Between 1 and 7 October, ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) and Mars Express spacecraft turned their eyes towards interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, as it passed close to Mars. 

The Large Space Simulator, Europe’s largest vacuum chamber, routinely reproduces space conditions on Earth to test spacecraft before they fly into orbit. The facility is complex, and the current process of training a new operator is lengthy and complicated. To make it easier, the space simulator now has a digital twin – the most realistic virtual model of the facility yet, developed for the European Space Agency (ESA) by the Spanish engineering company Empresarios Agrupados.

Santa Barbara CA (SPX) Sep 30, 2025
Determining the nature of dark matter, the invisible substance that makes up most of the mass in our universe, is one of the greatest puzzles in physics. New results from the world's most sensitive dark matter detector, LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ), have narrowed down the possibilities for one of the leading dark matter candidates: weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). "While we always hope to

Plainsboro NJ (SPX) Oct 06, 2025
Imagine watching a favorite movie when suddenly the sound stops. The data representing the audio is missing. All that's left are images. What if artificial intelligence (AI) could analyze each frame of the video and provide the audio automatically based on the pictures, reading lips and noting each time a foot hits the ground? That's the general concept behind a new AI that fills in missin

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 07, 2025
Neuraspace, one of Europe's leading space domain awareness (SDA) providers, has expanded its role in defence and civil protection with the launch of "Neuraspace DEF," a system designed to deliver autonomous, rapid responses to threats against space-based infrastructure. The new platform advances beyond traditional passive monitoring by enabling active and self-directed control of space ope

Paris, France (SPX) Oct 07, 2025
On November 4, 2025 at 6:03 p.m. local time in French Guiana (9:03 p.m. UTC, 10:03 p.m. CET), Arianespace plans to launch the Copernicus Sentinel-1D satellite aboard Ariane 6 from Europe's Spaceport. Mission VA265 marks the launcher's third commercial flight and will target Sun-synchronous orbit near 693 km. Separation is expected about 34 minutes after liftoff. The mission underscores Eur

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Oct 07, 2025
A groundbreaking instrument is set to transform how astronomers detect and directly image planets orbiting distant stars by using liquid crystal technology. Known as the Programmable Liquid-crystal Active Coronagraphic Imager for the DAG telescope (PLACID), the device was installed earlier this year on the new 4-meter Eastern Anatolian Observatory (DAG) telescope in eastern Turkey. Now entering

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Oct 07, 2025
At the center of the massive galaxy M87 lies the supermassive black hole M87*, weighing six and a half billion times the mass of the Sun and spinning rapidly on its axis. From this powerhouse, an enormous jet of charged particles blasts outward at nearly the speed of light, extending over 5,000 light-years and reshaping its galactic environment. To understand how such jets are powered, ast

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Oct 07, 2025
Whether an asteroid spins smoothly or tumbles chaotically depends on how often it has collided with other objects, according to new findings presented at the EPSC-DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki. Using data from the European Space Agency's Gaia mission, researchers have discovered that these collision patterns reveal clues about asteroids' internal structure and evolution. Dr Wen-Han Zho

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Oct 07, 2025
Crew members aboard the Shenzhou XX spacecraft carried out their fourth extravehicular activity, completing critical tasks outside the Tiangong space station, the China Manned Space Agency reported. Colonel Chen Zhongrui, 40, and Colonel Wang Jie, 36, floated in space for nearly six hours before returning to the Wentian science module at 1:35 am. Mission commander Senior Colonel Chen Dong