Saturn’s rings are one of the most well-known features throughout astronomy. While much is known about them, they still make headlines from time to time. This includes a recent study involving an international team of researchers that could help paint a clearer picture of the interaction between the gas giant and the massive ring system that encircles it.
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Japanese space science missions facing delays after H3 rocket failure
The spacecraft for the Japanese-led X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission, or XRISM, undergoes acoustic testing in Japan in December 2022. Credit: JAXA
The launch of a Japanese X-ray telescope and robotic lunar lander has been delayed to no earlier than August, and the launch schedule for another Japanese mission to return samples from a moon of Mars is in doubt as engineers investigate the failure of Japan’s first H3 rocket last month.
A New Membrane Could Lead to Space Telescopes with Flexible Mirrors!
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the most powerful and sophisticated observatory ever built. It is also the most expensive, owing to the complexity of its design and the rigorous testing this entailed. To ensure the telescope could fit into its payload fairing, NASA engineers designed the JWST to fold up (origami-style) and unfold once it reached space. It is little wonder why astronomers and astrophysicists hope to develop flexible, lightweight materials that can maintain the perfect shape and be folded up to fit compactly inside a launch vehicle.
Look at this awesome photo of Earth from an Indian ocean satellite
A new false-color mosaic made from images snapped by an Indian ocean-studying satellite captures Earth's continents and seas in stunning detail from space.
New X-ray photo shows famous Crab Nebula like never before
Scientists have mapped the iconic Crab Nebula's magnetic field in greater detail than ever before using NASA's latest X-ray telescope.
SpaceX readying Starship rocket for around-the-world test flight as soon as next week
SpaceX’s Super Heavy booster and Starship rocket stand fully stacked at the company’s Starbase launch facility in South Texas. Credit: SpaceX
SpaceX said Tuesday it won’t perform a final countdown dress rehearsal this week for the giant new Starship launch vehicle, and could send the rocket — standing nearly 40 stories tall on its Texas launch pad — on an around-the-world test flight as soon as next week.
'The Marvels' trailer reveals MCU's new team of intergalactic superheroes
Marvel Studios releases a first look trailer for November's cosmic superhero team-up film, "The Marvels"
Tiny Spacecraft Using Solar Sails Open Up a Solar System of Opportunity
Some parts of the solar system are exceptionally hard to reach. Despite the interesting scientific data we could collect from that location, we’ve never managed to send a probe to one of the poles of the Sun. Nor have we been able to send many spacecraft to exciting places in the Oort cloud of other parts of the outer solar system. Voyager 1, which currently holds the record for being the farthest craft away from Earth, took over 40 years to reach the point where it is now. Even if it did pass by something interesting on its way, its antiquated scientific equipment would be less useful than more modern technology.
Chinese launch company tests vertical rocket landings with jet-powered prototype (video)
A Chinese launch company has stepped up its quest to develop reusable rockets with sea platform landing tests using a small demonstrator.
Revisit a classic 'Guardians of the Galaxy' comic arc with 'Annihilation: Conquest' novel
Titan Books is releasing a new "Guardians of the Galaxy" book from author Brendan Deneen.
SpaceX shows off shiny Falcon Heavy rocket ahead of April 18 launch (photos)
SpaceX's Falcon Heavy is targeting its second mission of 2023, and sixth mission overall, with the launch of a ViaSat satellite no earlier than April 18.
Perseverance is Turning Into That Friend That's Always Picking Up Rocks
On Thursday, March 30th, NASA’s Perseverance rover drilled and stored the first rock core sample of its newest science campaign. This is the sixteenth sample the rover has taken as part of the ambitious Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission, a collaborative effort between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) to retrieve Perseverance’s samples and bring them back to Earth. Once they arrive (expected to happen by 2033), scientists will analyze them using state-of-the-art machinery too heavy and cumbersome to send to Mars as part of a robotic mission.
Satellites watch Russian volcano erupt and blanket villages in ash
Satellites around the globe watched one of Russia's most active volcanoes erupt on Tuesday (April 11), covering villages in ash.
Europe's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer is unlikely to find life. Here's why.
What will Europe's Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (JUICE) tell us about the presence of life in the vicinity of the solar system's largest planet?
Darth Vader Force FX Elite Lightsaber review
If you only knew the power of the dark side.
60,000-mile-tall 'plasma waterfall' seen showering the sun with impossibly fast fire
A massive wall of falling plasma, known as a polar crown prominence, was recently captured in a stunningly-detailed new photo of the sun.
Darth Vader Force FX Elite Lightsaber review
If you only knew the power of the dark side.
The First Radiation Map of the Skies Over Africa
Astronomers have developed a way to cheaply and easily measure the radiation exposure experienced by airline crews over Africa.
Watch SpaceX launch 50 small satellites, land rocket early Wednesday
SpaceX will launch 50 small satellites to orbit early Wednesday (April 12) and land a rocket back on Earth, and you can watch the action live.
Vice President Harris congratulates Artemis 2 astronauts (video)
The newly selected Artemis 2 astronauts have been in the spotlight over the past week — and that now includes a call with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris.
'Snowball Earth' may have been more of a 'slushball,' providing a refuge for early life
An extreme ice age that left the planet in a state called "Snowball Earth" around 650 million years ago may have actually allowed some liquid oceans to survive and harbor life.
