ISS astronauts succeed in fixing $2 billion ‘unserviceable’ instrument
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have completed a spacewalk to repair a dark matter detection instrument previously considered unserviceable. NASA's Andrew Morgan and European Space Agency's Luca Parmitano spent 6 hours and 16 minutes performing repairs to the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer.
This planet is so hot it tears apart the hydrogen molecules in its atmosphere
The extreme forces acting on huge planets close to blistering stars lead to unexpected findings, like a planet that is hotter than most stars. The exoplanet KELT-9b, was the target of more research which revealed it is prone to planetwide meltdowns so severe they tear apart the molecules that make up its atmosphere.
Could Enceladus, the icy moon of Saturn, be capable of supporting life?
New research using data from Cassini suggests Enceladus, the moon of Saturn with an ocean hidden beneath a thick layer of ice, could be capable of supporting life. Cracks in the icy surface of the moon let out plumes of gases and sea spray, and data about these plumes can reveal more about the ocean hidden beneath.
This vampire star is feeding on its companion to create a ‘super-outburst’
Astronomers have spotted a vampire star feeding on one of its brethren in a dwarf nova. A nova is marked by the sudden appearance of a bight, seemingly new star, which fades over a period of weeks or months. What is unusual about this particular nova is that the white dwarf is feeding on one of its own, a brown dwarf.
Curiosity rover adjusts its attitude to its Martian surroundings
Like a surly teenager, everyone's favorite Martian explorer, NASA's Curiosity rover, suffered from an attitude problem last week. Attitude refers to a rover's ability to locate itself spatially, and it is essential for the rover to have accurate attitude information to move around and perform operations safely.
NASA’S NESSI instrument can pick out the atmospheres of distant exoplanets
NASA has a new tool to help in the hunt for exoplanets. The New Mexico Exoplanet Spectroscopic Survey Instrument, or NESSI, is an instrument on the Hale Telescope in San Diego which has been in testing since February 2018. Now, it's ready to start investigating the atmospheres of planets outside our solar system.
Celebrating Spitzer: NASA’s infrared telescope retiring after a 16-year mission
This week, NASA is saying goodbye to one of its most storied and productive telescopes: The Spitzer Space Telescope. As this remarkable 16-year mission draws to a close, we look back over its achievements and how its legacy will continue to inform astronomy and space exploration for years to come.
Astronauts discover how to bake the perfect cookie in space
Future astronauts heading to Mars will likely be baking chocolate chip cookies during the trip. The crew aboard the International Space Station recently made some of the cookies in the first-ever space-based baking experiment. The cookies returned to Earth last week and are now being inspected by scientists.
New Apple self-driving car patent could turn Siri into your personal chauffeur
Apple wants to patent a new technology that would allow you to use voice commands to tell your self-driving car where you want to go, with the car doing the navigation, driving, and parking for you. The end result would be a Siri-like system for controlling your self-driving car.
What if your smartphone could sweat? Sounds odd, but it could be a game changer
Do we want smartphones that sweat like nervous teenagers around their crush? Researchers from China's Shanghai Jiao Tong University think so. And they've developed a special sweating sorbent coating to prove why it could turn out to be so useful. (Spoiler: It's for cooling.)
CRISPR gene editing could help stop a common poultry virus in its tracks
Researchers at the Czech Academy of Sciences may have successfully used CRISPR gene editing to create chickens that are resistant to avian leukosis virus (ALV), a common but deadly virus whose symptoms range from emaciation and dehydration to depressed behavior. Here's how they did it.
Seattle’s vote-by-phone system could be a game changer, but only if it’s secure
For the King Conservation District Board of Supervisors, Seattle and other cities will allow residents to vote by phone using technology created by Democracy Live, in a pilot funded by Tusk Philanthropy, that hopes to increase mobile voting. Security issues are obvious, but some say it will increase turnout.
China’s enormous 500-meter radio telescope is up and running
The enormous 500-meter FAST Radio Telescope is the world’s biggest filled-aperture radio telescope, and the overall second-largest single-dish aperture after Russia’s RATAN-600. It is located in Guizhou, Southwest China. The dream of building it dates all the way back to 1994.
Water-powered suction cups let people climb walls like Spider-Man
Researchers in China have built new centrifugal-based, water-powered vacuum suction cups that allow users to climb up walls just like Spider-Man. The technology could help develop the vertical climbing robots and robot gripper arms of the future as well. Here's how it works.
NASA reveals 9 finalists in Mars 2020 rover naming contest. Cast your vote
NASA has revealed the top nine entries in its Mars 2020 rover name contest and you can vote for your favorite. The contest will reveal the winning name in March, with the student who suggested it invited to watch the mission launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in July.
Space Station gets the Lego treatment in wonderfully detailed design
A Lego version of the International Space Station will launch on February 1 priced at $70. The level of detail is impressive, with the entire kit comprising not only the space station, but also a Lego brick-built NASA space shuttle, three mini cargo spacecraft, and two astronaut microfigures.
Boeing says 737 Max will stay grounded until at least mid-2020
Boeing had hoped that its troubled 737 Max aircraft might get permission to fly again this month, but this week the plane-maker said that after considering the FAA’s evaluation process, it’s unlikely to get clearance until mid-2020. The news will come as a serious blow to airlines that use the aircraft.
Another partner backs out of Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency
Yet another partner of Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency known as Libra has backed out of the deal. The British telecommunications operator Vodafone announced its departure from Facebook’s Libra Association on Tuesday. In total, eight companies have now backed out of Libra.
PigeonBot is a drone that flies with feathered wings, just like a real bird
Drones can fly like birds, but that’s pretty much where comparisons with our feathered friends end. Well, unless you build an experimental drone like PigeonBot, the unusual creation developed by researchers at Stanford University. Here's what makes it so interesting.
Watch NASA astronauts spacewalk to replace space station batteries
Two astronauts aboard the International Space Station will shortly begin a spacewalk to perform upgrades, and you can watch the event happen live. Jessica Meir and Christina Koch will be suiting up and heading out of the station to replace batteries as part of a long-term project to update the station's power system.
Watch SpaceX nail in-flight escape test, and lose a rocket in a huge fireball
SpaceX took a big step toward crewed flights on Sunday after performing a successful in-flight abort test of its Crew Dragon capsule. The test showed how the Crew Dragon’s SuperDraco engines would fire the capsule away from the rocket if a serious anomaly should occur shortly after launch.
Kyoto fireball was caused by a chunk falling off potentially hazardous asteroid
On April 29, 2017, something strange appeared over Kyoto, Japan: A bright, slow fireball streaking through the in the sky. At the time, astronomers were baffled as it what it could have been. But now, researchers from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan have figured out what it was and where it came from.
Lexus concepts envision lunar transport in the year 2220
f you've ever found yourself wondering what transport of the future will look like, Lexus has some concept sketches to feed your imagination. Designers were invited to create a lunar mobility concept for everything from personal transportation for traveling across the moon's surface to spacecraft concepts.
The nearest star to our sun, Proxima Centauri, may host a second planet
Astronomers have discovered what appears to be a second exoplanet in orbit around the nearest star to our sun, Proxima Centauri. The planet candidate is called Proxima c, its mass is around half that of Neptune, and it orbits its star at a distance 1.5 times greater than the distance between the Earth and the sun.
See video of Boeing’s Starliner orbital flight test from inside the capsule
Boeing's first Starliner orbital test flight might not have gone as planned, with the craft failing to reach the correct orbit. However, there's still plenty to be learned from the test. Boeing has released a video of highlights of the test, showing the interior of the capsule and the view from the window.
Asteroid discovered orbiting inside Venus for the first time
Most asteroids in our solar system orbit around the sun in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, or in a cluster in the orbit of Jupiter called the Trojans. Plus, there are Near-Earth asteroids that come close to the orbit of Earth. Now, for the first time, an asteroid has been discovered orbiting inside Venus.
Scientists image the progression of a solar flare for the first time
Our sun occasionally flashes brighter than usual in electromagnetic eruptions called solar flares. Now, scientists have released data on the first-ever flare captured moment by moment, pinpointing the exact time and place the flare burst out of the sun's surface with energy equivalent to 1 billion degrees.
Scientists come up with a method to make oxygen from moon dust
The moon is covered in fine dust called regolith which sticks to absolutely everything and causes all sorts of technical problems. But now, the European Space Agency has come up with a plan for the tricky substance: Turning it into oxygen to be used by lunar explorers for breathing and for the production of fuel.
Europe’s ExoMars rover completes environmental tests ahead of launch this year
NASA's Mars 2020 rover isn't the only robotic explorer set to head to the Red Planet this year. It will also be joined by the European Space Agency's Rosalind Franklin rover, as part of the ESA and Roscosmos ExoMars mission. The rover has now completed its final environmental tests before launch in July this year.
Astronomers discover bizarre stretchy objects unlike anything else in our galaxy
Astronomers have discovered a mysterious new class of objects at the heart of the Milky Way which are unlike anything else found in our galaxy. They start off small and compact but are elongated when they approach the supermassive black hole in the center of the galaxy.
SpaceX delays its in-flight abort test until Sunday morning due to rough seas
This weekend, SpaceX is planning a dramatic test of its Crew Dragon capsule, in which it will blow up a Falcon 9 rocket to test the capsule's emergency escape system. The launch will take place from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and you can watch it happen live.
Look, no hands! Airbus nails autonomous takeoff in move toward pilotless jets
Pilotless planes have come a step closer after Airbus recently achieved the first fully automatic vision-based takeoff using image-recognition technology installed directly on the aircraft. Moving forward, the aerospace giant is aiming to test automatic vision-based taxi and landing sequences by the middle of 2020.
AR contact lenses are here to usher in the cyberpunk future of our dreams
Staring at your smartphone is no way to experience augmented reality. Mojo Vision is getting ready to change the AR game with the introduction of new augmented reality contact lenses. Here's what you can expect from them -- and why they're likely to be such a game-changer.
Moon rooms made of mushrooms could be the future of space habitat
Potential future inhabitants of the moon and Mars could live in rooms made of mushrooms. NASA is looking at the possibilities of fungi as a more sustainable option to metal and glass, since it can easily grow around an existing frame. Scientists are also looking into whether these 'shroom rooms could be used on Earth.