Birmingham UK (SPX) Apr 23, 2021
Stars spin faster than expected as they age according to a new study led by scientists at the University of Birmingham which uses asteroseismology to shed new light on this emerging theory. All stars, like the Sun, are born spinning. As they grow older, their spin slows down due to magnetic winds in a process called 'magnetic braking'. Research published in 2016 by scientists at Carnegie O

Columbus OH (SPX) Apr 23, 2021
In the continuing search for dark matter in our universe, scientists believe they have found a unique and powerful detector: exoplanets. In a new paper, two astrophysicists suggest dark matter could be detected by measuring the effect it has on the temperature of exoplanets, which are planets outside our solar system. This could provide new insights into dark matter, the mysterious s

Beijing, China (SPX) Apr 23, 2021
Rain is a common phenomenon on Earth. There is a similar phenomenon on the Sun, called coronal rain. It is related to the coronal heating and magnetic field, and plays a fundamental role in the mass cycle between the hot, tenuous corona and the cool, dense chromosphere. Coronal rain usually takes place in post-flare loops and the non-flaring active region coronal loops. It is generally cla

Providence RI (SPX) Apr 23, 2021
As NASA's Perseverance rover begins its search for ancient life on the surface of Mars, a new study suggests that the Martian subsurface might be a good place to look for possible present-day life on the Red Planet. The study, published in the journal Astrobiology, looked at the chemical composition of Martian meteorites - rocks blasted off of the surface of Mars that eventually landed on

Wright-Patterson AFB OH (SPX) Apr 23, 2021
On February 18, 2021, NASA's rover Perseverance touched down on the surface of Mars to begin searching for evidence of past life. The success of this touchdown would not have been possible without the work of a team of researchers who operate unique erosion testing equipment in a windowless bunker at Wright-Patterson's Air Force Research Lab. And this is not the only Dayton connection to this pa

Kennedy Space Center FL (AFP) Apr 23, 2021
SpaceX launched its third crew to the International Space Station an hour before sunrise Friday, recycling a rocket and spacecraft for the first time. The Crew-2 mission, the first involving a European, blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 5:49 am Eastern Time (0949 GMT). "Endeavour launches once again - four astronauts from three countries on Crew-2, now making their way to the one and only International Space Station

French ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet is returning to the International Space Station on his second spaceflight. The mission, which is called Alpha, saw the first European to launch on a US spacecraft in over a decade. Thomas is flying on the Crew Dragon, alongside NASA astronauts Megan McArthur and Shane Kimbrough, and Japanese astronaut Aki Hoshide.

Video: 00:04:13

Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft with ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet, NASA astronauts Megan McArthur and Shane Kimbrough, and Japanese astronaut Aki Hoshide. The Crew-2 spend around 24 hours travelling to the International Space Station. The rocket lifted off at 11:49 on 23 April 2021 from Launchpad 39A in Cape Canaveral at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA.

Thomas is the first ESA astronaut to fly in space in a vehicle other than the Russian Soyuz or the US Space Shuttle, and the first ESA astronaut to leave Earth from Florida, USA, in

Mission Alpha launch in images

Image gallery of the Mission Alpha