Outer Space & Universe
Outer Space & Universe
Space, also known as outer space, is the near-vacuum between celestial bodies. It is where everything (all of the planets, stars, galaxies and other objects) is found.
On Earth, space begins at the Kármán line (100 km above sea level). This is where Earth's atmosphere is said to stop and outer space begins. This is not a firm boundary but is a convention used by scientists and diplomats.
Items in space are free to move back and forth; up and down; and left and right. These three dimensions are what make 3D space. Items also move forward through time, which is sometimes called the fourth dimension.
The majority of space contains very little matter and so most of it is a vacuum. Scientists do not know how big space is but we do know that space is extremely big, and is always expanding.
According to the big bang theory, all matter and energy in the Universe was compressed into a very small space. Then it exploded and started expanding. Space is still growing in size today; this means the distance from one galaxy to distant galaxies is getting longer.
Gravity is the force that keeps the Moon in orbit around the Earth and the planets in orbit around the Sun. Gravity can stretch and bend space similar to how a heavy ball placed on a stretched sheet of rubber will cause the rubber to stretch. The scientist who discovered that space can bend is named Albert Einstein. How gravity bends space is part of his theory of general relativity.
Astronauts, Cosmonauts, Taikonauts and Spationauts
An astronaut is any person who is trained by NASA to travel and perform tasks in space. Although the space traveler may not necessarily be a United States citizen, each astronaut does go through a rigorous training regiment by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Other space travelers go by other names then astronaut depending on their country of origin.
In the United States, astronaut is derived from the Greek words ástron (star) and nautis (sailor). While, in Russia, a space traveler goes by the name космонавт (English: cosmonaut), which is derived from the Greek words kosmos (universe) and nautis (sailor). Westerners call a space traveler from China a taikonaut, based on the 1998 writings of Chiew Lee Yik and Chen Lan where the term tàikōng (great emptiness), Chinese for “space”. In China, the term yuháng yuán (universe navigator) is used for space traveler.
Only the United States of America (United States), Russia (earlier, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics), and the People’s Republic of China (China) have sent manned spacecraft into space. Other countries have assisted these countries by sending their own space travelers on space missions. For instance, a French space traveler is called a spationaut (from the French word spationaute), which is derived from the Latin spatium (space) and Greek nautis (sailor). (plural in Greek nautes = sailors)
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02:30
NASA in 2024 - See the Highlights
Added 31 Views / 0 LikesNASA runs down its achievements in 2024 in this highlight video. Credit: NASA
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04:07
RED ALERT! Houston Christmas Eve Tornado Warnings!? Volcanoes Gone Wild! Santa Cruz Pier Destroyed!
Added 34 Views / 0 Likeswild.also, Merry Christmas, y'all.God bless everyone,Thttps://www.paypal.me/THORnewshttps://venmo.com/TEric-Lewisonhttps://www.patreon.com/thornews
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03:41
NASA Astronauts 2024 Reverse Fan Mail
Added 32 Views / 0 LikesReverse fan mail! ???? We surprised unsuspecting @NASA_Johnson staff with heartfelt letters and a big reveal to show our gratitude. ???? They are the true heart of every mission, and we couldn’t do it without them. ❤️
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01:08
Fireball! Chinese satellite burns up over several US states
Added 37 Views / 0 LikesThe American Meteor Society received several reports of a fireball in the skies over several cities US states on Dec. 22, 2024. The fireball appears to be the re-entering Chinese GaoJing 1-02 satellite, according to a Bluesky post from Jonathan McDowell,
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01:46
Star cluster resembles 'cosmic wreath' in Chandra X-ray Telescope tour for holidays
Added 35 Views / 0 LikesCheck out an amazing view of star cluster NGC 602 for the holidays. It "lies on the outskirts of the Small Magellanic Cloud," according to the Chandra X-ray Telescope team. Credit: NASA/CXC/A. Hobart
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08:59
Blastoff! SpaceX launches 21 Starlink satellites from Florida, nails landing
Added 37 Views / 0 LikesA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 21 Starlink spacecraft, 13 of which can beam service directly to cellphones, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida today at on Dec. 23, 2024 at 12:35 a.m. EDT (0535 GMT). Full Story: https://www.space.com/space-expl
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09:23
Fireball & Space Debris over the USA tonight! Drone & UFO talk! Carolina ICE this week?
Added 32 Views / 0 LikesThank you for being awesome.Stay cool and have a Merry Christmas& wonderful holidays, y'all!God bless everyone,Thttps://www.paypal.me/THORnewshttps://venmo.com/TEric-Lewisonhttps://www.patreon.com/thornews
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01:30
SpaceX aborts launch of 'MicroGEO' satellites at T-0 seconds
Added 35 Views / 0 LikesThe launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying four "MicroGEO" satellites, built by San Francisco company Astranis, was aborted right before liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at midnight EST (0500 GMT). According to Space.com, an unspecifie
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08:42
Blastoff! SpaceX launches Bandwagon-2 rideshare mission, nails landing in California
Added 40 Views / 0 LikesA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 30 Bandwagon-2 rideshare mission, satellites from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base on Dec. 21, 2024 at 6:34 a.m. EDT (1134 GMT; 3:34 a.m. local California time). Bandwagon-2 included payloads for South Korea's Age
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09:20
Blastoff! Rocket Lab launches Strix radar-imaging satellites from New Zealand
Added 35 Views / 0 LikesA Rocket Lab Electron rocket launched the Strix radar-imaging satellites for the Japanese company Synspective from New Zealand on Dec. 21, 2024. Full Story: https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/watch-rocket-lab-launch-a-private-eart
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02:06
Spiral galaxy NGC 2566 in stunning JWST and Hubble views - See in 4K
Added 40 Views / 0 LikesThe James Webb Space Telescope and Hubble Space Telescope have captured amazing views of spiral galaxy NGC 2566. Credit: Space.com | ESA, NASA & CSA / Hubble /Webb, A. Leroy, N. Bartmann (ESA/Webb), D. Thilker | edited by Steve Spaleta (https://www.instag
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07:52
Space to Ground: 2024
Added 46 Views / 0 Likes2024 on the International Space Station was a year filled with excitement, challenges, and milestones as we mark 25 unbroken years of humans living, working, and flying in humanity's home in low-earth orbit.Got a question or comment? Use #AskNASA to talk
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Watch live! Cosmonauts perform spacewalk outside space station
Added 43 Views / 0 LikesExpedition 72 crewmates Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagnerwill conduct a spacewalk to "install an experiment package designed to monitor celestial x-ray sources and new electrical connector patch panels and remove several experiments for disposal." on Dec. 1
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09:13
ROSCOSMOS SPACEWALK CONDUCTED OUTSIDE SPACE STATION
Added 32 Views / 0 LikesOutside the International Space Station, Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner of the Expedition 72 crew conducted a spacewalk on Dec. 19 to install an experiment package designed to monitor celestial x-ray sources and new electrical connec
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01:06
NASA ejects Orion spacecraft's forward bay cover in test - Slow motion view
Added 37 Views / 0 LikesNASA tested the Orion spacecraft forward bay cover's ejection mechanism at the Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio. Credit: NASA/Jordan Salkin and Quentin Schwinn | edited by Space.com
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00:30
Panv video: NGC 2566 (NIRCam and MIRI image)
Added 41 Views / 0 LikesThe galaxy filling the frame in this NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month is NGC 2566, a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Puppis. The image combines observations from two of Webb’s instruments, the Near-InfraRed Camera (N
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00:30
Pan video: NGC 2566 (MIRI)
Added 32 Views / 0 LikesThe galaxy filling the frame in this NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month is NGC 2566, a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Puppis. In this image Webb’s Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI) puts the thick clouds of interstellar d
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Transition video: Hubble and Webb's views of NGC 2566
Added 41 Views / 0 LikesThe galaxy filling the frame on both sides of this slider tool is NGC 2566, a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Puppis.The first view of the galaxy shown is a new image that is a combination of data from Webb’s MIRI and NIRCam instruments shows o
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Pan of galaxy cluster MACS J1423 (NIRCam image)
Added 36 Views / 0 LikesThousands of glimmering galaxies are bound together by their own gravity, making up a massive cluster formally classified as MACS J1423.The largest bright white oval is a supergiant elliptical galaxy that is the dominant member of this galaxy cluster. The