Brussels, Belgium (SPX) Sep 22, 2022
A four-legged robot trained through artificial intelligence has learned the same lesson as the Apollo astronauts - that jumping can be the best way to move around on the surface the Moon. An update on LEAP (Legged Exploration of the Aristarchus Plateau), a mission concept study funded by ESA to explore some of the most challenging lunar terrains, has been presented at the Europlanet Science Cong

San Antonio TX (SPX) Sep 21, 2022
The search for extraterrestrial life just got more interesting as a team of scientists including Southwest Research Institute's Dr. Christopher Glein has discovered new evidence for a key building block for life in the subsurface ocean of Saturn's moon Enceladus. New modeling indicates that Enceladus's ocean should be relatively rich in dissolved phosphorus, an essential ingredient for life.

Greenbelt MD (SPX) Sep 21, 2022
The Moon's craters preserve billions of years of history. Scientists have learned about the conditions of our early solar system by studying the composition, size, and distribution of these holes in the Moon's surface, created long ago by collisions with asteroids. But instead of directly studying the characteristics of these holes, a team based at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Gre

Mountain View CA (SPX) Sep 22, 2022
New research published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters suggests that Mars was born wet, with a dense atmosphere allowing warm-to-hot oceans for millions of years. To reach this conclusion, researchers developed the first model of the evolution of the Martian atmosphere that links the high temperatures associated with Mars's formation in a molten state through to the formation of the first

The public is invited to participate in NASA’s celebration of "International Observe the Moon Night" on Saturday, Oct. 1.

Week in images: 19-23 September 2022

Discover our week through the lens

Axiom Space will fly two astronauts from Saudi Arabia, one of them a woman, to space as soon as next year, the company and the Saudi government announced Sept. 22.

The post Axiom Space to fly Saudi astronauts appeared first on SpaceNews.

Lake Trasimeno, the fourth largest lake in Italy, is featured in this week’s Earth from Space image.

ESA has many ambitions for exploring our Moon, and we are setting the groundwork for a lander that can rely on cameras and lidar to analyse lunar terrain and choose the best landing spot – autonomously. The camera is ready, but nothing beats a real-world test: ESA has chosen Lunar Logistics Services and Astrobotic from a competitive tender to fly the innovative camera, called LandCam-X, to the Moon in 2024 on Astrobotic’s Griffin Mission One.

The European Space Agency has tasked an SES-led consortium to develop a satellite and begin operating it in 2024 to validate quantum key distribution technology.

The post SES-led group to deploy quantum security satellite for Europe in 2024 appeared first on SpaceNews.