Imagine a star that’s been shining steadily for decades, and then suddenly it dims to just 3% of its normal brightness. Not for a few days or weeks, but for more than nine months. That’s exactly what happened to ASASSN-24fw, a star sitting 3,200 light years away in the constellation Monoceros.
Space News & Blog Articles
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The Hidden Story of Young Martian Volcanoes
When you look at a volcano, you’re seeing the tip of a vastly more complicated system. The mountain itself is just the exit point for processes that have been happening deep underground, perhaps for millions of years. Magma doesn’t simply appear at the surface ready to erupt it rises, stalls, cools, changes, and evolves in underground chambers before finally breaking through.
"Ice Volcano" Eruption Makes Comet 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann Shine
After a recent explosive outburst, Comet 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann is bright enough to see in a medium-sized telescope.
Replacement crew docks at space station, boosts crew back to seven
The Crew 12 fliers cavort aboard the International Space Station shortly after floating inside Saturday. They joined station commander Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, back left in black shirt, NASA astronaut Chis Williams and cosmonaut Sergey Mikaev, both wearing black shirts. The Crew 12 astronauts, from left to right, are cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev (upside down), Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir and French astronaut Sophie Adenot at far right. Image: NASA
A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule glided in for a Valentine’s Day docking at the International Space Station Saturday boosting the lab’s crew back to a full complement of seven one month after four other fliers came home early because of a medical issue.
Webb Reveals a Plethora of Organic Molecules in a Bright Local Infrared Galaxy
Scientists have been making some incredible discoveries in space that are shedding new light on the origins of life. In addition to finding amino acids in asteroids, scientists have also found fatty acids found on Mars, sulfur-bearing molecules in interstellar space, and that peptides form spontaneously in space. Most recently, research based on data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has found an abundance of small organic molecules in a nearby galaxy.
China Successfully Tests Their New Rocket and Lunar Crew Capsule, Placing them On-Track to Reach the Moon
China has achieved several impressive milestones in its space program in recent years. As part of their plan to build an outpost on the Moon that will compete with NASA's Artemis Program - the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) - they are busy developing a super-heavy launch system and a crew-capable spacecraft that will take taikonauts to the Moon by the end of the decade. That is the plan, at any rate, and recent tests indicate that they are on track to achieve that goal. On Wednesday, Feb. 11th, the China Manned Spaceflight Agency (CMSA) completed a major test of its Long March-10 rocket and the Mengzhou spacecraft.
Official start of ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot’s εpsilon mission
The SpaceX Dragon Freedom capsule carrying ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, docked with the International Space Station on 14 February, at 20:15 GMT/21:15 CET, marking the official start of ESA’s εpsilon mission.
Official start of ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot’s εpsilon mission
The SpaceX Dragon Freedom capsule carrying ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, docked with the International Space Station on 14 February, at 20:15 GMT/21:15 CET, marking the official start of ESA’s εpsilon mission.
SpaceX launches 600th Falcon 9 rocket to date with Starlink flight from Vandenberg
A long-exposure streak shot of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket soaring away from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base on the Starlink 17-13 mission on Feb. 14, 2026. Image: SpaceX
Update Feb. 14, 10:45 p.m. EST (0345 UTC): SpaceX deployed the 24 Starlink satellites.
The 8 best sci-fi couples to emulate this Valentine's Day
Whether you're single, in a relationship, or even a situationship, fall in love with these sci-fi couples this Valentine's Day.
7 love-struck sci-fi TV series to snuggle up with on Valentine's Day
From 'Roswell' to 'Outlander,' these romantic sci-fi TV series are guaranteed to warm cold hearts this winter.
This Week In Space podcast: Episode 197 — Inside UNOOSA
On Episode 197 of This Week In Space, Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik talk with Aarti Holla-Maini and Rick Jenet about the importance of the United Nations Office of Outer Space Affairs.
Single this Valentine's Day? Don't worry, the universe has a rose just for you (photo)
The Rosette Nebula is located 5,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Monoceros.
A stellar treat for Valentine's Day: Heart-shaped outburst stuns astronomers
Astronomers have spotted a heart in the cosmos — not Cupid's doing, but a dying star shedding its layers — just in time for Valentine's Day.
‘Very lucky day’: NASA, SpaceX ace astronaut launch to the space station on Friday the 13th
A composite shot showing the liftoff of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 and the landing of the Falcon booster, 1101, at the new recovery site, Landing Zone 40, during NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission on Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. Image: John Pisani/Spaceflight Now
Flying in the face of superstition, NASA and SpaceX conducted a smooth countdown and launch of three astronauts and a cosmonaut to begin the latest, long-duration mission to the International Space Station on Friday, Feb. 13.
SpaceX Crew-12 astronauts have a Valentine's Day date with the space station today. Watch the docking live
SpaceX's Crew-12 astronaut mission will dock with the short-staffed International Space Station this afternoon (Feb. 14), and you can watch the off-Earth action live.
How a Perfect Gravitational Wave Tests Einstein
Ten years ago, humanity detected its first gravitational wave. On 14 January 2025, we detected the clearest one yet and it’s teaching us new things about the fundamental laws governing our universe.
The Galaxy Cluster That Grew Up Too Fast
The universe was supposed to take its time building the largest structures in existence. Galaxy clusters, containing hundreds or thousands of individual galaxies bound together by gravity and immersed in enormous pools of superheated gas, should require billions of years to assemble. Standard models predict these monsters couldn’t possibly form in the universe’s early childhood.
Crew-12: Docking, hatch opening and welcome remarks
Video: 00:02:44
Watch the docking operations of Crew-12 to the International Space Station (ISS), which took place on 14 February 2026 at 21:15 CET. The docking is followed by the hatch opening and the welcome remarks by the astronauts already present in the ISS.
'The beacons were lit!' Scientists name merging supermassive black holes after 'Lord of the Rings' locations
Scientists have named two systems of colliding supermassive black holes after Lord of the Rings locations, Gondor and Rohan.
Scientists Continue to Trace the Origin of the Mysterious "Amaterasu" Cosmic Ray Particle
Cosmic rays, or astroparticles, are a means through which astronomers can explore the Universe. These charged particles, which are mostly protons and the nuclei of atoms stripped of their electrons, travel through space at close to the speed of light. By tracing them back to their sources, scientists can learn more about the forces that have shaped the Solar System and the Milky Way galaxy at large. When cosmic rays reach Earth, most are deflected by Earth's magnetosphere, but some manage to penetrate our atmosphere and reach the surface.
