Category: Solar System

Our solar system

Watch GOES-U weather satellite float above a brightly shining Earth in stunning video from space

NeRD

The launch of NOAA’s powerful new GOES-U weather satellite did not disappoint. The satellite took off on Tuesday (June 25) atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in a picture-perfect launch under a clear blue sky at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The launch marked the 10th launch of Falcon Heavy, and lofted the fourth and final member of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) GOES-R series of weather spacecraft. Four and a half hours after take off, Falcon Heavy’s second stage deployed GOES-U into space…

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Sprites from space! Astronaut photographs rare red lightning phenomenon from ISS

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An astronaut captured an elusive glimpse of red lightning from space. NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick imaged the rare red sprite phenomenon from the International Space Station earlier in the year, which may build on earlier studies of the lightning type on the orbiting complex. “Super lucky a few weeks ago when shooting a timelapse of a lightning storm off the coast of South Africa. One of the frames in the timelapse had a red sprite,” NASA astronaut Dominick wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday (June 20).  “A rare event.…

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Marvel superheroes battle bloodthirsty Xenomorphs in new ‘Alien’ variant covers

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We’ll soon get some tastes of the unique brand of horrors coming in Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribić’s “Aliens vs. Avengers” crossover miniseries, which will be released in August. Marvel has unleashed the wicked extraterrestrial creatures from the “Alien” franchise onto five variant covers, which will roll out weekly in July and August. Not only is this an explosion of “Alien”-related offerings form Marvel to heat up the summer, but it also coincides with the arrival of director Fede Alvarez’s “Alien: Romulus” movie on Aug. 16, 2024, which is the…

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It’s back! Aurora-sparking sunspot returns for rare 3rd trip across the sun, firing off explosive solar flare (video)

NeRD

The historic sunspot region that sparked the record-breaking auroras of May 2024 has returned in explosive fashion, firing off a colossal M9.3 class solar flare on June 23.  But this isn’t the first time we have encountered this hyperactive sunspot. AR3723 is the returning version of sunspot AR3697 and before that AR3664 — which was responsible for the colossal G5 geomagnetic storm that triggered epic auroras around the world.  The sun‘s rotation period averages 27 days, which means Earth can view a given active region for around two weeks before…

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Watch Scarlett Johansson fake a moon landing in new ‘Fly Me To The Moon’ trailer (video)

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Standing against the phony backdrop of a simulated lunar landscape, Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson, the two stars of Apple Original Films and Columbia Pictures’ new period-placed NASA comedy, welcome viewers into the space-based hijinks of a new “Fly Me To The Moon” release trailer. Directed by “Arrowverse’s” Greg Berlanti (“Dawson’s Creek,” “Everwood,” “Riverdale”) and blasting off on July 12, 2024, this lighthearted drama takes us back to the heady days of NASA’s Apollo 11 lunar landing mission with all the authentic period detail, roaring muscle cars, and pastel fashions…

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How long would it take to reach Planet 9, if we ever find it?

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Some experts believe that we could be just a few years away from discovering the elusive “Planet Nine” — or ruling out the existence of the hypothetical world for good.  DOES PLANET 9 EXIST? But if we do find it, how long would it take for us to send a spacecraft to the far-flung world? And could humans ever make the trip? Planet Nine is the name given to a proposed planet supposedly lurking near the edge of the solar system. If it exists, Planet Nine is likely a dark,…

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NASA cancels ISS spacewalk due to spacesuit coolant leak (video)

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NASA cancelled a spacewalk at the International Space Station today (June 24) following a spacesuit coolant leak in the hatch. NASA astronauts Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Mike Barratt were told by Mission Control at 8:52 a.m. EDT (1252 GMT) to stop the planned 6.5-hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS). The pair had already switched over to the internal power in their suits at 8:46 a.m. (1246 GMT), meaning the spacewalk had technically started. Following the cancellation, astronauts opened the hatch into the ISS at 9:51 a.m. EDT (1351 GMT),…

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Planet Nine: Is the search for this elusive world nearly over?

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Deep in the outer reaches of the solar system — so far away from the known planets that the sun would barely be distinguishable from a nearby star — a massive, icy world may be lurking in the shadows, waiting to be discovered by humanity.  And the day that we finally find this elusive planet may be coming soon, thanks to a state-of-the-art telescope that will begin scanning the sky next year. The solar system has eight official planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. But in…

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New ‘Star Wars Outlaws’ gameplay trailer dives into the galactic underworld (video)

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Last year’s Star Wars Jedi: Survivor was easily one of the best Star Wars games of all time, and yet, fans have been itching for a full-blown open-world game set in George Lucas’ universe for more than a decade now. Now, Star Wars Outlaws aims to deliver exactly that, and the latest gameplay demo straight from Ubisoft is quite promising. For those who haven’t been following Massive Entertainment’s AAA behemoth: Star Wars Outlaws follows young scoundrel Kay Vess and her cute little alien pet, Nix, as they try to earn…

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‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ warps into Season 2 with new Netflix trailer (video)

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Resurrected by Netflix and zooming onto their streaming platform starting on July 1, 2024, the award-winning animated children’s series, “Star Trek: Prodigy,” is cleared for launch and CBS Studios has just revealed the thrilling first trailer and key art for its next 20-episode mission. This highly underrated project was developed by Emmy Award winners Kevin and Dan Hageman (“Trollhunters,” “Ninjago”) in collaboration with Alex Kurtzman to be the first all-ages “Star Trek” show out of spacedock, “Star Trek: Prodigy” premiered on Paramount+ in the fall of 2021 hauling a 20-episode…

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