1. Home Sweet Home
The earth as viewed from Apollo 16, 1972

2. Hurricane from Space. We get a much different perspective of our planet, which helps us to understand how our planet works.
Hurricane from Space

3. Barringer Crater – Arizona, USA
Although life is still unique to earth, our home is not treated any differently then other planets in our solar system. This is the Barringer Crater in Arizona USA. Approx 1.6km across it was caused by an asteroid only 150 feet across and created an explosion that was 150 times more powerful than the atomic bomb used on Hiroshima.
Barringer Crater – Arizona, USA

4. On the edge of Barringer Crater

5. Inside Barringer Crater

6. The bottom of Barringer Crater

7. Wolfcreek Crater - Australia
There are many famous craters located in Canada. Most however have filled up with water to form lakes. This is the Wolfcreek Crater in Australia. There is now strong evidence that indicates that the dinosaurs were wiped out when a very large asteroid collided with the Earth 65 million years ago.
Wolfcreek Crater - Australia

8. Yucatan Crater

9. Aurora borealis. A light show in the northern (and southern) polar regions due to the suns activity.

10. Aurora Borealis from space
Aurora Borealis viewed from space.
Aurora Borealis from space

11. Our moon. A large cratered ball that revolves around the Earth once every 27 days.

12. Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, Apollo 11 mission commander, at the Lunar Module "Eagle" on the lunar surface. He became the first human to set foot upon the Moon. Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr.
Apollo 11 on the moon

13. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the moon
Astronaut Buzz Aldrin walks on the surface of the Moon near the leg of the Lunar Module (LM) "Eagle" during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity (EVA). Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, commander, whose reflection is seen in Aldrin’s facemask, took this photograph.
Astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the moon

14. ‘Earthrise’ as viewed from lunar orbit
This view of the Earth rising over the Moon's horizon was taken from the Apollo spacecraft. This famous picture finally helped people understand just how small we are in the universe.
‘Earthrise’ as viewed from lunar orbit

15. The Earth and Moon interact in their orbits
The Earth and Moon interact in their orbits. A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon passes through the Earth’s shadow caused by the sun. Here the moon is just starting to enter the dark part of the Earth’s shadow. The reddish colour on the moon is due to the ‘partial shadow’ caused by the Earth and the refraction of the sun’s light through the Earth’s atmosphere.
Lunar Eclipse

16. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly in front of the sun. When the entire sun is covered by the moon it is possible to see the sun’s corona (the bright white light) which is the very hot outer atmosphere of the sun.
Solar Eclipse

17. This is a timed exposure of the night sky over Utah showing the Milky Way. It gives us an idea of how much else there is outside of our own planet.
Our Milky Way Galaxy

18. A Space Shuttle lifts off
The Space Shuttles are used to take astronauts and materials into space. They have put satellites into orbit, repaired the Hubble Space Telescope and are continuing to build the International Space Station
A Space Shuttle lifts off

19. The CanadaArm on the Space Shuttle
Canada’s contribution to the space shuttle the CanadaArm is used to move things into and out of the Space Shuttles large cargo hold. Notice the relative size of the astronaut in the picture.
The CanadaArm on the Space Shuttle

20. Space Shuttle Discovery

21. Space shuttle piggy-back on a Jumbo 747

22. The International Space Station
Astronauts have been living full time on the International Space Station for six month periods for the last 5 years. It is used for scientific research in a wide range of sciences. It is also being used to study how well humans can live in space for the next stage of exploration which includes a manned base on the moon and then a manned mission to Mars.
The International Space Station

23. An astronaut on CanadaArm2
An astronaut conducting an experiment at the end of CanadaArm2 which is a larger more sophisticated robotic arm attached to the International Space Station.
An astronaut on CanadaArm2

24. Part of the ISS truss

25. Two astronauts working on the ISS truss

26. Sunrise from the International Space Station
The International Space Station travels in a low orbit 400 km above the earth and sees a new ‘sunrise’ every 90 minutes. This gives you an idea of how ‘thick’ the Earth’s atmosphere is (the blue-white line).
Sunrise from the International Space Station

27. Space Shuttle Challenger
Space exploration is a risky business. In 1986 the Space Shuttle Challenger blew up shortly after liftoff when one of its solid fuel booster rockets failed.
Space Shuttle Challenger

28. Space Shuttle Columbia
Space shuttle Columbia breaks apart on re-entry in One of the Space Shuttles wings was damaged by some foam falling from the fuel tank on liftoff. During the heat of re-entry from space the wing failed and the Space Shuttle was destroyed.
Space Shuttle Columbia

29. Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope has been used to expand our view of the universe. Because it is in orbit it does have to worry about cloudy days, waiting for night or looking through the Earth’s atmosphere. As a result it has given us the best pictures ever of the universe around us. Notice the size of the astronaut for perspective.
Hubble Space Telescope

30. This is a picture of our sun in ultraviolet light
This is a picture of our sun in ultraviolet light. It is a massive ball of hydrogen gas that produces vast amounts of energy that our planet uses to support life.
The Sun

31. Our family of planets. The planets of our solar system
Our family of planets. The planets of our solar system. Just recently Pluto has been removed from this family and is now considered to be a ‘dwarf planet’.
Our Solar System

32. Mercury – closest to the sun
Planet Mercury! Mercury and Earth's moon are similar in a number of ways. The surfaces of both objects are heavily cratered, tidal forces have changed their rotation and some low-lying areas are flooded in places with lava flows. Neither has an atmosphere and the surfaces of both are largely inactive. Of the nine planets, Mercury is the closest to the Sun and only Pluto is smaller. NASA's Mariner the only spacecraft to have visited the planet -- took this image of Mercury in 1974 on one of its three flybys. Most of Mercury's surface remains to be studied and mapped, however, much of this region of the planet is too close to the Sun to be safely examined by a spacecraft.
Mercury – closest to the sun

33. Venus – our closest planetary neighbor
Venus. This ultraviolet Hubble Space Telescope image highlights typical weather patterns in the swirling clouds, although no part of the Venusian surface is visible. Though similar in size to Earth, Venus rotates only once every Earth days, and from east to west -- or in retrograde motion (backwards from Earth). Because the atmosphere of Venus has so much carbon dioxide in it it traps a lot of the heat from the sun. As a result Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system (480oC).
Venus – our closest planetary neighbor

34. Surface of Venus – the hottest planet in our solar system
This is a radar image of the planet Venus showing many of the surface features. Radar has the ability to pass through the clouds of Venus.
Surface of Venus – the hottest planet in our solar system

35. The ‘red planet’ Mars (because it has a reddish colour in the sky)
The ‘red planet’ Mars (because it has a reddish colour in the sky). Mars has seasons just like those on Earth. It’s atmosphere is mostly carbon dioxide and nitrogen. It has polar caps just like Earth (except they are made of frozen carbon dioxide) and there is strong evidence for the presence of water as well. The temperature on Mars can range from –133oC to 80oC.
Mars – the red planet

36. Surface features of Mars
In this picture of Mars the brown spots near the left edge of the picture are giant volcanoes, bigger than any on Earth. The biggest is 24 km high (mount Everest is 8.8 km high). A whole network of canyons stretches across the middle of the picture. About 4,000 kilometers long, on Earth this chasm would span nearly the distance between New York and Los Angeles. It is up to 8 km deep in some places (the Grand Canyon is ‘only’ 1.5 km deep).
Surface features of Mars

37. There are currently two robotic explorers on Mars (Spirit and Opportunity). They have been returning pictures and analyzing the many types of rock on the planet. Both have found strong evidence for the existence of water on Mars in the past.
The surface of Mars

38. The surface of Mars. Lots of rocks and sandy areas, including low sand dunes created by the wind on Mars.
The surface of Mars

39. Phobos – largest moon of Mars
A picture of an impact crater on Phobos, the larger of Mars’ two moons. At 6 miles (10 kilometers) in diameter, Stickney crater is almost half the size of Phobos itself. Scientists think Phobos may have been an asteroid captured in Mars' gravitational grip.
Phobos – largest moon of Mars

40. The asteroid belt is between Mars and Jupiter

41. The great red spot is a huge storm!
Jupiter. A gas giant with many bands of clouds. Jupiter has many moons. One of them called Ganymede can be seen on the left of this image (the dark spot). It is the largest moon in the solar system and is larger than the planet Mercury. One storm on the planet called the ‘Great Red Spot’ has been going on since Cassini first discovered it in Jupiter has a very faint ring system and 63 moons.
Jupiter – king of the planets
its mass is greater than all the other planets combined!

42. Io and Europa – moons of Jupiter
This image shows Jupiter and two of its satellites, Io (left) and Europa.
Io and Europa – moons of Jupiter

43. Europa – ice moon of Jupiter
Europa – One of Jupiter’s larger moons it is thought to be covered with ice. The possibility of liquid water beneath its surface has scientists wondering if life could exist here.
Europa – ice moon of Jupiter

44. Comet impact on Jupiter
This picture shows the result of a comet colliding with Jupiter (dark circular spot at the top of the image). An explosion of this magnitude may have destroyed all life on earth and probably the earth itself. (The collision “spot” is larger than the earth!)
Comet impact on Jupiter

45. Saturn – thousands of rings made of dust and gases
Saturn. The famous rings of this planet make it the easiest to identify. Saturn has 56 moons.
Saturn – thousands of rings made of dust and gases

46. Titan – Saturn’s largest moon
Saturn also has many moons, including this one called Titan which has a thick atmosphere of nitrogen methane. Many scientists believe that this may be how Earth looked soon after it was formed. The current Cassini satelite in orbit around Saturn has revealed that Titan has methane lakes. Titan is larger than the planet Mercury.
Titan – Saturn’s largest moon

47. It spins vertically and has vertical rings
Uranus. Another very large planet made up of gases. It’s axis is tilted almost perpendicular to its orbit. It has very faint rings and 27 moons.
Uranus – the oddball…
It spins vertically and has vertical rings

48. Neptune – fastest winds in the solar system
Neptune. The last planet in our solar system. It is also made up of gases and has weather patterns similar to Jupiter and has its own ‘great blue spot’. Winds on Neptune have been estimated to be 2,000 km/hr. Neptune has a very faint ring system and 6 moons.
Neptune – fastest winds in the solar system

49. Pluto – no longer a planet
Pluto. No longer a planet. NASA has recently sent a space probe called New Horizons to learn more about this ‘dwarf-planet’. Launched on January it will not get to Pluto until July 2015.
Pluto – no longer a planet

50. The Kuiper Belt orbits outside of Neptune.
Pluto is now considered a large Kuiper Belt Object.

51. Pluto – no longer a planet
Pluto. No longer a planet. NASA has recently sent a space probe called New Horizons to learn more about this ‘dwarf-planet’. Launched on January it will not get to Pluto until July 2015.
Pluto – no longer a planet

53. A new perspective is looking at our planet from very far away
A new perspective is looking at our planet from very far away. This is the Earth viewed from Voyager Spacecraft (4 Billion miles) (6.4 Billion Km). The Voyager I spacecraft (launched in 1977) and is now 13 billion km from Earth and is now just leaving the influence of our sun and entering interstellar space.
Earth – 6.4 billion km away

54. Comets

55. This is comet Hyakutake as viewed from Earth
This is comet Hyakutake as viewed from Earth. Comets are essentially large snowballs of ice and rock which orbit the sun. The “tail” is caused as melting ice falls off of the nucleus of the comet as it travels toward the sun.
Comets

56. In the solar system, even asteroids have natural satellites
In the solar system, even asteroids have natural satellites. Here, the tiny moon Dactyl is pictured about 60 miles (100 kilometers) away from parent Asteroid Ida. Only about 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) across, Dactyl was the first moon discovered orbiting an asteroid.
Asteroids

57. Outside of our solar system there are other more impressive structures
Outside of our solar system there are other more impressive structures. The Cone Nebula rises 7 light-years into the Monoceros constellation. This is a very small part of our Milky Way Galaxy. The column is destined to evolve into countless stars, and perhaps even generate some planets.

58. The Eagle Nebula (Pillars of Creation)

59. Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula
The Eagle Nebula is part of a diffuse emmision nebula, or H II region, which is catalogued as IC This region of active current star formation is about 6,500 light years distant. The tower of gas that can be seen coming off the nebula is approximately 57 trillion miles (97 trillion km) high. For comparison the diameter of Pluto’s orbit is approximately 5.9 billion km. In other words it is 10,000 times bigger.
Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula

60. Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula – a star nursery
Eagle Nebula. Another area of large dust clouds in our Milky Way Galaxy that are forming into stars.
Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula – a star nursery

61. Planetary Nebula Mz3. This is the result of a large star exploding.
A planetary nebula

62. Cats Eye planetary nebula
Cats eye nebula – Remnants of an expired star.
Cats Eye planetary nebula

63. Eskimo planetary nebula
Eskimo Nebula – remnants of an expired star
Eskimo planetary nebula

64. Spiral Galaxy, similar to Milky Way Galaxy
Spiral Galaxy, similar to Milky Way Galaxy. This is 35 million light years from Earth.

65. Whirlpool Galaxy – The is an infrared image and the red spots are hotspots for the birth of stars. This galaxy is 23 million light years from Earth.
Whirlpool Galaxy

66. The Andromeda Galaxy is the closest galaxy to the Milky Way
The Andromeda Galaxy is the closest galaxy to the Milky Way. It is only 2 million light years from Earth and is visible in the night sky as a ‘blurry’ star.
Andromeda Galaxy

67. The Sombrero galaxy has a massive bulge
The Sombrero galaxy has a massive bulge. The galaxy is probably younger than some, having not developed the graceful spiral arms seen in others. The galaxy is edge-on to our view, accentuating the visual effect of the bulge.
Sombrero Galaxy

68. These two galaxies are 300 million light years away and have passed through each other or ‘collided’.
Galaxies colliding

69. Hubble Space Telescope ‘deep space shot’ in 2004
Hubble’s famed deep space shot. In an area that appears void of light to most telescopes Hubble recorded at least 10,000 Galaxies! The area of sky that this covers is equivalent to looking at the width of a dime 75 feet away.
Hubble Space Telescope ‘deep space shot’ in 2004

70. Hubble Space Telescope ‘deep space shot’ in 2009
The faintest and reddest objects in the image are likely the oldest galaxies ever identified, having formed between only million years after the Big Bang. The faintest objects are about one billion times fainter than the dimmest visible objects seen with the naked eye. These Hubble observations are blazing a trail for Hubble's successor, the NASA/ESA James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which will look even farther into the Universe than Hubble, at infrared wavelengths. The launch of JWST is planned for 2014.
Hubble Space Telescope ‘deep space shot’ in 2009

71. Time to start exploring the Universe!