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Caltech JPL's Historical Contributions to U.S. Space Exploration Highlighted in New Exhibition

Caltech JPL's Historical Contributions to U.S. Space Exploration Highlighted in New Exhibition

A new exhibition titled 'Dare Mighty Things: From Rocketry to Space Exploration at Caltech JPL' is showcasing the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's (JPL) ninety-year history of contributions to rocketry and space exploration. The exhibition, drawing from the collections of both the Caltech Archives and Special Collections and the JPL Archives, traces the evolution of JPL's missions and the collaboration between JPL researchers and Caltech. Initially, in the 1930s, Caltech graduate students and rocket enthusiasts began small rocket engine experiments, attracting Army funding for rocket-assisted airplane takeoff. This led to the establishment of JPL in 1943. After the USSR launched Sputnik 1 in 1957, JPL built the first successful U.S. satellite, Explorer 1, in 1958. Following the establishment of NASA, JPL transitioned from Army work to designing uncrewed spacecraft for NASA, playing a pivotal role in lunar missions with Pioneer, Ranger, and Surveyor probes, and later sending Mariner probes to Venus and Mars. JPL...

Astronomy.com Highlights November's Best New Astronomy Products

Astronomy.com Highlights November's Best New Astronomy Products

Astronomy.com has released its list of the best new astronomy products for November, featuring a selection of gear designed to enhance stargazing and astrophotography experiences. The highlighted products include the GS-100AR/AC High-Precision Guide Scope from ToupTek, which functions as a guide scope, wide-field imaging system, and visual instrument, boasting an apochromatic design for flat images and reduced purple fringing. Another notable item is 'The Astrophotographer’s Universe,' a 728-page hardcover encyclopedia by Charles Bracken, covering over 1,700 deep-sky imaging targets with an accompanying iOS app. Additionally, Celestron's SkyMaster Gemini 2x40 Binoculars are featured for their wide 24-degree field of view and modest 2x magnification, ideal for observing constellations, meteor showers, and comets, with a compact, tripod-adaptable design.

NASA's Voyager 1 Probe Recovers from Communications Glitch in Interstellar Space

NASA's Voyager 1 Probe Recovers from Communications Glitch in Interstellar Space

NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft, the most distant human-made object, has successfully recovered from a communications glitch that caused it to stop transmitting data to Earth for approximately 48 hours between October 18 and 20. The probe resolved the issue autonomously before engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) could send a remote fix. This incident marks the first time the spacecraft has experienced such a self-correction. Engineers are currently investigating the root cause of the communication loss, but initial findings suggest that one group of thrusters went offline, prompting its backups to activate automatically, a programmed response to detected anomalies. Voyager 1, launched in 1977 alongside its twin Voyager 2, continues its mission in interstellar space, nearly one light-day away from Earth, a milestone it is expected to reach on November 18, at a distance of 16.09 billion miles (25.89 billion kilometers).

NASA Warns Hubble Space Telescope Expected to Fall from Orbit by Mid-2030s, Considers Rescue Mission

NASA Warns Hubble Space Telescope Expected to Fall from Orbit by Mid-2030s, Considers Rescue Mission

NASA has announced that the Hubble Space Telescope is projected to fall from orbit and re-enter Earth's atmosphere by the mid-2030s. This follows the recent re-entry of NASA’s Swift Observatory on Wednesday, which had exceeded its two-year mission projection by lasting 11 times longer than planned. The agency is currently exploring the feasibility of a 'rescue mission' to push the Hubble Space Telescope further into space, thereby extending its operational life. The Swift Observatory's re-entry occurred after unsuccessful attempts to correct its sinking orbit. This development highlights the challenges of maintaining long-term space assets and the eventual fate of orbiting telescopes.

Astronomers spot white dwarf star with two rings of planetary debris

Astronomers spot white dwarf star with two rings of planetary debris

By Will Dunham WASHINGTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Billions of years from now, the sun is expected to run out of fuel and greatly expand into what is called a red giant, eventually shedding its outer layers and leaving behind its dense core, a white dwarf.

Hubble Space Telescope Reveals 93-Billion-Mile Cosmic Dust Structure, 'Cat's Tail,' Challenging Astronomical Explanations

Hubble Space Telescope Reveals 93-Billion-Mile Cosmic Dust Structure, 'Cat's Tail,' Challenging Astronomical Explanations

Astronomers at the University of Arizona, utilizing the Hubble Space Telescope, have made a significant discovery: a gargantuan, 93-billion-mile-long cosmic dust feature dubbed the 'Cat's Tail.' This structure is located in the Beta Pictoris system, approximately 63 light-years away. Previously, this anomaly was only detectable by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope in infrared light. Lead researcher Arin Avsar explained that the 'Cat's Tail' evaded visible-light detection for so long because it is composed almost entirely of heavily carbon-based organic refractory material, which effectively absorbs visible light. The structure is roughly 1,000 astronomical units long, equivalent to wrapping between the Earth and the Sun about 500 times.

Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory Reenters Earth's Atmosphere After 22-Year Mission

Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory Reenters Earth's Atmosphere After 22-Year Mission

The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, previously known as the Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Explorer, concluded its 22-year mission by reentering Earth’s atmosphere on Wednesday. Launched in 2004, the space telescope plunged back into the atmosphere at 7:39 am ET, just four hours after NASA's prediction. The reentry occurred over the North Sumatra region of Indonesia, west of Malaysia. NASA anticipates that most of the telescope burned up during reentry, though some components may have survived. Operations for Swift were shut down in late October, with its final observation conducted on October 20, due to increased atmospheric drag at its orbiting altitude of 171 miles above Earth's surface.

Vera C. Rubin Observatory Discovers Two New Milky Way Satellites, Advancing Galaxy Formation Research

Vera C. Rubin Observatory Discovers Two New Milky Way Satellites, Advancing Galaxy Formation Research

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, located on Cerro Pachón in the Chilean Andes, has announced the discovery of two previously unknown satellites of the Milky Way: the dwarf galaxy Aquarius IV and the star cluster Rubin-GC1. These discoveries were made during preliminary observations that covered approximately 7% of the night sky. Aquarius IV is described as an extremely faint dwarf galaxy situated about 355,000 light-years from Earth on the distant outskirts of the Milky Way. Rubin-GC1 is a star cluster found on the opposite side of our galaxy, which had remained undetected until now, partly due to dense cosmic dust clouds in that region. These findings are part of the observatory's ongoing ten-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time, which utilizes an 8.4-meter Simonyi Survey Telescope and a 3.2-gigapixel digital camera to regularly photograph vast areas of the Southern Hemisphere sky.

NASA Seeks Commercial Solutions to Prevent Hubble Space Telescope's Re-entry

NASA Seeks Commercial Solutions to Prevent Hubble Space Telescope's Re-entry

The Hubble Space Telescope is gradually losing altitude and is projected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere as early as 2032, with a 50% probability by December 2033, according to NASA estimates. Researchers are advocating for its rescue, emphasizing its continued scientific value and the potential for a significant capability gap if it is lost. The telescope, launched in 1990, has been a source of over 23,000 peer-reviewed scientific papers. Its orbit requires periodic boosting due to atmospheric drag, a task previously performed by the Space Shuttle fleet, which has since been retired. NASA has issued a call for proposals from the commercial sector, inviting companies to submit plans by November 30 for either raising Hubble's orbit to at least 600 kilometers or safely de-orbiting it into the ocean. This initiative follows a similar call in 2022, which did not result in a mission.

ExoMars Orbiter Detects Volcanic Gas Leakage from Mars's Largest Volcano, Alba Mons

ExoMars Orbiter Detects Volcanic Gas Leakage from Mars's Largest Volcano, Alba Mons

The European Space Agency's ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) has detected localized pulses of hydrogen chloride (HCl) gas emanating from fracture systems on the flanks of Alba Mons, Mars's largest volcano by surface area. This discovery, published in Science Advances on November 4, provides the first atmospheric chemistry evidence suggesting that Alba Mons may still be geologically active, challenging the long-held assumption that it is extinct. The HCl detections occurred during the Martian spring and summer, leading researchers to propose a 'seasonal pressure-valve' effect, where subsurface gases build up during winter under carbon dioxide frost and are released as the frost sublimates. The instrument used, the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS), is significantly more sensitive than previous thermal surveys, allowing for the detection of trace gases at concentrations 100 times fainter.

Artemis II moon launch was so powerful it punched a hole in atmosphere

Artemis II moon launch was so powerful it punched a hole in atmosphere

A study suggests the launch of NASA's Space Launch System rocket was so strong, it tore a hole in Earth's atmosphere during the Artemis II mission.

NASA Invites Public to Send Names to Saturn's Moon Titan Aboard Dragonfly Mission

NASA Invites Public to Send Names to Saturn's Moon Titan Aboard Dragonfly Mission

NASA is offering the public an opportunity to have their names sent to Titan, Saturn's largest moon, as part of the Dragonfly rotorcraft mission. Individuals who submit their names will receive a personalized boarding pass and have their names placed on a microchip aboard the spacecraft. The Dragonfly mission is scheduled to launch in 2028 and will travel nearly a billion miles to reach Titan, with an expected arrival in 2034. The public has until January 15, 2027, at 11:59 p.m. EST to participate. Once on Titan, the rotorcraft will embark on a 3.3-year mission, flying across the moon's surface to investigate its chemistry and search for clues about the ingredients that may have contributed to the development of life. Titan is known for its rivers, lakes, changing seasons, and a landscape rich in organic material.