Space Exploration

It stands to reason that if there are exoplanets orbiting stars in our own galaxy, then there would also be exoplanets in other galaxies. However, other galaxies are too far away to detect exoplanets by any of the means we currently have. Now researchers from the University of Oklahoma claim …

The Falcon Heavy hype has been building for years, reaching all the way back to CEO Elon Musk’s announcement of the rocket in 2011. After years of development and a few last minute delays, the Falcon Heavy is operational. SpaceX successfully launched the rocket from Cape Canaveral today, Feb. 6, …

A new panoramic image from Curiosity provides a sweeping vista of the interior and rim of Gale Crater, including much of the rover’s route during its first five-and-a-half years on Mars and features up to about 50 miles (85 km) away. Wide-angle panorama from ridge in Mars’ Gale Crater. Image …

NASA’s Juno probe spent years en route to the gas giant, and the main observation phase hasn’t gone completely smoothly. The probe is in a longer orbit of Jupiter, meaning it makes a close approach of the planet only once every 53 days. Still, the images we’re getting are really …

Each presidential administration works to put its own stamp on America’s space program. In the Trump administration’s case, that reportedly involves cutting back on funds for the International Space Station and diverting them into funds for lunar exploration. The proposal isn’t entirely a surprise; Vice President Pence announced the Trump …

Martian dust storms play a role in the ongoing process of gas escaping from the top of the planet’s atmosphere, according to a new study using observations by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). Two 2001 images from the Mars Orbiter Camera on NASA’s Mars Global Surveyor show a dramatic change …

There was some concern over the weekend that SpaceX would need to postpone its Falcon Heavy test program because of the US government shutdown, but the company got back on track very quickly after the budget impasse was (temporarily) solved early this week. SpaceX has successfully test fired the Falcon …

Google partnered with the XPRIZE Foundation years ago to encourage innovative companies to shoot for the moon — literally. The Google Lunar XPRIZE offered $30 million in prizes to get private remote vehicles on the moon, but there were more bumps in the road than anyone expected. It started to …

SpaceX has been on the verge of test-firing its long-awaited Falcon Heavy rocket for weeks, but there’s a new kink in its plans. No, it’s not a mechanical issue with the rocket. It’s the intractable bureaucracy of the US government. After previously suggesting a government shutdown would not delay the …

An intermediate-sized asteroid discovered sixteen years ago will fly safely past Earth on February 4, 2018 at 4:30 p.m. EST (1:30 p.m. PST, 21:30 UTC). This is an artist’s impression of an asteroid. Image credit: Mark A. Garlick, Space-art.co.uk / University of Warwick / University of Cambridge. The asteroid, known …