China to double size of space station, touts alternative to NASA-led ISS
Beijing, ChinaReuters China plans to expand its space station to six modules from three in coming years, offering astronauts from other nations an alternative platform for near-Earth missions as the NASA-led International Space Station nears the end of its lifespan. The operational lifetime of the Chinese space station will be more than 15 years, the […]
Russia pinpoints cause of Moon shot failure, looks to bring next missions forward
Moscow, RussiaReuters Russia on Tuesday blamed a malfunction in an on-board control unit for causing its lunar lander to crash into the Moon in August, and said it was looking at speeding up the timetable for two further missions. Russia’s first moon mission for 47 years ended in failure on 19th August with the crash […]
Essay: Space junk in Earth orbit and on the Moon will increase with future missions − but nobody’s in charge of cleaning it up
In an article first published on The Conversation, professor of astronomy CHRIS IMPEY says the problem of space junk is only set to grow…
Essay: Almost half of Moon missions fail. Why is space still so hard?
In an article first published on The Conversation, GAIL ILES looks at the challenges of Moon landings…
Introducing Janus, the exotic “two-faced” white dwarf star
Washington DC, USReuters Some people are two-faced, figuratively speaking of course. The ancient Roman god Janus was two-faced, literally – with one looking forward and another backward, representing transitions and duality. But a two-faced star? Yes, indeed. Scientists have observed a white dwarf star – a hot stellar remnant that is among the densest objects in the […]
New image reveals violent events near a supermassive black hole
Washington DC, US Reuters Expanding upon the historic first images of black holes, scientists on Wednesday unveiled the first picture showing the violent events unfolding around one of these ravenous cosmic behemoths, including the launching point of a colossal jet of high-energy particles shooting outward into space. The new image was obtained using 16 telescopes […]
Essay: Is the US in a space race against China?
SVETLA BEN-ITZHAK, who studies space and international relations at Air University in the US, looks – in an article first published on The Conversation, says that in several key areas, the US is far ahead, not only of China, but of all other spacefaring nations…
NASA formally retires Mars InSight lander after four-year mission
Los Angeles, USReuters NASA has formally retired its Mars InSight lander, the first robotic probe specially designed to study the deep interior of a distant world, four years after it arrived on the surface of the red planet, the US space agency announced on Wednesday. Mission controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory near Los Angeles […]
Essay: Why Artemis may be the last mission for NASA astronauts
In an article first published on The Conversation, MARTIN REES, emeritus professor of cosmology and astrophysics at the University of Cambridge, spells out why Artemis is “ultimately more likely to be a swansong than the launch of a new Apollo era”…
Space politics: NASA game planned contingencies for space station as Russian alliance continued-sources
JOEY ROULETTE, of Reuters, reports on how contingency plans have been drawn up amid escalating tensions between the US and Russia…