Paris (AFP) Dec 5, 2024
A European mission launched from India on Thursday, aiming to catch a rare glimpse of the Sun's mysterious atmosphere by imitating a solar eclipse using two satellites flying with millimetre-level precision. The European Space Agency's Proba-3 mission blasted off on a Indian rocket from a launchpad on the island of Sriharikota at around 4:04 pm (1034 GMT), an online broadcast showed. Aro

A pair of spacecraft were launched together today from India with the potential to change the nature of future space missions. ESA’s twin Proba-3 platforms will perform precise formation flying down to a single millimetre, as if they were one single giant spacecraft. To demonstrate their degree of control, the pair will produce artificial solar eclipses in orbit, giving prolonged views of the Sun’s ghostly surrounding atmosphere, the corona. 

Video: 00:02:27

ESA’s Proba-3 mission lifted off on its PSLV-XL rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India, on Thursday, 5 December, at 11:34 CET (10:34 GMT, 16:04 local time).

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 03, 2024
The formation of black holes is often associated with massive stars collapsing under their own gravity. However, new research suggests the chaotic conditions of the early universe may have enabled the creation of primordial black holes (PBHs) long before stars existed. These PBHs, theorized to account for elusive dark matter, remain undetected despite decades of speculation. A study co-led

Melbourne, Australia (SPX) Dec 03, 2024
Astronomers from Swinburne University of Technology have led an international effort to produce the most detailed maps of gravitational waves in the universe. This research has also resulted in the creation of the largest galactic-scale gravitational wave detector and uncovered further evidence of a "background" of gravitational waves. These subtle ripples in spacetime offer insights into some o

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 03, 2024
BAE Systems (LON: BA) has finalized environmental testing for NASA's Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer (SPHEREx) Observatory. This mission, designed to conduct comprehensive all-sky spectral surveys in near-infrared light, aims to unravel key questions about the formation and evolution of the universe. During its two-year mission, S

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 03, 2024
Veteran Ventures Capital (VVC), a venture capital firm dedicated to supporting dual-use national security technology led by veteran entrepreneurs, has announced a strategic investment in Turion Space. Turion Space specializes in addressing critical space challenges, including space domain awareness and non-earth imaging, through their innovative Droid micro-satellite technology. Turion's f

London, UK (SPX) Dec 03, 2024
A study led by astronomers at the University of Cambridge has determined that Venus has likely remained a dry, inhospitable planet for its entire history, countering long-standing speculation that the planet may have once hosted liquid water or conditions suitable for life. Using an analysis of the chemical composition of Venus's atmosphere, the team inferred that the planet's interior lac

Tucson AZ (SPX) Dec 05, 2024
A mysterious object discovered in the main asteroid belt in 2021 was determined to be a main-belt comet by Planetary Science Institute Senior Scientist Henry Hsieh, Scott Sheppard of the Carnegie Institution for Science and Audrey Thirouin of Lowell Observatory. Main-belt comets are icy objects found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter - rather than the cold outer Solar System wh

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Dec 05, 2024
A 16-year study conducted by the STELLA observatory in Tenerife has unveiled unprecedented insights into the chaotic nature of star spot behavior on XX Trianguli. Using advanced robotic spectroscopy and Doppler imaging, researchers documented the star's surface evolution, showcasing a noncyclic dynamo mechanism fundamentally different from the Sun's. The findings are published in Nature Communic