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An artist's illustration of a massive impact on earth. Some single-celled organisms may be able to survive extreme impacts such as these, scientists say.

Life May Be Common in the Milky Way, Thanks to Comet Swapping

By Mike Wall

Life has had plenty of opportunities to spread throughout the Milky Way galaxy over the eons — and our own Earth could be one of the key dispersal points.

This new Hubble Space Telescope view of Jupiter, taken on June 27, 2019, reveals the giant planet's trademark Great Red Spot, and a more intense color palette in the clouds swirling in Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere than seen in previous years. Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 observed Jupiter when the planet was 400 million miles (640 million kilometers) from Earth, when Jupiter was near "opposition," or almost directly opposite the sun in the sky.

Hubble Telescope's Gorgeous New Jupiter Views Could Help Demystify Shrinking Great Red Spot

By Elizabeth Howell

An amazing new image of Jupiter captured by the Hubble Space Telescope could shed light on the gas giant's mysterious atmospheric dynamics.

Eastern South America, Africa and Europe as seen at night in 2016.

USRA's Earth from Space Institute Wants to Help Save the World

By Meghan Bartels

Miguel Román is the sort of person whose family barbecues are interrupted by calls from Army personnel asking where they should bring generators when a hurricane strikes.

Félicette, the first cat in space (seen here at right), will soon be immortalized as a bronze sculpture at the International Space University in Strasbourg. On the left here is one of the first photos of the artwork in progress, and at the center is a small scale model.

Hail Félicette! French Space Cat Memorial Beginning to Take Shape

By Hanneke Weitering

Fifty-six years after a cat named Félicette became the first feline to launch into space, plans to build the cosmic cat's first proper memorial are beginning to take shape.

Patty Stoll of ILC Dover wearing the Next Generation Spacesuit.

This Next-Gen Spacesuit Could Protect Astronauts on the Moon and Mars

By Chelsea Gohd

ILC Dover and Collins Aerospace unveiled a prototype of the Next Generation Space Suit system, which astronauts may use on the moon and Mars.

Data gathered by the Hubble Space Telescope informs a map of dark matter.

Dark Matter May Have Existed Before the Big Bang, New Math Suggests

By Meghan Bartels

Cracking the mystery of dark matter is one of the most frustrating quests of physics.

U.S. Senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, shown here at a press conference in June 2019, has pledged to share any details about UFOs if he wins the 2020 election.

Bernie Sanders Pledges to Release Any Information About Aliens If He's Elected in 2020: Report

By Elizabeth Howell

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders (D-VT) says he's prepared to disclose government information about UFOs if he wins in 2020.

The skin of grapes contain a compound that may help protect the musculoskeletal systems of future astronauts bound for Mars. A person on a long-duration mission to Mars would have to endure the deteriorative effects of the planet's gravity, which is about 40% as strong as what we experience on Earth's surface.

Martian Merlot? How a Red Wine Compound May Help Us Cope with Mars' Gravity

By Doris Elin Salazar

Researchers recently studied the effects that a plant compound found in grapes and wine could have to preserve the density and mass of muscles in rats placed under Martian-like conditions.

An artist's depiction of one satellite in the pair of cubesats that make up the Optical Communications and Sensor Demonstration mission.

Steam-Powered Cubesats Dance in Space as One NASA Spacecraft Commands Its Twin

By Elizabeth Howell

Using old-fashioned steam power, two cubesats executed the first coordinated maneuver in low-Earth orbit.

Artist's illustration of NASA's Parker Solar Probe approaching the sun.

NASA's Parker Solar Probe Is Beaming Back Extra Data as it Buzzes the Sun

By Meghan Bartels

NASA's Parker Solar Probe has already completed two daring dives into the sun's atmosphere, and now scientists have realized that they'll be able to gather more data than expected from the mission.

A piece of SpaceX's "Mk1" orbital Starship prototype at the company's facility in Boca Chica, Texas. SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk tweeted this photo on Aug. 5, 2019.

SpaceX's Mars-Colonizing 'Starship' Prototype Coming Together in Texas (Photos)

By Mike Wall

The first orbital prototype of SpaceX's Mars-colonizing Starship vehicle should be ready to fly soon, company founder and CEO Elon Musk said.

Long-term exposure to deep-space radiation can damage astronauts' brains, a new study suggests. The results should inform NASA's plans for crewed missions to Mars.

Space Radiation Will Damage Mars Astronauts' Brains

By Mike Wall

Space radiation will take a toll on astronauts' brains during the long journey to Mars, a new study suggests.

During the brief "inflation" period, the newborn universe expanded far faster than the speed of light, growing from a subatomic size to a golf-ball size almost instantaneously.

The Problems with the Cosmic Calendar

By Paul Sutter

Our lives here on Earth are small and insignificant and inconsequential — but only in a certain frame of reference, and that frame of reference doesn't necessarily apply to cosmic scales.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying the U.S. Air Force's Advanced Extremely High Frequency 5 military communications satellite lifts off from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Aug. 8, 2019.

Atlas V Rocket Launches Advanced Communications Satellite for US Military

By Amy Thompson

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket took to the skies early this morning (Aug. 8), delivering a highly advanced communications satellite into space for the U.S. Air Force.

The Atlas V rocket that will launch the AEHF-5 satellite rolls out to the launch site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Here's How to Watch an Atlas V Rocket Launch a US Military Satellite Today

By Hanneke Weitering

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket will launch a military communications satellite together with an experimental cubesat Thursday morning (Aug. 8), and you can watch the mission live online.

Footage from China Central Television shows grid fins on a Long March 2C rocket that launched in July 2019.

See China's Cool New Rocket Fins in Action!

By Elizabeth Howell

They may look like waffle-makers, but China's new rocket fins are cooking up something even more special: the ability to guide rockets to a safe zone after launch.

Earth's north and south magnetic poles flip-flop over long timescales. New research into volcanic rocks may explain how it happens.

Earth's Last Magnetic-Pole Flip Took Much Longer Than We Thought

By Passant Rabie

A team of scientists estimated that the last magnetic-field reversal took place over 22,000 years.

In the southern sky on the evening of Friday, Aug. 9, the waxing gibbous moon will land just to the upper left (celestial northeast) of the bright planet Jupiter. Both objects will fit within the field of view of binoculars (red circle).

See the Moon Near Jupiter (and Twinkly Red Antares, Too!) This Friday

By Joe Rao

On Friday evening, assuming your skies are reasonably clear, you'll be able to see the moon passing near to the largest planet in the solar system: Jupiter.

An artist's depiction of some of the newly discovered galaxies.

These Gargantuan Galaxies, Hidden in Plain Sight, Could Rewrite Universe's Early Days

By Meghan Bartels

It's the ultimate magic of science, when using a different instrument reveals what was hidden in plain sight.

An artist's depiction of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT).

Why Thousands of Hawaiians (Including Jason Momoa) Are Protesting a Giant Telescope on Mauna Kea

By Rafi Letzter