Astronomy

October’s Supermoon Will be the Biggest of 2024 – Here’s When to Catch it

Credit: DepositphotosThe largest and brightest supermoon of the year will rise this week. According to NASA, the moon will look full from Tuesday evening until Friday morning, giving you plenty of opportunities to enjoy the view.There’s a brief period between Wednesday evening and Thursday morning when the moon will be at its closest to...

Watch: SpaceX Achieves Historic Booster Retrieval

Super Heavy just before captureSpaceXIn an impressive display of space engineering, SpaceX achieved a groundbreaking milestone. At around 7:31 am CT, they successfully captured a Super Heavy booster using their launch tower after it deployed a Starship second stage into orbit and performed a controlled reentry.After following space launches since the Mercury missions, I...

Scientists Warn About the Troubling State of Earth’s Trees

Credit: PixabayIntroduction: Iconic Trees at RiskFrom towering coastal redwoods to ancient Wollemi pines and firs that adorn Christmas, even the planet’s most iconic plants are facing severe issues. However, the loss of certain species won’t just endanger local forests; it will threaten entire ecosystems, as recent research indicates.In 2021, a global assessment titled "State...

Curiosity Rover Provides New Insights Into How Mars Became Uninhabitable

Rendering of what a watery Mars may have looked likeNASAData gathered by NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars is revealing new information about how the Red Planet became uninhabitable in the distant past, attributed to a changing climate that led to the evaporation of surface water or its entrapment as ice.Not too long ago, the...

Watch: Earth’s Wobble Creates a Twilight Zone Shadow

The view from the ISS as it orbits over the termination line known as the twilight zoneNASAA daily photo taken from September 2023 to September 2024 offers an intriguing view of the twilight zone transition caused by the Earth's 23.5-degree axial tilt during its orbit around the Sun.Without the Earth's axial tilt, we wouldn't...

Super Magdrive Rocket Thrusters Operate Using Heavy Metal

The Super Magdrive gives us ACME vibesMagdriveThe most prevalent metal known to humanity is iron. It can be found everywhere, not just on Earth but also in space. Astro engineers have recently discovered how to utilize iron—and nearly any metal, for that matter—as plasma rocket fuel.It's well-established that certain metals can ignite explosively. Lithium...

The Spacesuit that Chinese Astronauts Will use on the Moon

China's new space suit takes to the stageXinhua/Wang QuanchaoChina aims to send astronauts to the Moon by around 2030 and recently showcased the new spacesuits they’ll be using. During a media event, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) demonstrated the suits with two astronauts testing them out for the cameras.Based on current plans, the...

Scientists Detect Hidden Structure In Earth’s Core

Credit: DepositfotosEarth's Complex History Beneath Our FeetWhile many of us take the ground beneath our feet for granted, it holds Earth's complex history within its layers, like pages of a book. Research suggests there are lesser-known chapters in that history, buried deep in Earth's past. In fact, Earth's inner core seems to have another,...

Earth’s Potential Ring System and Climate Impact 499 Million Years Ago

If Earth had a ring system 446 million years ago, it could provide an explanation for the impact craters found in the geological record. Additionally, it might shed light on an unusual climate event during that time.Image Credit: ANDREI SALAUYOU/max dallocco/Shutterstock.com, modified by IFLScienceNew research suggests that a ring formed around the Earth about...

NASA is Moving Forward with Plans to Establish a Time Zone on the Moon

Credit: PixabayFortunately, NASA is advancing plans to implement a standardized time zone on the Moon. The proposed Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC) would help schedule missions and explorations, making future efforts to establish a permanent base on the lunar surface somewhat easier.While the concept has been previously discussed, NASA has announced plans to collaborate with...