Category: Solar System

Our solar system

Mars orbiters witness a ‘winter wonderland’ on the Red Planet (photos)

NeRD

Hoping for a white Christmas this year? Well, even if there’s no snow where you live, at least you can enjoy these images of a “winter” wonderland on Mars. Taken by the German-built High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Mars Express orbiter in June 2022, and by NASA’s NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter using its High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on September 2022, these images showcase what appears to be a snowy landscape in the Australe Scopuli region of Mars, near the planet’s south pole.…

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Black hole paradox that stumped Stephen Hawking may have a solution, new paper claims

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Nothing is supposed to escape a black hole’s event horizon — yet new research suggests it may secretly leak information. That leakage would appear in subtle signatures in gravitational waves, and now we know how to look for them, the study authors say. In 1976, Stephen Hawking rocked the astrophysics world with his discovery that black holes aren’t entirely black. Instead, they emit tiny amounts of radiation and, given enough time, can give off so much that they disappear entirely. But this introduced a massive problem. Information flows into black…

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How to watch ‘Doctor Who’ Christmas special: Stream ‘Joy to the World’ online and from anywhere

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‘Doctor Who’: Joy to the World’ Key information • Date: Wednesday, December 25, 2025• UK: Watch for FREE on BBC iPlayer• US and elsewhere: Watch on Disney Plus• Away from home: Use a VPN such as NordVPN to watch your usual service from anywhere “Doctor Who: Joy to the World” continues the veteran sci-fi show’s two-decade run as a Christmas TV institution. The Time Lord has been a fixture of the BBC’s festive schedules ever since 2005’s “The Christmas Invasion”, and this year is no different. The last time we…

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10 most powerful solar flares of 2024

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It’s been a busy year on the sun, as it officially entered the peak of its roughly 11-year cycle of activity, known as solar maximum. In 2024, the sun launched over 50 X-class solar flares — the most powerful type of solar flare — at Earth. Solar flares are categorized by the level of X-rays they produce in a specific wavelength range (1 to 8 angstroms). Solar flare classes follow a logarithmic scale, with each flare class — C, M and X — 10 times stronger than the previous one.…

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NASA delays Artemis missions again. What could this mean for the moon, Mars and space leadership?

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NASA’s first two crewed Artemis moon missions have been pushed back to 2026 and 2027, respectively, and the move could have big ramifications for the agency’s Artemis program and competition with China for leadership in space. Artemis 2, which will send a crew of three Americans and a Canadian astronaut around the moon, was due to launch in September 2025. The mission has now been moved back to April 2026, NASA announced on Dec. 5. Artemis 3 — which is set to put humans on the surface of our nearest…

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What time is the NASA Parker Solar Probe’s closest sun flyby ever on Christmas Eve?

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A NASA spacecraft is about to give astronomers an epic early Christmas present with the closest ever flyby of the sun on Dec. 24, but if you’re wondering exactly when the ambitious solar encounter will occur, don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. The NASA spacecraft, called the Parker Solar Probe, is on course for what will be a record-setting close flyby of the sun on Christmas Eve, when it will fly through the star’s outer atmosphere at 6:53 a.m. EST (1153 GMT) and pass within 3.8 million miles (6.1 million…

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Space2Sea Antarctica: William Shatner, Neil deGrasse Tyson and NASA astronauts talk exploration and science from the Drake Passage

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Space2Sea Antarctica marks the inaugural voyage in a series produced by FUTURE of SPACE (FoS). This innovative journey blends Earth’s uncharted territories with the inspiring narrative of human curiosity and exploration. It encapsulates the core mission of FoS to: Embrace New Frontiers, Celebrate the Human Experience, and Elevate the Conversation. Student journalist Gabe Castro-Root of American University is chronicling the mission for FoS. You can read his latest dispatch below. Astronauts, scientists and explorers gathered aboard an Antarctica-bound ship on Friday for a panel discussion aimed at inspiring young people’s…

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Daffy Duck’s ‘full moon’ and Porky Pig fend off alien invasion in ‘The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie’ (trailer)

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The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie | Official Teaser (2025) Only in Theaters Feb 28 – YouTube Watch On Aiming for a worldwide release on Feb. 28, 2025, “The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie” has had a circuitous and oft-delayed path to the big screen after being abandoned by incoming Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav as a direct-to-streaming feature, before eventually getting a theatrical presentation courtesy of the most unlikely indie distribution partner. Now check out the first hilarious trailer which…

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See how ‘Ahsoka’ brought ‘Clone Wars’ Anakin Skywalker to live-action in this behind-the-scenes clip (exclusive video)

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Just in time for Old St. Nick’s annual trek across the sky and straight down your chimney, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, which now handles all of Disney’s physical media production and distribution, just launched “The Mandalorian” season 3 and “Ahsoka” season 1 onto 4K Ultra HD Steelbook on Dec. 3. This prestigious pair of Disney+ Original “Star Wars” shows is presented as part of the Lucasfilm Collector’s Editions series and comes supercharged with 4K Ultra HD Dolby Vision and Atmos audio. These two snazzy Collector’s Editions arrive in glossy SteelBook…

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Planes, drones or UFOs: What are people seeing in the New Jersey sky?

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The recent sightings of puzzling unidentified aircraft in New Jersey and other states have triggered yet another round of unanswered questions — and fueled conspiracy theories. For one, the odd objects have sparked a visual public mayday and melee — one that might be mirroring elements of the ongoing unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAP) issue, spurring talk of secretive saucer crashes by run-amok alien crewmembers with expired driver licenses. Mischaracterization of what’s seen. Public anxiety about what’s not known. Government officials seemingly not clear on what’s happening. Toss in Capitol Hill…

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