London, UK (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
Europe's upcoming space mission, a telescope designed to search for Earth-like planets beyond our solar system, is scheduled for launch at the end of 2026. The telescope, known as PLATO (PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars), aims to find nearby potentially habitable planets around Sun-like stars for detailed examination. The spacecraft will be launched on Europe's new Ariane

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
NASA's latest experiment indicates that if life exists in the oceans beneath the ice crusts of Europa and Enceladus, its organic molecules, such as amino acids and nucleic acids, could survive just beneath the surface ice. Despite the harsh radiation conditions, robotic landers may not need to dig deep to find these life signs. "Based on our experiments, the 'safe' sampling depth for amino

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 18, 2024
Astronomers have identified a planet with the most elongated orbit ever detected among transiting planets. This exoplanet's highly stretched orbit provides new insights into the formation and evolution of close-in massive gas planets, also known as hot Jupiters. Remarkably, the exoplanet orbits its star in the opposite direction to the star's rotation. The study, led by Penn State research

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
An international team of researchers, led by PD Dr. Florian Peissker, has identified signs of an intermediate-mass black hole while studying a star cluster near the supermassive black hole SgrA* (Sagittarius A*) at the center of our galaxy. Despite extensive research, only about ten intermediate-mass black holes have been discovered throughout the universe. These black holes, believed to h

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 18, 2024
Astronomers using the WIYN 3.5-meter telescope at the U.S. National Science Foundation Kitt Peak National Observatory, a program of NSF NOIRLab, have found an exoplanet with a highly unusual orbit. This planet is on a trajectory to become a hot Jupiter and has one of the most elongated orbits of all known transiting exoplanets, as well as a reverse orbit around its star. This discovery sheds lig

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
Among several recent findings, the rover has found rocks made of pure sulfur - a first on the Red Planet. Scientists were stunned on May 30 when a rock that NASA's Curiosity Mars rover drove over cracked open to reveal something never seen before on the Red Planet: yellow sulfur crystals. Since October 2023, the rover has been exploring a region of Mars rich with sulfates, a kind of

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
Lunar swirls, characterized by their contrasting light and dark patches, exhibit more than just variations in brightness. The differences also encompass the structure of lunar soils and the grains within them. Lunar swirls are distinct high- and low-albedo patterns found on the Moon's surface, both in the dark basalt plains known as mare and the bright highland regions. The origins of thes

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
An international team of scientists has uncovered new evidence of caves beneath the Moon's surface using data from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). The re-analysis of radar data from LRO's Mini-RF (Miniature Radio-Frequency) instrument, collected in 2010, revealed a cave extending over 200 feet from the base of a pit. This pit is situated 230 miles northeast of the historic Apoll

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
NASA and Boeing engineers are currently evaluating the results from last week's engine tests conducted at NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. These efforts are part of the preparations for the return of the Boeing Crew Flight Test from the International Space Station in the coming weeks. Teams have completed ground hot fire testing at White Sands and are in the process of analy

Paris, France (SPX) Jul 19, 2024
Next month, ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) will undertake a groundbreaking maneuver: the first combined lunar-Earth flyby. This precise operation, now being prepared at ESA mission control, will utilize the gravitational forces of the Moon and Earth in quick succession, setting Juice on course for its journey to Jupiter. Juice represents Europe's inaugural mission to the Jupiter