Confirmed: Hayabusa Nabbed Asteroid Particles
[/caption] The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has confirmed that the tiny particles inside the Hayabusa spacecraft's sample return container…
Has a Recent, Nearby Supernova Become a Baby Black Hole?
[/caption] Back in 1979, amateur astronomer Gus Johnson discovered a supernova about 50 million light years away from Earth, when…
Spectroscopy in 1881
[/caption]Presently, I've been reading a lot of very old papers and books in astronomy. The work I'm currently reading a…
The Furor over FUORs
[/caption] In 1937, an ordinary 16th magnitude star in the constellation Orion began to brighten steadily. Thinking it was a…
Stunning Image, Heartfelt Poetry Could Become Icons of Space Age
[/caption] Undoubtedly, this picture has what it takes to become an iconic image of human spaceflight, much like Apollo 8's…
Carnival of Space #177
This week's Carnival of Space is hosted by Brian Wang over at Next Big Future. Click here to read the…
Astronomy Cast Ep. 206: Fission
Last week we talked about fusion, where atoms come together to form heavier elements. This week, everything comes apart as…
Astronomy Without A Telescope – Necropanspermia
[/caption] The idea that a tiny organism could hitchhike aboard a mote of space dust and cross vast stretches of…
How Much Does the Earth Weigh?
Earth is the largest terrestrial (i.e rocky) planet in the Solar System and also the densest. Little surprise then that…
Aurora Alert! Solar Flare Heading Our Way
An active sunspot (1123) erupted early this morning (Nov. 12th), producing a C4-class solar flare and apparently hurling a filament…