Looting Asteroids' Water Will Make Launches Cheaper
There are hundreds of satellites in geostationary orbit, meaning that they orbit the Earth at roughly the same pace that our planet spins. It’s a long way from where humans currently roam in space; while the International Space Station is about 250 miles above Earth, geostationary orbit is about 10 times higher — at 27,000 […]
Media Invited to Rare View of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope Mirrors
Media are invited to join NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Wednesday, Nov. 2, for an update about what’s in store for NASA’s next great observatory, the James Webb Space Telescope, and a rare glimpse of the telescope’s mirrors. To source
Look Out Below! Landslides Spotted on Pluto's Moon Charon
“Serenity Chasma” on Pluto’s moon Charon, taken by New Horizons’ Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on July 14, 2015, from a distance of 48,912 miles (78,717 kilometers). Look out below! Scientists have found evidence of landslides on Pluto’s moon Charon . This is the first time this geologic feature has been discovered in the Kuiper […]
Jupiterrise
This image of the sunlit part of Jupiter and its swirling atmosphere was created by a citizen scientist (Alex Mai) using data from Juno’s JunoCam instrument. JunoCam’s raw images are available at www.missionjuno.swri.edu/junocam for the public to peruse and process into image products. To source
Europe Lost Contact with Mars Lander 1 Minute Before Touchdown
After a suspenseful night waiting for a signal from the ExoMars Schiaparelli lander, the European Space Agency (ESA) confirmed today that the spacecraft went silent less than a minute before it was set to reach the Martian surface Wednesday (Oct. 19). ESA mission managers said this morning (Oct. 20) that they need more time to […]
ExoMars In Photos: Schiaparelli Probe's Mars Landing Day
<div data-cycle-pager-template=”” readability=”32.5″> ESA sets the stage for their first Mars landing Credit: ESA The European Space Agency’s stage at the European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany on Oct. 19 for the arrival of ExoMars 2016. The mission includes two spacecraft: the Trace Gas Orbiter and the Schiaparelli lander. on Mars <div data-cycle-pager-template=”” readability=”31″> […]
Explosive Star System's Turbulent Relationship Revealed in Best View Yet
One of astronomy’s most famous stellar pairs sports strange structures in the windy zone between the two stars, according to new observations from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). Eta Carinae is a star system located about 7,500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Carina. The new images, released today (Oct. 19), […]
NASA's Human Mars Mission Will Require Living Off the Land
NASA’s Resource Prospector mission robot, currently in development, is designed to be the first mining expedition on the moon. The mission could inform future mining missions to Mars. NASA’s goals to land humans on Mars in the 2030s will require Mars settlers to “live off the land,” just as the early European settlers did when […]
ExoMars briefing
Replay of ExoMars media briefing on 20 October at ESA’s Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany To source
Schiaparelli descent data: decoding underway
Essential data from the ExoMars Schiaparelli lander sent to its mothership Trace Gas Orbiter during the module’s descent to the Red Planet’s surface yesterday has been downlinked to Earth and is currently being analysed by experts. To source
ExoMars TGO reaches Mars orbit while EDM situation under assessment
The Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) of ESA’s ExoMars 2016 has successfully performed the long 139-minute burn required to be captured by Mars and entered an elliptical orbit around the Red Planet, while contact has not yet been confirmed with the mission’s test lander from the surface. To source
Orionids 2016: A Poor Year for a Good Meteor Shower
A Perseid meteor streaks across the sky left of the hoodoo named Thor’s Hammer early on August 13, 2016 in Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. Along with the Geminids in December and the Perseids in August, the most reliable annual display of “shooting stars” is the Orionid meteor shower in October . Unfortunately, this year, […]
Signals from Mars
Initial signals received from Mars indicate the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter has completed its orbit insertion manoeuvre as planned. Mission teams continue waiting for confirmation of progress from the Schiaparelli lander To source