Elon Musk Unveils SpaceX Raptor Engine Test for Interplanetary Transport
A photo tweeted by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Sept. 25, 2016, shows the Raptor rocket engine undergoing testing for the first time. In this tweet, Musk pointed out a wave pattern called “Mach diamonds” that appears in supersonic-speed exhaust plumes. SpaceX has successfully test-fired the new Raptor rocket engine that will launch the company’s planned […]
Moon and Mars on a plane
Who wouldn’t want to run an experiment in lunar or martian gravity? ESA is offering European researchers the chance to test their theories on aircraft flights that offer 20 seconds of reduced gravity. To source
A universe to explore
ESA is exploring Earth’s immediate surroundings, from low orbit with the International Space Station to the Moon, Mars and beyond To source
Astronaut Artifacts Included in New African American History Museum
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden donated his astronaut flight suit, among other items, to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. Artifacts representing some of the United States’ first black astronauts are included within the inaugural collection of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, which opened its […]
NASA Administrator's Advice On How To Become An Astronaut | Video
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Sculpted by ancient water
Stunning bird’s eye view of Mawrth Vallis, a remarkable valley that could harbour hints of past life on Mars To source
Does Jupiter's Moon Europa Have a Subsurface Ocean? Here's What We Know
A simulated view from the surface of Europa, a moon of Jupiter. Researchers suspect that the moon has a massive ocean beneath its icy surface. NASA will hold a briefing today (Sept. 26) on new findings about “activity that may be related to the presence of a subsurface ocean on Europa.” Jupiter’s moon Europa is […]
Playing Planetary Explorer: Xtronaut Board Game Draws from Asteroid Mission
Xtronaut: The Game of Solar System Exploration was designed by the principal investigator of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission, Dante Lauretta. Dante Lauretta has earned four points. He successfully launched a probe on a mission to “journey out to a near-Earth asteroid and retrieve a sample from the surface.” He assembled an Atlas V rocket , planned […]
The Universe Is Directionless, Study Finds
This map, produced using data collected by the Planck satellite, shows a map of the light left over from the big bang. If the universe were not isotropic, scientists think they would find evidence in maps like this one. The universe, it turns out, looks the same in every direction. Of course, this isn’t true […]
New Astronaut's Memoir Comes with Space Shuttle Gift
NASA Astronaut Michael Massimino struggles into his spacesuit with the help of two others in the leadup to the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission. Retired astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two shuttle missions to repair the Hubble Space Telescope, describes his path to space and what the job was like in a new […]
Future Space Station Commander Will Scout Golf Courses from Space
NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough will command Expedition 50 aboard the International Space Station. Here, he’s pictured during postlaunch activities as a mission specialist on the shuttle flight STS-126 in 2008. NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough, an avid golfer, plans to take pictures of greens around the world when he returns to the International Space Station this […]
Rocket Lab Opens Private Orbital Launch Site in New Zealand
An aerial view of the Rocket Lab launch complex in New Zealand. On a remote peninsula in New Zealand, construction has been completed what appears to be the world’s first private launch complex for orbital space flights. The Los Angeles-based commercial spaceflight company Rocket Lab announced the completion of Launch Complex 1 today (Sept. 26 […]
Mercuryquakes May Currently Shake Up the Tiny Planet
Mercury appears to experience quake-like activity as it shrinks, making it tectonically active just like Earth, scientists say. Mercury may still rumble with earthquakes, or “Mercuryquakes,” according to a new study of cliffs on the planet’s surface. The finding suggests that Earth is not the only tectonically active planet, the authors of the research say. […]