Europe Launches its new Robotic arm, Which Will Crawl Around the International Space Station Like an Inchworm
The robotic arms of the ISS are some of its most useful tools. The arms, designed by Canadian and Japanese…
Perseverance is About to Collect the First Sample on Mars That Could Eventually be Returned to Earth
Mission controllers at NASA are making final preparations for the Perseverance rover to obtain its first sample of Martian rock,…
When the Sun Dies, Earth’s Magnetosphere won’t Provide Protection any More
The Earth’s magnetic field is an underappreciated wonder of the natural world. It protects our atmosphere, provides some of the…
Zhurong Finds its Own Parachute on the Surface of Mars
As of July 23, 2021, China's Mars rover Zhurong has traveled 585 meters across the surface of Mars. And along…
A Gravitational Wave Observatory on the Moon Could "Hear" 70% of the Observable Universe
A gravitational-wave telescope on the Moon could span the gap between Earth-based and space-based observations.
Incredible! Astronomers see a Moon-Forming Disk Around a Newly Forming Planet
Planetary formation is a complicated, multilayered process. Even with the influx of data on exoplanets, there are still only two…
Observing the Night Side of Venus is Actually Pretty Tricky
Observing the dark side of planets is hard. In the visible spectrum, they are almost unobservable, while in the infrared…
Russia Just Launched a New Science Module to the Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is about to get a little bigger. On July 21, the Russian Space Agency launched…
A new Balloon-Based Observatory Could Produce Images as Fine as Hubble
Launching satellites is an expensive business - at least for now. But satellites are necessary in astronomy for one major…
Forget About Interstellar Flights. Tiny Light Sails Could be Used to Explore the Solar System Today
Solar sails have been receiving a lot of attention lately. In part that is due to a series of high…