In 2011, the Nobel Prize in physics was awarded to Perlmutter, Schmidt, and Reiss for their discovery that the universe is not just expanding, it is accelerating. The work supported the idea of a universe filled with dark energy and dark matter, and it was based on observations of distant supernovae. Particularly, Type Ia supernovae, which have consistent light curves we can use as standard candles to measure cosmic distances. Now a new study of more than 1,500 supernovae confirms dark energy and dark matter, but also raises questions about our cosmological models.
Space News & Blog Articles
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This space station astronaut's '2001' cosplay in orbit began with Velcro and thrift store duds
European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti did some last-minute shopping as part of her larger bid to promote fun and teamwork in orbit. Food also played a role.
Curiosity Arrives in a Salty Region of Mars. Was it Left Over From a Dying Sea?
The Curiosity rover has now reached its primary target on Mount Sharp on Mars, the mountain in the middle of Gale Crater the rover has been climbing since 2014. This target is not the summit, but a region over 600 meters (2,000 feet) up the mountain that planetary geologists have long anticipated reaching.
James Webb Space Telescope spies galaxies merging around 'monster' black hole
The James Webb Space Telescope has discovered a cluster of galaxies merging around a rare red quasar, a "monster" supermassive black hole that is greedily feeding on gas and other material.
Twin tail revealed in new Hubble image of Didymos-Dimorphos system following DART impact
Image: Hubble follow-up of DART impact
NASA’s Juno spacecraft captures closest views of Europa since 2000
This view of Jovian moon Europa was created by processing an image JunoCam captured during Juno’s close flyby on Sept. 29, 2022. Credit: Image data: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSSImage processing by Björn Jónsson CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Continuing to gather bonus science data in an extended mission around Jupiter, NASA’s Juno spacecraft recorded sharp views of the icy moon Europa Sept. 29 as the solar-powered probe raced by at a relative velocity of nearly 53,000 mph (85,000 kilometers per hour).
James Webb Space Telescope still performing better than expected despite glitch, micrometeoroids
NASA's newest space telescope is hard at work despite an ongoing instrument glitch and continuing small micrometeoroid strikes.
Webb uncovers dense cosmic knot in the early Universe
Astronomers looking into the early Universe have made a surprising discovery using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope. Webb’s spectroscopic capabilities, combined with its infrared sensitivity, have uncovered a cluster of massive galaxies in the process of formation around an extremely red quasar. The result will expand our understanding of how galaxies in the early Universe coalesced into the cosmic web we see today.
What’s the Best Shielding to Protect Astronauts on Mars?
New research shows that the best way to protect future Martian astronauts from deadly solar radiation is as simple as can be. For good shielding, they just need to put as much stuff between them and the sky as possible.
Stunning timelapse video reveals a decade in the life of the universe
NASA's WISE mission has a dramatic view of the universe based on more than a decade of research, gazing into the deep sky with infrared vision.
Our Guide to Tuesday’s Partial Solar Eclipse for Europe
Europe, the Middle East, and northeast Africa will see the final partial solar eclipse of 2022 next Tuesday.
Shadow hunters capture Didymos asteroid eclipsing stars
After months of effort, astronomers have succeeded in capturing the momentary shadow cast by the Didymos asteroid, from tens of million km away as it passed in front of far-distant stars – a feat of observation only made possible when both the trajectory of the asteroid and the precise location of the stars are known. Even in that case, to have a chance of success, several observers had to be placed in meticulously predicted locations across the path of the shadow, to glimpse the fleeting fading of the star within just a fraction of a second.
Amateur Finds New Images of Uranus’ Rings in 35-Year-Old Data
What else is hidden in archival data?
Info session from the ESA Council meeting
Video: 00:31:00
Watch the replay of our Q&A with the media to learn about the outcomes of the 310th session of the ESA Council. Updates are provided on the ambitious package presented by ESA for the 22/23 November ESA Ministerial Meeting in Paris, but also on the further expansion of ESA memberships, the future of ExoMars, Space Transportation and the overall, delicate economic situation.
Meta Quest 2 review: revisiting the artist formerly known as Oculus
Comfortable and relatively compact, the Meta Quest 2 is still the best way to enjoy VR gaming without wires.
Mapping planet Earth for better positioning: ESA’s GENESIS mission
ESA’s Navigation Directorate is planning a new satellite whose results will enable the generation of an updated global model of Earth – the International Terrestrial Reference Frame, employed for everything from land surveying to measuring sea level rise – with an accuracy down to 1 mm, while tracking ground motion of just 0.1 mm per year. This improvement, at a stroke, will have a major impact in multiple navigation and Earth science applications, including enhancing the precision of the Galileo navigation system. This mission, called GENESIS, is being proposed to ESA’s Council Meeting at Ministerial Level next month.
Best Star Wars fan films: amateur cinema from a galaxy far, far away
Check out our ranking of some Star Wars fan films and amateur shorts influenced by 45 years of lore.
Data recorder failure on 30-year-old NASA spacecraft could end magnetic field mission
The second and only remaining operational data recorder aboard NASA's magnetosphere-observing Geotail spacecraft has failed, jeopardizing a mission that has been in operation for three decades.
Electron booster arrives in Virginia for Rocket Lab's 1st-ever US launch
A Rocket Lab Electron rocket has arrived at a launch complex in Virginia ahead of the company's first liftoff from U.S. soil later this year.
Live coverage: Another batch of Starlink satellites set for launch Thursday
Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The Starlink 4-36 mission will launch SpaceX’s next batch of 54 Starlink broadband satellites. Follow us on Twitter.
