Sky Candy and the Globs of Mars

There are a bunch of ideas about them. They're apparently not like the "blueberries" seen by the Opportunity Rover in 2004. For now, until NASA gets more data, I think it's best to just go along with Asimov.

In the meantime, here are some stars. Actually, lots of stars. The caption is a little cryptic.

. * . * .🌙 * . * ☄️. * * . 🌍* . . * ✨ * . * . . *. 🌌
* . * 🚀 . * * . * ⭐️ . * * . * . *🪐 * . * pic.twitter.com/FbtJxfKskB

— Space 8K (@uhd2020) April 3, 2025

The SpaceX Fram2 mission is the first human mission in a polar orbit. Polar orbits are harder because the more you launch in the direction of the Earth's rotation, the more help you get. Until now, the highest inclination had been the Voskhod 2 mission by Belyayev and Leonov in March 1965.

Being in polar orbit made it possible to get some amazing views.

If you live along the West Coast, you'll get some excitement from Fram2's return today.

Fram-2 splashdown scheduled for 1615 UTC Apr 4 https://t.co/r5uyIKsWZh

— Jonathan McDowell (@planet4589) April 4, 2025

This is a dramatic picture — an artist's impression of a binary star system of two white dwarfs. This means that in the distant past, there were two stars of relatively low mass that are old enough that both of them burned out their fusion fuel and collapsed. As the post mentions, there is reason to expect excitement to come.

Astronomers from the @IAC_Astrofisica have identified an exceptionally rare binary system composed of two massive white dwarfs, located ~ 150 light-years from Earth.

These stars are in such close proximity that they are expected to merge and trigger a Type Ia supernova… pic.twitter.com/4gBOxGkaXV

— Erika  (@ExploreCosmos_) April 4, 2025

Since I know someone is going to ask, I asked grok about the impact on Earth. You can see the whole discussion at the link, but the summary is:

The radiation from a Type Ia supernova at 150 light-years would have the following impacts:

• Atmosphere: A minor, temporary ozone depletion of less than 0.1%, leading to a negligible increase in UV radiation at the surface. No significant climate effects.
• Biosphere: Minimal impact on life. Slight stress to UV-sensitive organisms like phytoplankton, but no widespread ecological damage. Cosmic rays arriving later would increase background radiation by a small amount, with no measurable health effects.
• Technology: Temporary disruptions to satellites and a moderate radiation dose to astronauts in space (68 mSv), but no impact on ground-based systems.
• Overall: The radiation effects would be scientifically interesting but not dangerous to life on Earth. The supernova’s brightness (-16.0 magnitude) would be the most noticeable impact, making it a spectacular event rather than a hazardous one.

So, should it happen in our lifetimes, we can relax and enjoy the show.

Stare at the stars all you want, we'll make more.

🆕 Stellar sculptors seen at work in a nearby galaxy! 🧵👇#Hubble35 pic.twitter.com/MfbwAZpSZI

— HUBBLE (@HUBBLE_space) April 4, 2025

More Sky Candy: Sky Candy: Here Comes the Sun

Our local star continues to put on an amazing show, even at night.

Woohoo! Awesome aurora tonight! pic.twitter.com/B49UW8mwen

— Vincent Ledvina (@Vincent_Ledvina) April 4, 2025

Beautiful night here which is JUST getting started! pic.twitter.com/WawlBxPta8

— Vincent Ledvina (@Vincent_Ledvina) April 4, 2025

It looks like there's a good chance for some aurorae down south here. Probably not Kansas, but I live downtown anyway.

Heads up Lower 48! We have some decent solar wind now due to the passing of a solar-sector boundary crossing, a structure that precedes high speed solar wind streams. B_z is south and mid-latitude auroras may be visible from the U.S.-Canada border after sunset. pic.twitter.com/dlGGsOQp6D

— Vincent Ledvina (@Vincent_Ledvina) April 4, 2025

I honestly had no idea what the "Da Vinci glow" was, so I asked my research assistant. It turns out that it's Earthshine, and was first explained by Leonardo Da Vinci. Has anyone else ever heard of this name?

The Da Vinci Glow

📷 Giorgia Hofer pic.twitter.com/gy2sJqCYsy

— Parc Astronòmic Prades (@parcastroprades) April 3, 2025

"Colliding" galaxies.

Colliding galaxies-only one will remain © Webb/Hubble https://t.co/vGy7I3Fnhb pic.twitter.com/2dkwYwSylA

— Alienigena11 (@Madriles6211) April 4, 2025

Honestly, I don't like the phrasing of "colliding." The real effect is like two marching bands crossing paths. They eventually sort out into a single group, but there's no shattering crash.

So that's it for the week. As always, I hope you enjoyed it. For more daily space stuff, see my Substack The Stars Our Destination. And as always, I love getting comments. See you next week.