space NASA Rethinks Mars Sample Return Strategy and Seeks Cost-Effective Alternatives The space agency announced this significant shift at a briefing, revealing the program's expense could reach as high as $11 billion, far exceeding the early estimates of $2.5 to $3 billion.
space NASA Restores Communication with Voyager 1 After Months of Silence NASA confirmed that the reprogramming had been successful. Voyager 1 began sending back clear and usable data about its status, marking the first time in months that the team had a clear understanding of the spacecraft's health.
space NASA's Asteroid Test Could Lead to Future Collisions with Mars The DART mission, originally intended to alter the orbit of the asteroid Dimorphos as a test for planetary defense, successfully modified its trajectory but also dislodged several large boulders.
space Hubble Space Telescope Marks Its 34th Anniversary with a Stunning Image of Little Dumbbell Nebula The Little Dumbbell Nebula, a planetary nebula formed from the remnants of a dying star, appears in the image as a vibrant cloud of glowing gas, shaped like two interconnected translucent bubbles.
space NASA’s Dragonfly Mission Set for 2028 Launch to Explore Saturn's Moon Titan Despite budgetary constraints and the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the space agency is pressing forward with plans to send the rotorcraft to explore Titan’s complex, organic-rich environment.
space Pluto's Famous Heart Feature Formed by Celestial Collision, Study Reveals Pluto's heart, distinguished by its bright, nitrogen-ice covered surface, first captured public and scientific interest when NASA's New Horizons spacecraft sent back detailed images in 2015.
space NASA and Japan Join Forces to Develop Advanced Lunar Rover for Artemis Missions This cutting-edge rover, designed by JAXA, will be a fully pressurized vehicle allowing astronauts to live and travel across the lunar surface for up to 30 days.
space Unprecedented Mars Rock Sample Could Hold Clues to Ancient Life This find, known as sample 24, was retrieved from a unique outcrop that stood out to scientists due to its unusual composition and structure, suggesting a long history submerged in water, possibly part of an ancient Martian lake.
space NASA to Develop Coordinated Lunar Time by 2026 Under New U.S. Directive This initiative, driven by the need for precise coordination during increasing lunar explorations, aims to introduce Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC), which will serve as a reference for activities and missions on the Moon.
space NASA Picks Three Companies to Develop Moon Rovers for Its Artemis Missions The chosen companies are tasked with creating vehicles that will enable astronauts to traverse the moon's rugged southern polar region, an area of particular scientific interest due to its potential water ice reserves.
space NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Captures Images of Korean Satellite Danuri The resulting images show Danuri appearing as a silver streak due to the short exposure time of the camera and the high relative velocities, making precise photography a challenge.
space NASA's Europa Clipper to Carry Humanity's Message to Jupiter's Moon This initiative seeks traces of extraterrestrial life on Europa, an icy moon believed to harbor a vast ocean beneath its crust, presenting conditions potentially suitable for life.
space NASA Satellite Captures Unusual Hole-Punch Clouds Off Florida's Coast While these cavum clouds may occasionally appear ominous or even otherworldly, especially when viewed from certain angles, they are a natural occurrence resulting from human activity.
space NASA's Juno Spacecraft Reveals the Daily Oxygen Production of Jupiter's Europa This process might allow oxygen to seep into the underground ocean, combining with volcanic materials to create a "chemical soup" where life could potentially emerge.
space NASA Unveils New Sonifications of Images from Its Chandra X-ray Observatory The spiral galaxy M74, akin to our Milky Way, and the Jellyfish Nebula, bring the beauty of the universe to our ears through a combination of data from Chandra, James Webb, Hubble, and other telescopes.
space NASA Seeks New Astronauts for Future Moon and Mars Missions The training for the selected candidates will cover basic astronaut skills such as robotics, spacewalking, spacecraft operations, and teamwork. Beyond their space missions, astronauts are expected to engage in NASA events.
space Odysseus Lunar Module Signs Off with a Farewell Snapshot from the Moon The snapshot, showcasing Earth's tiny crescent against the lunar horizon, symbolizes the fragile yet profound connection between our world and the vast universe.
space Moon Mission Odysseus Ends Prematurely Due to Human Error The mission, intended to explore the lunar surface near the Malapert-A crater in the southern polar region, encountered critical issues upon touchdown, resulting in the spacecraft tilting sideways and disrupting its operations.
space Japan Plans to Launch World’s First Wooden Satellite to Combat Space Pollution As the world grapples with the challenges of space pollution, innovative initiatives like LignoSat offer hope for a cleaner and more sustainable future in space exploration.
space NASA Captures Image of Intense Solar Flare While this particular flare may not have immediate consequences for Earth (the associated solar storm has already passed), its occurrence underscores the Sun's increasing activity as it approaches the peak of its 11-year cycle.
space NASA's Perseverance Rover Captures Solar Eclipse on Mars Unlike the total eclipse on Earth, Phobos' small size meant that it only partially obscured the sun's disk, creating a mesmerizing spectacle for the Martian rover to witness.
space Private Spacecraft Odysseus Successfully Lands on Moon, Marking Historic Achievement Developed by Intuitive Machines, a Houston-based company, Odysseus touched down near the moon's south pole, marking a significant milestone in lunar exploration.
space Astronomers Discover Ultra-Short-Period Super-Earth Wolf 327 b Wolf 327 b, located approximately 93 light-years away, orbits a red dwarf star known as Wolf 327. Its remarkable features include a radius 1.24 times that of Earth's and a mass 2.53 times greater.
space SpaceX Successfully Launches Falcon 9 Rocket Carrying Private Lander to the Moon The rocket, launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, embarked on its journey with the primary objective of delivering the Intuitive Machines' Nova-C lander, marking a significant milestone in space exploration.
space Asteroid Bennu's Samples Suggest its Ancient Oceanic Origins The samples from Bennu, containing a significant amount of water trapped in minerals, along with rich deposits of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphorus, have astounded scientists.