Astronomers Discover A New Neptune-Size Exoplanet, K2-263 b
The remarkable exoplanet discoveries made by the Kepler and K2 missions have enabled astronomers to begin to piece together the history of the Earth and…
Astronomy
Chandra X-Ray Observatory Serves Up Cosmic Holiday Assortment
This is the season of celebrating, and the Chandra X-ray Center has prepared a platter of cosmic treats from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory to enjoy. This selection…
NASA Reveals Saturn Is Losing Its Rings At Maximum Estimated Rate
New NASA research confirms that Saturn is losing its iconic rings at the maximum rate estimated from Voyager 1 & 2 observations made decades ago….
Astronomers Discover Most-Distant Object Ever Observed In Our Solar System
A team of astronomers has discovered the most-distant body ever observed in our Solar System. It is the first known Solar System object that has…
Rocket Lab’s Electron Rocket Sends Series of New CubeSats to Space
A series of new CubeSats now are in space, conducting a variety of scientific investigations and technology demonstrations, following launch Sunday of Rocket Lab’s first…
Hubble Telescope Opens Its Eye Again
For three weeks in October, Hubble’s eyes on the Universe closed. On the evening of Friday 5 October, the orbiting observatory put itself into safe…
Astronomers Discover Unexpected Companion Around A Young Star
Astronomers have captured one of the most detailed views of a young star taken to date, and revealed an unexpected companion in orbit around it….
Chandra Reveals Cosmic Fountain Powered by Giant Black Hole
Before electrical power became available, water fountains worked by relying on gravity to channel water from a higher elevation to a lower one. This water…
View Passing Comet 46P/Wirtanen This Sunday
On Sunday, December 16, the comet known as 46P/Wirtanen will make one of the 10 closest comet flybys of Earth in 70 years, and you…
Hubble Discovers Fast Evaporating Warm Neptune Exoplanet GJ 3470b
Fishermen would be puzzled if they netted only big and little fish, but few medium-sized fish. Astronomers likewise have been perplexed in conducting a census…
Exploring the Ever-Changing Nature of R Aquarii
The R Aquarii system is a symbiotic binary star surrounded by a large, dynamic nebula. Such binaries contain two stars in an unequal and complex…
HiRISE Views InSight Lander on the Martian Surface
On November 26, NASA’s InSight mission knew the spacecraft touched down within an 81-mile-long (130-kilometer-long) landing ellipse on Mars. Now, the team has pinpointed InSight’s…
ALMA Provides Unprecedented Views of the Birth of Planets
Astronomers have cataloged nearly 4,000 exoplanets in orbit around distant stars. Though the discovery of these newfound worlds has taught us much, there is still…
Juno Mission Hits Halfway Point in Data Collection
On Dec. 21, at 8:49:48 a.m. PST (11:49:48 a.m. EST) NASA’s Juno spacecraft will be 3,140 miles (5,053 kilometers) above Jupiter’s cloud tops and hurtling…
Hubble Reveals Evidence of Active Nucleus Driving Hot Bubbles of Gas
3C196.1 is a massive elliptical galaxy, the brightest member of a cluster of galaxies about three billion light-years away that is notable for its strong…
Voyager 2 Probe Enters Interstellar Space, Over 18 Billion Kilometers from Earth
For the second time in history, a human-made object has reached the space between the stars. NASA’s Voyager 2 probe now has exited the heliosphere – the…
Stunning Juno Image of Jupiter’s North Equatorial Belt
Colorful swirling clouds in Jupiter’s North Equatorial Belt practically fill this image from NASA’s Juno spacecraft. This is the closest image captured of the Jovian…
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Discovers Water on Asteroid Bennu
Recently analyzed data from NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission has revealed water locked inside the clays that make up its…