The odds of an asteroid the size of a 10-story building slamming into the Moon in 2032 have risen slightly, according to NASA. On June 5, the agency announced that Asteroid 2024 YR4 now has a 4.3% chance of lunar impact—up from 3.8%. This infamous space rock caused quite a stir earlier this year when […]
Despite Feud, Trump Says He’ll Stick With Starlink at White House
Donald Trump and Elon Musk still are not speaking, but the breakup does not appear like it will bring an end to the free advertising that Musk got for himself in the White House. In a press conference on Monday, Trump told reporters that he is going to keep the Starlink internet connection that was […]
NASA Pulls the Plug on Europa Lander, but Scientists Propose a Plan B
NASA engineers have spent the past decade developing a rugged, partially autonomous lander designed to explore Europa, one of Jupiter’s most intriguing moons. The space agency got cold feet over the project, but engineers are now targeting a new destination for the probe: Enceladus. Europa has long been a prime target in the search for […]
These Two Galaxy Clusters Are About to Smash Into Each Other—Again
Roughly 2.8 billion light-years from Earth, two galaxy clusters are engaged in a cosmic tussle. These enormous structures last collided about a billion years ago, but now, it appears they’re going back for round two. The galaxy clusters involved in this scuffle are part of a larger system—a “combined” galaxy cluster—called PSZ2 G181. In a […]
In the Feud Between Trump and Musk, NASA Has a Lot to Lose
In the heat of the moment, Elon Musk threatened to decommission SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and then he took it back. In doing so, however, the rocket billionaire dragged NASA into his messy breakup with Donald Trump, with the agency’s access to orbit now at stake. Musk and Trump parted ways earlier this week, and their […]
ISS Conference Scrapped as NASA Budget Cuts Threaten Crew and Cargo
The International Space Station (ISS) still has a few years left in orbit before it’s due for retirement, but the future of the orbital lab is looking a little shaky as NASA is forced to tighten its purse strings. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), which operates the ISS National Lab, […]
With Jared Isaacman Out, Is NASA in Deeper Trouble?
In a surprise move, President Donald Trump withdrew his nomination of Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. The private astronaut’s prospective role as NASA administrator was seen by the space community as a welcomed change to the agency during a critical time, with looming budget cuts and several of its missions on the chopping block. With […]
Venus Harbors Secret Asteroids That Could Threaten Earth, Study Warns
Twenty years ago, Congress gave NASA a directive: find 90% of the near-Earth asteroids that could potentially harm our little world. Since then, astronomers have made major progress tracking down the rocky space debris, but a new study suggests there’s a population of asteroids lurking around Venus that could pose a problem. These so-called “Venus […]
NASA Revives Voyager Thrusters ‘Considered Dead’ for 20 Years
NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft has been in space for nearly 50 years, enduring the harsh environment of outer space while teams on the ground figure out ways to keep its aging hardware from falling apart. In the latest attempt to keep Voyager alive, engineers managed to bring the spacecraft’s old thrusters back to life after […]
Rogue Pulsar Snaps Galactic Bone in Milky Way’s Spine
A galactic filament that stretches across 230 light-years in the Milky Way has suffered from a strange kink that has distorted its magnetic field, appearing as a fracture in a massive bone. New X-ray images captured by the Chandra Observatory may have finally helped astronomers diagnose its ailment, naming a fast-spinning neutron star as the […]