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Latest by G. Torbet

An image of an artist's illustration of an Artemis astronaut stepping from a Moon lander onto the lunar surface.

NASA wants a second lunar lander in addition to SpaceX’s

NASA already has SpaceX developing a lander to carry astronauts to the moon's surface, but now it is searching for another company for a second lunar lander.
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Troubled CAPSTONE satellite still struggling but maintaining heat

Engineers at NASA continue work on the CAPSTONE satellite, on its way to an experimental orbit around the moon, which went into safe mode earlier this month
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How to watch the Artemis I demonstration tanking test on Wednesday

Following two unsuccessful attempts at launching its new rocket, NASA is gearing up for a third attempt. But first it will perform a crucial tanking test.
This image, taken by astronomers using the US Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, a Program of NSF’s NOIRLab, captures the star-forming nebula NGC 6357, which is located 8000 light-years away in the direction of the constellation Scorpius. This image reveals bright, young stars surrounded by billowing clouds of dust and gas inside NGC 6357, which is also known as the Lobster Nebula.

See the stunning, star-forming Lobster Nebula in Dark Energy Camera image

This instrument was originally designed for a survey into dark energy, but now it's taking beautiful images of space.
NASA’s Perseverance rover puts its robotic arm to work around a rocky outcrop called “Skinner Ridge” in Mars’ Jezero Crater. Composed of multiple images, this mosaic shows layered sedimentary rocks in the face of a cliff in the delta, as well as one of the locations where the rover abraded a circular patch to analyze a rock’s composition.

Perseverance rover finds conditions where life could have thrived on Mars

The Perseverance rover has made an exciting discovery on Mars, identifying the building blocks of life in a sample from an area of the Jezero delta.
Artistic rendering of the moon Chrysalis disintegrating in Saturn’s intense gravity field. The chunks of icy rock eventually collided and shattered into smaller pieces that became distributed in the thin ring we see today.

Long-lost moon could explain how Saturn got its rings

Saturn is famed for its beautiful rings, but these rings are something of a puzzle. Now, new research suggests they could have formed from a lost moon.
Illustration of NASA’s DART spacecraft and the Italian Space Agency’s (ASI) LICIACube prior to impact at the Didymos binary system.

Asteroid-impacting DART mission deploys a tiny observer satellite

This month will see NASA deliberately crash a spacecraft into an asteroid in a planetary defense test - and that spacecraft has now deployed its photographer.
Firefly's Alpha rocket at the start of its mission.

How to watch rocket startup Firefly Aerospace’s second attempt to reach orbit

Rocket startup Firefly Aerospace will attempt to reach orbit for the first time in a launch tonight, Sunday September 11. Here's how to watch.
The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope imaged these two overlapping spiral galaxies named SDSS J115331 and LEDA 2073461, which lie more than a billion light-years from Earth. Despite appearing to collide in this image, the alignment of the two galaxies is likely just by chance – the two are not actually interacting. While these two galaxies might simply be ships that pass in the night, Hubble has captured a dazzling array of other, truly interacting galaxies.

Hubble image shows two overlapping galaxies in cosmic coincidence

This week's Hubble image shows something of an optical illusion: two galaxies which appear to be colliding, but are in fact merely overlapping by chance.
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NASA’s lunar satellite CAPSTONE experiences error, is in safe mode

An issue has occurred with NASA's CAPSTONE satellites, currently on its way to orbit around the moon. The satellite is now in safe mode.
The telescopes of the SPECULOOS Southern Observatory gaze out into the stunning night sky over the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Researchers discover planet in the habitable zone of an ultra-cool star

Astronomers have discovered a super-Earth orbiting a small, cool star which could potentially host liquid water on its surface.
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How to watch SpaceX launch a Falcon 9 on a Starlink mission tonight

Tonight SpaceX will launch a further batch of satellites for its Starlink constellation, and the launch will be livestreamed so you can watch along at home.
Diamond rain could occur on ice giant planets in the presence of oxygen.

Inside giant ice planets, it could be raining diamonds

The diamond rain effect is thought to occur deep within ice giants like Uranus and Neptune.
The surface of Jupiter's moon Europa, where a liquid ocean is thought to lurk beneath an icy crust.

Watery exoplanets could be more common than we thought

A new study suggests exoplanets with water may be more common than previously thought, with many planets being made up of half water, half rock.
Astronomers have been bemused to find young stars spiralling into the centre of a massive cluster of stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way. The outer arm of the spiral in this huge, oddly shaped stellar nursery — called NGC 346 — may be feeding star formation in a river-like motion of gas and stars. This is an efficient way to fuel star birth, researchers say.

Hubble gets a peek at how stars could have formed in the early universe

Hubble researchers shared an image of a cluster of stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud which can help us learn how stars were born when the universe was young.
The first images of the chromosphere – the area of the Sun’s atmosphere above the surface – taken with the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope on June 3rd, 2022. The image shows a region 82,500 kilometers across at a resolution of 18 km. This image is taken at 486.13 nanometers using the hydrogen-beta line from the Balmer series.

See the horror of the sun up close from world’s most powerful solar telescope

The astronomy community has a new tool for studying the sun, with the inauguration this week of the world's largest solar telescope.
This glittering gathering of stars is the globular cluster NGC 6558, and it was captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys. NGC 6558 is closer to the center of the Milky Way than Earth is, and lies about 23,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius.

Stars sparkle in various colors in this week’s Hubble image

Close out your week with a soothing view of the wonders of space, as provided by the Hubble Space Telescope.
Voyager’s high-gain antenna, seen at the center of this illustration of the NASA spacecraft, is one component controlled by the attitude articulation and control system (AACS).

Glitch fixed on Voyager 1 probe, but underlying cause still a mystery

Engineers have fixed an issue with the Voyager 1 probe, one of the two most distant manmade objects in the universe.
A vision of a future Moon settlement assembled from semi-buried inflatable habitats. Sited beside the lunar poles in regions of near-perpetual solar illumination, mirrors positioned above each habitat would reflect sunlight into greenhouses within the doughnut-shaped habitats.

Inflatable lunar habitat could keep future moon explorers cozy

The European Space Agency has shared a concept for a future moon habitat made up of inflatable structures.
NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher.

NASA’s Artemis I launch postponed following fuel leak issue

Following two failed launch attempts of its new Space Launch System rocket, NASA will not be making another launch attempt in the next few days.
NASA’s Juno spacecraft observed the complex colors and structure of Jupiter’s clouds as it completed its 43rd close flyby of the giant planet on July 5, 2022. Citizen scientist Björn Jónsson created these two images using raw data from the JunoCam instrument aboard the spacecraft. At the time the raw image was taken, Juno was about 3,300 miles (5,300 kilometers) above Jupiter’s cloud tops, at a latitude of about 50 degrees. North is up. At that moment, the spacecraft was traveling at about 130,000 mph (209,000 kilometers per hour) relative to the planet.

Citizen scientist shares stunning image of Jupiter’s atmosphere

See data from NASA's Juno spacecraft, which has been processed into two beautiful images by a citizen scientist.
NASA's Space Launch System rocket on the launch pad at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, September 3.

NASA scrubs the launch of its Space Launch System rocket due to fuel leak

NASA has called off today's planned launch of its new Space Launch System rocket due to a liquid hydrogen leak.
This landscape of “mountains” and “valleys” speckled with glittering stars is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region called NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by NASA’s new James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals for the first time previously invisible areas of star birth.

Listen to the sounds of space with these James Webb sonifications

NASA released a series of sonifications of the famous first images from the James Webb Space Telescope, including the sounds of two nebulae and an exoplanet.
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James Webb snapped a picture of an exoplanet for the first time

The James Webb Space Telescope has snapped an image an exoplanet for the first time.
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Liquid hydrogen leak interrupts Artemis I launch preparations

NASA's preparations for the launch of its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket today, Saturday September 3, have been interrupted by a hydrogen leak issue.
This artist's concept depicts Kepler-186f, the first validated Earth-size planet to orbit a distant star in the habitable zone.

What exactly makes an exoplanet ‘habitable’?

Astronomers have been on the hunt for habitable planets outside of our own solar system for decades -- but what exactly counts as habitable?
Data from ESA's Mars Express and NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have been used to create the first detailed global map of hydrated mineral deposits on Mars. Click here for an annotated version with mineral types and abundances.

Water map of Mars could help choose locations for future missions

The European Space Agency has shared a water map of Mars that traces the planet's history and points to potential resources for future missions.
The galaxy featured in this Picture of the Week has a shape unlike many of the galaxies familiar to Hubble. Its thousands of bright stars evoke a spiral galaxy, but it lacks the characteristic ‘winding’ structure. The shining red blossoms stand out as well, twisted by clouds of dust — these are the locations of intense star formation. Yet it also radiates a diffuse glow, much like an elliptical galaxy and its core of older, redder stars. This galactic marvel is known to astronomers as NGC 1156.

Hubble revisits a funky irregular dwarf galaxy

This week's Hubble image shows an unusual, chaotic dwarf galaxy which defies categorization.
Illustration of NASA’s DART spacecraft and the Italian Space Agency’s (ASI) LICIACube prior to impact at the Didymos binary system.

Here’s the asteroid NASA is going to crash a spacecraft into

What could we do if we spotted a dangerous asteroid on a collision course with our planet? NASA has an idea that it's testing out.
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Lightning strikes Artemis I launchpad ahead of Monday launch

As NASA prepares for the first launch of its new Space Launch System rocket on Monday, lightning has struck the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center.
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How to watch SpaceX’s nighttime Starlink launch tonight

Tonight SpaceX will launch another batch of Starlink satellites in a nighttime launch using one of its Falcon 9 rockets. Here's how to watch.
Artistic rendition of the exoplanet TOI-1452 b, a small planet that may be entirely covered in a deep ocean.

Intriguing exoplanet could be entirely covered in ocean

Astronomers have discovered an intriguing exoplanet which could be entirely covered in water.
NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B, Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2022, after being rolled out to the launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s Artemis I mission is the first integrated test of the agency’s deep space exploration systems: the Orion spacecraft, SLS rocket, and supporting ground systems. Launch of the uncrewed flight test is targeted for no earlier than Aug. 29.

Countdown for the first launch of NASA’s brand new rocket begins

NASA has begun the countdown for the launch of its brand new mega moon rocket, which will begin the uncrewed Artemis I mission to the moon.
The Perseverance Mars rover took this selfie on Sept. 10, 2021 — sol 198 of the mission – in Jezero Crater after coring into a rock called ‘Rochette.’ Rock core samples from the floor of the crater will be brought back to Earth and analyzed to characterize the planet’s geology and past climate.

Perseverance rover uncovers clues to the history of Mars

The Perseverance rover has been exploring Mars's Jezero crater and now scientists have used its data in a batch of new research on Mars's history and geology.