New tool will help black-hole hunters re-examine old data
Astronomers have a new way of detecting active black holes and of measuring how much matter they are sucking in. Scientists say that the new technique can use existing data from telescopes to…
Look to the skies: rare chance to see candidate for Star of Bethlehem?
Right on the solstice, a ‘great conjunction’ of Jupiter and Saturn will occur when the two planets converge shortly after sunset Australia time tonight, Monday 21 December. They will appear almost as one…
Teaching humans to hibernate
The idea of making astronauts hibernate on long space missions often appears in science fiction, but now it is one step closer to reality. Scientists from the University of Tsukuba in Japan have…
Martian colonists could live in ancient volcanic lava tunnels
Scientists have discovered the safest place to build a permanent base on Mars: lava tunnels created by volcanoes that are now extinct. Unlike Earth, Mars does not have a magnetic field that protects…
A one-way ticket to Keplar-20b
Could we ever get home from a super-Earth? It’s hard enough for huge rockets to provide the energy required to launch into orbit from Earth. But what if the field of gravity was…
Compressed air: sonic shock waves collide
When a plane flies faster than the speed of sound, the pressure waves in front don’t have time to flow around the aircraft and the air becomes compressed, eventually producing a shock wave,…
Moon landing celebrated by new ISS arrivals
ESA, NAS and Russion astronauts were launched to the International Space Station from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Saturday, with the ESA’s Luca Parmitano alongside NASA astronaut Drew Morgan and Russian Roscosmos…
2014: a space odyssey
Brad Pitt is, Michael Schumacher is, and Stephen Hawking is too. They are waiting. They are excited. Some 580 well-known and unknown people have lined up for the adventure of their lives. They…
Super Telescopes
SOLVING THE MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE In the most desolate regions of the globe, astronomers and engineers are building a new generation of super telescopes. The high-tech structures will be spread across several…
DIY Space Program
Sandy Antunes did not react to his threatening midlife crisis by buying a motorcycle or climbing mountains. Instead, the 46-year-old American built his own small, customised satellite. Picosatellites like his are available as…
