Space Exploration, features and articles | Educational Science

Oct 29, 2023

Sci-fi inspired tractor beams are real, and could solve a major space junk problem

In science fiction films, nothing raises tension quite like the good guys' spaceship getting caught in an invisible tractor beam that allows the baddies to slowly reel them in. But what was once only a sci-fi staple could soon become a reality. Scientists are developing a real-life tractor beam, dubbed...

Nov 6, 2023

China successfully grows lettuce and tomatoes aboard Tiangong space station

China's Shenzhou 16 astronauts have been growing vegetables aboard the Tiangong space station, as part of plans for future deep space exploration. Mission commander Jing Haipeng and rookie astros Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao have been aboard Tiangong since late May and are due to return to Earth on Oct....

Nov 7, 2023

'The forbidden space meal': What happens if you need to be a cannibal on Mars?

Humans are forever venturing deep into the unknown, pushing the boundaries of our physical limits in pursuit of adventure. The next frontier for humanity is space — but just like exploring on Earth, not all expeditions go to plan. And when something does go wrong, we are faced with the...

Nov 10, 2023

James Webb telescope uncovers mysterious Milky Way 'twin' in the early universe

Astronomers have discovered the most distant example of a galaxy in the universe that looks like our home galaxy, the Milky Way. When the universe was just two billion years old, the newfound spiral galaxy, ceers-2112, appears to have featured a bar of stars and gas cutting across its heart,...

Nov 11, 2023

Space photo of the week: James Webb telescope finds a secret at the Crab Nebula's heart

What it is: The highest-resolution image of the Crab Nebula (M1) ever taken Where it is: 6,500 light-years away, in the constellation Taurus When it was taken: October 2023 Why it's so special: This new infrared image from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) shows one of the night sky's...

Nov 14, 2023

NASA and Japan to launch world's 1st wooden satellite as soon as 2024. Why?

NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are planning to launch the world's first wooden satellite into space in a bid to make spaceflight more sustainable. LignoSat, a coffee mug-size satellite made from magnolia wood, is set to launch into Earth's orbit by summer 2024, according to the space...

Nov 16, 2023

Astronauts accidentally dropped a tool bag on a spacewalk, and you can see it with binoculars

Some astronomy targets are less celestial in nature than others. Joining stars, planets, nebulas, and galaxies as a target for skywatchers is now a surprisingly bright tool bag floating through the space around Earth. The bag of tools gave NASA astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O'Hara the slip on Nov....

Nov 17, 2023

How to watch SpaceX's Starship launch for 2nd time ever on Saturday, Nov. 18

SpaceX plans to launch its Starship vehicle for the second time ever on Saturday (Nov. 18), and you can watch the historic liftoff live. SpaceX aims to launch Starship, a next-generation system designed to take people and payloads to deep space, during a 20-minute window that opens at 8 a.m....

Nov 20, 2023

Watch SpaceX Starship megarocket explode in 'rapid unscheduled disassembly'

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas — SpaceX's giant Starship has met another explosive end. SpaceX's next-generation megarocket — the largest ever built — launched on its second-ever test flight on Saturday (Nov. 18), a highly anticipated jaunt that took the giant vehicle to space for the first time, but it didn't...

Nov 23, 2023

Earth receives laser-beam message from 10 million miles away in new NASA experiment

A NASA laser just fired successfully in a deep-space test. On Nov. 14, NASA picked up a laser signal fired from an instrument that launched with the Psyche spacecraft, which is currently more than 10 million miles (16 million kilometers) from Earth and heading toward a mysterious metal asteroid. (The...

Nov 28, 2023

SpaceX rockets keep tearing blood-red 'atmospheric holes' in the sky, and scientists are concerned

De-orbiting SpaceX rockets are smashing temporary holes in the upper atmosphere, creating bright blobs of light in the sky. Now, scientists have warned that these SpaceX auroras, which look like glowing red orbs of light, could be causing unrecognized problems — though they are not a threat to the environment...

Nov 30, 2023

NASA and India's debut climate satellite to launch in 2024. Here's what it'll do.

For the first time, the space agencies of the U.S. and India are cooperating to develop the hardware for an Earth-observing mission. NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are putting the finishing touches on the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite. After it launches in 2024, NISAR will...

Dec 1, 2023

Sample of 'potentially hazardous' asteroid Bennu, which may contain the seeds of life, arrives in UK for analysis

A tiny fragment from the most dangerous asteroid in the solar system has arrived in the U.K. — and scientists think it could teach us about the origins of life on Earth. The fragment — a millimeter-size (0.04 inch) slice from the roughly 6-ounce (170 grams) sample that was collected...

Dec 3, 2023

Space photo of the week: China's 'heavenly palace' space station looms in 1st complete image

What it is: China's Tiangong space station. When it was taken: Oct. 30, 2023. Where it is: Low-Earth orbit, between 210 and 280 miles (340 and 450 kilometers) above Earth's surface. Where it was taken: Shenzhou 16 return module. Why it's so special: This is the first clear photograph of...

Dec 3, 2023

US Space Force delays launch of secretive space plane to Dec. 10

The U.S. Space Force has announced a delay in the upcoming launch of its elusive X-37B space plane. The mission, designated USSF-52, was scheduled for Dec. 7, but has now been pushed back to Dec. 10. X-37B will launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center...