Universe Today (Page 409)

We May Soon Be Able To See the First, Supergiant Stars in the Universe We need to talk about the dark ages. No, not those dark ages after the fall of the western Roman Empire. The cosmological dark ages. The time in our universe, billions of years ago, before the formation of the first stars. And we need to talk about the cosmic dawn: the birth of those first stars, … Continue reading “We May Soon Be Able To See the First, Supergiant Stars in the Universe” The post We May Soon Be Able To See the First, Supergiant Stars in the Universe appeared first onRead More →

We Have the Technology. Airplanes Could Spray Particles into the Atmosphere to Battle Climate Change. But Should We? If climate change models are correct, humanity is working itself—and dragging the rest of life on Earth with it—into a corner. Scientific pleas to control emissions and battle climate change are starting to have some effect, but not enough. So now we have some tough decisions looming. If you haven’t heard the terms “solar geoengineering” … Continue reading “We Have the Technology. Airplanes Could Spray Particles into the Atmosphere to Battle Climate Change. But Should We?” The post We Have the Technology. Airplanes Could Spray Particles intoRead More →

One of the Most Exciting Parts of InSight is Actually the Tiny Cubesats Tagging Along for the Ride and Their Role in the Mission A very important, but perhaps overlooked, aspect of the InSight mission was the first-ever deployment of CubeSats (MarCO) to deep space. The post One of the Most Exciting Parts of InSight is Actually the Tiny Cubesats Tagging Along for the Ride and Their Role in the Mission appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Weekly Space Hangout: Nov 28, 2018: David Eicher’s “Mission Moon 3-D” Hosts: Fraser Cain (universetoday.com / @fcain) Dr. Paul M. Sutter (pmsutter.com / @PaulMattSutter) Dr. Kimberly Cartier (KimberlyCartier.org / @AstroKimCartier ) Dr. Morgan Rehnberg (MorganRehnberg.com / @MorganRehnberg & ChartYourWorld.org) This week we are joined by David Eicher, co-author with Dr. Brian May of Mission Moon 3-D: A New Perspective on the Space Race. During David’s appearance, … Continue reading “Weekly Space Hangout: Nov 28, 2018: David Eicher’s “Mission Moon 3-D”” The post Weekly Space Hangout: Nov 28, 2018: David Eicher’s “Mission Moon 3-D” appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Astronomy Cast Ep. 507: From Fiction to Fact : Ion Drive Ion engines are a mainstay of science fiction, featured in both Star Trek and Wars. But this is a very real technology, successfully used on several missions out there in the Solar System right now. How do they work and what are the limits? We usually record Astronomy Cast every Friday at 3:00 pm EST … Continue reading “Astronomy Cast Ep. 507: From Fiction to Fact : Ion Drive” The post Astronomy Cast Ep. 507: From Fiction to Fact : Ion Drive appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Hubble’s First Picture After Returning to Service. The Telescope is Fully Operational Again with Three Working Gyros The Hubble Space Telescope is a hero in the astronomy world. And when it suffered a malfunctioning gyro on October 5th, it took a heroic effort on the part of the Hubble team to get it working again. Now we have Hubble’s first picture after its return to service. Hubble’s first picture after its troubles … Continue reading “Hubble’s First Picture After Returning to Service. The Telescope is Fully Operational Again with Three Working Gyros” The post Hubble’s First Picture After Returning to Service. The Telescope is FullyRead More →

InSight Deploys its Solar Cells, Prepared for Surface Operations on Mars! The InSight Lander, which had touched down on the Martian surface just hours before, has deployed its solar cells and is ready to begin science operations! The post InSight Deploys its Solar Cells, Prepared for Surface Operations on Mars! appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Some of the Stars in this Cluster are Almost as Old as the Universe Itself While Others Formed in a Second Generation. It Looks Young and Old at the Same Time Star clusters are not rare. They’re one of the most common arrangements of stars in the Universe. But star cluster NGC 1866, as seen in this image from Hubble, is different than its brethren. Most clusters are populated by stars the same age, BUT NGC 1866 is like an all-ages club. There are two kinds … Continue reading “Some of the Stars in this Cluster are Almost as Old as the Universe Itself WhileRead More →

InSight Lander Touches Down! Begins Mission to Unlock the Secrets of Mars Earlier today, after a seven month journey through space, NASA’s InSight Lander mission touched down on the Martian surface. The post InSight Lander Touches Down! Begins Mission to Unlock the Secrets of Mars appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Carnival of Space #588 This week’s Carnival of Space is hosted by me at the CosmoQuest blog. Click here to read Carnival of Space #588 And if you’re interested in looking back, here’s an archive to all the past Carnivals of Space. If you’ve got a space-related blog, you should really join the carnival. Just email an entry to susie@wshcrew.space, and … Continue reading “Carnival of Space #588” The post Carnival of Space #588 appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Messier 72 – the NGC 6981 Globular Cluster Welcome back to Messier Monday! Today, we continue in our tribute to our dear friend, Tammy Plotner, by looking at the globular cluster known as Messier 72. During the 18th century, famed French astronomer Charles Messier noticed the presence of several “nebulous objects”  while surveying the night sky. Originally mistaking these objects for comets, he … Continue reading “Messier 72 – the NGC 6981 Globular Cluster” The post Messier 72 – the NGC 6981 Globular Cluster appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

The Earth’s Wandering Poles Could Have Caused the Ice Age A new study by a team of Rice University geophysicists indicates that the Earth’s wandering poles could have triggered the last ice age. The post The Earth’s Wandering Poles Could Have Caused the Ice Age appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Name Change Alert! SpaceX’s BFR is Now Just Called “Starship” In September of 2016, Musk treated the world to an early sneak-peak at his proposed super-heavy launch vehicle. Previously known as the Mars Colonial Transporter, the renamed Interplanetary Transport System (ITS) was the centerpiece to Musk’s long-term vision of conducting commercial trips to orbit, to the Moon, and even to Mars. Since that time, the … Continue reading “Name Change Alert! SpaceX’s BFR is Now Just Called “Starship”” The post Name Change Alert! SpaceX’s BFR is Now Just Called “Starship” appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Europe’s Vision of a Future Moon Base. Made out of Moon Dust. We all know that the time is past due for a Moon base. But the cost of sending everything needed from Earth to build a base is prohibitive. Earth’s gravity well is too deep and too strong to get everything there with rockets. So what’s the solution? According to the ESA, the solution is Additive … Continue reading “Europe’s Vision of a Future Moon Base. Made out of Moon Dust.” The post Europe’s Vision of a Future Moon Base. Made out of Moon Dust. appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go toRead More →

Massive Triple Star System Creates this Bizarre Swirling Pinwheel of Dust. And it Could be the Site of a Gamma Ray Burst An international team of astronomers recently located a triple star system in our galaxy that will someday unleash a massive gamma-ray burst. The post Massive Triple Star System Creates this Bizarre Swirling Pinwheel of Dust. And it Could be the Site of a Gamma Ray Burst appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Lakes on Mars Filled up so Quickly They Would Overflow Catastrophically Carving Canyons Within Weeks According to a new study, ancient lakes on Mars filled up so quickly that they overflowed, carving canyons in the surface that are still visible today. The post Lakes on Mars Filled up so Quickly They Would Overflow Catastrophically Carving Canyons Within Weeks appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

Astronomers Detect Water in the Atmosphere of a Planet 179 Light-Years Away Gathering detailed information on exoplanets is extremely difficult. The light from their host star overwhelms the light from the exoplanet, making it difficult for telescopes to see them. But now a team using cutting-edge technology at the Keck Observatory has taken a big leap in exoplanet observation and has detected water in the atmosphere of … Continue reading “Astronomers Detect Water in the Atmosphere of a Planet 179 Light-Years Away” The post Astronomers Detect Water in the Atmosphere of a Planet 179 Light-Years Away appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go toRead More →

Astronomers Find One of the Sun’s Sibling Stars. Born From the Same Solar Nebula Billion of Years Ago The AMBRE project, an international consortium of astronomers, was able to find a star that formed with our Sun (and is almost identical) about 184 light-years away The post Astronomers Find One of the Sun’s Sibling Stars. Born From the Same Solar Nebula Billion of Years Ago appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

It’s Decided, the Mars 2020 Rover Will Land in Jezero Crater Jezero crater is the landing spot for NASA’s upcoming 2020 rover. The crater is a rich geological site, and the 45 km wide (28 mile) impact crater contains at least five different types of rock that the rover will sample. Some of the landform features in the crater are 3.6 billion years old, making the … Continue reading “It’s Decided, the Mars 2020 Rover Will Land in Jezero Crater” The post It’s Decided, the Mars 2020 Rover Will Land in Jezero Crater appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →

SpaceX to Launch 64 Satellites, Including Orbital Reflector A unique smallsat mission promises to be the latest satellite “brighter than a Full Moon!” in the sky… or not. The Mission: We’re talking about Orbital Reflector, conceived by Trevor Paglen and fielded by the Nevada Museum of Arts. The post SpaceX to Launch 64 Satellites, Including Orbital Reflector appeared first on Universe Today. Universe Today Go to SourceRead More →