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Hawaii approves construction of the most powerful optical telescope on Earth
Friday marked another important step forward for the future of astronomical discovery and economic opportunity on Hawaii Island. The Hawaiian Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) announced that it has granted a permit to the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) project to build and operate the next-generation observatory near the summit of Mauna Kea.
April 15, 2013 Read more
Groundbreaking observational campaign of Saturn's auroras
University of Leicester planetary scientists have collaborated with an international team of researchers to organise the largest ever observational campaign of Saturn's auroras.
April 15, 2013 Read more
Can one buy the right to name a planet? - The IAU responds to recent name-selling campaign
In the light of recent events, where the possibility of buying the rights to name exoplanets has been advertised, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) wishes to inform the public that such schemes have no bearing on the official naming process.
April 12, 2013 Read more
TEXUS 50 - Anniversary for Germany's sounding rocket programme
It is the world's longest running rocket programme for conducting research in microgravity, and today it is celebrating an anniversary. Around 35 years after the launch of the first TEXUS mission in December 1977, the 50th TEXUS rocket was successfully launched into space from the Esrange Space Center near Kiruna in northern Sweden on 12 April 2013.
April 12, 2013 Read more
NASA announces challenges for the 2013 International Space Apps Challenge
NASA and over 150 partner organizations worldwide will be hosting the International Space Apps Challenge on April 20-21, 2013. The International Space Apps Challenge is a technology development event during which citizens from around the world work together to solve challenges relevant to improving life on Earth and in space.
April 12, 2013 Read more
NASA proposal to capture asteroid
NASA's FY2014 budget proposal includes a plan to robotically capture a small near-Earth asteroid and redirect it safely to a stable orbit in the Earth-moon system where astronauts can visit and explore it.
April 12, 2013 Read more
Ice cloud heralds fall at Titan's south pole
An ice cloud taking shape over Titan's south pole is the latest sign that the change of seasons is setting off a cascade of radical changes in the atmosphere of Saturn's largest moon. Made from an unknown ice, this type of cloud has long hung over Titan's north pole, where it is now fading, according to observations made by the Composite Infrared Spectrometer on NASA's Cassini spacecraft.
April 11, 2013 Read more
NASA, Air Force seek next generation space processor program
NASA and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory in Albuquerque, N.M., are requesting research and development proposals to define the type of spacecraft computing needed for future missions.
April 11, 2013 Read more
Explosive crater twins on Mars
Dramatic underground explosions, perhaps involving ice, are responsible for the pits inside these two large martian impact craters, imaged by ESA's Mars Express on 4 January.
April 11, 2013 Read more
An improved mathematical method for simulating the evolution of the solar system
In order to improve a simulation designed to study the evolution of the solar system through time, numerical mathematical methods have been developed at the Computing Faculty of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). Specifically, the methods proposed enable the simulation calculations to be done faster and more accurately.
April 11, 2013 Read more
Retired star found with planets and debris disc
ESA's Herschel space observatory has provided the first images of a dust belt - produced by colliding comets or asteroids - orbiting a subgiant star known to host a planetary system.
April 10, 2013 Read more
A ghostly green bubble
This intriguing new picture from ESO's Very Large Telescope shows the glowing green planetary nebula IC 1295 surrounding a dim and dying star located about 3300 light-years away in the constellation of Scutum (The Shield). This is the most detailed picture of this object ever taken.
April 10, 2013 Read more
Boeing announces Phantom Phoenix family of small satellites
Boeing is developing a family of small satellite prototypes, called Phantom Phoenix, that can quickly and affordably be manufactured and configured for specific missions.
April 10, 2013 Read more
Mars Science Lab update: What remains of Mars' atmosphere is still dynamic
Mars has lost much of its original atmosphere, but what's left remains active, according to recent findings from NASA's Mars rover Curiosity that involve a University of Michigan researcher.
April 9, 2013 Read more
Astronaut's radiation study will be critical for Mars mission
As space exploration inches closer to Mars, research into space radiation will become increasingly critical, says ESA astronaut Christer Fuglesang, who was introduced today as the new head of the Aerospace Engineering master's programme at KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
April 9, 2013 Read more
Meteosat-9 takes over Rapid Scanning Service
Today, Meteosat-9 took over the rapid scanning imagery service (RSS) from Meteosat-8. This completes the reassignment of roles of the three Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellites following the launch of Meteosat-10 on 5 July.
April 9, 2013 Read more
China conducts first space science active experiment
China's first space science active experiment was conducted Friday morning to study the dynamical processes of the Earth's ionosphere, a top scientific institute said.
April 7, 2013 Read more
NASA selects MIT-led TESS project for 2017 mission
$200 million project will launch telescopes to perform full-sky search for transiting exoplanets.
April 5, 2013 Read more