"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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How To Use Fusion To Get To Proxima Centauri's Potentially Habitable Exoplanet

Universe Today - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:44pm

Proxima Centauri b is the closest known exoplanet that could be in the habitable zone of its star. Therefore, it has garnered a lot of attention, including several missions designed to visit it and send back information. Unfortunately, due to technological constraints and the gigantic distances involved, most of those missions only weigh a few grams and require massive solar scales or pushing lasers to get anywhere near their target. But why let modern technological levels limit your imagination when there are so many other options, if still theoretical, options to send a larger mission to our nearest potentially habitable neighbor? That was the thought behind the Master’s Thesis of Amelie Lutz at Virginia Tech - she looked at the possibility of using fusion propulsion systems to send a few hundred kilogram probe to the system, and potentially even orbit it.

Categories: Astronomy

Reviving SETI with High-Energy Astronomy

Universe Today - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:44pm

What new methods can be developed in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI)? This is what a recent white paper submitted to the 2025 NASA Decadal Astrobiology Research and Exploration Strategy (DARES) Request for Information (RFI) hopes to address as a pair of researchers from the Breakthrough Listen project and Michigan State University discussed how high-energy astronomy could be used for identifying radio signals from an extraterrestrial technological civilization, also called technosignatures. This study has the potential to help SETI and other organizations develop novel techniques for finding intelligent life beyond Earth.

Categories: Astronomy

Webb Refines the Bullet Cluster's Mass

Universe Today - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:44pm

One of the most iconic cosmic scenes in the Universe lies nearly 3.8 billion light-years away from us in the direction of the constellation Carina. This is where two massive clusters of galaxies have collided. The resulting combined galaxies and other material is now called the Bullet Cluster, after one of the two members that interacted over several billion years. It's one of the hottest-known galaxy clusters, thanks to clouds of gas that were heated by shockwaves during the event. Astronomers have observed this scene with several different telescopes in multiple wavelengths of light, including X-ray and infrared. Those observations and others show that the dark matter makes up the majority of the cluster's mass. Its gravitational effect distorts light from more distant objects and makes it an ideal gravitational lens.

Categories: Astronomy

Will YR4 Hit the Moon? We Won't Know Until 2028

Universe Today - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:44pm

Earlier this year, asteroid 2024 YR4 was discovered and found to have a trajectory through the Earth/Moon system in 2032. The world's telescopes focused on the potential threat and downgraded the chance to negligible for the Earth...but it still has a non-zero chance of hitting the Moon. As the asteroid became too dim to continue observing, its Moon impact chance stood at 4%. When will we update this number? Not until it does another close flyby in 2028.

Categories: Astronomy

Anatomy of a Space Shuttle

NASA Image of the Day - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:43pm
This illustration shows the parts of a space shuttle orbiter. About the same size and weight as a DC-9 aircraft, the orbiter contains the pressurized crew compartment (which can normally carry up to seven crew members), the cargo bay, and the three main engines mounted on its aft end.
Categories: Astronomy, NASA

Anatomy of a Space Shuttle

NASA - Breaking News - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:36pm
This illustration shows the parts of a space shuttle orbiter. About the same size and weight as a DC-9 aircraft, the orbiter contains the pressurized crew compartment (which can normally carry up to seven crew members), the cargo bay, and the three main engines mounted on its aft end.NASA

This 2001 illustration labels important parts of a space shuttle orbiter. The orbiter was the heart and brains of the space shuttle and served as the crew transport vehicle that carried astronauts to and from space. The space shuttle was comprised of the orbiter, the main engines, the external tank, and the solid rocket boosters. The space shuttle was the world’s first reusable spacecraft and the first spacecraft in history that could carry large satellites both to and from orbit.

Image credit: NASA

Categories: NASA

Anatomy of a Space Shuttle

NASA News - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:36pm
This illustration shows the parts of a space shuttle orbiter. About the same size and weight as a DC-9 aircraft, the orbiter contains the pressurized crew compartment (which can normally carry up to seven crew members), the cargo bay, and the three main engines mounted on its aft end.NASA

This 2001 illustration labels important parts of a space shuttle orbiter. The orbiter was the heart and brains of the space shuttle and served as the crew transport vehicle that carried astronauts to and from space. The space shuttle was comprised of the orbiter, the main engines, the external tank, and the solid rocket boosters. The space shuttle was the world’s first reusable spacecraft and the first spacecraft in history that could carry large satellites both to and from orbit.

Image credit: NASA

Categories: NASA

“Hubble at 35 Years” Symposium Explores Insights from Hubble’s Past

NASA - Breaking News - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:16pm

As Hubble marks three and a half decades of scientific breakthroughs and technical resilience, the “Hubble at 35 Years” symposium offers a platform to reflect on the mission’s historical, operational, and scientific legacy. Hubble’s trajectory—from early challenges to becoming a symbol of American scientific ingenuity—presents valuable lessons in innovation, collaboration, and crisis response. Bringing together scientists, engineers, and historians at NASA Headquarters ensures that this legacy informs current and future mission planning, including operations for the James Webb Space Telescope, Roman Space Telescope, and other next-generation observatories. The symposium not only honors Hubble’s transformative contributions but also reinforces NASA’s commitment to learning from the past to shape a more effective and ambitious future for space science.

Hubble at 35 Years

Lessons Learned in Scientific Discovery and NASA Flagship Mission Operations

October 16–17, 2025
James Webb Auditorium, NASA HQ, Washington, D.C.

The giant Hubble Space Telescope (HST) can be seen as it is suspended in space by Discovery’s Remote Manipulator System (RMS) following the deployment of part of its solar panels and antennae on April 25, 1990.NASA

The story of the Hubble Space Telescope confirms its place as the most transformative and significant astronomical observatory in history. Once called “the eighth wonder of the world” by a former NASA administrator, Hubble’s development since its genesis in the early 1970s and its launch, repair, and ultimate impact since 1990 provide ample opportunity to apply insights from its legacy. Scientists and engineers associated with groundbreaking discoveries have always operated within contexts shaped by forces including the government, private industry, the military, and the public at large. The purpose of this symposium is to explore the insights from Hubble’s past and draw connections that can inform the development of mission work today and for the future.

Contact the Organizer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

Hubble’s 35th Anniversary

Universe

Humans In Space

NASA History

Categories: NASA

“Hubble at 35 Years” Symposium Explores Insights from Hubble’s Past

NASA News - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:16pm

As Hubble marks three and a half decades of scientific breakthroughs and technical resilience, the “Hubble at 35 Years” symposium offers a platform to reflect on the mission’s historical, operational, and scientific legacy. Hubble’s trajectory—from early challenges to becoming a symbol of American scientific ingenuity—presents valuable lessons in innovation, collaboration, and crisis response. Bringing together scientists, engineers, and historians at NASA Headquarters ensures that this legacy informs current and future mission planning, including operations for the James Webb Space Telescope, Roman Space Telescope, and other next-generation observatories. The symposium not only honors Hubble’s transformative contributions but also reinforces NASA’s commitment to learning from the past to shape a more effective and ambitious future for space science.

Hubble at 35 Years

Lessons Learned in Scientific Discovery and NASA Flagship Mission Operations

October 16–17, 2025
James Webb Auditorium, NASA HQ, Washington, D.C.

The giant Hubble Space Telescope (HST) can be seen as it is suspended in space by Discovery’s Remote Manipulator System (RMS) following the deployment of part of its solar panels and antennae on April 25, 1990.NASA

The story of the Hubble Space Telescope confirms its place as the most transformative and significant astronomical observatory in history. Once called “the eighth wonder of the world” by a former NASA administrator, Hubble’s development since its genesis in the early 1970s and its launch, repair, and ultimate impact since 1990 provide ample opportunity to apply insights from its legacy. Scientists and engineers associated with groundbreaking discoveries have always operated within contexts shaped by forces including the government, private industry, the military, and the public at large. The purpose of this symposium is to explore the insights from Hubble’s past and draw connections that can inform the development of mission work today and for the future.

Contact the Organizer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

Hubble’s 35th Anniversary

Universe

Humans In Space

NASA History

Categories: NASA

The cosmos is vast, so how do we measure it?

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
The awe-inspiring distances of the cosmos are hard to visualise, so how can we be certain we are measuring them correctly? Chanda Prescod-Weinstein explains
Categories: Astronomy

Is this the raciest conference invite ever?

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
Feedback has been invited to an event next year in Shaoxing, China. It's an academic conference promising "revolutionary thinkers who are redefining human intimacy through cutting-edge robotics and AI"
Categories: Astronomy

Plans to genetically screen newborns for rare diseases are problematic

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
The UK's health secretary has announced a 10-year plan to check newborns for a huge range of rare conditions. There are major medical and ethical issues with this, argues neurologist Suzanne O'Sullivan
Categories: Astronomy

Provocative new book says we must persuade people to have more babies

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
The population is set to plummet and we don't know how to stop it, warn Dean Spears and Michael Geruso in their new book, After the Spike
Categories: Astronomy

The cosmos is vast, so how do we measure it?

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
The awe-inspiring distances of the cosmos are hard to visualise, so how can we be certain we are measuring them correctly? Chanda Prescod-Weinstein explains
Categories: Astronomy

Is this the raciest conference invite ever?

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
Feedback has been invited to an event next year in Shaoxing, China. It's an academic conference promising "revolutionary thinkers who are redefining human intimacy through cutting-edge robotics and AI"
Categories: Astronomy

Plans to genetically screen newborns for rare diseases are problematic

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
The UK's health secretary has announced a 10-year plan to check newborns for a huge range of rare conditions. There are major medical and ethical issues with this, argues neurologist Suzanne O'Sullivan
Categories: Astronomy

Provocative new book says we must persuade people to have more babies

New Scientist Space - Space Headlines - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
The population is set to plummet and we don't know how to stop it, warn Dean Spears and Michael Geruso in their new book, After the Spike
Categories: Astronomy

Will we ever feel comfortable with AIs taking on important tasks?

New Scientist Space - Cosmology - Wed, 07/09/2025 - 2:00pm
An example from the history of mathematics shows how views on the trustworthiness of artificial intelligence can quickly start to change
Categories: Astronomy