The best images of the cosmos.
We invite You to see the best photos from space over the past year.
1. Sunset space-Shuttle.
Though astronauts and cosmonauts often encounter striking views of the limb of the Earth, this unique the rare – in fact there are still sealed and the silhouette of the space Shuttle Endeavor. The photograph was taken by crew member International Space Station during approach of the Shuttle to the landing of the 9th of February. Orange layer, pictured here, is the troposphere that contains the clouds and forming the weather of the planet. This orange layer gives way to the whitish stratosphere, followed by monester.
2. The whirlwind of the birth of stars
This picture taken on October 19 with Hubble space telescope shows spiral galaxy NGC 3982, located approximately 68 million light-years from Earth in the constellation URSA major. The colors on the photos were altered to emphasize the region of the birth of stars, hydrogen-rich (pink) and young stars (blue). Old stars are concentrated in white-yellow nucleus of the galaxy.
3. Hot and fluffy Sun
Astrophotographer Alan Friedman has established a web camera and a telescope in front of the filter a high class to take a picture of this astounding views of the Sun from his backyard in the town of Buffalo, in the state of new York. Using special hydrogen-alpha filter, Friedman was able to look at the red part of the light spectrum and shoot reaction of hydrogen in the solar atmosphere. October 20, the photo was retouched to give the Sun an orange tint hellouinsky pumpkin.
4. A Glance At The Sun
According to scientists, this shot taken in the California solar Observatory called the Big dipper represents the most clear appearance of a sunspot ever captured in visible light. The photo was taken on August 24 to celebrate the incredible success in the study of sunspots. Similar spots scientists call “eye of the Sun”. This is another reason not to look at bright light at the same time it can stare at you.
5. Martian trees
This photograph was taken by the high resolution camera on the Orbiter of NASA’s exploration of Mars January 14, 2010. it seems that on the red Planet palm trees. But scientists say these dark trunks is just dirt caught on the surface by landslides, when the frozen carbon dioxide melts, exposing the sand dunes around the North pole of Mars.
History
Unusual images of Mars show the illusion of being on a planet with trees. Erupting naturally near the planet’s North pole dust clouds create structures which wonderfully resemble the shape of trees. “But do not let yourself to spend – it’s just an optical illusion,” NASA scientists say.
6. Our home from space
The silhouette of the curvature of the Earth clearly visible in this picture on the background contrasting the darkness of space. The photo was taken February 9 from space Shuttle Endeavor” during the approach to the station for docking.
7. Throwing a big shadow
In a photo taken from a satellite visible to the long shadow that casts the building of the Burj Kalifa in Dubai. The picture was taken from a height of 400 mill companion Director-1. Building Burj Khalifa known as the tallest building in the world. Its height is 2,717 feet (828 meters).
8. Hang in open space
Astronaut Nicholas Patrick works on the new observation deck known as the Cupola, belonging to the International Space Station. The made February 17, during the space walking astronaut. Orbital observation post, the Dome is equipped with seven Windows that provides a great opportunity to see the Earth from space.
9. The night of two moons
The bright icy surface of Saturn’s moon dione clearly visible against the foggy and ghostly Titan. This photo was taken on April 10 in an orbital apparatus “Cassini” and published on 21 June.
10. Beautiful background
In this picture is clearly visible the lower part of the space Shuttle discovery. The photograph was taken on 17 April with the International Space Station some time after the Shuttle separated from the station. Distinguishable silhouette on the Ground is the southern part of the island the Isla de Providence about 150 Milli from the coast of Nicaragua. The island belongs to Colombia.
12. With the twentieth anniversary, Hubble
In this picture from the Hubble space telescope, published on 22 APR, the lens came chaotic activity high pillar of gas and dust extending over three light-years. Presently this glow is absorbed by the bright light of nearby stars. Turbulent space activity is in the active place of the birth of stars in the Carina nebula, located at a distance of 7500 years from Earth in the southern constellation Carina. The photo was published in honor of the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble.
History
Hubble team marks the twentieth anniversary of the launch of the space Observatory this new image with the space telescope, which shows a pillar of gas and dust in the Carina nebula.
12. In the face of disaster
A small plane, depicted in the upper left part of the image, that flies over the spilled oil in the Gulf of Mexico after the explosion on the Transocean drilling platform deepwater Horizon. This photo was taken from space on April 26 by the QuickBird satellite DigitalGlobe station.
13. Swan song in space
Space Shuttle Atlantis has docked with the International Space Station in orbit may 17. Atlantis held a 12-day assignment to deliver a new Russian-made equipment and replacement batteries. The retirement of the Shuttle crew in connection with retirement planned for 2011.
14. Northern lights in space
This astonishing picture of the dawn phenomenon was made on the International Space Station during a geomagnetic storm, likely caused by emissions of masses in the solar corona on may 24. Space station at this point was flying over the southern Indian ocean.
History: the Spectacular phenomena of the Aurora at the South pole were captured by the cameras the astronauts to the International Space Station during the recent solar storms.
15. Heaven guard
Observer of the sky Michael Yager of Thixendale, Austria, took this image of comet McNaught on 6 June, while the heavenly body was apparently well in the morning sky.
Story: a Comet is surprising.
A recently discovered comet is surprising observers of the sky, becoming brighter than it was planned initially, and is now visible even to the naked eye.
16. The eyeball volcano
Partly cloudy over the volcano Manam, Papua New Guinea on 16 June, as well as the thin grey-blue volcanic plume above the crater was the subject of discussion at the summit. Bright white clouds may have been the result of water vapor eruption from the volcano, and they may not have any relation to volcanic activity. This picture was taken by a camera aboard a NASA satellite, watching the Earth, known as EO-1.
17. The spread of the spill
The Aqua satellite, owned by NASA, has made the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico on June 26. Camera for observing Earth satellites caught the sunlight reflected back into space from the surface of oil spills.
18. Asteroid close-up
This species is the largest asteroid ever visited by spacecraft, was composed of three different images taken by the Rosetta probe of the European space Agency on July 10, when he flew past the Lutetia. Colors taken from a much more distant shots and imposed a Ted Streak, a philosophy Professor from the State College Roane. Like most surfaces in the solar system, Lutetia has long been susceptible to weathering and has a reddish color.
19. Black sun
July 11. A total solar Eclipse emerges a black spot through the haze of clouds in the sky over Easter island. The fullness of the Eclipse was only visible over the South Pacific ocean and on the coasts of Chile and Argentina.
20. Galactic gem
The Hubble space telescope with a long exposure allows us to consider the majestic spiral galaxy in the layer interior of the Hair clusters of galaxies, which stretches for a distance of 320 million light-years from the Northern constellation coma Berenices. The picture was taken August 10. The galaxy, known as NGC 4911, contains rich lanes of dust and gas near its center. They are clearly silhouetted against the background of glowing newborn star clusters and iridescent pink clouds of hydrogen, the existence of which indicates ongoing star formation.
21. A ghostly mystery
This image from Hubble space telescope shows like Ghost nebula known as IRAS 05437 +2502. Nebula is a small part of the formation of new stars, filled with dark dust that was first noted in images taken by the IRAS satellite in infrared light in 1983. New images show many new details, but did not shed light on the reasons for the sharp glow bright arcs.
22. The shadow of the rings
The, published on 27 August a team of photographers orbiting Cassini reveals the subtle Kolek shadow of Saturn projected on the clouds above the planet’s surface. The photograph was taken when Saturn approached its equinox in August 2009.
23. The dance of galaxies
NGC 5426 and NGC 5427 are two spiral galaxies of equal size, engaged in a dramatic dance. Yet there can be no assurance that the interaction will end with the clash and ultimate merging of the two galaxies, although they have already influenced each other. The pair, known as Arp 271, will circle the dance for tens of millions of years. This picture is published on August 30, was made by the new technology telescope at the European southern Observatory La Silla in Chile.
24. Spiral in space
The photo, taken by the Hubble space telescope, which became the public domain of the 7th of September, displays an unusual spiral nebula around the star LL Pegasi located at the distance of 3000 light years from Earth. According to astronomers, spiral form became the result of the eruption of substances from one of the stars of bi-solar system.
25. X-shaped spot
This picture taken by the Hubble space telescope and published on October 13, shows a sort of comet’s bizarre X-shaped form, leaving a trail of luminous matter. According to scientists, x may denote the place of the collision body with an asteroid. The object width and 400 feet is considered to be a fragment of some larger body colliding at a speed of about 11 thousand miles an hour with a stone size of approximately 10-15 feet in cross section. The force of the impact force was equal to the explosion of a small atomic bomb. UCLA astronomer David Jewitt believes that the collision occurred in February or March.
26. Options for planting.
Speysship-2, owned by virgin Galaxies, docked with the aircraft carrier White Knight 2 for landing on the runway of the American spaceport near Las Cruces during a special ceremony on 22 October. It is planned that in the next couple of years Speysship-2 will begin to take on Board paying passengers for excursions on the middle to outer space.
History: the Spaceport takes a step to the discovery of commercial space flight. British tycoon Richard Brannon dreamed of going to space ever since I was a teenager. Now he will be able to svialana as soon as the virgin of the Galaxies begin to take tourists for suborbital flights in a specially designed spaceport in new Mexico.
27 Station on the moon?
In this photo it seems that the international Space Station landed on the moon, but in fact, the station just flies over the Moon as she follows in its orbit around the Earth. The picture was taken on 21 October in Hungary in the city of Guerguil 75 km from Budapest.
28. Night lights.
The island of Sicily and the “boot” of Italy lights sparkle on this orbital photograph, taken in the Observatory Dome of the International Space Station in October, 28th. The main window of the Dome located on the roof has a circular shape with a diameter of 80 cm Is the largest window in space. Six additional Windows placed on the sides, open the overview in all directions.
29. Space peanut.
The Deep Space probe belonging to NASA, sent this photo from the dual core of the comet Hartley in the 7th of November. The picture was taken when the probe flew by at a distance of 700 km from the object, shaped like a peanut. The circumference of the “neck” or the bottleneck of a kernel is equal to 2.4 km away. Also visible in the picture of the jet emanating from the nucleus.
30. Cosmic sea creature
In this picture wide infrared Explorer NASA, known as wise, clearly shows something resembling a colorful creature in a starry sea. The photo, posted on November 17, shows the infrared radiation that has been retouched, so we can perceive it with his eye. In fact, the object, similar to a jellyfish, is a very close pair of dying stars (white color), surrounded by its own emissions (green color), we can also see two unusual dust rings (orange color) discovered by wise.
31. Flaming dragon is sent into space
This photograph shows the launch of the Falcon 9, owned by space X, taking place in launch complex No. 40 at Cape Canaveral in Florida. The launch was made to test the Dragon capsule, owned by the company, which has been specifically designed to supply the International Space Station, when NASA will withdraw his Shuttle and its crew. The dragon, shaped like a round Lollipop, successfully landed by parachute in the middle of the Pacific Ocean after making two laps around the orbit.
32. Space ornament
A delicate sphere of gas, photographed by the Hubble space telescope, drifting calmly through space. The bubble is a gas, accepted this form as a result of the blast wave generated by the emergence of a supernova. Called SNR 0509-67,5 (or SNR 0509 abbreviated), the bubble is the visible remnant of a powerful explosion of a star in the Large Magellanic Cloud – a small galaxy, extending approximately 160 thousand light years from Earth.
