Ever since the discovery of Pluto in 1930, kids grew up learning that the solar system has nine planets. That all changed in the late 1990s, when astronomers started arguing about whether Pluto was indeed a planet. In a highly controversial decision, the International Astronomical Union ultimately decided in 2006 to designate Pluto as a “dwarf planet,” reducing the list of the solar system’s true planets to just eight. Astronomers, however, are still hunting for another possible planet in our solar system, a true ninth planet, after mathematical evidence of…
Read MoreMonth: April 2021
China’s new space station will need 10 more launches to complete
China’s core space station module is now circling Earth. The module, called Tianhe (“Harmony of the Heavens”), launched Wednesday night (April 28) atop a Long March-5B Y2 carrier rocket from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the northeastern coast of south China’s Hainan Province. Tianhe is the foundational module for China’s first space station. The module is billed as the largest spacecraft the nation has ever developed; it’s 54.4 feet (16.6 meters) long, 13.8 feet (4.2 m) across at its widest point, and had a mass at liftoff of 22.5…
Read MoreSpaceX Crew-1 astronauts will return to Earth Sunday after weather delay
NASA and SpaceX have delayed the return to Earth for four astronauts on the Crew-1 mission to the International Space Station until Sunday (May 2) due to bad weather. SpaceX’s Crew-1 Dragon capsule and its crew of four were scheduled to undock from the station today (April 30) and splashdown just before midday on Saturday (May 1). Their departure had already been delayed from Wednesday (April 28) due to weather. The astronauts will now return on Sunday with a splashdown at 2:57 a.m. EDT (0657 GMT). “Resilience will undock from…
Read MoreNASA Selects Consolidated Program Support Services Configuration and Data Management Contractor
NASA has awarded the Consolidated Program Support Services (CPSS) Configuration and Data Management (CDM) contract to Victory Solutions Inc. of Huntsville, Alabama, to provide configuration and data management services at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, as well as the potential to provide these services to all othe
Read MoreMay: Halley Bits & Lunar Eclipse
Exciting celestial events will happen during May, so download our narrated Sky Tour astronomy podcast to find out about this month’s Eta Aquariid meteor shower and a total lunar eclipse. The post May: Halley Bits & Lunar Eclipse appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
Read MoreSpace Station Science Highlights: Week of April 26, 2021
During the week of April 26, crew members aboard the International Space Station conducted research on self-assembling colloid structures, the role of gravity in controlling human movement, and flame behavior in microgravity.
Read MoreNASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter to Begin New Demonstration Phase
NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has a new mission. Having proven that powered, controlled flight is possible on the Red Planet, the Ingenuity experiment will soon embark on a new operations demonstration phase, exploring how aerial scouting and other functions could benefit future exploration of Mars and other worlds.
Read MoreHubble Views a Dazzling Cosmic Necklace
The interaction of two doomed stars has created this spectacular ring adorned with bright clumps of gas – a diamond necklace of cosmic proportions.
Read MoreThis Week’s Sky at a Glance, April 30 – May 8
Mercury and Venus now show themselves better at dusk. After dark, Comet Atlas awaits telescopic skyhunters. And the waning Moon passes under Saturn and Jupiter in early dawn. The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, April 30 – May 8 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
Read MoreStratolaunch flies world’s largest airplane on 2nd test flight
The biggest airplane ever built now has two flights under its belt. Stratolaunch’s Roc carrier plane, which is being groomed to haul hypersonic vehicles aloft, conducted its second-ever test flight Thursday morning (April 29). The giant aircraft, which features a wingspan of 385 feet (117 meters), took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in southeastern California at 10:28 a.m. EDT (1428 GMT; 7:28 local California time) on a data-gathering shakeout cruise that lasted three hours and 14 minutes. Related: Stratolaunch test photos — The world’s largest plane in action…
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