April 2022

HD1 in the zoom-in image (Image courtesy Harikane et al.)

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An article published in “The Astrophysical Journal” reports the discovery of what could set the new record for the most distant known galaxy. A team of researchers used various telescopes to observe this object, cataloged as HD1, whose distance has been estimated to be about 13.5 billion light-years from Earth.

In another article, published in the journal “Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Letters”, some of the researchers offer some theories about HD1. It could be a so-called starburst galaxy with an extraordinary star formation star which could include the first generation of stars in the universe or a quasar powered by the oldest known supermassive black hole.

The Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft docking with the International Space Station in its Ax-1 mission (Image NASA TV)

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A little while ago, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft docked with the International Space Station’s Harmony module completing the first part of its private Axiom Mission 1 or simply Ax-1 mission that began with its launch yesterday. After they verify that the pressure has been correctly balanced, the hatch will be opened to allow Michael López-Alegría, Larry Connor, Eytan Stibbe, and Mark Pathy to enter the Station.

SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavor starting its Ax-1 mission blasting off atop a Falcon 9 rocket (Image NASA TV)

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A little while ago, the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavor spacecraft blasted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in the Axiom Mission 1 or simply Ax-1 mission. After about twelve minutes it successfully separated from the rocket’s last stage. It will spend approximately 10 days in orbit which includes 8 days on the International Space Station. Unlike the private space missions conducted last year, the Ax-1 also has commercial purposes in a collaboration between SpaceX, Axiom Space, and NASA to access the Station for the purpose of conducting work useful for the development of new technologies and scientific research.

Map of the major marsquakes detected by the InSight lander

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An article published in the journal “Nature Communications” reports a study that offers evidence that the marsquakes detected by NASA’s InSight lander are caused by the activity of underground volcanic magma. Doctor Weijia Sun of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Professor Hrvoje Tkalčić of the Australian National University examined data collected by InSight identifying 47 underground marsquakes in the Cerberus Fossae region of Mars over the course of 350 Martian days. According to the two researchers, the Martian mantle is still active and the marsquakes are of volcanic origin and not tectonic, as the scientists who studied Mars believed.

The AB Aurigae system and its protoplanet seen by Hubble

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An article published in the journal “Nature Astronomy” reports a study on the protoplanet cataloged as AB Aurigae b, a gas giant that is growing following an unusual process called disk instability. A team of researchers used observations made with the Hubble Space Telescope and the Subaru Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, between 2007 and 2021 to find evidence of that violent formation. Proving that gas giants can form as a result of disk instability will help better understand the history of the solar system as well.