Astronomy Picture of the Day 5-03-03

Explanation: The star cluster at lower right, cataloged as Hodge 301, is a denizen of the Tarantula Nebula. An evocative nebula in the southern sky, the sprawling cosmic Tarantula is an energetic star forming region some 168,000 light-years distant in our neighboring galaxy the Large Magellanic Cloud. The stars within Hodge 301 formed together tens of millions of years ago and as the massive ones quickly exhaust their nuclear fuel they explode. In fact, the red giant stars of Hodge 301 are rapidly approaching this violent final phase of stellar evolution - known as a supernova. These supernova blasts send material and shock waves back into the nebular gas to create the Tarantula's glowing filaments also visible in this Hubble Space Telescope Heritage image. But these spectacular stellar death explosions signal star birth as well, as the blast waves condense gas and dust to ultimately form the next generation of stars inside the Tarantula Nebula.

The Tarantula Nebula is also designated 30 Doradus, as it lies in the direction of the constellation Dorado. Its New General Catalog number is NGC 2070.

Here is an image of the Tarantula nebula, taken by the European Southern Observatory's Wide Field Imager camera on the 2.2 meter 'scope at La Silla, Chile.

6-13-02 APOD

This object is very far south; it is not visible north of 15 degrees north latitude.
Its location is as follows: RA 5h 38.581 m, dec. -69º 4.83'.

Here is an image of its parent galaxy:

The bright pink area on the galaxy's upper left is the Tarantula Nebula.

VANDENBERG AFB LAUNCH SCHEDULE
As of 2003 April 9

This schedule is a composite of unclassified information from
government, industry, and other reliable sources. The dates and times
may not agree with those posted on the official Vandenberg AFB launch
schedule (mocc.vandenberg.af.mil/launchsched.asp).

Launch
Time/Window
Date (PST/PDT) Vehicle Pad/Silo

JUN 1 ~12:00 Pegasus XL Offshore
Payload is OrbView 3 commercial reconnaissance satellite. Pegasus will
be air-launched from an L-1011 staged from Vandenberg AFB

JUN Unannounced Minuteman III LF-04
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is at least one unarmed
warhead. Impact area is near Kwajalein in the central Pacific.
GT-182GM

JUL Unannounced Pegasus XL Offshore
Payload is SciSat 1 ozone monitoring satellite. Pegasus will be
air-launched from an L-1011 staged from Vandenberg AFB

Late JUN ~09:00 Titan II SLC-4W
Payload is a DMSP military weather satellite. The launch window
for this long-delayed launch has not been announced, but
previous launch attempts have been scheduled for 06:00 to 09:00
PDT, depending on the time of year.

AUG Unannounced Minuteman III LF-26
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is at least one unarmed
warhead. Impact area is near Kwajalein in the central Pacific.
GT-183GB

SEP Unannounced Minuteman III LF-10
ICBM test launch (non-orbital). Payload is at least one unarmed
warhead. Impact area is near Kwajalein in the central Pacific.
GT-181GM

SEP 18 09:44 Delta II SLC-2W
Payload is NASA's Gravity Probe-B scientific satellite

Mid-OCT Unannounced Atlas IIas SLC-3E
Payload is a classified National Reconnaissance Office satellite(s).

Southern California Astronomical Events
May 2003

Note the total lunar eclipse on the evening of May 15th.

Time
Date (PST/PDT) Event
-------

MAY 1 05:15 New Moon
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html

MAY 3-4 --- Dark Sky Weekend None

MAY 7 00:00 Mercury Inferior Conjunction
RASC Observer's Handbook 2003, pg. 85

MAY 9 04:53 First Quarter Moon
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html

MAY 9 20:54-22:05 Lunar Occultation
The Moon occults the star Eta Leonis. Star disappears at 20:54 and
reappears at 22:05.
http://www.planetkc.com/bobgraze/2003d.zip

MAY 14 21:10-21:20 Jovian Moon Occultation
Jupiter's moon Callisto partially occults Io.
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/2002-3_Occults.txt

MAY 15 19:03-22:18 Total Lunar Eclipse
Eclipse begins before sunset at 19:03. Totality occurs after sunset at
20:14 and last until 21:07. Eclipse ends at 22:18.
http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/extra/TLE2003May15.html

MAY 15 20:36 Full Moon
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html

MAY 19 23:29-23:35 Jovian Moon Occultation
Jupiter's moon Io occults Europa.
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/2002-3_Occults.txt

MAY 20 01:30 Lunar Occultation
The Moon occults the star 60 Sagittarii. Star reappears at 01:30. The
disappearance is not visible.
http://www.planetkc.com/bobgraze/2003d.zip

MAY 22 17:31 Last Quarter Moon
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html

MAY 30 21:20 New Moon
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html

MAY 31-JUN 1 --- Dark Sky Weekend

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Astronomy Picture of the Day

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