Tags: Astronomy

Military Satellite Explodes in Space

An aging United States military weather satellite dubbed Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Flight 13 (DMSP-F13) exploded in orbit on February 3. The explosion occurred after the 20-year-old satellite experienced a sudden spike in temperature, producing at least 43 pieces of debris.

Short Circuit Leaves Curiosity with One Arm

NASA has announced that the Mars Curiosity Rover now just has one arm, due to a short circuit that happened while the rover was attempting to retrieve a sample.

Jupiter and Its Moons Set to Put on Astronomical Show

In February, Mars and Venus put on quite a show in the skies above. Determined not to be outdone, Jupiter, the fifth and largest planet in our solar system, will put on a show of its own along with its moons during the month of March.

SpaceX Launches Two New Electric Satellites

Sunday evening at 10:50 p.m., a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida carrying satellites for two different customers, Eutelsat and Asia Broadcast Satellite.

NASA Seeks to Improve GPS Communications with Study of Ionosphere

When you don't know how to get to where you are going, chances are you pull out a smartphone or other type of device with a Global Positioning System (GPS) to help guide you where you need to go. What you may not know is that the signals traveling between the GPS satellites and your devices can get distorted thanks to the Earth's upper atmosphere.

NASA Receives Proposals for More Solar System Exploration

NASA has received dozens of new proposals for robotic missions for launch in 2021 to explore different parts of the solar system. Scientists have submitted concepts for sending probes to the moon, asteroids, comets and other planets for a chance to win $450 million in federal funding for their mission.

Curiosity Mars Rover Seeks Answers in the Rocks of Pahrump Hills

Finding some interesting chemistry in the rocks of Mars, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover decided to investigate on Telegraph Peak earlier this week, boring into the Martian surface in search of answers. Though the rock powder poses new questions to the chemical composition of the planet, the car-sized Curiosity rover is far from reaching its final destination.

Methane Based Life Could Exist on Saturn’s Moon, Titan

In a new study published this week by researchers from Cornell University, the team of researchers has modeled a new methane-based life form that can metabolize and reproduce, similar to the oxygen-based life forms here on Earth. And more than that, the researchers say that these life forms could flourish in the harsh, cold environment of Saturn's moon, Titan. Titan's surface is filled with seas of liquid methane that researchers believe could harbor these methane-based cells.

Leonard Nimoy "Spock"—Best Moments And Quotes from the Legend

Leonard Nimoy, known to the world as Spock from the "Star Trek" series, passed away on Friday at the age of 83. To celebrate his life and his achievements in sharing his gifts of acting with the world, we take a look at some of the best quotes from Nimoy both as himself and as that lovable emotionless Vulcan serving aboard the Starship Enterprise.

Should NASA and The International Space Station Be Worried About the Vapors?

Should the vapors be cause for concern? Well it certainly has been a question that has crossed NASA and the astronauts’ aboard the International Space Station minds. Since the snafu on Wednesday, Feb. 25, when a routine spacewalk led to water leaking into space station flight engineer Terry Virts’ helmet, the team has been buzzing with news of whether or not they will be cleared to walk again this weekend.

As Dawn Spacecraft Approaches, A Second Bright Light Emerges from Ceres

To better answer Piazzi’s original questions, and some new ones that have arisen in the more than two centuries since it was first discovered, researchers with NASA developed the Dawn Spacecraft mission which was originally launched in 2007. After a successful 14-month-orbit around Vesta in the asteroid belt, Dawn is now moving onto the next dwarf planet and will arrive to Ceres within the next week. And the first question that the Dawn mission would like to answer is a glaring one, visible on the surface.

Spending The Weekend Strolling Around Space—Spacewalking Aboard the ISS

How’d you spend your weekend? Bet you didn’t have as great of a time as NASA astronaut Terry Virts, who clocked a couple of hours this Saturday, Feb. 21, in the void of space. While Virts and his colleague Barry Wilmore have been aboard the International Space Station for a couple of months now, the duo spent their weekend commemorating their first spacewalk with a collage of space selfies, posted on their Twitters.

Could Dark Matter and Black Holes Cause the Swirl In Your Galaxy?

Ever seen a snapshot of the universe and wondered just how and what makes the beautiful swirling shapes that modern telescopes now let us see? Imagery of the Horsehead Nebula, the Pillars of Creation, and even the Rose Galaxies have captivated researchers and the public for decades, but finding exactly what causes space dust, planets and stars to conform in such elegant forms has often eluded astronomers studying the infinite wonders of space. But a new study conducted by researchers with the Harvard University Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) reveals that the connection between collections of stars and the elliptical shapes of galaxies may have something to do with dark matter and the presence of black holes at the center of every galactic mass.

Researchers Find How Acidified Oceans Have Become with Help of NASA and ESA Satellites

While many argue that the fight against greenhouse gases is long over, climatologists and ecologists continue to urge that the battle continues on. And while the culprits are all the same, the problems with these remnants of burning fossil fuels are taking on new problems. A topic of major research has developed from these changes and now researchers are quantify just how it will impact our world in the years to come.

Ash, Auroras or Clouds—What Could this Strange Martian Plume Be?

Covered round-the-clock by rovers and orbiters, researchers know a lot about Mars and its vast desolate plains. Yet, some mysteries remain. Of course, researchers with major space agencies continue to look for evidence of life and of conditions hospitable to support possible manned missions, but even more so researchers are interested in the anomalies above the surface.

VIDEO—How Antiquated Technology May Reveal the Secrets of Titan’s Seas

Beneath the glaring surface and choppy waves, many secrets are hidden here in the oceans of Earth. The vast depths hide species unknown to men, lost treasures at the seafloor and perhaps even a cryptid or two. And while terrestrial studies of planets may have been interesting in the 20th century, space agencies are looking to aquatic surveys which may one day reveal the origins of life even farther out in space.

Valentine’s Day In Space—A Promise to Better Heart Health

When better than Valentine’s Day to discuss matters of the heart? As February happens to be American Heart Month, dedicated to heart health and the physical fitness of everyone around the world, it seems that NASA and astronauts aboard the International Space Station are taking the promise of heart health to new heights. A new year, a new crew, and a new attitude has come aboard the International Space Station, and this time they’re vowing to keep their hearts just as healthy as their minds and our thirst for knowledge in space exploration.

ESA Mars Express Orbiter Reveals Place for Caffè on Mars’ Southern Icecap

Thanks to some clever innovation, and one determined Italian astronaut currently stationed aboard the International Space Station, espresso and aroma of dark-roasted coffee beans has finally reached outer space. But what about the far off planet of Mars? Though the planet may be desolate, and according to current reports, completely absent of life, a new image released by the European Space Agency (ESA) looks like the red planet may have a place for caffè.

Seeing In Shades of Red—Revealing the Rings of Saturn

Unfortunately, when it comes to vision, humans aren’t the most adapted to see the world as it really is. Only capable of seeing a relatively small portion of the electromagnetic waves possible in the spectrum, our view is narrowed to that within the visible spectrum. But thanks to our mental aptitudes, researchers are able to solve this problem by developing imaging techniques that view our world, and the universe, in a different way.
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