Taiki, Japan (AFP) Dec 7, 2023
Japan's space industry opened potentially an udder-ly new chapter on Thursday with a start-up testing a prototype rocket engine that runs on fuel derived purely from a plentiful local source: cow dung. The experiment saw the engine blast out a blue-and-orange flame 10-15 metres (30-50 feet) horizontally out of an open hangar door for around 10 seconds in the rural northern town of Taiki.

Berlin, Germany (SPX) Dec 07, 2023
In a significant breakthrough, a Dutch-led international team of astronomers has harnessed the power of the James Webb Space Telescope to create the first comprehensive two-dimensional inventory of ice within a planet-forming disk surrounding a young star. The findings, published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics on December 6, open a new window into the crucial role of ice in the format

Image: The powerful Hurricane Otis has been captured in this Copernicus Sentinel-3 image when it was approaching Mexico’s southern Pacific coast in October 2023.

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) has secured a launch services agreement that will see the deployment of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology's (KAIST) Earth observation satellite, NeonSat-1. This exciting development is set to take place during the first half of 2024, adding to Rocket Lab's increasingly busy manifest of Electron missions. KAIST's NeonSat-1 will serve

Washington DC (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
It's December and that means one of the best celestial events will grace the skies. The Geminid meteor shower should peak in a moonless sky between Wednesday and Thursday, December 13-14. On Wednesday night, December 13th, and continuing into the early hours of Thursday, December 14th, be sure to head outside and look up - you may very well see brief streaks of light crossing the sky from

Gottingen, Germany (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
In the vast cosmos, where planets orbit distant stars, the existence of moons around exoplanets has been a topic of intrigue. Only two of the more than 5300 known exoplanets have so far provided evidence of moons in orbit around them, and these findings were associated with exoplanets Kepler-1625b and Kepler-1708b. However, a recent study conducted by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for

Los Alamos NM (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
The elements above iron on the periodic table are thought to be created in cataclysmic explosions like the merger of two neutron stars or in rare classes of supernovae. New research suggests fission may operate in the cosmos during the creation of the heavy elements. Combing through data on a variety of elements that reside in very old stars, researchers have found a potential signature of fissi

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
A groundbreaking underground laboratory has commenced operations in Southwest China's Sichuan province. The Deep Underground and Ultra-low Radiation Background Facility for Frontier Physics Experiments (DURF) is set to become a hub for cutting-edge scientific investigations, particularly in the pursuit of understanding dark matter. This major facility, located beneath Jinping Mountain in S

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
Rogue Space Systems Corporation, a prominent player in the field of space situational awareness and satellite servicing, has achieved a significant milestone by securing its first on-orbit service contract. While the specifics of the contract and the identity of the commercial constellation owner/operator involved remain confidential, this development marks a noteworthy step forward for the comp

San Jose CA (SPX) Dec 08, 2023
Momentus Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTS) has announced a partnership with CalgaryToSpace (CTS), a student team from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, dedicated to building and operating a satellite in orbit. The collaboration involves Momentus providing transportation and orbital delivery services for CTS in 2025. CTS has been working diligently towards the development and launch of their satellite, known as