Starship is larger and twice as powerful as the Apollo-era Saturn VSpaceXSpaceX intends to frequently launch its large Starship booster from Florida's Kennedy Space Center. To achieve this, the company will renovate an existing Apollo-era launch site and build a new one, as detailed in a recent environmental impact assessment.The Starship booster has intermittently...
Virtual Incision co-founder Shane Farritor tries his hand at controlling spaceMIRACraig Chandler, UNL Communication and MarketingA team of six doctors in Nebraska has accomplished a surgical robot operation on the International Space Station (ISS). While the procedure was conducted on rubber bands this time, this achievement holds significance for upcoming missions to Mars and...
Io as seen from Juno, with 'Jupitershine' illumination on the left sideNASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSSNASA has unveiled a high-resolution image captured by the Juno spacecraft during its recent encounter with Jupiter's moon Io on December 30, 2023. This image not only showcases remarkable details of the volcanic satellite but also features an unusual lighting effect.During its close...
Credit: Unsplash / Nicolas Thomas.In December 2020, the Chang'e-5 mission embarked on an extraordinary journey to the Moon, marking a milestone in lunar exploration. Its mission is to land, collect, and return rocks to Earth. This endeavor marked the first collection of lunar material in 45 years, offering a treasure trove of insights into...
Artist's concept of a future orbital refueling spacecraftNorthrop GrummanThe US Space Force has selected Northrop Grumman's Passive Refueling Module (PRM) as the preferred option to establish the standard for refueling satellites in orbit, thus prolonging their mission duration under the Space Systems Command (SSC).Satellites are expensive to construct and launch into space, prompting engineers...
The eROSITA map seen in two different ways: Left shows extended X-ray emissions, while the right image shows point-like X-ray sourcesMPE, J. Sanders for the eROSITA consortiumAstronomers have utilized the eROSITA space telescope to chart half of the universe in X-ray light. This newly created map, featuring nearly a million X-ray sources, serves as...
"Astronomers unearth a previously undiscovered celestial entity adrift in the cosmos" is a frequent news topic, yet it never fails to captivate. The most recent discovery introduces a novel category of stars – elderly red giants affectionately dubbed "Old Smokers" by the research team.
SLIM's January 20 touchdown made Japan only the fifth nation to achieve a "soft landing" on the Moon after the United States, the Soviet Union, China and India.On Monday, the Japanese space agency announced that the moon lander has been revived, allowing it to continue its mission of exploring the lunar surface despite encountering...
Ingenuity as seen from the Perseverance roverNASA/JPL-CaltechNASA has officially concluded its Ingenuity Mars helicopter mission, originally planned for a month with five flights. Surpassing expectations, the mission endured for three years, completing 72 flights before being halted due to damaged rotors after its last flight. Ingenuity, part of NASA's Perseverance rover mission, made history...
Credit: Unsplash.Astronomers utilizing the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have observed GJ 9827d, the smallest exoplanet known to have water vapor in its atmosphere. With a diameter approximately twice that of Earth, this distant planet could provide insights into the prevalence of water-rich atmospheres around other stars in our galaxy.Discovery and CharacteristicsGJ 9827d, discovered by...
