There’s a new comet in the sky that has gained a lot of attention lately over its potential to become visible to the naked eye. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) was discovered by observatories in China and South Africa in early 2023. Believed to have originated from the Oort Cloud — a giant spherical shell that … Read more
There’s a lot of debris in our solar system, and every so often we get to see it — meteors streaking against a starry sky, a bright comet or a passing asteroid. And sometimes, Earth temporarily grabs hold of one of these asteroids and keeps it around a little bit longer. That’s what’s happening later this … Read more
A crew of four private astronauts ascended into space early Tuesday on a risky SpaceX mission to attempt the first-ever private spacewalk using the company’s new spacesuits and a redesigned spacecraft. A billionaire entrepreneur, a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees were launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., aboard … Read more
It’s been a long time coming, but Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft is finally returning to Earth — but without its two astronauts. The capsule is scheduled to depart the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, leaving behind test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, and land at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico early Saturday morning. … Read more
The SpaceX Falcon 9 vehicle may return to flight operations while the overall investigation of the anomaly during a recent Starlink mission remains open, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Friday. SpaceX made the return to flight request for the workhorse vehicle on Thursday and the FAA gave approval on Friday. The agency … Read more
The launch of SpaceX’s four-person Polaris Dawn mission will be delayed by at least a day because of a helium leak in ground equipment at Kennedy Space Center, the company said on Tuesday, hours before the scheduled liftoff of its Crew Dragon capsule. The highlight of the mission is expected to come two days after … Read more
Two NASA astronauts who flew to the International Space Station in June aboard Boeing’s faulty Starliner capsule will need to return to Earth on a SpaceX vehicle early next year, NASA said on Saturday, deeming issues with Starliner’s propulsion system too risky to carry its first crew home. The agency’s decision, tapping Boeing’s top space … Read more
If you don’t look up at the moon very often, tonight’s the night you should. It’s a lunar trifecta of sorts, and it’s all the rage. This month’s full moon is being called a “super blue moon.” Don’t know what that is? Read on. What is a supermoon? The moon completes one orbit of Earth … Read more
In a significant milestone, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) launched its first Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite into orbit for earth observation on Friday, August 16. The launch was carried out by AI-powered geospatial solutions provider Bayanat, and the UAE’s Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat), in partnership with ICEYE, a pioneer in SAR … Read more
If you have clear skies this week, be sure to look up: It’s time for one of the best meteor showers of the year: the Perseids. While you can see a meteor on any given night — with patience and dark skies — strong meteor showers provide a rare chance to see dozens an hour. Almost … Read more
