Latest science news in Astronomy & Space
Pterodactyl-inspired Robot To Master Air, Ground And Sea
Scientists have reached back in time 115 million years to one of the most successful flying creatures in Earth's history -- the pterodactyl -- to conjure a robotic spy plane...
Snow is the surprising forecast for Mars
NASA's Phoenix lander discovers ice crystals in clouds about two miles above the planet. 'Nothing like this has ever been seen on Mars,' says one scientist. ...
The Dark Universe and Limitless Dark Energy
Shahn Majid looks at dark energy. Will it herald a revolution in our understanding of fundamental physics? read more
Radiation shut down EU test satellite for two weeks: ESA
A second test satellite for Galileo, Europe's rival to the US Global Positioning System (GPS), closed itself down for more than two weeks last month because of space radiation, concurring...
Mercury probe going back for an encore
A space probe is headed for a second swing past Mercury to pick up a gravitational boost and eventually become the first spacecraft to orbit the closest planet to our...
Virgin Galactic Rejects Million-Dollar Offer to Film Sex Video
Virgin Galactic has rejected a $1 million offer to film a sex video in space.
Software billionaire books 2nd trip to space
Software billionaire Charles Simonyi, the fifth private traveller or "space tourist" to visit the International Space Station, is poised to become the first to make a return trip.
Cosmic Log: Why space is expanding
Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Fifty years ago, NASA and the Soviets were the only players in the spaceflight game. In the next half-century, it could become a game open...
NASA-TV to cover ISS crew exchange
WASHINGTON, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. space agency said it will televise the launch of the next International Space Station crew and the return of the current...
Planck update in pictures
The Planck spacecraft has almost completed its final testing phase and is on its way to being launch-ready. The testing phase began in late March this year, and has taken...
Method of predicting clear air turbulence could make flights smoother in the future
It comes blasting out of the blue on your airplane flight: sudden bumpiness and sometimes even a violent plummeting. It arrives without warning, and it can be more than frightening,...
Are we trading energy conservation for toxic air emissions?
A team of Yale scientists has found that certain countries and some U.S. states stand to benefit from the use of compact fluorescent lighting more than others in the fight...
Taking a Norse to water: New clues to Viking voyages
The mouse could help lift the veil on how the Norwegian Vikings established a seafaring kingdom that ranged from the tip of Scotland and Iceland to Greenland and Newfoundland, scientists...
National Briefing | Washington: Discoveries on Mars Suggest Past Presence of Water
The NASA Phoenix spacecraft has discovered two minerals on Mars that suggest that water was there in the past.
Mars Weather Forecast: Snow
The latest findings from the Martian Arctic offer more hints of a wet past but paint a very arid present, scientists reported Monday.
Cloud Radar: Predicting The Weather More Accurately
The weather. It's the one topic of conversation that unites Britain -- umbrella or sun cream? Now scientists at the Science and Technology Facilities Council have developed a system that...
Spotless Sun: Blankest Year of the Space Age
Astronomers who count sunspots have announced that 2008 has become the "blankest year" of the Space Age. Sunspot counts are at a 50-year low, signifying a deep minimum in...
A Star That Bursts, Blinks and Disappears
(PhysOrg.com) -- "Twinkle, twinkle little star" goes the nursery rhyme. Now, astronomers are reporting on a strange case where one of the littlest of stars "twinkled" with gamma rays, X-rays,...
Students to design tools for moon rovers
WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- The U.S. space agency is asking college students to design tools or instrument packages that could be used on the next generation of...
When It Comes to Galaxies, Diversity Is Everywhere
(PhysOrg.com) -- There's an old saying in astronomy: "Galaxies are like people. They're only normal until you get to know them." That view is supported by a group of astronomers...
Space Smash-Up Turned Planets to Dust
A dust cloud surrounding a nearby star 300 light-years from Earth may be all that remains from the collision of two Earth-size planets, researchers say.
Top-secret spy pics found on eBay-bought camera
A digital camera containing secret images and information about terrorism suspects from the British spy service MI6 was accidentally sold on eBay.
Top young U.S. scientist to be named
GREENBELT, Md., Sept. 30 (UPI) -- The U.S. space agency will host the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge to pick "America's Top Young Scientist."
ESA at space forum in Glasgow
The 59th International Astronautical Congress, IAC 2008, is taking place between 29 September and 3 October in Glasgow, Scotland. HRH Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, visited IAC 2008 and...
Do We Live in a Giant Cosmic Bubble?
There could be an explanation for the accelerating expansion of the universe even weirder than dark energy.
Evidence For Rain On Mars?
There is evidence that lake deposits once formed inside impact craters on Mars. About four billion years ago, there were lakes on Mars which may have been fed by short-lived...
Astronaut vs. Earthlings chess game begins
BELLEVUE, Wash., Sept. 29 (UPI) -- A unique chess match began Monday with an astronaut challenging Earthlings.
China's First Spacewalk Team Feted With Parade
The three Shenzhou 7 astronauts arrived Monday in Beijing to a homecoming parade.