Blue Origin’s heavy-lift New Glenn rocket has been grounded following a recent launch failure that prevented a satellite from reaching its intended orbit. The mission lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, marking the rocket’s third flight since its debut. During the launch, the rocket’s reusable first-stage booster performed as expected and successfully landed on an ocean-based…
Harvest Moon Returns Skywatchers are set for a celestial treat on Monday night when October’s harvest moon rises as the first supermoon of the year. The moon will reach peak fullness around 11:48 p.m. ET, but it will appear nearly full from Monday evening through early Tuesday. Even if clouds obscure the view on the first night, the moon will…
Discovery of a Celestial Visitor Astronomers have announced the discovery of a new comet, glowing green as it moves across the night sky. The comet, officially named C/2025 R2 (SWAN) or SWAN25B, was first observed on September 11 by Vladimir Bezugly. He detected it in images from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, a spacecraft primarily used to study the Sun.…
Cassini’s Hidden Data Unlocks New Clues Nearly two decades after NASA’s Cassini spacecraft completed its mission, scientists continue to extract groundbreaking discoveries from its vast dataset. The latest revelation comes from Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus, where researchers have identified new complex organic molecules spewing from its subsurface ocean. The finding, published in Nature Astronomy, strengthens the case for a dedicated…
Falcon 9 Lights Up Southern California Sky A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Sunday evening, streaking across the skies of southern California as it carried 28 new Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit. The launch took place at 10:04 p.m. EDT (7:04 p.m. local time) and marked another step in the expansion of…
A Fossil Reinterpreted A million-year-old skull discovered in China is rewriting what scientists know about the origins of modern humans. The fossil, known as Yunxian 2, was originally classified as belonging to Homo erectus, a species considered to be a direct ancestor of Homo sapiens. However, new research using advanced digital reconstruction techniques suggests that the skull may instead belong…
Veteran of Polaris Dawn NASA’s newest class of astronaut candidates includes a trailblazer with previous spaceflight experience. Biomedical engineer Anna Menon, 39, has already been to orbit as part of SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission, making her one of the rare NASA astronaut candidates who had traveled to space before selection. In September 2024, Menon and three crewmates flew aboard SpaceX’s…
