Space News & Blog Articles
Gaia spots possible moons around hundreds of asteroids
ESA’s star-surveying Gaia mission has again proven to be a formidable asteroid explorer, spotting potential moons around more than 350 asteroids not known to have a companion.
New Study Suggests that Our Galaxy is Crowded or Empty. Both are Equally Terrifying!
Is there intelligent life in the Universe? And if so, just how common is it? Or perhaps the question should be, what are the odds that those engaged in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) will encounter it someday? For decades, scientists have hotly debated this topic, and no shortage of ink has been spilled on the subject. From the many papers and studies that have been written on the subject, two main camps have emerged: those who believe life is common in our galaxy (aka. SETI Optimists) and those who maintain that extraterrestrial intelligence is either rare or non-existent (SETI Pessimists).
James Webb Space Telescope finds a shock near supermassive black hole (image)
By examining a distant supermassive black hole, astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have found a shocking link between jets and dust around these cosmic titans.
SpaceX targeting Aug. 26 for historic Polaris Dawn astronaut mission
SpaceX is now targeting Aug. 26 for the launch of Polaris Dawn, a crewed flight to Earth orbit that will feature the first-ever private spacewalk.
Scientists Discover New Geological Link Between Earth and Venus
Venus is sometimes called Earth’s sister planet because of their shared physical, geological, and atmospheric features. Scientists have discovered something new about Venus’ geology that’s reminding us of the similarities between the two planets. We have to look deep inside both planets to see what the researchers found.
Firefly Aerospace announces contract with L3Harris for up to 20 launches on Alpha rocket
A streak shot of Firefly Aerospace’s fifth launch of its Alpha rocket on a mission named “Noise of Summer.” Image: Firefly Aerospace/Sean Parker
Coming on the heels of another large launch deal, Firefly Aerospace announced it sold up to 20 flights on its Alpha rocket to L3Harris. The agreement would see these missions fly between 2027 and 2031.
The Hubble Ultra-Deep Field, 15 Years Later
Fifteen years ago, the Hubble Space Telescope gazed intently at the infrared glow of galaxies in a tiny fraction of the sky. New research shows how this patch of space has changed since then.
NASA ‘getting more serious’ about backup plan to bring Starliner astronauts home if needed
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft that launched astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station is pictured docked to the Harmony module’s forward port. Image: NASA.
As NASA debates the safety of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in the wake of multiple helium leaks and thruster issues, the agency is “getting more serious” about a backup plan to bring the ship’s two crew members back to Earth aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon, officials said Wednesday.
NASA considers sending Boeing Starliner astronauts home on SpaceX Dragon
As Starliner's planned 10-day mission stretches past two months, the next ISS SpaceX launch will now delay into September to give NASA the option of including the Starliner crew on its ride home.
China launches 1st batch of satellites for planned 14,000-strong megaconstellation (video)
A Long March 6A rocket launched 18 internet satellites Wednesday morning (Aug. 7), kicking off construction of a Chinese constellation that could eventually host 14,000 spacecraft.
Private space launches could double by 2028, FAA says
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) expects the number of licensed launches each year to continue rising steeply, potentially reaching 338 by 2028.
Over 300 hidden planet-devouring stars within the Milky Way found by AI
A new AI-powered algorithm has discovered over 300 polluted white dwarfs in the Milky Way that were overlooked in old telescope data.
Bubble-blowing dead stars could create 'most violent phenomena in the universe'
Scientists have tracked mysterious, violent blasts of radiation called fast radio bursts to plasma-blowing, highly magnetic dead stars or magnetars.
Group of ancient stars spotted near the sun could rewrite the Milky Way's history
Researchers using the Gaia space telescope studied some ancient stars near the sun, revealing that our corner of the Milky Way may be billions of years older than once thought.
The Moon’s Atmosphere Comes from Space Weathering
How do you get an atmosphere at a world that doesn’t have one and can’t keep one? If it’s the Moon, you simply bombard it for millions of years with tiny meteorites. Also, let it sit in the solar wind and see what happens. Both space-weathering processes create a thin “exosphere” just above the lunar surface.
Live coverage: NASA to discuss ISS schedule shuffle amid SpaceX Crew-9 launch delay, Boeing Starliner questions
NASA officials aim to add context to some of its recent changes to the manifest of the International Space Station. It will host a media teleconference on Wednesday, Aug. 7, to discuss the timelines of the SpaceX Crew-9 launch, the Crew-8 return to Earth and the impacts to the schedule from the ongoing Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test.
How a Black Hole Could Eat a Neutron Star from the Inside Out
Primordial black holes are thought to have formed early in the evolution of the universe. None have been discovered yet but if they do exist and they may be plentiful, drifting almost invisibly through the cosmos, then they might account for dark matter. One possible way to search for them is to see the results of their meals and a bizarre new theory suggests low mass black holes could be captured by neutron stars and become trapped inside, devouring them from within. If these strange objects existed then it would make neutron stars less common in locations where black holes would proliferate as observed around Galactic centre.
Take a trip to Mars’s largest lake
Mars once hosted a lake larger than any on Earth. The broken-down and dried-up remnants of this ancient lakebed are shown here in amazing detail by ESA’s Mars Express.
If Advanced Civilizations Using Quantum Communications, Is That Why We’ve Never Seen Them?
Establishing communication with an alien intelligence is one of the news items I, and I’m sure many others, long to see. Since we have started the search for advanced civilisations we have tried numerous ways to detect their transmissions but to date, unsuccessfully. A new paper suggests quantum communication may be the ideal method for interstellar communication. It has many benefits but the challenge is that it would require a receiver over 100km across to pick up a signal. Alas they know we don’t have that tech yet!
Elliptical Orbits Could be Essential to the Habitability of Rocky Planets
A seismic shift occurred in astronomy during the Scientific Revolution, beginning with 16th-century polymath Copernicus and his proposal that the Earth revolved around the Sun. By the 17th century, famed engineer and astronomer Galileo Galilei refined Copernicus’ heliocentric model using observations made with telescopes he built himself. However, it was not until Kepler’s observations that the planets followed elliptical orbits around the Sun (rather than circular orbits) that astronomical models matched observations of the heavens completely.
