Approximately 13.8 billion years ago, the greatest event in all of existence occurred that literally created existence itself. This event is known as the Big Bang, and it’s responsible for the estimated septillion number of stars that are scattered across the vast reaches of the unknown, including the one our small, blue world orbits. However, other than knowing that the Big Bang occurred, there is still a septillion amount of information we still don’t know about the greatest event in the history of existence.
Space News & Blog Articles
Vega’s PRETTY CubeSat: unlocking satnav for Earth data
Our planet is being continuously bathed in radio signals from satnav satellites – which are useful for much more than just navigation. Dedicated space missions acquire these signal reflections to amass valuable environmental information. The shoebox-sized PRETTY CubeSat, flying on Europe’s next Vega launcher, will investigate a new frequency and novel observation angle to better measure the rate of climate change – at the same time as gathering radiation data on its surrounding space environment.
New wristwatch bridges Apollo to Artemis with touch of real moon dust
There is an allure to moon dust. Just like its unique adhesive properties, causing it to stick to everything it touches, it tends to draw the attention of everyone who sees it.
It’s Time to Start Worrying About Space Junk Around the Moon, Too
Researchers look to track and mitigate the growing number of space junk objects around the Moon.
Orbital 'parking spots' could help prevent satellite traffic jams
Engineers suggest giving satellites launched into space a designated 'parking spot' to prevent accidents and make space more equitable.
'Ring of fire' eclipse Oct. 14 will be practice run for total solar eclipse next year
U.S. scientists have a rare chance to practice for totality. On Oct. 14, researchers across the country will test their projects during a "ring of fire" annular eclipse ahead of the U.S. total solar eclipse in April 2024.
Small-scale magnetism leads to large-scale solar atmosphere
Image: Image comparing views of Sun with two Solar Orbiter instruments
SpaceX's Elon Musk to give big Starship update today: Watch it live
SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk will give an update about the company's Starship vehicle today (Oct. 5), and you can watch it live.
Virgin Galactic to launch Galactic 04 space tourist flight Oct. 6. Here's what to expect
Virgin Galactic's reusable spaceplane, VSS Unity, will launch its fourth commercial spaceflight mission Oct. 6. Here's how to follow the action.
Younger trees champion carbon capture
Thanks to their ability to absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, forests have long been recognised as a key tool in the fight against climate change – but not all forests are equal. New research based on data from ESA’s SMOS satellite mission has found that, surprisingly, young trees are champions at carbon capture.
Northrop Grumman leaves behind solo commercial space station venture, partners with Nanoracks on ‘Starlab’
A rendering of the Nanoracks/Voyager Space commercial space station orbiting the Earth. Image: Nanoracks
About a year and a half after signing a Space Act Agreement with NASA to develop a commercial space station, Northrop Grumman formally withdrew from its solo plans in order to partner with Nanoracks, a subsidiary of Voyager Space.
Watch OSIRIS-REx Release its Sample Capsule
Most of the spacecraft we send out into the Solar System are never meant to return. Time, space, and entropy overtake them, or else they’re purposely sent crashing to their doom at the end of their missions. But not OSIRIS-REx. Its mission was only a success when it returned to Earth with its rare cargo.
Mars Society conference happening online Oct. 5 through Oct. 8
The 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention will start Oct. 5. Here's how you can watch online.
Hundreds of Free-Floating Planets Found in the Orion Nebula
It appears that rogue planets – free floating worlds that aren’t gravitationally bound to a parent star – might be more common than we thought. New data from the James Webb Space Telescope have revealed 540 (yes, that’s right) planetary-mass objects in the Orion Nebula and Trapezium Cluster.
NASA will launch rockets into the annular solar eclipse's shadow on Oct. 14
A NASA mission called APEP will launch three sounding rockets into the annular solar eclipse to measure changes in electric and magnetic fields, density, and temperature of the ionosphere.
Seeing the Web Connecting Galaxies Across the Universe
One hundred years ago, we didn’t know there was anything outside of our own galaxy, the Milky Way. Now we know that our puny planet Earth, and everything else, is part of a vast structure called the Cosmic Web. Its scale is difficult to comprehend in any concrete way, and the system’s complexity and magnitude brings our most powerful supercomputers to their knees.
AI is already helping astronomers make incredible discoveries. Here's how
Scientists worldwide are already using artificial intelligence and machine learning to sort through huge amounts of data, suggesting that the future of astronomy belongs to AI.
Live coverage: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch 22 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral
Facing 50-50 weather odds, SpaceX is getting ready for a Falcon 9 launch from Cape Canaveral Wednesday night on its 44th Starlink delivery mission of the year.
Old Stars Don't Have Hot Jupiters
As we began to discover hundreds, then thousands of exoplanets, we found that there were two types of worlds unlike anything in our solar system. The first are super-Earths. These worlds straddle the line between large rocky worlds like Earth and small gas planets like Neptune. The second are hot Jupiters. Large gas giants that orbit their star in a matter of days. While there may be a super-Earth lurking at the outer edge of our solar system, we know our Sun has no hot Jupiters. This is a little surprising since close-orbiting gas giants seem to be fairly common. But a new study could explain why our solar system has no planet Vulcan.
OSIRIS-REx watched its asteroid sample capsule head toward Earth (photos)
NASA's OSIRIS-REx asteroid probe captured photos during the release of its return capsule last month, preserving the historic moment for posterity.
Astroscale gets up to $80 million for space junk inspection mission
Astroscale just scored up to $80 million from the Japanese government to develop a demonstration mission that will study a large, dead satellite in orbit.