https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski captured these stunning timelapse videos during his 20-day stay aboard the International Space Station as part of Axiom Mission 4, known as Ignis. Filmed from the Cupola—the Space Station's iconic seven-windowed observation module—the footage showcases breathtaking views of Earth and the moon from orbit. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ignis-mission-timelapses-earth-moon.html Space Exploration Mon, 26 Jan 2026 19:00:01 EST news688654459 NASA announced Tuesday the selection of three new science investigations that will strengthen humanity's understanding and exploration of the moon. As part of the agency's CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign, American companies will deliver these research payloads to the lunar surface no earlier than 2028. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-nasa-artemis-payloads-moon-terrain.html Space Exploration Wed, 21 Jan 2026 19:30:01 EST news688217097 Pandora, the latest in a long portfolio of University of Arizona's space science missions, has cleared its last major milestone on its journey into space. This week, Pandora—a satellite about the size of fridge—was mounted inside the launch vehicle, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Pandora now awaits blast-off from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The launch window opens at 6:19 a.m. Arizona time (8:19 a.m. EST) on Sunday, Jan. 11. SpaceX will provide a livestream of the event. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-pandora-keen-eyed-satellite-built.html Space Exploration Sat, 10 Jan 2026 06:30:03 EST news687248814 After nearly five years on Mars, NASA's Perseverance rover has traveled almost 25 miles (40 kilometers), and the mission team has been busy testing the rover's durability and gathering new science findings on the way to a new region nicknamed "Lac de Charmes," where it will be searching for rocks to sample in the coming year. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-perseverance-mars-rover-ready-miles.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 17 Dec 2025 15:31:39 EST news685207862 After less than a year in orbit, the Southwest Research Institute-built PUNCH spacecraft have made major accomplishments, imaging the sun in context while tracking comets and enormous space weather events as they traveled through the inner solar system. SwRI's Dr. Craig DeForest discussed the achievements of NASA's PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) mission during a media roundtable at the AGU25 conference on Dec. 16. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-mission-spacecraft-unprecedented-images-sun.html Astronomy Tue, 16 Dec 2025 13:03:01 EST news685112522 NASA has selected two science instruments designed for astronauts to deploy on the surface of the moon during the Artemis IV mission to the lunar south polar region. The instruments will improve our knowledge of the lunar environment to support NASA's further exploration of the moon and beyond to Mars. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-nasa-instruments-artemis-iv-lunar.html Space Exploration Mon, 08 Dec 2025 11:30:34 EST news684415801 NASA ER-2 pilot Kirt Stallings waits inside the transport vehicle moments before boarding the airborne science aircraft at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025. Outside the window, the aircraft is being readied for a high-altitude mission supporting the Geological Earth Mapping Experiment (GEMx), a multi-year NASA–U.S. Geological Survey campaign to map critical mineral resources across the Western United States. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-photo-nasa-er-gemx-flight.html Space Exploration Tue, 18 Nov 2025 10:35:02 EST news682684502 The first dual-satellite mission to another planet, NASA's ESCAPADE (Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers), is scheduled for launch no earlier than Sunday, Nov. 9, from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The two identical spacecraft are managed and operated by the University of California, Berkeley, and will fly in formation to map the magnetic fields, upper atmosphere and ionosphere of Mars in 3D, providing the first stereo view of the Red Planet's unique near-space environment. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-nasa-escapade-mission-mars-twin.html Space Exploration Thu, 06 Nov 2025 10:19:52 EST news681646785 Caltech researchers have developed a new simulation of the hydrological cycle on Jupiter, modeling how water vapor condenses into clouds and falls as rain throughout the giant planet's swirled, turbulent atmosphere. The research shows that Jupiter's water is not uniformly distributed, giving missions like NASA's Juno orbiter important guidance about where to look for water on the planet. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-simulation-reveals-uneven-jupiter-turbulent.html Planetary Sciences Mon, 29 Sep 2025 16:56:03 EDT news678383761 Cosmic dust—the tiny particles that help form stars, planets and the chemical building blocks of life—might be much spongier and fluffier than long assumed, according to an international group of scientists. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-space-spongier-thought-scientists.html Astronomy Mon, 29 Sep 2025 11:17:04 EDT news678363422 A NASA mission to study the heliosphere—the sun's magnetic bubble that shields our solar system—and develop a better understanding of space weather was launched from the agency's Kennedy Space Center along Florida's Atlantic coast on Wednesday morning. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-nasa-mission-sun-fueled-solar.html Astronomy Wed, 24 Sep 2025 16:09:39 EDT news677948976 In a science lab on the fourth floor of UTSA's Multidisciplinary Studies Building, UTSA students engage in meticulous choreography around a glowing furnace, melting rocks to produce lava. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-volcanoes-asteroids-lab-advances-planetary.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 24 Sep 2025 09:18:03 EDT news677924281 Neil Armstrong almost made a mistake. He had found an interesting rock sticking out of a formation. Curious to see what the rock was made of, he needed to examine its interior more closely. So he reached for his hammer and took a swing. The rock was far more brittle than he anticipated, and instead of cleaving in two it shattered. One of those shards flew away with so much force that it left behind a bloody gash in this forearm. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-stunning-astrogeology-apollo-missions.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 21 Aug 2025 16:07:04 EDT news675011222 NASA's Lunar Trailblazer ended its mission to the moon on July 31. Despite extensive efforts, mission operators were unable to establish two-way communications after losing contact with the spacecraft the day following its Feb. 26 launch. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-nasa-lunar-trailblazer-moon-mission.html Space Exploration Tue, 05 Aug 2025 09:40:03 EDT news673605601 Science is driven by our desire to understand things. In some cases, where it requires significant effort and investment to develop systems that can understand new things, science benefits from a game plan that the community of researchers focused on a particular niche can rally around, even if they don't necessarily agree on the details. In astronomy and space science, those game plans typically take the form of Decadal Surveys, produced by the National Academies to define the path forward in a specialization or sub-field. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-nasa-gaps-exoplanet-science.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 31 Jul 2025 12:26:03 EDT news673183561 NASA's Athena Economical Payload Integration Cost mission, or Athena EPIC, is a test launch for an innovative, scalable space vehicle design to support future missions. The small satellite platform is engineered to share resources among the payloads onboard by managing routine functions so the individual payloads don't have to. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-nasa-scalable-satellite-tech-sensors.html Space Exploration Mon, 21 Jul 2025 11:50:03 EDT news672316784 View of Earth as seen by ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski inside the seven-windowed cupola, the International Space Station's "window to the world." https://phys.org/news/2025-07-video-earth-views-cupola-ignis.html Space Exploration Wed, 16 Jul 2025 10:10:01 EDT news671877801 NASA has selected three instruments to travel to the moon, with two planned for integration onto an LTV (Lunar Terrain Vehicle) and one for a future orbital opportunity. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-nasa-instruments-artemis-lunar-terrain.html Space Exploration Fri, 11 Jul 2025 09:30:04 EDT news671444580 A curious cow watches as NASA astronauts Andre Douglas and Kate Rubins perform a simulated moonwalk in the San Francisco Volcanic Field in Northern Arizona on May 14, 2024, in preparation for NASA's historic Artemis III moon landing mission. Flight controllers and scientists guided activities during the week-long simulation from mission control at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-image-astronauts-moonwalks-unusual-earth.html Space Exploration Tue, 17 Jun 2025 16:14:24 EDT news669395661 Southwest Research Institute's Dr. Craig DeForest discussed the latest accomplishments of NASA's PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) mission during a media event at the 246th American Astronomical Society meeting in Anchorage, Alaska. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-mission-images-huge-solar-eruption.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 11 Jun 2025 07:09:04 EDT news668844542 Future space missions could use quantum technologies to help us understand the physical laws that govern the universe, explore the composition of other planets and their moons, gain insights into unexplained cosmological phenomena, or monitor ice sheet thickness and the amount of water in underground aquifers on Earth. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-quantum-interferometry-aboard-iss-broaden.html Quantum Physics Tue, 06 May 2025 16:21:04 EDT news665767261 As the new Biomass satellite settles into life in orbit following its launch on April 29, ESA has released its most extensive satellite-based maps of above-ground forest carbon to date. Spanning nearly two decades, the dataset offers the clearest global picture yet of how forest carbon stocks have changed over time. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-esa-unveils-longest-dataset-forest.html Earth Sciences Mon, 05 May 2025 15:57:04 EDT news665679421 Ingenuity proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that a helicopter can operate on another planet. Over 72 flights, the little quadcopter that could captivated the imagination of space exploration fans everywhere. But, several factors limited it, and researchers at NASA think they can do better. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-nighthawk-mars-chopper-mission-glaciers.html Space Exploration Mon, 17 Mar 2025 14:59:04 EDT news661442342 After every federal employee received an email asking them to list their recent accomplishments, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to his social media platform X, warning any employee who didn't respond would be terminated. NASA, instead, asserted that replying was optional and that its leadership would handle the matter. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-tense-clashes-nasa-musk-science.html Space Exploration Thu, 13 Mar 2025 08:00:05 EDT news661071433 NASA's Lucy spacecraft has its next flyby target, the small main belt asteroid Donaldjohanson, in its sights. By blinking between images captured by Lucy on Feb. 20 and 22, this animation shows the perceived motion of Donaldjohanson relative to the background stars as the spacecraft rapidly approaches the asteroid. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-lucy-spacecraft-images-asteroid-donaldjohanson.html Astronomy Tue, 25 Feb 2025 16:23:39 EST news659723014 Before arriving at the moon, the small satellite mission will use the gravity of the sun, Earth, and moon over several months to gradually line up for capture into lunar orbit. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-nasa-lunar-trailblazer-looping-voyage.html Space Exploration Fri, 14 Feb 2025 10:19:04 EST news658750741 Where is all the water that may form oceans on distant planets and moons? The SPHEREx astrophysics mission will search the galaxy and take stock. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-spherex-space-telescope-life-ingredients.html Astronomy Thu, 13 Feb 2025 12:50:08 EST news658672820 Technicians have successfully integrated NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope's payload—the telescope, instrument carrier, and two instruments—to the spacecraft that will deliver the observatory to its place in space and enable it to function while there. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-nasa-telescope-instruments-roman-spacecraft.html Astronomy Wed, 08 Jan 2025 12:58:42 EST news655563516 A team of international scientists has unveiled groundbreaking research on the origins of lunar water, offering insights that could reshape our understanding of the Earth-moon system and the broader solar system. Published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the pioneering study explores the isotopic signatures of lunar water, revealing a mix of indigenous and cometary sources. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-apollo-lunar-mission-samples-reveal.html Space Exploration Thu, 19 Dec 2024 13:31:01 EST news653837458 NASA's Europa Clipper, which launched Oct. 14 on a journey to Jupiter's moon Europa, is already 13 million miles (20 million kilometers) from Earth. Two science instruments have deployed hardware that will remain at attention, extending out from the spacecraft, for the next decade—through the cruise to Jupiter and the entire prime mission. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-europa-clipper-millions-miles-instruments.html Planetary Sciences Mon, 25 Nov 2024 15:46:03 EST news651771961