Tuesday, 28 September 2010

Space Is Really, Really, Really Big

Sometimes we forget just how unfathomably huge space is and all the insane things that happen in it.


This is V838. It is a star that until 2002, wasn't that remarkable. Just another one in billions. That is, until it flared up to be 600,000 times brighter than our sun. Think about that for a second.



Those holes in the outer layers that get bigger? They're being physically ripped up by the radiation the star is giving off. That's how powerful it is.

This is the Herbig–Haro object HH47. A Herbig-Haro object is a patch of nebulosity associated with newborn stars. They are formed when gas ejected by young stars collides with clouds of gas and dust nearby at speeds of several hundred kilometres per second.



If you don't know how big what you're seeing is, this might help:


See that little line at the bottom? That line is 20 times the size of our solar system. Now look back at the other image.


I love space.
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18 comments:

  1. Megaviljami28 September 2010 at 03:03

    That's pretty bright.. I try not to think about it too must lest my head explode

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  2. Stargazer28 September 2010 at 03:21

    I added some more stuff, might be interesting!

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  3. Gruff Knits28 September 2010 at 09:21

    Space is fucking scary.

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  4. Anonymous28 September 2010 at 09:45

    Space is really pretty, huh?

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  5. Antsmen28 September 2010 at 12:07

    calling space big is an understatement

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  6. DerpFiles28 September 2010 at 12:55

    We're just a pale blue dot, dancing on a sunbeam.

    That first image, I remember reading something about how it appeared the nova cloud was expanding faster than the speed of light but it was due to a special optical illusion. I didn't really understand it but the concepts of astronomy and cosmology are amazing.

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  7. Robert Feldgröße28 September 2010 at 13:52

    Hope that someday humanity gets to be out there.

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  8. dhgdsfgh28 September 2010 at 14:03

    mind blowing!

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  9. Data Fox28 September 2010 at 14:29

    Space is so bad ass.

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  10. bigdonglover28 September 2010 at 15:26

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  11. Mark Markson28 September 2010 at 19:09

    God damn.
    This iw amazing.
    REALLY mindblowing blog.

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  12. B28 September 2010 at 23:18

    Great blog! Space is so interesting and there is always so much to explore.

    I really like the Digital Universe Atlas. I have the opportunity to play with a somewhat basic version of it sometimes and it is super cool
    http://www.ted.com/talks/carter_emmart_demos_a_3d_atlas_of_the_universe.html

    The Universe Sandbox is also really fun! You may have heard of it, it's an interactive space simulator.
    http://universesandbox.com/

    Keep up the great posts

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  13. Stargazer28 September 2010 at 23:42

    Thanks for the links Bianca. Tell me if Civ 5 is worth getting, I only played Civ 2 when I was a kid.

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  14. fbot29 September 2010 at 01:27

    I have a feeling that I'm going to really fucking love your blog.

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  15. Toomuchtime29 September 2010 at 03:25

    Oh christ. Oh christ. We're nothing.

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  16. Saz29 September 2010 at 04:59

    When I saw that tiny little line in the last image, I nearly cried.

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  17. cjp29 September 2010 at 05:56

    These images and their scales are absolutely encapsulating. Space is a beautiful place.

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  18. jamespwns29 September 2010 at 14:00

    That's truly eye-opening. I love space so much.

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