"In 2023, amidst highs and lows, the sky remains a constant source of awe. From mere seconds to billions of years, cosmic light reveals the universe's secrets. Amidst splashy displays, my task is to unveil the subtle beauty—the unnoticed details and fresh perspectives hiding momentous discoveries in the cosmos. These quiet images may not leap off the page, yet they carry an undeniable impact."
"Sorting through 2023's celestial treasure trove, I've focused on subtlety. This gallery, not exhaustive, unveils what I find to be the most intriguing astronomical portraits of the year."
THE MACABRE GLOW OF GALACTIC BONES
"No gallery is whole without the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), our newest infrared window to the cosmos. Choosing from its myriad revelations is daunting—whether a tantruming baby star, a colossal old star shedding material, or a mind-stomping map of 100,000 galaxies, each presents a cosmic marvel."
"Dive into something extraordinary—the skeletal dust web of Messier 51 (M51). This face-on spiral galaxy, 30 million light-years away, captivates with its intricate structure, shaped by a smaller galaxy collision. From the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument, a sharply eerie false-color view unveils M51's cosmic dust clouds, forming a skeletal pattern. Each cloud holds carbon-based molecules from dying stars, sculpted by rotational motion and gravitational forces into interconnected whorls. Red zones glow from starlight-warmed dust, while yellow denotes active star formation. This image, a product of JWST's precision, aims to unravel the mysteries of stellar birth and evolution."
AN ASTEROID’S MOON DOUBLES DOWN
"NASA's Lucy spacecraft journeys through the main asteroid belt, en route to Jupiter—or more precisely, to Jupiter's orbit. Lucy's mission focuses on studying Trojan asteroids, celestial bodies sharing Jupiter's orbit influenced by both the gas giant's gravity and that of the sun. Dubbed 'fossils' of the solar system's early days, these asteroids hold clues to our cosmic past. Lucy, named after the Australopithecus afarensis fossil, aims to unveil the secrets of these time capsules, akin to ancient relics from the dawn of our celestial neighborhood."
"As Lucy traverses towards Jupiter, it conducted a test by flying past Dinkinesh, a main belt asteroid named after the Lucy fossil. This celestial body, approximately 800 meters across, held a mystery for astronomers due to brightness fluctuations observed from Earth. Lucy's imaging revealed the surprise—a moon orbiting Dinkinesh. While asteroid companions aren't uncommon, the discovery added a new layer of understanding, marking a notable but expected revelation in the journey towards unraveling the mysteries of our cosmic past."
"Astronomers were genuinely shocked to discover a rare phenomenon—a contact binary moon orbiting Dinkinesh, the asteroid Lucy encountered. Comprising two rocks in close contact, this unique lunar configuration astonished researchers. It marks the first observation of a contact binary moon around an asteroid. Theorists are now delving into the puzzle of its formation. The Lucy spacecraft, with its intriguing finds, promises more revelations as it journeys past additional relics from our planetary prehistory, leaving scientists eager to uncover the secrets hidden in the depths of our cosmic past."
THE LOCKED TIME CAPSULE OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM’S PAST
"Bennu, a potentially hazardous asteroid, poses a 0.06% chance of Earth impact in two centuries. NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission, addressing this cosmic concern, aimed to gather samples from Bennu's surface and subsurface. The asteroid, a half-kilometer-wide time capsule, preserves material unchanged since the solar system's early days. OSIRIS-REx's flying-saucer-shaped container, filled with Bennu bits, triumphantly landed in Utah's desert in September 2023. Beyond Earth's safety, the mission explores whether asteroids like Bennu played a role in seeding our planet with life's essential ingredients after its cooling phase, unraveling mysteries from our celestial past."
"OSIRIS-REx exceeded expectations, potentially capturing several hundred grams of material from Bennu, though exact amounts remain uncertain due to stuck fasteners on the container. Engineers are developing tools to fully open it. Despite the challenge, scientists used tweezers to retrieve a small sample, combined with material from the container's exterior, totaling over 70 grams. This bounty already reveals Bennu's richness in water and carbon. Ironically, the asteroid, both a potential threat and a cosmic messenger, offers insights into how similar celestial bodies might have played a role in delivering life's essential ingredients to Earth in its early days."
THE NEAR, THE FAR AND THE VERY, VERY FAR
"Comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF), distant at 280 million km, eluded naked-eye visibility. Yet, in telescopes, it offered a captivating spectacle, as expert astrophotographer Damian Peach captured on December 12, 2023. Moving through Grus (the Crane), the comet gracefully passed by three stunning spiral galaxies—NGC 7582, 7590, and 7599. The coincidental alignment created a perfect celestial frame, showcasing this astronomical ensemble in a harmonious dance of cosmic beauty."
"Capturing this image, Damian Peach not only unveils the celestial ballet but also imparts an uncanny sense of depth. At the time, Comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) stood 500 million km away, providing a glimpse into our solar system's expanse. However, the background stars, at quadrillions of kilometers, dwarf this distance. The real mind-bender comes with the three galaxies—NGC 7582, 7590, and 7599—sitting around 70 million light-years away, a staggering 700 quintillion km. This cosmic perspective underscores the profound depths of our universe.
Adding to the cosmic drama, the comet follows a hyperbolic orbit, bursting with energy beyond the sun's gravitational bounds. Likely destined to escape the solar system entirely, Comet C/2020 V2 (ZTF) might journey through interstellar space in the distant future, meandering between the stars millions of years from now."
DUSTY VIEW OF A COSMIC BEEHIVE
"Globular clusters, akin to swarms of bees, host hundreds of thousands of stars gravitationally bound in a vaguely spherical embrace. These cosmic snapshots, frozen in time, depict myriad stars buzzing around their cluster's center. While over 150 of these clusters orbit our Milky Way, most dwell many tens of thousands of light-years away. However, a few are proximate enough to Earth to be visible to the naked eye, adding a celestial touch to our night sky."
"Situated roughly 15,000 light-years away, Terzan 12, a globular cluster, remains too dim for naked-eye observation. Its faintness, however, stems not just from its distance but also from its proximity to the Milky Way's center. Positioned close in the sky, we glimpse Terzan 12 through nearly opaque cosmic dust clouds, adding an extra layer of celestial mystery to its elusive presence."
"To unveil the obscured secrets of Terzan 12, peering through the cosmic veil of dust is essential. Infrared light, with its ability to penetrate dust more effectively than visible light, becomes a key tool. Hubble Space Telescope, equipped with cameras sensitive to infrared light (although not as proficient as JWST), skillfully captures the stars within Terzan 12, cutting through the celestial murk to reveal the hidden wonders of this globular cluster."
"Even with the aid of infrared light, the cosmic clouds veiling Terzan 12 reveal a patchy landscape, with thicker clouds obstructing Hubble's view of the cluster's left side. Stars in this obscured region appear redder due to the longer wavelength of light, which navigates more effectively through the cosmic miasma. These observations not only deepen our understanding of the star cluster but also provide insights into the density and positioning of the dusty fog enveloping the heart of the Milky Way."
BRIGHT DAWN, BIG TELESCOPE
"Nestled in Chile's Atacama Desert atop the breathtaking Cerro Armazones mountain at an elevation of 3,046 meters, the European Southern Observatory is constructing the world's largest optical telescope—the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). Set to be completed in 2028, the ELT boasts a primary mirror composed of 798 hexagonal mirrors, each measuring 1.5 meters across. These mirrors will seamlessly collaborate with an accuracy of a few dozen nanometers, forming a singular reflecting surface spanning an extraordinary 39 meters. The enormity and precision of the ELT promise groundbreaking observations and discoveries in the realm of astronomy."
"While the construction of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) and its intricate components is underway, the colossal dome that will shield this astronomical marvel is also taking shape. Soaring 80 meters tall, equivalent to a 24-story building, and spanning 88 meters in diameter, the protective enclosure is still in the process of being built. Nevertheless, even in its unfinished state, captivating images of the ELT are emerging. Positioned on the summit of Cerro Paranal, 33 km away, a photographer seized the opportunity to capture the sunrise behind the soon-to-be 6,100-ton behemoth, offering a glimpse of the grandeur awaiting completion."
"Capturing this striking image presented a challenge, as the alignment of the sunrise changes daily. Achieving the perfect harmony between the two mountains and the distant star on the horizon required precise timing. The photograph, taken on August 29, 2023, showcases the dome's silhouette framed by cranes, with sunspots adorning the rising sun's face. While this dawn holds promise, the future for projects aiming to construct observatories of similar scale may not be as bright. The formidable engineering challenges and high costs associated with the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) could position it as one of the last overwhelmingly large ground-based telescopes that humans ever undertake."
A VIEW OF A SOLAR ECLIPSE—FROM THE MOON
"On April 20, 2023, Earth witnessed a celestial spectacle as the moon positioned itself directly between our planet and the sun, casting a shadow that graced select Southern Hemisphere observers with a total solar eclipse. From Earth's perspective, the moon took on the appearance of a dark disk as its shadow traversed the southern Indian and Pacific Oceans.
However, the view was not limited to Earth's surface. The Japanese company ispace orchestrated the HAKUTO-R mission, which entered lunar orbit on March 21, 2023. Although a subsequent lander was lost moments before its final descent to the moon's surface, the mission captured a unique sight just days prior—an event unseen by human eyes. From 380,000 km away, the HAKUTO-R mission beheld the eclipsing shadow of the moon as it gracefully swept across the face of Earth."
"The moon's desolate, crater-ridden surface takes center stage in the image, yet our attention is irresistibly drawn to the mottled blue disk near the lunar limb—the edge of the moon's surface. Amid the gray expanse, white clouds and brown splotches, representing Australia and part of Asia, come into view.
However, a closer look reveals a distinctive feature: the dark discoloration near Australia is Earth's shadow, cast across the vastness of space to intersect our planet's surface. This shadow, responsible for delivering the awe-inspiring experience of a total solar eclipse to many, leaves us contemplating the lack of a specific term for this unique perspective. While we have solar eclipses when the moon blocks the sun and lunar eclipses when Earth obstructs the sun as seen from the moon, the view from the moon as its shadow sweeps across Earth remains nameless. Perhaps as human exploration of the moon progresses, a fitting term will emerge, or we can leave the naming to those who will one day witness this phenomenon firsthand."
STORMS AS LARGE AS WORLDS
"Jupiter's colossal size boggles the human mind—11 Earths wide in diameter and requiring over 1,000 Earths to fill its immense volume. With no discernible solid surface, its deep atmosphere reveals only the swirling cloud tops visible from Earth. The gas giant's atmospheric storms, marked by wide horizontal stripes, are a familiar sight through even a modest telescope.
The alignment of Earth and Jupiter in nearly the same orbital plane, with Jupiter's axis tilted just three degrees from perpendicular, has concealed details of the gas giant's poles from our view. This changed when NASA launched the formidable Juno spacecraft, unlocking the mysteries of Jupiter's unexplored regions from its unique orbit around the colossal planet."
"Functioning as an armored tank to withstand Jupiter's potent magnetic fields, which propel charged particles to electronics-threatening energies, Juno embarks on an extensive, looping orbit. Its trajectory spans from 8 million km above Jupiter's cloud tops to a mere 4,200 km in altitude. During this journey, Juno hurtles past Jupiter at a staggering speed of 200,000 km per hour, delving into the heart of the gas giant to unlock the secrets hidden within its formidable atmosphere."
"In daring and breathtaking plunges, Juno's trajectory sweeps over higher latitudes near Jupiter's north pole, unveiling extraordinary sights beyond Earth's view. During its 50th pass over the gas giant in April, Juno captured a mesmerizing image of two massive cyclones swirling in unison. Processed from Juno's raw images by software engineer Kevin M. Gill, this snapshot offers a unique perspective on the dynamic and mysterious phenomena occurring within Jupiter's atmosphere."
"These captivating cyclones constitute an octet of regularly spaced vortices encircling Jupiter's pole. Each cyclone spans over 1,000 km in width, with a single, larger cyclone positioned directly on the pole, measuring about 4,000 km across. The origin and stability of these enigmatic cyclones remain unclear, challenging atmospheric models that predict their dissipation. Their persistent existence on Jupiter's pole serves as a celestial reminder that the heavens hold mysteries beyond the scope of our understanding, echoing the sentiment that there are more things in the heavens than are dreamed of in our philosophy."
"In the face of these celestial enigmas, it becomes clear that it is our task to dream on a grander scale. The persistent mysteries of Jupiter's polar cyclones challenge our current understanding, urging us to expand our imagination and venture into the vast unknown of the cosmos."
"As Earth gracefully continues its annual turning, mirroring the ebb and flow of human affairs, one enduring solace remains—the collective ability to gaze in awe at the beauty of the heavens. In this ongoing journey, science and art converge as powerful tools for understanding our world, our universe. Astronomy stands as a pinnacle, seamlessly merging the realms of scientific inquiry and artistic appreciation, offering a profound and captivating lens through which we explore the mysteries of the cosmos."
