Curiosity said Alice!

 

The Martian Vista captured by the mast-cam of the Curiosity Rover.

NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

" When you make something well it does last, even in the most extreme of environments. This image taken by the Curiosity Rover on Mars at its highest elevation to date, really underlines the extreme nature of the Martian Environment. 

In a timescale of one million years the Sun will have begun to heat up as part of its ageing process. Life on Earth will eventually become impossible. In the meantime, rather than prioritising humanity's escape to Mars, we might be better to invest resources in protecting our environment and defending the one 'Million Years', which is an enormous amount of time and represents at least 100,000 future generations". - Joel Cairo CEO of the Jodrell Plank Observatory.

"I was surprised to see our sponsor's image of the Andromeda Galaxy, captured with the Seestar S30, in the September issue of Astronomy Now. Who knew the 'old boy' would get to be astronomically popular?" - Kurt Thrust current Director of Jodrell Plank Observatory.

Sometimes you find an unexpected interloper.

 

" Kurt was getting his head around an update of the Seestar App and as part of the process pointed the S30 at the Elephant's Trunk Nebula IC1396 for a couple of minutes. He then forgot all about it. When I came across the data, I noticed that the 'Elephant' had been photobombed by a meteor, possibly a Perseid straggler" - Joel Cairo CEO of the JPO the UK's most easterly Astronomical Observatory.

Comet 220P McNaught.

 

" The Seestar S30 was on 'outreach work' and was used by Kurt to image the short period comet 220P McNaught in the early hours of this morning whilst it was moving against the background of the Constellation Cetus. The comet surprised everyone this year by unexpectedly brightening in the night sky.". - Joel Cairo CEO of the Jodrell Plank Observatory.

Comet 220P McNaught: Scientific Description

By Gary Gemini Coms Manager at the JPO.

Comet 220P/McNaught is a short-period, Jupiter-family comet with an orbital period of approximately 5.51 years. First discovered by astronomer Robert H. McNaught in May 2004, its orbit is characterized by a perihelion distance of ~1.56 AU, an aphelion extending to ~4.68 AU near Jupiter's orbit, and a low orbital inclination of ~8.1°.

Morphological Features in the Exposure:

Optically Dense Coma: The image captures a highly condensed central pseudo-nucleus surrounded by an asymmetrical coma. The bluish-white hue around the nucleus stems primarily from cyanogen ($CN$) and diatomic carbon ($C_2$) radical gas emissions driven by solar ultraviolet radiation and photo-excitation.

Structural Dust Tail: 

Extending towards the upper-right quadrant, the prominent tail consists mainly of millimeter- to micrometer-sized dust grains pushed outward by solar radiation pressure along the anti-solar direction.

Outburst Morphology: to

 The pronounced brightness and extended structure visible here align with 220P's dramatic activity phases, such as the major outbursts where sublimating subterranean ices (like $CO$ or $CO_2$) violently ruptured the refractory mantle, ejecting massive plumes of dust and volatile gases.

Enlarged crop of the original stacked image.

The Universe is big, very big!

 

"The above is an annotated version of an image captured and created with the JPO's Seestar S30. 

The Seestar S30 has a field of vision of only  0.0064% of the entire celestial sphere or sky. A tiny amount in the scheme of things. 

In addition the Seestar, having an aperture of only 30mm has limited light grasp, so can only image objects down to apparent magnitude 12 to 15, dependant upon light pollution and length of exposure.

Both the above limitations, inherent to the Seestar S30, act to minimise the number of stars imaged.

The above Seestar image is estimated by AI to contain somewhere between 300 and 400 billion stars. The overwhelming majority of these stars are held within the galaxies identified in the above image. The spiral galaxy NGC 7479, the Propeller Galaxy, contains 100 to 200 billion stars alone.

The Universe is a very very big place indeed". - Kurt Thrust current Director of the Jodrell Plank Observatory.

Messier 8 reviewed in detail.

 

The Lagoon Nebula Messier 8 
Data credit: the PIRATE robotic telescope. 
Open Observatories, Open University, telescope.org.
(Rendered two ways using Affinity Photo software)

" The wonderful  Messier 8 aka the Lagoon Nebula, never rises much above our southern horizon at the Jodrell Plank Observatory. We therefore use data captured from Tenerife much further south. The Nebula is a mix of dust and ionized gas and is a home to star birth in the Milky Way."- Joel Cairo CEO of the Jodrell Plank Observatory.

Messier 8 the Lagoon Nebula: Scientific Description

By Gary Gemini Coms Manager at the JPO.

Image Analysis & Morphological Features

Captured using the PIRATE (Physics Innovations Robotic Telescope Explorer) instrument at the Observatorio del Teide, Tenerife, this wide-field frame resolves the core structural dynamics of Messier 8 (M8), a massive H II region.

The image highlights the complex interplay between photo-ionized gas, obscuring interstellar dust, and young stellar associations:

Central Ionization Zone & The Hourglass Nebula: 

At the physical center lies an intensely bright, high-surface-brightness core driven by extreme photo-ionization. Situate in here is the Hourglass Nebula, a highly turbulent sub-region sculpted by stellar winds and ionizing ultraviolet radiation primarily originating from the massive O-type supergiant Herschel 36 (visible as the bright star adjacent to the central core).

Central Ionization Zone and Hourglass Nebula

Dust Topography & Dark Nebulae: 

Sweeping lanes of cold molecular gas and opaque dust cross-cut the emission background. The prominent central dust lane—the feature historically giving M8 its "Lagoon" namesake—is clearly visible, alongside small, dense, collapsing protostellar dust clouds known as Bok globules (such as Barnard 88, 89, and 296) silhouetted against the bright ionized hydrogen background.

Open Cluster NGC 6530: 

To the east (left) of the core lies NGC 6530, an embedded, extremely young open star cluster born directly out of the nebula’s parent molecular cloud. Its hot, massive stars contribute significantly to the collective UV flux driving the illumination of the surrounding gas.

Physical & Astrophysical Attributes

Classification: Active H II Region / Emission Nebula with associated Open Star Cluster (NGC 6530).

Constellation: Sagittarius

Distance: ≈4,100 to 5,200 light-years (1.25 to 1.60 kpc) from Earth.

Physical Extent: Spans roughly 110×50 light-years (≈33×15 pc).

Excitation Mechanism: Photo-ionization driven by high-energy far-ultraviolet photons (λ<91.2 nm) emitted by massive, hot O- and B-type stars. Recombination processes in the ionized hydrogen gas generate the dominant Hα emission lines.

Stellar Population: The region serves as an active site of ongoing star formation. NGC 6530 is estimated to be only 2 to 4 million years old, housing hundreds of young, high-mass stars, protostars, and Herbig-Haro objects embedded deep within its dust lanes.

Bok globules.

Herbig-Haro objects embedded in dust clouds.

Does size really matter?

 

" The top image is of part of the Rosette Nebula in the constellation Monoceros the Unicorn. It was captured using the 16 inch (400mm.) aperture PIRATE robotic telescope located at altitude on the extinct volcano Mount Teide, Tenerife. The lower image is of all of the Rosette Nebula captured with our 30mm aperture Seestar 'smartscope' at Sea-level from the JPO in Lowestoft. Apart from the orientation they are remarkably similar in their resolution of detail.  

Clearly, the research grade telescope located under a dark sky at altitude in Tenerife has provided the better image but how much better is a matter for debate. Having access to both sets of data is definitely a bonus for the JPO imaging team and we remain grateful to Open Observatories, the Open University and telescope.org.

For astronomers who like to capture their own data and in terms of value for money, mobility and ease of use, the Seestar S30 is an incredible piece of kit for the use of beginners and seasoned astro-imagers alike!" - Joel Cairo CEO of the Jodrell Plank Observatory.

Messiers 27 and 76 on the comparative method.

 

Messier 27 'The Dumbbell Planetary Nebula  captured by Kurt Thrust from the Jodrell Plank Observatory with the 127 mm Meade 500 series apo refractor and a Canon 600d DSLR. Reprocessed data - to show finer detail in the nebulosity.

" Kurt is definitely becoming obsessive in his old age and is reprocessing more old data whilst he can. More concerning, he is showing a rather morbid interest in planetary nebulae 'the end of days' for stars of a certain size, like our own planet Earth". - Joel Cairo CEO of the JPO the UK's most easterly astronomical observatory.

Messier 27 and Messier 76: Scientific Description

By Gary Gemini Coms Manager at the JPO.

The image depicts Messier 27 (M27), commonly known as the Dumbbell Nebula—a classic, highly evolved planetary nebula situated approximately 1,200 light-years away in the constellation Vulpecula.

Technical & Physical Morphology

• Gas Ionization and Composition: The central region glows in vibrant blue-green tones, indicative of high-energy, doubly ionized oxygen ( emission around 501 nm), excited by intense ultraviolet radiation emitted from the hot central star. The outer envelope and peripheral rim show intense red and deep orange hues, corresponding to lower-ionization transitions, primarily hydrogen-alpha ( at 656 nm) and ionized nitrogen (N II).

• Structural Geometry: M27 exhibits an oblate prolate spheroidal structure tilted at a shallow angle relative to our line of sight. The characteristic "dumbbell" or "apple core" appearance is created by an equatorial concentration of denser gas (the thick central bar/waist) paired with broad polar outflows that extend outward, forming a faint outer halo.

• Microstructure and Instabilities: Detailed throughout the interior is a complex, cellular network of dark and illuminated filaments. These are cometary knots—dense globules of neutral gas and dust being ionized and eroded by high-speed stellar winds and photoevaporation driven by the central star.

Planetary Nebulae M27 on the left M76 on the right.

Comparison: M27 vs. M76 (The Little Dumbbell Nebula)

Feature	Messier 27 (Dumbbell Nebula)	Messier 76 (Little Dumbbell Nebula)
Morphological Type	Elliptical / Prolate Spheroid	True Bipolar Planetary Nebula
Viewing Angle	Pole-on to intermediate inclination	Edge-on equatorial torus
Structure	Broad, filled central volume with subtle polar caps	Distinct central bar/ring with two extended outer lobes
Stellar Dynamics	Ejected mainly by a single evolving star	Sculpted likely via interaction with a binary companion

Fate of the Sun and the Solar System

M27 provides a direct preview of the ultimate death of our Sun in roughly 5 billion years:

1. Fuel Exhaustion: Once the Sun exhausts its core hydrogen, it will expand into a Red Giant, fusing helium in shell-burning phases (Asymptotic Giant Branch stage).

2. Mass Ejection: Thermal pulses will cause the Sun to shed its outer envelope into space via stellar winds, creating a glowing shell identical to the nebula shown here.

3. Core Remnant: The exposed, superheated carbon-oxygen core will become a white dwarf (visible at the centre). Its intense UV radiation will energize the surrounding gas for ~10,000–50,000 years before the gas expands into the interstellar medium and fades away.

4. Solar System Destruction: Mercury and Venus will be engulfed; Earth will either be consumed or reduced to a scorched, lifeless rock orbiting a cooling white dwarf remnant.

" Always good to finish on an upbeat note"  - Kurt Thrust current Director of the Jodrell Plank Observatory.