Author: M. Özgür Nevres

I am a software developer and a science enthusiast. I was graduated from the Istanbul Technical University (ITU), Computer Engineering. In the past, I worked at the Istanbul Technical University Science Center as a science instructor. I write about the planet Earth and science on this website, ourplnt.com. I am also an animal lover! I take care of stray cats & dogs. This website's all income goes directly to our furry friends. Please consider supporting me on Patreon, so I can help more animals!

Astronomy

First-ever image of a Black Hole

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date April 10, 2019
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This is the first image ever of a black hole. The EHT (Event Horizon Telescope) captured an image of the nearby elliptical galaxy Messier 87’s (M87’s) supermassive black hole in the center of the Virgo galaxy cluster, 53 million light-years away. It was revealed today (April 10, Wednesday) in multiple press conferences around the world, and was the result of a global collaborative effort from over 200 scientists working with the EHT.

Mars Space Exploration

NASA’s Curiosity Rover captures two solar eclipses on Mars

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date April 9, 2019
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In March 2019, NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover captured two solar eclipses created by each of the planet’s tiny moons, Phobos and Deimos.

Oceans

Titanic sinking in real-time

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date April 7, 2019
1 Comment on Titanic sinking in real-time

Sinking of the RMS Titanic — For many years it was generally believed the Titanic sank in one piece; however, when the wreck was located many years later, it was discovered that the ship had fully broken in two. It was so dark out, apparently, most people didn't even know the ship broke into two, including a lot of people who were there when it happened, until they found the wreckage in 1985. Titanic's surviving officers and some prominent survivors testified that the ship had sunk in one piece, a belief that was affirmed by the British and American inquiries into the disaster. The few who did see it was called liars by the ship's owners. They claimed the ship splitting was "impossible".

On April 15, 1912, RMS Titanic, which was the largest ship afloat at the time she entered service, sank in the North Atlantic Ocean after colliding with an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City.

It was one of the deadliest commercial marine disasters in modern history: of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, more than 1,500 died. Here is a real-time animation of the RMS Titanic’s sinking below, published by Titanic: Honor And Glory channel.

Earth from Space Space Exploration

Sarychev Volcano eruption from the ISS [Amazing Video]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date April 3, 2019
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Sarychev Volcano Eruption from the International Space Station — Sarychev Peak Volcano erupted June 11-21, 2009, sending out ash plumes. As the volcano is near some of the main air routes between East Asia and North America, there was some disruption to air traffic. During an early stage of the eruption, on June 12, 2009, the International Space Station passed overhead and astronauts were able to photograph the event. A hole in the overhead clouds, possibly caused by the shock wave from the explosion, allowing a clear view of the plume and pyroclastic flow down the sides of the mountain.

On June 12, 2009, a fortuitous orbit of the International Space Station (ISS) made it possible for an astronaut onboard to capture the Sarychev Volcano in the early stages of the eruption.

Oceans

Dancing with the whales [amazing freediving video!]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date March 30, 2019
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One breath around the world - whales scene — "One breath around the world" is an amazing video by the French freediving champion Guillaume Néry, and his wife, the French freediver, underwater filmmaker and dancer Julie Gautier. The incredible video is shot by Néry 's wife, Julie Gautier as she filmed Néry throughout France, Finland, Mexico, Japan, the Philippines, and other oceanic destinations. Gautier didn't use any air supply too. Néry writes: "Julie Gautier, my wife. One more time she did an AMAZING job. Everything she is shooting with her camera become magic. Of course, she shot, as usual, all the images on breath hold!"

French freediving champion Guillaume Néry, and his wife, the French freediver, underwater filmmaker, and dancer Julie Gautier published an amazing freediving video titled “One breath around the world”.

In the video, Néry plunges into the ocean’s hidden depths, revealing remarkable views of marine geology and wildlife, without the aid of supplied air. There are many amazing scenes like “dancing with the whales”.

Moon Landing Space Exploration

Moon Landings Faked? Filmmaker Says Not!

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date March 25, 2019
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Buzz Aldrin on the Moon (cropped) — Moon Landing: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, lunar module pilot, stands on the surface of the moon near the leg of the lunar module, Eagle, during the Apollo 11 moonwalk. Astronaut Neil Armstrong, mission commander, took this photograph with a 70mm lunar surface camera. While Armstrong and Aldrin descended in the lunar module to explore the Sea of Tranquility, astronaut Michael Collins, command module pilot, remained in lunar orbit with the Command and Service Module, Columbia.
This is the actual photograph as exposed on the moon by Armstrong. He held the camera slightly rotated so that the camera frame did not include the top of Aldrin's portable life support system ("backpack").
A communications antenna mounted on top of the backpack is also cut off in this picture. When the image was released to the public, it was rotated clockwise to restore the astronaut to vertical for a more harmonious composition, and a black area was added above his head to recreate the missing black lunar "sky" (Related: Why there are no stars in space photos?). The edited version is the one most commonly reproduced and known to the public, but the original version, above, is the authentic exposure. This image was cataloged by NASA Headquarters of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) under Photo ID: AS11-40-5903. Image: Wikipedia

Despite there is huge empirical evidence readily available to show that six crewed Moon landings (1969-72) did occur, many conspiracy theorists hold that the Apollo Moon landings were a hoax.

Earth from Space Space Exploration

Coming back down to our fragile oasis (returning back from the International Space Station – video)

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date March 24, 2019
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Earth from ISS, 2011 — Earth from the International Space Station (ISS), 2011. One of the images taken by the forner NASA astronaut Ronald John Garan Jr . He flew on both the US Space Shuttle and the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Ron is also an aquanaut and participated in the joint NASA-NOAA, NEEMO-9 mission, an exploration research mission held in Aquarius, the world’s only undersea research laboratory. During this mission he and the crew spent 18 continuous days living and working on the ocean floor. Ron’s last NASA assignment was in NASA’s Open Innovation Initiative, which seeks to increase openness, transparency, collaboration, and innovation within government. In this capacity, Ron has been involved in many global mass collaboration and citizen science programs.

International Space Station Expeditions 27 and 28 astronaut Ron Garan presents a video about his return from space, including a compilation of time-lapse photography of “our fragile oasis”, the Earth. The images were captured by Garan and Expedition 28 and 29 astronaut Mike Fossum while aboard the space station.

Planet Earth Earth from Space Environment Space Exploration

World Water Day 2019: what’s space got to do with it?

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date March 22, 2019
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Water inequality: digging for drinking water in a dry riverbed — A woman scoops water in a dry riverbed near Kataboi village in remote Turkana in northern Kenya. In 40°C heat and with no access to clean water, she resorts to collecting unfiltered water for her family in containers. The lack of rain in the arid years across the Horn of Africa results in failed crops, lack of water and death of livestock. Picture: Marisol Grandon/Department for International Development. Image source: Wikimedia

March 22, 2019, is World Water Day. Water is a basic human right. According to the United Nations, water scarcity affects more than 40% of people (40% !) around the world, and this is projected to increase with the rise of global temperatures. Providing clean water and sanitation for all is a huge challenge.

Mars Space Exploration

Opportunity Rover’s Parting Shot Was a Beautiful Mars Panorama

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date March 21, 2019
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Opportunity Parting Mars Panorama — This image is a cropped version of the last 360-degree panorama taken by the Opportunity rover's Panoramic Camera (Pancam) from May 13 through June 10, 2018. The view is presented in false color to make some differences between materials easier to see. Incomplete image frames appear black and white. Color images taken with the rover's Pancam are taken one color at a time requiring three images of the same subject to create full color. The rover did not have the time to photograph those locations using the green and blue filters before a severe Mars-wide dust storm swept in on June 2018. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell/ASU. This is a resized version. You can download the full-size image from the NASA Mars website.

Before going silent due to a huge dust storm on June 10, 2018, NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity documented an amazing 360-degree panorama from multiple images taken at what would become its final resting spot in Perseverance Valley. The Mars rover collected these images over the course of 29 days.

Astronomy Planet Earth

25 Amazing Astronomy Facts

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date March 20, 2019
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The Milky Way in the Earth's sky. The Milky Way is the galaxy that contains our Solar System. The descriptor "milky" is derived from the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye. The term Milky Way is a translation of the Latin via lactea, from the Greek γαλαξίας κύκλος (galaxías kýklos, "milky circle"). From Earth, the Milky Way appears as a band because its disk-shaped structure is viewed from within.

As early as prehistoric times, humankind was fascinated by the night sky and all of its beauty. For centuries, philosophers and scholars would attribute magical properties to the bright stars and the Milky Way. In more recent times, we understand better what these mysterious objects are, and we can observe far more than our ancestors – planets, clusters, galaxies, and nebulae.