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.
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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.
Watch SpaceX launch 54 Starlink satellites and land rocket on Oct. 20
SpaceX will expand its Starlink constellation yet again with a launch on Thursday (Oct. 20), and you can watch it live.
Astronomers Just saw the Most Powerful Gamma-ray Burst Ever Recorded
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are one of the most mysterious transient phenomena facing astronomers today. These incredibly energetic bursts are the most powerful electromagnetic events observed since the Big Bang and can last from a few milliseconds to many hours. Whereas longer bursts are thought to occur during supernovae, when massive stars undergo gravitational collapse and shed their outer layer to become black holes, shorter events have also been recorded when massive binary objects (black holes and neutron stars) merge.
Here’s Webb’s View of the Pillars of Creation
The James Webb Space Telescope is living up to expectations. When it was launched, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said it would “… open up secrets of the universe that will be just stupendous, if not almost overwhelming.” Nelson’s statement rings true a few months into the telescope’s multi-year mission.
What's going on with Elon Musk, SpaceX's Starlink and Ukraine? Here's what we know.
It's understandable if you're a bit confused about the funding situation with SpaceX's Starlink satellite-internet service in Ukraine.
'Andor' episode 6 dials up the tension with a heart-pounding space heist
The raid on the Aldhani Imperial base unfolds almost in real time and there are some interesting post-action developments.
SpaceX technician in coma after rocket test accident: report
A SpaceX technician suffered a head injury that placed him in a coma for two months while performing a pressure check on a rocket engine, according to reports.
The Asteroid That Killed the Dinosaurs Also Flooded the World's Coastlines With a Catastrophic Tsunami
For decades, scientists have theorized that a massive impact caused the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. This event occurred about 66 million years ago and caused the mass extinction of about 75% of all plant and animal species on Earth (including the non-avian dinosaurs). With the discovery of the massive Chicxulub crater in the Yucatan Peninsula (southern Mexico) in the 1970s, scientists concluded that they’d found the impact responsible. Based on all the available data, the Chicxulub Impact event is believed to have been as powerful as 100,000 billion metric tons (110,231 U.S tons) of TNT.
Virgin Orbit’s Cosmic Girl arrives in UK ahead of landmark orbital launch
Virgin Orbit's Cosmic Girl carrier plane has arrived in Cornwall in preparation for the first-ever orbital launch from the United Kingdom.
The Heaviest Element Ever Seen in an Exoplanet’s Atmosphere: Barium
Astronomers have spotted barium in the atmosphere of a distant exoplanet. With its 56 protons, you have to run your finger further down the periodic table than astronomers usually do to find barium. What does finding such a heavy element in an exoplanet atmosphere mean?
Ariane 6 first flight planned for fourth quarter of 2023
Ariane 6, the new heavy-lift launch system being developed by the European Space Agency, will make its inaugural flight as soon as the fourth quarter of 2023. Briefing media gathered at ESA’s Paris Bertrand headquarters on 19 October, Director General Joseph Aschbacher said sufficient progress had been made over the past several months to anticipate a Q4 2023 first flight, pending the realization of three key milestones before April next year.
Magnificent Pillars of Creation sparkle in new James Webb Space Telescope image
The iconic Pillars of Creation sparkle with new-born stars in a photograph captured by the James Webb Space Telescope.
Satellites spot gargantuan Airbus Beluga jet unloading satellite for SpaceX launch (photo)
Satellites watched as an absolutely massive Airbus Beluga aircraft unloaded a telecommunications satellite at Kennedy Space Center ahead of a planned SpaceX launch.
