When it comes to finding exoplanets, size matters, but so does weight. The larger and heavier the planet, the more likely they will be discovered by the current crop of telescopes. Both the techniques to find exoplanets and the telescopes using those techniques are biased toward larger, heavier planets. So when even the current crop of telescopes manages to find one that is about half the mass of Venus, it is cause for celebration. That is precisely the size of the planet a team from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope has found orbiting a star called L98-59.
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Wildfires ravage Greek island of Evia
Image: Parts of the Mediterranean and central Europe have experienced extreme temperatures this summer, with wildfires causing devastation on the Greek island of Evia. This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image shows the extent of the burned area in the northern part of the island.
Curiosity Might Not Be In An Ancient Lake At All
Photos can’t do some places justice – nor can any level of sophisticated remote sensing. That seems to be the case for Gale Crater. Curiosity has been wandering around the crater for almost the last nine years. Scientists thought Gale crater was an old lakebed, and it was specifically chosen as a landing site to allow Curiosity to collect samples from such a lakebed. But new research from scientists at the University of Hong Kong shows that most likely, the samples Curiosity has been analyzing during its sojourn didn’t actually form in a lake.
Cygnus cargo ship arrives at International Space Station with its biggest NASA haul ever
A Northrop Grumman-built Cygnus cargo ship just made its biggest delivery yet for NASA at the International Space Station.
Elon Musk's SpaceX may launch a tiny Canadian satellite that livestreams ads from space: report
SpaceX plans to launch a Canadian advertisement-beaming satellite into space that will eventually accept payments in Dogecoin, according to a media report.
Space travel for billionaires is the surprise topic with bipartisan American support — but not from Gen Z
With Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson both flying to space in craft made by their own private companies, July 2021 was perhaps the highest-profile month for space in years.
Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8L IS USM lens review
Hyperspacial hijinks, cosmic crises and insane interstellar adventure, "Star Trek: Lower Decks" is back on Paramount+.
Cosmonauts on spacewalk begin configuring new European robotic arm outside space station
Video: 00:00:57
A stunning sequence of 89 images taken by the monitoring cameras on board the European-Japanese BepiColombo mission to Mercury, as the spacecraft made a close approach of Venus on 10 August 2021.
Two Chinese rockets deploy telecom and environmental monitoring satellites
India’s GSLV Mk.2 rocket lifts off with the EOS-03 satellite. Credit: ISRO
An Indian Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle tumbled out of control five minutes after liftoff Tuesday when the rocket’s cryogenic upper stage failed to ignite, destroying a long-delayed Earth observation spacecraft and ending a streak of 16 consecutive Indian space launches.
Lego Star Wars Boba Fett Helmet review
An Indian rocket carrying a new Earth-observation satellite for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) suffered a catastrophic failure shortly after launching early Thursday (Aug. 12).
Mars Perseverance Rover Hits a Snag on First Sampling Attempt
Perseverance came up empty on its first attempt to grab and stow a sample of Mars.
Astronomy Jargon 101: Adaptive Optics
In this series we are exploring the weird and wonderful world of astronomy jargon! Adjust your eyeglasses to read about today’s topic: adaptive optics!
Live coverage: India’s GSLV Mk.2 rocket set for launch today
Live coverage of the countdown and launch India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle with the EOS-03 Earth observation satellite. Text updates will appear automatically below. Follow us on Twitter.
India set to launch Earth-viewing telescope into geostationary orbit
India’s EOS 3 satellite, formerly known as GISAT 1, features a large telescope designed to peer down at the Indian subcontinent from geostationary orbit. Credit: ISRO
India is set to launch the first in a new line of high-altitude Earth observation satellites Wednesday aboard a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle debuting a slightly wider payload shroud to accommodate larger spacecraft.
Here's the US weather forecast for the Perseid meteor shower's peak tonight
Clouds and smoke could foil the view for some skywatchers.
Scientists fine-tune odds of asteroid Bennu hitting Earth through 2300 with NASA probe's help
If the possibility of an asteroid called Bennu slamming into Earth a lifetime from now was keeping you up at night, NASA scientists think you can rest a little easier.
Avoiding the Great Filter. How Long Until We’re Living Across the Solar System?
If you’re a fan of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) and the Fermi Paradox, then it’s likely you’ve heard of a concept known as the Great Filter. In brief, it states that life in the Universe may be doomed to extinction, either as a result of cataclysmic events or due to circumstances of its own making (i.e., nuclear war, climate change, etc.) In recent years, it has been the subject of a lot of talk and speculation, and not just in academic circles.
Don’t Worry About Bennu (Yet)
Careful measurements using the OSIRIS-REX spacecraft have refined astronomers’ predictions for how likely it is that this potentially hazardous asteroid will strike Earth.
One of Nigeria's satellites is on its last legs. Here's why it's worrying.
Nigeria has sponsored or co-sponsored six satellites, of which only two are currently operational.
Watch NASA fire up its SLS rocket engines to test far-out mission technologies (video)
While NASA has yet to launch an Artemis mission to the moon, the agency is already doing engine testing for far-future missions.
Astronomers Find a Nearby Star That a Spitting Image of a Young Sun
Our Sun is about 4.6 billion years old. We know that from models of Sun-like stars, as well as through our observations of other stars of similar mass. We know that the Sun has grown hotter over time, and we know that in about 5 billion years it will become a red giant star before ending its life as a white dwarf. But there are many things about the Sun’s history that we don’t understand. How active was it in its youth? What properties of the young Sun allowed life to form on Earth billions of years ago?
