemic began (later a pandemic), a Covid-19 documentary stating that this virus has already attacked humanity more than once due to DNA found in popular tombs from other, very ancient times. He also said that these viruses are very active at the beginning but as they are passed from human to human by the contagion they are attenuated by the natural defense interferon and then they become innocuous and literally disappear, but then they mutate and restart the wheel It is a characteristic of the influenza virus, hence the influenza vaccine is manufactured from new strains year after year.
With the confinement, the people settled into old customs and we returned to housework in free time, norabuena, then!
(Where this virus came from, officially I am not convinced by its argument, the people from where it arose always and for millennia accustomed to feeding what they were doing and that is why no epidemic was historically found among its population “to the best of my knowledge and belief”)

[RBRapha]

There's a lot of things happening in space but APOD thought today it is more useful to be "one more covid site" than a site for astronomy lovers.

First of all, most people are tired of seeing covid-19 things everywhere! From TV news to stores advertising, everything seems to talk about covid-19. There a lot of people getting sick just for hearing about it (source).

Please guys! Isn't there anything interesting happening? APOD solemnly ignored the SpaceX launch and ISS docking. Not a line about Martian magnetosphere as we see in this video; the former asteroid can be a strange comet; the biggest flare since 2017 from our Sun or how Oumuamua can be more strange than we thought.

By the way, there's hundreds of illness and other death causes that kill even more than covid-19. Will APOD become a health care site? An assurance company? Come on! There are thousands of sites talking about covid-19, from medical publishes to news agencies. People don't go there to see space related things.

And we don't come here to see more of the same. More of a thing we're tired of hearing about. And getting depressed. And anxious.

[UHv2Know]

"... but only after millions of humans have died..."

Really? Is this from another prediction model from clearly compromised sources such as the WHO or Imperial College?
One commenter is correct that we DON'T have to visit this site, simply move on. Oh well, so another formerly science-based webpage has given in to the sensationalized, fear-promoting, society restructuring official narrative.
I had to check the date to be sure it wasn't April 1st again.
So much for science.

[orin stepanek]

Well! Tomorrow APOD promises a Venus Picture! That should restore happiness; I hope!

[geckzilla]

Surprising response to today's APOD. Deleted a couple of posts that called this propaganda, because it is anti-science and a false claim that simple information regarding a virus is propaganda.

[nam888id]

Back in 1970s during the first energy crisis I was talking to my customer/friend/scientist that worked at NASA. He stated that NASA scientists could solve the energy crisis situation - very creative people, though they were not called upon. Reminds me of the attitude of Elon Musk and his scientists solving problems like making ventilators and making a capsule to get kids out of a flooded mine. Creativity of Minds in synergy is very powerful. For me, these space pictures of the day resonate with the bigness of Mind. This picture today is mind expanding for me.

[MarkBour]

Authors have hypothesized that some viruses arrived from meteors, and exist in low orbit over earth. It would be interesting to see a link to a report on this.

Another theory on the origin of virii is that they devolved from more complex organisms.
That is seen in a salmon virus that has vestiges of eyes.

Vestiges of eyes? What virus are you referring to?

[MarkBour]

"... but only after millions of humans have died..."

Really? Is this from another prediction model from clearly compromised sources such as the WHO or Imperial College?
One commenter is correct that we DON'T have to visit this site, simply move on. Oh well, so another formerly science-based webpage has given in to the sensationalized, fear-promoting, society restructuring official narrative.
I had to check the date to be sure it wasn't April 1st again.
So much for science.

@UHv2Know, your post is like a shot-gun blast of distrust and disagreement.

I'll list the facts, as best we know them today from the current world-wide collective reporting. As of the date of this post, about 376,000 people have died from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the current rate is about 4000 deaths per day at this time. Of course, only time will tell if the forecast in the APOD caption will be correct.