RARE NAKED-EYE NOVA: Taking astronomers by surprise, white dwarf star RS Oph exploded two days ago, producing a rare naked-eye nova. The dwarf star is cannibalizing a nearby red giant, using the star's outer layers as fuel for the blast. You can see it in the southern sky after sunset. FULL STORY.
A PERSEID METEOR AND SPRITES: It's late summer. Powerful thunderstorms are crawling across the US-Mexico border. At the same time, specks of dust from Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle are peppering Earth's atmosphere. The stage is set for close encounters like this:
Astronomer Stephen Hummel took the picture from the McDonald Observatory in Texas. "I was photographing sprites on Aug. 8th when this Perseid meteor appeared," he says. "The southern border has been very stormy this past week. In the past two nights alone I've photographed more than 50 TLEs. This capture stood out because of the Perseid."
This won't be the last time a Perseid photobombs a bunch of sprites. The meteor shower is expected to peak on the nights of Aug. 11th through 13th as Earth passes the core of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle's debris zone. Meanwhile, the weather forecast calls for more storms in the hot desert southwest. Photographers, point your cameras just above the cloudtops.
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THE GALACTIC CENTER PENDANT: Are you looking for a far-out gift? Consider the Galactic Center Pendant. On July 22, 2021, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched this handcrafted glass orb to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon. At the apex of the flight it floated 96,785 feet above Earth's surface:
You can have it for $169.95. The students are selling Galactic Center pendants to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. At the orb's core is a nugget of blue opal surrounded by a swirl of air-bubble stars. Each one is unique and comes with a greeting card showing the necklace in flight.
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