Europe is moving towards the second launch of its new Ariane 6 launcher after finding and addressing anomalies following its debut flight. Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), presented plans and updates on the agency’s work during an annual press briefing on Jan. 9. The event also drew questions on the …
Europe’s New Ariane 6 Heavy-Lift Rocket Set For 2nd Launch In February. Read More »
The seventh test flight of SpaceX’s Starship had some serious highs and lows. The company launched its Starship megarocket for the seventh time ever today (Jan. 16), sending the 403.5-foot-tall (123 meters) reusable vehicle aloft from its Starbase site in South Texas at 5:37 p.m. EST (2237 GMT; 4:37 p.m. local time). One of the …
SpaceX Watches Super Heavy Booster On Starship Flight 7 Test But Loses Upper Stage. Read More »
India has become the fourth country in the world to successfully achieve an unmanned docking in space following the US, Russia and China, as two small spacecraft completed the docking maneuver in low-Earth orbit on Thursday, which the Indian space agency described as “a historic moment” for the nation. The successful SpaDeX mission “is a …
India Becomes 4th Country To Achieve Unmanned Space Docking. Read More »
An X-ray observatory used to study neutron stars is “back in the black” and a cosmic ray detector is ready for possible future upgrades after two astronauts completed a spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS). Nick Hague worked to repair the Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer, or NICER, mounted to the outside of the …
Astronauts Repair Black Hole Observatory, Inspect Cosmic Ray Detector On ISS Spacewalk. Read More »
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket just earned its wings. New Glenn launched for the first time ever this morning (Jan. 16), rising off a pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station here on Florida’s Space Coast at 2:03 a.m. EST (0703 GMT). About 12.5 minutes later, the rocket’s upper stage reached orbit — the main …
Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Launches Massive New Glenn Rocket Into Orbit On 1st Flight. Read More »
Night has fallen for the star-tracking European Space Agency (ESA) spacecraft, Gaia. The mission, which has been mapping the Milky Way for the last 12 years, shut down science operations on Wednesday (Jan. 15). The close of the mission’s data-collecting phase was necessitated by Gaia running low on cold gas propellant it uses to spin. …
ESA Spacecraft Shuts Down After 12 Years Of Milky Way Mapping. Read More »
Astronomers studying elusive supermassive black holes at the hearts of galaxies are intrigued not only by the cosmic behemoths themselves but also by the colossal jets they launch into space at near-light speeds, the biggest of which are known to span millions of light-years. In particular, the physics of what creates and accelerates these jets …
Astronomers Investigate Black Hole Jets With Event Horizon Telescope. Read More »
If you’re more of an auditory learner than a visual one, this timelapse video is for you. (And, well, visual learners will probably love it, too!) The European Space Agency (ESA) has released an audio-visual representation of solar activity over the last three years, pulling data from its Solar Orbiter probe, which it runs with …
Scientists Turn 3 years’ Worth Of Solar Flares Into Audible Sound. Read More »
SpaceX launched another set of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida’s Space Coast this morning (Jan. 13). A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 21 Starlink craft, including 13 with direct to cell capabilities, lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station today at 11:47 a.m. EST (1647 GMT). The first stage booster returned to Earth about …
SpaceX Launches 21 Starlink Satellites From Florida, Lands Booster For 15th Time. Read More »
Research work on building China’s Chang’e 7 lunar exploration mission includes sending a flag that can flutter in the moon’s thin and tenuous atmosphere. “We know that the moon is vacuum with no air, so it is difficult to make a flag flutter by wind like on Earth,” said Zhang Tianzhu, deputy head of the …
China Plans To Plant A Waving Flag On The Moon In 2026. Read More »
