TYB
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day
March 11, 2026
CG 4: The Globule and the Galaxy
Is this a cosmic monster ready to devour an unsuspecting galaxy? Thankfully, that is not the case. The red “monster” shown in the featured image is Cometary Globule CG 4, 1,300 light-years away in the Constellation Puppis. CG 4 is a molecular cloud, where hydrogen becomes cold enough to form molecules that can be brought together by gravity to create stars. The shape of CG 4 resembles that of a comet, but its head is 1.5 light-year in diameter and its tail is 8 light-years long; for comparison, the distance from the Earth to the sun is only 8 light-minutes. Astronomers believe that the tail of a cometary globule could have been shaped by a nearby supernova explosion or by irradiation from hot, massive stars. Indeed, CG 4 and other nearby globules point away from the Vela Supernova Remnant, at the center of the Gum Nebula. The edge-on spiral galaxy, ESO 257-19, is more than a hundred million light-years beyond CG 4, and is completely safe from the “monster”.
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b4HSDWl2S8
Satellite Coming Down, Fireball, Space Weather | S0 News and frens
Mar.11.2026
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAkn6uppe04
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIsJqOLv6yw (Stefan Burns: Italy's Strongest Earthquake in 10 Years Struck Directly Under a Supervolcano…)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5_kzygb4QA (TheEarthMaster: Major Coronal hole on the Sun Facing Earth. Southern California Earthquake activity)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuX11Mfi8ao (MrMBB333: It could come crashing through the atmosphere at ANYTIME!)
https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-sun-has-a-heartbeat
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes-volcanoes/news/297284/Volcano-earthquake-report-for-Wednesday-11-Mar-2026.html
https://x.com/neetintel/status/2031489707498971574
https://x.com/schumannbot/status/2031731903296864661
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/aurora-viewline-tonight-and-tomorrow-night-experimental
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/low-solar-activity-anticipated-during-week-9-13-march
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/eclipse-season-goes-satellites-here
https://spaceweather.com/
https://x.com/StefanBurnsGeo/status/2031631028742152658
https://avi-loeb.medium.com/new-anomalies-in-the-isotope-abundances-of-3i-atlas-1bb3790207f1
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2603.06911
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2603.07026
https://avi-loeb.medium.com/the-mass-budget-discrepancy-of-3i-atlas-f74db5da0aa0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWVNgeqKpwI (Avi Loeb: 3I/ATLAS Could Be a Trojan Horse)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Rv0zfSME8k (Angry Astronaut: Six days from Jupiter, artificial drive detected on 3I Atlas?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9w_rJeJPDxw (The hunt for Alien Civilizations finds 92 NEW Extraterrestrial Signals! And they look artificial!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMDol2j3IPw (David Drew: Comet Prediction of Sungrazer C/2026 A1 | Thunderbolts)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpKusazYQIs (Ray's Astro: Comet 3I ATLAS Near Jupiter — Did It Change Course? I Took a Picture)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMjC9r7bRXI (AMS event #1569-2026 caught from North Branford US)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCRDkbFW7dM (Dobsonian Power: SLEEPER CELLS AT 7070Khz?)
https://www.space.com/astronomy/comets/easter-comet-could-be-visible-in-daytime-skies-this-april-if-it-survives-a-fiery-dive-past-the-sun
https://starwalk.space/en/news/comet-a11yztn
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Astronomers-find-5-potential-alien-structures-harvesting-energy-from-the-stars.1246726.0.html
https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.23270
https://dtinews.dantri.com.vn/vietnam-today/gamma-normid-meteor-shower-to-be-visible-in-vietnam-20260311202839873.htm
New Anomalies in the Isotope Abundances of 3I/ATLAS
March 11, 2026
The chemical interactions of atoms are dictated by the number of electrons they possess. The electron cloud around the atomic nucleus balances the charge of the nucleus, which is proportional to the number of protons in it.
Since the charge of the electron equals to minus that of the proton, the number of electrons in a neutral atom equals the number of protons and dictate the chemical behavior of the atom. However, atomic nuclei can also contain neutrons which are electrically neutral.
Stable nuclei often have comparable number of protons and neutrons but they can have variants with a surplus or a deficit of a few neutrons. Isotopes are atoms with nuclei that have identical number of protons but different number of neutrons.
The relative abundance of different isotopes of the same element depends on local production channels, such as exploding stars of different masses, the distance to the nearest historic merger of neutron stars or bombardment of nuclei by energetic cosmic-rays.
The Solar System formed out of a cloud of gas that was uniformly enriched by the same local processes.
As a result of this specific origin, the isotopes found on Earth, other Solar System planets, asteroids or comets, have similar isotope ratios and serve as fingerprints of Solar System materials.
Whereas the relative abundances of elements can be modified by chemical reactions which select some of them relative to others, the isotopes abundance ratio of a specific element can only be modified by nuclear processes which require temperatures in excess of ten million degrees, not found on planets, asteroids or comets.
Two new papers (posted here and here) report today about anomalous isotope abundances in the material that makes the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS.
1/2
The first paper, led by Martin Cordiner, reports that isotope measurements of 3I/ATLAS with the Webb telescope reveal a composition unlike any Solar System body.
The water in 3I/ATLAS is enriched in deuterium — an isotope of hydrogen (one proton) whose nucleus contains a proton and a neutron, at a level of D/H = (0.95 ± 0.06) percent, which is more than ten times higher than in known comets.
In addition, the 12C/13C isotope ratios (141–191 for CO2 and 123–172 for CO) exceeds typical values found in the Solar System, as well as nearby interstellar clouds and protoplanetary disks.
Such extreme isotopic signatures indicate formation at freezing temperatures below 30 degrees Kelvin in a relatively metal-poor environment, early in the history of the Milky Way galaxy.
Astronomers refer to elements heavier than hydrogen and helium (both of which are relics of the Big-Bang), as `metals’. When interpreted in terms of models for chemical evolution, the carbon isotopic composition implies that 3I/ATLAS formed 10–12 billion years ago.
Hence, 3I/ATLAS is interpreted in this paper as a fragment of an ancient planetary system with a low metallicity.
The second paper, led by Cyrielle Opitom, reports the measurement of carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in 3I/ATLAS from observations of the cyanide (CN) molecule, based on observations with the Very Large Telescope in Chile.
The data implies a 12C/13C ratio of 147(+87/-40) and a 14N/15N ratio of 343(+454/-124). The 14N/15N ratio is more than twice above the value of about 150 usually measured for solar system comets.
The 12C/13C is marginally higher than the values usually measured for solar system comets and in the interstellar medium. Similarly to the first paper, the authors here conclude that their measurements might indicate an origin from an old, low-metallicity star.
However, both papers do not realize that a low-metallicity origin for 3I/ATLAS generates untenable tension with its inferred mass and abundance.
Analysis of the latest data from the Hubble Space Telescope on 3I/ATLAS (reported here), suggests a nucleus radius of about 1.3 kilometers and a number density of about 0.007 per AU cubed (where AU is the Earth-Sun separation).
This implies 30 trillion objects and a total mass of 100 Earth masses within the volume of the Oort cloud out to 100,000 AU around the Sun — which is roughly half way to the nearest star, Proxima Centauri.
Only a tenth of all stars in the Milky-Way’s thick disk has a metallicity that is 10 times below the solar value (as discussed here).
By restricting the source population of 3I/ATLAS to these low-metallicity stars, I find that each of these low-metallicity stars must produce 1,000 Earth masses in objects the size of 3I/ATLAS.
Most of the material in the gas plume around 3I/ATLAS is made of carbon or oxygen based molecules (as reported here), suggesting that the object is made of heavy elements, considered as metals.
This mass budget calculation requires the production of 0.003 solar masses in 3I/ATLAS-like objects per star. However, solar mass stars with a tenth of the solar metallicity have only 0.002 solar masses in heavy elements within them.
In addition, their planetary systems which serve as the natural birth sites of interstellar objects, are expected to originate from debris disks that contain at least ten times less mass than the host star.
On top of that, one expects a mass spectrum of ejected interstellar objects with at least ten times more mass in objects with masses that are orders of magnitude different from that of 3I/ATLAS (as discussed here).
This calculation implies that low-metallicity stars miss the required mass budget by at least three orders of magnitude and cannot account for the interstellar population of 3I/ATLAS-like objects even if they ejected all their heavy elements to interstellar space.
The more data we get about 3I/ATLAS, the more puzzling it looks. As Forrest Gump said in the 1994 film: “Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.”
2/2
More Spacewalk Preps, Advanced Research as Cargo Craft Readies for Departure
March 10, 2026 1:21PM
The Expedition 74 crew continued its spacewalk preparations on Tuesday while keeping up vascular health research and artificial intelligence studies.
Mission managers have also given the go for the departure of a U.S. cargo spacecraft from the International Space Station this week.
NASA flight engineer Jessica Meir tried on her spacesuit today with assistance from fellow NASA flight engineer Jack Hathaway inside the Quest airlock. The duo confirmed that the spacesuit is airtight and properly configured and assessed its comfort and mobility.
Afterward, flight engineers Chris Williams of NASA and Sophie Adenot of ESA (European Space Agency) joined the pair and called down to mission controllers for a spacewalk procedures review.
Earlier, Williams prepared a helmet for installation on a spacesuit while Adenot trained to use the Canadarm2 robotic arm to support the spacewalkers.
Meir and Williams are preparing for an upcoming spacewalk to ready the orbital outpost for a new roll-out solar array.
The duo will spend about six-and-a-half-hours in the vacuum of space installing a modification kit and routing cables on the port side of the orbital outpost for the future roll-out solar array.
The station’s seventh roll-out solar array will be installed on a later spacewalk to augment the main solar arrays’ power generation capabilities.
Cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev joined each other again on Tuesday and applied sensors to their forehead, fingers, and toes that sent their blood flow data by Bluetooth adaptor to a laptop computer where it was recorded for analysis.
Doctors will use the biomedical data to understand how living in space affects vascular health.
Kud-Sverchkov also cleaned and inspected the Zvezda service module’s ventilation system.
Mikaev took turns with Roscosmos flight engineer Andrey Fedyaev continuing to test artificial intelligence tools as a way to improve crew operations and communications with mission controllers.
Fedyaev earlier spent time inside the Nauka science module replacing orbital plumbing components, inspecting its ventilation system, and measuring the airflow.
Mission managers have approved the departure of Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL spacecraft for 7:05 a.m. EDT on Thursday after nearly six months attached to the Unity module.
Robotics controllers will remotely command the Canadarm2 to uninstall Cygnus from Unity then release it into Earth orbit for a fiery, but safe reentry above the South Pacific Ocean two days later.
NASA’s live coverage of undocking and departure begins at 6:45 a.m. on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media.
https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2026/03/10/more-spacewalk-preps-advanced-research-as-cargo-craft-readies-for-departure/
https://starlust.org/nasa-astronaut-jessica-meir-shares-incredible-image-of-aurora-over-canada-and-alaska-from-the-iss/'
https://x.com/Astro_Jessica/status/2031084289128006117
https://x.com/RealJamesWoods/status/2030482926983651399
Isaacman reposted
Curiosity Blog, Sols 4825-4831: Exploring the Borderlands
Mar 11, 2026
Earth planning date: Friday, March 6, 2026
Curiosity is in the last stage of its exploration of the spiderweb-like boxwork unit. This stage consists of exploring the eastern and southern borders of this terrain.
There were two multi-sol plans assembled this week. The previous plan put Curiosity at a site on the eastern extent of the boxwork unit with bedrock that allowed for brushing and in-place measurements with APXS and MAHLI of the bedrock target “Infiernillo.”
The ChemCam also took a LIBS chemical measurement of this target as well as a nodular-rich piece of bedrock assigned the name “Humahuaca.”
MAHLI was tasked to image a pitted vertical rock face which was dubbed “Timboy Chaco” (part of which is shown in the MAHLI color image accompanying this report).
Mastcam color mosaics and ChemCam Remote Micro-Imager (RMI) mosaics were also collected to characterize nearby terrain including a butte to the south and the geologic contact between the boxwork terrain and the adjacent layered, light-toned unit.
A midweek drive put the rover even closer to the eastern edge of the boxwork unit and set it up for two or more drives to the southern edge of the boxwork.
The workspace present for Friday planning included bedrock exposures and a dark-toned float rock.
The float rock was large enough for in-situ observation by APXS, and it was also targeted for up-close imaging by MAHLI and a measurement by ChemCam to observe its reflectance properties.
Some other dark float rocks observed by Curiosity in the past year have been hypothesized as being stony meteorites (chondrites).
Measuring the chemistry and reflectance of this dark rock, named “Thola,” will allow the team to determine if it is native to Mars or a meteorite from beyond.
The Friday plan also included ChemCam remote chemistry measurements of the smooth bedrock target “Valle Fertil” and a nodular bedrock target “Norte Grande.”
The plan also included Mastcam mosaics of light-toned bedrock across the eastern contact of the boxwork unit to assess sedimentary structures and determine stratigraphic relationships, observations of smaller troughs in the regolith, and other mosaics of nearby ridges as well as a two-frame mosaic of the dark float rock Thola and another dark-toned pebble.
The plan concludes with a drive toward the southern border of the boxwork unit. Given that this southern contact is approximately 100 meters (about 109 yards) away, it will likely require two drives.
https://science.nasa.gov/blog/curiosity-blog-sols-4825-4831-exploring-the-borderlands/
https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/celebrating-nasas-mars-reconnaissance-orbiters-20th-anniversary-crater-near-sirenum-fossae/