The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has accomplished some amazing things during its first year of operations! In addition to taking the most detailed and breathtaking images ever of iconic celestial objects, Webb completed its first deep field campaign, turned its infrared optics on Mars and Jupiter, obtained spectra directly from an exoplanet’s atmosphere, blocked out the light of a star to reveal the debris disk orbiting it, detected its first exoplanet, and spotted some of the earliest galaxies in the Universe – those that existed at Cosmic Dawn.
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The James Webb Space Telescope spots the wreckage of a cosmic clash of the Titans (image)
The James Webb Space Telescope has spied a distant galaxy that represents the wreckage of a titanic collision between two galaxies 500 million years ago.
NASA's VIPER Rover's First Moments on the Moon Might Be its Most Terrifying
NASA is building its first-ever robotic lunar rover. Named VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover), the rover is set for launch in late 2024. But the terrain it will find when it reaches the Moon is impossible to predict. A series of tests carried out this spring are helping engineers understand the rover’s limits, and will ensure that VIPER can disembark from its lander even on extremely uneven terrain.
The UK's ODIN Space just aced its 1st space junk tracking system test in orbit
ODIN Space's demonstration team confirmed their new debris sensor successfully recorded acoustic data during its recent on-orbit test, bringing micro-space debris tracking a step closer to reality.
"Shooting stars" seen raining down on the sun for the first time (images)
New observations of the sun have revealed never-before-seen meteor-like fireballs raining down as shooting stars on the surface of the sun.
Tour the mock Mars habitat where 4 NASA analog astronauts will spend the next year (video)
This video from NASA shows just how much space the four CHAPEA crew members will be sharing during their year-long mission.
Gravitational Waves Can Be Gravitationally Lensed, and This Could Provide Another Way to Measure the Expansion of the Universe
Gravitational waves don’t travel through space and time. They are ripples in the fabric of spacetime itself. This is why they are so difficult to detect. We can only observe them by closely watching how objects bent and stretched within spacetime. But despite their oddness, gravitational waves behave in many of the same ways as light, and astronomers can use that fact to study cosmic expansion.
If humans went extinct, what would the Earth look like one year later?
After a year without people, the sky would be bluer, the air clearer. The wind and the rain would scrub clean the surface of the Earth; all the smog and dust that humans make would be gone.
The first supermoon of the year thrills skywatchers all over the world (photos)
On July 2, the Buck Moon full supermoon rose over Earth, and enthusiastic skywatchers were on hand to capture stunning images of the event.
Space Blocs: The future of international cooperation in space is splitting along lines of power on Earth
Even during times of conflict on the ground, space has historically been an arena of collaboration among nations. But trends in the past decade suggest the nature of cooperation in space is shifting.
Mission Status Center: Launch delayed at least 24 hours by upper level winds
The final Ariane 5 rocket rolls to the launch pad on Monday, July 3, 2023. Image: ESA – S. Corvaja.
Europe’s workhorse Ariane 5 rocket is being retired after 27 years of service. Check this page for live coverage of the countdown and launch. Liftoff from the Guiana Space Center, the European spaceport in South America, is now scheduled for no earlier than Wednesday, July 5. The 65-minute launch window window runs 7 p.m. to 8:05 p.m. local time (6:00-7:05 p.m. EDT / 2200-2305 UTC).
Hubble telescope checks on the Milky Way galaxy's lonely neighbor (photo)
The Hubble Space Telescope has spied on the Milky Way's galactic neighbor, irregular galaxy ESO 174-1, imaging it as a lonely hazy cloud.
Europe’s workhorse Ariane 5 rocket to retire after 27 years service
Aerial view of the launch of Ariane 5 V198 on November 26, 2010, from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. Image: ESA/CNES/ARIANESPACE – Optique Video CSG – L. Mira.
Europe’s iconic Ariane 5 rocket, with its liquid hydrogen-fueled core stage and solid rocket boosters, has guaranteed Europe’s access to space, providing a unique capacity for launching satellites and spacecraft into precise orbits over almost three decades.
Our infant solar system may have survived a nearby supernova explosion
A supernova that erupted when a massive star died could have destroyed our infant solar system — if it weren't protected by a cocoon of molecular gas.
Watch last-ever launch of Europe's powerful Ariane 5 rocket today
Europe's workhorse Ariane 5 rocket will launch for the final time today (July 4), and you can watch the historic liftoff live.
The last European Ariane 5 rocket arrives at the launch pad for its final countdown
The last Ariane 5 rocket arrives at the launch pad for its last satellite delivery mission. Image: Arianespace.
The last Ariane 5 rocket was hauled to the launch pad on Monday at the Guiana Space Centre, Europe’s South American spaceport. Ariane 5, which for years was the world’s leading commercial satellite launcher, is scheduled to make its final lift off on Tuesday, carrying a French military satellite and a communications technology testbed spacecraft for Germany.
Watch lightning crackle over Europe and Africa in stunning video from powerful new weather satellite
Stunning first videos from a new space-borne instrument designed to improve the monitoring of thunderstorms show the crackle of lightning over Europe, Africa and the Atlantic Ocean.
The top 10 Ariane 5 rocket launches of all time
The Ariane 5 is set to fly for the final time on Tuesday (July 4), ending a 27-year launch career. Relive some of its finest moments here.
Robotic 'Light Bender' on the moon could help Artemis astronauts keep the lights on
The Light Bender robotics project from space technology company Maxar will autonomously redirect sunlight to power solar panels in dark regions of the lunar surface.
Key ingredient for life found in star-birthing cloud just 1,000 light-years from Earth
Astronomers have discovered high amounts of tryptophan, an amino acid key in the formation of life, in a nearby star-forming region of space called the Perseus Molecular Complex.
Sun blasts out powerful X-class solar flare causing radio blackouts on Earth (video)
The giant sunspot AR3354 blasted out an X-class solar flare on Sunday, July 2, ionizing Earth's atmosphere and causing a shortwave radio blackout over the U.S. and the Pacific Ocean.
