When water is sprayed or splashed, different size microdroplets develop opposite charges. This "microlightning" could've provided the energy needed to synthesize prebiotic molecules necessary for life.
Space News & Blog Articles
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A New Company Plans to Prospect the Moon
Helium-3 (He-3) on the Moon's surface has drawn attention for decades. In 1939, a paper first noted the presence of Helium-3 on the Moon. Still, it really came into the collective consciousness of space resource enthusiasts during the 1980s when they realized just how valuable a resource it was and how much the Moon had of it. Now, a new paper from a company called Interlune, a relatively new start-up based out of Seattle, presented a paper at the recent Lunar and Planetary Science Conference that discusses plans to try to mine some of that wealth of material economically.
One Instrument on the Failed Lunar Lander Did a Little Science
Even tipped over onto its side, the Odysseus Lunar Lander was able to do some science. Though a broken leg means it's doomed to spend eternity in an awkward position, its solar panels were able to gather some energy. Enough for its radiotelescope to take observations for about 80 minutes.
Giant Exoplanets Have Elliptical Orbits. Smaller Planets Follow Circular Orbits
We are so familiar with our solar system that we often presume it is generally how star systems are built. Four little planets close to the star, four large gas planets farther away, and all with roughly circular orbits. But as we have found ever more exoplanets, we've come to understand just how unusual the solar system is. Large planets often orbit close to their star, small planets are much more common than larger ones, and as a new study shows, orbits aren't always circular.
Fresh crew docks at space station; Starliner astronauts expected to return to Earth Tuesday
The four SpaceX Crew-10 members and the seven Expedition 72 crew members join each other for a welcoming ceremony shortly after the SpaceX Dragon crew spacecraft docked to the International Space Station and the hatches opened. Image: NASA
The Crew 10 Dragon capsule caught up with the International Space Station and moved in for a textbook docking early Sunday, bringing four fresh crew members to the lab and clearing the way for the Starliner astronauts to return to Earth after nearly 300 days in space.
Hera Swings Past Mars, Sees Deimos From a New Angle
Gravitational slingshots are now a common part of space missions where the trajectory of a spacecraft is altered using the gravity of another body. These often bring fabulous opportunities for an extra bit of bonus science such as that demonstrated by ESA’s Hera mission on its way to asteroid Dimorphos. It’s following up on the DART 2022 impact but to get there, it’s used the gravity of Mars. It came within 5,000 km of the red planet and on its way, was able to take a look at Mars’ smaller moon Deimos from its far side.
Exploding Stars May Have Caused Two of Earth's Mass Extinctions
Supernova explosions are powerful enough to cause mass extinctions if they're close enough. But can we tie supernovae to any of Earth's five mass extinctions? New research shows supernovae could be responsible for the Late Devonian and Late Ordovician mass extinctions.
What Will the Betelgeuse Supernova Be Like - And Will It Hurt Us?
When Betelgeuse goes off, it's going to be the show of a lifetime. But it’s not going to hurt us.
SpaceX sets new launchpad turnaround record with Saturday sunrise launch
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off at sunrise to begin the Starlink 12-16 mission on March 15, 2025. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now
Update March 15, 8:41 a.m. EDT: SpaceX confirmed deployment of the 23 Starlink satellites.
NASA, SpaceX launch Crew-10 to begin flight to the International Space Station
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Launch Complex 39A to begin the Crew-10 mission. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now
Update March 14, 8:30 p.m. EDT: Dragon Endurance is making its way to the space station.
SpaceX launches Starlink 12-21 mission following back-to-back scrubs
A streak shot of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as it soared away from Florida’s Space Coast. The launch of the Starlink 12-21 mission was captured next to a riverboat about 47 miles away in St. Cloud, Florida. Image: Michael Cain/Spaceflight Now
Update March 12, 11 p.m. ET: B1069 landed on the droneship, ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas.’
SpaceX details Falcon 9 anomaly that temporarily grounded the rocket fleet
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket first stage booster, tail number B1086, lands on the droneship, ‘Just Read the Instructions,’ amid the Starlink 12-20 mission on Sunday, March 2, 2025. Shortly after touchdown, a fire broke out in the engine section and caused the loss of the booster. Image: SpaceX via livestream
SpaceX is preparing for the return to flight of its Falcon 9 on Monday evening following week without flying its workhorse rocket after a booster caught fire and exploded after landing. Two missions are on tap if the weather cooperates: one in California and the other in Florida.
NASA, SpaceX launch SPHEREx and PUNCH missions following spacecraft-driven scrub
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force Base to begin NASA’s SPHEREx and PUNCH missions on March 11, 2025. Image: SpaceX
Update March 12, 1:52 a.m. ET: NASA confirms acquisition of signal.
Planet Profile - Venus
Planet Profile: Venus
1. Basic Facts
Venus, the second planet from the Sun, is often called Earth’s twin due to its similar size, mass, and composition. However, beyond these similarities, Venus is an incredibly hostile world with scorching temperatures, crushing atmospheric pressure, and toxic clouds. It has a diameter of 12,104 km (7,521 miles), making it slightly smaller than Earth. Unlike Earth, Venus has a thick, dense atmosphere composed mostly of carbon dioxide, trapping heat and creating the hottest planetary surface in the Solar System. Venus has no moons or rings, and its surface is dominated by vast volcanic plains, mountains, and deep craters. Despite its extreme conditions, Venus has fascinated astronomers for centuries and remains an important target for future exploration.
Trump administration removes Apollo moon rock from White House Oval Office
Whether President Donald Trump still supports returning astronauts to the lunar surface remains to be seen, but one thing is for certain: the moon no longer has a place in his White House.
60 days in bed for science
Video: 00:06:40
A group of volunteers is spending two months lying in bed—with their feet up and one shoulder always touching the mattress—even while eating, showering, and using the toilet. But why? This extreme bedrest study is helping scientists understand how space travel affects the human body and how to keep astronauts healthy on long missions.
Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 21 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral
File: A Falcon 9 stands ready for the Starlink 8-10 mission at Cape Canaveral’s Space Launch Complex 40. Image: Michael Cain/Spaceflight Now.
Update 1:30 a.m. EST (0630 UTC): SpaceX has delayed the launch to Tuesday.
High-Resolution Imaging of Dyson Sphere Candidate Reveals no Radio Signals
In the more than sixty years where scientists have engaged in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), several potential examples of technological activity (“technosignatures”) have been considered. While most SETI surveys to date have focused on potential radio signals from distant sources, scientists have expanded the search to include other possible examples. This includes other forms of communication (directed energy, neutrinos, gravitational waves, etc.) and examples of megastructures (Dyson Spheres, Clarke Bands, Niven Rings, etc.)
Measuring Lightsail Performance in the Lab
Sailing has been a mainstay of human history for millennia, so it’s no surprise that scientists would apply it to traveling in space. Solar sailing, the most common version, uses pressure from the Sun to push spacecraft with giant sails outward in the solar system. However, there is a more technologically advanced version that several groups think might offer us the best shot at getting to Alpha Centauri – light sailing. Instead of relying on light from the Sun, this technique uses a laser to push an extraordinarily light spacecraft up to speeds never before achieved by anything humans have built. One such project is supported by the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative, initially founded by Yuri Milner and Stephen Hawking. A new paper by researchers at Caltech, funded by the Initiative, explores how to test what force a laser would have on a light sail as it travels to another star.
Japanese Lander Looks Back at Earth as it Heads to the Moon
The Hakuto-R 2 mission launched on January 15, 2025. It’s the successor to Hakuto-R, which launched in December 2022 but failed when it lost communications during its descent. Both missions carried rovers, and this image was captured by the rover Resilience as it travels toward the Moon.
