September’s new moon points the way to Mars, Jupiter and more

The new moon occurs tonight (Sept. 14) at 9:40 p.m. EDT (0140 UTC on Sept 15), per the U.S. Naval Observatory.  Earth’s natural satellite just swung by Mercury on Wednesday (Sept. 13), and it will have an encounter with Mars two days from now. New moons occur when the moon is between the sun and Earth, which happens about every 29.5 days. Indeed, the word “month” is derived from “moon,” and the length of a lunar cycle is why many calendars, including the one we use today, have 30-day months. …

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‘Lightning’ on Venus is actually meteors burning up in planet’s atmosphere, study says

The thick, acid-rich clouds of Venus continue to shroud the planet next door in mystery. Scientists have long-debated whether intriguing light flashes recorded by previous Venus missions are evidence of lightning strikes on the planet. If those flashes really represent lightning, future missions to the windy planet need to be designed such that they are strong enough to survive the bolts, which are known to damage electronics here on Earth. Moreover, lightning on Venus means Earth’s cosmic neighbor would join the rare planetary club whose current members — Earth, Jupiter…

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‘It’s been an incredible challenge:’ NASA astronaut tells all on setting new record for longest US spaceflight (video)

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio celebrated a spaceflight milestone with two former astronauts on Earth. NASA‘s Frank Rubio spoke with senior NASA management from the International Space Station on Thursday (Sept. 13), two days after breaking the previous record of 355 days on a single spaceflight. Rubio is now expected to spend 371 days in orbit, making him the first American to spend more than a year in space on a single mission. More incredibly, it wasn’t planned that way; problems with his spacecraft forced an expected six-month orbital stay to…

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Manfrotto Pro Backloader Light camera backpack review

The Backloader Pro Light camera bag from Manfrotto offers a good level of protection while offering plenty of space for small and medium-sized cameras and accessories. If you’re a photographer with plenty of gear and plenty of ideas, this bag could be well suited to your needs. In this review we’ve got our hands on the medium-sized model of this bag. Key specs Weight: 1.89 kg Internal dimensions: 10.6 x 6.2 x 16.9-in (27 x 16 x 43cm)External dimensions: 12.5 x 10.2 x 20.4-in (32 x 26 x 52cm)Laptop compartment dimensions:…

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Asteroid Apophis will visit Earth in 2029. Why do scientists want NASA to send a probe there first?

NASA’s Small Bodies Assessment Group wants the agency to send spacecraft to visit the asteroid Apophis before it makes a close approach to Earth in 2029. Apophis, also known as asteroid 99942, was once thought to be on a potential collision course with Earth. The near-Earth object is estimated to be about 1,100 feet (340 meters) and could cause serious damage were it to impact our planet. Now however this ancient piece of the early solar system is of great scientific interest.  OSIRIS-REx, which collected material from asteroid Bennu in…

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SpaceX completes required ‘corrective actions’ ahead of 2nd Starship flight, Elon Musk says

SpaceX has cleared the logistical hurdles standing in the way of the second test flight of its giant Starship vehicle, according to Elon Musk. Starship‘s first flight, which launched from SpaceX‘s Starbase site in South Texas on April 20, didn’t last long. The vehicle suffered several problems shortly after liftoff, including the failure of its two stages to separate as planned. As a result, SpaceX engaged Starship’s self-destruct system, destroying the rocket high above the Gulf of Mexico. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) conducted an investigation into that flight,…

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