Latest science news in Astronomy & Space
Europe's 1st Vega Rocket Will Launch Satellite to Map Space-Time Warp
The Italian satellite will make measurements of a central tenet of Einstein's theory of general relativity.
Russia: Computer Crash Doomed Russian Mars Probe
A programming error caused the crash of the Russian Phobos-Grunt probe, according to an investigation.
Instant ecstasy detector
A probe to reveal the active ingredient in ecstasy tablets for quick detection
Solar particles clues to sun's processes
ROME, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Physicists in Italy detected low-energy neutrinos made by the sun, confirming one of the first possible steps that helps feed the sun's fusion, researchers...
Photo shows lander on Mars from 2004
GREENBELT, Md., Feb. 9 (UPI) -- NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has captured the first color image from orbit of the three-petal lander of NASA's 2004 Rover Spirit mission, scientists...
Sun Flare Jumps 15 Million Degrees - Process Anatomized By NASA Satellite
The Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) studies x-ray emissions from solar eruptions. The red (soft x-rays) and blue (hard x-rays) show the movement of particles during the flare...
NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer in standby mode
NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer, or Galex, was placed in standby mode Feb. 7, 2012 as engineers prepare to end mission operations, nearly nine years after the telescope's launch. The spacecraft...
Europe's ATV space ferry set for launch to Space Station
(PhysOrg.com) -- Fuel, water, oxygen, air and most of the dry cargo have been loaded into ESA's third Automated Transfer Vehicle, Edoardo Amaldi, as the 9 March liftoff approaches.
Distorting the lens
(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the most bizarre predictions of Einstein's Theory of General Relativity is the existence of back holes, objects that are so dense that not even light can...
Spaceborne precipitation radar ships from Japan to U.S.
(PhysOrg.com) -- Japanese scientists and engineers have completed construction on a new instrument designed to take 3-D measurements of the shapes, sizes and other physical characteristics of both raindrops and...
Romanian man charged with hacking NASA computers
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A Romanian man accused of hacking into NASA computers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory near Los Angeles under the online moniker "Iceman" has been indicted on...
New image shows nearby stellar nursery
MUNICH, Germany, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- Secrets of a stellar nursery in the Carina Nebula in our Milky Way have been revealed in a new telescope infrared image, European...
Image: Saturn's rings and Enceladus
(PhysOrg.com) -- A crescent Enceladus appears with Saturns rings in this Cassini spacecraft view of the moon.
Must-See Close Encounters of the Planet Kind Occur This Week
The moon will shine with venus, Saturn and the bright star Spica, while Mars makes a late-night appearance.
NASA Satellites Show How Our Icy World Is Melting
For the first time satellite data provides a comprehensive picture of melting ice.
Solar Telescope Instrument Gets Recycled for New Mission
The Fourier Transform Spectrometer is being shipped to Virginia from Arizona.
Martian meteorite contains pockets of the red planet's atmosphere
The Natural History Museum in London, which has acquired the rare Martian meteorite, plans to unlock its secretsHeralded by sonic booms and a fireball, the paperback-sized lump of Martian rock smashed into the...
How To Land On A Comet
Europe's Rosetta mission ultimate goal is to shadow Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for 2 years and deploy its lander on to the icy nucleus. The science it will send back is set...
Japan Snares First Kavli Institute
The University of Tokyo announced today that the Kavli Foundation is giving $7.5 million...
Satellite telephony is insecure
Satellite telephony was thought to be secure against eavesdropping. Researchers at the Horst Görtz Institute for IT-Security (HGI) at the Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) have cracked the encryption...
A bouncing moon boulder
One solitary boulder on the Moon apparently decided to take a little journey. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera captured the track of a bouncing, rolling 9-meter boulder that used to...
Building mountains in a bottle
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists are preparing to launch a 10-year project to study water resources, gas exchange and carbon cycling in three man-made landscapes built in a half-acre laboratory at the...
Private Rocket Launch Tests Reusable Spaceship Tech, Supersonic Parachute
The STIG A-3 rocket flight was designed to test steerable balloon parachutes and other technologies.
Satellite eye on Earth: January 2012 – in pictures
Freezing seas, flooding lakes and a dramatic photo of London from space were among the images captured by European Space Agency and Nasa satellites last month
Finding lost moon rocks is his mission
After NASA's lunar voyages, the samples were given as goodwill souvenirs to states and nations. Many have gone missing. But an investigator's on their trail.
Japan finds a key to unlock philanthropy
Japan finds a key to unlock philanthropyNature 482, 143 08022012 doi: 10.1038/482143aDavid CyranoskiLatest Kavli centre beats legal hurdle to using endowments.
Record response to call for new astronauts
GREENBELT, Md., Feb. 7 (UPI) -- NASA says it received more than 6,300 applications for a position in the space agency's next class of astronauts, twice as many as...
Fireball Over Texas Caught by Police Car Video Camera
A bright meteor streaked over the sky above western Texas last week.