Paris, France (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
An international team of astronomers has analyzed over 500 images from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, spanning two decades, to identify seven rapidly moving stars in the core of Omega Centauri, the largest and brightest globular cluster visible in the sky. These stars offer significant evidence suggesting the presence of an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH). Intermediate-mass black

Paris (AFP) July 10, 2024
Astronomers said on Wednesday they have found the strongest evidence yet of a medium-sized black hole, the strange absence of which has been one of the enduring mysteries of the cosmos. The universe is riddled with black holes, from supermassive ones at the heart of galaxies to smaller ones around 100 times the mass of the Sun. But scientists have struggled to find black holes between t

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
Up to 60% of near-Earth objects (NEOs) might be dark comets, according to new research from the University of Michigan. These dark comets, which likely contain or once contained ice, may have played a role in delivering water to Earth. The study, led by Aster Taylor, a graduate student in astronomy at the University of Michigan, suggests that asteroids in the asteroid belt-located between

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
The question of whether Mars ever supported life has fascinated scientists and the public for decades. Central to this inquiry is understanding the planet's past climate: was it warm and wet, akin to Earth's climate, or was it cold and icy, making it less likely to support life as we know it? A recent study points to the latter, drawing parallels between Martian soils and those found in the suba

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
The Queqiao-2 relay satellite, equipped with three scientific instruments, is set to perform a range of scientific missions in orbit, building on its previous role in the Chang'e-6 mission. Launched on March 20 this year by a Long March-8 rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan Province, China, Queqiao-2, also known as Magpie Bridge 2, is tasked with ensuring Earth-moon commun

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
The Moon's recent discovery of resources like water ice has renewed interest in its potential as a sustainable hub for space exploration. NASA's Artemis mission, aiming for long-term human presence on the lunar surface, highlights the need for infrastructure such as lunar bases. However, the high cost of transporting construction materials from Earth, at about 1.2 million USD per kilogram, makes

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
An interplay of light and shadows cast the docking ports for Gateway, humanity's first space station around the Moon, into sharp relief. Constructed by NASA's commercial partner Northrop Grumman, the HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) is one of four modules designed for international astronaut teams to live, conduct research, and prepare for missions to the lunar South Pole region. Th

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 11, 2024
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB), a global leader in launch services and space systems, has scheduled its 51st Electron launch, a mission dedicated to American space tech company Capella Space ("Capella"). The mission, titled 'A Sky Full Of SARs,' will launch within a 14-day window opening on July 21 NZST / July 20 UTC from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula. T

Washington (AFP) July 10, 2024
A pair of US astronauts stuck waiting to leave the International Space Station said Wednesday they were confident that the problem-plagued Boeing Starliner they rode up on would soon bring them home, even as significant uncertainties remain. Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams blasted off on June 5 aboard the brand new spaceship that NASA is hoping to certify to ferry crews to-and-from the orbit