New observations of the Small Magellanic Cloud show that it might actually be two galaxies disguised as one.
Space News & Blog Articles
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NASA responds to Navajo Nation's request to delay private mission placing human remains on the moon
NASA representatives responded to the Navajo Nation's request to delay a private mission carrying human remains to the moon alongside agency scientific payloads.
Blue Origin booster transporter on the move at KSC
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Concerning satellite observations show major cities on US East Coast are sinking
Satellite images show major cities on the U.S. East Coast, including New York City, are sinking. This has caused concern among scientists.
Want to Find Life? See What's Missing in an Atmosphere
The world runs on carbon. Not just fossil-fuel-driven human society, but all life on Earth. Carbon-based organic molecules are a part of every living thing on Earth. Along with oxygen, nitrogen, and water, carbon is a necessary ingredient for life as we know it. So one way to look for life on other worlds could be to look for carbon in its atmosphere. But a new study shows that it’s actually a lack of carbon that could be the best clue to life on another world.
Astronomers Test an Exoplanet Instrument on Jupiter
The European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) has a high-resolution spectrograph called ESPRESSO, designed specifically to detecting and characterize exoplanets. Astronomers recently ran a test with the instrument, studying the atmosphere and winds of Jupiter. They used a technique called Doppler velocimetry to measure the reflection of light from the Sun in the planet’s clouds, allowing for instantaneous measurement of the clouds’ wind speeds. The technique has also been used on Venus and will guide the future study of exoplanets.
India launches X-ray satellite to study black holes, supernovas and more (video)
India sent its XPoSat X-ray observatory into orbit on New Year's Day to study black holes, supernovae and other cosmic phenomena.
Navajo Nation objects to private moon mission placing human remains on the lunar surface
NASA has responded to the Navajo Nation's objections over a private mission placing human remains on the moon alongside agency science payloads.
Japan delays MMX Mars moon sample-return mission to 2026
Japan has postponed the launch of a mission seeking to bring samples of a Martian moon to Earth until 2026, due to problems with the nation's new H3 rocket.
Alien technosignatures more likely to be found on oxygen-rich exoplanets. Here's why
To stand the best chance of detecting technosignatures, SETI should survey exoplanets with atmospheres that are at least 18% oxygen.
China launches 2 sets of commercial weather satellites in 3-day span (video)
On Dec. 24 and Dec. 27, China launched clusters of small satellites to provide commercial meteorological data.
Exoplanet-hunting instrument measures Jupiter's wild wind speeds
A Very Large Telescope instrument designed to study exoplanets has turned its focus to our own cosmic neighborhood to measure Jupiter's wind speeds.
Hubble observes a changing exoplanet atmosphere
An international team of astronomers has assembled and reprocessed observations of the exoplanet WASP-121 b that were collected with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope in the years 2016, 2018 and 2019. This provided them with a unique dataset that allowed them not only to analyse the atmosphere of WASP-121 b, but also to compare the state of the exoplanet’s atmosphere across several years.
Male astronauts headed to Mars could thrive on this vegetarian salad
It turns out the optimal space meal for male astronauts is a tasty vegetarian salad, using ingredients grown in space that offer micronutrients needed to compensate for extra calories burned.
For Astrobotic, big risk (and bigger reward) ride on private Peregrine moon lander's Jan. 8 launch
Pittsburgh-based company Astrobotic is gearing up for the Jan. 8 launch of its Peregrine lander, which will try to become the first private spacecraft to land on the moon.
Doubt Cast on Exomoon Candidates
Exomoon candidates are tantalizing but, according to new research, perhaps unfounded.
Iron Snow Could Explain the Magnetic Fields at Worlds Like Ganymede
Jupiter’s largest moon, Ganymede, features a surprisingly strong magnetic field for its size. Tidal effects from Jupiter continually stretch and squeeze the moon, keeping its core warm and driving the magnetic field. But the exact geological processes occurring within the core are not fully understood. Now, a new experimental study has put one of the leading models of core dynamics to the test: the formation of crystalized ‘iron snow’.
China’s FAST Observatory is Playing a Key Role in the Search for Aliens
Some years ago I rememeber running the SETI at Home screensaver and would watch it for hours to see if any peaks appeared naively thinking they might be signals from an alien civilisation! There is no doubt that the search for extraterrestrials (ET) has captivated the minds of many people across the years. The search has of course to date, been unsuccesful despite multiple observations that seem to suggest the conditions for life across the cosmos may actually be more common than we first thought. Now Chinese agencies are funding projects to use the Five Hundred Meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) to conduct searches for alien signals.
Ingenuity’s 69th Flight is its Farthest So Far
When NASA decided to send the little Ingenuity rotorcraft to Mars on the belly of the Perseverance rover, they weren’t certain of success. Nothing like it had ever been attempted in Mars’ extremely thin atmosphere. Mission planners hoped and planned for a total of five flights, enough for a technology demonstration.
'Cooling glass' could fight climate change by reflecting solar radiation back into space
To combat increasing global temperatures, scientists have developed a new cooling glass paint which effectively uses space as a heat sink.
Ripples in the oldest known spiral galaxy may shed light on the origins of our Milky Way
Observations have revealed the first-ever seismic waves seen in an ancient galaxy, offering new insight on the origins of our very own Milky Way.
