CosmicExplorationsHub

On Tuesday, August 29, 2023, at 11:35 a.m. EDT, the International Space Station's external cameras captured striking visuals of Hurricane Idalia gaining strength. The station was soaring 260 miles above, and at that moment, Idalia was positioned over the eastern Gulf of Mexico, southwest of Florida. It held the status of a Category 1 storm with wind speeds reaching 85 miles per hour. As the station passed overhead, Idalia was on a northern trajectory, heading towards an anticipated landfall around Florida's Big Bend area on August 30. The National Hurricane Center warned that by that time, Idalia might have escalated to a Category 3 hurricane or even stronger. This intensification could lead to the formation of a highly dangerous storm surge, posing a significant threat to life and safety.

Kepler-452b marked a significant milestone as the first planet similar in size to Earth to be located within the habitable zone of its star. Notably, this star shares remarkable similarities with our own sun, raising tantalizing possibilities about the presence of water and potentially even life on this distant world. Could Kepler-452b one day become humanity's new home? Let's explore this intriguing prospect. In 2015, NASA's Kepler mission achieved a historic breakthrough by confirming the existence of an Earth-sized planet positioned within the "habitable zone" around a star akin to our Sun. This extraordinary celestial body was christened Kepler-452b. During the twentieth anniversary year of a groundbreaking discovery that unveiled the existence of exoplanets orbiting distant stars, the Kepler exoplanet explorer space telescope unveiled a star and its accompanying planet, both remarkably reminiscent of Earth and our Sun. This remarkable revelation brings us closer to the dream of discovering an "Earth 2.0" – a place where the human race might one day establish its new home. Credits: Ron Miller, Mark A. Garlick / MarkGarlick.com Credits: Nasa/Shutterstock/Storyblocks/Elon Musk/SpaceX/ESA/ESO/ Flickr #insanecuriosity #kepler #earth