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Beyond “Fermi’s Paradox” XVI: What is the “Dark Forest” Hypothesis? A recent addition to the list of possible resolutions to the Fermi Paradox: nobody is broadcasting because they don’t want to be found! The post Beyond “Fermi’s Paradox” XVI: What is the “Dark Forest” Hypothesis? appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
New Observations Agree That the Universe is 13.77 Billion Years old A new measure of the cosmic microwave background supports an older universe, and raises more problems for cosmology. The post New Observations Agree That the Universe is 13.77 Billion Years old appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Big News for SpaceX: Static Fire Today, Hop Test This Weekend? SpaceX conducted another successful static fire test today in advance of a hop test that could be happening later this week! The post Big News for SpaceX: Static Fire Today, Hop Test This Weekend? appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
There Should be a few Supernovae in the Milky Way Every Century, but we’ve Only Seen 5 in the Last 1000 Years. Why? Our galaxy hosts supernovae explosions a few times every century, and yet it’s been hundreds of years since the last observable one. New research explains why: it’s a combination of dust, distance, and dumb luck. The last supernova to be noted in any kind of reliable source occurred in 1604, as recorded by many astronomers … Continue reading “There Should be a few Supernovae in the Milky Way Every Century, but we’ve Only Seen 5 in the Last 1000 Years. Why?” TheRead More →
Japan to Launch ‘Wooden Satellite’ in 2023 What a proposed wooden satellite could (and could not) accomplish. The post Japan to Launch ‘Wooden Satellite’ in 2023 appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Here’s the Asteroid Hayabusa2 is Going to be Visiting Next Check out this image of asteroid 1998 KY26 from the Subaru Telescope. It’s not exactly beautiful, but it’s not intended to be. The compelling thing about this image isn’t its attractiveness, it’s the context. This small asteroid is the next target for Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft. Hayabusa2 was launched in 2014 to meet up with asteroid … Continue reading “Here’s the Asteroid Hayabusa2 is Going to be Visiting Next” The post Here’s the Asteroid Hayabusa2 is Going to be Visiting Next appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Missing: Supermassive Black Hole With up to 100 BILLION Times the Mass of the Sun The massive galaxy cluster Abell 2261 should have a supermassive black hole in its center. But it doesn’t. Astronomers have looked everywhere – even between the couch cushions. What’s going on? Giant black holes, also known as supermassive black holes, are basically everywhere, sitting in the heart of almost every single known galaxy. Even our … Continue reading “Missing: Supermassive Black Hole With up to 100 BILLION Times the Mass of the Sun” The post Missing: Supermassive Black Hole With up to 100 BILLION Times the Mass of the SunRead More →
Astronomers set a new Record and Find the Farthest Galaxy. Its Light Took 13.4 Billion Years to Reach us Since time immemorial, philosophers and scholars have contemplated the beginning of time and even tried to determine when all things began. It’s only been in the age of modern astronomy that we’ve come close to answering that question with a fair degree of certainty. According to the most widely-accepted cosmological models, the Universe began with … Continue reading “Astronomers set a new Record and Find the Farthest Galaxy. Its Light Took 13.4 Billion Years to Reach us” The post Astronomers set a new Record and FindRead More →
The Interior of Enceladus Looks Really Great for Supporting Life When NASA’s Voyager spacecraft visited Saturn’s moon Enceladus, they found a body with young, reflective, icy surface features. Some parts of the surface were older and marked with craters, but the rest had clearly been resurfaced. It was clear evidence that Enceladus was geologically active. The moon is also close to Saturn’s E-ring, and scientists … Continue reading “The Interior of Enceladus Looks Really Great for Supporting Life” The post The Interior of Enceladus Looks Really Great for Supporting Life appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Chang’e-5 Brought Home 1.7 Kilograms of Lunar Samples China’s Chang’e-5 lunar lander retrieved about 1.7 kilograms (3.81 pounds) of samples from the Moon, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The Chang’e-5 sample return capsule landed in China’s Inner Mongolia region on December 16, 2020, successfully capping a 23-day odyssey that brought back the first lunar rocks since 1976. CNSA handed over … Continue reading “Chang’e-5 Brought Home 1.7 Kilograms of Lunar Samples” The post Chang’e-5 Brought Home 1.7 Kilograms of Lunar Samples appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Astronomers Discover Hundreds of High-Velocity Stars, Many on Their Way Out of the Milky Way Combining data from two of the largest databases in the world, an international team of astronomers was able to doubledthe number of known high-velocity stars The post Astronomers Discover Hundreds of High-Velocity Stars, Many on Their Way Out of the Milky Way appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Astronomers Improve Their Distance Scale for the Universe. Unfortunately, it Doesn’t Resolve the Crisis in Cosmology Astronomers have made the cosmic distant ladder more accurate, but that has only made the mystery of cosmic expansion even worse. The post Astronomers Improve Their Distance Scale for the Universe. Unfortunately, it Doesn’t Resolve the Crisis in Cosmology appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
The Personnel of Space Force Will be Called Guardians According to VP Mike Pence, personnel serving in the U.S. Space Force will henceforth be known as “Guardians”! The post The Personnel of Space Force Will be Called Guardians appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Some of Hayabusa2’s Samples are as Big as a Centimeter A fireball hurtled across the sky on December 5th – the sample return capsule from the Hayabusa2 asteroid mission by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency). The capsule landed in Woomera, a remote location in the Australian Outback. Earlier this month, the capsule’s sample containers revealed fine grain topsoil from asteroid 162173 Ryugu. A second sample … Continue reading “Some of Hayabusa2’s Samples are as Big as a Centimeter” The post Some of Hayabusa2’s Samples are as Big as a Centimeter appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Plans for a Mars Sample Return Mission Have Moved to the Next Stage The Mars Sample Return (MSR) program, a joint effort between NASA and the ESA to bring samples of Mars back to Earth, just moved into the next phase of development! The post Plans for a Mars Sample Return Mission Have Moved to the Next Stage appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Layers Upon Layers of Rock in Candor Chasma on Mars In many ways, Mars is the planet that is most similar to the Earth. The red world has polar ice caps, a nearly 24-hour rotation period (about 24 hours and 37 minutes), mountains, plains, dust storms, volcanoes, a population of robots, many of which are old and no longer work, and even a Grand Canyon … Continue reading “Layers Upon Layers of Rock in Candor Chasma on Mars” The post Layers Upon Layers of Rock in Candor Chasma on Mars appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Planetary Scientists Have Created a Map of Mars’ Entire Ancient River Systems Navigating and mapping rivers has long been a central component in human exploration. Whether it was Powell exploring the Colorado’s canyons or Pizarro using the Amazon to try to find El Dorado, rivers, and our exploration of them, have been extremely important. Now, scientists have mapped out an entirely new, unique river basin. This one … Continue reading “Planetary Scientists Have Created a Map of Mars’ Entire Ancient River Systems” The post Planetary Scientists Have Created a Map of Mars’ Entire Ancient River Systems appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go toRead More →
A Steampunk Engine to Solve Your Satellite Woes! NASA contractor Howe Industries just presented their design for a “steampunk” engine that could allow satellites to maneuver, without the need for toxic propellants or heavy engines. The post A Steampunk Engine to Solve Your Satellite Woes! appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
Hubble Releases a New Image of Neptune, Revealing a Rapidly Shifting Storm Storms on Neptune seem to follow a pattern of forming, strengthening and then dissipating over the course of about two Earth years. But a Neptunian storm spotted in the planet’s atmosphere over two years ago has done something quite different: it has reversed course and is still going strong. The storm, which is wider than … Continue reading “Hubble Releases a New Image of Neptune, Revealing a Rapidly Shifting Storm” The post Hubble Releases a New Image of Neptune, Revealing a Rapidly Shifting Storm appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go toRead More →
Astronomers Capture a Direct Image of a Brown Dwarf The field of exoplanet photography is just getting underway, with astronomers around the world striving to capture clear images of the more than 4000 exoplanets discovered to date. Some of these exoplanets are more interesting to image and research than others. That is certainly the case for a type of exoplanet called a brown dwarf. … Continue reading “Astronomers Capture a Direct Image of a Brown Dwarf” The post Astronomers Capture a Direct Image of a Brown Dwarf appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →
