Oh, would it not be absurd if there was no objective state?
What if the unobserved always waits, insubstantial,
till our eyes give it shape?

— Peter Hammill

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AI demand could drive up US electricity bills – even if it fizzles

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 6:00pm
A rush to build more energy infrastructure is driven in part by inflated estimates of US data centre growth. That means households and small businesses could face higher electricity bills – even if AI demand falters
Categories: Astronomy

AI demand could drive up US electricity bills – even if it fizzles

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 6:00pm
A rush to build more energy infrastructure is driven in part by inflated estimates of US data centre growth. That means households and small businesses could face higher electricity bills – even if AI demand falters
Categories: Astronomy

The world is losing major ground in the fight against measles

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 5:30pm
A wave of anti-vaccine sentiment has spurred measles outbreaks around the world, and could lead to outbreaks of other preventable illnesses
Categories: Astronomy

The world is losing major ground in the fight against measles

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 5:30pm
A wave of anti-vaccine sentiment has spurred measles outbreaks around the world, and could lead to outbreaks of other preventable illnesses
Categories: Astronomy

What's the deal with Lex Luthor's pocket universe in James Gunn's 'Superman'?

Space.com - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 5:00pm
Superman is full of awesome sci-fi elements, but the most fascinating one might be Lex Luthor's pocket dimension. How does that even work?
Categories: Astronomy

Scientists extracted water and oxygen from moon dust using sunlight. Could it work on the lunar surface?

Space.com - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 5:00pm
Soil excavated from the moon could be used to produce oxygen and methane, which could be used by lunar settlers for breathing and for rocket fuel.
Categories: Astronomy

Lunar lava tubes on Earth? China completes underground moon simulation test area (video)

Space.com - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 4:00pm
China has taken a new step in its long-term planning for lunar exploration with the completion of a "simulated moon underground space."
Categories: Astronomy

NASA, Oxford Discover Warmer Uranus Than Once Thought

NASA - Breaking News - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:21pm

KEY POINTS

  • Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune each emit more energy than they receive from the Sun, meaning they have comparatively warm interiors.
  • NASA’s Uranus flyby with Voyager 2 in 1986 found the planet colder than expected, which challenged ideas of how planets formed and evolved.
  • However, with advanced computer modeling and a new look at old data, scientists think the planet may actually be warmer than previously expected.

For millennia, astronomers thought Uranus was no more than a distant star. It wasn’t until the late 18th century that Uranus was universally accepted as a planet. To this day, the ringed, blue world subverts scientists’ expectations, but new NASA research helps puzzle out some of the world’s mystique. 

This zoomed-in image of Uranus, captured by the Near-Infrared Camera on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope on Feb. 6, 2023, reveals stunning views of Uranus’ rings. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

Uranus is unlike any other planet in our solar system. It spins on its side, which means each pole directly faces the Sun for a continuous 42-year “summer.” Uranus also rotates in the opposite direction of all planets except Venus. Data from NASA’s Voyager 2 Uranus flyby in 1986 also suggested the planet is unusually cold inside, challenging scientists to reconsider fundamental theories of how planets formed and evolved throughout our solar system.

“Since Voyager 2’s flyby, everybody has said Uranus has no internal heat,” said Amy Simon, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “But it’s been really hard to explain why that is, especially when compared with the other giant planets.”

These Uranus projections came from only one up-close measurement of the planet’s emitted heat made by Voyager 2: “Everything hinges on that one data point,” said Simon. “That is part of the problem.” 

Now, using an advanced computer modeling technique and revisiting decades of data, Simon and a team of scientists have found that Uranus does in fact generate some heat, as they reported on May 16 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society journal. 

A planet’s internal heat can be calculated by comparing the amount of energy it receives from the Sun to the amount it of energy it releases into space in the form of reflected light and emitted heat. The solar system’s other giant planets — Saturn, Jupiter, and Neptune — emit more heat than they receive, which means the extra heat is coming from inside, much of it left over from the high-energy processes that formed the planets 4.5 billion years ago. The amount of heat a planet exudes could be an indication of its age: the less heat released relative to the heat absorbed from the Sun, the older the planet is.

Uranus stood out from the other planets because it appeared to give off as much heat as it received, implying it had none of its own. This puzzled scientists. Some hypothesized that perhaps the planet is much older than all the others and has cooled off completely. Others proposed that a giant collision — the same one that may have knocked the planet on its side — blasted out all of Uranus’ heat. But none of these hypotheses satisfied scientists, motivating them to solve Uranus’ cold case.

“We thought, ‘Could it really be that there is no internal heat at Uranus?’” said Patrick Irwin, the paper’s lead author and professor of planetary physics at the University of Oxford in England. “We did many calculations to see how much sunshine is reflected by Uranus and we realized that it is actually more reflective than people had estimated.”

The researchers set out to determine Uranus’ full energy budget: how much energy it receives from the Sun compared to how much it reflects as sunlight and how much it emits as heat. To do this, they needed to estimate the total amount of light reflected from the planet at all angles. “You need to see the light that’s scattered off to the sides, not just coming straight back at you,” Simon said.

To get the most accurate estimate of Uranus’ energy budget yet, Oxford researchers developed a computer model that brought together everything known about Uranus’ atmosphere from decades of observations from ground- and space-based telescopes, including NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility in Hawaii. The model included information about the planet’s hazes, clouds, and seasonal changes, all of which affect how sunlight is reflected and how heat escapes.

These side-by-side images of Uranus, taken eight years apart by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, show seasonal changes in the planet’s reflectivity. The left image shows the planet seven years after its northern spring equinox when the Sun was shining just above its equator. The second photo, taken six years before the planet’s summer solstice, portrays a bright and large northern polar cap. Credit: NASA, ESA, STScI, A. Simon (NASA-GSFC), M. H. Wong (UC Berkeley), J. DePasquale (STScI)

The researchers found that Uranus releases about 15% more energy than it receives from the Sun, a figure that is similar to another recent estimate from a separate study funded in part by NASA that was published July 14 in Geophysical Research Letters. These studies suggest Uranus it has its own heat, though still far less than its neighbor Neptune, which emits more than twice the energy it receives.

“Now we have to understand what that remnant amount of heat at Uranus means, as well as get better measurements of it,” Simon said.

Unraveling Uranus’ past is useful not only for mapping the timeline of when solar system planets formed and migrated to their current orbits, but it also helps scientists better understand many of the planets discovered outside the solar system, called exoplanets, a majority of which are the same size as Uranus.

By Emma Friedman
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

Explore More

3 min read Hubble Helps Determine Uranus’ Rotation Rate with Unprecedented Precision

Article


3 months ago

5 min read Hubble Monitors Changing Weather and Seasons at Jupiter and Uranus

Article


2 years ago

8 min read Why Uranus and Neptune Are Different Colors

Neptune and Uranus have much in common yet their appearances are notably different. Astronomers now…



Article


3 years ago

Share

Details

Last Updated

Jul 17, 2025

Editor Lonnie Shekhtman Contact Lonnie Shekhtman lonnie.shekhtman@nasa.gov Location NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Related Terms
Categories: NASA

NASA, Oxford Discover Warmer Uranus Than Once Thought

NASA News - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:21pm

KEY POINTS

  • Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune each emit more energy than they receive from the Sun, meaning they have comparatively warm interiors.
  • NASA’s Uranus flyby with Voyager 2 in 1986 found the planet colder than expected, which challenged ideas of how planets formed and evolved.
  • However, with advanced computer modeling and a new look at old data, scientists think the planet may actually be warmer than previously expected.

For millennia, astronomers thought Uranus was no more than a distant star. It wasn’t until the late 18th century that Uranus was universally accepted as a planet. To this day, the ringed, blue world subverts scientists’ expectations, but new NASA research helps puzzle out some of the world’s mystique. 

This zoomed-in image of Uranus, captured by the Near-Infrared Camera on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope on Feb. 6, 2023, reveals stunning views of Uranus’ rings. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

Uranus is unlike any other planet in our solar system. It spins on its side, which means each pole directly faces the Sun for a continuous 42-year “summer.” Uranus also rotates in the opposite direction of all planets except Venus. Data from NASA’s Voyager 2 Uranus flyby in 1986 also suggested the planet is unusually cold inside, challenging scientists to reconsider fundamental theories of how planets formed and evolved throughout our solar system.

“Since Voyager 2’s flyby, everybody has said Uranus has no internal heat,” said Amy Simon, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “But it’s been really hard to explain why that is, especially when compared with the other giant planets.”

These Uranus projections came from only one up-close measurement of the planet’s emitted heat made by Voyager 2: “Everything hinges on that one data point,” said Simon. “That is part of the problem.” 

Now, using an advanced computer modeling technique and revisiting decades of data, Simon and a team of scientists have found that Uranus does in fact generate some heat, as they reported on May 16 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society journal. 

A planet’s internal heat can be calculated by comparing the amount of energy it receives from the Sun to the amount it of energy it releases into space in the form of reflected light and emitted heat. The solar system’s other giant planets — Saturn, Jupiter, and Neptune — emit more heat than they receive, which means the extra heat is coming from inside, much of it left over from the high-energy processes that formed the planets 4.5 billion years ago. The amount of heat a planet exudes could be an indication of its age: the less heat released relative to the heat absorbed from the Sun, the older the planet is.

Uranus stood out from the other planets because it appeared to give off as much heat as it received, implying it had none of its own. This puzzled scientists. Some hypothesized that perhaps the planet is much older than all the others and has cooled off completely. Others proposed that a giant collision — the same one that may have knocked the planet on its side — blasted out all of Uranus’ heat. But none of these hypotheses satisfied scientists, motivating them to solve Uranus’ cold case.

“We thought, ‘Could it really be that there is no internal heat at Uranus?’” said Patrick Irwin, the paper’s lead author and professor of planetary physics at the University of Oxford in England. “We did many calculations to see how much sunshine is reflected by Uranus and we realized that it is actually more reflective than people had estimated.”

The researchers set out to determine Uranus’ full energy budget: how much energy it receives from the Sun compared to how much it reflects as sunlight and how much it emits as heat. To do this, they needed to estimate the total amount of light reflected from the planet at all angles. “You need to see the light that’s scattered off to the sides, not just coming straight back at you,” Simon said.

To get the most accurate estimate of Uranus’ energy budget yet, Oxford researchers developed a computer model that brought together everything known about Uranus’ atmosphere from decades of observations from ground- and space-based telescopes, including NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility in Hawaii. The model included information about the planet’s hazes, clouds, and seasonal changes, all of which affect how sunlight is reflected and how heat escapes.

These side-by-side images of Uranus, taken eight years apart by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, show seasonal changes in the planet’s reflectivity. The left image shows the planet seven years after its northern spring equinox when the Sun was shining just above its equator. The second photo, taken six years before the planet’s summer solstice, portrays a bright and large northern polar cap. Credit: NASA, ESA, STScI, A. Simon (NASA-GSFC), M. H. Wong (UC Berkeley), J. DePasquale (STScI)

The researchers found that Uranus releases about 15% more energy than it receives from the Sun, a figure that is similar to another recent estimate from a separate study funded in part by NASA that was published July 14 in Geophysical Research Letters. These studies suggest Uranus it has its own heat, though still far less than its neighbor Neptune, which emits more than twice the energy it receives.

“Now we have to understand what that remnant amount of heat at Uranus means, as well as get better measurements of it,” Simon said.

Unraveling Uranus’ past is useful not only for mapping the timeline of when solar system planets formed and migrated to their current orbits, but it also helps scientists better understand many of the planets discovered outside the solar system, called exoplanets, a majority of which are the same size as Uranus.

By Emma Friedman
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

Explore More

3 min read Hubble Helps Determine Uranus’ Rotation Rate with Unprecedented Precision

Article


3 months ago

5 min read Hubble Monitors Changing Weather and Seasons at Jupiter and Uranus

Article


2 years ago

8 min read Why Uranus and Neptune Are Different Colors

Neptune and Uranus have much in common yet their appearances are notably different. Astronomers now…



Article


3 years ago

Share

Details

Last Updated

Jul 17, 2025

Editor Lonnie Shekhtman Contact Lonnie Shekhtman lonnie.shekhtman@nasa.gov Location NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Related Terms
Categories: NASA

NASA’s X-59 Quiet Supersonic Aircraft Begins Taxi Tests

NASA - Breaking News - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:17pm

2 min read

Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

NASA/Jacob Shaw

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft has officially begun taxi tests, marking the first time this one-of-a-kind experimental aircraft has moved under its own power.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson and the X-59 team, made up of NASA and contractor Lockheed Martin personnel, completed the aircraft’s first low-speed taxi test at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025.

The taxiing represents the X-59’s last series of ground tests before first flight. Over the coming weeks, the aircraft will gradually increase its speed, leading up to a high-speed taxi test that will take the aircraft just short of the point where it would take off.

During the low-speed tests, engineers and flight crews monitored how the X-59 handled as it moved across the runway, working to validate critical systems like steering and braking. These checks help ensure the aircraft’s stability and control across a range of conditions, giving pilots and engineers confidence that all systems are functioning as expected.

The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which aims to demonstrate quiet supersonic flight by reducing the loud sonic boom to a quieter “thump.” Data gathered from the X-59 will be shared with U.S. and international regulators to inform the establishment of new, data-driven acceptable noise thresholds related to supersonic commercial flight over land.

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft taxis across the runway during a low-speed taxi test at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025. The test marks the start of taxi tests and the last series of ground tests before first flight.NASA/Carla Thomas NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft moves under its own power for the first time at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025. Guided by the aircraft’s crew chief, the event marks the beginning of taxi tests – a key milestone and the final series of ground tests before first flight.NASA/Carla Thomas Share Details Last Updated Jul 17, 2025 Related Terms Explore More 3 min read NASA Glenn Announces 2025 Drop Tower Challenge Winners  Article 2 days ago 5 min read NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 Mission Gears Up for Space Station Research Article 2 days ago 2 min read X-59 Model Tested in Japanese Supersonic Wind Tunnel Article 7 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Aeronautics

Quesst

Quesst is NASA's mission to demonstrate how the X-59 can fly supersonic without generating loud sonic booms and then survey…

Integrated Aviation Systems Program

Categories: NASA

NASA’s X-59 Quiet Supersonic Aircraft Begins Taxi Tests

NASA News - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:17pm

2 min read

Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

NASA/Jacob Shaw

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft has officially begun taxi tests, marking the first time this one-of-a-kind experimental aircraft has moved under its own power.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson and the X-59 team, made up of NASA and contractor Lockheed Martin personnel, completed the aircraft’s first low-speed taxi test at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025.

The taxiing represents the X-59’s last series of ground tests before first flight. Over the coming weeks, the aircraft will gradually increase its speed, leading up to a high-speed taxi test that will take the aircraft just short of the point where it would take off.

During the low-speed tests, engineers and flight crews monitored how the X-59 handled as it moved across the runway, working to validate critical systems like steering and braking. These checks help ensure the aircraft’s stability and control across a range of conditions, giving pilots and engineers confidence that all systems are functioning as expected.

The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which aims to demonstrate quiet supersonic flight by reducing the loud sonic boom to a quieter “thump.” Data gathered from the X-59 will be shared with U.S. and international regulators to inform the establishment of new, data-driven acceptable noise thresholds related to supersonic commercial flight over land.

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft taxis across the runway during a low-speed taxi test at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025. The test marks the start of taxi tests and the last series of ground tests before first flight.NASA/Carla Thomas NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft moves under its own power for the first time at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025. Guided by the aircraft’s crew chief, the event marks the beginning of taxi tests – a key milestone and the final series of ground tests before first flight.NASA/Carla Thomas Share Details Last Updated Jul 17, 2025 Related Terms Explore More 3 min read NASA Glenn Announces 2025 Drop Tower Challenge Winners  Article 1 day ago 5 min read NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 Mission Gears Up for Space Station Research Article 2 days ago 2 min read X-59 Model Tested in Japanese Supersonic Wind Tunnel Article 6 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Aeronautics

Quesst

Quesst is NASA's mission to demonstrate how the X-59 can fly supersonic without generating loud sonic booms and then survey…

Integrated Aviation Systems Program

Categories: NASA

Billions of phones can detect and warn about nearby earthquakes

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:00pm
Google’s Android Earthquake Alerts program is a globe-spanning earthquake early-warning system that uses billions of phone sensors to detect seismic shaking and alert those at risk
Categories: Astronomy

Billions of phones can detect and warn about nearby earthquakes

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:00pm
Google’s Android Earthquake Alerts program is a globe-spanning earthquake early-warning system that uses billions of phone sensors to detect seismic shaking and alert those at risk
Categories: Astronomy

Genetically tailored microbes could tweak our microbiomes

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:00pm
Researchers have genetically engineered gut microbes to absorb compounds that contribute to kidney stones – and to thrive in the competitive gut microbiome
Categories: Astronomy

Genetically tailored microbes could tweak our microbiomes

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:00pm
Researchers have genetically engineered gut microbes to absorb compounds that contribute to kidney stones – and to thrive in the competitive gut microbiome
Categories: Astronomy

Europe working to launch 'Invictus' hypersonic space plane by 2031 (video)

Space.com - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 3:00pm
The European Space Agency is funding the development of a hypersonic space plane pathfinder, which will start flying by 2031, if all goes according to plan.
Categories: Astronomy

NASA to Launch SNIFS, Sun’s Next Trailblazing Spectator

NASA - Breaking News - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 2:09pm

4 min read

NASA to Launch SNIFS, Sun’s Next Trailblazing Spectator

July will see the launch of the groundbreaking Solar EruptioN Integral Field Spectrograph mission, or SNIFS. Delivered to space via a Black Brant IX sounding rocket, SNIFS will explore the energy and dynamics of the chromosphere, one of the most complex regions of the Sun’s atmosphere. The SNIFS mission’s launch window at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico opens on Friday, July 18. 

The chromosphere is located between the Sun’s visible surface, or photosphere, and its outer layer, the corona. The different layers of the Sun’s atmosphere have been researched at length, but many questions persist about the chromosphere. “There’s still a lot of unknowns,” said Phillip Chamberlin, a research scientist at the University of Colorado Boulder and principal investigator for the SNIFS mission.  

The reddish chromosphere is visible on the Sun’s right edge in this view of the Aug. 21, 2017, total solar eclipse from Madras, Oregon.Credit: NASA/Nat Gopalswamy

The chromosphere lies just below the corona, where powerful solar flares and massive coronal mass ejections are observed. These solar eruptions are the main drivers of space weather, the hazardous conditions in near-Earth space that threaten satellites and endanger astronauts. The SNIFS mission aims to learn more about how energy is converted and moves through the chromosphere, where it can ultimately power these massive explosions.  

“To make sure the Earth is safe from space weather, we really would like to be able to model things,” said Vicki Herde, a doctoral graduate of CU Boulder who worked with Chamberlin to develop SNIFS.  

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

This footage from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the Sun in the 304-angstrom band of extreme ultraviolet light, which primarily reveals light from the chromosphere. This video, captured on Feb. 22, 2024, shows a solar flare — as seen in the bright flash on the upper left.Credit: NASA/SDO

The SNIFS mission is the first ever solar ultraviolet integral field spectrograph, an advanced technology combining an imager and a spectrograph. Imagers capture photos and videos, which are good for seeing the combined light from a large field of view all at once. Spectrographs dissect light into its various wavelengths, revealing which elements are present in the light source, their temperature, and how they’re moving — but only from a single location at a time. 

The SNIFS mission combines these two technologies into one instrument.  

“It’s the best of both worlds,” said Chamberlin. “You’re pushing the limit of what technology allows us to do.” 

By focusing on specific wavelengths, known as spectral lines, the SNIFS mission will help scientists to learn about the chromosphere. These wavelengths include a spectral line of hydrogen that is the brightest line in the Sun’s ultraviolet (UV) spectrum, and two spectral lines from the elements silicon and oxygen. Together, data from these spectral lines will help reveal how the chromosphere connects with upper atmosphere by tracing how solar material and energy move through it. 

The SNIFS mission will be carried into space by a sounding rocket. These rockets are effective tools for launching and carrying space experiments and offer a valuable opportunity for hands-on experience, particularly for students and early-career researchers.

(From left to right) Vicki Herde, Joseph Wallace, and Gabi Gonzalez, who worked on the SNIFS mission, stand with the sounding rocket containing the rocket payload at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.Credit: courtesy of Phillip Chamberlin

“You can really try some wild things,” Herde said. “It gives the opportunity to allow students to touch the hardware.” 

Chamberlin emphasized how beneficial these types of missions can be for science and engineering students like Herde, or the next generation of space scientists, who “come with a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of new ideas, new techniques,” he said. 

The entirety of the SNIFS mission will likely last up to 15 minutes. After launch, the sounding rocket is expected to take 90 seconds to make it to space and point toward the Sun, seven to eight minutes to perform the experiment on the chromosphere, and three to five minutes to return to Earth’s surface.  

A previous sounding rocket launch from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. This mission carried a copy of the Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE).
Credit: NASA/University of Colorado Boulder, Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics/James Mason

The rocket will drift around 70 to 80 miles (112 to 128 kilometers) from the launchpad before its return, so mission contributors must ensure it will have a safe place to land. White Sands, a largely empty desert, is ideal. 

Herde, who spent four years working on the rocket, expressed her immense excitement for the launch. “This has been my baby.” 

By Harper Lawson
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

Share Details Last Updated Jul 17, 2025 Related Terms Explore More 5 min read NASA, Oxford Discover Warmer Uranus Than Once Thought Article 43 minutes ago 6 min read NASA’s TRACERS Studies Explosive Process in Earth’s Magnetic Shield Article 1 day ago 3 min read NASA Citizen Science and Your Career: Stories of Exoplanet Watch Volunteers

Doing NASA Science brings many rewards. But can taking part in NASA citizen science help…

Article 1 day ago
Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

Missions

Humans in Space

Climate Change

Solar System

Categories: NASA

NASA to Launch SNIFS, Sun’s Next Trailblazing Spectator

NASA News - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 2:09pm

4 min read

NASA to Launch SNIFS, Sun’s Next Trailblazing Spectator

July will see the launch of the groundbreaking Solar EruptioN Integral Field Spectrograph mission, or SNIFS. Delivered to space via a Black Brant IX sounding rocket, SNIFS will explore the energy and dynamics of the chromosphere, one of the most complex regions of the Sun’s atmosphere. The SNIFS mission’s launch window at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico opens on Friday, July 18. 

The chromosphere is located between the Sun’s visible surface, or photosphere, and its outer layer, the corona. The different layers of the Sun’s atmosphere have been researched at length, but many questions persist about the chromosphere. “There’s still a lot of unknowns,” said Phillip Chamberlin, a research scientist at the University of Colorado Boulder and principal investigator for the SNIFS mission.  

The reddish chromosphere is visible on the Sun’s right edge in this view of the Aug. 21, 2017, total solar eclipse from Madras, Oregon.Credit: NASA/Nat Gopalswamy

The chromosphere lies just below the corona, where powerful solar flares and massive coronal mass ejections are observed. These solar eruptions are the main drivers of space weather, the hazardous conditions in near-Earth space that threaten satellites and endanger astronauts. The SNIFS mission aims to learn more about how energy is converted and moves through the chromosphere, where it can ultimately power these massive explosions.  

“To make sure the Earth is safe from space weather, we really would like to be able to model things,” said Vicki Herde, a doctoral graduate of CU Boulder who worked with Chamberlin to develop SNIFS.  

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

This footage from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the Sun in the 304-angstrom band of extreme ultraviolet light, which primarily reveals light from the chromosphere. This video, captured on Feb. 22, 2024, shows a solar flare — as seen in the bright flash on the upper left.Credit: NASA/SDO

The SNIFS mission is the first ever solar ultraviolet integral field spectrograph, an advanced technology combining an imager and a spectrograph. Imagers capture photos and videos, which are good for seeing the combined light from a large field of view all at once. Spectrographs dissect light into its various wavelengths, revealing which elements are present in the light source, their temperature, and how they’re moving — but only from a single location at a time. 

The SNIFS mission combines these two technologies into one instrument.  

“It’s the best of both worlds,” said Chamberlin. “You’re pushing the limit of what technology allows us to do.” 

By focusing on specific wavelengths, known as spectral lines, the SNIFS mission will help scientists to learn about the chromosphere. These wavelengths include a spectral line of hydrogen that is the brightest line in the Sun’s ultraviolet (UV) spectrum, and two spectral lines from the elements silicon and oxygen. Together, data from these spectral lines will help reveal how the chromosphere connects with upper atmosphere by tracing how solar material and energy move through it. 

The SNIFS mission will be carried into space by a sounding rocket. These rockets are effective tools for launching and carrying space experiments and offer a valuable opportunity for hands-on experience, particularly for students and early-career researchers.

(From left to right) Vicki Herde, Joseph Wallace, and Gabi Gonzalez, who worked on the SNIFS mission, stand with the sounding rocket containing the rocket payload at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.Credit: courtesy of Phillip Chamberlin

“You can really try some wild things,” Herde said. “It gives the opportunity to allow students to touch the hardware.” 

Chamberlin emphasized how beneficial these types of missions can be for science and engineering students like Herde, or the next generation of space scientists, who “come with a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of new ideas, new techniques,” he said. 

The entirety of the SNIFS mission will likely last up to 15 minutes. After launch, the sounding rocket is expected to take 90 seconds to make it to space and point toward the Sun, seven to eight minutes to perform the experiment on the chromosphere, and three to five minutes to return to Earth’s surface.  

A previous sounding rocket launch from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. This mission carried a copy of the Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE).
Credit: NASA/University of Colorado Boulder, Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics/James Mason

The rocket will drift around 70 to 80 miles (112 to 128 kilometers) from the launchpad before its return, so mission contributors must ensure it will have a safe place to land. White Sands, a largely empty desert, is ideal. 

Herde, who spent four years working on the rocket, expressed her immense excitement for the launch. “This has been my baby.” 

By Harper Lawson
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

Share Details Last Updated Jul 17, 2025 Related Terms Explore More 5 min read NASA, Oxford Discover Warmer Uranus Than Once Thought Article 43 minutes ago 6 min read NASA’s TRACERS Studies Explosive Process in Earth’s Magnetic Shield Article 1 day ago 3 min read NASA Citizen Science and Your Career: Stories of Exoplanet Watch Volunteers

Doing NASA Science brings many rewards. But can taking part in NASA citizen science help…

Article 1 day ago
Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

Missions

Humans in Space

Climate Change

Solar System

Categories: NASA

A Rare Object Found Deep in the Kuiper Belt

Universe Today - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 2:02pm

Astronomers using the Subaru Telescope have discovered a new object in the Kuiper Belt, beyond the orbit of Pluto. Designated 2023 KQ14, it's categorized as a "sednoid," with an extremely eccentric orbit - only the 4th ever discovered. Its orbit is much different from other sednoids, which challenges the hypothesis that Planet Nine could be aligning their orbits. It was found at 72 AU, but its path takes it all the way out to 438 AU, taking almost 4,000 years to complete one orbit.

Categories: Astronomy

Watch the Moon Occult the Pleiades for North America on the Morning of July 20th

Universe Today - Thu, 07/17/2025 - 2:02pm

There’s a good reason for sky watchers to set their alarms this coming Sunday morning. If skies are clear, viewers across most of North America will have a rare chance to see the waning crescent Moon occult (pass in front of) the Pleiades open star cluster.

Categories: Astronomy