News (Page 396)

You’ll Experience 200 Times More Radiation Standing on the Moon than Standing on the Earth January 31, 2021, will mark 50 years since the launch of Apollo 14. This historic mission was the first to broadcast a color television signal from the surface of the Moon and marked the heroic return to space of America’s first astronaut, Alan Shepard, who famously hit two golf balls off of the lunar regolith. … Continue reading “You’ll Experience 200 Times More Radiation Standing on the Moon than Standing on the Earth” The post You’ll Experience 200 Times More Radiation Standing on the Moon than Standing on the EarthRead More →

NASA and Seven Countries Sign the Artemis Accords for the Exploration of the Moon. Russia Declined to Participate It looks like Russia is thumbing its nose at international cooperation on the Moon. They’ve refused to sign the Artemis Accords, which are a set of rules governing Lunar exploration. NASA and seven other countries have signed on already, with more to come. Russia is NASA’s largest partner in space exploration. The two countries are … Continue reading “NASA and Seven Countries Sign the Artemis Accords for the Exploration of the Moon. Russia Declined to Participate” The post NASA and Seven Countries Sign the Artemis Accords forRead More →

What’s Happening with Betelgeuse? Astronomers Propose a Specialized Telescope to Watch the Star Every Night An international team of astronomers recommends creating “Betelgeuse Scope” to monitor this mysterious star find out why it has been acting so strangely of late! The post What’s Happening with Betelgeuse? Astronomers Propose a Specialized Telescope to Watch the Star Every Night appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

The galaxy with 99.99% dark matter isn’t so mysterious any more The dwarf galaxy known as Dragonfly 44 caused a stir recently: apparently it had way, way more dark matter than any other galaxy. Since this couldn’t be explained by our models of galaxy formation, it seemed like an oddball. But a new analysis reveals that Dragonfly 44 has much less dark matter than previously thought. … Continue reading “The galaxy with 99.99% dark matter isn’t so mysterious any more” The post The galaxy with 99.99% dark matter isn’t so mysterious any more appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

NASA Announces 14 New “Tipping Point” Technologies for its Lunar Exploration NASA recently awarded contracts to fourteen companies to develop technologies that will help them return to the Moon, and stay there! The post NASA Announces 14 New “Tipping Point” Technologies for its Lunar Exploration appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

We actually don’t know how fast the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole is spinning but there might be a way to find out The stars at the center of our galaxy could tell us just how fast our closest supermassive black hole is spinning. The post We actually don’t know how fast the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole is spinning but there might be a way to find out appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Great Barrier Reef Has Lost Half of its Coral Over the Last 25 Years A new study found that warmer ocean temperatures driven by climate change have caused Australia’s Great Barrier Reef to lose more than half of its corals since 1995. The researchers say virtually all coral populations along the Great Barrier Reef have declined due to repeated “bleaching events” in the past 25 years. They said the … Continue reading “Great Barrier Reef Has Lost Half of its Coral Over the Last 25 Years” The post Great Barrier Reef Has Lost Half of its Coral Over the Last 25 Years appeared first onRead More →

Impatient? A Spacecraft Could Get to Titan in Only 2 Years Using a Direct Fusion Drive Fusion power is the technology that is thirty years away, and always will be – according to skeptics at least.  Despite its difficult transition into a reliable power source, the nuclear reactions that power the sun have a wide variety of uses in other fields.  The most obvious is in weapons, where hydrogen bombs are … Continue reading “Impatient? A Spacecraft Could Get to Titan in Only 2 Years Using a Direct Fusion Drive” The post Impatient? A Spacecraft Could Get to Titan in Only 2 Years Using aRead More →

InSight’s ‘Mole’ is Now Completely buried! It’s been a long road for InSight’s Mole. InSight landed on Mars almost two years ago, in November 2018. While the lander’s other instruments are working fine and returning scientific data, the Mole has been struggling to hammer its way into the surface of the planet. After much hard work and a lot of patience, … Continue reading “InSight’s ‘Mole’ is Now Completely buried!” The post InSight’s ‘Mole’ is Now Completely buried! appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Operating a Rover in Real-time From a Distance There are instances other than pandemics when it is necessary to work remotely. Spacecraft operators are forced to do most of their work remotely while their charges travel throughout the solar system.  Sometimes those travels take place a little closer to home. Engineers at DLR, Germany’s space agency, recently got to take the concept of … Continue reading “Operating a Rover in Real-time From a Distance” The post Operating a Rover in Real-time From a Distance appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Pluto has Snowcapped Mountains, But Why? We can thank NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft for opening our eyes up to Pluto’s complexity. On July 14th, 2015, the spacecraft came within 12,500 km (7,800 mi) of the dwarf planet. During the flyby, New Horizons was able to characterize Pluto’s atmosphere and its surface. Among the things New Horizons saw was a region of snowcapped mountains. … Continue reading “Pluto has Snowcapped Mountains, But Why?” The post Pluto has Snowcapped Mountains, But Why? appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Summer is Dust Devil Time on Mars Just like Earth, Mars undergoes seasonal changes due to its axial tilt. And while summer heat on Mars can’t compare with Earth’s, along with the Martian summer warmth comes an increase in small whirling storms known as dust devils. Several spacecraft on or orbiting Mars have captured dust devils in action, including the Phoenix lander … Continue reading “Summer is Dust Devil Time on Mars” The post Summer is Dust Devil Time on Mars appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →