Astronomy News - Space Science - Articles and Images

Here's how scientists spotted a 9th target for NASA's Lucy asteroid mission

By Rahul Rao published 18 August 22

Thanks to 26 teams of observers, spotting a star blink out showed that asteroid Polymele has a moon.

An artist's depiction of one of the twin Voyager spacecraft exploring interstellar space.

Celebrate NASA's Voyager missions at 45 with this free webcast tonight

By Tariq Malik published 18 August 22

The Voyager missions are icons of cosmic exploration, and you can celebrate their 45th anniversary with a free webcast tonight (Aug. 18).

Storm-boosted auroras dazzle skywatchers around the world (photos)

By Elizabeth Howell published 18 August 22

Auroras shone in many polar regions last night following a moderate-sized solar storm. And more might be coming after a more recent sun eruption.

Artist's illustration of DART spacecraft approaching two asteroids.

DART asteroid mission: NASA's first planetary defense spacecraft

By Daisy Dobrijevic published 18 August 22

Reference NASA's DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) mission is the first-ever space mission designed to test planetary defense technologies in asteroid deflection.

Reference

Astronaut spots bright aurora storm from the International Space Station (photos)

By Elizabeth Howell published 18 August 22

A moderate-sized aurora glowed eerily green within view of the International Space Station crew, following a burst of activity from the sun.

A close-up of a portion of Saturn's ring system showing distinct bands of blue, orange, yellow, and white.

Celebrate 45 years of Voyager with these amazing images of our solar system (gallery)

By Daisy Dobrijevic published 18 August 22

Reference NASA's twin probes, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have been exploring the cosmos for 45 years. Here, we take a look at some of their best images.

Reference

The Nadir crater, seen on seismic imagery from West Africa. The bottom of the crater, lined in green dots, sits at approximately the boundary between the Cretaceous and Paleogene, when the dinosaurs died out.

Did a second killer asteroid finish the dinosaurs off? Crater in West Africa hints yes.

By Stephanie Pappas published 18 August 22

A 66 million-year-old impact crater has been discovered off the coast of West Africa, raising questions about just how many deadly space rocks the dinosaurs had to deal with.

James Webb Space Telescope will seek clouds of vaporized gems on exoplanets

By Keith Cooper published 18 August 22

Astronomers are looking for clouds made of vaporized gems and metals on faraway exoplanets.

An unidentified aerial phenomenon object appearing as a shadow in a Navy jet camera

NASA 'going full force' to gear up for UFO study

By Mike Wall published 18 August 22

NASA has already identified its top candidate panelists for the UFO study, which is expected to begin this fall and last about nine months.

The main body of the Europa Clipper spacecraft arrived at the clean room of JPL in early June 2022.

Watch NASA's Jupiter icy moon explorer come together in a new video

By Tereza Pultarova published 18 August 22

Stunning aurora displays photographed from the International Space Station.

Pictures from space! Our image of the day

By Space.com Staff published 18 August 22

With the increased activity of the sun over the past week, astronauts on the International Space Station get treated to spectacular views of polar light displays above the planet.

Colliding black holes could clock universe's expansion rate

By Robert Lea published 17 August 22

New research suggests that the expansion of the universe could be measured using colliding black holes as 'spectral sirens.'

Want to grow plants on Mars? High school student project finds 2 tricks for Red Planet

By Charles Q. Choi published 17 August 22

The soil and water of Mars are normally too harsh for crops, but research led by a then-high schooler finds that alfalfa plants and photosynthetic bacteria might help make conditions fit for farming.

Supermassive black hole's bright 'photon ring' revealed in new image

By Robert Lea published 17 August 22

The golden glowing ring of matter seen in the first-ever image of a black hole has been remastered, revealing the action of gravity around such cosmic titans.

Two coronal holes, areas with disrupted magnetic field, are visible on the face of the sun in this satellite image.

Solar burst from 'hole' in the sun may trigger geomagnetic storms on Earth

By Tereza Pultarova published 17 August 22

A strong geomagnetic storm may hit Earth on Thursday (Aug. 18), triggering stunning aurora displays farther away from the polar regions than usual.

NASA's Artemis 1 mission will carry an asteroid-bound solar sail

By Stefanie Waldek published 17 August 22

NASA's coming megarocket launch isn't just going to the moon, it's going far beyond that — some of its secondary payloads far, far beyond.

NASA's Artemis 1 moon mission will carry the world's 1st deep-space biology experiment

By Stefanie Waldek published 16 August 22

Scientists will study the effects of radiation on yeast in preparation for long-duration crewed missions to deep space.

The asteroid Ryugu, as seen by Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft on June 30, 2018.

Asteroid Ryugu contains dust older than the solar system

By Tereza Pultarova published 16 August 22

Ancient grains of dust that are older than the solar system itself have been found in samples from asteroid Ryugu brought to Earth by the Japanese Hayabusa2 spacecraft nearly two years ago.

Supermassive black hole pair nearest Earth is locked in a violent cosmic dance

By Robert Lea published 16 August 22

A powerful and spectacular cosmic dance that began a billion years ago will lead to a collision and merger between two galaxies and the supermassive black holes at their hearts.

Meteorites that reach the Earth fall from asteroid butts