NASA awards innovative concept studies for science, exploration
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55Technology in development today could radically change the future of air and space exploration. Nearly silent electric aircraft could ferry people and packages around cities, a sprawling radio telescope array on the far side of the Moon could reveal new secrets about the universe, and astronauts on long-duration missions could grow their own medicines to protect their health. These concept
An unprecedented journey to Jupiter
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55Is there life beyond Earth - perhaps even in the Solar System? This fundamental question continues to motivate the scientific community worldwide. On 13 April 2023, a spacecraft will set off from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on a long research journey to address this and many other questions. A journey like no other - the European Space Agency's JUpiter ICy Moons Explorer (JUICE)
Hubble sees possible runaway black hole creating a trail of stars
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55There's an invisible monster on the loose, barreling through intergalactic space so fast that if it were in our solar system, it could travel from Earth to the Moon in 14 minutes. This supermassive black hole, weighing as much as 20 million Suns, has left behind a never-before-seen 200,000-light-year-long "contrail" of newborn stars, twice the diameter of our Milky Way galaxy. It's likely the re
Webb reveals never-before-seen details in Cassiopeia A
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55The explosion of a star is a dramatic event, but the remains that the star leaves behind can be even more dramatic. A new mid-infrared image from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope provides one stunning example. It shows the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A), created by a stellar explosion 340 years ago from Earth's perspective. The image displays vivid colors and intricate structures beggin
The Sun is a normal star after all
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55With data from Kepler (NASA), Gaia (ESA) and SOHO (NASA/ESA) satellites, a team1, led by Instituto de Astrofisica e Ciencias do Espaco (IA2) researcher Angela Santos, seems to have put an end to the idea that the Sun might not be a regular "sun-like" star. The results were published in Astronomy and Astrophysics3. Although it might seem odd to try to find out if the Sun is a sun-like star,
Historic nebula seen like never before with NASA's IXPE
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55On Feb. 22, 1971, a sounding rocket lifted off from Wallops Island, Virginia, with specialized sensors aimed at the Crab Nebula, a bright cosmic object 6,500 light-years away. In those days, before recovering physical tapes from the experiment, scientists first received scientific data on a strip chart recorder, a device that printed signals on paper. Astronomer Martin Weisskopf and his colleagu
Twinkling stars fuel interstellar dust
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55Of the many different kinds of stars, asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, usually slightly larger and older than our own sun, are known producers of interstellar dust. Dusty AGBs are particularly prominent producers of dust, and the light they shine happens to vary widely. For the first time, a long-period survey has found the variable intensity of dusty AGBs coincides with variations in the am
China's inland space launch site advances commercial services
Sunday, 09 April 2023 05:55The Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, which is currently China's only site for launching manned spacecraft into orbit, is looking to tap into the burgeoning commercial market by offering more services and stronger capabilities. Located in northwest China's Gobi Desert, the Jiuquan launch center has carried out numerous space missions since its establishment in 1958. It frequented media Chin
NASA sets up Moon to Mars office
Saturday, 08 April 2023 23:35As preparations for the Artemis 2 mission ramp up, NASA has established a congressionally mandated office to oversee planning for that and future missions to the moon.
Save the date: One year until total solar eclipse sweeps US
Friday, 07 April 2023 17:30SpaceX launches Intelsat’s IS-40e high throughput satellite
Friday, 07 April 2023 16:32SpaceX successfully launched Intelsat’s IS-40e communications satellite April 7, which will help the operator meet growing demand for connectivity on planes while also carrying its first hosted payload for NASA.
Two recent wargames hold timely lessons for space resilience
Friday, 07 April 2023 13:10A comparison of two recent wargames reveals that the United States’ current course of action to ensure space resilience may not adequately deter and defend against emerging new Chinese space […]
Webb reveals new details in Cassiopeia A
Friday, 07 April 2023 13:00The explosion of a star is a dramatic event, but the remains that the star leaves behind can be even more dramatic. A new mid-infrared image from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope provides one stunning example. It shows the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A), created by a stellar explosion 340 years ago.
Week in images: 03-07 April 2023
Friday, 07 April 2023 12:02Week in images: 03-07 April 2023
Discover our week through the lens
Smelly seaweed bloom heads to Florida
Friday, 07 April 2023 11:30A large mass of Sargassum ‘seaweed’ circling around the Gulf of Mexico may soon wash up along the US west coast near Florida – depending on the right combination of currents and wind. The bloom, which may likely be the largest ever recorded, is so large that it’s visible from space.