New Hand Of God Picture Taken By Nasa 9:47am UK, Friday 10 January 20 Nasa has captured a new image of a hand-shaped formation around a star that has been dubbed the hand of God. NuStars new image shows the hand in more vivid colour Scientists said it was a nebula - a cloud of gas - around a neutron star called PSR B1509-58, or B1509 for short. Neutron stars are created when massive stars run out of fuel and collapse. The star has collapsed so much, Nasa says it is only 12 miles across and incredibly dense. When it collapsed, it also caused an explosion which cast gas and material out into space. It revolves at seven times a second and in doing so it throws out huge amounts of sub-atomic particles in streams. The original image of the Hand of God taken by the Chandra telescope It is the interaction between the particles and the gas that, when photographed with a special camera, create the amazing image. A previous image of the hand was captured in 2009 by Nasas Chandra X-ray observatory - a telescope contained in a satellite which is able to see X-rays 100 times fainter than any detector on Earth. The new image was taken by the agencys black-hole hunting Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuStar) which is able to see even the highest energy X-rays. Nasa says B1509 is 17,000 light years away. The image has been likened to Michelangelos Hands Of God And Adam It has an intense magnetic field at its surface, estimated to be 15 trillion times stronger than the Earths magnetic field. Nasa said: NuStars view is providing new clues to the puzzle. The hand actually shrinks in the NuStar image, looking more like a fist, as indicated by the blue colour. The northern region, where the fingers are located, shrinks more than the southern part, where a jet lies, implying the two areas are physically different. It is thought the hand was initially nicknamed the hand of God because it bears similarities to a detail from Michelangelos Sistine Chapel, dubbed The Hands Of God And Adam. :: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202. Related Stories Northern Lights Show For The UK Billion-Star Telescope Launched Recommended Stories 16 Celebrities You Didn’t Know Are Gay! Fame10 Transform your life: join the RAF Reserves The Sun Data scientists are the new rock stars as big data demands big talent EE: Future Connections Unbelievable Pictures of Mariyln Manson Makeup-Free ViewMixed Technology megatrends changing the world EE Future Connections Jones Terrible Penalty Hits Fan in the Face Bleacher Report Dont turn to payday lenders - heres how to get cash in a crisis Shelter Dont get beaten by debt this January - heres how to handle it Shelter Champion Djokovic Crashes Out In Melbourne Sky News Killer Shark Leaves Budgie Cage Diver Red-Faced
Posted on: Sat, 25 Jan 2014 03:58:41 +0000