Space News
Virgin Orbit launches 10 satellites to orbit in landmark test flight
SPACE.com - 18 Jan 2021 00:53
Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket reached orbit today (Jan. 17) on its second test flight -- and also successfully deployed 10 satellites.
The U.S. Postal Service to issue NASA sun science forever stamps
Phys.org - 18 Jan 2021 14:22
NASA's images of the sun's dynamic and dazzling beauty have captivated the attention of millions. In 2021, the US Postal Service is showcasing the sun's many faces with a series of sun Science forever stamps that show im...
A New Satellite Is Going to Try to Maintain low Earth Orbit Without Any Propellant
Universe Today - 18 Jan 2021 06:24
Staying afloat in space can be deceptively hard. Just ask the characters from Gravity, or any number of the hundreds of small satellites that fall into the atmosphere in a given year. Any object placed in low Earth o...
Here's the Extremely New Website for the Extremely Large Telescope
Universe Today - 18 Jan 2021 20:22
In the vein of "go big or go home," the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has launched a stunning new website to showcase information about — and match the scale of — its Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), the highly...
Why The Recent Signal That Appeared to Come From Proxima Centauri Almost Certainly Didn't
Discover - 18 Jan 2021 18:56
Astronomers have now calculated the likelihood that the signal came from another advanced civilization -- and the numbers don't look good.
A 'super-puff' planet like no other
Phys.org - 18 Jan 2021 18:00
The core mass of the giant exoplanet WASP-107b is much lower than what was thought necessary to build up the immense gas envelope surrounding giant planets like Jupiter and Saturn, astronomers at Université de Montréal...
Astronaut vlog: space food and fitness
ESA - 18 Jan 2021 17:00
Video: 00:04:14 English Astronaut vlog: space food and fitness ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer is preparing for his mission to the International Space Station, scheduled for launch in late 2021. This mission is known as Co...
Astronomers find planetary system with gas giant exoplanet and white dwarf companion
Phys.org - 18 Jan 2021 16:00
Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered an interesting extrasolar planetary system consisting of a K-dwarf host star, a Jupiter-sized planet and a wh...
Cosmic beasts and where to find them
Phys.org - 18 Jan 2021 15:25
Two giant radio galaxies have been discovered with South Africa's powerful MeerKAT telescope. These galaxies are thought to be amongst the largest single objects in the Universe. The discovery has been published today in...
A neutron-star crash spotted 3 years ago is still pumping out X-rays. But why?
SPACE.com - 18 Jan 2021 14:21
Three years ago, two neutron stars collided in a cataclysmic crash, the first such merger ever observed directly. Naturally, scientists kept their eye on it -- and now, something strange is happening.
Citizen scientists create 3D map of brown dwarfs in our sun's neighborhood
SPACE.com - 18 Jan 2021 14:20
A citizen scientist group has created the most complete map to date of brown dwarfs neighboring our solar system.
Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reaches space on 2nd try
Phys.org - 18 Jan 2021 10:26
Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reached space on Sunday, eight months after the first demonstration flight of its air-launched rocket system failed, the company said.
Cosmic beasts and where to find them
EurekAlert! - 18 Jan 2021 07:00
(Royal Astronomical Society) Two giant radio galaxies have been discovered with South Africa's powerful MeerKAT telescope. These galaxies are thought to be amongst the largest single objects in the Universe. The discover...
According to the Math, it's Highly Unlikely That an Intelligent Civilization is Located at Alpha Centauri
Universe Today - 18 Jan 2021 04:34
In a new study, a pair of Harvard astrophysicists did the math on whether or not BLC1 is an extraterrestrial signal - and the results are not good! The post According to the Math, it’s Highly Unlikely That an Intellige...
Virgin Orbit reaches orbit on second LauncherOne mission
Space News - 18 Jan 2021 00:21
Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket reached orbit on its second flight Jan. 17, demonstrating the performance of the air-launch system. SpaceNews