" The exploration of the planets is not an indulgence. If we want to know how we came to be here we need to understand the histories of the planet that gave birth to us and the system that gave birth to it. "
- Andrew Cohen, Brian Cox -

Earth-size, habitable-zone planet found

A reanalysis of data from NASA's Kepler space telescope has revealed an Earth-size exoplanet orbiting in its star's habitable zone, the area around a star where a rocky planet could support liquid water.

The Cheops space telescope is ready to study exoplanets

Cheops (Characterising Exoplanet Satellite), the satellite for the study of the exoplanets of the European Space Agency (Esa), has passed the exams and now it is ready to go to work. 

Milky Way May Have 100 Faint Satellite Galaxies

A new model suggests the Milky Way should have an additional 100 or so very faint satellite galaxies awaiting discovery.

The Universe may not look the same in all directions

One of the core assumptions of astronomy is that the universe appears the same in all directions, or it is isotropic. However, a recent study suggests that may not be the case. 

NASA's Plans For a Lunar Base Camp

When the Artemis III mission lands on the lunar surface in 2024 - it will serve as a stepping stone towards the creation of a permanent human presence on the Moon, NASA hopes.

Astronomers spot the brightest supernova

Astronomers have spotted the brightest and most energetic supernova ever recorded. The event, known as SN2016aps, may have been the result of two stars merging and then exploding.

Comets and viruses

Idea of microbes originating from space. Microbes can survive frozen, deep within the permafrost for millions and even billions of years. They might be perfectly adapted for a life on some frozen object, traveling through space.

BepiColombo mission is heading to Mercury

Scientists are still preparing for the crucial fly-by of Earth by the joint European–Japanese BepiColombo mission to Mercury on 10 April, despite COVID-19 quarantine.

Ancient Mercury Had the Right Stuff For Life

Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, is one of the last places we think about when considering the potential for life in the solar system. New research suggests the planet's interior once contained the basic ingredients for life.

Uranus' atmosphere is escaping into space

By going over old data collected by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1986, two scientists at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center have made the startling discovery that Uranus’ atmosphere is gradually escaping into space.

Even More Repeating Fast Radio Bursts Discovered

The CHIME radio telescope array has detected nine new fast radio bursts on repeat, which are revealing things about this strange phenomenon.

Hubble Telescope Detects Unthinkable Quasar Tsunamis

Scientists using the Hubble Space Telescope have detected quasars sending outbursts of energy roaring through their galaxies, according to new research.

The Intense Heat from the Sun Helps Ice Form on Mercury

The planet’s extreme daytime heat combined with the super-cold (minus 200-degree Celsius) temperatures in the permanently shadowed craters might be acting like an “ice-making chemistry lab.”

" I do not feel like an alien in this universe. The more I examine the universe and study the details of its architecture, the more evidence I find that the universe is some sense must have known that we were coming. "
- Freeman Dyson, Disturbing the Universe -