Photo Gallery
DTM scientists regularly explore our planet and the universe. Along the way they capture images of stunning landscapes, geophysical processes and data visualizations. Browse DTM’s online image gallery to share in the journey of scientific exploration and discovery. For more pictures of DTM research, people, and events, visit our Flickr page.
An artist's conception of a distant Solar System Planet X, which could be shaping the orbits of smaller extremely distant outer Solar System objects. Illustration by Roberto Molar Candanosa and Scott Sheppard, DTM.
Earth's magnetic field, generated by the motion of liquid iron deep inside the core, reaches out into space until it is balanced by non-stop flows of Solar charged particles, also known as solar wind. This balance occurs around 35,000 miles above the Earth's surface (or about 10 times the radius of the Earth). The planet's magnetic field closely approximates an axial dipole at present, where the magnetic and geographic (rotation) poles are coincident. This is the simple dipole magnetic field oriented along Earth's rotation axis that we are familiar with today. This magnetism conveniently funnels most of the incoming charged particles into polar regions and sometimes generates visible aurorae. Image: Roberto Molar Candanosa, DTM.
Schematic of how magnetic minerals (inset) inside rocks are aligned with the ambient geomagnetic field as they solidify. These rocks can preserve the direction and intensity of the geomagnetic field over billions of years if they avoid high temperatures and magnetic contamination. The geomagnetic field fluctuates in geometry and intensity over thousands of years. Such magnetic rocks may cool quickly and preserve the geomagnetic field at an instant in time, or can cool more slowly over thousands of years and preserve a kind of time average of the varying geomagnetic field. Illustration: Roberto Molar Candanosa and Peter Driscoll, DTM.
DTM staff scientist Larry Nittler performed with his band during the reception on Sunday, December 9, 2018 at Carnegie's headquarters in Washington, D.C. Photo: Roberto Molar Candanosa, DTM.
The highlight of Postdoc Appreciation Week, celebrated September 18-22, 2017, included a Paint Night. Photo: Roberto Molar Candanosa, DTM.
A team of astronomers has discovered the most-distant body ever observed in our Solar System. It is the first known Solar System object that has been detected at a distance that is more than 100 times farther than Earth is from the Sun.The new object was announced on Monday, December 17, 2018, by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center and has been given the provisional designation 2018 VG18. The discovery was made by Carnegie's Scott S. Sheppard, the University of Hawaii's David Tholen, and Northern Arizona University's Chad Trujillo. Illustration by Roberto Molar Candanosa, DTM. Read more.