Space Exploration, features and articles | Educational Science

Dec 4, 2023

A Russian cargo ship burnt to a crisp in Earth's atmosphere while ISS astronauts watched

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station got a front-row seat to some rare atmospheric fireworks. On Nov. 29, the Russian Progress MS-23 cargo spacecraft departed from the International Space Station (ISS) with a load of refuse no longer needed on the orbital outpost. Specifically, the spacecraft was carrying old equipment...

Dec 5, 2023

Ethereal halo of light around full moon spotted during recent SpaceX rocket launch

Editors note: This article was updated on Dec. 7 at 9:15 a.m. ET to correct an error that stated the halo of light was caused by the SpaceX rocket launch. The two things were not connected but do appear in the same photo. An ethereal halo of light around the...

Dec 7, 2023

'Lightning-like energy bursts' could be used to track the 99% of space junk that can't be seen from Earth

Earth's orbit is clogged with all sorts of space junk: defunct satellites, pieces of spacecraft, and even flecks of paint from these human-made technologies. Now, a new method shows promise for tracking the smallest bits of space litter, down to about the size of a piece of pencil lead —...

Dec 8, 2023

NASA astronauts finally find 1-inch tomato that was 'lost in space' for 8 months

A foodie space mystery has finally been solved. The remains of a tiny tomato lost by NASA astronaut Frank Rubio after an off-Earth harvest in March finally showed up on the International Space Station (ISS), more than eight months later. Our good friend Frank Rubio, who headed home [already], has...

Dec 11, 2023

Secretive X-37B space plane to launch aboard SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket tonight after delays

A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket is poised to launch the X-37B space plane for the U.S. Space Force on tonight (Dec. 11) after a one-day delay due to weather, and you can likely watch the action live. Liftoff of the Falcon Heavy is scheduled to occur from Launch Complex-39A at...

Dec 13, 2023

'What is that material?': Potentially hazardous asteroid Bennu stumps scientists with its odd makeup

Tasked with finding clues about origins of life on Earth, NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft scooped up pieces of a rugged, rubble-pile asteroid named Bennu in late 2020 and delivered them to Earth about two months ago. On Monday (Dec. 11), scientists got their first detailed description of some of that extraterrestrial...

Dec 14, 2023

NASA shares incredible footage of Artemis I capsule hurtling through Earth's atmosphere after historic moon voyage

Has it already been a year? On Dec. 11, 2022, NASA's uncrewed Orion capsule returned safely to Earth, bringing a successful end to the landmark Artemis 1 moon mission. That homecoming was a fiery and dramatic one, as video from Orion shows: The capsule recorded its harrowing plunge through Earth's...

Dec 15, 2023

Secret Chinese space plane launches on 3rd-ever mission

China has launched its reusable space plane for the third time. A Long March 2F rocket lofted China's experimental spacecraft from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Thursday (Dec. 14) to conduct space science experiments and provide technical support for the peaceful use of space, according to Xinhua news. The...

Dec 15, 2023

NASA reveals first image of 'space tomatoes' that went missing on the ISS for 8 months, and they're gross

We finally have imagery of NASA's lost space tomato — and surprise, there are two. NASA released footage of two tiny tomatoes that were lost in 2022 after astronaut Frank Rubio harvested them on the International Space Station. The chance discovery in the six-bedroom complex showed us how the 17%...

Dec 16, 2023

ISS astronaut captures constellation of icebergs in amazing space photos

An astronaut just snapped stunning photos of giant icebergs floating in the South Atlantic from space. As Earth continues to warm, more and more chunks of ice are breaking off glaciers and ice sheets and falling into the ocean. These icebergs can be seen from the International Space Station (ISS),...

Dec 19, 2023

China's secret space plane deploys 6 unknown objects in orbit, and some are emitting signals

China's reusable space plane just got a little more mysterious. Just four days after being launched on its third mission, China's Shenlong (Divine Dragon) robotic space plane seems to have placed six objects into Earth orbit. Amateur spacecraft trackers around the world have been following the objects closely for days...

Dec 20, 2023

NASA's 1st successful 2-way laser experiment is a giant leap for moon and Mars communications

NASA has completed its first laser link with an in-orbit laser relay system, marking a significant advancement in space communication technology. The successful demonstration of two-way laser communications on Dec. 5 between laser terminals in different orbits could provide a basis for faster communications between Earth and the moon or...

Dec 21, 2023

Hubble Telescope captures a galaxy's 'forbidden' light in stunning new image

The forbidden light of a distant spiral galaxy shines brightly in a new image from the Hubble Space Telescope. Located about 275 million light-years from Earth, the galaxy, called MCG-01-24-014, has two prominent, well-defined spiral arms and an energetic glowing core known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN). The galaxy...

Jan 2, 2024

Watch a Chinese rocket booster fall from space and explode near a house in southern China

Rocket debris from China's recent satellite launch fell to ground near inhabited areas, where bystanders caught the fiery touchdown on tape. The China National Space Administration launched two satellites into orbit on Dec. 25 at 10:26 p.m. EST (0326 GMT Dec. 26 or 11:26 a.m. local time in China) from...

Jan 3, 2024

Missions to the moon, Mars, Jupiter and more: These are the coolest space missions in 2024

2024 is slated to be an exciting and prolific year for space missions. In the first half of the year, there will be four attempts to land on the moon — two from the U.S. and one each from Japan and China — and each successful mission would make history....