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Space News & Blog Articles
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The Combination of Oxygen and Methane Could Reveal the Presence of Life on Another World
In searching for life in the Universe, a field known as astrobiology, scientists rely on Earth as a template for biological and evolutionary processes. This includes searching for Earth analogs, rocky planets that orbit within their parent star’s habitable zone (HZ) and have atmospheres composed of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. However, Earth’s atmosphere has evolved considerably over time from a toxic plume of nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and traces of volcanic gas. Over time, the emergence of photosynthetic organisms caused a transition, leading to the atmosphere we see today.
Hubble Telescope captures the bright core of a loosely wound spiral galaxy (photo)
An intermediate spiral galaxy, called IC 5332, was photographed face-on by the Hubble Space Telescope, capturing the galaxy’s large, circular structure and winding spiral arms glittering with stars.
A massive 'zombie' star is rampaging away from its home cluster
A long-dead white dwarf star is running away from Hyades star cluster — and it could help astronomers solve a number of cosmic mysteries.
Orionid Meteors Fly; Two Moons Shadow Jupiter
Bundle up and enjoy the Orionid meteor shower under moonless skies this week. Don't miss the warm-up act, either, when two of Jupiter's moons pair up in a captivating double-shadow transit.
Welding issues stall Artemis 2 moon rocket's assembly, but 2024 mission still on track: report
Welding issues are holding up a part of the Artemis 2 moon rocket's core stage assembly, a report suggests. But NASA and contractor Boeing continue to build the powerful booster for its 2024 mission.
'For All Mankind' Season 4 explores an asteroid and the lines between science and commerce (video)
'For All Mankind’s' upcoming fourth season just debuted at NYCC 2023, and series fans should expect the mix of alternate history drama and optimistic sci-fi they’ve come to love.
NASA's Parker Solar Probe smashes record for fastest human-made object
NASA's Parker Solar Probe has reached a record-breaking speed as it gets a gravitational assist from Venus to fall closer to the sun's scorching surface.
NASA astronaut snaps photo of solar eclipse from the space station
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli snapped a photo of the Oct. 14 solar eclipse from the International Space Station, showing the moon taking a bite out of the sun.
Dwarf planet Ceres could be a great place to hunt for alien life. Here's why
Asteroid impacts on dwarf planet Ceres influenced the presence of organic aliphatic molecules, according to new research.
Galactic archeology reveals Milky Way's neighbor Andromeda has a violent past
A new chemical analysis of stars in Andromeda has revealed the galaxy next door had a more chaotic upbringing than the Milky Way, defined by a galactic clash and merger.
An Exoplanet so Hot it has Clouds Made of Quartz
A recent study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters used data obtained by the James Webb Space Telescope’s (JWST) Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) to identify the presence of quartz nanocrystals in the upper atmosphere of WASP-17 b, an exoplanet whose mass and radius are approximately 0.78 and 1.87 that of Jupiter, respectively, and is located approximately 1,324 light-years from Earth. WASP-17 b is classified as a “puffy” hot Jupiter due to its 3.7-day orbital period, meaning the extreme temperatures could cause unique chemical processes to occur within its atmosphere, but the astronomers were still surprised by the findings.
SpaceX battles regulatory process that could hold up Starship test flight for months
SpaceX’s Starship rocket after Ship 25 was restacked on top of Booster 9 on Monday, Oct. 16, 2023. The rocket was unstacked the following day. Image: SpaceX
SpaceX leadership is heading to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to lobby for greater efficiency when it comes regulatory approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The company is hoping to streamline the process of issuing launch licenses for both Starship test flights and more routine Falcon 9 rocket missions.
Spaceflight is Polluting the Atmosphere with Metal
Humans can’t seem to interact with the environment at all without fouling it in some way. From plastic bags in the ocean’s deepest regions to soot on Himalayan glaciers, our waste is finding its way into Earth’s most difficult-to-reach places.
City-size comet regrows 'horns' after massive volcanic eruption
The cryovolcanic comet 12P/Pons–Brooks, which will make its closest approach to Earth next year, has re-sprouted its distinctive "horns" after its second major eruption in four months.
Satellite sees annular solar eclipse from 1 million miles away (photo)
A NASA camera aboard NOAA's DSCOVR satellite captured an amazing view of last weekend's annular solar eclipse from its deep-space perch.
Jupiter-like exoplanets reveal our solar system may not be so unique after all
A new analysis shows Jupiter-like planets likely exist around young, moving stars — suggesting our solar system formed from a quiet, low-density environment.
Top tips for astrophotography composition 2023
Improve your composing in astrophotographs, from camera choice and framing to planning, compositional technique and the best camera settings.
A Hypervelocity Experiment Mimics the Surface Conditions of Ceres
It might be oxymoronic to say that the more we find out about something, the more mysterious it becomes. But if that’s true of anything in our Solar System, it might be true about Ceres, the largest body in the main asteroid belt.
A simple streetlight hack could protect astronomy from urban light pollution
Blinking streetlights could protect astronomy from the damaging effects of light pollution.
A Machine Learning Algorithm Finds its First Supernova
Plenty of recent mainstream news articles have touted AI’s ability to assist in the process of scientific discovery. But most of them predicted that it could take years or even decades to see the full effect. Astronomy seems ahead of the curve, though, with the announcement of a new AI system developed by researchers at Northwestern University and elsewhere that can now autonomously detect and classify supernovae.
