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Posted by David Shortt on 2013/09/27 01:30 CDT | 10 comments
With the recent announcement by NASA that the 36 year-old spacecraft Voyager 1 has officially entered interstellar space at a distance from the sun about four times further than Neptune's orbit, and with Voyager 2 not far behind, it seems worthwhile to explore how humans managed to fling objects so far into space.
Jupiter and Io from Pioneer 10
Posted by Ted Stryk on 2013/08/02 04:25 CDT | 1 comments
This is a parting shot of Jupiter and Io, taken December 5, 1973, by the Pioneer 10 spacecraft, the first to see either world as a crescent.
Movie SciFi With Real Science? What a Concept!
Europa Report is available on demand and online, and in theaters on August 2
Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2013/07/30 10:14 CDT | 1 comments
This week's Planetary Radio features the new indy film that relies on the best available science to create a thrilling and inspiring human mission to Jupiter's moon.
Posted by Bill Dunford on 2013/04/15 02:08 CDT | 3 comments
Cassini's unique views of Jupiter and Saturn.
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2013/03/12 01:57 CDT | 2 comments
We don't have any spacecraft at Jupiter right now, which is a pity. Until we do, we have to rely upon Earth-based astronomers to monitor the changing face of the largest planet.
Instruments for the JUICE Jovian Mission
Posted by Van Kane on 2013/03/07 12:20 CST | 6 comments
The European Space Agency (ESA) announced the list of instruments selected for its JUICE mission to explore the Jovian system for three years starting in the 2030 following a 2022 launch.
Voyager 1 revisited: Io and Europa transiting Jupiter
Posted by Björn Jónsson on 2013/01/22 06:04 CST
What is the highest resolution global Jupiter mosaic that includes a satellite transit that can be assembled from Voyager images? Satellite transits are especially beautiful when the resolution is high enough for some details to be visible on the satellites so I decided to check this. And I was remarkably lucky.
Pretty picture: Jupiter photo from an unusual source
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2012/12/26 01:02 CST | 4 comments
A recently launched Earth-observing satellite is using the stars to practice its pointing, and caught a neat animation of Jupiter.
A couple of gems from the archives
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2012/09/10 11:07 CDT | 2 comments
We're still working on migrating content from the old to the new website. This week, that means I am looking, one by one, through some great amateur-processed space images.
A Voyager 1 anniversary mosaic
Posted by Björn Jónsson on 2012/09/06 11:58 CDT
Back in 1979 the twin Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft flew by Jupiter. Some of their images were processed into color images and mosaics that have appeared countless times in books, magazines, on TV and on the Internet. Many of these images and mosaics are spectacular but they were processed more than 30 years ago using computers that are extremely primitive by today's standards. It's possible to get better results by processing the original, raw images from the Voyagers using modern computers and software.
Full Free Intro Astronomy Class Now Online
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2012/05/22 02:57 CDT | 1 comments
Bruce Betts' complete CSUDH Intro Astronomy and Planetary Science class is now available online. Find out how to access it, and go behind the scenes.
Snapshots From Space Video: Revealing Jupiter's (Mostly) Unseen Treasures
Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/03/18 01:46 CDT | 2 comments
Tens of thousands of Jupiter images were taken by the Voyager spacecraft, but relatively few have been processed to reveal their true beauty and wonder. The latest Snapshots video from Emily Lakdawalla explains why.
Pretty Picture: A snapshot of Voyager 1's departure from Jupiter
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2012/03/13 04:08 CDT
In this week's Snapshots from Space video, I talk about the Voyager 1 images of Jupiter -- how many there are (tens of thousands), and what a challenge they represent for image processors. But, I promise, the effort is worth it. Here's just one example: it's a color, crescent view of Jupiter, taken by Voyager 1 as it departed.
Pretty pictures: Voyager 2 at Jupiter
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2012/03/02 01:22 CST
Here are two perfect examples of Voyager 2's amazing untapped treasures.
Checking up on Jupiter and Saturn
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2012/02/10 01:51 CST
It's amateur astronomers, not professionals, who are shouldering the burden of constant monitoring of the weather on Jupiter and Saturn. What's going on these days in the outer solar system?�
At last: Rosetta's Mars flyby photos have been released!
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2012/01/24 03:51 CST
At last: Rosetta's Mars flyby photos have been released!
Blast from the past: Pioneer 10 and 11 pictures of Jupiter
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2011/09/07 02:06 CDT
Here's a few pretty pictures that were recently dusted off by Ted Stryk. Pioneer 10 and 11 passed by Jupiter on December 4, 1973, and December 3, 1974, respectively. Here are three pictures from those two encounters, in versions newly processed by Ted from scanned photographic prints found during a research trip to NASA's Ames Research Center.
Jupiter's southern belt is coming back
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2011/08/01 09:34 CDT
In a story that I've been following for quite a while, Jupiter's southern equatorial belt, having faded to white in 2009, is now well on its way back to its former red glory.
Memo to early risers: Look up!
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2011/05/02 11:46 CDT
There is a traffic jam of planets on the eastern horizon in the early morning right now and for the next several weeks, a prize for those of you who have to rise before dawn.
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2011/05/02 11:26 CDT
Space.com has taken advantage of the infinitely scrollable nature of Web pages to produce a really cool infographic on the scales of orbital distances in the solar system.
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