A simulation finds solutions to a central mystery in space physics
Friday, 30 June 2023 00:05
How are plasma eruptions in near-Earth space formed? Vlasiator, a model designed at the University of Helsinki for simulating near-Earth space, demonstrated that the two central theories on the occurrence of eruptions are simultaneously valid: eruptions are explained by both magnetic reconnection and kinetic instabilities.
Rapid plasma eruptions known as plasmoids take place on the nightsi First 'ghost particle' image of Milky Way galaxy captured by scientists
Friday, 30 June 2023 00:05
From visible starlight to radio waves, the Milky Way galaxy has long been observed through the various frequencies of electromagnetic radiation it emits. Scientists have now revealed a uniquely different image of our galaxy by determining the galactic origin of thousands of neutrinos - invisible "ghost particles" which exist in great quantities but normally pass straight through Earth undetected Exploring the geometry of the dark Universe
Friday, 30 June 2023 00:05
Euclid of Alexandria is considered to be the 'father' of geometry. In his most famous work, 'Elements', he brought together the knowledge of mathematics available in his time, presented it in a consistent way and defined a strict method of proof that became the model for later mathematics. Many structures, theorems and proofs are therefore named after Euclid - and now also a space telescope. The ALMA digs deeper into the mystery of planet formation
Friday, 30 June 2023 00:05
An international research team used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) to observe disks around 19 protostars with a very high resolution to search for the earliest signs of planet formation. This survey was motivated by the recent findings that planet formation may be well-underway in the more-evolved proto-planetary disks, but until now there had been no systematic study to IceCube shows Milky Way galaxy is a neutrino desert
Friday, 30 June 2023 00:05
The Milky Way galaxy is an awe-inspiring feature of the night sky, dominating all wavelengths of light and viewable with the naked eye as a hazy band of stars stretching from horizon to horizon. Now, for the first time, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory has produced an image of the Milky Way using neutrinos - tiny, ghostlike astronomical messengers.
In a June 30 article in the journal Scien Our galaxy seen through a new lens: Neutrinos detected by IceCube
Friday, 30 June 2023 00:05
Our Milky Way galaxy is an awe-inspiring feature of the night sky, viewable with the naked eye as a horizon-to-horizon hazy band of stars. Now, for the first time, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory has produced an image of the Milky Way using neutrinos-tiny, ghostlike astronomical messengers. In an article to be published tomorrow, June 30, in the journal Science, the IceCube Collaboration, an in SpaceX to launch European astronomy mission
Thursday, 29 June 2023 22:40
A European spacecraft is set to launch on a mission to help astronomers resolve an “embarrassing situation” in cosmology, although the launch itself is another kind of embarrassing situation for Europe.
Space Development Agency issues new solicitation for 100 satellites
Thursday, 29 June 2023 18:54
The Space Development Agency on June 28 released a solicitation for bids for its next procurement of 100 satellites as the agency continues to build out a military constellation in low Earth orbit.
Firefly to launch Lockheed Martin small-satellite experiment
Thursday, 29 June 2023 18:27
Firefly Aerospace signed an agreement with Lockheed Martin to launch a small satellite aboard Firefly's Alpha vehicle.
Italian researchers reach the edge of space flying aboard Virgin Galactic's rocket-powered plane
Thursday, 29 June 2023 16:14
The Mars Sample Return mission is starting to look expensive
Thursday, 29 June 2023 15:57
Getting to space is hard. It's even more hard to do new and interesting things in space. And when projects get hard, that usually means they cost more money. That is certainly the case for one of the most anticipated missions on NASA's current docket—the Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission. And it's not looking like it's going to get any easier anytime soon.
A recent report from Casey Dreier, the Planetary Society's Chief of Space Policy, looks at some of the challenges the mission faces. Arguably, the mission itself has already started, with Perseverance busily capturing, analyzing, and then dropping off samples to be returned to the laboratories on Earth. But three other main mission components still need to be completed for those samples ever to see the light of day (or the light of a sealed laboratory chamber) on Earth.
NASA is responsible for two of those components—the Sample Return Lander (SLR) and the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). Each is appropriately named, as the SLR is designed to land, collect the samples that Perseverance has been collecting, and then return them to the MAV.
Virgin Galactic completes first commercial SpaceShipTwo suborbital flight
Thursday, 29 June 2023 15:08
After nearly two decades of development, Virgin Galactic conducted its first commercial SpaceShipTwo suborbital flight June 29.
Virgin Galactic launches first commercial spaceflight
Thursday, 29 June 2023 15:03
Virgin Galactic successfully commenced commercial spaceflights on Thursday, marking a major milestone for the company founded in 2004 by British billionaire Richard Branson.
Its inaugural customers were a three-member crew from the Italian Air Force and National Research Council of Italy, alongside a Virgin Galactic astronaut instructor occupying the fourth seat.
Named Galactic 01, t Media session from ESA’s 316th Council in Sweden
Thursday, 29 June 2023 14:50
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Watch the replay of the media briefing following the 316th ESA Council which takes place on 28 and 29 June in Stockholm. ESA Council Chair Anna Rathsman (Sweden) and ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher will share the outcome of the meeting and provide an update on the launch of new ESA Earth observation missions, upcoming astronaut missions, the Space Summit planned for 6-7 November 2023 in Sevilla (Spain), as well as the decision on the public release of official ESA documents.
Euclid space telescope to shed light on the darkness
Thursday, 29 June 2023 14:30
On 1 July, the Euclid space telescope will start its journey into outer space on an important mission—to seek further clues about the origin of the universe. UZH researchers are involved in the scientific preparation and evaluation of the mission as part of a project led by the European Space Agency (ESA).
Shining stars, mysterious nebulae and faraway galaxies—images from space fire our imagination and spark fantasies about extraterrestrial life. But the visible matter known to researchers is actually only around 5% of the universe; 95% of the universe is a proverbial black box. Two invisible factors—called dark matter and dark energy—influence the arrangement of objects in space and the expansion of the universe.