Space & Spaceflight

Image: NASA, ESA, Q. Zhang (Caltech), and A. Pagan (STScI

Close-Up View of Comet NEOWISE Shows It Survived Close Encounter With Sun

Comets don’t always survive their sojourns into the inner solar system, but a new close-up image suggests the NEOWISE comet—the brightest in decades—has kept it together. Some 6,800 years from now, our descendants, should they still be around, can expect a return visit from comet NEOWISE. This 3-mile-wide comet (5-kilometer) appears to have survived its…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Check Out NASA’s New Toy: A Full-Scale Replica of Blue Origin’s Lunar Lander

A team led by Blue Origin has delivered a full-scale mockup of the lunar lander that could carry NASA astronauts to the Moon in 2024. American astronauts will supposedly be taking strolls on the lunar surface in four years (which is an extremely ambitious timeline), but NASA still needs a lunar lander to make it…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

ISS Crew Temporarily Confined to Russian Module as Engineers Hunt for Pesky Air Leak

The International Space Station has been leaking more air than usual, prompting an investigation that will confine the three-person crew to a single module for the next several days. NASA and its international partners first noticed the air leak in September 2019. The ISS naturally loses some air over time, but the current rate of…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Image: ZTF/Caltech Optical Observatories

A Car-Sized Asteroid Just Got Remarkably Close to Hitting Earth

On August 16, a car-sized asteroid came to within 1,830 miles (2,950 kilometers) of our planet, making it the closest known non-impacting asteroid on record. This asteroid, named 2020 QG, measures around 10 to 20 feet (3 to 6 meters) in length, which is roughly the size of a large SUV. Its closest approach to…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Does Our Sun Have a Long-Lost Twin?

The strange configuration of material in the outer reaches of our solar system has led a team of scientists to speculate that the Sun had a companion during its early days. Intriguingly, this scenario could explain the presence of the hypothesized Planet Nine, should it actually exist. Our Sun’s hypothetical twin is long gone, but…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Damaged SETI Observatory Could Be Sidelined for Months

The iconic Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico was damaged last week when a large cable fell onto the radio telescope’s main reflector dish. We’re now learning more about this unfortunate incident, including how long it might take until the beleaguered observatory is back online. During the early morning of Monday August 10, a thick auxiliary…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Somehow, a Tiny Black Hole Is Causing a ‘Heartbeat’ 100 Light-Years Away

There’s a cloudy patch of space inside our galaxy that unexpectedly produces gamma radiation at clockwork-like intervals. Scientists have now linked these periodic pulses to a “microquasar”—most likely a black hole—located a whopping 100 light-years away, in what is an extraordinary observation. New research published today in Nature Astronomy describes an unusual long-distance relationship involving…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Exploding Black Dwarfs Could Be the ‘Last Interesting Thing to Happen in the Universe’

“This is the way the world ends,” said T. S. Elliot in his famous poem, “Not with a bang but a whimper.” These days, scientists consider the heat-death of the universe to be the whimper, but a new theoretical analysis predicts that the cosmos will breathe its final gasp in the form of exploding black…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

A Dusty Burp Could Explain Mysterious Dimming of Supergiant Star Betelgeuse

Doomed supergiant star Betelgeuse has been acting strange lately, appearing far less bright than usual and then bouncing back to normal. Hubble Space Telescope observations from last year suggest the unexpected dimming was caused by a sudden ejection of hot gases, which formed an enormous dust cloud after cooling. A new study set to be…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Famed SETI Observatory Wrecked After Cable Breaks

The Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico is currently out of commission after a thick support cable fell onto the dish, creating a large gash. It’s yet another setback for the beloved science facility, which hasn’t fully recovered from the devastation of Hurricane Maria. At around 2:45 a.m. local time on Monday August 10, a three-inch…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

The Space Force Unveils ‘Spacepower,’ Its Plan to Conquer Space

The Space Force has released a 64-page military doctrine, explaining why the United States needs to flex its muscles in space and how the nascent military branch will seek to maintain dominance in a domain so far untouched by warfare. Humans have fought on land and water for millennia and in the air for over…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Image: NASA/JPL-CalTech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA

Dwarf Planet Ceres Has a Secret Saltwater Ocean

Scientists are attributing the mysterious bright spots on Ceres, the largest object in the main asteroid belt, to a gigantic reservoir of salty water beneath the dwarf planet’s crust. Subsurface oceans are the kind of thing we expect to see in the outer solar system, specifically on the icy moons in orbit around Jupiter, Saturn,…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Image: NASA/MAVEN/Goddard Space Flight Center/CU/LASP

At Night, the Martian Sky Pulses and Glows When Viewed in Ultraviolet Light

New ultraviolet observations of the Red Planet highlight complex circulation patterns in the Martian atmosphere, including eerily regular nightglow pulses invisible to the unaided eye. The Martian atmosphere, when viewed through ultraviolet light, is very busy, but only at night, and only during certain seasons, as new research shows. These pulsing and glowing atmospheric effects…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Gerald Eichstädt

Shallow Lightning and Mushy Hail: Violent Storms on Jupiter Are Weirder Than We Thought

Lightning and hailstones exist on Jupiter, but they’re of a very different sort than the ones we’re familiar with on Earth, as new research suggests. Shallow lightning on Jupiter doesn’t originate from watery clouds like on Earth but instead from clouds packed with both water and ammonia, according to new research published this week in…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Scientists Spot Space Junk With Lasers in Broad Daylight

Our ability to efficiently detect space debris has taken an important leap forward, thanks to a new technique in which lasers can spot these potentially dangerous objects during daylight hours. Researchers from the Institute for Space Research at the Austrian Academy of Sciences have developed a technique in which lasers can measure the position of…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

SpaceX Starship Prototype Completes Its First ‘Hop’

SpaceX’s plans to build a reusable rocket capable of landing on the Moon and Mars took a major leap forward on Tuesday, following the first successful test of the Starship system. Starship made its inaugural test flight shortly before 8:00 pm ET on Tuesday August 4 at the SpaceX Boca Chica facility in Texas, reports…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Image: Anna Grau Galofre/Arizona State University

Ancient Mars May Have Been Less Wet Than We Thought

Ice sheets, and not rushing rivers, sculpted many Martian valleys, according to scientists. The new research suggests ancient Mars wasn’t as warm and wet as we thought, but an expert we spoke to remains unconvinced. New research published in Nature Geoscience suggests rushing rivers weren’t responsible for the distinctive shape of certain Martian valleys located…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Success!

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft splashed down safely in the Gulf of Mexico shortly before 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, marking the successful completion of both the first astronaut trip to orbit by a private company and NASA’s first water landing in 45 years. You can check out a clip of the historic moment in a…

Space & Spaceflight Alyse Stanley

Spacecraft Carrying Perseverance Switches to ‘Safe Mode’ After Glitch, but NASA Says Not to Worry

True to this agonizing year that is 2020, yesterday’s launch of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover was not without problems. Update 3:27 p.m. ET: As NASA now reports, flight controllers with the Mars 2020 mission have successfully returned the spacecraft to nominal flight operations. As scheduled, a ULA Atlas V rocket carrying the Perseverance rover and…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

This Is the Best Spot on Earth for Stargazing—If You Can Handle It

Good news, everyone! Astronomers have pinpointed the best location on Earth for studying the stars. But if you’re an amateur astronomer hoping to take advantage of this astronomical sweet spot, you’ll have to bundle up, as it’s in the heart of Antarctica, one of the coldest places on the planet. Dome A—the highest ice dome…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Close-Up View of Comet NEOWISE Shows It Survived Close Encounter With Sun

Check Out NASA’s New Toy: A Full-Scale Replica of Blue Origin’s Lunar Lander

ISS Crew Temporarily Confined to Russian Module as Engineers Hunt for Pesky Air Leak

A Car-Sized Asteroid Just Got Remarkably Close to Hitting Earth

Does Our Sun Have a Long-Lost Twin?

Damaged SETI Observatory Could Be Sidelined for Months

Somehow, a Tiny Black Hole Is Causing a ‘Heartbeat’ 100 Light-Years Away

Exploding Black Dwarfs Could Be the ‘Last Interesting Thing to Happen in the Universe’

A Dusty Burp Could Explain Mysterious Dimming of Supergiant Star Betelgeuse

Famed SETI Observatory Wrecked After Cable Breaks

The Space Force Unveils ‘Spacepower,’ Its Plan to Conquer Space

Dwarf Planet Ceres Has a Secret Saltwater Ocean

At Night, the Martian Sky Pulses and Glows When Viewed in Ultraviolet Light

Shallow Lightning and Mushy Hail: Violent Storms on Jupiter Are Weirder Than We Thought

Scientists Spot Space Junk With Lasers in Broad Daylight

SpaceX Starship Prototype Completes Its First ‘Hop’

Ancient Mars May Have Been Less Wet Than We Thought

Success!

Spacecraft Carrying Perseverance Switches to ‘Safe Mode’ After Glitch, but NASA Says Not to Worry

This Is the Best Spot on Earth for Stargazing—If You Can Handle It

Artemis 2 Live Updates: Countdown to the Moon 🔴

Forget Apple’s Magic Keyboard, Logitech MX Keys for Mac Refuses to Go Back to Full Price After Amazon Spring Sale

Google’s Next Fitbit Sounds Exactly Like a Whoop Clone

Amazon eero WiFi 7 Router (3-Pack) Keeps Its Spring Sale Price, Covering Up to 120 Devices Across 6,000 Sq. Ft.

72 New Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Books Arriving in April

A Cosmic ‘Dead Zone’ for Black Holes Is Real, New Evidence Suggests

Nothing Might Get Into Smart Glasses at the Worst Possible Time

Samsung Slashes $350 Off 49″ Odyssey Curved Gaming Monitor to Clear Out Stock on Amazon

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

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