Did You Know :: KEPLER'S SUPERNOVA REMNANT:

This composite image of Kepler's supernova remnant shows different colors ranging from lower to higher energies: red, yellow, green, blue and purple. An optical image from the Digitized Sky Survey (pale yellow and blue) shows stars in the field. The Kepler supernova was a Type Ia event, the thermonuclear explosion of a white dwarf. New analysis suggests that the supernova explosion was not only more powerful, but might have also occurred at a greater distance, than previously thought.

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre

Did You Know :: M101 @ Pinwheel Galaxy

This composite image of M101 (aka, the "Pinwheel Galaxy") combines data from four of NASA's space-based telescopes. X-rays from Chandra (purple) reveal the hottest and most energetic areas due to exploded stars, superheated gas, and material falling toward black holes. Infrared data from Spitzer (red) shows dusty lanes in the galaxy where stars are forming, while Hubble data (yellow) traces the light from stars. Ultraviolet emission detected by GALEX (blue) shows emission from young stars.

Source : Chandra x-ray observatory

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre

Did You Know :: Harvest Energy from Moonlight

It looks like a giant, glass marble. But this globe is no game. It's a sun-tracking, solar energy concentrator created by Barcelona-based architects Rawlemon and, according to the designers, is able to collect not just sunlight but moonlight as well. The weatherproof sphere is designed to rotate and follow the sun across the sky. It's so sensitive to light that at night, it can even harvest moonlight and convert it into electricity. Andre Rawlemon, the architect and designer, says his spherical, sun-tracking glass globe is able to concentrate sunlight and moonlight up to 10,000 times and that the system is 35 percent more efficient than photovoltaic designs that track the sun. One of Rawlemon's idea is to build these globes into the exterior walls of buildings and use them to generate electricity.

Source : via Design Boom and Inhabitat Credit: Andre Rawlemon

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre

Did You Know :: Surprisingly Bright Super Bubble

This composite image shows a superbubble in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a small satellite galaxy of the Milky Way located about 160,000 light years from Earth. Many new stars, some of them very massive, are forming in the star cluster NGC 1929, which is embedded in the nebula N44, so named because it is the 44th nebula in a catalog of such objects in the Magellanic Clouds. The massive stars produce intense radiation, expel matter at high speeds, and race through their evolution to explode as supernovas. The winds and supernova shock waves carve out huge cavities called superbubbles in the surrounding gas. X-rays from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory (blue) show hot regions created by these winds and shocks, while infrared data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope (red) outline where the dust and cooler gas are found. The optical light from the 2.2-m Max-Planck-ESO telescope (yellow) in Chile shows where ultraviolet radiation from hot, young stars is causing gas in the nebula to glow. 

A long-running problem in high-energy astrophysics has been that some superbubbles in the LMC, including N44, give off a lot more X-rays than expected from models of their structure. These models assume that hot, X-ray emitting gas has been produced by winds from massive stars and the remains of several supernovas. A Chandra study published in 2011 showed that there are two extra sources of N44’s X-ray emission not included in these models: supernova shock waves striking the walls of the cavities, and hot material evaporating from the cavity walls. The Chandra observations also show no evidence for an enhancement of elements heavier than hydrogen and helium in the cavities, thus ruling out this possibility as a third explanation for the bright X-ray emission. Only with long observations making full use of the capabilities of Chandra has it now become possible to distinguish between different sources of the X-rays produced by superbubbles.

Source: 

Chandra x-ray observatory

www.nasa.gov/

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre

Did You KNow :: M42 ORION NEBULA

M42 is an emission and reflection nebula in the constellation Orion it is approximately 1350 lights years from Earth. It is about 25 light years accross. The Orion Nebula is an example of a stellar nursery where new stars are being born. The Nebula is part of a much larger nebula that is known as the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex. The nebula is visible with the naked eye, even from areas affected by some ligh pollution . It is seen as the middle “star” in the sword of Orion, which are the three stars located south of Orion’s Belt.

Video of M42 Orion Nebula

Source: 
wikipedia.org/
Astrophysics Nepal

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre

Did You Know :: CURIOSITY IS IN GOOD HEALTH

On Sol 42 (Sept. 17, 2012), Curiosity drove about 105 feet (32 meters), toward the east-southeast, bringing the mission's total driving distance to about 850 feet (259 meters). The Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) instrument was used at two stops during the drive to check for hydrogen in the soil beneath the rover. During this sol, the rover used its Mast Camera to observe Mars' two moons, Phobos and Deimos, as each passed in front of the sun. Curiosity continues to work in good health. Sol 42, in Mars local mean solar time at Gale Crater, ends at 11:12 a.m. Sept. 18, PDT.

Source/Credit : NASA Langley Research Centre

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre

MPASC Upcoming Events :: Melaka Space Fair 2012 (Eng)

After the first successful attempt of MPASC hosting the Melaka Space Fair 2010 from the 22^nd – 29^th November 2010, the prestigious event is back this year with even more fun-filled science activities this coming 5^th – 11^th November, 2012.

Melaka Space Fair 2012, for the serious science part will have a focus on robotics exploration, a tale of the year of the solar system, planetary sciences through GLOBE, Astrobiology featuring Microbial life in the extreme environment and the success story of NASA Spin Offs in enhancing our quality of lives. For the crazy fun part, MPASC has for you DIY Comet, 15 minute Egg Drop Challenge, Crazy Foam and many more.

Similar to 2010, 10 of NASA professionals ranging from space mission scientists, engineers and STEM (Science, technology, Engineering, Mathematics) educator will be here at MPASC where members of the public would be able to meet and share experiences.

MPASC team is meticulously planning the Melaka Space Fair 2012 to ensure the smooth flow of the 1 week event this coming November. Activities are being revised to maximize impact on visitors particularly students and educators.

Follow our ‘BLOG” for latest updates on the Melaka Space Fair 2012. Should you have inquiries on the event, drop a call to Ms. Bavani Sri Nagappan (MPASC Technical and Operation Executive) at +606 232 2424 or +606 232 2122

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Management Team

Melaka Planetarium Adventure Science Centre