Observation 2.3

Week of Dec 1 - Dec 7 (1.5h)
Most of this week was cloudy and I was unable to view many of the constellations. I was able to however spot Venus at, or near its brightest. Venus was supposed to reach its greatest luminosity in the evening sky on December 6. I saw it near the horizon, below a crescent moon. By this time in January, Venus will not be as visible as it is entering its inferior conjunction, so I am planning to admire its beauty and brightness for as long as I can.

APOD 2.7

The image below captures the gamma radiation emitted from Earth from the perspective of the Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope. Gamma rays are the most energetic type of electromagnetic radiation. They have the smallest wavelength. On Earth, gamma rays can be generated through nuclear explosions, lightening, and radioactive decay. This image is a compilation of images taken by Fermi showing the gamma radiation that Earth emits. These gamma rays are generated when high energy particles such as cosmic rays from space crash into the atmosphere. Fortunately for life on Earth, the atmosphere blocks out the gamma rays by absorbing them and re-emitting them into space. Using the Large Area Telescope (LAT) and the GLAST Burst Monitor (GBM), the Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope distinguishes between high energy cosmic rays and gammy rays, measures the gamma radiation, and pinpoints the radiation's location of origin with high accuracy all within a fraction of a second during which these bursts of gamma radiation occur. The low intensity gamma rays are denoted using the color blue while the higher intensity gamma rays are denoted using the color yellow.