Science
Robots Might Jump Around to Explore the Moon
LEAP (Legged Exploration of the Aristarchus Plateau) is a mission concept study, funded by ESA, to explore challenging lunar terrains…
Science Fiction was an Inspiration for Many Professional Astronomers
What do MINBAR, TARDIS, Cardassian Expansion, BoRG, DS9, Tatooines, and ACBAR all have in common? They're names of astronomical surveys…
The Rapid Changes We’re Seeing With the Earth’s Magnetic Field Don’t Mean the Poles are About to Flip. This is Normal
One of the most interesting discoveries about Earth in the past few decades concerns the Earth's magnetic poles. Paleomagnetic records…
Solar Orbiter’s Pictures of the Sun are Every Bit as Dramatic as You Were Hoping
On March 26th, the ESA's Solar Orbiter made its closest approach to the Sun so far. It ventured inside Mercury's…
Humanity Will Need to Survive About 400,000 Years if We Want any Chance of Hearing From an Alien Civilization
If there are so many galaxies, stars, and planets, where are all the aliens, and why haven't we heard from…
The Strange Swirls on the Lunar Surface are Somehow Related to Topography
The Moon is the most studied object in space. But our nearest neighbour still holds a few mysteries. One of…
It Turns out, the “Closest Black Hole” System Doesn’t Contain a Black Hole At All
One thousand light-years away is pretty close for a black hole. When researchers discovered a black hole at that distance…
Ion Engines Could Work on Earth too, to Make Silent, Solid-State Aircraft
Ion engines are the best technology for sending spacecraft on long missions. They're not suitable for launching spacecraft against powerful…
Stunning Photos from Air, Space and Ground of the Atlas V GOES-T Launch
NASA and NOAA now have a sophisticated new weather satellite in space. The GOES-T satellite launched on the powerful United…
Archeologists are Planning to Scan the Great Pyramid of Giza With Cosmic Rays With Such Detail, They Should see Every Hidden Chamber Inside
The Great Pyramid of Giza might be the most iconic structure humans ever built. Ancient civilizations constructed archaeological icons that…