Science

UPDATE: Feb. 21, 2024, 3:30 p.m. EST In an update posted on X (formerly Twitter), the European Space Agency reported that its ERS-2 satellite reentered Earth “over the North Pacific Ocean between Alaska and Hawaii” at around 17:17 UTC (12:17 p.m. ET). In a separate statement, the agency added that “No damage to property has...

An uncrewed private spacecraft has reached the moon’s orbit, one day ahead of its attempt to land at the lunar south pole. Intuitive Machines’ robotic spacecraft, which launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Feb. 15, beamed back a view of the near side of the moon to flight controllers just six days later. The craft...

We might be watching a historic moon landing today. Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 spacecraft, the uncrewed Odysseus, could potentially land on the surface of the Moon on Feb. 22 at around 4:24 p.m. ET, after an eight-day journey through space. While we can’t be completely sure that the landing will be successful, on Wednesday Intuitive Machines...

A small American company’s robotic spacecraft has brought the United States back to the surface of the moon for the first time in more than a half-century. Intuitive Machines, a Houston-based space company, landed on Thursday, becoming the first commercial company to reach the moon intact. The unprecedented achievement is a win for NASA, which...

It’s been over a half century since humans first set foot on the Moon, but today we understand more about our universe than ever. Our journey into the unknown has been fueled by human curiosity, innovation and even war. Join us as we dive deep into the history of space travel with space historian Margaret...

At long last scientists believe they have the answer to what happened to a star that died in a famous supernova explosion not far from home. The James Webb Space Telescope detected strong evidence supporting the existence of a neutron star, one of the densest objects in space, in its infancy. While some supernovas result...

There’s a fresh crater on Mars, a reminder of our still-dynamic solar system. NASA‘s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, a spacecraft orbiting Mars since 2006, uses an extremely powerful camera to observe the Martian surface. The team running the aptly named High Resolution Imaging Experiment, or HIRISE camera, recently released a detailed image of this impact crater....

NASA is vigilantly scanning the skies for menacing asteroids. Recently, the space agency captured its first detailed views of asteroid 2008 OS7, a rock some 650 to 1,640 feet (200 to 500 meters) across. It passed 1.8 million miles (2.9 million kilometers) from Earth in early February, which in cosmic terms is quite close. That’s...

Mars is hard, even for robots. NASA’s experimental helicopter Ingenuity crashed in January, bringing the historic extraterrestrial mission to an end. The Martian craft — the first to ever make a powered, controlled flight on another planet — flew 72 times before it landed “hard” in the sand-covered plains of a dried-up river valley. Early...

A U.S. business and the next generation of moonbound spacefarers are learning that landing upright on the lunar surface is much harder than it looks. Intuitive Machines’ spacecraft took this selfie, pictured above, about 35 seconds after tipping over during its descent on Feb. 22. Because the lander is on its side, the mission will...