From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Gemini North Back On Sky With Dazzling Image of Supernova in the Pinwheel Galaxy”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

6.7.23
Jennifer Lotz
Director, International Gemini Observatory
Email: jennifer.lotz@noirlab.edu

Charles Blue
Public Information Officer
NSF’s NOIRLab
Email: charles.blue@noirlab.edu

Josie Fenske
NSF’s NOIRLab
Email: josie.fenske@noirlab.edu

Gemini North [below] returns to cosmic exploration “with a bang” following repair and refurbishment of its 8-meter primary mirror.

Gemini North, part of the International Gemini Observatory operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, is back observing the night sky following the repair and refurbishment of its primary mirror. The telescope’s debut observation captured the supernova dubbed SN 2023ixf, which was discovered on 19 May by Japanese astronomer Koichi Itagaki. This dazzling point of light, the closest supernova seen in the past five years, is located along one of the spiral arms of the Pinwheel Galaxy (Messier 101).

The Gemini North telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, has returned from a seven-month hiatus literally with a bang, as it has captured the spectacular aftermath of a supernova, a massive star that exploded in the large, face-on, spiral Pinwheel Galaxy (Messier 101). The supernova, named SN 2023ixf (lower left), was discovered on 19 May by amateur astronomer Koichi Itagaki. [1]

Since its discovery, observers around the globe have pointed their telescopes toward Messier 101 to get a look at the burst of light. Over the coming months, Gemini North will allow astronomers to study how the light from the supernova fades and how its spectrum evolves over time, helping astronomers better understand the physics of such explosions.

The appearance of SN 2023ixf is rather serendipitous for the Gemini North telescope, which is back to observing with its primary mirror repaired and recoated after suffering damage in late 2022. The damage was limited to a small region outside of the light-collecting area of the mirror. Nevertheless, the repairs were carefully planned and completed to ensure that Gemini North could safely return to normal operations. This process lasted approximately seven months and in May 2023 the mirror was recoated and reinstalled and the control systems were powered up and tested.

That the mirror repair was successful is evidenced in this stunning image of Messier 101 and SN 2023ixf. Not only is Gemini North a powerful discovery tool, with its 8-meter mirror and exceptional spectroscopic capabilities, but it’s also located at a prime vantage point in the northern hemisphere, on Maunakea in Hawai‘i, giving it an exceptional view of Messier 101.

The Pinwheel Galaxy is located approximately 21 million light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Ursa Major and is one of the most photographed galaxies in the night sky. Its face-on orientation to Earth offers a pristine view of its 170,000 light-year diameter and allows observers to marvel at its nearly one trillion stars. Speckled throughout its swirling spiral arms are large regions of star-forming nebulae, indicated by the glowing pink pockets of light. Young, hot, blue stars populate the galaxy as well, interlaced with dark dust lanes that aid in fueling the newly birthed stars.

In this image, processed with the help of the DRAGONS software system, SN 2023ixf can be spotted in one of the galaxy’s spiral arms as an exceptionally bright blue star. Follow-up observations of SN 2023ixf by both amateur and professional astronomers indicate that it is a Type II supernova. This is the closest supernova to be discovered within the last five years and the second supernova to occur in Messier 101 within the past 15 years, following a Type I supernova observed in 2011.

A Type II supernova occurs when a massive star, 8–50 times the mass of the Sun, runs out of nuclear fuel, collapses in on itself, and explodes in a violent eruption of energy and matter. Typically, these events are observed in the arms of spiral galaxies where there are populations of young, massive stars, necessary for a Type II supernova to occur. During the star’s collapse, the outer core caves inwards under gravity at an incredible velocity of up to 25 million kilometers per hour, or 23% of the speed of light. In a rapid ten-second burst, the explosion releases about as much energy as the Sun will during its entire 10-billion-year lifetime.

Observing Type II supernovae provides astronomers insight into the evolution of massive stars and the mechanisms by which they die. And the relatively close proximity of SN 2023ixf makes the event that much more valuable to astronomers. To commemorate Gemini North’s opening its eyes for the first time in seven months, SN 2023ixf makes for a truly superb target of opportunity.

This supernova is a prime example of the types of discoveries that will be made by Vera C. Rubin Observatory when it comes online in 2025. Rubin’s powerful camera and unprecedented scanning ability will allow it to quickly detect and image supernovae and other transient events in the dynamic sky. Other powerful telescopes, like those that comprise the International Gemini Observatory, will then make follow-up observations to study the origins and evolution of these events.

“The successful repair of the Gemini North mirror was a great team effort for NOIRLab and our contractors at Safran–Reosc. Many different groups across NOIRLab worked together to resolve this difficult situation,” International Gemini Observatory Director Jennifer Lotz. “Gemini/NOIRLab thanks the mirror repair team, Safran–Reosc, the independent review board, and all the staff involved in this challenging exercise.”

“These new observations illustrate the amazing capabilities of the entire International Gemini Observatory and the vital role the two telescopes will play in future astronomical research,” said NOIRLab Director Patrick McCarthy.

More information

[1] With over 80 discoveries to his name, Itagaki is the most prolific supernova hunter in Japan, using his personal observatory in the forested mountains outside of Yamagata City to routinely search for these remarkable cosmic events.

See the full article here .

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Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

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NSF NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’i (Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

Maunakea Observatories Hawai’i altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope on Cerro Pachón in central Chile (Gemini South); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the US National Science Foundation (NSF), the Canadian National Research Council (NRC), the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica (CONICYT), the Australian Research Council (ARC), the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), <a href="http://“>Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Astronomers Witness Star Devouring Planet – Possible Preview of the Ultimate Fate of Earth”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

5.3.23
Kishalay De
MIT Kavli Institute Postdoctoral Fellow
Email: kde1@mit.edu

Charles Blue
NSF’s NOIRLab
Tel: +1 202 236 6324
Email: charles.blue@noirlab.edu

Josie Fenske
NSF’s NOIRLab
Email: fenske.josie@noirlab.edu

Astronomers using the Gemini South telescope [below] in Chile, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, have observed the first evidence of a dying Sun-like star engulfing an exoplanet. The “smoking gun” of this event was seen in a long and low-energy outburst from the star — the telltale signature of a planet skimming along a star’s surface. This never-before-seen process may herald the ultimate fate of Earth when our own Sun nears the end of its life in about five billion years.

Credit: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/M. Garlick, ESA/Hubble (M. Kornmesser & L. L. Christensen), M.Paredes, Kwon O Chul, N. Bartmann. Music: Stellardrone – In Time.

By studying countless stars at various stages of their evolution, astronomers have been able to piece together an understanding of the life cycle of stars and how they interact with their surrounding planetary systems as they age. This research confirms that when a Sun-like star nears the end of its life, it expands anywhere from 100 to 1000 times its original size, eventually engulfing the system’s inner planets. Such events are estimated to occur only a few times each year across the entire Milky Way. Though past observations have confirmed the aftermath of planetary engulfments [1], astronomers have never caught one in the act, until now.

With the power of the Gemini South Adaptive Optics Imager (GSAOI) on Gemini South, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, [2] astronomers have observed the first direct evidence of a dying star expanding to engulf one of its planets.

Gemini South Adaptive Objects laser guide star

Evidence for this event was found in a telltale “long and low-energy” outburst from a star in the Milky Way about 13,000 light-years from Earth. This event, the devouring of a planet by an engorged star, likely presages the ultimate fate of Mercury, Venus, and Earth when our Sun begins its death throes in about five billion years.

“These observations provide a new perspective on finding and studying the billions of stars in our Milky Way that have already consumed their planets,” says Ryan Lau, NOIRLab astronomer and co-author on this study, which is published in the journal Nature [below].

For most of its life, a Sun-like star fuses hydrogen into helium in its hot, dense core, which allows the star to push back against the crushing weight of its outer layers. When hydrogen in the core runs out, the star begins fusing helium into carbon, and hydrogen fusion migrates to the star’s outer layers, causing them to expand, and changing the Sun-like star into a red giant.

Such a transformation, however, is bad news for any inner-system planets. When the star’s surface eventually expands to engulf one of its planets, their interaction would trigger a spectacular outburst of energy and material. This process would also put the brakes on the planet’s orbital velocity, causing it to plunge into the star.

The first hints of this event were uncovered by optical images from the Zwicky Transient Facility.

Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) instrument installed on the 1.2m diameter Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory in California. Credit: Caltech Optical Observatories.

Caltech Palomar Samuel Oschin 48 inch Telescope, located in San Diego County, California, altitude 1712 m (5617 ft). Credit: Caltech.

Archival infrared coverage from NASA’s Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE), which is able to peer into dusty environments in search of outbursts and other transient events, then confirmed the engulfment event, named ZTF SLRN-2020.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Wise/NEOWISE Telescope.

“Our team’s custom reanalysis of all-sky infrared maps from NEOWISE exemplifies the vast discovery potential of archival survey data sets,” said NOIRLab astronomer Aaron Meisner, another co-author on the paper.

Distinguishing a planetary-engulfment outburst from other types of outbursts, such as solar-flare-type events and coronal-mass ejections, is difficult and requires high-resolution observations to pinpoint the location of an outburst and long-term measurements of its brightness without contamination from nearby stars.

Gemini South provided these essential data thanks to its adaptive-optics capabilities.

“Gemini South continues to expand our understanding of the Universe and these new observations support predictions for the future of our own planet,” said NSF Gemini Observatory program director Martin Still. “This discovery is a wonderful example of the feats we can accomplish when we combine world-class telescope operations and cutting-edge scientific collaboration.”

“With these revolutionary new optical and infrared surveys, we are now witnessing such events happen in real time in our own Milky Way — a testament to our almost certain future as a planet,” said Kishalay De, an astronomer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and lead author on the paper.

The outburst from the engulfment lasted approximately 100 days and the characteristics of its lightcurve, as well as the ejected material, gave astronomers insight into the mass of the star and that of its engulfed planet. The ejected material consisted of about 33 Earth masses of hydrogen and about 0.33 Earth masses of dust. “That’s more star- and planet-forming material being recycled, or burped out, into the interstellar medium thanks to the star eating the planet,” said Lau. From this analysis, the team estimated that the progenitor star is about 0.8−1.5 times the mass of our Sun and the engulfed planet was 1−10 times the mass of Jupiter.

Now that the signatures of a planetary engulfment have been identified for the first time, astronomers have improved metrics they can use to search for similar events happening elsewhere in the cosmos. This will be especially important when Vera C. Rubin Observatory comes on line in 2025.

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the Gemini South Telescope and Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

For instance, the observed effects of chemical pollution on the remnant star when seen elsewhere can hint that an engulfment has taken place. The interpretation of this event also provides evidence for a missing link in our understanding of the evolution and final fates of planetary systems, including our own.

“I think there’s something pretty remarkable about these results that speaks to the transience of our existence,” says Lau. “After the billions of years that span the lifetime of our Solar System, our own end stages will likely conclude in a final flash that lasts only a few months.”

More information:

[1] While evidence of engulfment events has been found before — such as the resulting corpse of a star and the burnt out husk of a planet, suggesting the engulfment took place sometime in the distant past — the results presented here are the first direct evidence that it is happening as we are observing it.

[2] The Gemini South observations were made using Director’s Discretionary Time (Program ID: GS-2022A-DD-102, PI: K. De)

NSF’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory), the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, ANID–Chile, MCTIC–Brazil, MINCyT–Argentina, and KASI–Republic of Korea), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), the Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory (operated in cooperation with the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory). It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with NSF and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona. The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawai‘i, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

Research paper Nature

See the full article here .

Comments are invited and will be appreciated, especially if the reader finds any errors which I can correct. Use “Reply”.

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’i, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Gemini Near-Infrared Spectrograph [GNIRS] on Gemini North, Mauna Kea, Hawai’i , 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Dual Quasars Blaze Bright at the Center of Merging Galaxies”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

4.5.23
Xin Liu
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Email: xinliuxl@illinois.edu

Yu-Ching Chen
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Email: ycchen@illinois.edu

Yue Shen
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Email: shenyue@illinois.edu

Charles Blue
NSF’s NOIRLab
Tel: +1 202 236 6324
Email: charles.blue@noirlab.edu

Gemini North [below] helps confirm nature of cosmic system on the verge of becoming a giant elliptical galaxy.

Astronomers using an array of ground- and space-based telescopes, including Gemini North on Hawai‘i, have uncovered a closely bound duo of energetic quasars — the hallmark of a pair of merging galaxies — seen when the Universe was only three billion years old. This discovery sheds light on the evolution of galaxies at “cosmic noon,” a period in the history of the Universe when galaxies underwent bursts of furious star formation. This merger also represents a system on the verge of becoming a giant elliptical galaxy.

Galaxies grow and evolve by merging with other galaxies, blending their billions of stars, triggering bursts of vigorous star formation, and often fueling their central supermassive black holes to produce luminous quasars that outshine the entire galaxy. Some of these mergers eventually go on to become massive elliptical galaxies that contain black holes that are many billions of times the mass of our Sun. Although astronomers have observed a veritable menagerie of merging galaxies with more than one quasar in our own cosmic neighborhood, more distant examples, seen when the Universe was only a quarter of its current age, are quite rare and extremely challenging to find.

By harnessing a bevy of ground- and space-based observatories — including Gemini North, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab — a team of astronomers has discovered a closely bound pair of actively feeding supermassive black holes — quasars. This discovery is the first confirmed detection of a pair of supermassive black holes in the same galactic real estate at ‘cosmic noon’ — a period of frenetic star formation at a time when the Universe was only three billion years old.

Previous observations have identified similar systems in the early stages of merging, when the two galaxies could still be considered clearly separate entities. But these new results show a pair of quasars blazing away in such close proximity, a mere 10,000 light-years apart, that their original host galaxies are likely well on their way to becoming a single giant elliptical galaxy.

Searching for pairs of supermassive black holes so close to each other during this early epoch is like trying to find the proverbial needle in a haystack. The challenge is that most black-hole pairs are too close to distinguish individually. To definitively detect such a system, the two supermassive black holes need to be actively accreting and shining as quasars simultaneously, conditions that are extremely rare. Statistically, for every 100 supermassive black holes only one should be actively accreting at a given time.

Astronomers know, however, that the distant Universe should be brimming with pairs of supermassive black holes embedded within merging galaxies. The first hints of such a system were found in data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, which revealed two closely aligned pinpoints of light in the distant Universe.

The National Aeronautics and Space Agency European Space Agency [La Agencia Espacial Europea] [Agence spatiale européenne][Europäische Weltraumorganization](EU) Hubble Space Telescope Instrumentation annotated.

To verify the true nature of this system, the team searched through ESA’s Gaia observatory’s vast database and found that this system had an apparent “jiggle,” which could be the result of sporadic changes in a black hole’s feeding activity.

European Space Agency [La Agencia Espacial Europea][Agence spatiale européenne][Europäische Weltraumorganization](EU) GAIA satellite.

The team then used the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS) [below] and GNIRS [below] on Gemini North, which provided the team with independent measurements of the distance to the quasars and confirmed that the two objects were both quasars rather than a chance alignment of a single quasar with a foreground star. Further studies with the W.M. Keck Observatory, NSF’s Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, and NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory also helped to confirm these observations.

W.M. Keck Observatory two ten meter telescopes operated by California Institute of Technology and The University of California, at Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawai’i, altitude 4,207 m (13,802 ft). Credit: Caltech.

National Radio Astronomy Observatory Karl G Jansky Very Large Array located in central New Mexico on the Plains of San Agustin, between the towns of Magdalena and Datil, ~50 miles (80 km) west of Socorro. The VLA comprises twenty-eight 25-meter radio telescopes.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration Chandra X-ray telescope.

“The confirmation process wasn’t easy and we needed an array of telescopes covering the spectrum from X-rays to the radio to finally confirm that this system is indeed a pair of quasars, instead of, say, two images of a gravitationally lensed quasar,” said co-author Yue Shen, an astronomer at the University of Illinois.

“We don’t see a lot of double quasars at this early time. And that’s why this discovery is so exciting. Knowing about the progenitor population of black holes will eventually tell us about the emergence of supermassive black holes in the early Universe, and how frequent those mergers could be,” said graduate student Yu-Ching Chen of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, lead author of this study, which is published in the journal Nature.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-05766-6

See the full article here .

Comments are invited and will be appreciated, especially if the reader finds any errors which I can correct. Use “Reply”.

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’i, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Gemini Near-Infrared Spectrograph [GNIRS] on Gemini North, Mauna Kea, Hawai’i ,4,213 m (13,822 ft).

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “‘Taffy Galaxies’ Collide and Leave Behind Bridge of Star-Forming Material”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

3.29.23
Josie Fenske
NSF’s NOIRLab
Email: josie.fenske@noirlab.edu

The Gemini North telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, captured this dazzling image of UGC 12914 and UGC 12915, which are nicknamed the Taffy Galaxies. Their twisted shape is the result of a head-on collision that occurred about 25 million years prior to their appearance in this image. A bridge of highly turbulent gas devoid of significant star formation spans the gap between the two galaxies.

Galaxy collisions are transformative events, largely responsible for driving the evolution of the Universe. The mixing and mingling of stellar material is an incredibly dynamic process that can lead to the formation of molecular clouds populated with newly forming stars. But, a head-on collision between the two galaxies UGC 12914 (left) and UGC 12915 (right) 25–30 million years ago appears to have resulted in a different kind of structure — a bridge of highly turbulent material spanning the two galaxies. Though this intergalactic bridge is teeming with star-forming material, its turbulent nature is suppressing star formation.

This pair of galaxies, nicknamed the Taffy Galaxies, is located about 180 million light-years away in the direction of the constellation Pegasus.

This new image, captured with Gemini North [1], one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, showcases the fascinating feature that gave them their name. A tenuous bridge composed of narrow molecular filaments, shown in brown, and clumps of hydrogen gas, shown in red, can be seen between the two galaxies. Its complex web structure resembles taffy being stretched as the pair slowly separates.

Galaxy collisions can happen out of a variety of different scenarios, often involving a larger galaxy and a smaller satellite galaxy. As they drift near one another, the satellite galaxy can attract one of the larger galaxy’s primary spiral arms, pulling it out of its orbit. Or the satellite galaxy can actually intersect with the larger galaxy, causing significant distortions to its own structure. In other cases, a collision can lead to a merger if neither member has enough momentum to continue on after colliding. In all these scenarios, stellar material from both galaxies mixes through a gradual combining and redistribution of gas, like two puddles of liquid that are slowly bleeding into each other. The resulting collecting and compression of the gas can then trigger star formation.

A head-on collision, however, would be more like pouring liquid from two separate cups into a shared bowl. When the Taffy Galaxies’ collided, their galactic disks and gaseous components smashed right into each other. This resulted in a massive injection of energy into the gas, causing it to become highly turbulent. As the pair emerged from their collision, high-velocity gas was pulled from each galaxy, creating a massive gas bridge between them. The turbulence of the stellar material throughout the bridge is now prohibiting the collection and compression of gas that are required to form new stars.

The Gemini North observations of this object were led by Analía Smith Castelli, an astronomer with the Instituto de Astrofísica de La Plata in Argentina. Argentina is one of the partners in the International Gemini Observatory.

Notes

[1] The data for this image were acquired before the Gemini North primary mirror was taken offline for repairs. https://noirlab.edu/public/announcements/ann22030/

See the full article here .

Comments are invited and will be appreciated, especially if the reader finds any errors which I can correct. Use “Reply”.

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’i, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Kilonova Discovery Challenges our Understanding of Gamma-Ray Bursts” Revised for Keck contribution

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

12.7.22
Jillian Rastinejad
Northwestern University
jillianrastinejad2024@u.northwestern.edu

Eleonora Troja
Astronomer
University of Rome Tor Vergata
eleonora.troja@uniroma2.it

Charles Blue
Public Information Officer
NSF’s NOIRLab
+1 202 236 6324
charles.blue@noirlab.edu

International Gemini Observatory probes aftermath of gamma-ray burst and uncovers surprising evidence of colliding neutron stars

While studying the aftermath of a long gamma-ray burst (GRB), two independent teams of astronomers using a host of telescopes in space and on Earth, including the Gemini North telescope on Hawai‘i [below] and the Gemini South telescope in Chile [below], have uncovered the unexpected hallmarks of a kilonova, the colossal explosion triggered by colliding neutron stars. This discovery challenges the prevailing theory that long GRBs exclusively come from supernovae, the end-of-life explosions of massive stars.

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) — the most energetic explosions in the Universe — come in two varieties, long and short. Long GRBs, which last a couple of seconds to one minute, form when a star at least 10 times the mass of our Sun explodes as a supernova. Short GRBs, which last less than two seconds, occur when two compact objects, like two neutron stars or a neutron star and a black hole, collide to form a kilonova. 

While observing the aftermath of a long GRB detected in 2021, two independent teams of astronomers found the surprising signs of a neutron-star merger rather than the expected signal of a supernova. This surprising result marks the first time that a kilonova has been associated with a long GRB and challenges our understanding of these phenomenally powerful explosions. 

The first team to announce this discovery was led by Jillian Rastinejad, a PhD student at Northwestern University. Rastinejad and her colleagues made this startling discovery with the help of Gemini North, part of the International Gemini Observatory, which is operated by NSF’s NOIRLab. The Gemini North observations revealed a telltale near-infrared afterglow at the precise location of the GRB, providing the first compelling evidence of a kilonova associated with this event [1]. Rastinejad’s team promptly reported their Gemini detection in a Gamma-ray Coordinates Network (GCN) Circular. 

Astronomers around the world were first alerted to this burst, named GRB 211211A, when a powerful flash of gamma rays was picked up by NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory and Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. Initial observations revealed that the GRB was uncommonly nearby, a mere one billion light-years from Earth. 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Neil Gehrels Swift X-ray, and UV/Visible light Observatory.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Fermi Gamma-Ray Large Area Telescope.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope.

Most GRBs originate in the distant, early Universe. Typically, these objects are so ancient and far flung that their light would have had to travel for more than six billion years to reach Earth. Light from the most-distant GRB ever recorded traveled for nearly 13 billion years before being detected here on Earth [2]. The relative proximity of this newly discovered GRB enabled astronomers to make remarkably detailed follow-up studies with a variety of ground- and space-based telescopes. 

“Astronomers usually investigate short GRBs when hunting for kilonovae,” said Rastinejad. “We were drawn to this longer-duration burst because it was so close that we could study it in detail. Its gamma rays also resembled those of a previous, mysterious supernova-less long GRB.”

A unique observational signature of kilonovae is their brightness at near-infrared wavelengths compared to their brightness in visible light. This difference in brightness is due to the heavy elements ejected by the kilonova, which effectively block visible light but allow the longer-wavelength infrared light to pass unimpeded. Observing in the near-infrared, however, is technically challenging and only a handful of telescopes on Earth, like the twin Gemini telescopes, are sensitive enough to detect this kilonova at these wavelengths.

“Thanks to its sensitivity and our rapid-response, Gemini was the first to detect this kilonova in the near-infrared, convincing us that we were observing a neutron-star merger,” said Rastinejad. “Gemini’s nimble capabilities and variety of instruments let us tailor each night’s observing plan based on the previous night’s results, allowing us to make the most of every minute that our target was observable.”

Another team, led by Eleonora Troja, an astronomer at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, independently studied the afterglow using a different and a different series of observations, including the Gemini South telescope in Chile, [3] and independently concluded that the long GRB came from a kilonova.

”We were able to observe this event only because it was so close to us,” said Troja. “It is very rare that we observe such powerful explosions in our cosmic backyard, and every time we do we learn about the most extreme objects in the Universe.”

The fact that two different teams of scientists working with independent datasets both arrived at the same conclusion about the kilonova nature of this GRB provides confidence in this interpretation.

“The kilonova interpretation was so far off from everything we knew about long GRBs that we could not believe our own eyes and spent months testing all the other possibilities,” said Troja. “It is only after ruling out everything else that we realized our decade-long paradigm had to be revised.”

As well as contributing to our understanding of kilonovae and GRBs, this discovery provides astronomers with a new way to study the formation of gold and other heavy elements in the Universe. The extreme physical conditions in kilonovae produce heavy elements such as gold, platinum, and thorium. Astronomers can now identify the sites that are creating heavy elements by searching for the signature of a kilonova following a long-duration gamma-ray burst.

“This discovery is a clear reminder that the Universe is never fully figured out,” said Rastinejad. “Astronomers often take it for granted that the origins of GRBs can be identified by how long the GRBs are, but this discovery shows us there’s still much more to understand about these amazing events.”

“NSF congratulates the science teams for this new and exciting discovery, opening a new window onto cosmic evolution,” said National Science Foundation Director Sethuraman Panchanathan. “The International Gemini Observatory continues to deliver powerful and nimble resources open to the whole scientific community through innovation and partnership.” 

The International Gemini Observatory is operated by a partnership of six countries, including the United States through the National Science Foundation, Canada through the National Research Council of Canada, Chile through the Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo, Brazil through the Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações, Argentina through the Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación, and Korea through the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute. These Participants and the University of Hawaii, which has regular access to Gemini, each maintain a National Gemini Office to support their local users.

Notes

[1] Rastinejad and her colleagues made initial follow-up observations of the burst using the Nordic Optical Telescope.

Nordic Optical Telescope [funded by Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and (since 1997) Iceland], at IAC Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands[Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias](ES) The Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on La Palma in The Canary Islands[Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias ](ES) Altitude 2,396 m (7,861 ft).

Following the critical Gemini North observations, they continued their observations of the fading kilonova with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, the Calar Alto Observatory, and the MMT Observatory, and obtained later observations with the Large Binocular Telescope, the W. M. Keck Observatory, the Gran Telescopio Canarias, and the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.

National Radio Astronomy Observatory Karl G Jansky Very Large Array located in central New Mexico on the Plains of San Agustin, between the towns of Magdalena and Datil, ~50 miles (80 km) west of Socorro. The VLA comprises twenty-eight 25-meter radio telescopes.

CARMENES spectrograph, mounted on the Calar Alto 3.5 meter Telescope, located in Almería province in Spain on Calar Alto, a 2,168-meter-high (7,113 ft) mountain in Sierra de Los Filabres.

Calar Alto Astronomical Observatory 3.5 meter Telescope, located in Almería province in Spain on Calar Alto, a 2,168-meter-high (7,113 ft) mountain in Sierra de Los Filabres(ES)

Multi Mirror Telescope in Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory

LBT-U Arizona Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer, or LBTI, is a ground-based instrument connecting two 8-meter class telescopes on Mount Graham, Arizona, Altitude 3221 m (10568 ft.) to form the largest single-mount telescope in the world. The interferometer is designed to detect and study stars and planets outside our solar system. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

W.M. Keck Observatory two ten meter telescopes operated by California Institute of Technology and The University of California, at Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawai’i, altitude 4,207 m (13,802 ft). Credit: Caltech.

Gran Telescopio Canarias [Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias ](ES) sited on a volcanic peak 2,267 metres (7,438 ft) above sea level.

The National Aeronautics and Space Agency European Space Agency [La Agencia Espacial Europea] [Agence spatiale européenne][Europäische Weltraumorganization](EU) Hubble Space Telescope Instrumentation annotated.

[2] Light that has traveled nearly 13 billion years to reach Earth would have a redshift (z) of about 7. Due to the accelerating expansion of the Universe, that would roughly equate to a distance of 24.5 billion light-years today. When talking about large redshifts, those greater than 1, and cosmically distant objects, it is more accurate to state how many billions of years the light has traveled rather than a distance in light-years. 

[3] Troja and her colleagues initially observed the afterglow of this event with the Devasthal Optical Telescope, the Multicolor Imaging Telescopes for Survey and Monstrous Explosions, and the Calar Alto Observatory. They obtained observations of the host galaxy with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.

3.6m Devasthal Observatory Ritchey Chretien Optical Telescope.

Devasthal Optical Telescope. Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences [आर्यभट्ट रिसर्च इंस्टीट्यूट ऑफ ऑब्जर्वेशनल साइंसेज](IN)

More information

Rastinejad, J., Gompertz, B., Levan, A., & Fong, W., et al. (2022). “A kilonova following a long-duration gamma-ray burst at 350 Mpc.” Published in the journal Nature [below].

Troja, E., Fryer, C.L., O’Connor, B., & Ryan, G., et al. (2022). “A nearby long gamma-ray burst from a merger of compact objects.” Published in the journal Nature [below].

Science papers:
Nature
Nature
See the science papers for instructive material with images.

See the full article here .

See also the full article from The W.M.Keck Observatory here.

Comments are invited and will be appreciated, especially if the reader finds any errors which I can correct. Use “Reply”.

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’i, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Astronomers Discover Closest Black Hole to Earth”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

11.4.22
Kareem Al-Badry
Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
kareem.el-badry@cfa.harvard.edu

Charles Blue
Public Information Officer
NSF’s NOIRLab
+1 202 236 6324
charles.blue@noirlab.edu

Astronomers using the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, have discovered the closest-known black hole to Earth. This is the first unambiguous detection of a dormant stellar-mass black hole in the Milky Way. Its close proximity to Earth, a mere 1600 light-years away, offers an intriguing target of study to advance our understanding of the evolution of binary systems.

Black holes are the most extreme objects in the Universe. Supermassive versions of these unimaginably dense objects likely reside at the centers of all large galaxies. Stellar-mass black holes — which weigh approximately five to 100 times the mass of the Sun — are much more common, with an estimated 100 million in the Milky Way alone. Only a handful have been confirmed to date, however, and nearly all of these are ‘active’ – meaning they shine brightly in X-rays as they consume material from a nearby stellar companion, unlike dormant black holes which do not.

Astronomers using the Gemini North telescope on Hawai‘i, one of the twin telescopes of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, have discovered the closest black hole to Earth, which the researchers have dubbed Gaia BH1. This dormant black hole is about 10 times more massive than the Sun and is located about 1600 light-years away in the constellation Ophiuchus, making it three times closer to Earth than the previous record holder, an X-ray binary in the constellation of Monoceros. The new discovery was made possible by making exquisite observations of the motion of the black hole’s companion, a Sun-like star that orbits the black hole at about the same distance as the Earth orbits the Sun.

“Take the Solar System, put a black hole where the Sun is, and the Sun where the Earth is, and you get this system,” explained Kareem El-Badry, an astrophysicist at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, and the lead author of the paper [MNRAS (below)] describing this discovery. “While there have been many claimed detections of systems like this, almost all these discoveries have subsequently been refuted. This is the first unambiguous detection of a Sun-like star in a wide orbit around a stellar-mass black hole in our Galaxy.”

Though there are likely millions of stellar-mass black holes roaming the Milky Way Galaxy, those few that have been detected were uncovered by their energetic interactions with a companion star. As material from a nearby star spirals in toward the black hole, it becomes superheated and generates powerful X-rays and jets of material. If a black hole is not actively feeding (i.e., it is dormant) it simply blends in with its surroundings.

“I’ve been searching for dormant black holes for the last four years using a wide range of datasets and methods,” said El-Badry. “My previous attempts — as well as those of others — turned up a menagerie of binary systems that masquerade as black holes, but this is the first time the search has borne fruit.”

The team originally identified the system as potentially hosting a black hole by analyzing data from the European Space Agency’s Gaia spacecraft.

European Space Agency [La Agencia Espacial Europea][Agence spatiale européenne][Europäische Weltraumorganization](EU) GAIA satellite.

Gaia captured the minute irregularities in the star’s motion caused by the gravity of an unseen massive object. To explore the system in more detail, El-Badry and his team turned to the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [below] instrument on Gemini North, which measured the velocity of the companion star as it orbited the black hole and provided precise measurement of its orbital period. The Gemini follow-up observations were crucial to constraining the orbital motion and hence masses of the two components in the binary system, allowing the team to identify the central body as a black hole roughly 10 times as massive as our Sun.

“Our Gemini follow-up observations confirmed beyond reasonable doubt that the binary contains a normal star and at least one dormant black hole,” elaborated El-Badry. “We could find no plausible astrophysical scenario that can explain the observed orbit of the system that doesn’t involve at least one black hole.”

The team relied not only on Gemini North’s superb observational capabilities but also on Gemini’s ability to provide data on a tight deadline, as the team had only a short window in which to perform their follow-up observations.

“When we had the first indications that the system contained a black hole, we only had one week before the two objects were at the closest separation in their orbits. Measurements at this point are essential to make accurate mass estimates in a binary system,” said El-Badry. “Gemini’s ability to provide observations on a short timescale was critical to the project’s success. If we’d missed that narrow window, we would have had to wait another year.”

Astronomers’ current models of the evolution of binary systems are hard-pressed to explain how the peculiar configuration of Gaia BH1 system could have arisen. Specifically, the progenitor star that later turned into the newly detected black hole would have been at least 20 times as massive as our Sun. This means it would have lived only a few million years. If both stars formed at the same time, this massive star would have quickly turned into a supergiant, puffing up and engulfing the other star before it had time to become a proper, hydrogen-burning, main-sequence star like our Sun.

It is not at all clear how the solar-mass star could have survived that episode, ending up as an apparently normal star, as the observations of the black hole binary indicate. Theoretical models that do allow for survival all predict that the solar-mass star should have ended up on a much tighter orbit than what is actually observed.

This could indicate that there are important gaps in our understanding of how black holes form and evolve in binary systems, and also suggests the existence of an as-yet-unexplored population of dormant black holes in binaries.

“It is interesting that this system is not easily accommodated by standard binary evolution models,” concluded El-Badry. “It poses many questions about how this binary system was formed, as well as how many of these dormant black holes there are out there.”

“As part of a network of space- and ground-based observatories, Gemini North has not only provided strong evidence for the nearest black hole to date but also the first pristine black hole system, uncluttered by the usual hot gas interacting with the black hole,” said NSF Gemini Program Officer Martin Still. “While this potentially augurs future discoveries of the predicted dormant black hole population in our Galaxy, the observations also leave a mystery to be solved — despite a shared history with its exotic neighbor, why is the companion star in this binary system so normal?”

Gemini North observations were made as part of a director’s discretionary time program (program id: GN-2022B-DD-202).

Science paper:
MNRAS

See the full article here .

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’i, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.

The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Record-Breaking Gamma-Ray Burst Possibly Most Powerful Explosion Ever Recorded”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

10.14.22
Jillian Rastinejad
Northwestern University
jillianrastinejad2024@u.northwestern.edu

Brendan O’Connor
University of Maryland/George Washington University
oconnorb@umd.edu

Charles Blue
Public Information Officer
NSF’s NOIRLab
Tel: +1 202 236 6324
charles.blue@noirlab.edu

Near-simultaneous observations with Gemini South in Chile of GRB221009A thanks to rapid-response teams of observers and staff.

In the early-morning hours of today, 14 October 2022, astronomers using the Gemini South telescope in Chile operated by NSF’s NOIRLab observed the unprecedented aftermath of one of the most powerful explosions ever recorded, Gamma-Ray Burst GRB221009A. This record-shattering event, which was first detected on 9 October 2022 by orbiting X-ray and gamma-ray telescopes, occurred 2.4 billion light-years from Earth and was likely triggered by a supernova explosion giving birth to a black hole.

A titanic cosmic explosion triggered a burst of activity from astronomers around the world as they raced to study the aftermath from what is one of the nearest and possibly the most-energetic gamma-ray burst (GRB) ever observed. Just-released observations by two independent teams using the Gemini South telescope in Chile — one of the twin telescopes of the International Gemini Observatory operated by NSF’s NOIRLab — targeted the bright, glowing remains of the explosion, which likely heralded a supernova giving birth to a black hole.

The GRB, identified as GRB 221009A, occurred approximately 2.4 billion light-years away in the direction of the constellation Sagitta. It was first detected the morning of 9 October by X-ray and gamma-ray space telescopes, including NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, and the Wind spacecraft.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Fermi Gamma-Ray Large Area Telescope.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Neil Gehrels Swift X-ray, and UV/Visible light Observatory.

NASA Konus- Wind spacecraft

As word of this detection quickly spread, two teams of astronomers worked closely with staff at the Gemini South to obtain the earliest-possible observations of the afterglow of this historic explosion.

In the early-morning hours of Friday, 14 October, two Rapid Target of Opportunity imaging observations [1] were conducted by two independent teams of observers led by graduate students Brendan O’Connor (University of Maryland/George Washington University) and Jillian Rastinejad (Northwestern University). The observations occurred mere minutes apart. The first observation used the FLAMINGOS-2 instrument, a near-infrared imaging spectrograph. The other observation used the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS).

Flamingos 2 Instrument on Gemini South

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

The teams now have access to both datasets for their analyses of this energetic and evolving event.

“The exceptionally long GRB 221009A is the brightest GRB ever recorded and its afterglow is smashing all records at all wavelengths,” said O’Connor. “Because this burst is so bright and also nearby, we think this is a once-in-a-century opportunity to address some of the most fundamental questions regarding these explosions, from the formation of black holes to tests of dark matter models.”

Thanks to the fast reaction of observers and staff, combined with the use of Gemini Director’s Discretionary Time and efficient data-reduction software like Gemini’s DRAGONS “FIRE” (Fast Initial Reduction Engine), this image was quickly produced soon after the observations.

“The agility and responsiveness of Gemini’s infrastructure and staff are hallmarks of our observatory and have made our telescopes go-to resources for astronomers studying transient events,” said Gemini Chief Scientist Janice Lee.

Already communications have gone out to fellow astronomers through the NASA Gamma-ray Coordinates Network [2], the archive of which is now filling up with reports from around the world. Astronomers think it represents the collapse of a star many times the mass of our Sun, which in turn launches an extremely powerful supernova and gives birth to a black hole 2.4 billion light-years from Earth.

“In our research group, we’ve been referring to this burst as the ‘BOAT’, or Brightest Of All Time, because when you look at the thousands of bursts gamma-ray telescopes have been detecting since the 1990s, this one stands apart,” said Rastinejad. “Gemini’s sensitivity and diverse instrument suite will help us to observe GRB221009A’s optical counterparts to much later times than most ground-based telescopes can observe. This will help us understand what made this gamma-ray burst so uniquely bright and energetic.”

When black holes form, they drive powerful jets of particles that are accelerated to nearly the speed of light. These jets then piece through what remains of the progenitor star, emitting X-rays and gamma rays as they stream into space. If these jets are pointed in the general direction of Earth, they are observed as bright flashes of X-rays and gamma rays.

Another gamma-ray burst this bright may not appear for decades or even centuries and the case is still evolving. Of note are other extraordinary reports of disturbances in the Earth’s ionosphere affecting long wave radio transmissions from the energetic radiation from the GRB221009A event. Scientists are also wondering how very-high-energy 18 TeV (tera-electron-volt) photons [3] observed with the Chinese Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory could defy our standard understanding of physics and survive their 2.4 billion year journey to Earth.

This event, because of its relative proximity to Earth, is also a unique opportunity to better understand the origin of the elements heavier than iron and whether they all come solely from neutron-star mergers or also from collapsing stars that trigger GRBs.

“The Gemini observations will allow us to utilize this nearby event to the fullest and seek out the signatures of heavy elements formed and ejected in the massive star collapse,” said O’Connor.

Notes

[1] The “Target of Opportunity” observing mode allows observation of targets that cannot be specified in advance but have a well defined external trigger. Examples include following up newly detected supernovae or gamma-ray burst afterglows or observing a particular class of objects from an ongoing imaging survey.

[2] Rapid short “telegram-style” communications from the two teams through the NASA Gamma-ray Coordinates Network from Jillian Rastinejad & W Fong (Northwestern Univ) on behalf of a larger collaboration and from Brendan O’Connor (UMD/GWU), E. Troja (UTV/ASU)), S. Dichiara (PSU), J. Gillanders (UTV), S. B. Cenko (NASA/GSFC).

[3] For comparison, the most powerful collision in the Large Hadron Collider at CERN so far had an energy of only 13 TeV.

Links

NASA Gamma-ray Coordinates Network Circular 32749 (Jillian Rastinejad & W Fong (Northwestern Univ)): https://gcn.gsfc.nasa.gov/gcn3/32749.gcn3
NASA Gamma-ray Coordinates Network Circular 32750 (Brendan O’Connor (UMD/GWU) et al.): https://gcn.gsfc.nasa.gov/gcn3/32750.gcn3

See the full article here .

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’I, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), <a href="http://“>Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Potential First Traces of the Universe’s Earliest Stars”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

9.28.22
Yuzuru Yoshii
University of Tokyo
Email: yoshii@ioa.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Timothy Beers
University of Notre Dame
Email: tbeers@nd.edu

Charles Blue
Public Information Officer
NSF’s NOIRLab
Tel: +1 202 236 6324
Email: charles.blue@noirlab.edu

This artist’s impression shows a field of Population III stars as they would have appeared a mere 100 million years after the Big Bang. Astronomers may have discovered the first signs of their ancient chemical remains in the clouds surrounding one of the most distant quasars ever detected. Credit: J. da Silva/Spaceengine/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/

Astronomers may have discovered the ancient chemical remains of the first stars to light up the Universe. Using an innovative analysis of a distant quasar observed by the 8.1-meter Gemini North telescope on Hawai‘i [below], operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, the scientists found an unusual ratio of elements that, they argue, could only come from the debris produced by the all-consuming explosion of a 300-solar-mass first-generation star.

The very first stars likely formed when the Universe was only 100 million years old, less than one percent its current age. These first stars — known as Population III — were so titanically massive that when they ended their lives as supernovae they tore themselves apart, seeding interstellar space with a distinctive blend of heavy elements. Despite decades of diligent searching by astronomers, however, there has been no direct evidence of these primordial stars, until now.

By analyzing one of the most distant known quasars [1] using the Gemini North telescope, one of the two identical telescopes that make up the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, astronomers now think they have identified the remnant material of the explosion of a first-generation star. Using an innovative method to deduce the chemical elements contained in the clouds surrounding the quasar, they noticed a highly unusual composition — the material contained over 10 times more iron than magnesium compared to the ratio of these elements found in our Sun.

The scientists believe that the most likely explanation for this striking feature is that the material was left behind by a first-generation star that exploded as a pair-instability supernova. These remarkably powerful versions of supernova explosions have never been witnessed, but are theorized to be the end of life for gigantic stars with masses between 150 and 250 times that of the Sun.

Pair-instability supernova explosions happen when photons in the center of a star spontaneously turn into electrons and positrons — the positively charged antimatter counterpart to the electron. This conversion reduces the radiation pressure inside the star, allowing gravity to overcome it and leading to the collapse and subsequent explosion.

Unlike other supernovae, these dramatic events leave no stellar remnants, such as a neutron star or a black hole, and instead eject all their material into their surroundings. There are only two ways to find evidence of them. The first is to catch a pair-instability supernova as it happens, which is a highly unlikely happenstance. The other way is to identify their chemical signature from the material they eject into interstellar space.

For their research, the astronomers studied results from a prior observation taken by the 8.1-meter Gemini North telescope using the Gemini Near-Infrared Spectrograph (GNIRS).

Gemini Near-Infrared Spectrograph [GNIRS] on Gemini North, Mauna Kea, Hawaii USA,4,213 m (13,822 ft).

A spectrograph splits the light emitted by celestial objects into its constituent wavelengths, which carry information about which elements the objects contain. Gemini is one of the few telescopes of its size with suitable equipment to perform such observations.

Deducing the quantities of each element present, however, is a tricky endeavor because the brightness of a line in a spectrum depends on many other factors besides the element’s abundance.

Two co-authors of the analysis, Yuzuru Yoshii and Hiroaki Sameshima of the University of Tokyo, have tackled this problem by developing a method of using the intensity of wavelengths in a quasar spectrum to estimate the abundance of the elements present there. It was by using this method to analyze the quasar’s spectrum that they and their colleagues discovered the conspicuously low magnesium-to-iron ratio.

“It was obvious to me that the supernova candidate for this would be a pair-instability supernova of a Population III star, in which the entire star explodes without leaving any remnant behind,” said Yoshii. “I was delighted and somewhat surprised to find that a pair-instability supernova of a star with a mass about 300 times that of the Sun provides a ratio of magnesium to iron that agrees with the low value we derived for the quasar.”

Searches for chemical evidence for a previous generation of high-mass Population III stars have been carried out before among the stars in the halo of the Milky Way and at least one tentative identification was presented in 2014. Yoshii and his colleagues, however, think the new result provides the clearest signature of a pair-instability supernova based on the extremely low magnesium-to-iron abundance ratio presented in this quasar.

If this is indeed evidence of one of the first stars and of the remains of a pair-instability supernova, this discovery will help to fill in our picture of how the matter in the Universe came to evolve into what it is today, including us. To test this interpretation more thoroughly, many more observations are required to see if other objects have similar characteristics.

But we may be able to find the chemical signatures closer to home, too. Although high-mass Population III stars would all have died out long ago, the chemical fingerprints they leave behind in their ejected material can last much longer and may still linger on today. This means that astronomers might be able to find the signatures of pair-instability supernova explosions of long-gone stars still imprinted on objects in our local Universe.

“We now know what to look for; we have a pathway,” said co-author Timothy Beers, an astronomer at the University of Notre Dame. “If this happened locally in the very early Universe, which it should have done, then we would expect to find evidence for it.”
Notes

[1] Light from this quasar has been traveling for 13.1 billion years, meaning astronomers are observing this object as it appeared when the Universe was only 700 million years old. This corresponds to a redshift of 7.54.

Science paper:
The Astrophysical Journal
[See the science paper for many instructive graphs and images.]

See the full article here .

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’I, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), <a href="http://“>Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “First light observations of chemically rich star HD 222925 captured”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

8.24.22

Gemini South Telescope upgrade is new next generation high-resolution GHOST spectrograph.

NSF NOIRLAB Gemini GHOST Optical echelle Spectrograph on Gemini South

The U.S. National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab-operated Gemini South Telescope used its latest upgrade — GHOST, the Gemini High-resolution Optical SpecTrograph — to capture observations of HD 222925, a star more than 1,400 light years away. The star, known to be bright and rich in chemicals, is the type of object GHOST is intended to investigate.

Ultra-high resolution spectrograph, GHOST, captures observable light emissions from distant star.
Credit: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/GHOST Consortium.

The U.S. National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab-operated Gemini South Telescope used its latest upgrade — GHOST, the Gemini High-resolution Optical SpecTrograph — to capture observations of HD 222925, a star more than 1,400 light years away. The star, known to be bright and rich in chemicals, is the type of object GHOST is intended to investigate.

“This is an exciting milestone for astronomers around the globe who rely on Gemini South to study the Universe from this exceptional vantage point in Chile,” said Jennifer Lotz, director of the Gemini Observatory. “Once this next-generation instrument is commissioned, GHOST will be an essential component of the astronomer’s toolbox.”

Spectrographs analyze light emissions from objects and provide information about chemical composition and stellar motion and can observe remnants of the ancient universe. GHOST has ten times the resolution of other visible spectrograph on Gemini South and is the most sensitive high-resolution spectrograph in use among comparably sized telescopes.

“With the successful commissioning of GHOST, NSF congratulates the instrument team on delivering to the international astronomy community enhanced capability to explore planets, stars, and galaxies,” said Martin Still, Gemini program officer at NSF. “We eagerly await the new discoveries.”

When the commissioning process is complete, GHOST will be available for all researchers to request observation time.

See the full article here .

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’I, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), <a href="http://“>Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory: “Colliding Galaxies Dazzle in Gemini North Image”

NOIRLab

From The NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini Observatory

8.9.22

Travis Rector
NSF’s NOIRLab & University of Alaska
Tel: +1 907 786 1242
Email: tarector@alaska.edu

Charles Blue
Public Information Officer
NSF’s NOIRLab
Tel: +1 202 236 6324
Email: charles.blue@noirlab.edu

NSF’s NOIRLab unveils stunning image of merging spiral galaxies

The merging galaxy pair NGC 4568 and NGC 4567 and supernova SN 2020fqv (callout box)

This image from the Gemini North telescope in Hawai‘i reveals a pair of interacting spiral galaxies — NGC 4568 (bottom) and NGC 4567 (top) — as they begin to clash and merge. The galaxies will eventually form a single elliptical galaxy in around 500 million years. Also shown in the image is the glowing remains of a supernova that was detected in 2020.
Credit: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA.
Image processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF’s NOIRLab), J. Miller (Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab), M. Zamani (NSF’s NOIRLab) & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)

Gemini North [below], one of the twin telescopes of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, has observed the initial stages of a cosmic collision approximately 60 million light-years away in the direction of the constellation Virgo. The two stately spiral galaxies, NGC 4568 (bottom) and NGC 4567 (top), are poised to undergo one of the most spectacular events in the Universe, a galactic merger. At present, the centers of these galaxies are still 20,000 light-years apart (about the distance from Earth to the center of the Milky Way) and each galaxy still retains its original, pinwheel shape. Those placid conditions, however, will change.

As NGC 4568 and NGC 4567 draw together and coalesce, their dueling gravitational forces will trigger bursts of intense stellar formation and wildly distort their once-majestic structures. Over millions of years, the galaxies will repeatedly swing past each other in ever-tightening loops, drawing out long streamers of stars and gas until their individual structures are so thoroughly mixed that a single, essentially spherical, galaxy emerges from the chaos. By that point, much of the gas and dust (the fuel for star formation) in this system will have been used up or blown away.

This merger is also a preview of what will happen when the Milky Way and its closest large galactic neighbor the Andromeda Galaxy collide in about 5 billion years.

Milkdromeda with Andromeda on the left-Earth’s night sky in 3.75 billion years. No one will be here on Earth to see it. Maybe humans will have escaped the Sun’s becoming a Red Giant and observe it from a new home. Credit: The National Aeronautics and Space Agency.

A bright region in the center of one of NGC 4568’s sweeping spiral arms is the fading afterglow of a supernova — known as SN 2020fqv — that was detected in 2020. The new Gemini image was produced from data taken in 2020.

By combining decades of observations and computer modeling, astronomers now have compelling evidence that merging spiral galaxies like these go on to become elliptical galaxies. It is likely that NGC 4568 and NGC 4567 will eventually resemble their more-mature neighbor Messier 89, an elliptical galaxy that also resides in the Virgo Cluster. With its dearth of star-forming gas, Messier 89 now exhibits minimal star formation and is made up primarily of older, low-mass stars and ancient globular clusters.

Advanced technology on the Gemini North telescope, including the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph North (GMOS-N) [below] and the dry air above the summit of Maunakea, allowed astronomers to capture this spectacular image.

The image was obtained by NOIRLab’s Communication, Education & Engagement team, as part of the NOIRLab Legacy Imaging Program.

See the full article here .

five-ways-keep-your-child-safe-school-shootings
Please help promote STEM in your local schools.

Stem Education Coalition

_______________________________________________
Gemini Observatory

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, the US center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, Gemini Argentina | Argentina.gob.ar, ANID–Chile, Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnolgia, Inovação e Comunicações](BR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항])(KR)

National Science Foundation NOIRLab’s Gemini North Frederick C Gillett telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory Hawai’I, Altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

The National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory GEMINI North Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS].

Mauna Kea Observatories Hawai’i, altitude 4,213 m (13,822 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South telescope on the summit of Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 7200 feet. There are currently two telescopes commissioned on Cerro Pachón, Gemini South and the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope. A third, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is under construction.

Gemini Observatory Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph [GMOS] on Gemini South

National Science Foundation NOIRLab National Optical Astronomy Observatory Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL) Gemini Planet Imager on Gemini South, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) campus near La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 7200 feet on the summit of Cerro Pachon.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory(CL) approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters.
_______________________________________________

Gemini’s mission is to advance our knowledge of the Universe by providing the international Gemini Community with forefront access to the entire sky.

The NSF NOIRLab Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration with two identical 8-meter telescopes. The Frederick C. Gillett Gemini Telescope is located on Mauna Kea, Hawai’i (Gemini North) and the other telescope, Gemini South, on Cerro Pachón in central Chile); together the twin telescopes provide full coverage over both hemispheres of the sky. The telescopes incorporate technologies that allow large, relatively thin mirrors, under active control, to collect and focus both visible and infrared radiation from space.

The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in six partner countries with state-of-the-art astronomical facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each country’s contribution. In addition to financial support, each country also contributes significant scientific and technical resources. The national research agencies that form the Gemini partnership include: the National Science Foundation, the Canadian National Research Council, the Chilean Comisión Nacional de Investigación Cientifica y Tecnológica, the Australian Research Council, the Argentinean Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva, and the Brazilian Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação. The observatory is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for the international partnership.

National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory ), the center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the international Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, National Research Council Canada (CA), Agancia Nacional de IInvestigacion y Desarrollo (CL), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation [Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações] (BR), <a href=”http://“>Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation | Argentina.gob.Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación | Argentina.gob.(AR), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute[알림사항](KR), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) , NSF NOAO Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CL), the NOAO Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory ).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft).

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Kitt Peak National Observatory on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O’odham Nation, 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona, Altitude 2,096 m (6,877 ft), annotated.

NSF NOIRLab NOAO Vera C. Rubin Observatory [LSST] Telescope currently under construction on the El Peñón peak at Cerro Pachón Chile, a 2,682-meter-high mountain in Coquimbo Region, in northern Chile, alongside the existing NSF NOIRLab NOAO Gemini South Telescope and NSF NOIRLab NOAO Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope.

It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawaiʻi, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.