Latest science news in Astronomy & Space

Rocket Lab successfully launches 2 NASA weather-tracking satellites

2 years ago from UPI

Rocket Lab successfully launched a second batch of NASA weather-tracking satellites into space from New Zealand late Thursday after the mission had suffered repeated weather delays earlier in the week.

Milky Way's cosmic neighbors help bring ancient galaxies into focus

2 years ago from Space.com

Astronomers are snooping on the Milky Way's galactic neighbors to gain insights about the ancient galaxies being viewed by the James Webb Space Telescope.

Bird brains can flick switch to perceive Earth's magnetic field  

2 years ago from Physorg

Earth's magnetic field, generated by the flow of molten iron in the planet's inner core, extends out into space and protects us from cosmic radiation emitted by the sun. It...

Watch: Kyle Gallner, Holland Roden haunted in 'Mother May I?'

2 years ago from UPI

Dark Sky Films released the trailer for the horror movie "Mother May I?" Thursday. The film starring Kyle Gallner and Holland Roden is in theaters and VOD July 21.

A rare type of black hole never proven to exist could be orbiting our galaxy right now, Hubble telescope reveals

2 years ago from Live Science

A potential intermediate-mass black hole may be lurking in Messier 4, the nearest globular star cluster to Earth, new Hubble data reveals.

Today is Towel Day! Salute the legacy of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' author Douglas Adams

2 years ago from Space.com

Towel Day is dedicated to "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" author Douglas Adams

New supernova thrills astronomers and skywatchers around the world (photos)

2 years ago from Space.com

A star explosion in deep space is visible in amateur telescopes, although folks have had to battle low lighting conditions, haze and the occasional satellite trail to see it in...

Virgin Galactic aces final test spaceflight, eyes start of commercial service in June

2 years ago from Space.com

Virgin Galactic aced its fifth test flight to suborbital space this morning (May 25), keeping the company on track to start commercial operations next month.

New methods will allow for better tests of Einstein's general theory of relativity using LIGO data

2 years ago from Physorg

Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity describes how the fabric of space and time, or spacetime, is curved in response to mass. Our sun, for example, warps space around us...

Virgin Galactic resumes spaceflights after two year pause

2 years ago from Physorg

Virgin Galactic successfully carried out its first spaceflight in nearly two years Thursday, the company said, after an "enhancement period" to make safety upgrades to its fleet.

Project helps to improve forensic shoeprint scanning accuracy

2 years ago from Physorg

Research involving the University of Huddersfield is helping to improve accuracy in the field of forensic comparison.

Raging 'polar vortex' discovered over Uranus' north pole for 1st time

2 years ago from Live Science

A polar cyclone is swirling on Uranus, further showing that the planet's atmosphere is a hive of hidden activity.

New research offers insight into fast radio bursts

2 years ago from Physorg

Researchers using a telescope owned and operated by CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, have detected a "fast radio burst" in a nearby galaxy that questions what we know about how...

Strange star system may hold first evidence of an ultra-rare 'dark matter star'

2 years ago from Space.com

In a distant star system, a sunlike star orbits an invisible object that may be the first example of a 'boson star' made of dark matter, new research suggests.

Gravitational wave lab LIGO roars back online to detect the oldest black hole collisions ever seen

2 years ago from Live Science

LIGO has been upgraded to observe gigantic black hole mergers 5 billion light-years away.

Astronomers discover a key planetary system for understanding formation mechanism of mysterious 'super-Earths'

2 years ago from Physorg

A study led by researchers of the University of Liège and the CSIC—using observations from NASA's TESS telescope—presents the detection of a system of two planets slightly larger than Earth...

The soot line: A new way to expand the search for habitable planets

2 years ago from Physorg

A University of Michigan astronomer and his team are suggesting a new way to expand the search for habitable planets that takes into account a zone not previously considered: the...

Meteorites and volcanoes may have helped jump-start life on Earth

2 years ago from Space.com

Iron particles from meteorites and volcanoes could have catalyzed chemical reactions to form some of the organic compounds essential for life.

Helium nuclei research advances our understanding of cosmic ray origin and propagation

2 years ago from Physorg

Much of our understanding of the universe and its mysterious phenomena is based on theoretical interpretations. In order to deepen the understanding of distant objects and energetic phenomena, astronomers are...

Picking up lightsabres for Mars

2 years ago from European Space Agency

Video: 00:02:10 Detect, fetch and collect. A seemingly easy task is being tested to find the best strategy to collect samples on the martian surface, some 290 000 million km away from...

'Barbie' soundtrack to feature Dua Lipa, Karol G, Lizzo

2 years ago from UPI

"Barbie the Album," a soundtrack to the "Barbie" movie starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, will feature Dua Lipa, Ice Spice, Karol G, Lizzo, Nicki Minaj and other artists.

Meteoritic and volcanic particles may have promoted origin of life reactions

2 years ago from Physorg

Precursors of the molecules needed for the origin of life may have been generated by chemical reactions promoted by iron-rich particles from meteors or volcanic eruptions on Earth approximately 4.4...

A role for meteoritic iron in the emergence of life on Earth

2 years ago from Physorg

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy and Ludwig Maximilians University Munich have proposed a new scenario for the emergence of the first building blocks for life on Earth,...

Why does Jupiter change its stripes? Scientists may finally have the answer

2 years ago from Space.com

Using data from NASA's Juno spacecraft, an international team has correlated the variations in Jupiter's bands to changes in the planet's magnetic field.

New 'super-Neptune' exoplanet discovered with TESS

2 years ago from Physorg

Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered a new hot, bloated "super-Neptune" exoplanet. The newfound alien world, designated TOI-2498 b, is about six...

Virgin Galactic's Unity 25 spaceflight in photos (gallery)

2 years ago from Space.com

Virgin Galactic's Unity 25 spaceflight will see eight crew members work to bring the company back to space. See the flight and training in photos.

Picking up lightsabers for Mars

2 years ago from European Space Agency

Video: 00:02:10 Detect, fetch and collect. A seemingly easy task is being tested to find the best strategy to collect samples on the martian surface, some 290 000 km away from home.Testing technologies...

Rare green fireball explodes over Australia, creating bright flash visible for hundreds of miles

2 years ago from Space.com

An unusual green meteor recently exploded as it plummeted through the sky over Australia, giving off a brilliant flash of light that could be seen for miles.