NASA's Perseverance rover captured video of a dust devil moving along the western rim of Mars' Jezero Crater on Aug. 30, 2023.
Space News & Blog Articles
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See green comet Nishimura's tail get whipped away by powerful solar storm as it slingshots around the sun (video)
After surviving its closest approach to the sun, Comet Nishimura was buffeted by a possible coronal mass ejection that briefly blew its tail away. The rare event was captured by a NASA spacecraft.
The Earth's Atmosphere
The Earth's atmosphere is a layer of gases that surrounds the planet and is held in place by gravity. It is vital for supporting life on Earth and plays several essential roles, including regulating temperature, protecting against harmful solar radiation, and enabling weather and climate patterns. Here are some key characteristics and components of the Earth's atmosphere:
It's Official, Antimatter Falls Down in Gravity, Not Up
It’s a basic fact we’ve all learned in school. Drop any object, be it a baseball, feather, or cat, and it will fall toward the Earth at exactly the same rate. The cat will fortunately land on its feet thanks to a bit of feline grace, but the point is that everything falls at the same rate under gravity. It doesn’t matter what an object is made of, or how heavy it is. While we’ve all been taught this fact, calling it a fact was, until recently, a bit of a lie.
Time-lapse video shows a supernova's aftermath ballooning into space
Two decades of Hubble Space Telescope data reveal the stunning threads of a dead star's leftovers.
A New Planet-Hunting Instrument Has Been Installed on the Very Large Telescope
Exoplanet studies have come a long way in a short time! To date, 5,523 exoplanets have been confirmed in 4,117 systems, with another 9,867 candidates awaiting confirmation. With all these planets available for study, exoplanet researchers have been shifting their focus from detection to characterization – i.e., looking for potential signs of life and biological activity (biosignatures). Some major breakthroughs are expected in the coming years, thanks in part to next-generation observatories like NASA’s James Webb and Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope and the ESA’s PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars (PLATO) mission.
These photos of Stoke Space's 'Hopper' reusuable rocket test are just amazing
New photos from Stoke Space show the successful test flight, Hopper2, bringing the company one step closer toward developing fully reusable rockets.
Light from the cosmic web connecting galaxies has been seen for the 1st time (video)
For the first time, astronomers have directly imaged the faint glow of the diffuse cosmic web that stretches throughout the known the universe.
Dark Matter Could Be Annihilating Inside White Dwarfs
As the search for dark matter particles continues to yield nothing, astronomers continue to look at ways these elusive particles might be found. One general method is to look for evidence of dark matter particle decay. Although dark matter doesn’t interact strongly with regular matter, some dark matter models predict that dark matter particles can interact with each other, causing them to decay into regular particles. There have been several searches for this effect, but there’s no clear evidence yet. But a new study suggests looking at white dwarfs could be a good approach.
Lose Yourself in the JWST’s Exquisite Image of Barnard’s Galaxy
There may come a day when we grow weary of JWST images. But it’s not today. Today, we can lose ourselves in the space telescope’s engrossing image of NGC 6822, also called Barnard’s Galaxy.
How methane studies on Earth could inform the search for alien life in our solar system
A new class of proteins found in methane deposits on Earth's seafloor could help inform the search for alien life.
Want to Safely Watch the Sun With a Large Group? Get a Disco Ball
The upcoming solar eclipses and the current high sunspot activity means it’s a great time to observe the Sun. Eclipses also mean that large groups of people will be together to view these events. However, rule #1 for astronomy is to never look at the Sun with unprotected eyes, especially with a telescope or binoculars.
Live Coverage: SpaceX to launch Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Friday
A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled for launch tonight on another mission to deliver satellites into orbit for SpaceX’s Starlink internet service. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is planned for 6:39 p.m. EDT (2239 UTC).
'Einstein ring' snapped by James Webb Space Telescope is most distant gravitationally lensed object ever seen
The James Webb Space Telescope has snapped a stunning image of a perfectly formed Einstein ring, which is also the most distant gravitationally lensed object ever detected.
SpaceX to launch 22 Starlink satellites to orbit from Florida this evening
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is poised to launch from Florida's Space Coast this evening (Sept. 29), carrying 22 Starlink satellites to orbit.
8 tips to safely watch the annular solar eclipse on Oct. 14
From eye safety to backcountry travel, here's how to stay out of harm's way when eclipse-chasing and observing the 'ring of fire' or partial solar eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023.
NASA delays launch of Psyche asteroid mission by 1 week, to Oct. 12
The launch of NASA's Psyche mission has been delayed by a week to Oct. 12, so the team can deal with a recently detected thruster issue.
Japan's ispace nabs $55 million NASA moon landing deal, slips 3rd lunar launch to 2026
Tokyo-based ispace has opened a U.S. headquarters in order to help the company develop and launch robotic landers to the moon on behalf of NASA and other customers.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, September 29 – October 8
The Moon pairs with Jupiter, then the Pleiades, as it departs the evening sky. That leaves a dark-sky Milky Way crossing the zenith, where Cygnus the Milky Way Swan flies southward for fall.
Earth from Space: Southern Patagonian Ice Field
Image: Part of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field with its white glaciers and aquamarine lakes is featured in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 10 January 2023.
