On October 18, 2025, the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) 4MOST (4-meter Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope) instrument observed the sky with its full array of 2,400 optical fibers for the first time, successfully capturing and analyzing the light from a vast range of cosmic objects.

What is it?

Mounted on ESO's Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA), 4MOST is designed to provide spectra for thousands of celestial sources at once, enabling astronomers to study the composition, temperature and motion of stars and galaxies across huge areas of the night sky.

Unlike traditional telescopes that observe one or a few objects at a time, 4MOST's engineering allows it to conduct massive, simultaneous surveys, seeing more things at one time. The instrument's wide hexagonal field of view covers a large portion of the sky in each observation, making it ideal for studying cosmic evolution and dark energy.

Where is it?

4MOST and the VISTA telescope are located at the Paranal Observatory in Chile.

Why is it amazing?

During its first observations, 4MOST turned its hexagonal gaze toward a region in the southern sky that includes two popular celestial targets: the Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253) and the global cluster NGC 288. Each of the colored dots in the image represents a distinct object whose light was captured and analyzed by one of 4MOST's 2,400 fibers.

From each target, the instrument collected a spectrum, a detailed fingerprint of light that reveals key physical properties such as chemical composition, temperature, radial velocity and more.

Over the next decade, 4MOST will deliver millions of spectra, helping scientists tackle some of astronomy's biggest questions.

Want to learn more?

You can read more about the European Southern Observatory's recent research, as well as other telescopes in Chile.

HOUSTON — NASA's ambitious mission to return astronauts to the moon for the first time this century is on track to launch no later than April 2026, but it just might fly sooner if all goes well.

The 10-day-long Artemis 2 mission, which will fly four astronauts around the moon on NASA's Orion spacecraft, could lift off as early as Feb. 5, mission managers said today (Sept. 23) during an event here at the agency's Johnson Space Center (JSC).

"We together have a front-row seat to history: We're returning to the moon after over 50 years," Lakiesha Hawkins, NASA acting deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development, told reporters in a press conference today.

If Artemis 2 does lift off on Feb. 5, it will be at night, NASA officials said. The space agency has about five days apiece in February, March and April to launch the flight. The latest possible date is April 26, according to NASA.

NASA will aim to hit the earlier part of that launch window, Hawkins said, but she stressed that crew safety will drive the timeline.

"We want to emphasize that safety is our top priority," she said. "And so, as we work through these operational preparations, as we finish stacking the rocket, we're continuing to assess to make sure that we do things in a safe way."

Artemis 2, the first crewed mission of NASA's Artemis program, will launch to the moon atop the agency's towering Space Launch System megarocket (known as SLS), as the vanguard flight for a crewed U.S. return to the moon. The mission will be commanded by NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, with fellow agency spaceflyer Victor Glover as pilot. NASA's Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen round out the crew as mission specialists.

The mission will fly on a "free-return" trajectory, sending the Artemis 2 astronauts around the moon on a path that ensures their return to Earth without entering lunar orbit, let alone touching down on the surface.

"They're going at least 5,000 nautical miles [9,260 kilometers] past the moon, which is much higher than previous missions have gone," said Jeff Radigan of JSC, the lead Artemis 2 flight director. "So, the moon's going to look a little bit smaller."

Artemis 2 follows the first Artemis test flight: the uncrewed Artemis 1, which launched an Orion spacecraft to lunar orbit in November 2022 and successfully brought it back to Earth about four weeks later. Artemis 2 was initially expected to launch this year, but NASA pushed the mission into 2026 after the Artemis 1 Orion capsule's heat shield charred more severely than expected during its reentry to Earth's atmosphere.

The Artemis 2 team has studied this issue extensively and taken measures to minimize the chances of heat shield problems during reentry on the upcoming mission, said Rick Henfling of JSC, lead Artemis 2 entry flight director.

"We had a number of tests, and they all helped back up this understanding of what was going on in the char," Henfling said of the Artemis 1 heat shield data. "And so the Artemis 2 trajectory that we're going to fly is going to be one that is not going to replicate that temperature environment, which was conducive to that increased gas generation rate."

Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, NASA's launch director for Artemis 2, further explained the liquid hydrogen leaks that delayed the Artemis 1 launch (it lifted off on its third try) should also be solved at this point. The launch team has made modifications at the launch pad and adjusted the fueling process to reduce the risk of such leaks, she said.

"We learned an awful lot during Artemis 1," Blackwell-Thompson said. "We learned the relationship between the flow rates, the pressures and how those manifest, or could manifest, into leaks."

Artemis 2's Boeing-built SLS rocket is nearly complete at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Vehicle Assembly Building in Florida, with its Northrop Grumman-built solid rocket boosters attached, Blackwell-Thompson said. In the coming weeks, the Orion capsule for the flight and its adapter will be added. NASA expects to show off the fully complete Artemis 2 rocket in October.

Blackwell-Thompson and the other NASA officials who spoke today repeatedly stressed that Artemis 2, though crewed, is still a test flight. Thus, the agency will learn a lot from it while working hard to keep the astronauts safe and check off as many mission goals as possible.

"A test flight doesn't have one singular objective; it's got many of them," Radigan said. "To call this mission fully successful, we need to go fly by the moon, bring the crew home safely and welcome them back with open arms."

Final tests of NASA's laser beam communication technology offer a promising new way to keep in touch with astronauts and spacecraft venturing into deep space, including future missions to Mars.

NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment, a technology demonstration carried aboard the Psyche mission, has completed its 65th and final test, successfully exchanging laser signals across 218 million miles (351 million kilometers), surpassing all technical goals after two years of operations, according to a statement from the space agency.

"NASA is setting America on the path to Mars, and advancing laser communications technologies brings us one step closer to streaming high-definition video and delivering valuable data from the Martian surface faster than ever before," Sean Duffy, acting NASA Administrator, said in the statement. "Technology unlocks discovery, and we are committed to testing and proving the capabilities needed to enable the Golden Age of exploration."

During its run, DSOC achieved 65 successful passes between Earth and Psyche as the spacecraft journeyed toward its asteroid target. The system encodes data into pulses of laser light, transforming digital information into streams of photons that can travel millions of miles — a significant shift from the radio frequencies used by NASA's Deep Space Network for decades.

A high-powered uplink laser at NASA's Table Mountain Facility in California helps Psyche's transceiver lock onto the signal and aim its own laser back at ground-based telescopes, where sensitive detectors capture the faint light. Advanced decoding systems then reconstruct the original data, allowing information sent from distances comparable to Mars to be received with remarkable accuracy. Across those tests, DSOC downlinked a remarkable 13.6 terabits of data — far more than anticipated, according to the statement.

DSOC hit a major milestone on Dec. 11, 2023, just two months after launch, when it streamed an ultra-high-definition video from 19 million miles (30.6 million kilometers) away at 267 megabits per second — faster than many home internet connections. Nearly a year later, on Dec. 3, 2024, it set a new benchmark by transmitting data from 307 million miles (494 million kilometers), farther than the average distance between Earth and Mars.

The constant motion of Earth and Psyche required extreme precision in aiming the laser beams at ground-based receivers — a challenge made even more difficult by poor weather and wildfires in Southern California. To help overcome these obstacles, an experimental hybrid radio-optical antenna at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex tested new ways to capture the signals, providing a glimpse of future systems that could combine both technologies for greater flexibility and resilience as missions venture deeper into the solar system.

"As space exploration continues to evolve, so do our data transfer needs," Kevin Coggins, deputy associate administrator for NASA's SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) program, said in the statement. "Future space missions will require astronauts to send high-resolution images and instrument data from the moon and Mars back to Earth. Bolstering our capabilities of traditional radio frequency communications with the power and benefits of optical communications will allow NASA to meet these new requirements."

Artemis 2 astronauts will be studied for how sleep, stress and radiation shape human health in deep space during their moon mission next year.

The second installment of NASA's Artemis program to return to the moon and establish a sustained human presence in deep space is set to be the first crewed flight test of its Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The four-person crew is tasked with putting the vessel through its paces in the cislunar environment, and performing several science experiments during their mission.

Some of that research involves the astronauts themselves, who will turn into a quartet of biomedical subjects to help NASA gather in-flight data on the human body beyond low Earth orbit for the first time in more than 50 years. As they have with hundreds of physiological tests conducted aboard the International Space Station (ISS), NASA will add the research to its growing understanding of the biological repercussions of life in microgravity, according to a recent release.

Standard measures

One of the experiments the Artemis 2 astronauts will undertake will see them join a long-running NASA effort to build a comprehensive understanding of how spaceflight affects human health. Samples of blood, urine and saliva are being collected in the months before launch, and the astronauts will undergo regular checks during their 10-day mission and follow-ups after their return.

NASA hopes to use the samples to track changes in cardiovascular health, nutrition, immunity and stress across multiple stages of training, flight and recovery.

ARCHeR: Sleep and stress tracking

The Artemis Research for Crew Health and Readiness (ARCHeR) project will investigate how crew performance might be affected by time spent as such a far distance from Earth while inside Orion's confined space, combined with the astronauts' demanding schedule.

Each Artemis 2 astronaut will wear wrist sensors to log movement and sleep throughout the mission. Pre- and post-mission evaluations will be compared to in-flight data to better understand how the deep space mission influences the crew's alertness, stress and ability to work together cohesively.

Immune system monitoring

Samples provided by the crew before, during and after their mission will also be used to study their immune systems. In this case, immune system markers in their saliva samples will help researchers evaluate how the body reacts to space radiation.

To save space and power aboard Orion during their mission, the crew is foregoing refrigeration of their in-flight saliva samples, and will instead make their deposits on specially designed dab papers, which will absorb the samples for simpler storage. Once they return, scientists will test the papers for dormant viruses triggered by the microgravity environment — a phenomenon seen aboard the ISS, where stress has been documented as a trigger to reactivate illnesses like chickenpox and shingles.

AVATAR organ-on-a-chip study

Artemis 2 astronauts will also be accompanied by thumb-sized "avatars" of themselves, in the form of blood samples grown to simulate bone marrow on organ-on-a-chip devices.

These chips will ride inside Orion as it passes through the Van Allen belts — zones of charged particles between the Earth and moon — testing how marrow responds to deep space radiation and microgravity. Results will be compared to ISS experiments to see if the chip technology can accurately predict how tissues react outside Earth's radiation-hardened magnetosphere.

Radiation

During Artemis 1, Orion carried 5,600 passive and 34 active radiation sensors. For Artemis 2, the spacecraft has been reduced to a modest six active sensors inside the cabin. Additionally, astronauts will wear personal dosimeters.

The devices will measure the consistent radiation exposure experienced throughout the mission, and detect sudden spikes from things like solar storms. If readings reach dangerous levels, astronauts can construct a makeshift radiation shield inside Orion, fortifying themselves between the spacecraft's heatshield and water storage canisters, both of which are better at absorbing penetrating radiation than other onboard materials.

NASA has selected Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen as the crew for the Artemis 2 mission. They are scheduled to launch no earlier than Feb. 2026, with a launch window that extends through April.

NASA is asking citizen scientists, space industry employees and other volunteers to help them track the first human mission to the moon in more than 50 years.

The agency put out a call for volunteers to passively track the Artemis 2 mission's Orion spacecraft when it launches in April 2026 or thereabouts, to keep an eye as the four astronauts aboard loop around the moon and then come back to Earth.

Examples of volunteers may include "international space agencies, academic institutions, commercial companies, nonprofits and private citizens," according to a NASA statement. You can read more about the opportunity and apply at this website, before the deadline of Oct. 27 at 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT).

NASA, of course, already has tracking and communications systems that will watch over the Artemis 2 astronauts: The agency's Deep Space Network and Near Space Network sets of dishes will help NASA with launch, deep-space operations and reentry.

But the agency is asking for help from external groups "to further understand industry's tracking capabilities," under a request from NASA's Space Communication and Navigation (SCAN) program.

"By offering this opportunity to the broader aerospace community, we can identify available tracking capabilities outside the government," Kevin Coggins, NASA's deputy associate administrator for SCAN at the agency's headquarters in Washington, said in the statement.

"This data will help inform our transition to a commercial-first approach, ultimately strengthening the infrastructure needed to support Artemis missions — and our long-term moon to Mars objectives."

On board Artemis 2 will be NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot) and Christina Koch (mission specialist), and Canadian Space Agency astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen. Glover will be the first Black astronaut ever to fly a moon mission, while Koch will be the first woman and Hansen the first non-American to do so.

The tracking request follows previous work for the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission in 2022, which saw 10 volunteer organizations track Orion on its trip to lunar orbit and back. The participants "attempted to receive Orion's signal and use their respective ground antennas to track and measure changes in the radio waves transmitted by Orion," NASA stated.

Artemis 2 will serve as a key checkout for NASA's larger Artemis program, which aims to put boots on the moon with the next mission: Artemis 3. An international crew will touch down using SpaceX's Starship lander no earlier than 2027, assuming technical and training milestones are reached.

None of those target dates are set in stone, however. For example, the Artemis 2 astronauts have repeatedly emphasized that their mission is developmental and, as such, the crew is not working to a schedule but instead to the pace of training and technology development.

South Korea's K-RadCube satellite has arrived at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida ahead of its launch toward the moon next year.

The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) announced the arrival of the K-RadCube in Florida on Aug. 13 via the social media platform X. The milestone comes as preparations for NASA's Artemis 2 mission build. The 10-day mission will send four astronauts around the moon aboard the Orion spacecraft, with launch currently scheduled for no earlier than February 2026, and no later than April 2026.

K-RadCube, a three-unit, 41-pound (19 kilograms) cubesat, will use a dosimeter made of material designed to mimic human tissue to measure space radiation levels across the Van Allen radiation belts. It aims to collect data on radiation exposure levels that astronauts may face when traveling beyond Earth orbit.

The cubesat also carries semiconductor components such as chips from Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix to assess their radiation resistance in a deep-space environment. The data will also be used to inform future missions.

South Korea's KASA is just one international space agency that will fly cubesats on the mission; Germany's DLR will also contribute its TACHELES cubesat. While Artemis 2 will send astronauts around the moon, the cubesats will have their own science objectives.

K-RadCube will — along with the other cubesat payloads joining for the ride — be released from the adapter that connects the Orion crewed spacecraft to the upper stage of the Space Launch System rocket in high Earth orbit once Orion is free and clear of the upper stage.

As well as piggybacking on Artemis 2, South Korea has its own moon objectives. It aims to put a robotic lander on the moon by 2032 and wants to build a moon base by 2045.

Preparations for Artemis 2 are gathering momentum. Earlier this month, the Orion spacecraft completed propellant loading at KSC and will next be outfitted with its emergency escape system.

NASA and Google are collaborating to test an AI-powered medical assistant designed to support astronauts on long-duration missions, where communication delays with Earth make real-time medical consultations impossible.

NASA, which is committed to a new era of human spaceflight with its Artemis program, is working with Google to test a proof of concept for a Crew Medical Officer Digital Assistant (CMO‑DA), a type of Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS).

The digital assistant would provide medical support to astronauts when operating beyond low Earth orbit, such as on missions to the moon and Mars, allowing crews to autonomously diagnose and treat symptoms.

"Trained on spaceflight literature, the AI system uses cutting-edge natural language processing and machine learning techniques to safely provide real-time analyses of crew health and performance," Google representatives said in an Aug. 8 statement.

According to the statement, early results indicate the possibility of reliable diagnoses based on reported symptoms. NASA and Google are now working with doctors to further test and refine the model.

Deep-space missions, including to the moon or Mars, can involve communication delays — sometimes up to 45 minutes for light-time round-trip for the Red Planet — making real-time consultations impossible. And a speedy return to Earth is obviously not an option in such cases.

An onboard AI assistant could therefore help bridge a critical gap. The technology could also be of use in remote and demanding environments here on Earth, where access to trained medical professionals is limited.

South Korea's space ambitions keep growing.

The nation wants to build a moon base by 2045, The Korea Times reported on Thursday (July 17), citing a long-term exploration road map that the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) laid out that same day during a hearing at the National Research Foundation of Korea in Daejeon.

That road map "outlines five core missions, including low Earth orbit and microgravity exploration, lunar exploration, and solar and space science missions," The Korea Times wrote.

KASA, which was established just last year, aims to develop homegrown lunar landing and roving technology, as well as the ability to extract and exploit moon resources such as water ice.

Some of this work is already underway. For example, the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources recently deployed prototype lunar rovers in an abandoned coal mine, testing tech that could be used for space mining down the road.

And South Korea already has some experience at and around the moon. In August 2022, the nation launched its first moon probe — called the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter or Danuri — atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Danuri reached lunar orbit four months later and is still going strong, studying the moon with its suite of instruments.

South Korea had already been aiming for the lunar surface; officials have said they want to put a robotic lander on the moon by 2032. But the newly revealed road map ups the ante. The nation plans to develop a new, presumably more capable moon lander by 2040, "with the goal of building a lunar economic base by 2045," The Korea Times wrote.

South Korea isn't the only nation with moon-base ambitions. The United States also plans to build one or more lunar outposts in the next decade or so, via NASA's Artemis program. China is working toward the goal as well, in partnership with Russia and other nations. And India has said it wants to build a moon base by 2047.

The moon isn't KASA's only distant destination, by the way; the agency also wants to pull off South Korea's first-ever Mars landing by 2045.

South Korea is transforming abandoned coal mines into testing grounds for lunar exploration.

The Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) conducted a demonstration inside the tunnel of the former Hamtae mine in Taebaek, Gangwon Province, in late March, deploying prototype lunar rovers using autonomous navigation and other technologies with potential for use in space mining, the South Korean news outlet Pulse reported.

The rovers demonstrated mobility across challenging terrain, sample collection and remote sensing capabilities. The move highlights the plan, which involves government and research institutes, to turn the mine into a space resource convergence demonstration complex and help develop technologies that could extract useful resources from the moon.

"To compete in the global resource race, Korea must develop space resource technologies independently," said Kim Kyeong-ja, head of the Space Resource Exploration and Utilization Center at KIGAM, Pulse reported. "This requires mobilizing national capabilities via the collaboration of multiple institutions. It is not something that a single researcher or institute can achieve alone."

Related: South Korea creates new KASA space agency, sets sights on the moon and Mars

South Korea has already launched a lunar orbiter, Danuri, which is also known as the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO). The country established its national space agency, KASA, last year and is targeting its first robotic lunar landing by 2032.

Taebek is South Korea's highest-elevation city, and therefore symbolically the closest one to space. Its former use for mining coal for energy is giving way to the testing of technology that could unlock future energy sources from off world.

"The coal that was once mined in Taebaek fueled Korea's industrialization during the 1960s," KIGAM President Lee Pyeong-koo said. "We are now beginning a new mission to explore energy resources for future generations, and we are once again starting in Taebaek."

NASA and South Korea's space agency have agreed to deeper cooperation in space exploration, science and aeronautics, including collaboration on a pioneering mission.

NASA and the Republic of Korea's newly created Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) signed a joint statement on advance cooperation on Sept. 19.

Areas of potential cooperation include NASA's Moon to Mars Architecture, space life sciences and medical operations, lunar surface science, utilization of Korea's deep-space antenna and future commercial activities in low Earth orbit, according to a NASA statement.

"Building on years of work together both on Earth and in space, we are proud to significantly grow our partnership with the Republic of Korea and its new space agency," said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson during a signing ceremony.

Related: South Korea creates new KASA space agency, sets sights on the moon and Mars

"The signing of the joint statement marks a pivotal moment in opening a new chapter for the Republic of Korea-U.S. aerospace alliance," said KASA Administrator Youngbin Yoon. "It presents a vital opportunity for Korea to emerge as a responsible space-faring nation, and also for humanity to pursue scientific discoveries and pioneer the future."

One area of new collaboration will be a mission to the sun-Earth Lagrange Point 4, a hitherto unexplored gravitationally stable point in space where the influences of the sun and Earth balance out. 

Spacecraft such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have been sent to L2, on the far side of Earth with regard to the sun, while DSCOVR and others operate at L1, around 930,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) inside the orbit of Earth. But L4, a location 60 degrees in front of Earth in its orbit, has not been visited.

KASA wants to set up a solar wind observation station at L4, aiming to boost understanding of space radiation, South Korean outlet The Chosun reported. NASA and KASA will conduct joint research on data transmission, optical communications and the use of relays at L4, according to the report. There was no indication of a potential launch date for the prospective mission.

Further agreements on NASA-KASA cooperation could follow regarding NASA's Artemis program, the report states. The pair have already collaborated on South Korea's Danuri lunar orbiter, while KASA is currently targeting its first robotic lunar landing by 2032. 

When we look out into the universe with our unaided eyes, we are really only seeing a small chunk of what's actually there. That's because there are parts of the electromagnetic spectrum that our visual faculties are not sensitive to.

Radiation is being emitted by all manner of cosmic phenomena across this spectrum, yet we're only able to physically see wavelengths within the visible light range without the help of external tools — but luckily, astronomers have access to telescopes that allow them to observe the universe across this continuum.

The South African MeerKAT radio telescope is one such observatory, allowing astronomers to probe the radio band emissions of stars, blackholes and galaxies in the surrounding universe. Recently, an international team of astronomers from the MeerKAT Absorption Line Survey (MALS) used a vast catalog of radio sources captured by the MeerCAT radio telescope to make a measurement of a phenomenon called the "cosmic radio dipole." 

Observing the radio sky can give astronomers insights into the large-scale structure of the universe, as radio emissions from far off galaxies can travel through space on relatively uninterrupted trajectories. The MALS survey has produced an extremely sensitive catalog of close to a million radio sources in the sky because the team pointed the MeerKAT telescope array in 391 directions. 

Related: How did the universe's elements form?

"The depth and the expanse of this continuum catalog holds a unique position among modern radio continuum surveys," Neeraj Gupta, an astronomer at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) who leads the MALS project, said in a statement.

The cosmic radio dipole is an effect generated by the motion of the solar system through space as it orbits the center of the Milky Way galaxy, and as the Milky Way gravitationally interacts with other galaxies. The effect makes radio sources appear more numerous in the direction the solar system is traveling in, and less numerous in the opposite direction. 

The magnitude of this effect should be directly related to the velocity of the solar system through space — however, the effect has been found to be much higher based on previous measurements of the solar system's motion through space. 

This made astronomers question whether the dipole might not just be caused by the motion of the solar system through space, but rather by other radio sources (and therefore more galaxies) in the direction that the solar system is traveling. However, the new dipole measurement based on the MALS survey is aligned with predictions based on current measurements of the solar system's movement through space.

Astronomers think this discrepancy may be related to the design of different surveys, where the MALS survey covered small patches of the sky to a very deep level. By contrast, other radio surveys have measured wider patches of sky but on much shallower scales."Measuring the dipole is an extremely important test of cosmology, and can tell us whether our fundamental assumptions about the structure of the Universe are correct," Jonah Wagenveld, an astronomer at MPIfR and lead author of the paper that reported the findings, said in the statement. 

As the new findings reveal, radio astronomy offers scientists novel ways of observing the universe at the largest scales, and therefore, opportunities to test our best cosmological theories against observational data. 

A pre-print about these results can be viewed on the paper repository arXiv and a paper has been published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Space looks black, but just how dark is it? 

It's a deceptively simple question that has puzzled astronomers since the 1960s. Now, thanks to data from NASA's New Horizons probe, they have arrived at the best-yet estimate of how dark — or rather, bright — deep space is: 100 billion times dimmer than the sunlight we see on Earth.

That's the amount of ambient, universe-permating glow from the births and deaths of trillions of galaxies and their countless stars ever resided in our universe. This vanishingly faint light is called the cosmic optical background (COB), and can be thought of as the visible equivalent of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation, the light left over from the universe's creation. 

"If you hold up your hand in deep space, how much light does the universe shine on it?" study lead author Marc Postman, an astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, said in a statement. "We now have a good idea of just how dark space really is."

Precise measurements of the COB allows astronomers to study how and where galaxies and stars formed across the universe's 13.8-billion-year history. But the remnant glow is so imperceptible that even advanced telescopes struggle to distinguish it from unrelated light sources in the inner solar system, including sunlight scattered by the swarm of debris around Earth and countless specks of interplanetary dust. 

"All attempts to measure the strength of the COB from the inner solar system suffer from large uncertainties," said study co-author Tod Lauer, an astronomer at the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab in Arizona.

New Horizons, however, zoomed past Pluto in July 2015 on its one-way trek out of the solar system and is now 5.5 billion miles (8.7 billion kilometers) from Earth — far enough away to witness the darkest possible "skies" and to collect the most accurate measurements to date of the faint background glow.

In the summer of 2023, the spacecraft scanned its surroundings using its onboard camera, gathering snapshots of two dozen pockets of the universe while pointing at high galactic latitudes, away from nearby bright stars and the Milky Way's blinding core. The probe's main body also shielded the sensitive camera such that even the dimmest sunlight couldn't directly reach it, according to the same statement.

While analyzing the probe's images, Lauer and his colleagues deducted light generated by dust in the halo that the Milky Way sits in, leaving them with a precise estimate of the cosmic optical background: roughly 11 nanowatts per square meter per a width of sky about 130 times the moon's diameter. The estimate is consistent with the number of galaxies formed since the Big Bang, the researchers say.

"Importantly, we also found that there is no evidence for significant levels of light produced by sources not presently known to astronomers," Postman said in the statement.

That's a relief to the researchers, whose initial estimates in 2021 suggested that the COB may be brighter than expected, leaving them to wonder whether there are any exotic, as-yet-undiscovered light sources contributing to the cosmic light.

"In our previous paper, we found there was as much light we couldn't account for as light we could measure," Postman told Astronomy.com. "The real 'gotcha' was that we simply weren't as familiar with the distribution of dust in the Milky Way as we should have been."

This time, the team was able to reference recent maps of galactic dust put together by the European Space Agency's Planck spacecraft and correct for the previously overestimated dust-scattered light.

"Looking outside the galaxies, we find darkness there and nothing more," Lauer said in the statement.

New Horizons, which is currently studying the little-explored Kuiper Belt in an extended mission mode, faced an uncertain future last August after NASA considered disbanding the mission's original science team, but agency officials later decided to continue the mission as-is for at least another five years, until 2028. Mission team members have said the probe has enough fuel to continue flying through at least 2040.

This research is described in a paper published Aug. 28 in The Astrophysical Journal.

NASA has reached a significant technological milestone with progress on an experimental form of spacecraft propulsion which utilizes solar radiation.

The space agency successfully deployed one of four identical quadrants of a huge solar sail at Redwire Space's facility in Longmont, Colorado on Jan. 30. The demonstration was a big step towards some day using the technology in space and, farther in the future, utilizing the concept for deep space transportation.

"This was a major last step on the ground before it's ready to be proposed for space missions," NASA technologist Les Johnson said in a statement. "What's next is for scientists to propose the use of solar sails in their missions. We've met our goal and demonstrated that we're ready to be flown."

Related: Solar-sailing probes may soon get their moment in the sun

In the same way a sailboat uses the wind to propel itself, the solar sail harnesses and reflects sunlight to generate propulsion. Particles of light, known as photons, have no mass, yet when they bounce off of a reflective surface such as the foil-like material of a solar sail, they impart some of their momentum onto it. In the vacuum of space, and with enough photons, a large amount of energy can be transferred to a solar sail over time. 

When used within a solar system in which solar radiation is abundant, a solar sail can continue absorbing this momentum to accelerate as long as light reflects off of it. This means craft propelled by solar sails can reach very high speeds, much faster than a chemical rocket — at least in theory. 

The major advantages of solar sails are that they do not require fuel and are very light. This makes the technology suitable for low-mass missions in novel orbits. These include orbits for studying space weather and its effects on the Earth, or for advanced studies of the north and south poles of the sun, according to NASA.

The sail will measure 17,780 square feet (1652 sq. meters) when fully deployed. It is made of a polymer material coated with aluminum with a thickness of 2.5 microns, or less than the width of a human hair.

Solar sails have gathered momentum in recent years. The first solar sail to successfully fly was the Japanese Space Exploration Agency's Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun (IKAROS) spacecraft in 2010. Later missions have included NASA's NanoSail-D and the Planetary Society's Lightsail 1 and Lightsail 2 missions.

The tech could soon be propelling low-cost, long-duration space missions and even help accelerate missions beyond the solar system. NASA's Johnson added that lasers could even be used to accelerate the solar sails to high speeds.

"In the future, we might place big lasers in space that shine their beams on the sails as they depart the solar system, accelerating them to higher and higher speeds, until eventually they are going fast enough to reach another star in a reasonable amount of time," Johnson said in the statement.

NASA's Science Mission Directorate funded Redwire's solar sail technology to reach a new technology readiness level, or TRL 6, which means it's ready for proposals to be flown on space missions. The 1-9 TRL scale represents the stage of development of a technology, with TRL 9 meaning the system has proven through successful mission operations and is considered fully mature and operational.

The project is led by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Prime contractor Redwire developed the deployment mechanisms and booms, with subcontractor NeXolve of Huntsville providing the sail membrane. Marshall developed the algorithms for controlling and navigating with the sail when it flies in space.

A treasure trove of molecules has turned up in two galaxies that we see as they were over 12 billion years ago, revealing information about how the ancient realms form stars.

One of the distant galaxies, APM 08279+5255, is home to a quasar — an active supermassive black hole at its core swallowing huge amounts of gas — while the other galaxy, NCv1.143, is a more "normal" galaxy. Both, however, are seen to be forming stars at a ferocious rate, hundreds of times more stars than the Milky Way galaxy is currently generating.

The two galaxies were targeted by astronomers using NOEMA, the Northern Extended Millimetre Array, in France. NOEMA is able to detect millimeter and submillimeter radio waves. Fascinatingly, the team, led by Chentao Yang of the Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, detected emissions from a whopping 13 different molecules in these two galaxies.

Related: Earliest magnetic galaxy ever detected offers clues about Milky Way history

"We are seeing part of the electromagnetic spectrum that is hard to observe in nearby galaxies," said Yang in a press statement. "But thanks to the expansion of the universe, the light from distant galaxies like these is shifted to longer wavelengths that we can see with radio telescopes observing [at] submillimeter [wavelengths]."

The discovery forms the largest collection of molecules ever detected in galaxies at such extreme distances (the galaxies are now about 20 billion light-years away, and getting further due to  cosmic expansion).

Among the 13 different types of molecules detected are carbon monoxide, carbon monosulfide, the cyano radical (a radical is a molecule with an unpaired electron in the outer shell of one of its constituent atoms), the formyl cation (a cation is positively charged ion), hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen isocyanide, nitric oxide and water. Yang's team also detected five molecules that haven't been seen before  in the early universe: Cyclopropenylidene (a highly reactive organic molecule also found on Saturn's moon Titan), diazenylium (formed of molecular nitrogen and a hydrogen ion), radicals of the organic molecule ethynyl, hydronium ions (formed from a water molecule and a hydrogen ion) and radicals of methylidyne (a highly reactive organic molecule). 

All of these molecules are commonly found in interstellar gas in our Milky Way galaxy, and each provides clues about the environment in which they are found in — an environment we see forming lots of stars.

"We knew these galaxies were prodigious star factories, perhaps among the biggest the universe has ever seen," said Yang.

The team also found that the quasar in APM 08279+5255, contains more excited molecular gas with higher temperatures and densities than the entirety of NCv1.143, a consequence perhaps of the activity around the quasar's black hole. Its molecular abundances are similar to galaxies with active black holes in the more modern universe. Similarly, NCv1.143's molecular inventory is akin to local starburst galaxies, which are simply galaxies birthing lots of stars, such as the Cigar Galaxy (Messier 82) in the constellation of Ursa Major, the Great Bear. It seems that the chemistry of these types of galaxies was already in place 12 billion years ago.

But not everything is the same. The strength of emissions from some of the molecules, such as carbon dioxide, coupled with extreme conditions in the two galaxies' star-forming gas, suggests what is called a "top-heavy initial mass function." The initial mass function, or IMF, describes how many stars of a given mass are able to form, with low-mass stars being much more common than high-mass stars. A top-heavy IMF would imply that more massive stars were able to form in the early universe than can form today. This might not only explain why galaxies in the early universe that are being detected by the James Webb Space Telescope are more luminous than expected — they contain more massive, brighter stars —  but also suggest the presence of more massive stars that explode as supernovas will accelerate the development of chemistry in these galaxies, distributing heavy elements across space.

"The most remarkable galaxies in the early universe are finally able to tell their stories through their molecules," said co-author Pierre Cox, of Sorbonne Université in France.

The findings were published on December 14th in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. 

Some of the universe's most energetic and mysterious light shows, long gamma-ray bursts, could be generated after dense dead stars collide to create infant black holes surrounded by a natal disk of gas and dust. 

This is the conclusion of a team of researchers who used computer simulations to show that when neutron stars  —  dense, extremely dead stars created when massive stars run out of nuclear fuel  —  collide and merge, a long gamma-ray burst can be launched alongside the event's jets and winds of energetic particles.

These results could help astronomers explain the existence of strange long gamma-ray bursts that can't be linked to the collapse of massive stars which, in addition to creating neutron stars, can also birth stellar-mass black holes.

"Our findings, which connect observations with underlying physics, have unified many unresolved mysteries in the field of gamma-ray bursts," Ore Gottlieb, lead author of the research and a scientist at the Center for Computational Astrophysics (CCA), said in a statement. "For the first time, we can look at gamma-ray burst observations and know what happened before the black hole formed."

Related: This gamma-ray space mystery may finally be solved with new black hole simulations

Solving a long gamma-ray burst puzzle 

Gamma-ray bursts were initially spotted in the late 1960s, and since then, they have presented scientists with an enduring puzzle as the exact mechanism that creates these bursts of high-energy light remains mysterious.

The picture is further complicated by the fact that there are two distinct populations of gamma-ray bursts: short-duration bursts lasting no more than a second and long-duration bursts, which can last longer than 10 seconds. 

Physicists initially linked short gamma-ray bursts to jets blasted out during neutron star mergers, which also generate flashes of light called kilonovas and create so-called "hyper-massive neutron stars" that themselves quickly collapse to birth black holes. On the other hand, long gamma-ray bursts were attributed to jets of matter launched in the collapse of massive rotating stars to birth either black holes or neutron stars.

Yet, in 2022, astronomers discovered two long gamma-ray bursts that didn't quite fir in with patterns of other radiation blasts of this type. These bursts thus couldn't be created in the collapse of a massive star, the scientists reasoned. This is what first led experts  to speculate that cosmic collisions could also create long gamma-ray bursts under certain circumstances. 

Gottlieb and colleagues have spent months running sophisticated simulations with the Flatiron Institute's supercomputers to see if such a hypothesis held true, and mergers could indeed spark long gamma-ray bursts. 

The simulations start with two compact objects closely orbiting one another,  then spiraling together, colliding and merging. Upon merging, the event launches jets of matter out at near-light speeds. The team then observed these jets in the simulation as they traveled far away from the merger site's epicenter.

Combining this model with data gathered in astronomical observations, Gottlieb and colleagues devised a unified model for gamma-ray bursts, showing that the strange long gamma-ray burst examples could be created in the aftermath of neutron star mergers. This would happen, they say, because the resultant body of a merger is surrounded by a rotating disk of leftover material that is magnetically charged. This ring of material could technically send out long gamma-ray bursts. 

Interestingly, the model could also help scientists determine what the system sending out those gamma-ray bursts looked like before the merger.

"If we see a long gamma-ray burst like the ones observed in 2022, we now know that it’s coming from a black hole with a massive disk," Gottlieb added. "And knowing there is a massive disk, we now can figure out the ratio of the masses of the two parental objects because their mass ratio is related to the properties of the disk. For example, the merger of unequal-mass neutron stars will inevitably produce a long-duration gamma-ray burst."

The model devised by the team isn't just applicable to long gamma-ray bursts either. It could be used to better understand the process behind the launch of short gamma-ray bursts. Gottlieband and the team’s model may be hinting that these shorter-duration blasts of high-energy radiation could originate from smaller disks of matter around black holes. 

Or, alternatively, short gamma-ray bursts could emerge from unstable hypermassive neutron stars before they rapidly collapse to birth black holes, the team says.Using the model in this way will require it to undergo refinement and needs more gamma-ray burst observational data, which could be forthcoming when the Vera C. Rubin Observatory starts observing in early 2025.

"As we get more observations of gamma-ray bursts at different pulse durations, we’ll be better able to probe the central engines powering these extreme events," Gottlieb concluded.

The research was published on Nov. 29 in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

The most energetic particles in the universe appear to emerge from sources within the Milky Way, our home galaxy.

Cosmic rays are made of subatomic particles, such as protons and electrons, whose energies span a wide spectrum. Ultra-high-energy cosmic rays easily host tens of millions of times more energy than any particle accelerator can generate on Earth, but where they come from — and precisely what accelerates them to become some of the fastest in the universe — has intrigued scientists since the discovery of these phenomena in 1962.

In the past, astronomers had managed to provide some solid evidence that cosmic rays come from sources residing outside the Milky Way. But now, a new study suggests they also originate from within the galaxy, blasting out from the leftovers of exploded stars, otherwise known as supernova remnants. 

The new observations "open the tantalizing possibility that matter from a particular nearby supernova remnant can be measured at Earth," study co-author Gregory Guzik of the Louisiana State University said in a statement.

Related: Earthquakes seem more intense after cosmic ray strikes. Scientists say this is why

The latest results are thanks to a sensitive, dedicated telescope mounted outside the International Space Station (ISS), which since 2015 has been struck by over seven million ultra-high-energy cosmic ray particles. The instrument, the Calorimetric Electron Telescope (or CALET), was installed on the ISS with the hopes of being a more powerful cosmic ray detector than its flagship predecessor, the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer.

Cosmic rays are known to rapidly lose energy once they exit their sources, so scientists say the recorded high-energy rays are convincing evidence that they originated from sources nearby our solar system.

But where exactly are they coming from? The team does not know for sure yet, but have some suspicions. 

It's possible, the researchers say, that the rays emerged from at least three of 12 supernova remnants scattered around our solar system within 3,000 light-years of us. One of them could be Vela, at a little over 800 light-years away. Vela is an 11,000-year-old, well-studied remnant of an exploded star, which shone 250 times brighter than Venus when it blasted and would have been visible as a bright flash in the sky even during the daytime. This remnant is also associated with the Vela pulsar — a rapidly rotating neutron star that broke records this year, when it released the highest-energy radiation ever seen coming from its kind.

The new findings are also "a strong indicator that the paradigm that we have for understanding these high-energy electrons — that they come from supernova remnants and that they are accelerated the way that we think they are — is correct," study lead author Nicholas Cannady, a scientist at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, said in the statement. 

They "give insight into what's going on in these supernova remnants, and offer a way to understand the galaxy and these sources in the galaxy better," Cannady added.

The CALET telescope recorded its first event in October 2015. Among the seven million rays detected since then, the telescope was able to identify a range of cosmic ray energies,  all the way up to levels of 10 teravolts, with a few even beyond. This is a significant step up from previous works, which could only detect cosmic rays at about 4 teravolts, the scientists say.

"This is essentially what CALET was put up to do," Cannady said. "So it's exciting to be working on this and to finally be getting results that are pushing the bounds of what we've seen before."

The team plans to continue CALET measurements of cosmic ray sources until the ISS retires, which will likely be by the end of this decade.

This research is described in a paper published Thursday (Nov. 9) in the journal Physical Review Letters. 

A mesmerizing new photo from the Hubble Space Telescope captures the hazy glow of a distant galaxy. 

The galaxy, known as NGC 3156, is located about 73 million light-years from Earth in the Sextans constellation. It is categorized as a lenticular galaxy, which is a cross between a spiral and an elliptical galaxy as it boasts a bright central bulge but no distinct twisting arms. Lenticular galaxies are also believed to have either used up or lost most of their interstellar matter, which suggests they are home to older stellar populations.

In the recent photo of NGC 3156, faint concentric ovals appear progressively brighter towards the core when  compared to faded edges of the galaxy. Two threads of dark red interstellar dust cut across the galaxy’s disk, circling its central bulge. Relatively few cosmic neighbors are captured in the surrounding area of space. 

Related: The best Hubble Space Telescope images of all time! 

The Sextans constellation occupies a sparse, relatively dark area of the sky. It is a minor equatorial constellation that belongs to the Hercules family of constellations, and is named after the astronomical tool used to measure the angular distance between two visible objects in the sky. 

"Sextants are often thought of as navigational instruments that were invented in the 18th century. However, the sextant as an astronomical tool has been around for much longer than that: Islamic scholars developed astronomical sextants many hundreds of years earlier in order to measure angles in the sky," European Space Agency (ESA) officials said in a statement releasing the new Hubble photo of NGC 3156. 

"A particularly striking example is the enormous sextant with a radius of 36 meters that was developed by Ulugh Beg of the Timurid dynasty in the fifteenth century, located in Samarkand in present-day Uzbekistan," ESA officials said. "These early sextants may have been a development of the quadrant, a measuring device proposed by Ptolemy." 

Sextants have long since been replaced by more sophisticated instruments such as the Hubble Space telescope — a joint mission led by the ESA and NASA — which are able to measure the positions of stars and astronomical objects much more accurately and precisely. 

Hubble captured this recent photo, which was released online on September 11, using data from its Advanced Camera for Surveys and Wide Field Camera 3. Hubble has helped astronomers study the galaxy’s position, stellar population (including densely packed globular clusters) and the supermassive black hole at its core. 

Gravitational lensing is an effect on light from a background source that arises as a result of the curvature of spacetime, the three dimensions of space and time united into a single entity, caused by mass.

The effect is most observable when light from a bright background source, like a star, a quasar, or an entire galaxy, passes a very massive object like another galaxy or a cluster of galaxies, described as a lensing object or just a gravitational lens.

This can have several results; it can make an object shift its apparent position in the sky over Earth, or it can cause a single object to appear at multiple points in the sky, occasionally giving rise to spectacular formations like rings and crosses made from the same object. 

More than this, gravitational lensing can actually cause the light from a background object to be amplified. That means that astronomers can use the gravitational lensing arising from galactic clusters as natural cosmic magnifying glasses. 

This has made it an important tool for the investigation of the universe when it was in its infancy, making light from the earliest galaxies that would usually be too faint to see observable by instruments like the James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA says. 

Related: James Webb Space Telescope image gallery

How does gravitational lensing work?

In 1915 Albert Einstein revolutionized how we think of gravity by introducing general relativity, a theory that is also sometimes known as the geometric theory of gravity. It is from this theory that gravitational lensing was born.

Einstein's idea was that gravity arises from the fact that mass causes the very fabric of spacetime to curve, and the greater the mass, the greater this curvature is. Think of this as being analogous to balls of increasing mass being placed on a stretched rubber sheet, with a bowling ball causing a greater "dent" than, say, a tennis ball.

Of course, this curvature has an effect on other matter passing over it. So, for instance, the curvature of spacetime caused by the sun keeps Earth in orbit, while the curvature Earth itself causes keeps the moon in orbit [R. J. A Lambourne., 2010, pg 166].

American theoretical physicist John Wheeler succinctly described the effect of general relativity as such: "Matter tells space-time how to curve, and space-time tells matter how to move."

But, the curvature of spacetime doesn't just affect matter; it affects light too, meaning that light always travels in straight lines, apart from when it doesn't. If this sounds contradictory, think of a straight line drawn on a sheet of paper. If that paper is then curved, the line itself hasn't deviated from its path, but yet it is still no longer straight. The path photons of light follow as they travel through space is called a geodesic, and it can be curved like a line drawn on paper [R. J. A Lambourne., 2010, pg 133].

The bending of light as it passes a curved region of spacetime created by a massive object gives rise to gravitational lensing [R. J. A Lambourne., 2010, pg 223].

Until general relativity, in the physics of Issac Newton, space and time had been considered the unchanging stages upon which the events of the universe played out, though Newton had also predicted the bending of light but to a much lesser extent than Einstein. 

Changing spacetime into a dynamic and changing aspect of the universe was controversial and meant general relativity would require a great deal of evidence before it would be accepted by the physics community of the 20th century. Fortunately, gravitational lensing provided exactly the kind of predictable and observable effect that could be used to deliver this evidence. 

How gravitational lensing proved Einstein right

General relativity suggests that as an upshot of gravitational lensing, the curvature of light from a background source as it passes a gravitational lens causes the object it originates from appear in a different location in the sky than it would normally.

Astronomer Arthur Stanley Eddington believed that this shift in apparent position was key to providing verification of general relativity. He thought that he could use a solar eclipse and the darkening of the sun to observe the apparent position shift of well-studied stars caused by the mass of the sun.

Eddington took advantage of the 1919 eclipse to test this idea, traveling to Sobral in northern Brazil to observe the eclipse while a second team journeyed to the island of Príncipe off the coast of West Africa to make similar observations. 

During the 1919 eclipse, the sun sat in front of the Hyades, a cluster of bright stars in the constellation of Taurus. The light-bending effect would be at its most extreme closest to the disk of the sun, and fortunately, many stars of the Hyades would be visible near the disk of the sun during the eclipse. 

Despite many technical issues experienced during the double expedition, Eddington and the second team led by astronomer Andrew Claude de la Cherois Crommelin observed a deflection of light from these stars as a result of the sun coming between them and Earth that was consistent with the predictions of general relativity. The change in apparent position was twice that which was predicted by Newton's theory of gravity. 

Though the findings have not been without controversy, many similar eclipse experiments performed after this have further confirmed gravitational lensing and the curvature of space by massive objects and have revealed more about this incredible phenomenon arising from gravity. 

Types of gravitational lensing

There are three major types of gravitational lensing, according to the University of California, Berkeley, strong lensing, weak lensing, and microlensing. 

Strong gravitational lensing

 As the name suggests, strong lensing is the most extreme of these and occurs when the gravitational lens is particularly massive, and the background source that is being lensed is close to it. This means that the light from this source can take multiple paths past the gravitational lens, depending on how close its path carries it. As a result, strongly lensed light from a single object can arrive at an observer at different times. 

If the background object that is being lensed varies with time, then its multiple images will also vary. Not only can this be used to track the development of explosive events like supernovas, the explosive deaths of massive stars, but it can also be used to measure how rapidly the universe is expanding, a rate known as the Hubble constant, University of California, Berkeley explains. 

 Results of strong gravitational lensing

The first time that multiple images were seen from a single object was in 1979 when astronomers saw the double image of a quasar, which has come to be known, somewhat inaccurately, as the "Twin Quasar." 

Initially believing these to be two separate quasars, designated Q0957+561 A and B, astronomers studied their radio and visible light spectra, discovering they are identical. A team of scientists led by Dennis Walsh concluded that these twin quasars are, in fact, the same object, the light from which has taken different paths around a faint but detectable galaxy between the quasar and Earth, with that galaxy acting as a gravitational lens [R. J. A Lambourne., 2010, pg 223].

Since 1979, astronomers have discovered that stang gravitational lensing can create some weird and wonderful manifestations. 

According to ESA, the results of strong gravitational lensing are different depending on the shape of the object that is doing the lensing. The simplest types of gravitational lensing occur when there is a single object warping spacetime and bending light.

If a gravitational lens is spherical, then it creates what is known as an Einstein ring in which a single object is repeated in a circular arrangement. If the gravitational lens object is elongated, like some galaxies, for instance, that the background object is replicated in a cross-like arrangement, referred to as an Einstein cross. 

ESA adds that more complex gravitational lensing happens when the lensing object is an irregular shape or an arrangement of massive objects, such as a galactic cluster. In these cases, the effect on background sources is warping their appearance, smearing them across an image, and making them appear as arcs or even stretched out like taffy. 

This striking effect is particularly prominent in the arcs and swirls that represent lensed galaxies seen in the first image delivered to the public from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the deep field image of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 revealed by U.S. President Joe Biden on July 11, 2022. 

These smears created by galactic clusters acting as gravitational lenses can be studied to assess the distribution of mass within those clusters. This is particularly useful to astronomers studying the distribution of dark matter around galaxies.

Though dark matter doesn't interact with electromagnetic radiation and thus doesn't emit, absorb, or reflect light, it does have mass, meaning it warps spacetime and interacts gravitationally, just like "ordinary matter" that makes up the visible components of galaxies.

That means by looking at the amount of gravitational lensing caused by a galaxy or a cluster of galaxies and then comparing this to the lensing that would have arisen from just the visible matter in that gathering, like stars and hot gas, astronomers can determine how much invisible dark matter is present and how it is distributed. 

Weak and micro gravitational lensing

Weak lensing occurs when the gravitational lensing isn't extreme enough to give rise to multiple instances of the same object in the same view of the universe or to create visually striking smeared galaxies. Weak lensing still causes some distortion, but this can't be seen on individual galaxies, so the only way to really see the effect of weak lensing is by looking at a lot of galaxies and averaging the effect across them.

Strong and weak gravitational lensing come from incredibly massive objects like galaxies or galactic clusters, but much more diminutive objects can also warp spacetime and divert the path of light. Gravitational microlensing [R. J. A Lambourne., 2010, pg 225] occurs when a lensing object has a mass similar to that of the sun or as large as several times that of our star.

While the distortion created by gravitational microlensing may be too subtle to detect, it does create a brightening of objects. This means gravitational microlensing can be used by monitoring changes in the brightness of well-studied stars. The brightening of a distant star for a period of days or weeks can indicate that a dense and dark unseen object has passed in front of these stars, causing them to be temporarily lensed.

Microlensing has become a viable way to detect black holes, which don't emit any light from beyond the light-trapping surface that acts as their boundary, known as the event horizon, and thus can't be seen unless they are creating turbulent and violent conditions in gas and dust around them causing it to glow. This is because as they still possess mass, black holes still warp space and thus still give rise to a small amount of gravitational lensing.

How the JWST and Hubble space telescope use gravitational lensing to look back in time

As the light from distant and thus early galaxies travels to Earth, it loses energy and thus becomes fainter. That means early galaxies are so faint they aren't visible to even the most powerful equipment created by humanity. That is unless they get a helping handing from a magnifying glass the size of an entire galactic cluster. 

The magnification of light caused by gravitational lensing has been used to great effect by the Hubble Space Telescope, which has employed it to study the structure of early galaxies. From its position over Earth, free of the blurring effects of our planet's atmosphere, Hubble, which has been studying the universe since 1990, can see gravitationally lensed early galaxies that ground-based telescopes would miss. 

This has helped the ground-breaking telescope to study the structure of galaxies that could not be seen without the use of gravitational lensing, even by Hubble's new, more powerful partner, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) according to NASA. 

The JWST has followed the lead of Hubble, using gravitational lensing to great effect and producing images with galaxies warped and smeared around a galactic cluster lens in such a way it would make abstract painter Salvador Dali proud. 

In just its first year of operation since coming online in mid-2022, the JWST has built upon the work of Hubble using gravitational lensing to see four of the most distant and, thus, earliest galaxies known to date. These galaxies, JADES-GS-z10–0, JADES-GS-z11–0, JADES-GS-z12–0, and JADES-GS-z13–0, existed when the 13.8 billion-year-old universe was just around 350 million years old.

Gravitational lensing FAQs answered by an expert

We asked Victor Chan, a Ph.D. student in the University of Toronto's David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, some frequently asked questions about gravitational lensing.  

Additional resources

General relativity explains that the curving of spacetime by mass gives rise to other stunning and often shocking phenomena aside from gravitational lensing. One example is "frame dragging," in which a rotation object of great mass literally drags space and time around with it. In 2015 an astronomer from the University of California, Berkeley, discovered a distant supernova being lensed four times by a massive galaxy creating an explosive Einstein cross.  

Bibliography

Gravitational Lensing, ESA, [Acessed 05/20/23], [https://esahubble.org/wordbank/gravitational-lensing/#:~:text=Gravitational%20lensing%20occurs%20when%20a,accordingly%20called%20a%20gravitational%20lens.]

Gravitational lensing, Hubblesite NASA, [Acessed 05/20/23], [https://hubblesite.org/contents/articles/gravitational-lensing]

Spyglasses into the Universe: gravitational lenses, ESA, [Acessed 05/20/23], [https://esahubble.org/science/gravitational_lensing/]

Different types of gravitational lenses, ESA, [Acessed 05/20/23], [https://esahubble.org/images/heic0404b/]

R. J. A., Lambourne., Relativity, Gravitation and Cosmology, Cambridge University Press, [2010], ISBN 978 0 521 13138 4

Gravitational lensing, University of California, Berkeley, [Acessed 05/20/23], [https://w.astro.berkeley.edu/~jcohn/lens.html]

Discoveries - Highlights | Shining a Light on Dark Matter, Hubble Space Telescope, NASA, [Acessed 05/20/23], [https://www.nasa.gov/content/discoveries-highlights-shining-a-light-on-dark-matter]

G. Gilmore., G. Tausch-Pebody., The 1919 eclipse results that verified general relativity and their later detractors: a story re-told, Royal Society Journal of the History of Science, [2021] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsnr.2020.0040]

As striking as our own solar system can be, there's something downright mesmerizing about gazing deeper, taking in nebulas, star clusters and distant galaxies. That's where the best telescopes for deep space come in.

Our experts have rounded up the best deep space skywatching equipment, suitable for bringing the night sky into focus. True, these telescopes tend to be bigger and more expensive than some other telescopes but the views you stand to gain are absolutely worth it.

However, we have included some budget options, so you don't absolutely have to spend a fortune. Prime Day (Jun 23-26) is upon us, so check out our Prime Day deals for further scope savings.

The quick list

We've rounded up our top picks of the best telescopes for deep space, summarized their main features, who they're suited to, and where you can buy them. It's important you buy the right telescope for you, so if you want to know more about a particular model, click on the 'read more below' option, and you'll be taken to a more in-depth summary.

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The best telescopes for deep space we recommend in 2025

Best overall

Design: We love the design of the Celestron NexStar 8SE. It's very well made, and feels incredible solid and sturdy. It's one that will last for many years if you take care of it — and Celestron's signature orange color makes it stand out for the crowd. It sports high-quality Schmidt-Cassegrain optics which allow for beautifully clear views, and it has a motorized single fork arm mount and a handheld remote control.

Thanks to having a catadioptric construction, Celestron has been able to squeeze a huge amount of power into a short tube — this is one of the most compact deep sky telescopes on this list, making it possible to carry around with relative ease.

Performance: The large 8-inch aperture makes this telescope ideal for deep space since it can soak up a phenomenal amount of light. In our Celestron NexStar 8SE review we were seriously impressed by its optical prowess, which gave us consistently bright and sharp views across a range of different targets. Despite a short lag between pushing a button on the remote and the motor beginning to turn, we found the slewing and object tracking to be incredibly accurate, and its smoothness would make this scope fantastic for long exposure astrophotography as well.

Functionality: The scope is quick and easy to set up and align, even for beginners, and once aligned, the viewing experience is entirely automated. Simply select the celestial object you wish to view, punch the number in on the remote and the mount will automatically slew to your desired target. The only real downside is that it requires a whopping 8 x AA batteries, so we'd recommend kitting yourself out with a set of rechargeable batteries and a battery charger to keep the ongoing costs down.

• Read our full Celestron NexStar 8SE review

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Best smart telescope

Design: We loved the sleek and minimalist design of the Unistellar eVscope 2. There is just a single power button on the main body of the telescope, with the rest of the controls being accessed via the Unistellar app. It's an appealing option for those looking for an innovative way to view and photograph the night sky.

This scope is an incredibly sophisticated device that merges a telescope with a camera, so you don't need extra camera gear. It has a 4.5-inch reflector and a built-in camera with a 7.7MP image sensor, making it simple to take and share pictures.

Performance: If you prefer traditional telescope gear, you'll like the Nikon eyepiece that comes with the set. But if you're into modern tech, there's also an electronic eyepiece available. This one features an OLED screen similar to what you find on mirrorless cameras. It's different from the optical view and can't be swapped with Barlow lenses or other magnifiers. Still, we like using it because the screen is excellent quality, with fantastic contrast and deep blacks.

If you're primarily using the Unistellar eVscope 2 as an astrocamera, you might find its 7.7MP sensor a little restrictive compared to a true DSLR or mirrorless camera. You won't be able to blow up photos very large for display. That said, we've found that the eVscope 2 performs valiantly compared to many dedicated astrocameras, and using it is very straightforward, taking out a lot of the hassle. If you're a beginner astrophotographer, then, this is a great place to start.

Functionality: There are few telescopes that are as easy to set up as the eVscope 2, which essentially aligns itself. All you need to do is power the telescope on and ensure it's connected to the app: Everything else happens automatically. You don't need any previous knowledge of the telescope itself or astronomy as a whole to be able to get the most out of using the Unistellar eVscope 2, either, as the app is very intuitive and easy to use. We'd be tempted to recommend this for beginners, if it wasn't for the huge price tag.

• Read our full: Unistellar eVscope 2 review

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Best value

Design: A telescope with a slightly bigger aperture can gather a lot more light, making images appear brighter. For instance, an 8-inch mirror gathers 77% more light than a 6-inch mirror, even though it's only 33% wider. The Sky-Watcher Skyliner-200P is the best affordable choice for deep-sky stargazing in this category. It focuses on giving you great performance without unnecessary fancy features.

The Skyliner-200P is a weighty telescope at 24kg, but its compact footprint of 54cm makes it easy to fit in tight storage spaces when stored upright. It is also quick to set up and pack away compared to other telescopes of this size.

Performance: There's no automatic tracking with the Sky-Watcher Skyliner 200P Classic: It has a basic Dobsonian mount which means you'll need to manually locate and track celestial objects for yourself. But we've been pleased with how smooth its movements are, making tracking pleasant and easy — if you're more of a traditional astronomer, you'll undoubtedly appreciate this.

The Skyliner 200P can accept 2-inch eyepieces on its dual-size focuser, which offer wonderfully immersive views of the deep sky. 2-inch eyepieces are great for achieving wider fields of view at lower magnifications, offering up wonderful vistas.

Functionality: If you want to explore deep space without breaking the bank, this telescope is a great deal. It's a sturdy, classic model that traditionalists will appreciate. But if you're interested in electronic features, you might want to check out the Flextube Synscan Go-To version of the same telescope. It has the same excellent optics but comes with user-friendly electronic functions.

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Best premium telescope

Design: The Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD features an improved Schmidt-Cassegrain optical design with additional lens elements intended to aid with astrophotography. Its computerized mount combines Celestron's NexStar firmware with a German-style equatorial mount that not only slews to your desired celestial object but is also compatible with a range of other cameras and telescopes using Vixen or Losmandy dovetails. This makes it an excellent choice for those who want to gain good views of the night sky with the option of dabbling in astrophotography at the same time.

Performance: The 8-inch aperture on this telescope offers extremely sharp views, even away from the center of the field. You'll be able to achieve majestic views of Saturn and Jupiter, see globular clusters resolved into stars and easily view Messier Objects. In extremely dark skies it can even bring out galaxies down to 12th magnitude. The supplied 40mm eyepiece offers 50x magnification but we'd recommend investing in an additional 20mm eyepiece with 100x magnification for general purpose and a 10mm eyepiece with 200x magnification for viewing the moon and planets.

Functionality: In our Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD review, we particularly enjoyed stacking images of Jupiter to produce a view that was even better than you could hope to achieve by eye. However, we think you'd need a heftier mount for any serious long-exposure photographs of nebulas and galaxies.

The equatorial mount finds and tracks objects extremely well, though it requires a bit of knowledge to be able to align it correctly, so it's aimed more at intermediate to advanced astronomers than beginners. It's fantastic for attaching all manner of cameras to take pictures of the moon, planets and deep sky objects.

• Read our full Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD review

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Best for serious observers

Design: The Sky-Watcher Flextube 16-inch 400P Synscan is huge thanks to its Dobsonian telescope — but it offers unrivaled views of the night sky. There's a 16-inch aperture here, which gives astonishing views of celestial objects in deep space.

You'll need to connect this telescope to the mains to use it (or use an external power tank), so along with its size, it makes traveling with it almost out of the question. That said, you can dismantle the telescope thanks to it having a truss tube design, which makes it slightly more portable/

Performance: You likely won't find anything to rival this telescope in terms of optics. It's one of the best we've seen in terms of performance and offers spectacular views of the deep sky.

With built-in Go-To and tracking technology, you'd think the Sky-Watcher Flextube should be easy enough to use. But in fact, it's rather complex. It's not the most intuitive telescope on the market, so we wouldn't recommend it for beginners. Its tracking performance also isn't the best, and if precision is important to you, it's probably one that's best to avoid.

Functionality: With dual-encoder technology, you can slew the telescope manually without having to reposition it. Each axis remembers its position, so you can switch between celestial objects smoothly while keeping tracking intact. This telescope provides an impressive experience for viewing deep-sky objects, thanks to its large mirror, especially when you're observing galaxies and nebulas under dark skies.

Still, it's not as intuitive for beginners as some of the other options, so we'd say that it's probably best to start with something less complex and work up to this one if you catch the deep sky bug.

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Best compact smart telescope

The Vaonis Vespera Pro is one of the best smart telescopes for imaging deep space objects like large nebulas and star clusters, thanks to its 12.5MP sensor and imaging technology. It delivers pro performance in a compact shell and is light enough at 11 lbs (5 kg) to take to any dark sky site. The Singularity app works seamlessly with the device to easily locate any dark sky subject and start imaging it within minutes of use.

Design: The Vespera Pro retains the sleek, white, egg-like aesthetic that has become the brand’s signature, but it feels more robust than ever. Unlike traditional setups with exposed gears and dangling wires, this smart telescope is completely enclosed, protecting its internal components from the elements. A single-button interface and USB-C charging port maintain the minimalist design, while the carbon-fiber tripod provides a small but stable base.

Performance: At the heart of the Vespera Pro is a Sony IMX676 Starvis 2 sensor, which offers a significant jump in resolution and sensitivity over previous models. The CovalENS mosaic mode is a standout, allowing the telescope to stitch together multiple frames into massive 50 MP panoramas of wide-field deep space objects. While it isn't designed for high-magnification planetary work or smaller night sky objects, it excels at deep-sky objects. Even under moderate light pollution, the automated stacking and noise-reduction algorithms produce clean images of galaxies and star clusters in minutes.

Functionality: Operation is driven by the Singularity app, which is easy to use and has a catalog of over 4000 sky targets. The setup process is easy: you simply level the tripod and tap initialize. The addition of expert mode is a welcome upgrade for veterans, providing manual control over exposure times and gain, as well as the ability to capture Raw files (FITS or TIFF) for manual processing. Practical features like the 11-hour battery life and 225GB of internal storage ensure you won't run out of power or space during an all-night session.

All of this amazing technology in such a small package leads to a huge price point at around $3000. This is the price even without purchasing extra dual-band, solar and light pollution filters. Whilst worth it for serious deep-sky imaging, it is unfortunately out of budget for most beginners but if you can stretch to a premium budget, you won't regret getting the Vespera Pro.

• Read our full Vaonis Vespera Pro review

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Best for versatility

Design: The Sky-Watcher Skymax 150 is a versatile telescope perfect for observing planets, the moon, and deep space objects. Priced at under $1000, it provides fantastic value for good quality stargazing equipment. However, it's important to note that sometimes it comes with a tripod, and sometimes it doesn't, depending on where you buy it. So, it's a good idea to do some research before making your purchase.

Performance: The Skymax 150 excels in optics, delivering exceptional performance with no chromatic aberration or color fringing. The sharpness remains consistent across the entire field of view, and you can even achieve high-contrast images if that's what you're aiming for.

The main downside of the Skymax 150 is its somewhat narrow field of view. Although nebulas and clusters look amazing, getting them fully in view can be a bit tricky. Still, you can see galaxies and some planetary nebulas with it.

Functionality: This is a very complex telescope to use, and so we wouldn't necessarily recommend it for complete beginners. It's not completely unintuitive, but without any detailed instructions, it takes some time to get used to. There are certainly better, more user-friendly telescopes on the market for beginners.

That aside, we think the Skymax 150 is fantastic in use once you've become accustomed to its quirks. It offers up fantastic views thanks to its high quality optics and, for a deep space telescope, it's surprisingly lightweight, meaning that traveling around with it is an option.

• See more Skywatcher telescopes at the best prices

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Best for traditional astrophotography

Design: The Sky-Watcher Quattro 150P absolutely can be used as a regular telescope, and it comes with a 22mm eyepiece for just that purpose. However, this is designed for astrophotography and it boasts the optical quality to deliver on that front.

Whether you're shooting or viewing, its optical finderscope is a real boon. It's a striking piece of equipment, though the one catch is that it doesn't include a mount; nor does Sky-Watcher offer it as a bundle. However, you can purchase your own mount, including a motorised one if you'd like to be able to home in on celestial objects.

Performance: The Sky-Watcher Quattro 150P is an excellent choice for astrophotography and it punches well above its weight, offering performance and specs you'd expect from more expensive scopes. We reviewed the Sky-Watcher 200P EQ5 and were seriously impressed, and you can expect that same quality from the 150P.

Functionality: Sky-Watcher has gone to great lengths to make sure that the Quattro 150P can support the weight of astrophotography cameras. And yet, despite this, it's light enough, at 5.7 kg, to be easily portable. If deep space astrophotography is your goal, this scope seriously fits the bill.

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Best for simple setup

Design: The Unistellar eQuinox 2 is a beautifully-designed telescope. If you care about aesthetics, it's hard to be disappointed here. It has a sleek, effortless design with just one button appearing on the body of the telescope. It's very similar in appearance to its predecessor, the original eQuinox, with matte black plastic casing combined with brushed gray metal.

It connects onto an (equally stylish) tripod with a single fork arm, and it's held in place with two set screws. The power button stands out thanks to its LED highlight, and the color changes depending on whether you're connected to your smartphone (solid red) or fading purple (trying to connect).

Performance: The eQuinox 2 packs in a lot of technology into its sleek body. The app is the hub of everything the telescope can do, and thankfully it's simple to use and speedy to complete operations (although you may be hampered somewhat if your phone is outdated). It'll take a few minutes to connect to the app and be set up, but from that point onwards, finding the view you want is very straightforward. The app will generate a list of deep sky objects that will be available in your location in the next couple of hours, and you can select the one you want to go to. Alternatively, you can search yourself for a specific celestial object.

The telescope slews quickly and its motor is quiet, making navigating a smooth and enjoyable experience. In our Unistellar eQuinox 2 review, we praised the instant images created with the telescope, with the app even storing photographs with no extra effort involved.

Functionality: The only real problem we've encountered with the eQuinox 2 is that it doesn't orientate well at twilight: You'll have to wait until quite some time after dusk. It's something to bear in mind if you're planning to use this telescope in parts of the world that don't get fully dark at certain times of the year. When it is orientated, though, you'll be up and running in a matter of minutes, navigating all manner of nebulas, galaxies and star clusters without a hiccup.

• Read our Unistellar eQuinox 2 review for the full lowdown.

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Best telescopes for deep space: Comparions

Honorable mentions

Orion was, for years, a major name in optical technology, putting out quality telescopes, binoculars and more. Unfortunately, all that ended last year when Orion's parent company, Optronic Technologies, ceased operations. As a consequence, their products have been discontinued, and they're not available new.

However, we'd still recommend hunting down their scopes second hand. The Orion 6-inch f/4 Newtonian Astrograph, detailed below, was our best for traditional astrophotography. If you can find it second hand it should be worth picking up.

Design: Designed for astrophotography, the Orion 6-inch F/4 Newtonian Astrograph can be used as a traditional telescope thanks to the included extension tube, but you'll need to supply your own eyepieces. You'll also need to supply your own mount as Orion doesn't sell this telescope as a bundle, but there are plenty of excellent computerized equatorial mounts to choose from.

The Orion 6-inch F/4 Newtonian Astrograph also comes with a straight-through optical finder that has a standard mounting bracket. This finder can be used to attach a guide scope later on, which will help you achieve more precise tracking for those longer exposure shots.

Performance: The Orion 6-inch f/4 Newtonian Astrograph is a no-nonsense astrograph: It packs in excellent mechanics and offers up fast, bright optics. Designed specifically with astrophotography in mind, we think it's a great choice for astrophotographers — particularly if you're on a budget. It does a valiant job of capturing deep sky objects such as star clusters, nebulas and galaxies.

Functionality: Orion has strengthened the focuser to support the weight of a camera and filter assembly mounted on the side of the tube, allowing it to work with any camera, including DSLRs and Mirrorless bodies. Its compact and lightweight build means you don't need a huge mount, making it a great option for beginners and serious deep-sky photographers alike.

Best telescopes for deep space: Frequently Asked Questions

Update log

How we tested the best telescopes for deep space

At Space.com, we take our telescope reviews seriously. To guarantee that you get the most honest and up-to-date recommendations on the best telescopes for deep space, we subject each instrument to a thorough and rigorous review process. Our expert staff and knowledgeable freelance contributors conduct these reviews and consider various aspects, such as construction, design, optical performance and field performance. This ensures that our reviews are fair and backed up with real-life experience.

We take into account factors such as price, intended use, and class during our reviews. For instance, while a 10-inch Dobsonian and a 2.76-inch refractor may be the best picks in their respective classes, comparing them would be inappropriate.

We evaluate the ease of setup, reliability, and noise level of computerized or motorized mounts, as well as whether a telescope comes with appropriate eyepieces and tripods. We even suggest additional equipment if it would enhance your experience. At Space.com, we are committed to providing reliable and transparent buying guides and reviews. With complete editorial independence, you can trust us to provide you with the best buying advice on telescopes and whether you should purchase a particular instrument or not.

PARIS — Heads of the world's major space agencies presented their big plans for the coming years at a major congress in Paris, while underlining the serious challenges that could affect space and humanity.

Officials from NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) took to the stage Sept. 18 at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) 2022 in Paris.

The first major mission milestone discussed is already speeding along. "This weekend, at 15,000 miles an hour, a spacecraft is going to ram a small asteroid that revolves around a larger asteroid," NASA administrator Bill Nelson said, speaking about the upcoming DART mission impact. "We're going to see if we can, just a little bit, move that trajectory so that, as we look out there and try to find the killer asteroids that will threaten the Earth … that we could get it far enough away so that by the time it gets to Earth it would miss us." 

Related: DART asteroid mission: NASA's first planetary defense spacecraft

There were two notable absentees from this year's Heads of Agencies. The China National Space Administration's (CNSA) vice administrator Wu Yanhua dropped out of the panel due to a schedule conflict, according to organizers. Updates on the country's lunar plans are still expected later during the five-day congress.

Russia is not present at IAC following the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine that began in February. Its delegates were granted visas, however, according to Russian news agency TASS. While much of the world has responded with condemnation to the invasion, Nelson stated that cooperation in space between the United States and Russia is still proceeding. Both are partners in the International Space Station program.

"Despite the political troubles on terra firma you still see that professional relationship working in the civilian space arena," Nelson said.

ESA's Josef Aschbacher said that the current economic and geopolitical situation makes the environment around the upcoming ESA ministerial meeting, at which he will request more than 18 billion euros ($18 billion USD) from its member states, a roughly 25% increase in funding.

ESA's big missions in the near future include the launch of the JUpiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE) in the second quarter of 2023 and the first launch of Ariane 6, also expected next year.

Aschbacher added that ESA is also looking to select a handful from 23,000 applicants to be the agency's next astronauts.

CSA's Lisa Campbell also noted challenges, including the fact that Canada suffers 7,500 wildfires each year, burning over 2.5 million hectares of forests. "In response to this, we're developing the WildFireSat mission to increase our ability to monitor wildfires," Campbell said.

Related: The devastating wildfires of 2021 are breaking records and satellites are tracking it all

She also noted that space technology is advancing quickly by combining a broad range of AI computing, meaning "we can generate infinite solutions to many of the challenges we face." 

In terms of major missions, Campbell highlighted that the country is working on Canadarm3 as part of the Lunar Gateway project and will send an astronaut on the Artemis 2 crewed lunar flyby mission, with the astronaut to be selected in the coming months. She also revealed that the CSA will announce in the coming weeks the winning proposal for a lunar south pole rover for a 2026 mission.

JAXA's Hiroshi Yamakawa highlighted that Japan is working on numerous exploration projects, including the MMX sample return mission to Mars' moon Phobos and a human-driven, pressurized lunar rover. JAXA and its industry partners are also close to getting the new H3 rocket ready for its test flight, with launch planned for before the end of the Japanese fiscal year, which ends March 2023.

ISRO Chairman S. Somanath touched on his agency's plans to send astronauts into orbit, stating that the human-rated launcher is ready, but the development of the Gaganyaan crew capsule and its escape system is proving more challenging. 

S. Somanth added that India is seeing a great increase in space startups, including several companies building small satellites India, adding that ISRO is happy to support and advance the work of these commercial firms.

The IAC in Paris is the 73rd edition of the annual congress, which brings together space agencies, astronauts, scientists, researchers, industry and press. 

This years' edition, running with the theme "Space for @ll," has attracted a record 8,700 registrants from 130 countries, International Astronautical Federation president Pascale Ehrenfreund said in an opening ceremony speech. 

Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or on Facebook.  

A spacecraft carrying pristine asteroid samples and 4,000 megabytes of data is about to fly home from the asteroid Bennu. 

The spacecraft, NASA's Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security - Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx, hasn't departed the asteroid just yet. But the craft is beginning its farewell tour, which will bring the spacecraft on a journey back to Earth. The OSIRIS-REx mission will hang out around the 1,640-foot-wide (500 meters) Bennu until May 10, 2021 before traveling roughly 185 million miles (298 million kilometers) back towards Earth and deliver its asteroid sample to scientists on Sept. 24, 2023.

During its most recent and final up-close approach of Bennu, OSIRIS-REx imaged the asteroid for 5.9 hours, which is more than one full rotation of the asteroid. The spacecraft flew within 2.1 miles (3.5 kilometers) of Bennu's surface, according to a recent statement from NASA. This was the closest OSIRIS-REx had been since sample collection, and the flyby maneuver ended around 6 a.m. EDT (10 a.m. GMT) on April 7. 

Related: NASA spacecraft makes historic attempt to snag samples of asteroid Bennu

The pebbles and bits that OSIRIS-REx collected on Bennu during its touchdown on the asteroid's surface in October 2020 will help scientists learn about the asteroid's composition, but the effect that the retrieval had to Bennu's surface — which involved touching down onto the rock for seconds and blowing nitrogen gas onto the asteroid's surface to kick up material — may itself be helpful to scientists, too. OSRIS-REx's recent final flyby of Bennu will help the team learn how the spacecraft changed the surface of Bennu when it collected the samples. 

"By surveying the distribution of the excavated material around the... site, we will learn more about the nature of the surface and subsurface materials along with the mechanical properties of the asteroid," Dr. Dante Lauretta, principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx at the University of Arizona, said in the NASA statement. 

It will take at least until April 13 for the spacecraft's data and pictures from this final flyby to reach the mission team, according to NASA. Bennu's distance from Earth, coupled with the need to share the Deep Space Network antennas with other space missions like Voyager and Perseverance, means that OSIRIS-REx will take several days to download all the flyby data. 

Follow Doris Elin Urrutia on Twitter @salazar_elin. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook. 

An atomic clock capable of paving the way for deep space exploration has been successfully activated, the clock's mission team confirmed on Aug. 23. 

Launched in June, 2019, NASA's Deep Space Atomic Clock (DSAC) is now in orbit around Earth and ready to begin a year-long tech demo. The mercury-ion atomic clock, developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, could one day support autonomous spacecraft traveling far out into the cosmos. 

Atomic clocks measure the distance between objects by timing how long it takes for a signal to travel from one object to the other. While a pendulum clock, for example, keeps time by counting the "ticks" of its resonator: a pendulum and gears, an atomic clock keeps time with a different resonator: the resonance frequencies of atoms.

Related: A NASA Atomic Clock Will Pioneer Deep-Space Travel

GPS satellites use atomic clocks to allow people on Earth to navigate, and NASA hopes that this atomic clock will guide crewless spacecraft to deep space destinations. The DSAC is designed to be the first clock stable enough to map the trajectory of a spacecraft traveling into deep space. The clock can also stow away on the craft, being much smaller than the refrigerator-sized atomic clocks that navigators on Earth now use to track spacecraft. 

Currently, spacecraft navigating with atomic clocks receive and then send signals to Earth, which are used to pinpoint their location. After this signal bounces to and from the craft, navigators will create and send navigation instructions back to the craft. This back and forth can take a few minutes or even hours. 

A spacecraft with its own atomic clock on board could calculate its own trajectory and navigate itself through the solar system. It wouldn't have to wait for navigators to send and receive a signal and devise instructions. In addition to cutting down on time, the DSAC could also allow a spacecraft to travel greater distances from Earth because it would not be relying on an Earth-bound team for navigation. The clock is also 50 times more accurate than even the best existing navigation clocks. 

Now that this atomic clock is activated, the team at JPL will measure how it keeps time down to the nanosecond. While slight inaccuracies might not be that big of a deal for timekeeping here on Earth, even the slightest deviation or error could alter a trajectory drastically. A spacecraft on its way to Mercury, for example, could end up wildly off-track, smacking into the sun. 

"The goal of the space experiment is to put the Deep Space Atomic Clock in the context of an operating spacecraft — complete with the things that affect the stability and accuracy of a clock — and see if it performs at the level we think it will: with orders of magnitude more stability than existing space clocks," navigator Todd Ely, principal investigator of the project at JPL, said in a statement. 

While this technology is being tested for crewless spacecraft, it is intended to one day support crewed missions to deep space. The team behind the atomic clock hopes that eventually, astronauts will be able to use this tech to navigate themselves through the cosmos to never-before-visited, far-off destinations. 

• SpaceX's Falcon Heavy: Latest News, Images and Video
• Ultraprecise Atomic Clock Network on the Hunt for Dark Matter
• SpaceX's Amazing Falcon Heavy Triple Rocket Landing

Follow Chelsea Gohd on Twitter @chelsea_gohd. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.

The Gateway, formerly known as the Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway, is a proposed NASA program that would bring astronauts to the moon to operate a lunar space station. The concept has generated a wealth of research and numerous political discussions since 2017, especially because NASA's stated goal under the Trump administration is to return to the moon before going to Mars.

The hardware and mission design are still in the early stages of development, but as of mid-2018, NASA envisions a lunar outpost (supplied by Space Launch System rockets) that would hold four people. Unlike the International Space Station, the outpost would not always have a crew on board and would have the capability to perform scientific experiments autonomously. The prime contractor for the first module should be announced in 2019.

In August 2018, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence announced that astronauts could fly to the lunar space station as early as 2024; however, it's likely that date will change as design and construction plans proceed.

In the same month as Pence's announcement, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine told reporters that the cost of the Gateway won't be nearly as much as the cost of the crewed Apollo missions in the 1960s. NASA's current budget is now about 0.5 percent of annual federal funds, compared to its former height of 4.5 percent in the mid-1960s. The agency plans to begin the Gateway project without drawing on increased federal funding.

First steps to a gateway

In 2012, NASA publicly discussed the idea of a lunar station on the moon's far side — called the Deep Space Habitat. A few years later, in 2014 and 2015, NASA began to consider the idea of "cislunar habitats" as a way to fly humans on longer missions in the 2020s. The agency envisioned a small shelter where astronauts could assemble telescopes, operate rovers and perform scientific research.

In March 2015, NASA awarded several contracts under its Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextSTEP) program to companies developing concepts for lunar modules. The goal was to build modules would attach to the Orion spacecraft (a deep-space vehicle under development by NASA) and allow for missions of about 60 days in duration. The agency also discussed cislunar habitats in a "Journey to Mars" report published in October 2015.

One of the earliest mentions of a lunar space station, then known as the Deep Space Gateway, was in an article published on NASA's website in March 2017. As NASA described it at the time: "The agency is ... looking to build a crew tended spaceport in lunar orbit within the first few missions that would serve as a gateway to deep space and the lunar surface. This deep space gateway would have a power bus, a small habitat to extend crew time, docking capability, an airlock, and [would be] serviced by logistics modules to enable research."

The agency said the gateway would be useful not only for lunar orbiting missions, but also for increasing the breadth and depth of space exploration in general. "The area of space near the moon offers a true deep space environment to gain experience for human missions that push farther into the solar system, access the lunar surface for robotic missions but with the ability to return to Earth if needed in days rather than weeks or months."

In July 2017, NASA issued a competitive request for information about the Power and Propulsion Element, the module that is expected to supply electrical power and chemical and electrical propulsion to the gateway. As a result, five study contracts were issued in November 2017.

That September, NASA and Roscosmos (the Russian space agency) signed a joint cooperation agreement to explore the moon and deep space, which included use of the gateway.

Back to the moon

NASA's mission to return to the moon was bumped up in the agency's priority list after President Donald Trump's first space policy directive was announced in December 2017. Trump directed the agency to focus on returning to the moon before attempting to reach Mars (reaching Mars had been the primary goal during President Barack Obama's administration).

Trump's announcement was in line with a previous recommendation from the newly reconstituted National Space Council. The council, which hadn't been active since the early 1990s, was re-formed in June 2017. Later that year, its members concluded that lunar exploration should be NASA's primary goal.

The Deep Space Gateway was renamed the Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway in February 2018, when NASA made its 2019 budget request. (More recently, NASA has referred to the project as simply "the Gateway.") That document also suggested that the International Space Station should conclude operations in 2024 to make budgetary room for the gateway.

NASA held a Deep Space Gateway Science Workshop from Feb. 27 to March 1, 2018, in Denver, which helped the agency formulate a science plan for the lunar complex. Also in 2018, NASA launched the Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts-Academic Linkages (RASC-AL) design competition for university students, which focused on developing concepts for the gateway.

The agency is also encouraging the development of international gateway partnerships, especially from the current International Space Station partners (Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada), as it formulates the concept of the gateway.

Further reading:

• Read more about NASA's Exploration Campaign: Back to the Moon and on to Mars.
• An overview NASA's Explore Moon to Mars campaign.
• More information about NASA's proposed lunar outpost.

This article was updated to change references from the 2018 name of this mission, the Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway, to the more recently used title of the Gateway. Changes were made by Space.com Reference Editor Vicky Stein.

As we explore and reach farther out into the cosmos, what will we do with all of our trash?

For astronauts aboard the International Space Station, storage space is extremely valuable and limited — but even astronauts have garbage. In addition to taking up precious space, this garbage creates potential physical and biological health and safety hazards for the astronauts. On the space station, astronauts currently squeeze their garbage into trash bags and, for temporary periods of time, store up to 2 metric tons of trash on board. They then send the trash out on commercial supply vehicles, which either reach Earth or burn up in reentry.

But what will happen to these tons of trash when astronauts are much farther from Earth? The farther we travel into the solar system, the more complicated it will be to effectively manage and dispose of trash. NASA thinks that the key to this big space-trash problem could be addressed with technology that compacts and processes trash, according to a new statement from the agency. [Gallery: Visions of Deep Space Stations for Exploration]

In an effort to ensure astronaut safety and find an improved trash solution, NASA has sent out a call to U.S. companies to create prototype compactors and trash-processing systems. The agency is looking for innovative designs that could not only compact trash but also remove hazardous components, and process and remove pieces that could then be repurposed or recycled.

Resources are limited on the space station, and they would become even more so on a deep-space mission with no resupply. So, NASA is hoping that this technology will also be able to help astronauts reuse materials more effectively.

Proposals that look to fill this void will have a variety of NASA technologies to inspire them. Previously, NASA scientists designed a heat melt compactor, which recovers water from trash using heat transfer and compacts the trash; and "trash to gas" technologies, which convert trash into methane gas that could be used as a rocket propellant. Researchers have even developed trash-compacting technology that could help astronauts turn trash into a space radiation shield. 

The search for the next great trash solution will occur in two parts, according to the statement. First, NASA will select companies that will go on to create a concept for a system that compacts and processes trash. In this first phase, the companies will go through design reviews with NASA and complete ground demonstrations of their prototype. In the second phase, the companies will build a flight unit that could be tested on the space station by 2022.

NASA has been very public about its intention to not only revisit the moon, but also push farther out into the solar system and explore deep space. Effective trash-processing and -compacting technology will maximize space on future spacecraft, increase crew safety and make the most of the limited resources on board.

Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd@space.com or follow her @chelsea_gohd. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

NASA and the Israel Space Agency have signed an agreement to use the AstroRad radiation protection vest on Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1), the uncrewed first flight of NASA's powerful new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

AstroRad is the second product developed by the American-Israeli company StemRad, after StemRad 360 Gamma — the world’s first wearable shield that provides meaningful protection from harmful gamma radiation.

Tel Aviv-based StemRad collaborated with NASA’s prime contractor for the Orion crew-carrying spacecraft, Lockheed Martin, to adapt its technology for use in space. On EM-1, which is currently scheduled to launch in late 2019, Orion will launch atop SLS, kicking off a three-week mission that will take the capsule beyond the moon.

The threat of radiation exposure is high on such deep-space journeys, posing potentially significant dangers to crewmembers. 

That's where AstroRad comes in. During the EM-1 test, Orion will carry two test dummies, each of which contains thousands of radiation detectors. One dummy will be naked and the other will wear an Astrorad vest. (These dummies will be supplied by the German Aerospace Center.)

While Orion is unlikely to encounter a powerful solar storm during the relatively brief EM-1 mission, the spacecraft will pass through the Van Allen radiation belts, zones of energetic charged particles that emanate from solar winds. So AstroRad will get a trial in high-radiation conditions, project team members said.

If the test is successful, AstroRad will be used on crewed missions to deep space. Additionally, the vest is expected to be used aboard the International Space Station beginning in 2019 for advanced ergonomic studies in microgravity.

For more information on StemRad, go to www.stemrad.com.

Leonard David is author of "Mars: Our Future on the Red Planet," published by National Geographic. The book is a companion to the National Geographic Channel series "Mars." A longtime writer for Space.com, David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. This version of the story published on Space.com. 

With the moon as its immediate goal, NASA is pushing hard on deep space exploration.

In a press conference from Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston today (April 26), NASA officials talked through the status of their deep space exploration program and the upcoming launches of the agency's Orion spacecraft around the moon.

A NASA report last year suggested the launch date could slip to June 2020. However, JSC Director Ellen Ochoa confirmed that NASA is still pushing to use the massive Space Launch System to send Orion around the moon for the first time, on the uncrewed Exploration Mission-1, by the end of 2019.

"Launch [is] hopefully at the end of 2019. That is the goal we're keeping toward," Ochoa said at the press conference. "We've done an in-depth assessment of that, and likely it will be in early 2020, but we are keeping pressure on our agency and our folks to try and launch in December of 2019, to make sure that we put our best foot forward and do our best to meet those deadlines." [How the Orion Space Capsule Works (Infographic)]

EM-1, the spacecraft for that first test flight, is already being assembled at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Ochoa said, and awaiting the European Service Module, which should arrive at the center this summer. (That module will sit below the Orion spacecraft, with the abort system attached above.) In the meantime, EM-2 — the spacecraft for the second Orion flight, and Orion's first crewed mission around the moon — is already being assembled at the Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana. It will make its way to Florida later in the summer.  

Before EM-1 — almost exactly a year from today, Ochoa said — NASA will test the spacecraft's abort system after a launch to a point more than 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) high in a short, but intensive test called Ascent Abort-2.

"It's just a 3-minute test, but it will be an exciting 3 minutes," Ochoa said.

Once Orion has reached the moon, NASA plans to spend a significant amount of time there honing systems and creating an orbiting outpost called the Deep Space Gateway, according to Vanessa Wyche, director of the Exploration Integration and Science Directorate at NASA.

"Building on the transportation elements being developed today, the Space Launch System and Orion … and using the International Space Station as a platform to test technologies in LEO [low Earth orbit], we're working with commercial industry and our international partners to build and assemble a crew-tended spaceport in orbit around the moon in the 2020s," Wyche said at the conference. "NASA and its partners will use the Gateway for deep-space operations including missions on the moon with decreasing reliance on Earth.

"We'll use the lunar orbit as a place to stage where we'll actually build up a small, crew-tended spaceport that will then do testing. We will learn about what's going on at the moon. We'll do testing on the moon's surface, and then we will build up, do other testing and move on to Mars," she added.

Wyche said that NASA will learn much more about the moon in the coming decade, not just through the Orion program. The agency's Science Mission Directorate will open an opportunity for people to evaluate samples brought back from the moon on Apollo missions that haven't previously been analyzed, taking advantage of modern technology to analyze the samples more deeply. NASA will send more robotic missions to the moon to learn about its surface. And the Gateway will enable communications for missions to the moon's far side, allowing for more in-depth investigations in that less-explored area, Wyche said. [NASA Shapes Science Plan for Deep-Space Outpost Near the Moon]

"For a few years, we've been really planning to spend the decade of the 2020s in the lunar vicinity anyway, because we believe there's a lot we need to test and learn before we actually head to Mars," Ochoa added. "As we do spend time around the moon and on the moon, a lot of what we're thinking about is what it is that we need to accomplish there in order to move on to Mars after that."

But before that, the teams will have to finalize Orion, get EM-1 launched and then launch EM-2, sending humans on a loop around the moon that will take them farther than people have ever traveled into space — 40,000 miles (64,000 km) past the moon. 

Near the end of the conference, NASA astronaut Nicole Stott shared some of her experiences working with the nitty-gritty testing that will make sure Orion and its procedures work.

"Right now, we're doing a lot of the testing where I would be in a suit and with four crewmembers, we're strapped in to [a mock-up of] Orion," she said. "And we have a smoke machine, and they set off smoke, and they close the hatch. We're looking at, can we get out of this vehicle? How are we going to unstrap? How is the flow of us getting out?"

Just last week, Stott said, they tested escaping from the docking hatch at the top of Orion in the event that the side hatch is inaccessible; a ladder came down that they had to climb up after throwing rafts out of the vehicle's top.

"You can put all that in a very detailed plan, and the engineers do a great job of developing that … [but] human-in-the-loop testing and finding those things that you didn't think about because you have humans involved in this expedition is critical in the early development of this program," she said.

Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. 

Miguel Claro is a Lisbon, Portugal-based professional photographer, author and science communicator who creates spectacular images of the night sky. As a European Southern Observatory photo ambassador, a member of The World At Night and the official astrophotographer of the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve, he specializes in astronomical "skyscapes" that connect Earth and the night sky. Join him here as he takes us through his photograph "Rho Ophiuchi: A Colorful Cloud in Space." 

Featuring the bright, red supergiant star Antares, the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex is one of the most vibrant and colorful nebulas in space and the closest star-forming region to the solar system.

Located approximately 460 light-years away from Earth, the interstellar clouds of gas and dust that make up Rho Ophiuchi contain emission nebulas that are rich with red, glowing hydrogen gas and blue reflection nebulas that reflect starlight from their surroundings. The dark-brown regions in the cloud complex consist of interstellar dust grains that prevent any light from passing through. [Rho Ophiuchi: A Colorful Cosmic Cloud in Photos]

From the lower left corner of this image, a dust lane known as the "Dark River" extends about 100 light-years from the dark Pipe Nebula toward the colorful Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex, where it appears to be connected to Antares. 

The distant globular star cluster Messier 4, or M4, is visible to the right of Antares, which is one of the brighter stars in the night sky. However, M4 lies far beyond the colorful cloud complex, at a distance of some 7,000 light-years from Earth.

To capture this image of Rho Ophiuchi, I used a Nikon D810a DSLR astrophotography camera with a focal lens of 105mm with an aperture set to f/3.5, and a Skywatcher HEQ5 Pro mount. The camera was programmed to shoot with an ISO setting of 800 and an exposure time of 105 seconds. The final composite combines 42 frames with a combined exposure time of 74 minutes. Image processing was completed with PixInsight 1.8 and Adobe Photoshop CC. 

The image was taken from the Cumeada Observatory at the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve in Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal.

To see more of Claro's amazing astrophotography, visit his website: miguelclaro.com. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

No one knows for sure what a long-range space journey will be like for the people on board. Nobody in the history of our species has ever had to deal with the "Earth-out-of-view" phenomenon, for instance. How will it feel to live in close quarters with a small group, with no escape hatch? How will space travelers deal with the prospect of not seeing family or friends for years, or even ever again? How will they occupy themselves for years with nothing much to do?

Researchers do know some things from observing astronauts who've stayed in space stations revolving around Earth for long periods of time, people who spent a lot of time shut off from the outside world in isolated regions (such as on polar expeditions) and from experiments with simulated Mars missions.

Because astronauts would have a lot of free time to fill, some researchers have casually suggested sending along a selection of books and films or even bespoke video games. As a social scientist who studies media use and its effects on behavior, I believe television could help. Recreating the media environment from before we had permanent, continuous access to anything we want to watch or listen to might be just the thing to help space travelers cope with a loss of a sense of space and time, with loneliness, privacy issues, boredom and more. [A History of Ultra-Long Missions Off Planet Earth]

Floating rudderless in space and time

In space, the distinction between days of the week, day and night, or morning and noon will be mostly meaningless. Before DVDs and streaming, television helped us structure our time. For some, "lunch" was when a particular game show came on. "Evening" started with the news. "Thursday" was when the next episode of our favorite drama finally arrived. Seasonal programming split the year into chunks (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas). Annual events, such as the Super Bowl, helped us realize yet another year had passed.

A media system that recreates structured access would help define time in space, something unlimited access to a random list of movies would not. Knowing that you were watching something that millions of others were watching at the same time created a particular group feeling – think tuning in to a royal wedding or a presidential funeral. It remains to be seen how today's fracturing of the media landscape has changed that. Interestingly, one of the earliest occasions where millions around the world shared a bond in front of their or their neighbor's TV was the first lunar landing.

Out of reach, out of touch

One reason prisoners like to watch television is that it shows them how the world outside is evolving. If we don't want long-range space travelers to return feeling like aliens, they will need to keep up-to-date with what's happening back on Earth.

Television news has an "agenda setting" effect: It tells viewers not only what is going on, but also what matters to people, and public opinion about current events. Entertainment media, from reality shows to game shows to drama, display how fashion, vocabulary and even accents are evolving.

Tuning in to what’s going on back home is also a way to counteract the "Earth-out-of-view" phenomenon. The feeling of being on top of what's happening on Earth may help keep the psychological connection to the home planet active and strong.

Heritage maintenance

Members of a crew are likely to have different cultural backgrounds. The distinctions are biggest if they come from far-flung countries or different language families.

Immigrants, for instance, use the media to integrate more quickly into their new culture. But exposure to home media is also a way to keep a connection to (and derive support from) the culture of origin. Imagine a crew consisting mainly of people from the United States, but with one member from, say, Japan. It will be equally important to facilitate integration and bonding by making media content available that everyone can consume as a group as it is to make specific content available that (in this example) may cater to a person who grew up in Japan.

Balancing solitude and community

As individuals, astronauts will crave autonomy and privacy. Media can help create "alone time." Being immersed in a book, a movie or music (using headphones) helps lock out the environment, as every teenager knows.

At the same time, astronauts as a group will need to work on interconnection to be successful. Even though media are often blamed for dissolving social cohesion, they can also create and reinforce powerful feelings of community and group cohesion. Even in families where everyone has their own smartphone and a TV set, a lot of group viewing occurs because members enjoy being in each other's company. Spectator sports, in particular, can create strong bonds.

Of course, it makes sense that individuals' interests differ among groups, cultures and genders, as well as with personal preferences. A supportive media access program will need careful pretesting long before the journey starts.

Building on how we already use media

Media can do much more. People turn to media for mood management, either when they feel down or want to relax. The distraction caused by media is usually seen as negative for people trying to avoid overeating, but if food is bland and monotonous, that might be a good thing.

There are dangers, too. Media can distract from necessary tasks, affect sleep or lead to addiction-like behaviors. News from Earth or exposure to social media could induce fear and anxiety for loved ones.

There is, finally, a more mundane but perhaps also more fundamental reason to incorporate media into the daily lives of future Mars travelers. They will be drawn from a generation that grew up immersed in and surrounded by media access and content. Recreating a reasonable facsimile of that environment may go a long way toward making astronauts feel a little bit more at home out there.

Jan Van den Bulck, Professor of Media Psychology, University of Michigan

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates — and become part of the discussion — on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Space.com.

Imagine an interstellar probe where the spacecraft can pick its own orbit, take its own pictures, and send probes down to the surface of a far-away planet without human help. Or imagine a mission that hitchhikes on a comet, scanning the sky and picking out the most interesting targets among millions of locations without guidance from engineers back on Earth sitting in a control room.

These are two examples of how NASA hopes to use artificial intelligence. As far-fetched as the concept sounds, the agency is already using AI in missions on both Earth and Mars. And there are other missions in the works that could see AI exploring icy moons in search of life.

This bot-friendly future stands counter to some of the fuss in the press this past week, after Facebook shut down an experiment because two artificially intelligent bots began communicating in a shorthand language instead of English. Many in the media portrayed the bots as coming up with their own language.

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Steve Chien says that the reality is more subtle: The bots were not rewarded for using English, so they just sought out the most efficient route possible to communicate with one another. NASA, he added, takes robot safety very seriously. Space station astronauts occasionally work alongside Robonaut 2, a simple machine that can flip switches and do other menial tasks. In the future, he said, NASA astronauts could work with more intelligent robots on Mars, with the robots scouting sites and telling humans the most interesting locations to survey.

"NASA is very risk-averse [about crewed missions]," said Chien, who is technical group supervisor of the artificial intelligence group at JPL. "It's a high-profile mission, and with a crewed program there's even more of an obsession with safety than with robotic ones — as there should be."

When thinking of autonomous robots working in space, a person might recall scary examples from movies — HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey, for instance. But AI robots are already working in space, and these are all helpful bots — more like GERTY in the 2009 film Moon, which works alongside astronaut Sam Bell on a lunar colony.

NASA's Mars rovers are already equipped with artificial intelligence, which makes some decisions independently — a useful feature since communication between a rover and Earth might take 20 minutes because of the vast distance. The most famous example is the Curiosity rover, which has an automatic targeting system that helps direct its cameras — and its laser — at rocks and other objects that the system considers worthy of inspection. A more primitive version was installed on the older Opportunity and Spirit rovers — and Opportunity is still running 13 years after landing on Mars.

RELATED: Here's What It's Like to Be the Planetary Protection Officer at NASA

Closer to home, NASA used artificial intelligence on its Earth Observing-1 satellite, which completed its mission earlier this year after operating since 2003. The instrument was called the Autonomous Sciencecraft Experiment (ASE) and helped scientists look for interesting events on Earth's surface like volcanoes, which meant they could send out alerts to the public faster than humans working on the surface.

There are also two ongoing experiments that scan for interesting events such as supernovas and select the "best of the best" data for scientists to evaluate. The first is V-FASTR (an acronym that refers to radio transients or events, such as pulsar pulses) and the second is the Intermediate Palomar Transient Factory (iPTF), which looks for supernovas or other neat things in optical wavelengths. Work from iPTF helped establish the existence of gravitational waves, as there were no supernovas in the sky that affected the results first seen by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) in 2016, Chien said.

The sky is a big place, and you might see thousands of things at any given moment peering into the night. Before these experiments were available, Chien said, scientists arbitrarily picked 50 things to look at. Now, they can look at the 50 objects that AI instruments determined to be the most interesting.

Here's the exciting thing: These existing artificial intelligence bots are the technology of yesterday — particularly in the case of the teenaged Opportunity mission on Mars. As powerful as that technology was back in the early 2000s, researchers today can do so much more with computing.

The Mars 2020 rover is expected to depart for the Red Planet in three years. Multiple instruments on the rover will have autonomous imaging capability, Chien said, and the targeting will be a lot smarter. Not only will the rover be clever enough to choose an interesting target, but also to pick the best approach for scanning it and obtaining information relevant to researchers. Mars 2020 could even change its schedule of tasks on the fly if it finishes something ahead of time, allowing scientists to squeeze the most they can out of the mission.

NASA's planned Europa Clipper mission is scheduled to perform multiple flybys of an icy moon of Jupiter, one that has been observed spouting what appears to be water geysers — at least in the eyes of the Hubble Space Telescope. Clipper will operate in an extremely harsh radiation environment that is expected to reset or crash its computer several times in a single flyby. It takes hours to send instructions to and from Jupiter, so the Clipper will be equipped with a computer system that can diagnose problems and fix them before engineers back on Earth even knew a problem occurred.

RELATED: All Eyes on the Sun's Mysteriously Superhot Corona During Great American Eclipse

Other projects remain in the proposal stage, but no less exciting when considering the possibilities for artificial intelligence. NASA hopes to one day land a device on Europa, or perhaps Enceladus — another water geyser-spouting moon orbiting Saturn. (The agency is quite interested in these "ocean worlds," as NASA calls them, since the moons could harbor microbial life.) Early studies suggest that space agencies could put a submarine in an ocean on one of these moons. But it would be a solo voyage because, Chien said, we can only communicate with the little submarine for perhaps a month.

Artificial intelligence on board a submarine would be tasked with figuring out where to go safely. But other considerations might include: How to avoid obstacles? Which targets have the most potential for observation? Or at what temperature is it safe to travel? Chien pointed out that on Earth, if we take a typical robotic submersible from temperate waters to the Arctic, recalibrations are always needed to adjust for the change in temperature.

The Comet Hitchhiker project — funded by NASA's Advanced Innovative Concepts program that gives early-stage funding to far-off mission concepts — could develop a spacecraft capable of catching a ride with a comet on its way to the outer solar system. With the craft operating so far from Earth, it would take hours for it to communicate back and forth with engineers. So an AI bot would be more efficient in picking targets by itself and sending data back to Earth. Self-selecting AI would also be useful for another mission concept that would send 100 small CubeSats to nearby asteroids; it would help the little spacecraft decide how to orbit the asteroids and what to image on the surface.

Breakthrough Starshot is a $100 million research and development program, aiming to establish proof of concept for a 'nanocraft' – a fully functional space probe at gram-scale weight – driven by a light beam.

Last year, the Breakthrough Starshot initiative, which includes billionaire Yuri Milner and physicist Stephen Hawking, proposed to send a tiny nanocraft to our nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, around the year 2038. The nanocraft would travel at an incredible 15- 20 percent the speed of light, allowing it to get to the star in only a couple of decades.

Chien pointed out that an interstellar mission would be a perfect use of AI. It could figure out by itself what type of planets are in a system, how to navigate the craft into orbit, what types of data to collect, and where to deploy probes, if the world looked habitable. But science observations of this kind would not work with Breakthrough Starshot's current design because the mission is not supposed to slow down. However, some proposals from other groups suggest slowing it down would be possible. But regardless of the mission architecture, an interstellar probe would be best served using AI because humans cannot anticipate everything, Chien said.

"When an interstellar probe gets there, it will have lots of information,” he said. "Let's assume the planet has oceans and we have probes that we can drop from orbit to sample those oceans and take measurements." The question then, he said, is where to deploy the probe, and AI could make that decision quickly.

RELATED: Detecting Alien Life Will Likely Be a Protracted Process, Not a Eureka Moment

The JPL scientist encouraged a healthy respect and concern in the public when thinking about using AI in future missions, but added that fear of AI is irrational as long as we make sure that people familiar with the technology are involved in its development and are consulting with the public.

"There was a time when to make a phone call, a human had to be involved. When you rode the elevator, a human had to be involved," Chien said. "Now we would say that's insane. These are the wheels of progress. It's going to happen, we need to get used to it, and we need to do it in a reasonable and rational fashion."

Originally published on Seeker.

A cargo container that was built to fly on NASA's space shuttles is being repurposed as a prototype for a deep space habitat.

Lockheed Martin announced it will refurbish the Donatello multi-purpose logistics module (MLPM), transforming from it from its original, unrealized role as a supply conveyor for the International Space Station to a test and training model of a living area for astronauts working beyond Earth orbit. The work is being done under a public-private partnership between the aerospace corporation and NASA. [Orion Explained: NASA's Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (Infographic)]

"We are excited to work with NASA to repurpose a historic piece of flight hardware," said Bill Pratt, Lockheed Martin's program manager for the deep space habitat contract, in a statement.

Donatello was one of three MPLMs that was designed to fly in the space shuttle payload bay to transfer cargo to the station. Built by the Italian Space Agency under a contract with NASA, two modules, Leonardo and Raffaello, flew on 12 shuttle missions between 2001 and 2011.

In February 2011, Leonardo became a permanent storage module for the station, in part by using insulation that was stripped from the never-flown Donatello.

Lockheed Martin will build its full-scale habitat prototype in the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where the Donatello module has been located. The MPLM measures 21 feet long by 15 feet in diameter (6.4 by 4.6 meters).

Over an 18-month period, Lockheed Martin will build upon its deep space habitat concept it developed during the first phase of NASA's Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships, or NextSTEP, program by using virtual and augmented reality prototyping in an effort to reduce costs and schedule, as well as identify and address issues while early in the design process. The results, to be shared with the space agency, will help to further understanding of the systems, standards and interfaces needed to make living in deep space possible.

"It is easy to take things for granted when you are living at home, but the recently selected astronauts will face unique challenges," stated Pratt, referring to NASA's 2017 class of astronauts, who may be assigned to deep space missions. "Something as simple as calling your family is completely different when you are outside of low Earth orbit."

"While building this habitat," Pratt continued, "we have to operate in a different mindset that is more akin to long trips to Mars."

The deep space habitat is intended to be part of the Deep Space Gateway, a planned crew-tended spaceport in lunar orbit under development by NASA. In addition to the living module, the gateway, as proposed, includes a power bus, docking capability, an airlock and a propulsion module.

To be launched within he first few missions of the Space Launch System (SLS) heavy-lift rocket, the gateway could also eventually serve as a staging point for a transport for astronaut missions outward into the solar system, or as a staging ground for missions to the lunar surface.

In addition to the deep space habitat prototype, Lockheed will also build a deep space avionics integration laboratory in Houston to demonstrate command and control between the Deep Space Gateway and the Orion spacecraft, also being developed by the company. According to Lockheed Martin, the lab will "help reduce risk associated with critical data interfaces" between gateway elements and "provide an environment for astronauts to train for various mission scenarios."

"Because the Deep Space Gateway would be uninhabited for several months at a time, it has to be rugged, reliable and have the robotic capabilities to operate autonomously. Essentially it is a robotic spacecraft that is well-suited for humans when Orion is present," said Pratt.

In addition to Lockheed Martin, NASA selected five other companies to develop ground prototypes and concepts for deep space habitats, including Boeing, Orbital ATK, Sierra Nevada Corporation, Bigelow Aerospace and NanoRacks.

Follow collectSPACE.com on Facebook and on Twitter at @collectSPACE. Copyright 2017 collectSPACE.com. All rights reserved.

The Orion Spacesuit

When astronauts fly into deep space, they will need to have a sturdy spacesuit with them for protection and to perform spacewalks from the Orion spacecraft. NASA is testing a modified version of the space shuttle's Advanced Crew Escape Suit to support crews as they fly to the moon, Mars or other destinations. The first crewed flight is expected around 2023, if the schedule holds.

On June 22, engineers and technicians at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston ran a vacuum- pressure integrated suit test, the latest in a series of technical hurdles the suit must pass before being rated for flight. In this test, crews entered a vacuum chamber, where air was removed while the suit was hooked up to life-support systems. Watch the test in this series of pictures. [NASA's Orion Spacecraft: A Behind The Scenes Look (Video)]

The Great Pumpkin

It's the revenge of the pumpkin suit! A participant in spacesuit testing walks into a chamber that will simulate a vacuum similar to what is encountered in space. This new suit is a hybrid of the pumpkin-colored Advanced Crew Escape Suit used for space shuttle launches and the white spacesuit used for spacewalks on the International Space Station.

"Because of mass and volume constraints, NASA wanted to be able to use ACES (the suit intended for ascent and entry during Space Shuttle missions) both for ascent/entry periods of Orion missions and also for EVA (space walks)," said Robert Frost, an instructor and flight controller at NASA, in a 2016 discussion on Quora.com about the new spacesuit.

Jolly Jumper rig

Here, two of the participants in the spacesuit-testing process are rigged up to harnesses that look a bit like the Jolly Jumpers used in doorways to hold up babies for their entertainment. In this case, however, the harnesses are used instead to simulate how the astronauts would work in a spacecraft.

The participants are inside the NASA Johnson Space Center's 11-foot thermal vacuum chamber, which is commonly used for spacesuit testing. According to NASA, the chamber can include components such as a treadmill or systems for "crew weight relief" to simulate the microgravity astronauts encounter in space.

Hooking up

A view through the porthole of the testing chamber shows just how small a space the participants worked in for the test. Here, a technician rigs up one of the participants in the Orion spacesuit pressure test, ensuring that the astronauts are properly hooked up before air is evacuated from the thermal chamber.

This is just one in a series of tests the Orion spacesuit is undergoing. A previous test saw the deep-space suit being tested in microgravity conditions on an aircraft that flies parabolas. The spacesuit has also been tested before in vacuum conditions, such as the one shown here in 2015.

Ready for testing

A participant in spacesuit testing puts on his game face during a routine at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston. While astronauts are the most famous face of the space program, other people often perform ground tests on equipment in consultation with astronauts.

The Orion spacecraft underwent a single test in space in December 2014, and an uncrewed mission around the moon is planned for 2019 when the new Space Launch System deep-space rocket is ready to go. Astronauts are expected to fly on Orion around 2023 if the current schedule holds, although there have been many delays already. [How NASA Spacesuits Work: EMUs Explained (Infographic)]

Star talk

Technicians confer at their consoles during testing for the Orion spacesuit on June 22. In the foreground, you can see some old-school switches reminiscent of the days of the Apollo moon program in the 1960s and 1970s. Meanwhile, the smartphone on the desk is more powerful than all of the Apollo spacecraft's computers combined.

Much has changed in technology since NASA last sent humans into deep space; the new spacesuits will be lighter and less bulky than the Apollo suits and even, likely, what astronauts use today on the International Space Station.

Testing suite

A cadre of technicians monitor systems during a pressure test of the Orion spacesuit at the NASA Johnson Space Center. The spacesuit must be able to withstand a sudden loss of oxygen in the cabin during launch, so that astronauts are protected on their way to orbit. The suit is also designed for astronauts to wear on spacewalks outside the Orion spacecraft.

While the June 22 tests were performed inside the 11-foot thermal chamber, Johnson has several facilities to get systems ready for space. This includes a 20-foot chamber, a dual glove box chamber, and even an airlock that is similar to the one used on the International Space Station.

Running on empty

The participants in Orion spacesuit testing are fully closed into an 11-foot chamber at the NASA Johnson Space Center. With the door closed in the background, the chamber was fully evacuated of air to make sure that the spacesuits could hold pressure, temperature and other parameters in the vacuum of space.

NASA has spent about $200 million in the past decade developing suits for Orion and other space programs, including the commercial crew program that is expected to see astronauts launch from United States soil in the next couple of years. However, an April report from NASA's Office of Inspector General said the agency needs to improve its spending strategy, as the new suits will not be fully ready for years.

Thousands of stars and galaxies set a phenomenal backdrop in this Hubble Space Telescope image that includes a section of the constellation of Sagittarius.

"The region is rendered in exquisite detail — deep red and bright blue stars are scattered across the frame, set against a background of thousands of more distant stars and galaxies," NASA officials wrote in an image description. "Two features are particularly striking: the colors of the stars, and the dramatic crosses that burst from the centers of the brightest bodies." NASA released the image on Jan. 19.

Scientists used Hubble's Advanced Cameras for Surveys to capture the stars of Sagittarius, a constellation that is also known as The Archer. The fascinating crosses seen in the brighter stars are known as diffraction spikes. [See more amazing space photos by Hubble]

"The crosses are nothing to do with the stars themselves, and, because Hubble orbits above Earth's atmosphere, nor are they due to any kind of atmospheric disturbance," NASA officials wrote in the description, adding that the crosses are caused by part of Hubble itself. "Like all big modern telescopes, Hubble uses mirrors to capture light and form images. Its secondary mirror is supported by struts, called telescope spiders, arranged in a cross formation, and they diffract the incoming light."

The Hubble Space Telescope is a joint venture between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). The telescope launched on April 24, 1990. After four servicing missions, the craft has worked for more than 25 years snapping images of the Universe for astronomers and scientists to study. Hubble has traveled more than of 3 billion (with a 'B') miles while orbiting Earth and has made more than 1.3 million observations.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Original story on Space.com. 

Hubble Ultra Deep Field Reveals Galaxies Galore

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope holds the world record for peering farther into deep space than any other telescope of its time. It has imaged some of the most distant galaxies ever observed, allowing the telescope to look back in time to when the universe was in its infancy. This image, called the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, offers a core sample of the deep universe with diverse galaxies of various ages, sizes, shapes and colors.

A Sampling of Galaxies

Close-up images of galaxies in Hubble's Ultra Deep Field image divulge the dramas that happen constantly in the Universe.

Galaxy HUDF-JD2 in Visible and Infrared Light

This composite image of Galaxy HUDF-JD2 blends a visible-light photo from the Hubble Space Telescope with an infrared snapshot from the Spitzer Space Telescope.

Close-Up of Galaxies from the Hubble Ultra Deep Field Image

An image of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field released in 2004. The images taken in the Ultra Deep Field result from exposure time of over 11 days between Sep. 24, 2003 and Jan. 16, 2004.

Merging Galaxies — 2.4 Billion Light-Years from Earth

Over 2 billion light-years from earth, these two galaxies begin the process of merging into one.

'Tadpole Galaxies'

The mosaic displays a sampling of 36 young galaxies merging with other galaxies. The cosmic tadpoles get their name from the unique knot and tail shape. Read the full story here.

Most Distant Galaxy Candidates in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field

The galaxies in this photo are candidates for the most distant galaxies seen in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. [Ancient Galaxy May Be Most Distant Ever Seen]

Most Distant Galaxy

A close-up from the Hubble Ultra Deep Field image, Galaxy UDFj-39546284, a faint reddish blob, is believed to be the most distant galaxy at more than 13 billion light-years from Earth. Read the full story here.

Extended Groth Strip

The area between Ursa Major and Boötes, known as the Extended Groth Strip, as imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope.

Merging Galaxies — 6.2 Billion Light-Years from Earth

These distant galaxies — over 6 billion light-years away — are merging together.

10,000 Galaxies

The region of space within the Fornax constellation, seen in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, contains an estimated 10,000 galaxies.

An Eclectic Mix of Galaxies

This image taken in 2003 includes an eclectic combination of galaxies. Hubble's infrared camera snapped the image of a galaxies young, old, large and small.

The Expanding Universe

This close-up image of a galaxy taken from the Hubble Ultra Deep Space image shows a redshift of an estimated z=9.5. This means that the galaxy is moving away from us as the universe expands.

Galaxies Galore

A snippet of galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field which students will employ to learn how light is used to explore the universe.

Merging Galaxies

The Hubble Ultra Deep Field captured these two galaxies, roughly 5.5 billion light-years from Earth, merging.

Galaxy HUDF-JD2

With Hubble's Near-Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer, Galaxy HUDF-JD2 glows in a light red.

ACS/WFC3

The Hubble Ultra Deep Field image provides scientists with plenty of data to study for years to come.

Collection of Galaxies From the Hubble Ultra Deep Field Image

These galaxies were spied in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field images. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field offers a narrow yet deep view of the Universe.

Merging Galaxies — 3 Billion Light-Years from Earth

The Hubble Ultra Deep Field captured these two galaxies, about 3 billion light-years away, merging.

Gravitationally Lensed High-Redshift Galaxy Candidates

A color composite image of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field with green circles delineating galaxies with a redshift of ~8 and red circles showing galaxies with a higher-redshift.

Hubble Ultra Deep Field Infrared View of Galaxies Billions of Light-Years Away

Cutting across billions of light-years, this image taken by the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-object Spectrometer reveals galaxies far away from long ago.

Galaxies on a Collision Course in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field Image

The Hubble Ultra Deep Field captured these galaxies on course to collide with their closest neighbors.

Edge-On Spiral Galaxy Collides With Small Blue Galaxy in Hubble Ultra Deep Field Image

A spiral galaxy, seen here edge-on, collides with a smaller, younger blue galaxy in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field Image.

Birth of a Supernova

Three snapshots from the Hubble Ultra Deep Field reveal the birth of a Type 1a supernova, a “standard candle” for measuring the expansion of the universe. Nicknamed SN Primo, this supernova is the most distant of its type ever discovered. Read the full story here.

Tiny Galactic Building Blocks Spotted

A view of Hubble's Ultra Deep Field, where several objects are identified as the faintest, most compact galaxies ever observed in the distant Universe. They are so far away that we see them as they looked less than one billion years after the Big Bang. Read the full story.

Hubble eXtreme Deep Field (XDF)

The best image of the cosmos yet taken. The eXtreme Deep Field, which is the center of the original Hubble Ultra Deep Field, nearly 5,500 galaxies were captured after many hours of light collection. [VIDEO: Hubble's Extreme Deep Field Sees Farther Back In Time]

Researchers have looked at a famous sliver of sky with new eyes, revealing clues about galaxies' star-forming potential over time and verifying the early "golden age" of rapid star formation.

Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), an enormous radio telescope in Chile, an international team of astronomers has pinpointed star-forming gas interspersed among the ancient galaxies of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field — a region first observed in detail by the Hubble Space Telescope. Although researchers have examined the region at radio wavelengths before, this is the most detailed and sharpest view, and it lets researchers see how star-forming potential has changed over the universe's life span.

The findings were announced today (Sept. 22) at the Half a Decade of ALMA conference in Palm Springs, California. [Watch: ALMA Probe Of Hubble Ultra Deep Field Is 'Deeper and Sharper']

In 2004, when researchers first examined the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, a tiny fraction of the sky (700 times smaller than the moon as viewed from Earth) by the constellation Fornax, they found an astonishing abundance of glittering galaxies stashed away in the seemingly insignificant spot. Since then, scientists have used the Hubble Space Telescope and other observatories to return to that location again and again, examining the distant galaxies to learn more about them.

One benefit of peering so deep in space is that it's equivalent to looking deep into the universe's past — the more distant a galaxy, the earlier in the universe's lifetime its light was emitted toward Earth.The farthest galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field date back to near the universe's beginning more than 13 billion years ago.

With this new search, researchers focused on everything visible in a region of space, called a "blind search,"  rather than examining a particular feature.

"We conducted the first fully blind, three-dimensional search for cool gas in the early universe," Chris Carilli, an astronomer with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in New Mexico and a member of the research team, said in a statement. "Through this, we discovered a population of galaxies that is not clearly evident in any other deep surveys of the sky."

ALMA, which senses longer wavelengths of light than Hubble does, picked up galaxies with large clouds of cold dust and gas, which are hotbeds for star formation. Rather than the stars that already exist, like Hubble sees, the ALMA survey revealed areas with the potential to develop stars in the future. Along with the announcement of the observations at today's conference, the results are described in seven scientific papers accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal.

In particular, the observations focused on the gas carbon monoxide, which often appears in regions with good star-forming conditions, researchers said in the statement. The team was able to assemble two types of data gathered by ALMA. One type revealed the distance — and, therefore, age — of the observed patches — to plot the prevalence of star-forming gas from 2 billion years after the Big Bang until now.

"These newly detected carbon-monoxide-rich galaxies represent a substantial contribution to the star-formation history of the universe," Roberto Decarli, an astronomer at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany, and a member of the research team, said in the statement. "With ALMA, we have opened a pathway for studying the early formation and assembly of galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field."

The farther away — and further back in time — researchers looked, the richer the resources were for star formation, confirming that the universe's early days were a "golden age" for star formation.

"The new ALMA results imply a rapidly rising gas content in galaxies with increasing look-back time," Manuel Aravena, an astronomer at the Diego Portales University in Chile who was also on the research team, said in the statement. "This increasing gas content is likely the root cause for the remarkable increase in star formation rates during the peak epoch of galaxy formation, some 10 billion years ago."

The new results came from a 40-hour span of observation time, and covered about one-sixth of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. An additional 150 hours are approved for researchers to survey an even larger area with ALMA.

Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

NASA astronauts on the Apollo missions to the moon, flown in the 1960s and 1970s, are the only humans to have flown beyond the protective magnetic shielding of Earth — and a new study shows that exposure to deep-space radiation may have taken a toll on their hearts.

The research compared Apollo astronauts' fates with those of unflown astronauts — who never made it into space — and those who lingered in low-Earth orbit, and found an increased level of death from cardiovascular problems in the deep-space adventurers. In a study with mice, the researchers also found a long-term effect on heart health from radiation exposure.

The International Space Station is scheduled to be decommissioned in 2024, and nations (and private companies like SpaceX) are turning their sights to the moon and Mars, said Michael Delp, a researcher at Florida State University and lead author of the new study. And with that comes exposure to deep-space radiation, which we know little about. [The Human Body in Space: 6 Weird Facts]

"With deep-space radiation, really, the 24 Apollo astronauts that went to the moon are the only astronauts that have really been exposed to this, because all the others — cosmonauts and astronauts — have stayed in low-Earth orbit," Delp told Space.com. 

While there have been a few previous studies looking at astronauts' causes of death, this was the first to compare astronauts with other astronauts rather than the general population, Delp said — the study's control population included astronauts assigned to Apollo, Gemini and space shuttle missions that were ultimately canceled, among others. Those astronauts were selected but never made it to space, so they should have the same baseline health as those that did. (The researchers selected unflown astronauts who were chosen at close to the same time as the Apollo astronauts, Delp said, and although the astronauts who stayed in low-Earth orbit were selected slightly later, the ages at death for all the astronauts considered were comparable.)

"This was really the first indication that travel into deep space might have some health consequences, particularly on the cardiovascular system," Delp said.

Delp's group considered seven Apollo astronauts, 35 later astronauts who reached low-Earth orbit and 35 astronauts who never flew, and found that the proportional deaths due to heart disease were equivalent for the astronauts who never flew and the ones who stayed in low-Earth orbit, but for Apollo astronauts those deaths were four to five times more common. (Three out of the seven died from cardiovascular disease.)

The researchers also tested mice exposed to similar radiation as well as simulated weightlessness on Earth: Mice exposed to either radiation or weightlessness all showed injury to blood vessels and arteries, which could lead to heart attacks and strokes, and those exposed to both showed even more damage. Six to seven months later, though, which Delp said was the equivalent of 20 human years, only the ones exposed to radiation showed sustained harm to their blood vessels.

"I think it poses a really interesting hypothesis," said Richard Hughson, a cardiovascular physiologist at Schlegel-University of Waterloo Research Institute for Aging who was not involved in the study. "Delp and his group teased out this data, had a hypothesis, tested it with the mouse model, and showed some fascinating long-term effects of radiation on endothelial [blood vessel cell] function," he told Space.com.

Hughson and others have studied the impact of spaceflight on heart and blood vessel health, but have found that the mechanisms affected by low-Earth orbit mostly recover normal function post-flight — these radiation effects, on the other hand, seem to linger. To directly investigate the effect in humans, he said, it will be important for  future astronauts to test their own blood vessel function once on the moon.

Going forward, Delp said, researchers need to look at the minimum radiation to have a harmful effect, examine the mechanism behind it and begin to explore countermeasures to lessen the radiation's effects — shielding is one option, but there could be other actions to take to protect the body. Delp also plans to collaborate with the Johnson Space Center to study the Apollo astronauts' medical history in more depth.

"Most scientists have felt like it would take years of being exposed to space radiation before there would be any harmful effects, and what this study does is it shows that even about two weeks of exposure may be causing harmful effects," Delp said. "It doesn't prove that radiation is doing it, but it's indicating that we probably need to do more research and look at this more carefully than we have in the past."

"It's really the first step, or first glimpse, into how deep space may be affecting human health," he added.

The new work was detailed today (July 28) in the journal Scientific Reports.

Editor's Note: A new NASA statement, posted the afternoon of July 28, discusses the agency's astronaut health research and states that the data used in the observational portion of this study is too limited to determine cosmic rays' impact on the Apollo astronauts. At this article's press time, NASA had not responded to multiple requests for comment.

Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

A new contest from NASA and the Methuselah Foundation's New Organ Alliance calls for scientists to grow human organ tissue in the lab — to serve as raw materials in studying the harmful environmental effects of space, like radiation.

The contest, called the Vascular Tissue Challenge, aims to help NASA reduce the harmful effects of deep-space exploration. If the agency wants to send people to Mars and beyond, this type of research will be crucial to understanding and mitigating the effects that such a trip will have on the astronauts' health.

"The humans who will be our deep-space pioneers are our most important resource on the journey to Mars and beyond," Steve Jurczyk, the associate administrator for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate in Washington, D.C., said in a statement.

But this research won't apply only to humans traveling in deep space. It will also benefit medical science on Earth by providing a new tool for pharmaceutical research and disease modeling, Jurczyk said. "The outcome of this challenge has the potential to revolutionize health care on Earth and could become part of an important set of tools used to minimize the negative effects of deep space on our future explorers," Jurczyk added.

The first three teams of scientists who successfully grow human organ tissue that meets the contest requirements will share the $500,000 prize. Their lab-grown organ tissue must be at least 1 centimeter (0.4 inches) thick, metabolically functional and fully vascularized, meaning it must contain blood vessels that keep the tissue alive. Organ tissue created in the challenge will serve as organ analogs, or models, in experiments that will both test the harm done by radiation and seek new ways of preventing damage to human cells.

"Once the 'vascularization limit' is solved, via the NASA Vascular Tissue Challenge, there inevitably will be an historic advance in progress and commercialization of tissue engineering applications to everyone's benefit," Dave Gobel, chief executive officer of the Methuselah Foundation, said in the statement.

Teams competing in the Vascular Tissue Challenge are also asked to submit proposals explaining how they would advance their research by conducting experiments in microgravity aboard the International Space Station.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

WASHINGTON — While NASA does not yet have specific plans for human missions beyond 2021, the agency is in the early stages of developing a sequence of missions in cislunar space in the 2020s to prepare for later missions to Mars.

Those plans, which could involve both international and commercial partners, would test out habitation modules and other technologies on missions around the moon ranging from several weeks to a year.

"The concepts that we're working on today call for us to begin in the early '20s with a set of missions involving Orion to get some early experience in cislunar space, leading to a series of longer missions," said Skip Hatfield, manager of the Development Projects Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center, during a session of the Humans to Mars Summit here May 6. [Photos: Deep-Space Habitats of the Future]

Although NASA has notional plans for a series of Orion missions launched by the Space Launch System in the 2020s, the last firm mission on the agency's books is Exploration Mission (EM) 2, the first crewed SLS/Orion flight, scheduled for 2021. One of those future missions would likely send astronauts to an asteroid placed in lunar orbit as part of the Asteroid Redirect Mission, but the date of that mission depends on when — or if — that asteroid arrives in cislunar space.

NASA has instead discussed human missions to cislunar space as part of the "Proving Ground" phase of its overall human Mars exploration strategy, called "Journey to Mars." That phase, between the current "Earth Reliant" and long-term "Earth Independent" phases, is intended to test out technologies and gain experience before sending humans to Mars.

A key purpose of those missions, Hatfield said, would be to test habitat modules and related systems that could be used for Mars expeditions. "The next big thing we need to do if we're going to go long distances is the habitation system," he said. "There are a lot of things that go into this next step."

Studies have looked at two different approaches for developing these habitation modules. One concept involves developing a series of smaller modules that could be launched with Orion spacecraft using the upgraded Block 1B version of the SLS. Those launches, starting as soon as EM-3, the second crewed SLS/Orion mission, could accommodate modules weighing up to 10 to 12 metric tons, said Matthew Duggan, space systems manager at Boeing.

The advantage of this approach, he said, is it allows habitat modules to be launched for "free" — that is, without the need of a dedicated launch. "With every Orion mission, you're adding something useful and you're aggregating this larger and larger vehicle in cislunar space," he said.

The disadvantage, said David Smitherman, technical manager of the Advanced Concepts Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, is that it is less efficient. He proposed using one or two large modules flown on dedicated SLS launches, which he argued can save mass and provide more volume than a collection of small modules.

"The mass actually comes down a little bit as you go from a three-module set to a two-module set to a single module, even though you're increasing volume all along the way," he said, citing research to be published later this year.

NASA is augmenting its internal planning with a series of study contracts awarded earlier this year under a program called Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships, or NextSTEP. Seven of the twelve NextSTEP studies cover either habitation modules or their key subsystems.

Lockheed Martin Space Systems is using its NextSTEP award to study habitat technologies leveraging the company's proposed Jupiter system for transporting cargo   to the International Space Station, as well as the capabilities offered by Orion.

"Orion is a highly capable spacecraft designed to keep crews alive in this environment for a long period of time," said Lockheed Martin space architect Josh Hopkins. "That means you can keep the outpost for the first several flights to be relatively small and inexpensive."

What happens once the NextSTEP studies are completed next year is not yet clear, Hatfield said, and will depend in part on the results of the studies. "That's something we have to work out," he said, adding that part of his current work includes drafting an acquisition strategy that could incorporate international or public-private partnerships for some elements.

Although the technical and programmatic structure of those cislunar missions remains to be developed, there is widespread agreement that such missions are needed before human missions to Mars. "We cannot take that giant leap to a thousand-day Mars mission straight from the ISS," Hopkins said. "We need something that is on the edge of deep space."

This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.

Guest article by Icarus Interstellar's Donna A. Dulo, senior mathematician, computer scientist, and software/systems engineer for the US Department of Defense. Read more Icarus Interstellar articles on Discovery News.

As your spacecraft cruises expeditiously at warp speed on the edge of the galaxy, you detect a faint blip on your long range sensors. As you move closer the blip splits off into over a dozen distinct blips, each racing toward you in a tight formation. You sound the alarm, and as your crew takes their stations you realize the worst: you are about to confront a sizable armada of Borg cubes and spheres.

Fortunately, you spare the ship a major confrontation as you maneuver through a small, uncharted wormhole that you had recently detected in your pre-shift navigational planning, and the ship escapes unharmed. You emerge slightly off course but the ship is intact and your crew is safe.

Icarus Interstellar: Visions of Our Starship Future

As you begin to recalculate your new route, you detect another alarm. The systems module for ship life support has malfunctioned due to a software error, which emerged during the escape maneuvers. The software has corrupted the habitation systems controller, and you realize that the ship will no longer be able to produce breathable air within the next 24 hours. [Top 10 Star Trek Technologies Made Real]

The backup system has failed as well, since the backup hardware utilizes the same software routines. The rescue pods allow for 48 hours of breathable air, and the on-board mobile units have 8 hours of air per backpack.

You send your best computer scientists and software engineers into the engine room to diagnose the problem. They inform you that it will take them at least four days to isolate and fix the errors in the best case scenario, amidst over several hundred million lines of code that control the ship and life support systems.

ANALYSIS: 'Firefly' Starship To Blaze A Trail To Alpha Centauri?

Your situation is now dire. You order the shut off of non-critical systems and send your software team off with the utmost urgency. Then you wait, knowing that the lives of all crew members are now in the hands of your software development team.

Software in Starship Systems

The above scenario demonstrates the vital nature of software in a long term spacecraft travel. It begs the question of which enemy is worse: a flotilla of Star Trek baddies or a weakness the ship’s complex software system?

For those who are familiar with the highly intricate system of systems nature of software, the answer is clear; it's the software that poses the greatest risk.

Traveling at interstellar distances requires a self-sufficient, self-supporting ship and crew, requiring rapid in-house solutions to the gravest engineering situations. The inherent exponential complexity and ultimate fragility of software makes it one of the weakest links in long term survival aboard an interstellar spacecraft.

Imagine a fully operational spacecraft, with hundreds of millions of lines of code and tens or even hundreds of thousands of variables and states. Diagnosing a single error in a line of code is almost impossible in an emergency situation, even with the most advanced automated testing routines. The stress of the situation coupled with the inherent difficulties of both the mathematical logic and the sheer volume of code would strain even the best of engineering teams, who are now working without time on their side. The situation is ominous, but could it have been prevented?

GALLERY: IXS Enterprise: An Interstellar Warpship, Visualized

Like the situation with the Borg, where you were thinking well in advance and had contingency plans and escape routes mapped out, planning for long term spacecraft software safety is possible. However, this planning must occur during the development of the ship, as well as during its interstellar operations. The key is a new engineering paradigm called "resilience," and it can quite readily be applied to software engineering and software program development.

Software Long Term Resilience

In a long-term space mission, the limits of the software will be challenged; however failure is truly not an option.

The software, as well as the crew members utilizing it, must be resilient to cope with all possible safety critical situations. The concept of resilience as a discipline in engineering emerged in the mid-2000's as a way to mitigate failure in complex systems in light of sound engineering efforts. Resilience engineering as a concept in software thereafter emerged as a paradigm for software safety that focuses on how people deal with the complexity of a software system to achieve operational success in even the most challenging of situations.

Resilience engineering focuses on the ability of a system to adapt to constantly changing situations and conditions so that a positive state of control over a system is maintained to avoid failure. Coupled with the system's ability to adapt is the ability of the human element within the system to adapt. Together, a human-machine coupled safety approach emerges, allowing the human element to gain knowledge and foresight into the systems operations and become a pro-active part of the system's safety operations.

ANALYSIS: Project Voyager: A Map to Navigate Our Dynamic Universe

There are two aspects of software resilience engineering: the resilience of the software through a sound safety-focused development process, and the actual real time operation of the software with positive human in the loop operations. The overall software operates under the concept that safety is a core value along with the continual anticipation of potential failure in the software.

This human centric safety focus helps change the risk equation of the system by providing measures to break the chain of cascading software failure causation while at the same time reducing the fragility of the system. The result is safer, more viable and predictable software performance with users fully involved in software processes and evolution.

Resilience engineering techniques continue to emerge, and focus on logical software redundancy, adaptive intervention techniques, predictive analysis, among many other sound engineering methodologies. Amidst the engineering structures are sound, well-grounded human resource and operational management protocols designed to focus on the ability of a crew to adapt to changing situations and mitigate even the most challenging software emergencies.

Through the coupling of resilient software engineering techniques and viable technical organizational leadership and team centric emergency software management, a complex system has the ability to survive through a catastrophic failure, or to prevent that failure proactively.

Applying Software Resilience

In our example, the backup life support system failed because it had exactly the same programming as the primary system, and thus in the same situation the backup failed in the same way. A more resilient system would use a different software program and set of algorithms in the backup system to do the same work, making the system more resilient. [Related: How to Make Interstellar Spaceflight a Reality]

A resilient system, too, would have its software more modularized and mathematically provable, providing greater and more viable paths of adaptability, refactoring, and repair. Reduced complexity and more standardized programmatic and algorithmic structures would provide additional safeguards to improve resilience.

ANALYSIS: Kugelblitz! Powering A Starship With A Black Hole

Then the human element of a resilient system comes into play. Upon failure of the life support system, the crew on duty would immediately switch the system to the backup components, which house a different set of software routines including a completely different set of mathematical logic.

All crew members have been trained on both the hardware and the software of the ship, so the duty crew is well versed in all types of computational errors and how to handle them. Significant time has now been bought as the software systems engineering team gets to work on repairing the faulty logic of the primary set of software routines as the backup system functions flawlessly.

The repair task is easier as the software is more modularized, is easily hierarchically decomposed, and is thoroughly documented in design, architecture as well in its mathematically proven structures. The team is supplemented by a set of second tier software engineers, who have software engineering as their secondary crew function and are highly trained by the primary software team.

The scenario was well rehearsed in the past during training, and each team player knows their function: coder, verifier, mathematician, tester, and implementer. In a systematically orchestrated engineering management endeavor, a new set of logic is developed and coded for the primary system. Within two days it is verified and tested. It is subsequently implemented with total crew involvement, and the ship is back in full operational order.

ANALYSIS: Want A Starship? Think Big. Think Really Big

By applying resilience into a spacecraft's software development and real time operation, the crew can enhance the survivability of the ship even while facing the most daunting software challenges. Through the development and application of the cutting edge theories and methodologies of software resilience, the ship will have the tools and the crew to safely negotiate the perils of deep space software operations. 

Resilience techniques can also be applied to other forms of engineering as well as the ship's operations, creating a holistic safety culture that will enhance the overall ship survivability. Thus, a resilient spacecraft will be a sustainable long term spacecraft, destined to traverse the galaxy with endless possibilities for current and future generations. And if confronted, the Borg won't stand a chance.

Icarus Interstellar’s mission is to promote the development of Starship research, for both manned and unmanned vehicles. Software will be a huge part of these future systems and resilience research will help with the ultimate objectives, to first reach the stars and then to move among them, as an interstellar civilization.

This article was provided by Discovery News.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. The publication contributed this article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

The icy moon Europa is perhaps the most tantalising destination in our solar system. Scientists have been trying for years to kickstart a mission to Jupiter’s most enigmatic moon, with very Earth-like concerns over costs keeping missions grounded until now.

The European Space Agency’s ambitious mission to Jupiter, JUICE, will visit its fire-and-ice moons – volcanic Io, icy Europa, giant Ganymede, and cratered Callisto – in the 2030s. But it will only provide a glimpse of Europa’s surface from a couple of close flybys. With the announcement of the NASA-led Europa Clipper mission, now it looks like a much closer inspection of Europa is on the cards.

It’s hard to overstate the excitement among planetary scientists, after so many years of waiting in the wings while all eyes were on Mars. This is truly a quest to understand what makes a world habitable.

A watery world

Europa is the smallest and smoothest of the four Galilean moons. At 1,940 miles across, it is roughly a quarter of the size of Earth, composed of a mixture of ices and rocks. When the Galileo spacecraft flew over Europa in the 1990s, it uncovered evidence of a global sub-surface ocean: vast, deep, dark waters hidden beneath the ice crust.

The water doesn’t freeze completely because it’s constantly kneaded by powerful tidal forces as the moon orbits around Jupiter once every 3.5 days. What’s more, the ocean is believed to be in direct contact with the surface ices and the moon’s silicate mantle, which brings together all the necessary ingredients for a habitable environment: liquid water, a source of energy, and a source of minerals/nutrients. We know that life on Earth can exist in even the most extreme environmental conditions (for example, bacteria known as extremophiles), so maybe – just maybe – Europa’s hidden ocean could support life.

What to look for

Neither JUICE nor Clipper will reach the surface or the ocean below – that’s too great a technological challenge for now. But if habitable conditions for life are discovered beyond Earth, particularly somewhere as far from the Sun as Jupiter and its moons, this could mean that habitable conditions are commonplace throughout our universe.

We must begin to explore Europa via orbital reconnaissance: to image and perform spectral analysis of the composition and geology of the surface, and the radiation, magnetic, electric and plasma fields that sweep across it. With ice penetrating radar we can probe through the icy crust, even as far as the hidden ocean to understand the forces that shape this icy world.

Europa’s fractured and cracked surface is geologically quite young, and relatively crater-free. The structures that the Galileo probe observed from orbit suggest freeze-melt processes that trap icy burgs into frozen seas, creating the scarred patterns known as chaos terrain. Dark parallel ridges criss-cross the bright planes, possibly due to tectonics or other geologic processes.

Most surprising was Hubble’s observations in 2012, which showed evidence of huge plumes or geysers erupting tens of kilometres over Europa’s south pole, potentially contributing to a very thin atmosphere. If we could directly sample those plumes we might just get a glimpse of the composition of the deep ocean.

Sooner rather than later

So for all these reasons and more, Europa remains the highest priority target for a future mission. That there are two missions to the Jupiter system stems from years of study within NASA and ESA. At one point a joint mission, the Europa-Jupiter System Mission, was planned but was not taken forward due to funding constraints.

Today, JUICE is full-steam ahead, the project having passed through a full study and definition phase towards now building the spacecraft. If all goes to plan it would launch in 2022 and reach Jupiter in 2030. After two years of multiple fly-bys exploring Jupiter, its moons, rings and magnetosphere, it will become humankind’s first orbiter of an icy moon, targeting Ganymede in late 2032. If NASA’s recently announced funding is confirmed Europa Clipper may proceed even faster, using a new rocket (the Space Launch System) to propel it towards Europa in only a few years, potentially arriving just before or even at the same time as JUICE.

Clipper will conduct multiple flybys of Europa (maybe 45 or more over three years) without entering orbit directly, but will provide the high-resolution reconnaissance necessary to ultimately choose a landing site for some future robotic explorer. Although that future landing mission is beyond the funding horizon right now, it’s exciting to think that we’ll one day see images from that icy and harsh environment, with Jupiter suspended in the black skies above.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates and become part of the discussion — on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Space.com.

Sugars may form in the types of ice found in deep space — a finding that could help to explain how comets and meteorites could have seeded the primordial Earth with key ingredients for life, researchers say.

In the dense molecular clouds from which stars and planetary systems are born, ices are, by far, the most abundant solids. Prior research had found that cosmic rays and ultraviolet radiation can help convert the chemicals that make up the bulk of these interstellar ices into complex organic matter, such as the precursors of proteins and fats.

"Ices are abundant in the interstellar medium, and it is unavoidable that some of them will receive energy from ultraviolet photons or cosmic rays, leading to molecular complexification," study co-author Louis Le Sergeant d'Hendecourt, an astrophysicist at the Space Astrophysics Institute in Orsay, France, told Space.com. [5 Bold Claims of Alien Life]

Now, scientists have detected sugars in experiments that mimic the way interstellar ices can evolve over time. Sugars are more than just sweet nutrients; they serve as the backbones of nucleotides, which, in turn, serve as the building blocks of the nucleic acids that make up DNA and its cousin RNA.

"DNA is the genetic source code for all known living organisms,"study co-author Uwe Meierhenrich, a chemist at the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis in France, told Space.com.

In the experiments, scientists created thin films made up of frozen water, methanol and ammonia in a vacuum chamber kept at minus 319 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 195 degrees Celsius). They irradiated these ices with ultraviolet rays to mimic how such material would evolve over time in interstellar space. Then, they slowly warmed the samples to room temperature and analyzed them.

In a first-of-its-kind discovery, the researchers detected compounds known as aldehydes. Most sugars derive from these compounds; the simplest and best-known example of an aldehyde is formaldehyde.

Among the 10 aldehydes the scientists detected were two sugar-related compounds, glycolaldehyde and glyceraldehyde — key precursors of nucleic acids, the building blocks of genetic material.

"Glyceraldehyde is a molecule of outstanding importance," Meierhenrich said.

The researchers cautioned that their experiments did not create life, but rather only the key building blocks for life. Still, they said these findings may help reveal how ancient comets and meteorites might have seeded a lifeless Earth and other planets with the chemistry needed for life to evolve.

Future research into interstellar ices can explore the mystery of why the compounds that make up life on Earth usually come in one form but not the other, the researchers said. Many organic molecules can come in two different forms that are mirror images of each other, like left and right hands. DNA on Earth is usually "right-handed," not "left-handed," because the sugar that makes up DNA's backbone is "right-handed." In the future, the scientists would like to investigate whether sugars in interstellar ices might also be either left-handed or right-handed.

The scientists detailed their findings online today (Jan. 12) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

Earlier this year, astronomers celebrated the discovery of one of the youngest galaxies ever seen, but what was almost as astonishing was the way in which the far-off galaxy was found.

The discovery was made using the Hubble Space Telescope's Frontier Fields project, which revealed several hundred galaxies in the Abell 2744 cluster about 3.5 billion light-years from Earth. You can see a video on the Hubble Frontier Fields effort here.

Ever since Albert Einstein formulated his general theory of relativity, astronomers have known that gravity warps space-time. As a result of this warping, when light passes near a massive object, like a star, the light's path will curve.

When pointing the Hubble Space Telescope at the massive Abell 2744 cluster of galaxies, scientists took advantage of this principle.

When Hubble peered through space at Abell, it showed images of galaxies from behind the cluster. The light from those distant objects had been bent and focused by the gravitational force exerted by the cluster; the astronomers had, in effect, used a group of galaxies as a huge lens. The background galaxies — 3,000 in all — appeared 10 to 20 times as large as they would have otherwise.

This observation was part of a larger Frontier Fields project using Hubble for extreme deep-space observing. Astronomers plan to repeat the gravitational-lensing observations with five more galaxy clusters over three years. Frontier Fields will combine the Hubble images with those taken with the Spitzer Infrared and Chandra X-ray telescopes to learn about the early stages of the universe.

Follow Raphael Rosen on Twitter @raphaelrosen22. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

Editor's Note: In this weekly series, SPACE.com explores how technology drives space exploration and discovery.

Since the dawn of the space age, NASA probes have beamed data home to Earth using radio-frequency communication. But that's all set to change soon.

The space agency is working hard to develop laser-based space communications systems, which officials say are key to ensuring rapid and accurate transmission of information from spacecraft around the solar system.

"With missions developing more highly detailed science and larger volumes of data, radio-based communication links can be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of data being pushed to the ground, providing a need for higher data rates that can only be achieved with optical communication," NASA officials wrote in a description of the agency's Laser Communications Relay Demonstration mission (LCRD), which is slated to lift off in December 2017. [Communicating with Deep Space: How it Works (Video)]

Demonstrating laser communications

LCRD will launch to geosynchronous orbit as a hosted payload on a commercial communications satellite developed by the company Space Systems/Loral.

The experiment's two optical modules will use lasers to send information to two ground stations, one in California and one in New Mexico, at rates of up to 1.25 gigabytes per second. LCRD will operate for at least two years, with the aim of demonstrating the long-term viability of a space-based laser communications system.

LCRD will leverage technology that has already shown its stuff in space. The mission is based heavily on the Lunar Laser Communications Demonstration experiment, or LLCD, which launched to the moon aboard NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer spacecraft last month.

LLCD has already set a record, using a pulsed laser beam to send data 239,000 miles (384,400 kilometers) from lunar orbit to Earth at a rate of 622 megabits per second. The previous record from the moon had been 150 megabits per second, achieved by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), said Bernard Edwards, chief communications systems engineer at the space agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. [How NASA's Moon Laser Tech Works (Infographic)]

The LLCD system is also more efficient than the radio-frequency approach employed by LRO and other spacecraft, requiring significantly less mass and power, Edwards added.

"So we're really excited about what this means for the future," he said Oct. 23 during a presentation with NASA's Future In-Space Operations working group.

The way forward

NASA officials view LLCD and LCRD as steps toward developing a sort of "high-speed Internet" of space, which would enable probes to transmit data 10 to 100 times faster than they do now.

"Just imagine the ability to transmit huge amounts of data that would take days in a matter of minutes," LLCD manager Don Cornwell said in a statement. "We believe laser-based communications is the next paradigm shift in future space communications."

Such a capability could allow the streaming of live, high-definition video from faraway planets such as Jupiter and Saturn, officials say. And it would be useful closer to home as well, potentially providing the backbone of NASA's next-generation Tracking and Data Relay Satellite network, or TDRS.

TDRS has been helping relay data from NASA spacecraft to the ground since 1983, when the first satellite in the constellation launched to Earth orbit aboard the space shuttle Challenger.

Optical communications could give the system a big upgrade, but the technology needs to be vetted by experiments such as LCRD first, Edwards said.

"NASA is currently conducting a study as to what future TDRS spacecraft should look like, what features they should have, where they might be located, what the overall architecture [should be], things like that," he said. "One of the things that we're trying to do is make sure we dot all the i's and cross t's with regards to understanding what it would take to put an optical comm service on there."

Challenges ahead

While optical communication offers many advantages, the technology poses some challenges as well. One of these is its cost, which remains relatively high at the moment, Edwards said.

"What we're trying to do is to commercialize this to figure out how to drive the cost down," he said. "We have a strategy that we're currently executing that we think will make this affordable in the future."

Another issue is pointing accuracy, since laser beams are very tightly focused. For example, LLCD's beam covers just 3.6 miles (6 km) of ground area when it reaches Earth's surface, meaning the system must be lined up fairly precisely with a ground station for data to be received. (This is not much of a concern with radio-frequency communications, which are much more dispersed.)

"As you go farther out into deep space, it becomes more problematic," Edwards said.

Laser systems designed to work beyond the Earth-moon system would have to considerably larger and more powerful, with bigger ground-based receivers to intercept their beams, he added. To help lay the foundation for such technology, NASA hopes to launch an optical-communications demonstration mission to deep space in the relatively near future.

"That work is being undertaken by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, on something called the Deep Space Optical Terminal," Edwards said. "That's currently in technology development, in concept development. We don't have an actual flight project yet, with a committed funding source and a committed satellite. But we hope to fly something later on in the decade."

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on SPACE.com.

Space trips to the other planets would require months of travel through the vacuum of space. Maintaining the crew’s health is a vital concern. If the crew could be induced to hibernate, the problems of survival become easier to solve.

The huge rocket that NASA is building to blast astronauts toward Mars, asteroids and other destinations in deep space has passed a critical design milestone, agency officials announced today (Aug. 1).

Engineers wrapped up the preliminary design review for NASA's Space Launch System rocket on Wednesday (July 31), giving the heavy lifter's design, production and ground support plans a stamp of approval.

"In two short years from the first announcement of the Space Launch System, we are at a milestone that validates the detailed design and integration of the system," Dan Dumbacher, deputy associate administrator for NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, said in a statement. "You can feel the momentum of the workforce as we produce test hardware today. We are creating a national capability, and we will get this country, and the world, exploring deep space." [Photos: NASA's Giant Rocket for Deep-Space Flights]

Experts from around the country participated in the preliminary design review, examining about 200 documents and 15 terabytes of data, NASA officials said.

"The review had to be incredibly detailed, so our plans for vehicle integration, flight software, test, verification and operations will result in a safe, affordable and sustainable vehicle design," said Todd May, manager of the SLS Program at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

The review marked the final step in the rocket's initial design and development phase. The next big hurdle to clear is called Key Decision Point-C, which will see the SLS program move from concept formulation to implementation, officials said.

NASA announced the SLS in September 2011. The rocket is designed to launch the agency's Orion capsule, which is also in development. The duo is slated to fly together for the first time in 2017, with the first manned flight scheduled for 2021.

The first incarnation of SLS will stand 321 feet (98 meters) tall and carry up to 70 metric tons of payload. But NASA plans to develop a modified SLS that would be the most powerful rocket ever built. This "evolved" version would be capable of blasting 130 metric tons into space, officials say.

The SLS and Orion are being developed to meet NASA's ambitious goals in deep space. In 2010, President Barack Obama directed the agency to get astronauts to a near-Earth asteroid by 2025, then on to the vicinity of Mars by the mid-2030s.

No human has traveled beyond low-Earth orbit since Apollo 17, the final mission in NASA's famed moon program, returned home in December 1972.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on SPACE.com.

Four decades after the United States' first space station roared into orbit, a second version of the groundbreaking craft may be on the horizon.

NASA launched the Skylab space station 40 years ago Tuesday (May 14), turning the modified third stage of a Saturn V moon rocket into Amerca's first off-Earth astronaut abode. Now, a team of researchers inspired by this recycling ethos has proposed transforming part of another rocket into "Skylab II," which could become the nation's first-ever manned outpost in deep space.

"This one is a big look backwards — 40 years, in fact," said Brand Griffin, an engineer with Gray Research, Inc., who works with the Advanced Concepts Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. [Skylab: The First U.S. Space Station (Photos)]

From Saturn V to the SLS

The original Skylab supported three manned missions in 1973 and 1974, during which three-astronaut crews lived aboard the station for 28, 59 and 84 days, respectively. The 85-ton station continued orbiting Earth until 1979, when it re-entered the planet's atmosphere and famously rained debris down on a stretch of Western Australia.

Nobody was hurt, but the Australian town of Esperance charged NASA $400 for littering. The fine went unpaid until 2009, when California radio DJ Scott Barley took care of it after collecting donations from his listeners.

Like the first Skylab, the proposed Skylab II would be built from a piece of a giant NASA rocket — in this case, the Space Launch System (SLS), which the agency is developing to blast astronauts toward asteroids, Mars and other destinations in deep space.

Skylab II would make use of the SLS' upper-stage hydrogen propellant tank, which Griffin said would provide an internal volume of 17,481 cubic feet (495 cubic m) — roughly equivalent to a two-story house, and significantly more than the original Skylab's 12,713 cubic feet (360 cubic m).

Skylab II could accommodate a crew of four comfortably, and it could carry enough food and gear to last for several years at a time without the need of a resupply mission, Griffin said.

While outfitting the propellant tank as a space station would require some tinkering, its bones are solid and flight-ready, he added.

"It's designed to take all of the launch loads, so no rework needs to be done structurally for this to be able to fly," Griffin said in March during a presentation with NASA's Future In-Space Operations working group.

The first deep-space station?

Griffin and other Skylab II proponents envision placing Skylab II at the Earth-moon Lagrange point 2, a gravitationally stable location beyond the moon's far side.

A manned outpost at EM-L2 would give humanity its first toehold in deep space and build momentum for manned pushes even farther out into the solar system, advocates say.

Such a project may seem optimistic in today's tough fiscal environment, when NASA and other government agencies are seeing their budgets squeezed. But Skylab II would be a cost-effective way to make it happen, Griffin said, by taking advantage of existing infrastructure — just like its namesake did four decades ago.

Skylab "was a project embedded under the Apollo program," Griffin said. "In many ways, this could follow that same pattern. It could be a project embedded under SLS and be able to, ideally, not incur some of the costs of program startup."

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on SPACE.com.

NASA's first manned outpost in deep space may be a repurposed rocket part, just like the agency's first-ever astronaut abode in Earth orbit.

With a little tinkering, the upper-stage hydrogen propellant tank of NASA's huge Space Launch System rocket would make a nice and relatively cheap deep-space habitat, some researchers say. They call the proposed craft "Skylab II," an homage to the 1970s Skylab space station that was a modified third stage of a Saturn V moon rocket.

"This idea is not challenging technology," said Brand Griffin, an engineer with Gray Research, Inc., who works with the Advanced Concepts Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

"It's just trying to say, 'Is this the time to be able to look at existing assets, planned assets and incorporate those into what we have as a destination of getting humans beyond LEO [low-Earth orbit]?'" Griffin said Wednesday (March 27) during a presentation with NASA's Future In-Space Operations working group. [Gallery: Visions of Deep-Space Stations]

A roomy home in deep space

NASA is developing the Space Launch System (SLS) to launch astronauts toward distant destinations such as near-Earth asteroids and Mars. The rocket's first test flight is slated for 2017, and NASA wants it to start lofting crews by 2021.

The SLS will stand 384 feet tall (117 meters) in its biggest ("evolved") incarnation, which will be capable of blasting 130 metric tons of payload to orbit. Its upper-stage hydrogen tank is big, too, measuring 36.1 feet tall by 27.6 feet wide (11.15 m by 8.5 m).

The tank's dimensions yield an internal volume of 17,481 cubic feet (495 cubic m) — roughly equivalent to a two-story house. That's much roomier than a potential deep-space habitat derived from modules of the International Space Station (ISS), which are just 14.8 feet (4.5 m) wide, Griffin said.

The tank-based Skylab II could accommodate a crew of four comfortably and carry enough gear and food to last for several years at a time without requiring a resupply, he added. Further, it would launch aboard the SLS in a single piece, whereas ISS-derived habitats would need to link up multiple components in space.

Because of this, Skylab II would require relatively few launches to establish and maintain, Griffin said. That and the use of existing SLS-manufacturing infrastructure would translate into big cost savings — a key selling point in today's tough fiscal climate.

"We will have the facilities in place, the tooling, the personnel, all the supply chain and everything else," Griffin said.

He compared the overall concept with the original Skylab space station, which was built in a time of declining NASA budgets after the boom years of the Apollo program.

Skylab "was a project embedded under the Apollo program," Griffin said. "In many ways, this could follow that same pattern. It could be a project embedded under SLS and be able to, ideally, not incur some of the costs of program startup."

Living beyond the moon

Griffin and his colleagues envision placing Skylab II at the Earth-moon Lagrange point 2, a gravitationally stable location beyond the moon's far side.

Over the past year or so, NASA has been drawing up plans for a possible manned outpost at EM-L2. A station there would establish a human presence in deep space, serve as a staging ground for lunar operations and help build momentum for exploring more distant destinations, such as asteroids and Mars, advocates say.

The Skylab II concept could also help ferry astronauts to these far-flung locales, Griffin said.

"You can build multiple vehicles," he said. "If we were to send this one, the first one, out to Earth-moon L2, you could build another that that could be a transit hab. So rather than having to go back and use space station parts, you would be able to pick these off the line."

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on SPACE.com.

NASA's Wind Spacecraft

Artist's rendering of NASA's Wind probe, which launched in 1994 to investigate the solar wind.

NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer

An artist's concept of NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer spacecraft (ACE), which launched in 1997 to study space weather.

NASA and ESA's SOHO Spacecraft

An artist's impression of the SOHO spacecraft (short for Solar and Heliospheric Observatory).

NASA's STEREO Spacecraft Observing Sun Storm

Artist's concept of the STEREO spacecraft observing a coronal mass ejection. When there's no CME to be found, STEREO still gathers images of the background stars.

MESSENGER in Orbit

An artist's conception shows NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft in orbit around Mercury.

Europe's Venus Express Probe

An artist's interpretation of the European Space Agency's Venus Express spacecraft orbiting the second planet in our solar system.

Japan's Akatsuki Venus Probe

Japan's Venus Climate Orbiter "Akatsuki" was designed to study both the atmosphere and surface of Venus.

NASA Gives Two Probes New Orders: To the Moon

An artist's concept of NASA's twin ARTEMIS spacecraft, which moved from Earth orbit to lunar orbit in 2011.

NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Artist’s rendition of NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter over the lunar surface.

The Spitzer Space Telescope

Artist's view of NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope against the infrared sky.

Herschel Telescope Sees Cold, Early Universe

Artist impression of the infrared Herschel spacecraft, which is helping scientists better understand the universe's early days.

Artist's Impression of Planck Spacecraft

Artist's impression of the European Space Agency's Planck spacecraft. Planck's main goal is to study the Cosmic Microwave Background — the relic radiation left over from the Big Bang.

Progress of China's Chang'e 2 Moon Probe

This graphic from the China Lunar Exploration Program shows the progress of China's Chang'e 2 moon probe from its lunar orbit out to the L2 Lagrange point 1.5 million km from Earth.

Deep Impact's Comet Tempel 1 Visit

NASA's Deep Impact probe gave scientists their first close-up look at the interior of a comet when it hit. Here, an artist illustrates the 2005 encounter.

Europe's Mars Express Probe

An artist's conception of the European Space Agency's Mars Express craft.

Mars Odyssey Spacecraft at Mars

NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft passes above Mars' south pole in this artist's concept illustration. The spacecraft has been orbiting Mars since October 24, 2001. The spacecraft serves as a vital relay for NASA's Mars rover Curiosity. [Related: Mars Rover Curiosity Landing Coverage]

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter passes over the Red Planet's south polar region in this artist's concept illustration.

NASA's Mars Rover Curiosity

During its 84th and 85th days (sols) on Mars in late 2012, NASA's huge Mars rover Curiosity snapped this newest mosaic self-portrait.

Opportunity Rover Studies Martian Rock

NASA's Opportunity Mars rover used its front hazard-avoidance camera to take this picture showing the rover's arm extended toward a light-toned rock named Tisdale 2 on Aug. 23, 2011.

Dawn Probe Leaves Protoplanet Vesta

NASA's Dawn spacecraft arrived at the giant asteroid Vesta in July 2011 and departed in September 2012 for the dwarf planet Ceres.

Europe's Rosetta Comet Mission

An artist's illustration of Rosetta's Philae lander on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Rosetta is due to arrive at the comet in mid-2014.

NASA's Juno Spacecraft

The Juno spacecraft passes in front of Jupiter in this artist's depiction. Juno is slated to arrive at the solar system's largest planet in 2016.

NASA's Cassini Probe

This artist's concept shows a flyby of Saturn's moon Enceladus by NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

New Horizons at Pluto (Artist's View)

This artist’s concept shows NASA's New Horizons spacecraft during its 2015 encounter with Pluto and its largest moon, Charon.

Voyager 1 and 2 at Solar System's Edge

Artist's concept of Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 at the edge of the solar system.

The danger of space radiation is one of the biggest obstacles to the manned exploration of deep space, and NASA is hoping today's kids can help overcome it.

NASA has launched an exploration design challenge asking K-12 students around the world to help protect astronauts and spacecraft hardware from the high levels of space radiation they will experience beyond Earth's protective magnetosphere, the agency announced today (March 11).

"America's next step in human space exploration is an ambitious one and will require new technologies, including ways to keep our astronauts safe from the effects of deep-space radiation," NASA chief Charles Bolden said in a statement. "That is the focus of this challenge, and we are excited students will be helping us solve that problem."

Kids in elementary and middle school will recommend materials that could be used as astronaut-protecting shielding on NASA's Orion deep space capsule, which is currently in development. High schoolers will be tasked with actually designing shielding that protects an Orion sensor from space radiation; the winning design will ride to space on an Orion test flight in 2014, officials said. [Photos: NASA's Orion Space Capsule]

The student challenge — which is a joint effort involving NASA, aerospace firm Lockheed Martin and the National Institute of Aerospace — aims to get kids excited about science, technology, engineering and math.

"Space exploration has inspired and fascinated young people for generations, and the Exploration Design Challenge is a unique way to capture and engage the imaginations of tomorrow's engineers and scientists," Lockheed Martin CEO and president Marillyn Hewson said in a statement.

NASA is gearing up to send people farther from Earth than they've ever gone before. In 2010, President Barack Obama directed the agency to get astronauts to a near-Earth asteroid by 2025, then on to the vicinity of Mars by the mid-2030s.

They will get there using Orion and NASA's huge Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The pair are slated to fly together for the first time in 2017, with SLS launching Orion on an unmanned flight around the moon.

Orion will reach space before then, however, blasting to Earth orbit atop a United Launch Alliance Delta 4 heavy rocket in 2014 on an unmanned mission called Exploration Flight Test 1.

"Exploration Flight Test 1 is set to launch next year, so participating in this challenge will give the students a real sense of being part of the NASA team," NASA associate administrator for education Leland Melvin said in a statement. "They will be able to chart Orion's progress as it moves closer to the test launch. That's important because these students represent our future scientists, engineers and explorers."

To learn more about the Exploration Design Challenge, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/education/edc

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on SPACE.com.

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Tuesday mornings are usually pretty quiet at the tiny Santa Monica Municipal Airport, and doubly so at the Museum of Flying located there. But last Tuesday (Jan. 22), the main hall was abuzz with something unusual.

On a dais in front of a WWII fighter, Geoffrey Notkin, co-host of Science Channel’s "Meteorite Men," opened up a press conference by introducing the principals of the latest entry into the asteroid-mining business, a company called Deep Space Industries. The brainchild of private space veterans Rick Tumlinson and David Gump, among others, DSI is the second major player to jump into the celestial gold rush.

The company is moving along a path similar but not identical to that mapped out by Planetary Resources, the billionaire-backed firm unveiled last April. Planetary Resources was founded by Peter Diamandis of X-Prize fame and Eric Anderson, formerly of the space-tourism outfit Space Adventures.

While both companies seek to extract resources from near-Earth asteroids, Deep Space Industries wants to concentrate more on in-space utilization of these resources. [Deep Space Industries' Asteroid-Mining Vision in Photos]

A grand vision

Chairman Tumlinson laid out the plan at the press conference. He described a phased program of asteroid reconnaissance, exploration and utilization, carried out with predominantly existing technological know-how.

Starting with a fleet of small, unmanned spacecraft called Fireflies, the company will journey to nearby asteroids beginning in 2015 to assess their stores of water, hydrogen and other volatiles, as well as metals such as nickel that can be used in the fabrication of metal parts.

A later generation of spacecraft, known as Dragonflies, will return samples from the drifting bodies to Earth. More ambitious spacecraft called Harvestors will do the actual asteroid-mining work, perhaps beginning as early as 2020.

The upshot of this grand plan is to provide fuel, water and oxygen for in-space use, as well as metals for parts fabrication away from Earth's surface.

Since one of the biggest costs associated with venturing beyond Earth’s orbit is the launching of water and fuel for the trip, finding and processing it in space could make journeys to Mars and other far-flung destinations much cheaper, advocates say. And in-space manufacturing could help build human habitats, satellites and other spacecraft, again saving greatly on launch costs. [Gallery: Future Visions of Human Spaceflight]

To garner needed profits in the short term, DSI would sell fuel to the many operators of satellites currently in orbit around the Earth. When these satellite run out of maneuvering fuel, they must either be re-provisioned or abandoned. The new company plans to make refilling the fuel tanks on such satellites economically feasible, saving tens of millions of dollars per year for the owner-operators in the process.

Making it happen

Will DSI pull it off, or will the company join the ranks of the many other similar operations that have burned through small fortunes, only to be born, live a brief, struggling life stuck on Earth’s surface, and meet their demise never having flown higher than the occasional corporate jet to the next fund raiser?

DSI's founders certainly believe they can make it. After a lightly comical introduction by the resident celebrity Notkin, Tumlinson took the stage and delivered a rousing call to action.

So many people have lost belief in what we can do as a species, Tumlinson said. We seem to be heading into the future with "less hope… less [sic] things to dream about… less, less, less, less… this myth exists only in the minds of those who believe that this is it, that this one ball, this tiny rock, is all there is, that this is all we have. We at Deep Space Industries don’t believe that… we believe that we sit in a sea of resources that is so infinite that it’s hard to describe."

Tumlinson then turned over the presentation to a small panel of experts and board members. There was an asteroid-mining expert from Australia, a satellite engineer from aerospace giant Loral, the aforementioned David Gump as CEO and many others.

Each added his bit of the story, ranging from the technical feasibility of Deep Space's ambitions to the (planned) financial backing to descriptions of multiple revenue streams.

At times the meeting became refreshingly candid, as when Gump mentioned that there were multiple reasons for the press conference besides merely announcing the company's existence. Such reasons include, he said, "letting the investors know that we are here.”

It was noted that many people in the aerospace industry are of an age that regards both the Apollo program and "Star Trek" as prime motivators, and the former was called into view more than once. That call went something like this: let companies like SpaceX, Bigelow Aerospace and Deep Space Industries do the day-to-day work of routine spaceflight, and let NASA get back to their “Lewis-and-Clark function” of great exploration and daring accomplishments.

Deep Space's early mission plan is for wealthy partners to sponsor the initial efforts to reconnoiter some near-Earth asteroids as the small, unmanned spacecraft are developed, then sell commercial missions for $20 million, using clusters of three spacecraft to maximize chances for success.

Over time, the process would grow from exploration to resource acquisition to in-space processing of volatiles to in-space manufacturing of metal parts using the metals available on some asteroids and a 3D printer.

Only time will tell if Deep Space Industries can make it happen. Both Gump and Tumlinson have had mixed success in the private space sector in the past — working, for example, to privatize the Russian Mir space station (some initial success, but over the long haul, nyet) and producing the first TV commercial shot in orbit for tech retailer Radio Shack (Da!).

Flights are scheduled to begin as early as 2015, which doesn't give Deep Space Industries much time to move from computer animations to finished spacecraft. But this is, after all, the age of private industry in space, as evidenced by the successful flights of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule to the International Space Station and the nearly concluded test flights of Virgin Galactic’s suborbital spacecraft, among others.

DSI may join the ranks of the successful despite the challenges. Many of us here on the ground will be watching them — and Planetary Resources, and many other private spaceflight companies — with fingers crossed.

Follow SPACE.com on Twitter @Spacedotcom. We're also on Facebook & Google+. 

Despite speculation to the contrary, NASA's ambitious plans for a manned space station beyond the moon have not yet been cleared by the White House, a senior administration official told SPACE.com.

Over the past year or so, NASA has been drawing up plans for a manned outpost beyond the moon's far side, at a gravitationally stable location known as the Earth-moon Lagrange point 2 (EM-L2). The station would establish a human presence in deep space, serve as a staging ground for lunar operations and help build momentum for exploring more far-flung destinations, such as asteroids and Mars.

Word about the potential outpost has begun leaking out in press reports and from space exploration officials over the last several months, leading some experts to suspect that the White House may already be on board — and that an official announcement could be coming soon, especially since President Barack Obama won re-election on Nov. 6.

But such speculation is inaccurate, said the official, who was not authorized to speak on the record.

"So it's kind of just one of those one-off projects that [NASA hopes if it goes] to the press, or to [Capitol] Hill, that it'll get funded," the official added. "But I don't think that's going to be the case."

NASA would rely on its Orion crew capsule and huge Space Launch System rocket — both of which are under development — to build and staff the outpost at EM-L2. The agency wants the capsule-rocket combo to be ready to carry astronauts by 2021.

An EM-L2 space station could serve as a stepping stone to near-Earth asteroids and Mars, two destinations that are officially on NASA's docket. In 2010, Obama directed the space agency to get astronauts to a space rock by 2025, then on to the vicinity of the Red Planet by the mid-2030s.

The new directive marked a change of course for NASA's human spaceflight efforts, which had been geared toward going back to the moon under the Constellation program.

Constellation began in 2004 under President George W. Bush. Obama cancelled Constellation in 2010 after a review panel known as the Augustine Committee deemed it significantly behind schedule and over budget.

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