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Hubble finds ghostly object in deep space
There's a green blob in space, but unlike a bad science fiction movie, it's not coming to take over Earth. Probably.
The Hubble Space Telescope has captured an image of a green cloud of gas about 650 million light-years from Earth. It's been named Hanny's Voorwerp, Dutch for Hanny's Object.
The object is illuminated by a beam of light from a quasar that may have gone dark 200,000 years ago, according to the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.
The Voorwerp is about the size of our Milky Way galaxy and is part of a 300,000-light-year-long stream of gas, the institute says. The green color is from glowing oxygen.
What appears to be a gaping hole in Hanny's Voorwerp actually may be a shadow cast by an object in the quasar's light path, according to the institute.
"This phenomenon is similar to a fly on a movie projector lens casting a shadow on a movie screen," the institute says.
The object may have been formed by a collision of two galaxies, according to the institute.
But don't worry. It won't bump into our galaxy within our lifetime.
Probably.
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Sure is good to know that maybe this might be of concern and probably might not maybe be what it was thought to be although it could have been a long time ago but not fore sure, probably.
My thoughts exactly....
Could you EXPAND on that please?
Another example of school budget cuts.
It is 650 million light years away. Traveling at the speed of light, it would take 650 million years to get from where it is now to us. Considering humans have only been walking the earth for less than 100 million years, I assume we will already be extinct by the time the blob gets here. And what a waste of gas money.
CNN, confusing 300,000 miles with 300,000 light years is tantamount to mistaking that the US national debit is $2.39.
Should I buy term indurance?
The milky way is 100,000 light years across.
Agreed Texas Pete. I was lauging when I read that too.
@ Texas Pete, I totally didnt notice that the first time. Miles is definitely different than lightyears. Although, they said it is the size of the milkyway but our galaxy is only 100,000 lightyears, not 300,000 so they were just wrong altogether....CNN's science dept needs a spot check lol. neat photo and discovery though
A long time ago in a galaxy far far away. . .
Par for the course... for CNN.
Your Voorwerp is green.
if so, I would suggest you see a doctor...
If thats your real name...
I just can't get over the feeling that this may be Bush's fault.
Clearly...
Well, there is that Darth Cheney...
It's Cheney's 'undisclosed location'
Concur with Eric- I'm positive it was his fault. I have a witness..Bush Did It
The photo looks like Bush when he is in his demon form – even the little horns on his pointy head! If Satan exists, I believe his name to be Dick Cheney in his human form.
Apparently you can fit 300 Milky Ways between the Earth and the Sun. Who knew?
Apparently my Toyota just rolled over 1/3 of the size of the Milky Way...
Hahaha, you beat me at pointing that out.
I want a candy bar
Nice Jon, I liked your way of pointing that out.
BRILLIANT!
I think they mean 300,000 Milky way candy bars. No wait, thats still not right.
Gimme that creamy nougat
Maybe we never realized that just on the other side of the moon our galaxy ends... looks like the 6000 year Earth believers are right!
My thoughts exactly. Had not drank my morning caffeine and just figured my math was off. I think they mean 300,000 light years, possibly.
You are right on point. Nice catch. I think the wor "Light Years" might have worked better than miles.
HAHAHA, you're so right!
If they meant 300,000 light years, then it would be three times bigger than the Milky Way.... maybe it's a new type of mile... it's 300,000 green voorwerp miles long.
Just think how dense it would have to be to believe that to be true.
WE ARE BEING INVADED!
Probably!?
If it is about the size of our Milky Way galaxy, it it probably part of something longer than 300,000 miles long.
I know, I also noticed that... I wish the Milky way was only that size, so we could travel to the ends of it...
I am sure they meant light years, at that distance 300,000 miles wouldn't even be a pixel.
300,000 light years is 3 times the size of our galaxy, but at least it is on the same order of magnitude, which is reasonable.
"300,000-mile-long stream of gas, which is about the size of our Milky Way galaxy"? Thats not much further than the moon and only a tiny fraction of the distance to the sun. Maybe 300,000 light years, though thats bigger than the milkyway.
That's probably what they mean, but at least it's in the same order of magnitude.
If you haven't noticed... CNN and factual reporting are estranged.
Science reporting by the science ignorant. An editor with a scientific background should have caught such an egregious error.
according to scientists, that long stream of gas is from the Taco Bell I had at 1 o'clock this morning...
Where is the loch nar?
Check YouTube.
I'm sure I can make a longer stream of gas, just load me up on Chipotle's guac and I'm good to go
if youget gas from guacamole, something is wrong with you.
Well, since it's 65 X 10^7 light years away, i would say that "probably" is not even close.
No, No, No, No....That so-called "green cloud of gas about 650 million light-years from Earth" is actually the remains of Jimmy Hoffa. FINALLY, we found him...LMAO...{:o)
yeah...uhhh the milky way is not 300,000 miles across....that's driving me nuts.
Derek, if you want nuts, you'll need an Almond Joy.
This...is CNN.
And it's a certainty that the person who wrote this has a degree.
If you want nuts, you don't want a Milky Way.
Looks like a "heavenly host" to me. 🙂
I don't even know what that means.
Cool. Really
Considering most of the country is scientifically illiterate can you expect much more from the people CNN hires to write this infotainment?