Jupiter’s surreal clouds swirl in new van Gogh-esque view from NASA’s Juno probe (photo)

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Vivid clouds swirl across Jupiter’s skies like colorful brushstrokes across a painting in a new photo from NASA‘s Juno spacecraft.  The image, taken during the spacecraft’s 61st close flyby of Jupiter on May 12, 2024, hones in on activity in the planet’s northern hemisphere. Juno was approximately 18,000 miles (29,000 kilometers) above Jupiter’s cloud tops when it captured this new view, highlighting the planet’s persistent storms and colorful bands created by strong winds in its atmosphere.  “It provides a detailed view of chaotic clouds and cyclonic storms in an area…

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A Saturnian Summer

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NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley), and the OPAL Team NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope captured this image of Saturn and its colossal rings on July 4, 2020, during summer in the gas giant’s northern hemisphere. Two of Saturn’s icy moons are also clearly visible: Mimas at right, and Enceladus at bottom.  The light reddish haze over the northern hemisphere seen in this color composite could be due to heating from increased sunlight, which could either change the atmospheric circulation or remove ices…

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Chinese astronauts simulate a debris-strike emergency on the Tiangong space station (video)

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China’s Shenzhou 18 mission staged an emergency drill recently to boost preparedness aboard the country’s space station. Shenzhou 18 commander Ye Guangfu and crewmates Li Cong and Li Guangsu conducted the drill in mid-July to practice procedures for the case of a decompression event aboard the Tiangong space station. The crew worked in collaboration with the ground team in Beijing, simulating the whole process of emergency response to a simulated scenario of space debris striking Tiangong and causing decompression. The astronauts of China’s Shenzhou 18 mission simulate a debris-strike emergency…

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Mercury has a layer of diamond 10 miles thick, NASA spacecraft finds

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The solar system’s tiniest planet may be hiding a big secret. Using data from NASA‘s MESSENGER spacecraft, scientists have determined that a 10-mile-thick diamond mantle may lie beneath the crust of Mercury, the closest planet to the sun.  Mercury has long puzzled scientists as it possesses many qualities that aren’t common to other solar system planets. These include its very dark surface, remarkably dense core, and the premature end of Mercury’s volcanic era.  Also among these puzzles are patches of graphite, a type (or “allotrope”) of carbon on the surface…

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NASA’s Webb Images Cold Exoplanet 12 Light-Years Away

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6 Min Read NASA’s Webb Images Cold Exoplanet 12 Light-Years Away This image of the gas-giant exoplanet Epsilon Indi Ab was taken with the coronagraph on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument). A star symbol marks the location of the host star Epsilon Indi A, whose light has been blocked by the coronagraph, resulting in the dark circle marked with a dashed white line (full image below) An international team of astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has directly imaged an exoplanet roughly 12 light-years from Earth.…

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NASA Streams First 4K Video from Aircraft to Space Station, Back

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3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) A graphic representation of a laser communications relay between the International Space Station, the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration spacecraft, and the Earth. Credit: NASA/Dave Ryan A team at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland streamed 4K video footage from an aircraft to the International Space Station and back for the first time using optical, or laser, communications. The feat was part of a series of tests on new technology that could provide live video coverage of astronauts on the…

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NASA Releases First Integrated Ranking of Civil Space Challenges

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3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA astronaut Kate Rubins uses a hammer to get a drive tube into the ground to collect a pristine soil sample during a nighttime simulated moonwalk in the San Francisco Volcanic Field in Northern Arizona on May 16, 2024. Surviving and operating through the lunar night was identified as a top-ranked 2024 Civil Space Challenge, and tests such as these help NASA astronauts and engineers practice end-to-end lunar operations. NASA/Josh Valcarcel This spring, NASA published a document overviewing almost…

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NASA, Boeing to Discuss Crew Flight Test Mission, Ground Testing

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Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft that launched NASA’s Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station is pictured docked to the Harmony module’s forward port. This long-duration photograph was taken at night from the orbital complex as it soared 258 miles above western China. Leadership from NASA and Boeing will participate in a media teleconference at 11:30 a.m. EDT Thursday, July 25, to provide the latest status of the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test mission aboard the International Space Station. Audio of the media teleconference will…

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SpaceX makes Starlink Roam available throughout the US

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Your internet connection today is brought to you by space. No, that’s not an ad from a science fiction movie; it’s the reality now thanks to SpaceX‘s ever-growing constellation of Starlink satellites. In June, SpaceX introduced its new version of its satellite internet antenna, providing users the option to have an on the go service that’s the perfect size to throw in your backpack. Now, Starlink Roam is available anywhere across the United States, connecting customers in even the most remote locations with high-speed internet that can be accessed from…

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