Space Exploration News – Latest Headlines

Shedding more light on molecules linked to life on other planets

To confirm life on other planets, we need to detect far more molecules in their atmospheres than we currently do to rule out non-biological chemical processes.

April 9, 2021 Read more

Caught speeding: Clocking the fastest-spinning brown dwarfs (w/video)

Astronomers have discovered the most rapidly rotating brown dwarfs known. They found three brown dwarfs that each complete a full rotation roughly once every hour.

April 8, 2021 Read more

Giant radio pulses from pulsars are hundreds of times more energetic than previously believed

Scientists, using coordinated observations of the Crab pulsar in a number of frequencies, have discovered that the 'giant radio pulses' which it emits include an increase in x-ray emissions in addition to the radio and visible light emissions that had been previously observed.

April 8, 2021 Read more

More than 5,000 tons of extraterrestrial dust fall to Earth each year

An international program conducted for nearly 20 years by scientists, has determined that 5,200 tons per year of micrometeorites reach the ground.

April 8, 2021 Read more

First transiting exoplanet's 'chemical fingerprint' reveals its distant birthplace

Astronomers have found evidence that the first exoplanet that was identified transiting its star could have migrated to a close orbit with its star from its original birthplace further away.

April 7, 2021 Read more

New study sews doubt about the composition of 70 percent of our universe

Researchers the world over have long believed that 70 percent of the universe is composed of dark energy, a substance that makes it possible for the universe to expand at an ever-increasing rate. But in a new study, researchers tested a model which suggests that the universe's expansion is due to a dark substance with a kind of magnetic force.

April 6, 2021 Read more

Exploring comet thermal history: Burnt-out comet covered with talcum powder

The world's first ground-based observations of the bare nucleus of a comet nearing the end of its active life revealed that the nucleus has a diameter of 800 meters and is covered with large grains of phyllosilicate.

April 6, 2021 Read more

From stardust to pale blue dot: Carbon's interstellar journey to Earth

We are made of stardust, the saying goes, and a pair of studies finds that may be more true than we previously thought.

April 2, 2021 Read more

Distant, spiralling stars give clues to the forces that bind sub-atomic particles

Space scientists have found a new way to probe the internal structure of neutron stars, giving clues about the makeup of matter at an atomic level.

April 1, 2021 Read more

Decades of hunting detects footprint of cosmic ray superaccelerators in our galaxy

An enormous telescope complex in Tibet has captured the first evidence of ultrahigh-energy gamma rays spread across the Milky Way. The findings offer proof that undetected starry accelerators churn out cosmic rays, which have floated around our galaxy for millions of years.

March 31, 2021 Read more

First X-rays from Uranus discovered

Astronomers have detected X-rays from Uranus for the first time, using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. This result may help scientists learn more about this enigmatic ice giant planet in our Solar System.

March 31, 2021 Read more

Why we need to get better at predicting space weather

The Sun is the most important source of energy for sustaining life on Earth, but it gives us a lot more than just light and heat. It also gives us solar storms.

March 30, 2021 Read more

Interstellar comet is like nothing we've seen before

Interstellar comet 2I/Borisov is more pristine than any other comet observed in the Solar System. The characteristics of the dust surrounding 2I/Borisov are shown to differ from those found in Solar System comets.

March 30, 2021 Read more

Early black holes may be the seeds key to galaxies behemoths

A new black hole breaks the record - not for being the smallest or the biggest - but for being right in the middle. The recently discovered 'Goldilocks' black hole is part of a missing link between two populations of black holes: small black holes made from stars and supermassive giants in the nucleus of most galaxies.

March 29, 2021 Read more

Stellar eggs near galactic center hatching into baby stars

Astronomers found a number of stellar eggs containing baby stars around the center of the Milky Way. Previous studies had suggested that the environment there is too harsh to form stars. These findings indicate that star formation is more resilient than researchers thought.

March 29, 2021 Read more

Robot teams for the moon: a new project for the exploration of lava tubes by cooperating autonomous rovers

Water, protection, stable temperatures: When it comes to finding suitable areas for long-term lunar missions, the lava tubes on the moon are of great interest. In order to investigate their potential for future space exploration, teams of robots are meant to be enabled to enter these caves.

March 25, 2021 Read more

Interstellar object 'Oumuamua is likely a piece of a Pluto-like planet

A new study resolves the not-quite-comet-like character of a strange visitor from beyond our solar system.

March 24, 2021 Read more

New images reveal magnetic structures near supermassive black hole

A new view of the region closest to the supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy Messier 87 (M87) has shown important details of the magnetic fields close to the black hole and hints about how powerful jets of material can originate in that region.

March 24, 2021 Read more