Black holes don’t emit light, which makes them difficult to study. Fortunately, many black holes are loud eaters. As they consume nearby matter, surrounding material is superheated. As a result, the material can glow intensely, or be thrown away from the black hole as relativistic jets. By studying the light from this material we can study black holes. And as a recent study shows, we can even determine their size.
Space News & Blog Articles
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SpaceX Starlink satellites responsible for over half of close encounters in orbit, scientist says
SpaceX's Starlink satellites are involved in about 1,600 close encounters between two spacecraft in low Earth orbit every week, according to available data. That’s about 50% of all such incidents.
Ingenuity Sees Perseverance From Above
Where’s Waldo (or Where’s Wally) is a very popular book series for all ages. One way to make it potentially more interesting is to adapt it to interplanetary exploration by searching for a Martian rover in a picture taken from a Martian helicopter. Ingenuity took a picture on its eleventh flight that would be a worthy addition to any interplanetary search game – in this image, the goal is to find Perseverance.
Chinese astronomers eye Tibetan Plateau site for observatory project
Chinese astronomers hope to establish a major observatory program on the roof of the world, the Tibetan Plateau, with new research arguing for pristine observing conditions nestled in the uplands.
Astronomy Jargon 101: Luminosity
In this series we are exploring the weird and wonderful world of astronomy jargon! You’ll soon see what we’re talking about this week: luminosity!
Jupiter Dazzles at Opposition on August 20th
Jupiter comes to opposition on August 20th, when it will shine brighter and closer than at any other time this year. With nights starting earlier and cooler temperatures arriving, there's no better time to make the most of the planet.
The August 2021 full moon is, somehow, a Blue Moon. Here's why.
We usually associate the term Blue Moon with a month containing two full moons. That won't happen in August, yet this month brings a Blue Moon nonetheless.
The Milky Way has a 'broken' arm that could reveal its galactic history
JPL says the gap looks like 'a splinter poking out from a plank of wood'
Cyberspace and outer space are new frontiers for national security, according to an expert report
What do cyberspace and outer space have in common?
Intuitive Machines picks SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch its moon lander for NASA
A Houston-based company that NASA selected to ferry upcoming lunar experiments to the moon has hired SpaceX to launch its lunar landing mission.
2024 Artemis Landings Could Slip Because of a Lack of Spacesuits. Musk Offers to Develop Them
In March of 2019, NASA was directed to develop all the necessary equipment and planning to send astronauts back to the Moon by 2024. This plan, officially named Project Artemis, was part of an agency-wide shakeup designed to ensure that the long-awaited return to the Moon takes place sooner than NASA had originally planned. In accordance with their “Moon to Mars” framework, NASA hoped to assemble the Lunar Gateway first, then land astronauts on the surface by 2028.
SpaceX's Starship could be ready for 1st orbital test flight 'in a few weeks,' Elon Musk says
The first full-size prototype of SpaceX's Starship vehicle should be ready to launch on an orbital test flight "in a few weeks," company founder and CEO Elon Musk said via Twitter on Saturday (Aug. 14).
NASA's superfast Parker Solar Probe just broke it own speed record at the sun
A tiny cubesat called AuroraSat-1 will launch atop a Rocket Lab Electron booster in the fourth quarter of this year to demonstrate de-orbiting tech for small spacecraft.
Earth rocks collected in 19th century hold clues to finding water on Mars
By studying rocks on Earth, researchers suggest that their Martian counterparts could also have water trapped within them.
Who was Giuseppe ‘Bepi’ Colombo and why Does he Have a Spacecraft Named After him?
Astronomers have an excellent habit of naming large projects after deserving contributors to their field. From Nancy Grace Roman to Edwin Hubble, some of the biggest missions are named after space exploration pioneers. When ESA and JAXA sat down to figure out a name for their new Mercury probe, they would have come across an important name early in their research – Giuseppe “Bepi” Colombo – the man who helped plan the Mariner 10 Mercury mission.
'Star Trek' legend Nichelle Nichols caught in ongoing conservatorship battle: report
Beloved "Star Trek" actress Nichelle Nichols is caught in the middle of a conservatorship battle as she fights her own battle with dementia.
Astronomy Jargon 101: Hertzsprung–Russell (HR) diagram
In this series we are exploring the weird and wonderful world of astronomy jargon! You’ll soon have a better way to categorize today’s topic: the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram!
Mars helicopter Ingenuity soars through challenging 12th flight on Red Planet
NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity made its 12th Red Planet flight on Monday (Aug. 16), during which the little chopper served as eyes in the sky for its larger companion, the Perseverance rover.
Saturn Has a Fuzzy Core, Too
New research reveals that Saturn, like Jupiter, has a “fuzzy” core that extends 60% of the way to its surface, a finding that is changing how astronomers think about giant planets.
Can the US and China Cooperate in Space?
China’s meteoric rise in space science and exploration—along with its new partnership with Russia—is spurring U.S. experts to reconsider a long-standing prohibition on bilateral collaborations
Famous Einstein equation used to create matter from light for first time
The particles used were spooky virtual particles, conjured from a disturbance between two electromagnetic fields.
