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Astronomy Picture Of the Day (APOD)
The Night Shift
17.12.1998
For the orbiting International Space Station (ISS), the sun sets every 90 minutes. But working through the night, spacewalking astronauts can rely on artificial lighting. Here, the eerie glow of work-lights illuminate Space Shuttle Endeavor astronaut Jerry Ross during a night on his
3-D Mars North Pole
16.12.1998
This dramatic premier three-dimensional visualization of Mars' north pole is based on elevation measurements made by an orbiting laser. During the Spring and Summer of 1998 the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) flashed laser pulses toward the Martian surface from the Global Surveyor spacecraft and recorded the time it took to detect the reflection.
Plains and Ridges on Europa
15.12.1998
The ridges on Europa may be caused by cold water volcanoes. Europa, one of the largest moons of Jupiter, has been the source of intense scrutiny since speculation increased of there being oceans beneath its icy surface.
The Hubble Deep Field South
14.12.1998
Among the faintest objects are some of the most unusual objects. The Hubble Deep Field South was released after much anticipation earlier this month, delivering a unique view of some of the most distant parts of our universe. Part of this field is shown above.
Blasting Off from the Moon
13.12.1998
How did the astronauts get back from the Moon? The Lunar Module that landed two astronauts on the Moon actually came apart. The top part containing the astronauts carried additional rocket fuel which allowed it to blast away, leaving the bottom part on the Moon forever.
Driving To The Sun
12.12.1998
How long would it take to drive to the Sun? Brittany, age 7, and D.J., age 12, ponder this question over dinner one evening. James, also age 7, suggests taking a really fast racing car while Christopher, age 4, eagerly agrees.
High Redshift Quasars
11.12.1998
Each red speck indicated above is a powerful quasar estimated to be over 100 times brighter than a galaxy. Yet in these Sloan Digital Sky Survey discovery images the quasars appear faint because they are extremely distant.
Assembling The International Space Station
10.12.1998
Batteries and solar panels were included with this version of the International Space Station (ISS) but some assembly is still required. On Saturday, December 5th, the STS-88 crew of the Space Shuttle Endeavor achieved the in orbit docking of the Zarya and Unity (foreground) ISS modules.
NGC 253: The Sculptor Galaxy
9.12.1998
NGC 253 is not only one of the brightest spiral galaxies visible, it is also one of the dustiest. Discovered in 1783 by Caroline Herschel in the constellation of Sculptor, NGC 253 lies only about ten million light-years distant.
Leonids from Leo
8.12.1998
Is Leo leaking? Leo, the famous sky constellation visible on the left of the above all-sky photograph, appears to be the source of all the meteors seen in this year's Leonids Meteor Shower.
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