Earlier Press Releases (ESO/Hubble)

From mid September 2009 to mid March 2010, I've been an intern in the education and public outreach department of the European Southern Observatory (ESO).

One of the things I did there was write (or collaborate to writing) a series of press and photo releases about astronomical topics, both for ESO and for the Hubble Space Telescope.

Although I had been involved with astronomy and astrophysics for quite some time, this was the first time I really had to explain these things to the public... Needless to say, there was lots and lots to learn.

Here are my highlights from back then:

PRESS AND PHOTO RELEASES FOR ESO:

• A Cluster and a Sea of Galaxies (published May 2010)

• A new wide-field image released today by ESO displays many thousands of distant galaxies, and more particularly a large group belonging to the massive galaxy cluster known as Abell 315. As crowded as it may appear, this assembly of galaxies is only the proverbial “tip of the iceberg”, as Abell 315 — like most galaxy clusters — is dominated by dark matter. The huge mass of this cluster deflects light from background galaxies, distorting their observed shapes slightly.
• APEX Snaps First Close-up of Star Factories in Distant Universe (Mar 2010)
• The Cosmic Bat — An Island of Stars in the Making on the Outskirts of Orion (Mar 2010)

• ESO is releasing a magnificent VLT image of the giant stellar nursery surrounding NGC 3603, in which stars are continuously being born. Embedded in this scenic nebula is one of the most luminous and most compact clusters of young, massive stars in our Milky Way, which therefore serves as an excellent “local” analogue of very active star-forming regions in other galaxies. The cluster also hosts the most massive star to be “weighed” so far.Black Hole Hunters Set New Distance Record (Jan 2010)
• VLT Captures First Direct Spectrum of an Exoplanet (Jan 2010)
• Closing the Loop for ALMA — Three antennas working in unison open new bright year for revolutionary observatory (Jan 2010)

• The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has passed a key milestone crucial for the high quality images that will be the trademark of this revolutionary new tool for astronomy. Astronomers and engineers have, for the first time, successfully linked three of the observatory's antennas at the 5000-metre elevation observing site in northern Chile. Having three antennas observing in unison paves the way for precise images of the cool Universe at unprecedented resolution, by providing the missing link to correct errors that arise when only two antennas are used.
• Astronomers Find World with Thick, Inhospitable Atmosphere and an Icy Heart (Dec 2009)
• Brightness Variations of Sun-like Stars: The Mystery Deepens — Astronomers facing Socratic “ignorance” (Dec 2009)

• Researchers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope recently took advantage of a rare opportunity to record Saturn when its rings are edge-on, resulting in a unique movie featuring both of the giant planet's poles. Saturn is only in this position every 15 years and this favourable orientation has allowed a sustained study of Saturn’s almost symmetric northern and southern lights. [--> SEE ALSO: PODCAST]
• Born in beauty: proplyds in the Orion Nebula (Dec 2009) [--> SEE ALSO: PODCAST]
• Blushing dusty nebula (Dec 2009)

PICTURE OF THE WEEK CAPTIONS FOR ESO:

• Dying Star Puffs a Cosmic Dragon (published May 2010)

• NGC 5189 is a planetary nebula with an oriental twist. Similar in appearance to a Chinese dragon, these red and green cosmic fireworks are the last swansong of a dying star.At the end of its life, a star with a mass less than eight times that of the Sun will blow its outer layers away, giving rise to a planetary nebula. Some of these stellar puffballs are almost round, resembling huge soap bubbles or giant planets (hence the name), but others, such as NGC 5189 are more intricate.[Incidentally, this gorgeous image - along with its curious title, yes, by yours truly - was gloriously featured in the right-hand side column (the one for gossip and other 'fluffy' news) of Italian newspaper La Repubblica - arguably the greatest accomplishment one could ever wish for one's own career - how can you even start and think about topping that?! :) --> here to the link]
• Darth Vader’s Galaxy, NGC 936 (March 2010)
• A Dwarf in the Fornax Cluster (Feb 2010)
• The Hidden Engine of NGC 4945 (Feb 2010)
• A Supernova Duet in NGC 1448 (Oct 2009)
• A Cosmic Flame (Oct 2009)