Space Exploration News – Latest Headlines

Newfound Earth-size exoplanet may be an important milestone in search for alien life

Three astrophysicists, including the discoverers of exoplanet GJ 1132b, discuss why this new exoplanet could be crucial to understanding the habitability of worlds in other solar systems.

November 12, 2015 Read more

Machine learning could solve riddles of galaxy formation

A new machine-learning simulation system promises cosmologists an expanded suite of galaxy models - a necessary first step to developing more accurate and relevant insights into the formation of the universe.

November 11, 2015 Read more

Mars' moon Phobos is slowly falling apart

The long, shallow grooves lining the surface of Phobos are likely early signs of the structural failure that will ultimately destroy this moon of Mars.

November 11, 2015 Read more

Asteroid ripped apart to form star's glowing ring system

The sight of an asteroid being ripped apart by a dead star and forming a glowing debris ring has been captured in an image for the first time.

November 11, 2015 Read more

Close-up view of galaxies prompts re-think on star formation

Astronomers have identified for the first time one of the key components of many stars, a study suggests. A type of gas found in the voids between galaxies - known as atomic gas - appears to be part of the star formation process under certain conditions, researchers say.

November 10, 2015 Read more

Physicists find clue to formation of magnetic fields around stars and galaxies

An enduring astronomical mystery is how stars and galaxies acquire their magnetic fields. Physicists now have found a clue to the answer in the collective behavior of small magnetic disturbances. They report that small magnetic perturbations can combine to form large-scale magnetic fields just like those found throughout the universe.

November 9, 2015 Read more

Unlocking the mysteries of 'little starlets'

For the first time a powerful laser has been used to further our understanding of some of the most mysterious celestial objects just beyond the solar system - brown dwarfs.

November 6, 2015 Read more

MAVEN mission reveals speed of solar wind stripping Martian atmosphere

NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission has identified the process that appears to have played a key role in the transition of the Martian climate from an early, warm and wet environment that might have supported surface life to the cold, arid planet Mars is today.

November 5, 2015 Read more

Hubble uncovers the fading cinders of some of our galaxy's earliest homesteaders

Using the Hubble Space Telescope to conduct a 'cosmic archaeological dig' at the very heart of our Milky Way galaxy, astronomers have uncovered the blueprints of our galaxy's early construction phase.

November 5, 2015 Read more

Scientists discover the gene that will open the door for space-based food production

Plant geneticists discovered the gene in the ancient Australian native tobacco plant Nicotiana benthamiana, known as Pitjuri to indigenous Aboriginals tribes.

November 3, 2015 Read more

Disk gaps don't always signal planets

When astronomers study protoplanetary disks of gas and dust that surround young stars, they sometimes spot a dark gap like the Cassini division in Saturn's rings. It has been suggested that any gap must be caused by an unseen planet that formed in the disk and carved out material from its surroundings. However, new research shows that a gap could be a sort of cosmic illusion and not the sign of a hidden planet after all.

November 2, 2015 Read more

How stars grow into heavyweights

Astronomers find a stable disk around a young, massive sun.

November 2, 2015 Read more

Researchers model birth of universe in one of largest cosmological simulations ever run

The simulation, run on the Titan supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, modeled the evolution of the universe from just 50 million years after the Big Bang to the present day - from its earliest infancy to its current adulthood.

October 30, 2015 Read more

Spirals in dust around young stars may betray presence of massive planets

A team of astronomers is proposing that huge spiral patterns seen around some newborn stars, merely a few million years old, may be evidence for the presence of giant unseen planets. This idea not only opens the door to a new method of planet detection, but also could offer a look into the early formative years of planet birth.

October 30, 2015 Read more

Preparing for extreme space weather

A newly published National Space Weather Strategy identifies high-level priorities and goals for the nation, while an accompanying Action Plan outlines how federal agencies will implement the strategy.

October 29, 2015 Read more

VISTA discovers new component of Milky Way

The Vista Variables in the Via Lactea Survey (VVV) ESO public survey is using the VISTA telescope at the Paranal Observatory to take multiple images at different times of the central parts of the galaxy at infrared wavelengths. It is discovering huge numbers of new objects, including variable stars, clusters and exploding stars.

October 28, 2015 Read more

Wall-less Hall thruster may power future deep space missions

Scientists have experimentally optimized the operation of the first wall-less Hall thruster prototype, a novel electric rocket engine design suitable for long-duration, deep space missions.

October 27, 2015 Read more

Artificial intelligence finds messy galaxies

An astrophysics student has turned to artificial intelligence to help her to see into the hearts of galaxies.

October 27, 2015 Read more