Everyone’s favorite homicidal SecUnit will soon head to the small screen in a new “Murderbot” TV series picked up by Apple TV+ and based on distinguished author Martha Wells’s thrilling collection of far future sci-fi novels. Wells hinted at a “Murderbot” streaming series in development during our exclusive chat with her back in June of 2021, and now it appears that project is coming to full fruition with the recent full-series commitment and casting announcement of Alexander Skarsgård (“True Blood,” “The Northman”) aboard as executive producer and snagging the lead…
Read MoreMonth: December 2023
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch 2 German military satellites early Dec. 23
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is set to launch two radar reconnaissance satellites for the German military early Saturday morning (Dec. 23). A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to launch the SARah-2 mission to low Earth orbit (LEO) from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base on Saturday, during an 83-minute window that opens at 8:11 a.m. EST (1311 GMT; 5:11 a.m. local California time). You can watch it live via SpaceX‘s account on X (formerly known as Twitter). Coverage will begin about 15 minutes before the launch window opens. Related: 8…
Read MoreLife beyond Earth may form in the coldest depths of space, Ryugu asteroid samples reveal
In 2020, the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 visited the asteroid Ryugu and managed to bring precious samples of the space rock back to Earth. And sure enough, years later, we are still gaining insights about this small asteroid and the environment in which it formed thanks to those samples. Today, scientists released the latest findings from Ryugu — that certain organic compounds called PAHs may be able to form in cold areas in space. These results may help us to better understand how planet formation, and eventually life, came to be.…
Read MoreNew Hubble Telescope image shows mysterious spokes on Saturn’s rings
At first glance, this image of Saturn looks as if it could be a shot from an old Star Trek” episode, thanks to its slightly grainy appearance and analog-esque glow. But this composite photo was taken on Oct. 22, 2023, by the Hubble Space Telescope — and most importantly, it captured a very interesting detail. If you look carefully at the thick white inner band of Saturn’s rings, you’ll see shadowy appearances that almost look like dirty fingerprints. These are Saturn’s mysterious ring spokes, transient features about the size of Earth…
Read MoreNASA’s Deep Space Network Turns 60 and Prepares for the Future
The radio antennas of the NASA’s Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex are located near the Australian capital. It’s one of three Deep Space Network complexes around the world that keep the agency in contact with over 40 space missions. The DSN marks its 60th anniversary in December 2023. NASA/JPL-Caltech A single radio antenna dish stands alone at the Deep Space Network’s Canberra complex in this photo from 1969, six years after the DSN was founded. Canberra now consists of three 34-meter (112-foot) antennas and one 70-meter (230-foot) antenna. NASA/JPL-Caltech The…
Read MoreOn Cupid! On, Donner and BARREL!
NASA In this image from Dec. 8, 2017, four reindeer walk past the Balloon Array for Radiation-belt Relativistic Electron Losses, or BARREL, payload on the launch pad at Esrange Space Center near Kiruna, Sweden. BARREL primarily measured X-rays in Earth’s atmosphere near the North and South Poles. These X-rays are caused by electrons that rain down, or precipitate, into the atmosphere from the giant swaths of radiation that surround Earth, called the Van Allen Belts. Understanding this radiation and its interaction with Earth’s atmosphere helps us to learn about planetary…
Read MoreNASA Issues New Space Security Best Practices Guide
NASA Logo. NASA As space missions and technologies grow increasingly interconnected, NASA has released the first iteration of its Space Security Best Practices Guide to bolster mission cybersecurity efforts for both public sector and private sector space activities. The guide represents a significant milestone in NASA’s commitment to ensuring the longevity and resilience of its space missions and will serve as a resource for enhancing their security and reliability. Additionally, the Space Security Best Practices Guide was designed to benefit users beyond NASA – international partners, industry, and others working…
Read MoreA Look Through Time with NASA’s Lead Photographer for the James Webb Space Telescope
2 Min Read A Look Through Time with NASA’s Lead Photographer for the James Webb Space Telescope This self portrait of Chris Gunn, standing in front of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope from inside the Goddard Space Flight Center cleanroom, was captured November 10, 2016. Credits: NASA/Chris Gunn Nearly two years ago in the early morning hours of Dec. 25, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope successfully took flight from the jungle-encircled ELA-3 launch complex at Europe’s Spaceport near Kourou, French Guiana. Following a successful deployment in space, and the precise…
Read MoreMeet the Infrared Telescopes That Paved the Way for NASA’s Webb
Scientists have been studying the universe with infrared space telescopes for 40 years, including these NASA missions, from left: the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), launched in 1983; the Spitzer Space Telescope, launched in 2003; and the James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021. NASA/JPL-Caltech The Webb telescope has opened a new window onto the universe, but it builds on missions going back 40 years, including Spitzer and the Infrared Astronomical Satellite. On Dec. 25, NASA will celebrate the two-year launch anniversary of the James Webb Space Telescope – the largest…
Read MoreNASA Asteroid Sampling Mission Renamed OSIRIS-APEX for New Journey
5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) At the end of a long-haul road trip, it might be time to kick up your feet and rest awhile – especially if it was a seven-year, 4 billion-mile journey to bring Earth a sample of asteroid Bennu. But OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification and Security – Regolith Explorer), the NASA mission that accomplished this feat in September, is already well on its way (with a new name) to explore a new destination. When OSIRIS-REx left Bennu in…
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