Scientists have made the most precise measurements ever of Mars’s rotation, for the first time detecting how the planet wobbles due to the “sloshing” of its molten metal core. The findings, detailed in a recent Nature paper, rely on data from NASA’s InSight Mars lander, which operated for four years before running out of power …
NASA InSight study finds Mars is spinning faster Read More »
The Euclid space telescope, launched July 1 on a mission to shed more light on elusive dark matter and dark energy, has reached its destination orbit and on Monday its European operators revealed its first test images. The star-filled snapshots were taken during the space telescope‘s commissioning—a phase during which its powerful instruments are finely …
First test images from Euclid space telescope unveiled Read More »
A new image of the galaxy cluster known as “El Gordo” is revealing distant and dusty objects never seen before, and providing a bounty of fresh science. The infrared image, taken by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, displays a variety of unusual, distorted background galaxies that were only hinted at in previous Hubble Space Telescope …
Webb spotlights gravitational arcs in ‘El Gordo’ galaxy cluster Read More »
Among the cargo headed to the International Space Station is an upgrade for NASA’s quantum physics facility, the Cold Atom Lab. A Northrop Grumman Cygnus resupply spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station with more than 8,200 pounds of NASA science investigations and cargo after launching at 8:31 p.m. EDT Tuesday from …
Science, Hardware Launches on NASA’s Northrop Grumman Cargo Mission Read More »
The first rocket launch from the surface of another planet will be accomplished using two solid rocket motors. NASA’s Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) recently reached some major milestones in support of the Mars Sample Return program. The Mars Ascent Vehicle would be the first launch of a rocket from the surface of another planet. The …
NASA Mars Ascent Vehicle Continues Progress Toward Mars Sample Return Read More »
The spinning, solar-powered spacecraft will take another look of the fiery Jovian moon on July 30. When NASA’s Juno mission flies by Jupiter’s fiery moon Io on Sunday, July 30, the spacecraft will be making its closest approach yet, coming within 13,700 miles (22,000 kilometers) of it. Data collected by the Italian-built JIRAM (Jovian InfraRed …
NASA’s Juno Is Getting Ever Closer to Jupiter’s Moon Io Read More »
By conducting radial velocity (RV) follow-up observations of the GJ 367 planetary system with the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS), an international team of astronomers has detected two additional alien worlds, at least four times as massive as the Earth. The finding was reported July 18 on the pre-print server arXiv. Located some …
Two additional exoplanets detected in a nearby planetary system Read More »
Black holes are the most mysterious objects in the universe, with features that sound like they come straight from a sci-fi movie. Stellar-mass black holes with masses of roughly 10 suns, for example, reveal their existence by eating materials from their companion stars. And in some instances, supermassive black holes accumulate at the center of …
Astronomers reveal new features of galactic black holes Read More »
By analyzing the data from the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES), an international team of astronomers has discovered a new quiescent galaxy. The newfound system, designated JADES-GS+53.12365-27.80454, turns out to be the least massive quiescent galaxy detected so far at a high redshift. The discovery was detailed in a paper published July 17 on …
The two missions will study this as-yet-unexplained phenomenon in complementary ways. A new space telescope named Euclid, an ESA (European Space Agency) mission with important contributions from NASA, is set to launch in July to explore why the universe’s expansion is speeding up. Scientists call the unknown cause of this cosmic acceleration “dark energy.” By …
NASA’s Roman and ESA’s Euclid Will Team Up to Investigate Dark Energy Read More »
