Washington DC (AFP) Sep 03, 2021
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Thursday said it was grounding space flights by Virgin Galactic while it investigates why the company's July 11 voyage carrying Richard Branson deviated from its planned trajectory. The move represents a blow to the private space company as it prepares to carry paying customers following its first fully-crewed test flight. It is now unc

Video: 00:03:42

Experience the preparation and launch of telecommunications satellite Eutelsat Quantum by watching this unique timelapse video.

Developed under an ESA Partnership Project with satellite operator Eutelsat and prime manufacturer Airbus, Eutelsat Quantum has pioneered a new generation of satellites with the European space industry.

The footage was captured at the Airbus facility in Toulouse – where the satellite was assembled and tested – and Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

The world’s first fully software-defined satellite – which will be used for communication in government, mobility and data markets – was launched on board an Ariane 5 on 30 July.

Following its

Vienna, Austria (SPX) Sep 01, 2021
There is a dictum to "never change a running system". New methods can however be far superior to older ones. While to date chemical reactions are mainly accelerated by catalytic materials that comprise several hundreds of atoms, the use of single atoms could provide a new approach for catalysis. An international research team, led by the TU Wien, Austria, has now developed a new method for

Boston MA (SPX) Sep 02, 2021
The familiar star at the center of our solar system has had billions of years to mature and ultimately provide life-giving energy to us here on Earth. But a very long time ago, our sun was just a growing baby star. What did the sun look like when it was so young? That's long been a mystery that, if solved, could teach us about the formation of our solar system-so-named because sol is the Latin w

Leiden, Netherlands (SPX) Sep 02, 2021
Conventional theory states that light stars like our Sun gently blow off their layers when they die, while heavy stars explode as a supernova. But for some reason, we are so far failing to find supernovae from stars heavier than eighteen solar masses. Now a team led by SRON astronomers finds a new clue that fuels this apparent mystery. Publication in Astrophysical Journal Letters. The rese

Hiroshima, Japan (SPX) Sep 02, 2021
The Universe has countless stars, which come in different masses. The most common ones are the low-mass stars, including our Sun. Massive stars refer to those whose mass is more than eight times the mass of the Sun. The life of low-mass stars is quite long. For instance, our Sun can live for 10 billion years. However, massive stars can only live up to tens of millions of years. Some of the

Flagstaff AZ (SPX) Sep 02, 2021
The study of active asteroids is a relatively new field of solar system science, focusing on objects that have asteroid-like orbits but look more like comets, with visual characteristics such as tails. Because finding an active asteroid is such a rare event, fewer than 30 of these solar system bodies have been found since 1949, so there is still much for scientists to learn about them. Rou

Tempe AZ (SPX) Sep 02, 2021
In the early solar system, terrestrial planets like Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are thought to have formed from planetesimals, small early planets. These early planets grew over time, through collisions and mergers, to make them the size they are today. The material released from these violent collisions is commonly thought to have escaped and orbited around the sun, bombarding the grow

New Haven CT (SPX) Sep 02, 2021
As scientists prepare for crewed research missions to nearby planets and moons, they've identified a need for something beyond rovers and rockets. They need accurate weather forecasts. Without them, any trip to the surface may be one dust storm away from disaster. A new Yale study helps lay the foundation for more accurate, otherworldly forecasts by taking a phenomenon related to Ear

Washington DC (UPI) Sep 1, 2021
NASA wants four people to test the limits of human isolation by placing them in a simulated Mars habitat for a year, cut off from the world except for delayed communication and possible simulated spacesuit walks. The simulation, planned for Johnson Space Center in Houston, won't be the first time the space agency attempts to mimic a stay on Mars, but it will be one of the longest.