• Solar Telescope Instrument Gets Recycled for New Mission

    Updated: 2012-02-08 12:44:05
    The Fourier Transform Spectrometer is being shipped to Virginia from Arizona.

  • Stellar Nursery Secrets Unraveled In Infrared

    Updated: 2012-02-08 12:12:51
    The star-forming Carina Nebula has been a subject of the study by Europe's Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the results have been startling. Using the infrared-sensitive camera named HAWK-I aboard the scope, they've peered through cloud and dust.

  • Photos: Comedian Stephen Colbert Visits NASA

    Updated: 2012-02-07 23:06:46
    The host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" is also a huge space fan.

  • Girl Launches MIT Admission Letter To Near Space

    Updated: 2012-02-07 21:47:52
    The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has been sending acceptance letters to students in tubes with a task of 'hacking' them in some creative way. Erin King's tube shined the brightest as she turned it into a high-altitude balloon project.

  • Is NASA Pulling Out of Europe's Mars Exploration Missions?

    Updated: 2012-02-07 18:55:35
    NASA is close to announcing its intention to pull out of the European-led ExoMars mission, according to reports.

  • In Zero-G Static Electricity Walks On Water

    Updated: 2012-02-07 15:59:44
    Astronaut Don Pettit demonstrated the laws of static electricity on Space Station with the help of a water dropper and grandma's sweater maker: knitting needle.

  • Under a Snow Moon: Full Moon of February Rises Tonight

    Updated: 2012-02-07 12:14:02
    The full moon of February is known as the Snow Moon and Hunger Moon, among other names.

  • Ultimate Skydiving: Falling Human to Break Sound Barrier?

    Updated: 2012-02-07 06:08:49
    Felix Baumgartner is set to dive out of a compressed capsule from over 120,000 feet. Becoming the first human to break the sound barrier in free fall and topping the altitude record are two of the goals.

  • Photos: Red Bull Stratos Supersonic 'Space Jump' Training

    Updated: 2012-02-07 06:06:01
    See incredible photos of the planning involved in making a world-record breaking parachute jump. </img

  • Photos: Red Planet Views from Europe's Mars Express

    Updated: 2012-02-06 22:59:35
    Europe's Mars Express probe was launched in June 2003 and arrived at the Red Planet in December of that year.

  • Signs of Ancient Ocean on Mars Spotted by European Spacecraft

    Updated: 2012-02-06 22:19:50
    The Mars Express probe detected strong evidence that there were large bodies of liquid water on ancient Mars.

  • Brightest Galaxy Ever Seen With Gravity Lens Shines in Hubble Photo

    Updated: 2012-02-06 20:08:52
    The galaxy is 10 billion light-years away and offers a glimpse into early star-forming galaxies.

  • Hidden Galaxies May Swarm Near Our Own Milky Way

    Updated: 2012-02-06 19:14:50
    Thousands of mini-galaxies have been predicted but never seen in what's called the missing satellites problem.

  • Sun's Super Bowl Spitfire: Pre-Game Solar Fireworks

    Updated: 2012-02-06 14:43:58
    The Sun unleashed a whipping filament hundreds of thousands of miles long on Sunday February 5th, starting around 1:45pm EST. The display was caught by the many different filtered camera's aboard NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory.

  • Mars 'Super-Drought' May Make Red Planet Too Dry for Alien Life

    Updated: 2012-02-06 12:51:03
    A new study of soil on Mars could indicate that the planet's surface is too hostile to support life.

  • Stephen Colbert Touts NASA's Life Improving Research

    Updated: 2012-02-06 05:25:36
    The politically charged comedian gives his appreciation for the space agency's research on the International Space Station that is helping to create vaccines to the some of the world's deadliest diseases.

  • Vote Now! Top Space Stories of the Week - Feb. 5, 2012

    Updated: 2012-02-05 14:05:06
    Colonies on the moon, fast-spinning stars and an astronaut playing an astronaut are just a few of several big stories in space for the week.

  • Best Space Photos of the Week - Feb. 4, 2012

    Updated: 2012-02-04 09:32:14
    From a stunning image of our marbled earth to city lights from space, it's been a remarkable week for space photography.

  • Jupiter-Bound NASA Probe Adjusts Course Toward Giant Planet

    Updated: 2012-02-03 22:33:22
    NASA's Juno probe is the first solar-powered spacecraft to the outer solar system.

  • Space Rock of Love: Asteroid Eros Attracts Skywatchers in Earth Flyby

    Updated: 2012-02-03 22:30:11
    The close pass of the asteroid Eros this week allows astronomy buffs to measure the size of the solar system.

  • Photos of Space Love: The Asteroid Eros Up Close

    Updated: 2012-02-03 21:31:14
    See photos of the asteroid Eros taken by NASA's NEAR space probe in 2000, and other observers.

  • Oh Eros: Valentine's Day Asteroid Makes NEAR Fly-by

    Updated: 2012-02-03 18:18:35
    The 21-mile long 'God of Love' space rock made its closest approach to Earth (15 million miles away) since 1975 on January 31st, 2012. NASA's Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous - Shoemaker (NEAR) mission landed on the asteroid on February 12, 2001. </a

  • Hubble Telescope Spies Milky Way Galaxy's Twin

    Updated: 2012-02-03 12:28:47
    A galaxy similar to our own Milky Way is the subject of Hubble's latest portrait.

  • Hubble Hit: Spiral Galaxy and the Quasars

    Updated: 2012-02-03 11:39:23
    The space telescope captured an amazing view of spiral galaxy NGC 1073 and three quasars that are right outside its galactic neighborhood. Located in the constellation of Cetus, the galaxy has a bar structure in the center similar to the Milky Way.

  • Earth From Space: The Secret of NASA's Amazing 'Blue Marble' Photos

    Updated: 2012-02-03 05:24:56
    NASA's Suomi NPP satellite is snapping amazing views of Earth from space, but there's a secret to the photos.

  • Russia's Manned Soyuz Space Capsule Explained (Infographic)

    Updated: 2012-02-02 22:25:16
    The workhorse Soyuz spacecraft have been flying for nearly 45 years.

  • Soyuz Rocket's Bumpy Ride - The History

    Updated: 2012-02-02 22:23:18
    What was once a bicycle manufacturer in in the late-19th century evolved into a plane and rocket producer by the mid-20th century. Still a mainstay today, the Soyuz rocket has launched hundreds of humans and satellites since its first flight.

  • Fireball Over Texas Caught By Police Dash Cam

    Updated: 2012-02-02 20:42:53
    A squad car from the Little River-Academy Police Department in Texas captured a fireball lighting up the night sky on its dashboard camera on February 1, 2012. <img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/CVnJvB3bP9peA6hxp-kVGMelGTc/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"

  • A Look Inside Dawn’s Grand Asteroid Adventure

    Updated: 2012-02-02 01:03:11
    By Marc Rayman As NASA’s Dawn spacecraft investigates its first target, the giant asteroid Vesta, Marc Rayman, Dawn’s chief engineer, shares a monthly update on the mission’s progress. The south pole of the giant asteroid Vesta, as imaged by the framing camera on NASA’s Dawn spacecraft in September 2011. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA | › Full image and caption [...]

  • Slice of History: Surveyor 3 Camera Returned from the Moon

    Updated: 2012-01-24 20:35:04
    By Julie Cooper Each month in “Slice of History” we feature a historical photo from the JPL Archives. See more historical photos and explore the JPL Archives at https://beacon.jpl.nasa.gov/. Surveyor 3 Camera Returned from the Moon — Photograph Number P-10709B In November 1969 Apollo 12 astronauts Alan Bean and Pete Conrad landed on the moon less than 600 [...]

  • Press Release: Thirty Percent for Science: Planetary Society Calls for Increased Investment for the Future

    Updated: 2012-01-19 08:00:00
    On the Planetary Society web site: Thirty Percent for Science: Planetary Society Calls for Increased Investment for the Future

  • CoS 128

    Updated: 2012-01-16 01:49:04
    I've been busy catching up on my classes, so I haven't posted anything lately.  But, you can catch up on lots of great space-related blog posts at the 128th Carnival of Space, being hosted this week at the AARTScope Blog. -Astroprof

  • Electrostatic Radiation Shielding

    Updated: 2012-01-16 01:49:01
    Clearly carrying heavy shielding to protect astronauts from radiation in space is expensive.  If you havent' been reading my space radiation series as I've been posting, then you can look over the last several of my postings about space radiation to see some of the problems.  So, some other strategy ...

  • Cosmic Rays

    Updated: 2012-01-16 01:48:59
    Part 3 of my series on space radiation is about the radiation itself.  The term cosmic rays is generally used to describe this radiation.  Unfortunately, as often happens, the term evolved before the nature of the phenomenon being studied was known, so it may not be the best term to ...

  • Dawn Longs to be Closer to Asteroid Vesta

    Updated: 2012-01-12 21:43:39
    By Marc Rayman As NASA’s Dawn spacecraft investigates its first target, the giant asteroid Vesta, Marc Rayman, Dawn’s chief engineer, shares a monthly update on the mission’s progress. This image, one of the first obtained by NASA’s Dawn spacecraft in its low altitude mapping orbit, shows part of the rim of a fresh crater on the giant [...]

  • Viewing Times and Tips for Saturday Morning’s Lunar Eclipse

    Updated: 2011-12-09 20:20:48
    By Steve Edberg The last lunar eclipse until 2014 will grace the sky on Saturday, Dec. 10. Steve Edberg, an astronomer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, shares the best viewing times and tips. For more lunar eclipse resources and to join NASA/JPL’s “I’m There: Lunar Eclipse” event, visit http://1.usa.gov/uBfAI8. Keith Burns submitted this winning photo of the [...]

  • Getting the Lowdown on Asteroid Vesta

    Updated: 2011-12-05 18:59:40
    By Marc Rayman As NASA’s Dawn spacecraft investigates its first target, the giant asteroid Vesta, Marc Rayman, Dawn’s chief engineer, shares a monthly update on the mission’s progress. This 3-D video incorporates images from the framing camera instrument aboard NASA’s Dawn spacecraft from July to August 2011. The images were obtained as Dawn approached Vesta and circled [...]

  • Earth's Cities at Night: Photos From Space

    Updated: 2011-11-15 20:26:52
    The view of our planet from orbit can't be beat.

  • /observations version 2

    Updated: 2011-11-10 16:07:00
    Astronomy Blog You are : in Astronomy Blog archive Asteroid 2005 YU55 An astronomy blog usually but not always based in the UK . Pondering questions such as What is in an exoplanet name Asteroid 2005 YU55 Asteroid 2005 YU55 will pass the Earth and Moon over the next 24 hours or so . It is roughly 400 metres in diameter and the closest it gets to us is something like 300,000 km . The closest it will get to the Moon is roughly 240,000 km . That is a long , long way away from either despite what an excited person in my blog comments insists . It won't hit the Earth and it won't hit the Moon Although 2005 YU55 passes within the orbital distance of the Moon , it doesn't actually get between the Earth and Moon at any point . It goes past them both . Also , space has a third dimension and 2005

  • Slice of History: Advanced Ocean Technology Development Platform

    Updated: 2011-11-09 18:33:16
    By Julie Cooper Each month in “Slice of History” we feature a historical photo from the JPL Archives. See more historical photos and explore the JPL Archives at https://beacon.jpl.nasa.gov/. Advanced Ocean Technology Development Platform — Photograph Number P-23298B The Advanced Ocean Technology Development Platform (AOTDP) was developed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the late 1970s by the [...]

  • Asteroid Vesta, All in the Details

    Updated: 2011-11-03 20:14:09
    By Marc Rayman As NASA’s Dawn spacecraft investigates its first target, the giant asteroid Vesta, Marc Rayman, Dawn’s chief engineer, shares a monthly update on the mission’s progress. NASA’s Dawn spacecraft obtained this image with its framing camera on September 20, 2011. This image was taken through the camera’s clear filter. The distance to the surface of [...]

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