Latest science news in Astronomy & Space
Big Black Holes Cook Flambeed Stellar Pancakes
Astrophysicists now say the fate of stars that venture too close to massive black holes could be even more violent than previously believed. Not only are they crushed by the...
Essay: Open Wide: Pioneer Dentist Gets His Due
The reproduced office of G.V. Black is a central feature of the National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore.
Inventor of LSD Albert Hofmann's first trip
Inventor of LSD Albert Hofmann recorded what happened on that, now legendary, 'bicycle day'
NASA Spacecraft Tracks Raging Saturn Storm
As a powerful electrical storm rages on Saturn with lightning bolts 10,000 times more powerful than those found on Earth, the Cassini spacecraft continues its five-month watch over the dramatic...
Life-Probing Instrument Preparing For Mission To Mars
A new life-detecting instrument is preparing for a mission to the Red Planet. The Urey: Mars Organic and Oxidant Detector instrument, developed by a scientist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography...
GIOVE-B spacecraft in good health
A second test satellite for Galileo, Europe's rival to the US Global Positioning System, is "in good health" despite a hiccup that emerged after it was placed in orbit last...
Marching Sand Dunes Create Mars Mystery
Wind tunnels experiments show sand grains can be lofted on Mars to create dunes.
Thomas Reiter joins Shuttle descent crew
Early this morning, the installation of a new seat liner in the Soyuz TMA-9 spacecraft marked the end of ESA astronaut Thomas Reiter's period as a member of the Space...
Artemis provides communications for Jules Verne ATV
ESA's Artemis data relay satellite, controlled from Fucino (Italy) and with its mission control centre and Earth terminal located at Redu (Belgium), is providing communications between the Jules Verne ATV...
Mars radar opens up a planet’s third dimension
ESA’s Mars Express radar sounder, MARSIS, has looked beneath the martian surface and opened up the third dimension for planetary exploration. The technique’s success is prompting scientists to think of...
River delta in Nepenthes Mensae
The High Resolution Stereo Camera on board ESA’s Mars Express orbiter imaged the region of Nepenthes Mensae, a river delta on Mars, on 22 January 2008. The region is located...
Amazing Grace Team Receives Prestigious Award
A mission that has changed the way we study Earth's gravitational forces has been recognized with a prestigious award for helping scientists better understand our home planet.
Mars: Closest Approach 2007
Now playing online -- a new Martian movie showing the planet rotating. The movie was made from four images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Planetary Camera 2,...
Ocean-Observing Satellites Help Break Current Records
Two different teams of ocean adventurers set records this winter crossing the Tasman Sea. Both used maps of ocean currents made possible by ocean-observing satellites.
Stellar Birth in the Galactic Wilderness
A new image from NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer shows baby stars sprouting in the backwoods of a galaxy.
New Atlases Use NASA Data to Chart Ocean Winds
Researchers have compiled years of data from NASA's QuikScat satellite to create three new atlases of ocean wind patterns around the globe.
Saturn Images Showcased in New York City
A selection of the best images from Saturn, its rings and moons will appear in an exhibition opening on April 26 at the American Museum of Natural History in New...
JPL Earth Scientists Reflect on Earth Day
In commemoration of Earth Day on Tuesday, April 22, we asked JPL Earth scientists to reflect on the event and what it means to them.
JPL Invites Public to Open House
At this free, all-day event on May 3 and 4, visitors can watch 700-pound robots glide under artificial stars in JPL's Robodome and get an up-close view of full-scale models...
Shoulder Motor Balks on Opportunity Rover's Robotic Arm
A small motor in the robotic arm of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity that began stalling occasionally more than two years ago has become more troublesome recently.
The 2008 Great Moonbuggy Race
Contestants in NASA's 15th Annual Great Moonbuggy Race have crossed the finish line. And the winner is.... Read today's story to find out who crashed and who triumphed in...
Moondust in the Wind
Unlike Earth, the firmament of the moon is directly exposed to charged particles from the sun. What happens to moondust under the onslaught of solar wind? Researchers in...
Earth's Magnetic Field Does Strange Things to the Moon
NASA-supported researchers have realized that strange things may be happening on the full Moon when it gets hit by Earth's magnetic tail.
Findings: This Time, He’ll Be Left Breathless
David Blaine, a self-described endurance artist, will next try and break the world record for holding his breath.
Observatory: Make a Mindless Goof? Blame Your Brain
Researchers have used functional magnetic resonance imaging to look at what goes on in the brain before an error.
Study: Blog Reading Can Be Addictive
As someone that's checked the Drudge Report once an hour, every hour for the last 10 years of my life, I can certainly accept the idea that the sites I...
Spacecraft's Shaky Descent Under Scrutiny
The Russian Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft apparently suffered a failure, possibly involving explosive bolts, that prevented one of two sections connected to the central crew capsule from separating properly before re-entry,...
Unexplained Red Lights Hover Over Phoenix
Phoenix residents and local media were buzzing Tuesday about whether the city had experienced a close encounter of the first kind.