SPACE

Fire Starter—ESA’s Planck Satellite Reveals Later Star Formations

SPACE Looking to gather a clearer view of the history of our Universe, researchers with the ESA’s Planck satellite constructed a new image of the entire sky, utilizing Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) fossil light originating only 380,000 years after the creation of the Universe. The new sky map uncovers the polarized light from the Universe’s early formation, and reveals that the first stars may have originated far later than researchers once thought.

Three Moons Cast Shadow on Striped Gas Giant—Jupiter

Though researchers have studied the four natural satellites orbiting around Jupiter, a new set of images courtesy of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope reveals a rare new view of three of the moons in action. In a rare, and short-lived event, three of the moons moved across the striped face of the gas giant, casting shadows on the planet below.

The Month of Love—When the Stars & Planets Align

As the month of love kicks off, with Valentine’s Day only a few days away, gentlemen out there are looking for the perfect gift. Money not being an object, diamond and floral sales skyrocket in February, but even in spite of the size of their trust funds, no man is able to buy a perfect night sky. Fortunately for them, however, February will be a skywatcher’s dream even without any meteor showers on the near horizon.

When Red Dust Settles, Only ‘Black Beauty’ Remains

While many may be familiar with Mars’ dusty red surface from the glow it gives, or even the dust-covered mountains traversed by Mars rovers in the past, a new study of a meteorite found in the Moroccan desert has researchers believing that a far different image of the planet lies just below the thin red dust.

SMAP Launch Promises New View of Earth’s Soil—From Space

As climate change issues intensify, and many countries face continuing droughts, NASA’s newest mission plans to offer a bit of assistance in confronting a drying Earth. Sent into orbit just this morning, Saturday Jan. 31 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission plans to give researchers and farmers vital information about the moisture of any given soil on the face of the Earth.

NASA Climate Research Satellite Launch Postponed Due to Fast Winds

Fast winds over California postponed a NASA satellite launch today, but researchers with the space agency say that the mission is far from over. Set to launch this morning, Jan. 29, the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) spacecraft developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory may have had a setback but it still has plans to map the world in a way researchers have never done before.

Opportunity Rover Celebrates 11 Years on Mars

NASA's Opportunity Mars Rover is celebrating a new milestone of eleven years on the Red Planet. But in spite of its fortitude, the rover which is only about the size of a riding lawn mower, was originally only designed to explore the Martian surface for about 90 days, along with her twin rover, Spirit.

SMAP Craft Set to Move to Launch Pad

NASA has moved the Soil Moisture Active Passive spacecraft to the launch pad in preparation for a January 29 launch, in its first ever attempt to take scientific measurements of the Earth on a global scale.

Researchers Discover Dimming Switch on a Quasar

Scientists have long believed that at the center of quasars are massively powerful black holes. However, a new study from Yale University researchers indicates the exact opposite may be true. Researchers at Yale found that one particular quasar is actually dimming, and astronomers think it could be because of a black hole on a diet.

Evidence of Water Flows Found on Vesta

NASA has revealed that new data from the Dawn spacecraft indicates that there may have once been short-lived water flows on the second largest body in the asteroid belt, known to us as Vesta.

Bat-Like Bot May Soon Fly Its Way Into Space—The New Drone Frontier

The future of transformer-like technology is here, with a new bat-like robot that can crawl around on all fours, as well as fly away. The DALER, otherwise known as the Deployable Air-Land Exploration Robot, is officially here, and it shares a stunning resemblance to its inspiration—the vampire bat.

NASA Scientists Mystified by White Spot on Ceres

NASA's Dawn spacecraft continues its approach to the dwarf planet Ceres for its planned mission. During this approach it has already snapped several images of this small planet located in the asteroid belt. And what these pictures have revealed has mystified scientists at NASA for weeks.

Could the Skies of Mars One Day Be Filled with Drones

The skies of Mars could be teaming with drones one day if NASA's new project manages to make it to the red planet. The proposed Mars Helicopter is currently being developed to help researchers cover more ground with their rovers, and one day it could even help them discover more unique and interesting aspects of Mars that they would have simply missed without it.

So Long Lovejoy, See You in 8,000 Years

After putting on quite a show in the night sky that delighted astronomers of all ages across the world, it is finally time to bid farewell to the comet Lovejoy. This past Saturday night was the last time that sky-watching enthusiasts had the opportunity to witness Comet Lovejoy with the naked eye, and there won't be another chance to catch this unique comet for the next 8,000 years.
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