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Secret spacecraft and lost meteorites herald golden age of amateur astronomy
On a Sunday evening in late February 2021, a fluorescent green fireball flashed across the skies of Gloucestershire, heading in the direction of the village of Winchcombe. The 4.6 billion-year-old meteorite pre-dated the Earth and offered invaluable insights into the formation of the solar system. But weighing less than a bag of sugar and spread…
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Legendary space artist Adolf Schaller dies at 68
Adolf Schaller, 1956–2024. Credit: Adolf Schaller/Facebook One of the world’s pioneering and most talented space artists, Adolf Schaller, died in early August at age 68. He leaves a published body of work that establishes him as one of the greatest space artists. His attention to ongoing discoveries, from the solar system to distant galaxies, resulted…
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6 simple astronomy experiments you can do at home
Why can we observe solar eclipses? How did craters form on the Moon? Why do we have seasons on Earth? Questions like these are often asked by new astronomers, but answering them can be a bit tricky. How do you explain abstract situations where several bodies are moving around and affecting each other? Well, it’s…
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Royal Commission for AlUla, SETI Institute Collaborate to Develop AlUla Manara Observatory
The Royal Commission for AlUla has signed a cooperation agreement with SETI Institute to support the development of the AlUla Manara Observatory, which will act as a leading global center for innovation and excellence in space and astronomy sciences. The agreement seeks to boost AlUla’s status as a leading world destination for star and astronomy…
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Amateur astronomer spots China’s secretive space plane flying over Europe
Support trulyindependent journalism Find out moreClose Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth. Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts. Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda. Louise Thomas Editor Pictures taken by an amateur astronomer showed a secretive Chinese space plane flying high…
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UK satellite startup Blue Skies Space wants to sell astronomy data ‘as a service’
A U.K. space startup has revealed plans to launch its first satellite as part of SpaceX’s rideshare program, ushering in what it claims will be a “new era of space research,” where astronomy data is collected, packaged and sold “as a service.” Similar to previous missions, SpaceX’s Transporter 15 program next year will use a…
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The Weirdest Stuff We’ve Sent into Orbit
Explore A huge variety of objects, many of them completely unconnected with scientific research, have been launched into orbit—and beyond—over the past 60 years: A golf ball. Pizza. Our dead. Some of these things are sent for purely symbolic or political purposes. Others for communication: We hope that something or someone will find them and…
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Top NASA scientists descend on SA for astronomy event
<!–> –> Scientists from NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Dr Mae Jemison and Dr Sunita Williams, in Cape Town as part of International Astronomical Union General Assembly 2024. <!–> ]–> A delegation of scientists from the US’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are in Cape Town as part of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) General…
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SpaceX’s new direct-to-cell Starlink satellites are way brighter than the originals
SpaceX Starlink satellites designed to connect directly to smartphones shine nearly five times brighter in the sky than traditional Starlinks, according to recent research. SpaceX plans to form what it calls “a cellphone tower in space” with thousands of direct-to-cell (DTC) satellites around Earth that offer service straight to unmodified smartphones “wherever you can see…
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Space photo of the week: A cosmic butterfly emerges from a star’s violent death
What it is: Kohoutek 3-46, a planetary nebula. Where it is: 7,200 light-years distant in the constellation Cygnus. When it was shared: July 24, 2024. Why it’s so special: Death comes violently for massive stars. As they burn through their fuel and begin to cool, pressure drops and gravity takes control. A core collapse can…
