The JUICE mission, headed to Jupiter, has a surprising chance to study a rare comet. This mission aims to explore Jupiter's icy moons, Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa, which may have hidden oceans and potential for life. Ganymede, the largest moon, is unique with its own magnetic field, and JUICE will be the first spacecraft to orbit it. JUICE is on a slow journey to...
China just sent a new crew to its space station, Tiangong. This mission, called Shenzhou-21, is pretty special. It's carrying three astronauts, or taikonauts as China calls them, and something even more unusual: four live mice. This is the first time China has sent mammals to space. The crew includes Zhang Lu, who's been to space before, and two newbies, Wu Fei and ...
A mysterious traveler from beyond our solar system, known as 3I/ATLAS, has just made its closest approach to the sun. This comet, which originated far away, is now on a path that will take it out of our cosmic neighborhood, but not before giving astronomers a few more months to study it. The comet, which is currently behind the sun from our perspective, will be visi...
A big moon mission is taking longer than expected. Astrobotic's Griffin-1 lander, which was supposed to take off by the end of 2025, is now aiming for mid-2026. This isn't a small delay—it's a significant shift in plans. The lander is carrying some cool stuff, like a rover called FLIP from Venturi Astrolab and a tiny rover named CubeRover-1. But before it can go to ...
Portia Elan is set to release her first novel, "Homebound, " next year. This book is a science fiction story that takes place in the 1980s. The main character, Becks, is a teenager who is trying to finish a game her uncle left behind. The game Becks is working on has a big impact. It connects the lives of four other people. These people include a scientist, a robot,...
A cargo ship finally reached the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, a day behind schedule. The Cygnus XL, built by Northrop Grumman, brought over 5 tons of supplies and experiments to the seven astronauts living in space. Astronaut Jonny Kim used the station's robotic arm to grab the Cygnus at 7:24 am EDT. After that, the arm moved the spacecraft to a doc...
A cargo ship, meant to deliver supplies to the International Space Station (ISS), faced an unexpected hurdle. The ship, launched by Northrop Grumman, encountered engine issues shortly after takeoff. This problem stopped the ship from reaching its destination. The plan was for the ship to arrive at the ISS on Wednesday. It was carrying over 11, 000 pounds of cargo. T...
A group of astronauts from Axiom Space's fourth mission are having a busy time on the International Space Station (ISS). They've been there since late June, working on over 60 science experiments and sharing their experiences with people back on Earth. The crew includes Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut who's spent more time in space than any other American. She...
Weather isn't just an Earth thing. Other planets have it too, and it's not always as extreme as we think. Sure, there are places with acid rain and methane snow, but many planets have weather that's surprisingly similar to ours. Take Mars, for example. It's got winds, clouds, and even seasons. Its tilt is close to Earth's, so it gets seasons too. But Mars is famous ...
Jared Isaacman, a prominent figure in the space industry, recently shared his thoughts on the future of space exploration. He received the National Space Society’s Wernher von Braun Award for his leadership in the Polaris Dawn mission. This mission, set for September 2024, is a private astronaut mission that Isaacman commands. Isaacman's nomination to become NASA ad...