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Space Exploration news
Exercise keeps astronauts' hearts strong enough for flight to Mars
Intense exercise during long spaceflights helps maintain heart structure and function within a range needed to tolerate the low-gravity environment of Mars, a study co-led by a UT Southwestern Medical Center researcher suggests. ...
Space Exploration
Sep 23, 2026
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Silicon solar cells could cut satellite power costs by up to 90%
Switching to modern silicon solar cells could cut the cost of powering satellites by as much as 90% based on beginning-of-life (BOL) performance, according to a review led by the University of Surrey. The switch to silicon ...
Space Exploration
Sep 23, 2026
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UK to launch new military space squadron to protect satellites
Britain announced Wednesday that it will launch a new military space squadron to defend the country's satellites, the latest move as countries race to develop military space capabilities.
Space Exploration
Sep 23, 2026
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Student-led missions deploy free-flying light sails from CubeSats in low Earth orbit
Students in Cornell's Space Systems Design Studio (SSDS) have released mission results for two unique light-sail experiments. These sails are slightly larger than a pizza box and harness momentum from photons to accelerate ...
Space Exploration
Sep 21, 2026
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NASA spacecraft discovers a huge new crater on the moon
Scientists have discovered a crater on the moon that's bigger than the Roman Colosseum and is the result of a powerful impact two years ago that initially went undetected.
Space Exploration
Sep 17, 2026
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From 10 to 22 years: The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope's mission has just been extended
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope hasn't yet reached its Sun–Earth L2 orbit, and it already has some good news. NASA has announced that the mission has enough fuel to potentially double its mission length. Though initially ...
Space Exploration
Sep 16, 2026
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SpaceX prepares for first orbital flight of Starship rocket
SpaceX announced Tuesday that it was planning to send its flagship rocket, Starship, into orbit, a key step in its project to one day reach the moon or Mars.
Space Exploration
Sep 16, 2026
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US acknowledges for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space
The United States has confirmed for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space, a remarkable revelation after previous warnings about countries such as Russia possibly weaponizing a global frontier long agreed in ...
Space Exploration
Sep 16, 2026
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A world 20 light-years away reveals surprisingly organized, Jupiter-like weather
Scientists from Trinity College Dublin have developed a way to unravel changing weather patterns on distant worlds. Using this approach, they discovered that the weather on a well-studied brown dwarf, SIMP 0136, previously ...
Space Exploration
Sep 16, 2026
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A new plasma thruster design breathes thin air for propellant
Choosing an orbit for a satellite always comes with trade-offs. Very low Earth orbit (VLEO), between 100–450 km (62–280 miles), has distinct advantages. Remote-sensing cameras can take better pictures, communications and ...
Space Exploration
Sep 14, 2026
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No cities on the moon—there isn't enough water, scientists say
The discovery of water in dark craters at the moon's poles has sparked a "moon rush" to establish bases there, followed by villages, cities and heavy industry. How sustainable is this rush?
Space Exploration
Sep 14, 2026
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Cataract surgery will be needed in space, surgeon predicts
An eye surgeon with a passion for space since childhood predicts that as astronauts start to make journeys to the moon and Mars in the near future, eye surgery in space will eventually become a necessity.
Space Exploration
Sep 13, 2026
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NASA's next great observatory could spot oceans on distant worlds
We've found more than 5,500 exoplanets so far. Dozens of them are in the habitable zones of their parent stars, where, at least in theory, they could host an ocean. But we've never definitively found a liquid ocean on another ...
Space Exploration
Sep 13, 2026
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Japan's Hayabusa2 achieves first-ever laser ranging experiment with an asteroid
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) Hayabusa2 spacecraft reached another milestone this summer, a first for space agencies. On Sunday, July 5, the probe conducted the first successful laser-ranging experiment ...
Space Exploration
Sep 12, 2026
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A new surface atlas of Phobos will help MMX mission collect its samples
Thanks to JAXA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and its sample-return capabilities, we're on the cusp of receiving our first sample from the Martian system—not from Mars itself, but from its largest moon, Phobos. ...
Space Exploration
Sep 11, 2026
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Scientists want to 3D print houses on Mars with the help of yeast
Mars is a terrible place to build a house. It's bitterly cold, blasted by radiation and a near vacuum. Not to mention that the building materials, even for a modest shelter, could spend months hurtling through space before ...
Space Exploration
Sep 10, 2026
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What to know about Europe's push to compete in space
Key figures from Europe's space industry and other international players have converged on Paris to discuss how to advance the continent's ambitions in a global market dominated by the United States.
Space Exploration
Sep 9, 2026
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Artemis II moonshot commander and pilot are hanging up their astronaut suits at NASA
The two NASA astronauts who led the Artemis II moonshot earlier this year are stepping away from spaceflight.
Space Exploration
Sep 9, 2026
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As African space race heats up, Senegal pursues homemade satellites
Senegalese engineers in hairnets and white gloves are carefully assembling a nanosatellite at a French lab—another step toward fostering their own space industry back home.
Space Exploration
Sep 9, 2026
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A new mission could rendezvous with Halley's Comet in 2061
Halley's Comet captures the imagination in a way that few other astronomical objects do. When it last made its approach toward the sun (admittedly when this author, who is now middle-aged, was 1 year old in 1986), humanity ...
Space Exploration
Sep 8, 2026
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More news
How studying astronauts could help tackle aging on Earth
Germany's Isar Aerospace launches rocket into orbit from Norway
ESA JUICE probe targets dark Jovian moon Kallichore in 2031
New clues about how space travel may affect women's health
NASA Johnson pilots chase moon's shadow for eclipse science
'Now boarding' … 240,000 miles from Earth, at the moon's first airport
SpaceX announces plans for $100 billion 'spaceport' in Louisiana
AI finds six ways to print rocket-grade alloy on commercial 3D printers
China says unmanned moon mission delayed over 'launch conditions'
China abruptly postpones ambitious Chang'e-7 lunar mission launch
Other news
Sharks can hear sounds nearly 250 feet away and find the source
A new venomous British snake? Why there's no need to panic
Earth's deep secret: Why your day isn't quite 24 hours
Whirlpool in a water tank reveals long-predicted wave turbulence
Astronomers capture an unprecedented view of gas giant formation in action
Anthropic touts AI-led biology discovery
China is launching a moon mission to find water ice
Rescue mission is called off for NASA's aging Swift space telescope
Japan to launch probe for Mars moons in October: Space agency
Interworld Slingshot: Exploring a new way to find resources in space
China successfully recovers rocket stage on land for the first time
VR supports research into spaceflight-related mental health
How calcium channels in muscle cells open together
New species of proto-amphibian described by students, named in honor of their mothers
Aardwolves and cats share surprising chromosome similarities
Scientists build world's most accurate atomic clock
