Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 19, 2025
Launched in March 2025, NASA's SPHEREx space telescope has completed its first infrared map of the entire sky, capturing data in 102 distinct wavelengths that are invisible to human eyes but common throughout the cosmos. SPHEREx, which stands for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer, surveys the sky from Earth orbit about 14.5 times p

Gothenburg, Sweden (SPX) Dec 24, 2025
Astronomers report that starlight acting on stardust around the red giant star R Doradus cannot by itself power the strong stellar winds that spread key elements for life across the galaxy. For decades, models of red giant winds have assumed that radiation pressure on newly formed dust grains is the main driver of mass loss in these evolved stars, which enrich interstellar space with carbo

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
The race toward sixth generation 6G mobile networks is intensifying, with commercial deployment expected around 2030. The International Telecommunication Union ITU expects 6G systems to support scenarios such as integrated artificial intelligence and communication and ubiquitous connectivity. In this context, a recent article in the journal Engineering titled Space-Ground Fluid AI for 6G Edge In

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
Finding accurate positions in dense urban areas remains difficult for satellite-based navigation systems, where high-rise buildings and signal blockages can cause large errors or complete loss of service. A recent study outlines a deeply integrated positioning method that combines commercial 5G New Radio (NR) signals with Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to address these issues. By rei

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
Axelspace Corporation has signed a multi-launch agreement with Exolaunch to support a series of missions using Axelspace microsatellites. The framework covers multiple launches and is intended to secure launch access and mission management for Axelspace programs, including new spacecraft assigned to in-orbit demonstration services. Under the agreement, one satellite is scheduled to launch

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
AST SpaceMobile Inc. has confirmed the successful orbital launch of its BlueBird 6 satellite, described as the largest commercial communications array deployed in low Earth orbit and designed to support space-based cellular broadband services for commercial and government users. The mission lifted off at 10:25 p.m. EST on December 23 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Indi

Pasadena CA (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
While much of Perseverance's work focuses on ancient rocks that record Mars' long-lost rivers and lakes, megaripples offer a rare opportunity to examine processes that are still shaping the surface today. Megaripples are sand ripples up to 2 meters (about 6.5 feet) tall that are mainly built and modified by wind. However, when water in the atmosphere interacts with dust on the ripple surface, a

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
NASA engineers continue attempts to regain contact with the MAVEN Mars orbiter, which last communicated with Earth on Dec. 6. Working with the Deep Space Network, the team is uplinking recovery commands and listening for any signal that would confirm the spacecraft has resumed communications. Specialists are processing fragments of tracking data captured on Dec. 6 during a radio science ca

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 26, 2025
Researchers from Beijing Institute of Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a theoretical model that links electrostatic forces and contact mechanics to describe how low-velocity charged lunar dust particles either adhere to or escape from spacecraft surfaces within a surrounding plasma sheath. The work aims to clarify mechanisms that d

Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 26, 2025
As we all prepare for the holiday season here on Earth, we have been planning a few last activities before Curiosity and the team of scientists and engineers take a well-deserved, extended break. This holiday season coincides with conjunction - every two years, because of their different orbits, Earth and Mars are obstructed from one another by the Sun; this one will last from Dec. 27 to Jan. 20