APOD 3.5

This picture is of the supernova remnant Simeis 147. Supernovae are when large-mass stars die. Remnants are what is left over after the supernova is finished. In this particular remnant, however, there is a pulsar left over within. Pulsars are very compact stars that shoot beams of radio waves from their magnetic poles. As the star spins, we see the radio light flashing, and the star seems to pulse, hence the name.

APOD 3.4

This is a picture of the constellation Orion. All the stars have been stretched out far to show their colors. All of the stars are blue besides Betelgeuse. That's because Betelgeuse is a red giant star, and all the others aren't. Rigel is the most white, because it is a blue supergiant. Red stars are the coolest, and blue stars are hotter.

APOD 3.3

In this picture, the star Zeta Ophiuchi is seen in the center. The star was flung out, possibly by a companion star that went supernova. it is rushing forward at 24 kilometers per second. The yellow and red streak of dust is being pushed forward ahead of the moving star by the solar wind. This star is an O9 III specral type, and has an absolute magnitude of -3.2, meaning it would be a very bright star, if it's light wasn't obstructed by gases.

APOD 3.2

 

This image was taken in Antarctica in 2003. Two photographers traveled to the bottom of the world to see the complete solar eclipse. The image is a composite image to recreate what the human eye would have seen. The corona extends out beyond the shadow of the moon. To the right of the other photographer is an equipment bad and a collapsible chair. Some people really like eclipses.

APOD 3.1

This image is a time exposure of the sky during the Quadrantid Meteor Shower. The cistern structure lies above the buried Persian city of Qumis, known to the ancient Greeks as Hecatompylos. There are actually only two meteors in this picture, they go against the light trails of the stars, the brightest of which is actually not a star, but the planet Saturn. Time exposures are when the film is left to capture an image for an extended amount of time, and that's why the stars appear to move.

Sol

This image of the Sun is composed of four different layers of ultraviolet light.

This is a picture of God holding the Sun shortly after it's creation. Circa 5,000,000,000 BC.

This picture is a composite image taken at ultraviolet wavelengths from 171-284 Ångstroms

This is a picture of a coronal mass ejection taken in the x-ray wavelength.

Another image of the Sun taken in the x-ray spectrum.

This gif shows a coronal mass ejection with the sun blocked out (represented by the smaller circle).

Observation (December-January)

I've been observing every night, weather allowing, and I've come to love the winter sky. I think that the Winter Hexagon (Sirius, Betelgeuse, Procyon, Castor, Pollux, Capella, and Aldebaran) is the coolest part of the sky, and I look at it all the time. The fall sky is kind of boring, but Pegasus and Aries are cool. Cassiopeia and Perseus are cool, but where I moved to is too bright at night to see Cepheus or Camelopardalis. Anyway, stars are cool, so tune in next time for more observations! :D