Methane Based Life Could Exist on Saturn’s Moon, Titan

Medicine & Technology Feb 28, 2015

In a new study published this week by researchers from Cornell University, the team of researchers has modeled a new methane-based life form that can metabolize and reproduce, similar to the oxygen-based life forms here on Earth. And more than that, the researchers say that these life forms could flourish in the harsh, cold environment of Saturn's moon, Titan. Titan's surface is filled with seas of liquid methane that researchers believe could harbor these methane-based cells.

Thanks To Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter NASA Reveals What Lies on the Dark Side of the Moon

Feb 09, 2015

Ever wonder what lies on the dark side of the moon? It’s a perspective unlike any that humans have ever seen, and it has been a question that researchers and civilizations have asked for thousands of years. But now, thanks to data collected by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, NASA is showing us exactly what lies on the dark side of the moon, and the view of our solar system whirling around it.

When Red Dust Settles, Only ‘Black Beauty’ Remains

Feb 02, 2015

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.

NASA Climate Research Satellite Launch Postponed Due to Fast Winds

Jan 29, 2015

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.

Massive Asteroid Doing a Flyby of Earth

Jan 25, 2015

An asteroid measuring approximately 1,800 feet across will fly pass the Earth on Monday, according to scientists from NASA.

Doomsday Clock Moves Even Closer to Midnight

Jan 23, 2015

The world could be closer to coming to an end, if you believe the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists who moved the clock two minutes closer to midnight. The clock now sits at three minutes to midnight making this the closest it has been to midnight since 1984 during the height of the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

NASA Researchers Bring Exoplanets to Life in Kepler Style

Jan 13, 2015

How many planets like our Earth are out there in space? Well, while the possibilities are endless, and with the vast expanses of the universe the search may be endless. But thanks to NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope, researchers have to date discovered 1,000 Earth-like exoplanets that seem to fit the bill. And in celebration of the record-breaking discovery, researchers at NASA are giving the public a view of what life on these exoplanets inhabited by humans might just look like—with a vintage feel.

Alien Earth with Red Sun Discovered Close to Home

Jan 07, 2015

Scientists have discovered eight more exoplanets with two planets located as little as 470 light years away that could, in fact, be much like Earth as we know it.

In Search of Life, Researchers Find Perfect Recipe for Earth-like Planets

Jan 07, 2015

It's been twenty years since the first exoplanet discovery, and now scientists are beginning to look at what these planets may be made of in the search for life outside of our solar system.

NASA To Launch Satellite to Analyze Moisture Content of Earth

Jan 05, 2015

Farmers and scientists will soon be able to analyze the moisture content of the entire Earth thanks to the SMAP, a new satellite set to blast into orbit at the end of this month.

SpaceX’s Reusable Rocket Could Turn the Tide of Space Missions in 2015

Jan 01, 2015

Ever wonder why they call space the “final frontier”? Well it isn’t because it’s the last place for us to explore or expand. As it so happens, space is often thought of as the final frontier because most of what leaves our Earth in search of exploration never comes back. In fact, it’s the reason why Mars One’s newest plans for colonization on Mars is only planning one-way trips. But what if we could reuse rockets and reclaim the several-million-dollar investments that our space agencies, and our tax dollars, invest each and every year? Perhaps we’d be able to go in search of far more things. And that’s what private-sector rocket company SpaceX hopes to achieve.

Saturn’s Titan Was Likely Sculpted by Rogue Winds Gusting on the Moon

Dec 11, 2014

While researchers have long known of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, and its sandy surface, new research presented this week in two separate studies published in the journal Nature reveals that the 300 foot sand dunes on the moon’s surface may have originated from very different circumstances than those on Earth. Titan, which is much like the Earth, is one of the most intriguing moons our solar system has come to offer. But while it is the only other celestial body that has standing reservoirs of liquid on its surface and fields of dunes like those of the Sahara desert, astronomers are now finding that the events leading to Titan’s surface are far unlike what happened here on Earth.

Earth’s Warm Streak Could Peak in a Decade, If Policymakers Don’t Change

Dec 02, 2014

Speed up the models and cut down on your carbon footprints, because a bit of change today could spell better weather and a better Earth only a decade away. While climatologists and researchers across all of science have in recent years discussed the long-term goals of climate change and the effects of carbon emissions, a new study published today, Dec. 2, in the journal Environmental Research Letters reveals that reductions in carbon emissions today will help shape the planet’s atmosphere in as little as 10 years, versus the 30 to 50 year models used by researchers and policymakers until now.

New Astronauts Bring Taste of Italy to ISS—ISSpresso An Instant Hit

Nov 25, 2014

Late Sunday morning, Nov. 23, three new replacements for Expedition 42 boarded the International Space Station, bringing the orbiting space lab’s population back to full strength. But, aside from bringing some fresh blood to the research conducted on the orbiting spacecraft, and new perspectives for how life in space should be conducted on the space station, the three new astronauts brought a bit of home back with them. And it’s Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti’s 44-pound carry-on that has the International Space Station salivating at the taste of Italy she brought aboard.

Lunar Mission To Take Remnants of Earth’s Culture to Space

Nov 22, 2014

For centuries now, since the dawn of man, early scientists have sought out remnants of space rock and interstellar interactions here on Earth. Legends of moon stones and pieces of stars have abounded in nearly every culture, but now that astronomers have the technology to leave their own mark on distant planets and satellites, one company is looking to leave a piece of Earth on our very own moon. If all goes according to plan, and the company can be funded by interested parties, a decade from now a spacecraft from the Lunar Mission One will land on the South Pole/Aitken Basin of the moon and create a new history for mankind.