NASA’s Curiosity rover may have brought scientists closer to finding signs of past life on Mars after detecting organic compounds in a rock sample nearly a year ago. While such compounds can form through non-biological processes, researchers concluded that these alone could not account for the findings, leaving open the possibility that life once existed on the planet. The study, published Feb. 4 in Astrobiology, … Continue reading NASA Mars rover finds new clues pointing to past life on Mars

NASA launched two suborbital rockets from Alaska this week to study the electrical “circuitry” of auroras, the northern lights caused by interactions between solar wind and Earth’s atmosphere. The first mission, Black and Diffuse Auroral Science Surveyor (BADASS), launched on Feb. 9 to investigate black auroras, where electrons shoot into space rather than toward Earth, reaching 224 miles (360 km) in altitude and returning high-quality … Continue reading NASA launches twin rocket missions from Alaska to study mysterious black auroras

SpaceX’s Crew-12 mission docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Valentine’s Day after a 34-hour journey, bringing four new astronauts aboard the short-staffed station. The crew includes NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, ESA’s Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, with Hathaway and Adenot on their first spaceflight. They join three existing ISS crew members—NASA’s Chris Williams and cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and … Continue reading SpaceX Dragon astronauts make Valentine’s Day docking at space station

Astronomers have discovered a planetary system around the red dwarf LHS 1903 with an unusual “inside-out” architecture, challenging conventional planet formation models. The system has four planets: three innermost planets follow the expected pattern of rocky then gas giants, but the outermost planet, far from the star, is small and rocky—similar to Venus. Researchers ruled out planetary migration or collisions and propose the planets formed … Continue reading Scientists have found a weird ‘inside out’ planetary system

Astronomers may have observed the birth of a black hole in the Andromeda Galaxy, as a 13-solar-mass star, M31-2014-DS1, mysteriously brightened, dimmed, and then vanished without a supernova explosion. The discovery, led by Columbia University’s Kishalay De using NASA’s NEOWISE data, suggests that relatively lightweight stars can quietly collapse into black holes, challenging previous assumptions about black hole formation. Follow-up observations from Hubble and the … Continue reading Astronomers witness vanishing star collapse into a black hole in Andromeda galaxy

A United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur rocket launched on February 12 from Cape Canaveral on a U.S. Space Force mission, sending payloads directly to geosynchronous orbit over 22,000 miles above Earth. The rocket flew with four solid rocket boosters, which separated about 90 seconds after liftoff, and the Centaur upper stage took roughly 10 hours to deliver all payloads. Observers noted an irregular plume from … Continue reading ULA’s Vulcan launches Space Force mission

SpaceX has expanded its Starlink satellite network again, launching 24 new satellites on Wednesday, Feb. 11, marking the third launch this month and the 12th this year. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 12:11 p.m. EST, successfully deploying the new satellites into low Earth orbit about an hour later. The rocket’s first-stage booster, B1100, completed its third … Continue reading SpaceX Falcon 9 deploys 24 Starlink satellites after California launch

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has captured stunning images of the Egg Nebula in the constellation Cygnus, about 1,000 light-years away, showcasing the dramatic final stage of a dying star. The nebula features twin beams of light piercing rippling arcs of dust and gas, with the star itself illuminating the surrounding shell rather than the gas glowing on its own. As a pre-planetary nebula—the first, youngest, … Continue reading Hubble Space Telescope captures the stunning final breaths of a dying star

A rare total lunar eclipse, or “blood moon,” will occur on March 3, turning the moon a striking red as Earth’s shadow filters sunlight across its surface. The event will last over five and a half hours, with totality—the full red phase—lasting about 58 minutes, visible safely to the naked eye. Best viewing will be on the West Coast and in Hawaii, while eastern cities … Continue reading The Sun Turns Black and the Moon Blood Red in Stunning Upcoming Eclipse

Scientists analyzing radar data from NASA’s 1990–1992 Magellan mission say they’ve identified a possible underground lava tube on Venus, a discovery that would be only the second such structure found on the planet. The feature, located on the western flank of Nyx Mons, appears to extend for several dozen kilometers and may have formed through volcanic activity. This finding challenges the long-held belief that Venus … Continue reading Venus may have an underground tunnel carved by volcano eruptions

Elon Musk announced that SpaceX is now prioritizing a “self-growing city” on the Moon, aiming to achieve it within 10 years, while Mars missions remain a longer-term goal. The company plans an uncrewed lunar landing by March 2027, marking a shift from Musk’s previous focus on Mars as the primary destination. The move also positions SpaceX in competition with China, as humans have not returned … Continue reading In a reversal, SpaceX prioritizes ‘city’ on the moon over Mars project, Musk says

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have discovered a rich array of small organic molecules in the galaxy IRAS 07251–0248, a nearby, ultra-luminous infrared galaxy. The JWST’s infrared instruments, NIRSpec and MIRI, allowed researchers to peer through dense dust and gas that normally obscure the galaxy’s core. They detected molecules including benzene, methane, acetylene, and the reactive methyl radical—never before seen beyond the Milky … Continue reading James Webb Space Telescope finds precursors to ‘building blocks of life’ in nearby galaxy

China on Saturday launched its latest reusable experimental spacecraft, potentially rivaling the U.S. Space Force’s X-37B. This marks China’s fourth such mission since 2020, all flown from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre using Long March-2F rockets, with the spacecraft unofficially nicknamed Shenlong (“Divine Dragon”). Previous missions demonstrated long-duration orbits, improved thermal shielding, power management, and capabilities like releasing small objects and performing rendezvous and proximity … Continue reading China sends fourth ‘Shenlong’ reusable spacecraft mission into orbit

SpaceX successfully launched 25 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit on February 7, just five days after pausing operations due to an anomaly on its previous mission. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California and deployed the satellites (Group 17-33) about an hour later. The rocket’s first stage, Booster 1088, completed its 13th flight, landing safely on the drone … Continue reading SpaceX resumes Falcon 9 flights with Starlink satellite launch from California

NASA’s Perseverance rover has completed its first Mars drive fully planned by artificial intelligence, demonstrating that generative AI can autonomously map safe routes across the planet’s rugged terrain. Conducted in December 2025, the AI analyzed images and terrain data, identified hazards like rocks and slopes, and set navigation waypoints—tasks normally done by human planners on Earth. During the two test drives, Perseverance traveled nearly 1,500 … Continue reading NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover completes its 1st drive planned by AI

NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) has launched a two-year mission to map the heliosphere, the protective bubble around our solar system formed by the sun. The probe studies high-energy solar particles, interplanetary magnetic fields, and cosmic dust from distant stars to better understand the sun’s activity and its interaction with interstellar space. Scientists hope IMAP will shed light on how charged particles are … Continue reading NASA begins mission to map the boundaries of our heliosphere

The sun has recently emitted several strong solar flares, prompting experts to watch for northern lights and potential satellite disruptions. On Sunday and Monday, NASA recorded four X-class flares—the most intense type—with one reaching X8.1, the strongest in several years. These flares can briefly disrupt high-frequency communications on the sunlit side of Earth and may precede Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs). When interacting with Earth’s atmosphere, … Continue reading Sun releases 4 strong solar flares

Blue Origin is pausing flights of its New Shepard suborbital spacecraft, which has carried 98 people, including paying customers and celebrities, to the edge of space since its first human launch in July 2021. Each roughly ten-minute mission reaches the Kármán line about 62 miles above Earth before returning safely to West Texas. The company says the suspension, lasting at least two years, will allow … Continue reading Blue Origin pauses space tourism flights to focus on lunar lander

The sun has unleashed an intense burst of activity over the past 24 hours, producing at least 18 M-class flares and three X-class flares, including an X8.3—the strongest solar flare of 2026 so far. The eruptions originated from rapidly growing sunspot region AR4366, described by scientists as a “solar flare factory.” The X8.3 flare caused strong radio blackouts across parts of the South Pacific, affecting … Continue reading Sun unleashes extraordinary solar flare barrage as new volatile sunspot turns toward Earth

Mercury may be more geologically active than previously thought. Bright streaks on its surface, called lineae, suggest ongoing activity rather than ancient formations. A survey of 402 lineae shows they often appear on sun-facing crater slopes and near bright depressions called hollows. These features likely form from heat and volatile materials, like sulfur, rising from beneath the surface, Science Alert has reported. Future ESA and … Continue reading Strange Bright Lines on Mercury Suggest It’s Not ‘Dead’ After All

Rocket Lab successfully launched South Korea’s disaster-monitoring satellite, NEONSAT-1A, on Thursday, January 29, from its New Zealand site. The 59-foot Electron rocket lifted off at 8:21 p.m. EST (2:21 p.m. local time, Jan. 30), following a previous aborted attempt on December 15. NEONSAT-1A, part of the “Bridging the Swarm” mission for KAIST’s Satellite Technology Research Center (SaTReC), is an advanced Earth-observation satellite with a high-resolution … Continue reading Rocket Lab launches Korean disaster-monitoring satellite after long delay

SpaceX launched two batches of Starlink satellites over consecutive days from both U.S. coasts. On January 29, a Falcon 9 lifted 25 satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, while on January 30, another Falcon 9 deployed 29 more satellites from Cape Canaveral in Florida. Thursday’s booster (B1082) completed its 19th flight, landing on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You, and Friday’s … Continue reading SpaceX launches Starlink satellites from two coasts in two days

NASA’s TESS spacecraft recently captured observations of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS as it left the solar system, recording it as a bright, fast-moving dot with a faint tail across a crowded starfield. A 28-hour video compiled from the data shows the comet’s trajectory, though a spacecraft “safe mode” caused a gap in the observations. Scientists hope the dataset will reveal the comet’s activity, dust and gas … Continue reading NASA exoplanet probe tracks interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS to gauge its spin

Astronomers have identified a potentially habitable, Earth-sized planet named HD 137010 b about 146 light-years away, orbiting a sun-like star with a 355-day year. The planet is estimated to be 6% larger than Earth and may lie within the star’s habitable zone, though its cooler, dimmer star could make surface temperatures similar to Mars, possibly below –70°C. The discovery, made using 2017 data from NASA’s Kepler … Continue reading A potentially habitable new planet has been discovered 146 light-years away

Astronomers used an AI-assisted tool called AnomalyMatch to analyze nearly 100 million images from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, identifying over 1,300 rare or unusual objects in just two and a half days, more than 800 of which had never been documented. The anomalies included merging galaxies, gravitational lenses, star-forming clumps, jellyfish-like galaxies, and edge-on planet-forming disks, with some objects defying existing classification schemes. Developed by … Continue reading AI Unlocks Hundreds of Cosmic Anomalies in Hubble Archive