Asteroids spin. Most of them do so rather slowly, and up until now most theories of asteroid rotation have failed to explain exactly why. A new paper from Wen-Han Zhou at the University of Tokyo and his co-authors might finally be able to fully explain that mystery as well as a few others related to asteroid rotation. Their work was presented at the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science in late September and could impact our understanding of how best to defend against a potentially hazardous asteroid.
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Watch 2 Russian cosmonauts spacewalk outside the ISS today
Cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky will conduct a spacewalk outside the International Space Station today (Oct. 28), and you can watch the action live.
Hurricane Melissa barrels through the Caribbean
Image: This image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission show Hurricane Melissa as it barrelled through the Caribbean Sea
Watch live: Sentinel-1D launch on Ariane 6
The Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission is about to get its fourth satellite, with Sentinel-1D now ready for liftoff. Launch will take place with an Ariane 6 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana and live coverage will be shown on Tuesday, 4 November, at 22:02 CET (18:02 at Kourou).
Building Homes Beyond Earth
A new study has reviewed how space habitat designs have evolved from inflatable bubbles to 3D-printed structures built from Martian dust. The research traces how engineers have wrestled with extreme temperatures, the bombmardment of radiation, and the challenge of building on worlds without breathable air, transforming each obstacle into solved problems with innovative ideas and designs that could soon house the first permanent residents of the Moon and Mars.
Spectral Biosignatures of Airborne Microbes in Planetary Atmospheres
Could scientists find life in the clouds of exoplanet atmospheres? This is what a recently submitted manuscript hopes to address as a team of researchers investigated how the biosignatures of microbes could be identified in exoplanet atmospheres and clouds. This study has the potential to help scientists develop new methods for finding life on exoplanets, either as we know it or even as we don’t know it.
SpaceX launches 28 Starlink satellites from California, lands rocket at sea
SpaceX launched yet another batch of its Starlink satellites today (Oct. 27), sending 28 of them up from California's central coast.
Alien Life
The question of whether we are alone in the universe has captivated humanity for centuries. The possibility of alien life, from simple microbial organisms to advanced civilizations, continues to drive scientific inquiry and fuel our collective imagination. This document explores the various facets of the search for extraterrestrial life, from scientific methodologies to philosophical implications.
Scientists discover 3 Earth-size exoplanets that may have double sunsets — like Tatooine in Star Wars
Using NASA's TESS exoplanet hunter, astronomers have discovered a strange arrangement of exoplanets around tight binary stars that shouldn't be.
'Once Upon a Time in Space': How to watch the latest BBC space documentary series from anywhere in the world
Follow the space program since the moon landing in the four-part documentary "Once Upon a Time in Space". Here’s how to watch it anywhere on the planet.
A Super-Earth Candidate Less Than 20 Light-Years Away
Astronomers have discovered a ready-to-image super-Earth candidate less than 20 light-years away.
Northern lights may be visible in 14 US states tonight
Auroras may be visible from Alaska to New York as geomagnetic storm conditions are predicted for tonight.
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS could help protect Earth from dangerous asteroids. Here's how
While interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS will not come near our planet, future ones may. A new campaign seeks to improve orbit predictions.
Glowing meteor trail photobombs Comet Lemmon in incredible telescope footage. 'A pure perspective miracle'
A meteor photobombed the patch of sky containing Comet Lemmon on Oct. 24, wrapping it in a glowing trail.
SpaceX settles $15 million trespassing lawsuit with Cards Against Humanity
Elon Musk's rocket company is clearing out its "gravel, tractors and space junk" from a once-pristine plot of South Texas land.
Awakening an interstellar wanderer: Surprising nickel detection in Comet 3I/ATLAS
Our team detected glowing nickel vapor in the gas surrounding the incoming interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS at an extraordinary distance from the sun, where temperatures remain far too cold for metals to normally vaporize.
'The solar system on demand': HEO Robotics aims to push spacecraft imaging deep into the final frontier
From viral shots of Tiangong to a new deal with Astroscale, HEO Robotics is pioneering satellite-to-satellite imagery in orbit and even plans to expand beyond Earth.
ESA's lunar lander on a simulated moon | Space photo of the day for Oct. 28, 2025
With the Argonaut lunar lander and the LUNA simulation facility in Germany, the European Space Agency is building the technology and training to have life on the moon.
SpaceX Starlink internet isn't fast enough for Ukraine's combat robots
The amount of bandwidth provided by SpaceX's Starlink satellites is limiting Ukraine's ability to operate ground robots on the frontline of the nation's war against Russia.
The Quest for Corrosion Proof Satellites
Low Earth orbit might seem like empty space, but for the thousands of satellites circling our planet between 95 and 1,900 km up, it's actually a surprisingly hostile environment. Every moment, these spacecraft are bombarded by highly reactive oxygen atoms that corrode their surfaces, while collisions with atmospheric molecules create drag that gradually pulls them back toward Earth. Most satellites last only about five years before these relentless forces take their toll, and the spacecraft tumbles back through the atmosphere. Now, a team at the University of Texas in Dallas is developing a protective coating that could fundamentally change how long satellites survive in orbit.
