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| Stripped down: Hubble highlights two galaxies that are losing it [heic0911] |
| A newly released set of images, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope before the recent Servicing Mission, highlights the ongoing drama in two galaxies in the Virgo Cluster affected by a process known as "ram pressure stripping", which can result in peculiar-looking galaxies. An extremely hot X-ray emitting gas known as the intra-cluster medium lurks between galaxies within clusters. As galaxies move through this intra-cluster medium, strong winds rip through galaxies distorting their shape and even halting star formation. |
| Date: 30 Sep 2009 |
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| MARSIS data reveal new method to measure the magnetic field of Mars |
| Unusual signals detected by the Mars Express MARSIS instrument have been used to determine the magnetic field strength of Mars. In a forthcoming issue of Icarus, Ferzan Akalin and colleagues demonstrate how the MARSIS instrument can be used as a magnetometer - an unexpected application with important consequences for studies of local plasma effects and the Mars Express spacecraft environment. |
| Date: 22 Sep 2009 |
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| Planck first light yields promising results |
| Preliminary results from the Planck First Light Survey, performed to demonstrate the stability of the instruments and the ability to calibrate them over long periods, indicate that the data quality is excellent. This bodes well for the full sky survey that has just begun. |
| Date: 17 Sep 2009 |
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| Smallest exoplanet is shown to be a solid, rocky world |
| The confirmation of the nature of CoRoT-7b as the first rocky planet outside our Solar System marks a significant step forward in the search for Earth-like exoplanets. The detection by CoRoT and follow-up radial velocity measurements with HARPS suggest that this exoplanet, CoRoT-7b, has a density similar to that of Mercury, Venus, Mars and Earth making it only the fifth known terrestrial planet in the Universe. |
| Date: 16 Sep 2009 |
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| The AMAS(E)ing Expedition of 2009 |
| From 1 to 24 August 2009, an international team of scientists participated in the Arctic Mars Analogue Svalbard Expedition (AMASE) in Norway, conducting scientific research and testing instruments for future ESA and NASA Mars robotic missions. |
| Date: 15 Sep 2009 |
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| Rebirth of an icon: Hubble's first images since Servicing Mission 4 [heic0910] |
| Astronomers today declared the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope a fully rejuvenated observatory ready for a new decade of exploration, with the release of observations from four of its six operating science instruments. |
| Date: 09 Sep 2009 |
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| XMM-Newton weighs up a rare white dwarf and finds it to be a heavyweight |
| XMM-Newton observations of the X-ray pulsator RX J0648.0-4418, timed to also cover the phase when the source was expected to be eclipsed by its companion, have resulted in a solid, model-independent mass estimation of this object. It appears to be a rare, ultra-massive white dwarf, whose continued study promises to provide sensitive tests for stellar evolution theories. Sandro Mereghetti and colleagues present these results in the 4 September issue of Science.
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| Date: 04 Sep 2009 |
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| Suzaku 5th Announcement of Opportunity |
The Fifth European Announcement for observations to be performed with Suzaku between April 2010 and March 2011 is now open. Scientists belonging to institutions within ESA Member States are invited to respond. The deadline for receipt of proposals is 20 November at 16:30 CET. |
| Date: 01 Sep 2009 |
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