Planetary Science
Hubble Confirms Megacomet Bound for Inner Solar System Is Largest Ever Seen
The icy nucleus of Comet Bernardinelli-Bernstein is about 80 miles (129 kilometers) wide
Stories by Chelsea Gohd
Space Exploration
Ax-1, First Private Crewed Space Station Mission, Launches Successfully
Axiom Space’s visit to the International Space Station is a milestone for commercial human spaceflight
Planetary Science
Earth Has a New Asteroid Companion but Not for Long
The Trojan asteroid 2020 XL5 is projected to linger in our planet’s vicinity for the next 4,000 years
Astronomy
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Is Fueled for Late December Launch
After some two decades of development, the orbital observatory is set to at last reach space on December 22
Particle Physics
Elusive Neutrino Candidates Detected in Breakthrough Physics Experiment
At long last, researchers have glimpsed ghostly particles produced by CERN’s Large Hadron Collider
Space Exploration
U.S. Officials Condemn Russian Anti-Satellite Test That Threatened Astronauts
“The test has so far generated over 1,500 pieces of trackable orbital debris,” a State Department spokesperson said
Space Exploration
Why Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin Is So Reviled
Economic inequality, an indulgent trip to space and an ongoing legal battle with NASA are putting the space company in the hot seat
Space & Physics
Virgin Galactic Launches Richard Branson to Space in First Fully Crewed Flight of VSS Unity
SpaceShipTwo make a successful, crewed suborbital test flight to 282,000 feet (86 kilometers) above Earth’s surface
Space & Physics
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Is Delayed—Again
A Halloween launch for the space agency’s long-awaited flagship observatory is all but certain to slip into mid-November or later
Policy
Senate Confirms Bill Nelson as NASA’s New Leader
The former Senator will be the space agency’s 14th administrator
Space & Physics
Scientists Think This May Be the Farthest Galaxy in the Universe
GN-z11’s light signatures helped researchers estimate its distance from Earth
Space & Physics
Asteroid Makes the Closest Earth Flyby a Space Rock Has Ever Survived
The car-sized object zoomed by just 1,830 miles away
Space & Physics
NASA Just Unveiled the Space Suit to be Worn by the First Woman on the Moon
Meet the xEMU space suit—and a new suit for the Orion spacecraft, too
Space & Physics
The Space Station May Soon Smell like Fresh-Baked Cookies
Astronauts plan to test an oven designed to work in microgravity—and boost morale
Aerospace
Despite Similarities, Are the Two Recent 737 Max 8 Crashes a Coincidence?
Former Boeing engineer Peter Lemme weighs in on the second 737 Max 8 accident in five months
Space & Physics
Physicists Observe the Higgs Boson’s Elusive Decay
Directly detecting this long-predicted phenomenon further validates the Standard Model of particle physics
The Sciences
Katherine Johnson, Trailblazing NASA Mathematician, Celebrates 100 Trips around the Sun
The pioneering mathematician overcame barriers of racism and misogyny to help develop U.S. human spaceflight
Engineering
Could the Self-Repairing Star Wars Droid L3-37 Come to Life?
We're not that close to making self-modifying robots, expert says
Space & Physics
Poll: Climate Change, Global Leadership Should Be Top Priorities for U.S. Space Program
A majority of Americans in a new national survey expressed support for a vision of space exploration largely at odds with the federal government’s present plans
