London, UK (SPX) Oct 04, 2024
Stargazers will have the chance to spot what could be the most impressive comet of the year over the coming weeks. Comet A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) has generated so much excitement about how bright and visible it might be that it has even been billed as the "comet of the century" in some quarters. Although that is "not very likely", according to the Royal Astronomical Society's Dr Robert

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 08, 2024
Astronomers have some reassuring news regarding potentially hazardous asteroids near Earth: there are fewer than previously thought. Using the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) telescope, researchers from the University of Maryland led a study to survey the Taurid swarm, a group of space debris associated with the comet Encke. These meteor showers, visible in October and November, have long

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Oct 07, 2024
Beyond Gravity, a key supplier to the space industry, has provided essential components for Europe's first planetary defense mission, Hera. The company has delivered solar wings, a central structural tube, and electronic products critical to the mission's success. The Hera mission, part of the European Space Agency's (ESA) planetary defense program, is set to launch between October 7 and 2

London, UK (SPX) Oct 07, 2024
A Queen's University astronomer is set to play a key role in the European Space Agency's (ESA) first planetary defense mission, a project two decades in the making. Professor Alan Fitzsimmons, from the university's Astrophysics Research Centre, will join the Hera mission from the European Space Operations Centre in Germany as it prepares to study how asteroids can be deflected to prevent a poten

Redu Belgium (SPX) Oct 07, 2024
The European Space Agency's (ESA) Hera mission, named after the Greek goddess of marriage, marks Europe's first step in planetary defense. In collaboration with NASA's DART probe, Hera forms the second phase of a global initiative to test methods of asteroid deflection, aimed at protecting Earth from potential asteroid threats. The mission's target is the Didymos binary asteroid system, which co

A camera destined for the Moon became part of the astronauts’ toolkit during ESA’s latest PANGAEA geology training in Lanzarote, Spain.