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Space News & Blog Articles
China to test lunar-soil bricks in space to pave the way for its planned moon base
The experiment aboard China's Tiangong space station will expose bricks made of moon-soil simulant to space's harsh conditions, helping shape the future of lunar infrastructure.
Webb Telescope Images Massive Early Galaxies, Still Finding More Than Expected
Webb Telescope data are still turning up more massive galaxies in the early universe than astronomers expect.
China's mysterious space plane returns to Earth after 268 days in orbit
China's reusable space plane has landed after spending over 8 months in orbit on a largely secret mission.
NASA's solar sail spacecraft is visible in the night sky. Here's how to see it
NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) can be seen with the naked eye as it orbits Earth, and can be tracked with a helpful app.
Mars rover trials
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Rover trials in a quarry in the UK showing a four-wheeled rover, known as Codi, using its robotic arm and a powerful computer vision system to pick up sample tubes.
Debris from DART impact could reach Earth
In 2022 NASA’s DART spacecraft made history, and changed the Solar System forever, by impacting the Dimorphos asteroid and measurably shifting its orbit around the larger Didymos asteroid. In the process a plume of debris was thrown out into space.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, September 6 – 15
The waxing Moon steps along nightly this week, from low in the western twilight with Venus and Spica over to Antares and then the Sagittarius Teapot. Meanwhile, the recurrent nova T Corona Borealis is keeping us waiting.
First metal part 3D printed in space
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ESA’s Metal 3D Printer has produced the first metal part ever created in space.
Earth from Space: Sentinel-2 captures Sentinel-2
Image: The Copernicus Sentinel-2B satellite captured this image over Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana on 2 September, just ahead of the Sentinel-2C launch.
SpaceX launches next-gen US spy satellites on 2nd leg of spaceflight doubleheader
SpaceX launched a batch of spy satellites for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office tonight (Sept. 5), the company's second orbital mission of the day.
The Final Vega Rocket Blasts Off
The European Space Agency (ESA) launched its final Vega rocket this week, lofting a Sentinel-2C Earth observation satellite into orbit. This wraps up 12 years of service and 20 successful flights for the venerable Vega. The rocket launched several well-known missions, including LISA Pathfinder (2015), the Earth-observing satellites Proba-V (2013), and Aeolus (2018). ESA will now launch these types of payloads on the new Vega-C rocket, capable of launching heavier payloads at a lower price.
Ouch! A Monster Asteroid Crashed Into Ganymede 4 Billion Years Ago, Rolling it Over
Jupiter’s moon, Ganymede, is a fascinating celestial body. Measuring 2,634 km (1,636 mi) in diameter, it is also the largest satellite in the Solar System and even larger than Mercury, which measures 2,440 km (1,516 mi) in diameter. Like Europa, it has an interior ocean and is one of the few bodies in the Solar System (other than the gas giants) with an intrinsic magnetic field. The presence of this field also means Ganymede experiences aurorae circling the regions around its northern and southern poles due to interaction with Jupiter’s magnetic field.
SpaceX launches Falcon 9 rocket on national security mission for the NRO
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands at Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) prior to the launch of the NROL-113 mission. Image: SpaceX
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket with an undisclosed number of satellites on behalf of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). The spacecraft, which are believed to be Starshield satellites, make up the third batch of what the NRO calls its “proliferated architecture.”
NASA’s Putting its Solar Sail Through its Paces
Those of you following the Advanced Composite Solar Sail System may have heard that its booms and sail are now deployed. It is receiving light pressure from the Sun to propel it through the Solar System. Like a test pilot in a new aircraft, NASA are now testing out just how it handles. Before deployment, the spacecraft was slowly tumbling and now the controllers will see if they can get it under control and under sail power. The reflectivity of the sail means its an easy spot in the night sky, just fire up the NASA app to find out where to look.
A partial lunar eclipse of the Harvest Moon Supermoon is coming. Here's everything you need to know
September's Full Harvest Moon will be a supermoon in addition to experiencing a partial lunar eclipse. Here's everything you need to know for this month's full moon.
Watch eerie 1st teaser for Hulu's 'Alien: Earth' TV series (video)
A new teaser and plot description has arrived for Hulu’'s "Alien: Earth" TV series.
There are Important Differences Between the Ice Caps on Mars
In the 17th century, astronomers Giovanni Domenica Cassini and Christian Huygens noted the presence of hazy white caps while studying the Martian polar regions. These findings confirmed that Mars had ice caps in both polar regions, similar to Earth. By the 18th century, astronomers began to notice how the size of these poles varied depending on where Mars was in its orbital cycle. Along with discovering that Mars’ axis was tilted like Earth’s, astronomers realized that Mars’ polar ice caps underwent seasonal changes, much like Earth’s.
NASA spacecraft captures 1st photo of its giant solar sail while tumbling in space
NASA's testing a solar sail system in space, and the spacecraft that brought the tech there has snapped a photo.
'No Man's Sky' receives fishing, diving, and exo-skiffs via 'Aquarius' update (video)
After another major universe refresh, No Man's Sky continues its journey to become the ultimate time sink space game by adding alien fishing.