News – Page 68 – Astronomy Now

30 July 2026

New Horizons catches sight of Kuiper Belt target ‘Ultima Thule’

29 August 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has finally caught sight of its post-Pluto target, a Kuiper Belt body nicknamed Ultima Thule. If all goes well, New Horizons will make a close flyby of the distant body on 1 January.

Surprisingly rapid magnetic field reversals pose risks to Earth

28 August 2018 Astronomy Now

About 100,000 years ago, Earth’s magnetic field reversed polarity in just two centuries or so, a surprisingly rapid reversal that, if it happened today, could cost trillions in damage to power and communications systems, researchers say.

Meteorite data indicate Jupiter underwent distinct growth phases

27 August 2018 Astronomy Now

Analysis of isotopes in meteorites shows Jupiter underwent distinct growth phases, rapidly accreting small particles to build a core and then slowing as it pulled in larger planetesimals that generated enough heat to slow gas accretion.

OSIRIS-REx captures its first images of asteroid Bennu

25 August 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has captured its first images of asteroid Bennu at a range of 2.2 million kilometres (4.1 million miles); the probe will slip into orbit around Bennu on New Year’s Eve to kick off a sample-return mission

An aurora by any other name? Not if it goes by STEVE

22 August 2018 Astronomy Now

Scientists studying an unusual atmospheric “skyglow” phenomenon known as STEVE events have determined they are not generated by the same processes responsible for more familiar auroral displays.

Ice deposits confirmed near Moon’s poles, confirming earlier indications

21 August 2018 Astronomy Now

Data from a NASA instrument aboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft has directly observed ‘definitive’ evidence of ice in shadowed craters at the Moon’s south polar region and with more sparsely distributed ice near the north pole.

Closing a loophole in Bell’s theorem with light from ancient quasars

21 August 2018 Astronomy Now

Using light from ancient quasars, researchers probing quantum entanglement have virtually closed one possible loophole in a key theorem of quantum physics, finding strong support for what Einstein called ‘spooky action at a distance.’

InSight lander now halfway to Mars, on track for November landing

20 August 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s InSight spacecraft has passed the halfway point to Mars and remains on track for a 26 November landing in the Elysium Planitia region where it will become the first probe to study the red planet’s deep interior.

Putting a young exoplanet on the scales for the first time

20 August 2018 Astronomy Now

Using data from ESA’s Gaia and Hipparcos satellites, astronomers have managed to deduce the mass of a giant exoplanet orbiting Beta Pictoris by studying subtle changes in the star’s motion over a quarter of a century.

Nothing special about ingredients making up our Solar System

19 August 2018 Astronomy Now

Analysis of more than two dozen relatively nearby solar systems shows the elements that went into their construction are broadly similar to what is found in Earth’s solar family, increasing confidence that Earth-like exoplanets may be common.