News – Page 40 – Astronomy Now

Panel recommends planetary protection policy reassessment

20 October 2019 Astronomy Now

An independent review board recommends that NASA reassess its planetary protection protocols to reflect current technology and planned missions.

Orbiter spots InSight on Mars as heat probe resumes hammering

17 October 2019 Astronomy Now

After months of troubleshooting, engineers say the InSight Mars lander’s German temperature probe has resumed its hammering into the martian surface.

Hubble observes interstellar visitor

16 October 2019 Stephen Clark

The Hubble Space Telescope has returned an image of a comet that originated outside our Solar System, providing astronomers with their best view yet of an interstellar visitor.

Citizen scientists track down asteroids in Hubble photos

14 October 2019 Astronomy Now

Citizen scientists spot thousands of asteroid trails in archived photos from the Hubble Space Telescope, helping astronomers pin down orbits

Best view yet of flickering jets in black hole feeding frenzy

13 October 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers capture the most detailed view yet of the titanic flickers and millisecond flashes generated by material swirling around a black hole.

Curiosity closing in on Mars’ transition from wet to dry

9 October 2019 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is closing in on finding out when the martian environment transitioned from a habitable era to the inhospitable desert seen today.

Saturn now boasts Solar System’s most known moons: 82

7 October 2019 Astronomy Now

Planetary astronomer Scott Sheppard leads team in discovery of 20 new moons around Saturday, pushing the ringed planet’s total to a record 82.

Infant stars dine on a ‘cosmic pretzel’ of dusty debris

4 October 2019 Astronomy Now

Two young stars in a binary system weave an unusual tapestry as surrounding gas and dust are pulled into looping filaments and swirls.

NASA, DLR continue work to salvage martian “mole”

4 October 2019 Astronomy Now

NASA and the German Aerospace Center continue exhaustive efforts to help a stalled heat probe hammer its way below the martian surface.

Record rocket firing avoids mission-ending eclipse for Juno

2 October 2019 Astronomy Now

A record 10.5-hour thruster firing nudged the solar-powered Juno spacecraft’s orbit just enough to avoid a mission-ending eclipse.