"Professor Goddard does not know the relation between action and reaction and the need to have something better than a vacuum against which to react. He seems to lack the basic knowledge ladled out daily in high schools."
--1921 New York Times editorial about Robert Goddard's revolutionary rocket work.

"Correction: It is now definitely established that a rocket can function in a vacuum. The 'Times' regrets the error."
NY Times, July 1969.

— New York Times

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Perseverance Selfie with Ingenuity

APOD - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 4:00pm

On the Mars rover's mission Sol 46 or Earth date April 6, 2021,


Categories: Astronomy, NASA

How to see Mars visit a bright star and the moon this June

Space.com - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 4:00pm
During the latter part of June, Mars will put on a couple of eye-catching shows, teaming up first with a bright star and then, late this month, with the moon.
Categories: Astronomy

Surviving the Neptunian Desert

Universe Today - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:48pm

As astronomers found more and more exoplanets in recent years, they've discovered an unusual gap in the population. It's called the Neptunian Desert, a curious scarcity of Neptune-sized exoplanets orbiting close to their stars. Researchers just discovered an exoplanet in the Neptunian Desert around a Sun-like star. Can it help explain the Desert?

Categories: Astronomy

NASA's Top 5 Technical Challenges Countdown: #1: Survive the Lunar Night

Universe Today - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:48pm

Now I know this sounds like a low-budget knockoff of Five Nights at Freddy's, but it's the real deal

Categories: Astronomy

The Martian Atmosphere is Sputtering

Universe Today - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:48pm

The Earth's atmosphere is protected by a magnetosphere, but Mars lacks this protective shield and lost its atmosphere to space long ago through interactions with the solar wind. In a new paper, scientists report that they have directly observed this process of "atmospheric sputtering," watching how incoming ions from the solar wind directly cause neutral atmospheric particles to escape. They found the process is stronger than anticipated, especially in solar storms.

Categories: Astronomy

Earth’s mantle may have hidden plumes venting heat from its core

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:37pm
A ‘ghost plume’ identified deep in the mantle beneath Oman suggests there may be more heat flowing out of Earth’s core than previously thought
Categories: Astronomy

Earth’s mantle may have hidden plumes venting heat from its core

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:37pm
A ‘ghost plume’ identified deep in the mantle beneath Oman suggests there may be more heat flowing out of Earth’s core than previously thought
Categories: Astronomy

Mars settlement and more: Global space leaders will tackle big ideas next week at ISDC 2025

Space.com - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:12pm
Space visionaries, scientists, entrepreneurs and students from around the world are set to gather in Florida next week for this year's International Space Development Conference.
Categories: Astronomy

Giant atoms 'trapped' for record time at room temperature

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:00pm
Putting unusually large atoms in a box with cold copper sides helped researchers control them for an unprecedented 50 minutes at room-temperature, an improvement necessary for building more powerful quantum computers and simulators
Categories: Astronomy

Giant atoms 'trapped' for record time at room temperature

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 3:00pm
Putting unusually large atoms in a box with cold copper sides helped researchers control them for an unprecedented 50 minutes at room-temperature, an improvement necessary for building more powerful quantum computers and simulators
Categories: Astronomy

Could Iran Have Been Close to Making a Nuclear Weapon? Uranium Enrichment Explained

Scientific American.com - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 2:20pm

When Israeli aircraft recently struck a uranium-enrichment complex in the nation, Iran could have been days away from achieving “breakout,” the ability to quickly turn “yellowcake” uranium into bomb-grade fuel, with its new high-speed centrifuges

Categories: Astronomy

Perseverance rover may hold secrets to newly discovered Mars volcano

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 2:00pm
There appears to be a volcano near Jezero crater on Mars and the Perseverance rover might already have samples from it that we could use to precisely date the activity of another planet's volcano for the first time
Categories: Astronomy

Perseverance rover may hold secrets to newly discovered Mars volcano

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 2:00pm
There appears to be a volcano near Jezero crater on Mars and the Perseverance rover might already have samples from it that we could use to precisely date the activity of another planet's volcano for the first time
Categories: Astronomy

“Cosmic Dawn” Screening at Greenbelt Cinema

NASA Image of the Day - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 1:50pm
Attendees line up to enter the theater for a screening of the new NASA+ documentary “Cosmic Dawn: The Untold Story of the James Webb Space Telescope,” Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at the Greenbelt Cinema in Greenbelt, Maryland. Featuring never-before-seen footage, Cosmic Dawn offers an unprecedented glimpse into the assembly, testing, and launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.
Categories: Astronomy, NASA

“Cosmic Dawn” Screening at Greenbelt Cinema

NASA News - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 1:49pm
Attendees line up to enter the theater for a screening of the new NASA+ documentary “Cosmic Dawn: The Untold Story of the James Webb Space Telescope,” Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at the Greenbelt Cinema in Greenbelt, Maryland. Featuring never-before-seen footage, Cosmic Dawn offers an unprecedented glimpse into the assembly, testing, and launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.NASA/Joel Kowsky

Attendees line up to enter the theater for a screening of the new NASA+ documentary “Cosmic Dawn: The Untold Story of the James Webb Space Telescope,” Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at the Greenbelt Cinema in Greenbelt, Maryland. Following the screening, Jacob Pinter, host of NASA’s Curious Universe podcast, led a discussion with Sophia Roberts, a NASA video producer who documented the Webb project, and Paul Geithner, former deputy project manager for Webb.

Featuring never-before-seen footage, Cosmic Dawn offers an unprecedented glimpse into the assembly, testing, and launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.

Watch the documentary.

Image credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

Categories: NASA

“Cosmic Dawn” Screening at Greenbelt Cinema

NASA - Breaking News - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 1:49pm
Attendees line up to enter the theater for a screening of the new NASA+ documentary “Cosmic Dawn: The Untold Story of the James Webb Space Telescope,” Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at the Greenbelt Cinema in Greenbelt, Maryland. Featuring never-before-seen footage, Cosmic Dawn offers an unprecedented glimpse into the assembly, testing, and launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.NASA/Joel Kowsky

Attendees line up to enter the theater for a screening of the new NASA+ documentary “Cosmic Dawn: The Untold Story of the James Webb Space Telescope,” Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at the Greenbelt Cinema in Greenbelt, Maryland. Following the screening, Jacob Pinter, host of NASA’s Curious Universe podcast, led a discussion with Sophia Roberts, a NASA video producer who documented the Webb project, and Paul Geithner, former deputy project manager for Webb.

Featuring never-before-seen footage, Cosmic Dawn offers an unprecedented glimpse into the assembly, testing, and launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.

Watch the documentary.

Image credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

Categories: NASA

Microwaves seem to experience imaginary time – and now we know how

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 1:00pm
Almost a decade ago, researchers calculated that microwaves can seemingly spend an imaginary amount of time within a material – now an experiment reveals how the phenomenon is perfectly real
Categories: Astronomy

Microwaves seem to experience imaginary time – and now we know how

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 1:00pm
Almost a decade ago, researchers calculated that microwaves can seemingly spend an imaginary amount of time within a material – now an experiment reveals how the phenomenon is perfectly real
Categories: Astronomy

Superman battles Lex Luthor and holds a weird little green alien baby in the epic final trailer for James Gunn's 'Superman' (video)

Space.com - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 1:00pm
Director James Gunn goes for the gusto when his superhero sensation arrives on July 11 in theaters and IMAX
Categories: Astronomy

SpaceX adds 23 satellites to Starlink megaconstellation after launch from Florida

Space.com - Fri, 06/13/2025 - 12:15pm
Less than a day after its last batch reached low Earth orbit, SpaceX again added to its Starlink megaconstellation on Friday, June 13, 2025.
Categories: Astronomy