Astronomy

Cryptocurrency billionaire Chun Wang and his Fram2 private astronaut crew got a two-for-one deal when they watched a rocket launch ahead of their own launch on March 31.

Researchers with the U.S. military's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have successfully used Earth's atmosphere as a sensor to detect a distant disturbance.

Thomas Ozoroski, a researcher at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, takes icing accretion measurements in October 2024 as part of transonic truss-braced wing concept research. Researchers at NASA Glenn conducted another test campaign in March 2025.

Looking like a soccer ball with glowing blue eyes, the Japanese Experiment Module Internal Ball Camera-2 is put to test aboard the International Space Station.

Even animals with very small brains turn out to have cultural traditions, which poses a puzzler for biologists wondering what makes human culture unique

Even animals with very small brains turn out to have cultural traditions, which poses a puzzler for biologists wondering what makes human culture unique

As semaglutide-based weight loss treatments such as Ozempic and Wegovy become more popular, new side effects are emerging – and one is hair loss

As semaglutide-based weight loss treatments such as Ozempic and Wegovy become more popular, new side effects are emerging – and one is hair loss

Urine that has sat in the sun for a while seems to fertilise crops while warding off pests, without affecting the produce's taste

Urine that has sat in the sun for a while seems to fertilise crops while warding off pests, without affecting the produce's taste

Europe's Solar Orbiter spacecraft has chronicled the development of the magnetic escape of plasma driven out by a powerful magnetic reconnection event.

The first images of Earth's poles from the Fram2 Crew Dragon have been uploaded from the orbiting spacecraft, and the views are breathtaking.

NASA's "quiet" new supersonic jet, the X-59, just passed a key engine test, bringing it closer to its first flight later this year.

The JWST was used in a creative way to capture direct images of distant worlds.

At the Dakshineswar temple complex in India, Hanuman langurs beg for food by grabbing visitors’ legs or tugging on their clothes – and they don’t stop until they get their favourite snacks

At the Dakshineswar temple complex in India, Hanuman langurs beg for food by grabbing visitors’ legs or tugging on their clothes – and they don’t stop until they get their favourite snacks

After last week's explosive X-flare, sunspot AR4046 is at it again! Could this latest eruption bring stormy space weather to Earth?

An analysis of two decades of data from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has provided fresh insights into the complex atmospheric changes on Uranus, including the effects of the sun's radiation on its seasonal shifts.

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Space Debris: Is it a Crisis?

The European Space Agency’s short documentary film ‘Space Debris: Is it a Crisis?’ on the state of space debris premiered at the 9th European Conference on Space Debris on 1 April 2025.

Earth is surrounded by thousands of satellites carrying out important work to provide telecommunications and navigation services, help us understand our climate, and answer fundamental questions about the Universe.

However, as our use of space accelerates like never before, these satellites find themselves navigating increasingly congested orbits in an environment criss-crossed by streams of fast-moving debris fragments resulting from collisions, fragmentations and breakups in space.

Each fragment can damage additional satellites, with fears that a cascade of collisions may eventually render some orbits around Earth no longer useable. Additionally, the extent of the harm of the drastic increase in launches and number of objects re-entering our atmosphere and oceans is not yet known.

So, does space debris already represent a crisis?

The documentary explores the current situation in Earth’s orbits and explains the threat space debris poses to our future in space. It also outlines what might be done about space debris and how we might reach true sustainability in space, because our actions today will have consequences for generations to come.

 

ESA’s Space Safety Programme

ESA’s Space Safety Programme aims to safeguard the future of spaceflight and to keep us, Earth and our infrastructure on the ground and in space safe from hazards originating in space.

From asteroids and solar storms to the human-made problem of space debris, ESA works on missions and projects to understand the dangers and mitigate them.

In the longer term, to ensure a safe and sustainable future in space, ESA aims to establish a circular economy in space. To get there, the Agency is working on the technology development necessary to make in-orbit servicing and zero-debris spacecraft a reality.