Space Probes News

September 29, 2023

Top Headlines

Carbon Source Found on Surface of Jupiter's Moon Europa

Sep. 22, 2023 — Astronomers using data from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have identified carbon dioxide in a specific region on the icy surface of ...

New Findings Suggest Moon May Have Less Water Than Previously Thought

Sep. 18, 2023 — A team recently calculated that most of the Moon's permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) are at most around 3.4 billion years old and can contain relatively young deposits of water ice. Water resources are considered key for sustainable exploration of ...

Electrons from Earth May Be Forming Water on the Moon

Sep. 14, 2023 — Planetary scientists have discovered that high energy electrons in Earth's plasma sheet are contributing to weathering processes on the Moon's surface and, importantly, the electrons may have aided the formation of water on the lunar ...

How Being in Space Impairs Astronauts' Immune System

Aug. 25, 2023 — A new study has examined how T cells of the immune system are affected by weightlessness. The results could explain why astronauts' T cells become less active and less effective at fighting ...

Latest Headlines

updated 10:35am EDT

Hundred-Year Storms? That's How Long They Last on Saturn

Aug. 11, 2023 — Megastorms regularly appear on Saturn, marring the relatively bland surface before disappearing. But radio observations show that the storms have long-lasting effects deeper in the atmosphere, in ...

After Seventeen Years, a Spacecraft Makes Its First Visit Home

Aug. 10, 2023 — On Aug. 12, 2023, NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft will pass between the Sun and Earth, marking the first Earth flyby of the nearly 17-year-old mission. The visit home brings a special chance for the ...

In New Space Race, Scientists Propose Geoarchaeology Can Aid in Preserving Space Heritage

July 21, 2023 — The material record that currently exists on the moon is rapidly becoming at risk of being destroyed if proper attention isn't paid during the new ...

Giant Swirling Waves at Edge of Jupiter's Magnetosphere

July 17, 2023 — A team has found that NASA's Juno spacecraft orbiting Jupiter frequently encounters giant swirling waves at the boundary between the solar wind and Jupiter's magnetosphere. The waves are an important ...

New Radar Technique Lets Scientists Probe Invisible Ice Sheet Region on Earth and Icy Worlds

July 12, 2023 — A new radar technique developed by a graduate student allows imaging of the upper few feet of ice sheets on Earth and icy worlds. The technique uses ...

New Image from James Webb Space Telescope Reveals Astonishing Saturn and Its Rings

July 1, 2023 — Saturn's iconic rings seem to glow eerily in this incredible infrared picture, which also unveils unexpected features in Saturn's atmosphere. This ...

Researchers Demystify the Unusual Origin of the Geminids Meteor Shower

June 15, 2023 — Princeton researchers used observations from NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission to deduce that it was likely a violent, catastrophic event -- such as a high-speed collision with another body or a ...

Long Missions, Frequent Travel Take a Toll on Astronauts' Brains

June 8, 2023 — A study looking at how the human brain reacts to traveling outside Earth's gravity suggests frequent flyers should wait three years after longer missions to allow the physiological changes in their ...

Key Building Block for Life Found at Saturn's Moon Enceladus

June 14, 2023 — The search for extraterrestrial life in our solar system just got more exciting. A team of scientists has discovered new evidence that the subsurface ocean of Saturn's moon Enceladus contains a key ...

Using Photosynthesis for Martian Occupation -- While Making Space Travel More Sustainable

June 9, 2023 — Researchers are working on sustainable technology to harvest solar power in space -- which could supplement life support systems on the Moon and ...

Earlier Headlines

Summaries
Headlines

Towering Plume of Water Escaping from Saturn Moon

May 30, 2023 — Scientists have observed a towering plume of water vapor more than 6,000 miles long -- roughly the distance from the U.S. to Japan -- spewing from the surface of Saturn's moon, ...

Astronomers Discover Last Three Planets Kepler Telescope Observed Before Going Dark

May 30, 2023 — With the help of citizen scientists, astronomers discovered what may be the last three planets that the Kepler Space Telescope saw before it was ...

A Deep Underground Lab Could Hold Key to Habitability on Mars

May 23, 2023 — Tunnels deep underground in North Yorkshire are providing a unique opportunity to study how humans might be able to live and operate on the Moon or on ...

NASA's Spitzer, TESS Find Potentially Volcano-Covered Earth-Size World

May 17, 2023 — Astronomers have discovered an Earth-size exoplanet, or world beyond our solar system, that may be carpeted with volcanoes. Called LP 791-18 d, the planet could undergo volcanic outbursts as often as ...

New Study Puts a Definitive Age on Saturn's Rings -- They're Really Young

May 12, 2023 — Physicists measured the flux of interplanetary dust around Saturn. The researchers concluded that the planet's rings formed less than 400 million years ago, making them much younger than Saturn ...

Asteroid's Comet-Like Tail Is Not Made of Dust, Solar Observatories Reveal

Apr. 25, 2023 — We have known for a while that asteroid 3200 Phaethon acts like a comet. It brightens and forms a tail when it's near the Sun, and it is the source of the annual Geminid meteor shower, even ...

How to Land on a Planet Safely

Apr. 25, 2023 — Researchers develop a model to describe the interaction between a rocket plume and the surface of a planetary body in near-vacuum conditions. The computational framework takes in information about ...

Pioneering Research Sheds New Light on the Origins and Composition of Planet Mars

Apr. 24, 2023 — A new study has uncovered intriguing insights into the liquid core at the centre of Mars, furthering understanding of the planet's formation and ...

Humans Need Earth-Like Ecosystem for Deep-Space Living

Apr. 12, 2023 — Can humans endure long-term living in deep space? The answer is a lukewarm maybe, according to a new theory describing the complexity of maintaining gravity and oxygen, obtaining water, developing ...

Ultra-Lightweight Multifunctional Space Skin Created to Withstand Extreme Conditions in Space

Mar. 21, 2023 — A new nano-barrier coating could help protect ultra-lightweight carbon composite materials from extreme conditions in space, according to a new ...

Uracil Found in Ryugu Samples

Mar. 21, 2023 — Samples from the asteroid Ryugu collected by the Hayabusa2 mission contain nitrogenous organic compounds, including the nucleobase uracil, which is a part of ...

The Planet That Could End Life on Earth

Mar. 7, 2023 — A terrestrial planet hovering between Mars and Jupiter would be able to push Earth out of the solar system and wipe out life on this planet, according to a recent ...

DART Impact Provided Real-Time Data on Evolution of Asteroid's Debris

Mar. 3, 2023 — When asteroids suffer natural impacts in space, debris flies off from the point of impact. The tail of particles that form can help determine the physical characteristics of the asteroid. NASA's ...

Hansel and Gretel's Breadcrumb Trick Inspires Robotic Exploration of Caves on Mars and Beyond

Mar. 1, 2023 — Future space missions likely will send robots to scout out underground habitats for astronauts. Engineers have now developed a system that would enable autonomous vehicles to explore caves, lava ...

Hubble Captures Movie of DART Asteroid Impact Debris

Mar. 1, 2023 — In 2022 NASA embarked on a bold experiment to see if they could change an asteroid's velocity by smacking it with a ballistic probe -- kind of like hitting it with a hammer. This experiment was ...

New NASA DART Data Prove Viability of Asteroid Deflection as Planetary Defense Strategy

Mar. 1, 2023 — Astronomers offer new insight into how deflection missions can protect the planet from future Earth-bound asteroids and ...

How One of Saturn's Moons Ejects Particles from Oceans Beneath Its Surface

Feb. 23, 2023 — Enceladus, the sixth largest of Saturn's moons, is known for spraying out tiny icy silica particles -- so many of them that the particles are a key component of the second outermost ring around ...

Better Tools Needed to Determine Ancient Life on Mars

Feb. 21, 2023 — Current state-of-the-art instrumentation being sent to Mars to collect and analyze evidence of life might not be sensitive enough to make accurate assessments, according to new ...

Newly Discovered Form of Salty Ice Could Exist on Surface of Extraterrestrial Moons

Feb. 20, 2023 — An international team has found two new crystal structures for salty ice, or solid hydrate made from water and sodium chloride. The newly discovered material's properties match those of the ...

Space Travel Influences the Way the Brain Works

Feb. 17, 2023 — Scientists have found how the human brain changes and adapts to weightlessness, after being in space for 6 months. Some of the changes turned out to be lasting -- even after 8 months back on ...

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