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The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope’s mid-infrared view of the Pillars of Creation strikes a chilling tone. Thousands of stars that exist in this region disappear from view — and seemingly endless layers of gas and dust become the centrepiece.

The detection of dust by Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) is extremely important — dust is a major ingredient for star formation. Many stars are actively forming in these dense blue-grey pillars. When knots of gas and dust with sufficient mass form in these regions, they begin to collapse under their own gravitational attraction, slowly heat up, and eventually

Week in images: 24-28 October 2022

Discover our week through the lens

Chinese commercial firm Changguang Satellite Technology says it will expand its under-construction Jilin-1 constellation from 138 to 300 satellites.

The post Chinese commercial remote sensing satellite firm to double size of constellation appeared first on SpaceNews.

Washington (AFP) Oct 27, 2022
The United States will respond in an "appropriate" way to any Russian attack against US commercial satellites, the White House said Thursday after a Russian official suggested they could become legitimate targets in space. "Any attack on US infrastructure will be met with an appropriate response in an appropriate way," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. The United

Washington (AFP) Oct 27, 2022
Scientists who study Mars on Thursday revealed the remarkable Christmas gift they received from the planet last year. On December 24, 2021, a meteorite hit Mars' surface, triggering magnitude 4 tremors, which were detected by NASA's InSight spacecraft - which landed on the planet four years ago - some 2,200 miles (3,500 kilometers) away. The true origin of this so-called marsquake wa

Cape Canaveral FL (SPX) Oct 27, 2022
Sidus Space, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIDU), a Space-as-a-Service company focused on mission critical hardware manufacturing combined with commercial satellite design, manufacture, launch, and data collection, recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Mission Space for a partnership for space weather intelligence data collection. With this partnership, Sidus Space will integrate sets of Missi

To support the preparation of the SOLARIS initiative on Space-Based Solar Power, to be proposed at ESA's Ministerial Council next month, the Agency organised the first SOLARIS Industry Day.

The event took place at the ESTEC technical centre in the Netherlands and online on 18 October 2022.

To support the preparation of the SOLARIS initiative on Space-Based Solar Power, to be proposed at ESA's Ministerial Council next month, the Agency organised the first SOLARIS Industry Day.

The event took place at the ESTEC technical centre in the Netherlands and online on 18 October 2022.

The first samples to be taken from Mars and sent to Earth will be sourced from Jezero Crater, where the Perseverance rover has been exploring the crater floor and nearby ancient delta.  The location of an initial cache of samples, called Three Forks, is flat and free of obstacles – an ideal spot for a Mars Sample Return landing and pickup operations.