Copernical Team
Image: Hubble sees a spiral in good company
This image, taken with Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3, features the spiral galaxy NGC 4680. Two other galaxies, at the far right and bottom center of the image, flank NGC 4680. NGC 4680 enjoyed a wave of attention in 1997, as it played host to a supernova explosion known as SN 1997bp. Australian amateur astronomer Robert Evans identified the supernova and has identified an extraordinary 42 supernova explosions.
NGC 4680 is actually a rather tricky galaxy to classify. It is sometimes referred to as a spiral galaxy, but it is also sometimes classified as a lenticular galaxy. Lenticular galaxies fall somewhere in between spiral galaxies and elliptical galaxies. While NGC 4680 does have distinguishable spiral arms, they are not clearly defined, and the tip of one arm appears very diffuse.
Galaxies are not static, and their morphologies (and therefore their classifications) vary throughout their lifetimes. Spiral galaxies are thought to evolve into elliptical galaxies, most likely by merging with one another, causing them to lose their distinctive spiral structures.
ESA helps Europe boost secure connectivity
As today’s world becomes increasingly connected, ESA is partnering with the European Commission to keep communications secure.
ESA’s digital celebration of space safety and Asteroid Day
Register now to join us on 28 June, 18:00-20:00 CEST - seats limited.
Satellites reveal cause of Chamoli disaster
A new study using satellite evidence confirms that a rock and ice avalanche caused the Chamoli disaster in India earlier this year. The resulting mud and debris flood led to massive destruction downstream.
ISS National Lab to Host Session at World Stem Cell Summit
The International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory will host a panel of industry experts on the impacts of health, aging, and human survival research onboard the orbiting laboratory at the World Stem Cell Summit.
This annual event brings together noted science, industry and policy experts in regenerative medicine. It also provides multiple forums to discuss the impacts of curre China making plans for future space exploration: official
China is making plans for the future development of its space program, including exploring asteroids and the Jovian system, collecting samples from Mars and exploring the polar region of the moon, said an official from the China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Saturday.
Xu Hongliang, a spokesperson of the CNSA, said at a press conference held in Beijing that about the year 2025 Chi Rover leaves 'China's imprint' on Mars
Solar panel "wings" spread out and two camera "eyes" pointing ahead, China's Mars rover Zhurong struck a birdlike pose as it explored the red planet in photos released by the country's space agency Friday.
Zhurong's touchdown in May was the first ever successful probe landing by any country on its first Mars mission - a milestone in China's ascent to space superpower status.
The rover, A new animation shows 'A day without space'
What would happen if all the satellites orbiting Earth stopped working? In short, global chaos would ensue. "Satellites have long been an integral part of our day-to-day lives. The services they provide are indispensable for mobility on land, at sea and in the air, for all power and communications networks, for the international systems used for financial transactions, global weather forecasting Astronomers spot a 'blinking giant' near the centre of the Galaxy
Astronomers have spotted a giant 'blinking' star towards the centre of the Milky Way, more than 25,000 light years away. An international team of astronomers observed the star, VVV-WIT-08, decreasing in brightness by a factor of 30, so that it nearly disappeared from the sky. While many stars change in brightness because they pulsate or are eclipsed by another star in a binary system, it's excep Star's death will play a mean pinball with rhythmic planets
Four planets locked in a perfect rhythm around a nearby star are destined to be pinballed around their solar system when their sun eventually dies, according to a study led by the University of Warwick that peers into its future.
Astronomers have modelled how the change in gravitational forces in the system as a result of the star becoming a white dwarf will cause its planets to fly loose 
