Scott Alan Johnston
Betelgeuse and Antares Have Been Observed for Over 2,000 Years. Astronomers can use This to Figure out how old They are
Stars don’t usually evolve fast enough for humans to notice them change within one lifetime. Even a hundred lifetimes won’t…
The Solar System is Stable for at Least the Next 100,000 Years
It’s nice to have a feel-good story every once in a while, so here’s one to hold off the existential…
Remember That Rocket That was Going to Crash Into the Moon? Scientists Think They've Found the Crater
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) – NASA’s eye-in-the-sky in orbit around the Moon – has found the crash site of…
Once Again, Galaxies Look Surprisingly Mature Shortly After the Beginning of the Universe
A young galaxy with the catchy, roll-off-the-tongue name A1689-zD1 has experts in galactic formation talking. Recent observations show that this…
Spacesuits are Leaking Water and NASA is Holding off any Spacewalks Until They can Solve the Problem
NASA's spacesuits are getting old. The extra-vehicular mobility units - EMUs for short - were designed and built for spacewalks…
Cosmic Rays can Help Keep the World's Clocks in Sync
The world has a robust, accurate timekeeping system that regulates our clocks. Humanity uses it for everything we do, from…
‘The Clocks are Telling Lies:’ A New Book from Universe Today Writer Scott Alan Johnston
Scott Alan Johnston (that's me!) joined the Universe Today team just over a year ago. Since then, I've written over…
Even Stars Doomed to Die as Supernovae can Have Planets
90 percent of all exoplanets discovered to date (there are now more than 5000 of them) orbit around stars the…
China is Building an Asteroid Deflection Mission of its own, due for Launch in 2025
There's an old joke that the dinosaurs are only extinct because they didn't develop a space agency. The implication, of…
NASA is Ready to try and fix Lucy’s Unlatched Solar Panel
NASA's Lucy spacecraft, currently on its way to the outer Solar System to study Jupiter's Trojan asteroids, has a solar…