Astronomy

In 1963, Captain Engle was assigned as one of two Air Force test pilots to fly the X-15 Research Rocket aircraft. In 1965, he flew the X-15 to an altitude of 280,600 feet, and became the youngest pilot ever to qualify as an astronaut. Three of his sixteen flights in the X-15 exceeded the 50-mile (264,000 feet) altitude required for astronaut rating.

With the help of powerful computers, researchers discovered a four-sided shape that naturally rests on one side, and built a real-life version from carbon fibre and tungsten

With the help of powerful computers, researchers discovered a four-sided shape that naturally rests on one side, and built a real-life version from carbon fibre and tungsten

Large sea anchors could be used to drag water under a bold plan to keep the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation moving – but some experts are sceptical

Large sea anchors could be used to drag water under a bold plan to keep the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation moving – but some experts are sceptical

A certain species of sea slug steals chloroplasts from algae and houses its contraband in special organelles that it can raid for food in times of need

Andromeda never looked as good as it does in a new image from the Chandra X-ray observatory and a range of powerful telescopes. A fitting tribute to dark matter pioneer Vera Rubin.

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Daniel Neuenschwander, ESA head of Space and Robotic Exploration, explains that Ignis mission will include an ambitious technological and scientific programme with several experiments led by ESA and proposed by the Polish space industry.

On 26 June 2025, ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski from Poland and his crewmates arrived to the International Space Station on the Axiom-4 mission (Ax-4).

The Polish project astronaut is the second of a new generation of European astronauts to fly on a commercial human spaceflight opportunity with Axiom Space.

SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket with the Dragon spacecraft carrying Axiom-4 astronauts heads to the International Space Station.

The meteor shower radiant can be found in the constellation Bootes.

The fireball was bright enough to be spotted by a lightning-tracking satellite from orbit.

Week in images: 23-27 June 2025

Discover our week through the lens

Often framed as a boon for personal wellness, meditation helps us connect with and support others, too

The Mexican president said there is a "general review underway of the international laws that are being violated."

Surprising new work bucks 50 years of assumptions about the trade-offs between computation space and time

Close stellar encounters could change the structure of our planetary system, potentially dooming Earth or other worlds to oblivion

This San Antonio, Tex., lab takes biosecurity seriously. Suit up with its scientists and go behind the scenes of the science of vaccine creation.

For years, Robert Hunt convinced everyone he could that he was a NASA astronaut. The truth was anything but.