Solar Orbiter

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  NASA Prepares to Launch First Quantum Sensor for Measuring Gravity from Orbit

  NASA, in collaboration with academia and private companies, is developing the first quantum sensor to map Earth’s gravity from space. Using cold rubidium atoms, the compact instrument will deliver highly sensitive, long-term measurements. This mission could transform how we study Earth’s subsurface and explore planetary bodies across the solar ...

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  First Future Type 1a Supernova Detected: White Dwarf Pair to Collide in 23 Billion Years

  Astronomers have discovered a pair of white dwarf stars located about 150 light-years from Earth that are on course to collide and produce a Type 1a supernova in approximately 23 billion years. This is the first such system identified near our region of the galaxy. With a combined mass of 1.56 solar masses, the stars are slowly spiralling toward ea...

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  NASA's Perseverance Rover Captures One Dust Devil Devouring Another

  NASA's Perseverance Mars rover's navigation camera captured a Martian dust devil swallowing a smaller one. The smaller dust devil's demise was captured during an imaging experiment carried out by Perseverance's science team to better understand the dynamics at work in the Martian atmosphere. In the 1970s, NASA's Viking orbiters became the first spa...

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  This New Telescope Can Negate 'False-Positives' Of Alien Life Within Hours

  The ELT could identify biosignatures on planets in our solar system as well as orbiting Proxima Centauri within hours.

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  Study Identifies Plasma Formation as a Pseudostreamer

  ESA’s Solar Orbiter recorded a giant plasma structure extending millions of kilometres from the Sun’s surface. The footage, taken on October 12, 2022, shows a swirling motion in the solar wind, a phenomenon never observed before. Scientists identified the formation as a pseudostreamer caused by a solar flare near the Sun’s north pole. The pla...

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  Two New Exoplanets Found Orbiting a Star in Draco Constellation

  Astronomers have identified two exoplanets, TOI-1453 b and TOI-1453 c, orbiting a star 250 light-years away in Draco. The planets, a super-Earth and a sub-Neptune, were detected using NASA’s TESS satellite and the HARPS-N spectrograph. TOI-1453 b is a rocky planet orbiting close to its star, while TOI-1453 c is twice Earth’s size and may have a...

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  Artemis II Orion Service Module Secured for Launch at Kennedy Space Center

  NASA’s Artemis II Orion spacecraft is a step closer to its mission around the Moon. Three spacecraft adapter jettison fairings have been installed on its service module at Kennedy Space Center. These panels will protect the solar arrays from heat, wind, and acoustic forces during launch. Once in space, they will detach, allowing the arrays to dep...

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  NASA’s EZIE Satellites Begin Mission to Study Auroral Electrojets and Space Weather

  NASA’s Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer (EZIE) mission has been launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The trio of small satellites will map auroral electrojets, powerful currents in Earth’s atmosphere linked to solar storms. Their data will enhance space weather prediction models and help understand planetary mag...

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  SpaceX Falcon 9 Successfully Deploys NASA’s SPHEREx Telescope and PUNCH Probes

  NASA’s SPHEREx and PUNCH missions have successfully launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. SPHEREx will map the entire celestial sky in 102 infrared colours, while PUNCH will study the transition of the sun’s corona into the solar wind. The two-year missions aim to deepen our understanding of th...

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  US Space Force Shares First X-37B Space Plane Image, Revealing Mission Insights

  The US Space Force has released the first-ever image of its X-37B space plane in orbit. Captured while conducting experiments above the African continent, the image shows the spacecraft’s solar panel and open payload bay. The X-37B, launched on December 28, 2023, has been in orbit for over a year, testing new space domain awareness technologies a...

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  Tiny Plasma Jets on Sun Identified as Key Drivers of Solar Wind

  Observations from ESA’s Solar Orbiter have revealed that tiny plasma jets, known as picoflares, are responsible for both the fast and slow components of the solar wind. The discovery challenges previous assumptions that different mechanisms drive these solar wind types. With further research, scientists hope to refine space weather predictions, p...

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  ISRO’s NVS-02 Satellite Stalls in Orbit Due to Technical Malfunction

  A technical issue has stalled the orbit-raising operations of ISRO’s NVS-02 satellite, launched on January 29. While solar panels are functioning and communication is stable, the oxidizer valves have failed to open, preventing thruster activation. Tracking data indicates the satellite remains in its initial orbit. ISRO is assessing alternative wa...

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  Mysterious Interstellar Object Might Have Shifted Four Planets’ Paths, Study Finds

  A mysterious interstellar object, estimated to be eight times the mass of Jupiter, may have significantly altered the orbits of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune billions of years ago. A study suggests that this body passed remarkably close to the Sun, potentially influencing planetary trajectories. Simulations conducted by researchers indicate ...

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  SpaceX Achieves 400 Orbital Rocket Landings with Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy

  SpaceX achieved its 400th orbital-class rocket landing with Falcon 9 leading the charge. The company’s focus on reusable technology has reshaped space exploration, with Falcon Heavy contributing through multi-booster landings. Starship development also continues, aiming to support human missions to the moon and Mars. This milestone underlines Spa...

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  Interstellar Object Could Have Shifted Trajectories of Four Planets, New Research Shows

  A recent study suggests that an interstellar object, possibly as massive as eight times Jupiter, may have passed through the solar system billions of years ago, significantly altering the orbits of its outer planets—Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Using computer simulations, researchers found that in about 1% of the scenarios, such a close ...