Space engineers have long considered lunar soil as locally available material for building outposts on the Moon, and now ESA researchers are considering it as a means to store energy to generate electricity during the 14-day night and protect equipment against freezing.
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When the Apollo 11 astronauts set foot on the Moon, one of their main tasks was to break out a special tool kit that they used for collecting samples of rock and soil for return to Earth. Now Comex is working to create an updated version to be used by the next generation of lunar explorers.
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Statistically it’s pretty much a given that alien life is out there, whether that’s Martian microbes or intelligent life beaming comms through the cosmos. Now, a new telescope array has joined Breakthrough Listen, scanning for flashes of laser light that alien civilizations might be giving off.
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Fifty years ago, two men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the surface of the Moon. That's a very simple sentence to write, but getting to grips with what is almost certainly one of the most momentous events in the whole of human history is far less easy. So what was Apollo 11?
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The Gateway deep-space station is still years away, but planners are zeroing in on the orbit it will travel in cis-lunar space. Called a Near-Rectilinear Halo Orbit, it promises both cheaper missions to the Moon and beyond, as well as regular timetables for visiting astronauts.
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NASA has stitched together images taken during the Apollo missions to provide a more expansive look through the eyes of the astronauts taking part.
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Red wine may have health benefits against cancer, obesity, aging, and even cavities. Now, a new study may add muscle loss to the list. In tests on rats, a Harvard team found that a red wine compound called resveratrol could help keep astronauts toned during trips in space or life on Mars.
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NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite was built to search for new planets, but astronomers at Ohio State found it could also observe supernovas created by exploding white dwarf stars. This means we might soon have a better idea about why they explode, and what they leave behind.
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A few months ago, the asteroid 2006 QV89 grabbed headlines thanks to a slim chance of striking Earth this September. But now the potentially-hazardous space rock has missed its appointment. ESA has confirmed that the asteroid hasn’t appeared in the sky yet, ruling out an impact any time soon.
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Modern Mars is a desolate husk of a planet, as far as life is concerned. But it’s not completely uninhabitable, since microbes could be hiding in the cracks of rocks and dirt. And now a new study has found a possible food source for these organisms – space dust.
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