Tiny magnetic episodes may have large consequences on the Sun – with video
ESA’s Solar Orbiter may have taken another step towards solving the eighty-year-old mystery of why the Sun’s outer atmosphere is so hot. On 3 March 2022, just a few months into Solar Orbiter’s nominal mission, the spacecraft’s Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) returned data showing for the first time that a magnetic phenomenon called reconnection was Read More
SpaceX is poised for Historic Starship Test Flight #01
….on Monday April 17th 2023 7:00AM Central Time! Starship is a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, help humanity return to the Moon, and travel to Mars and beyond. With a test such as this, success is measured by how much we can learn, which will inform Read More
Juice sends first ‘selfies’ from space
Science & Exploration ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) has taken its first monitoring camera images showing part of the spacecraft with Earth as a stunning backdrop. The mission launched on an Ariane 5 from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou on 14 April 14:14 CEST and the images were captured in the hours afterwards. Juice leaves Read More
Juice gets wings
This pair of images captures the rotation of the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer’s solar arrays during their deployment after launch on 14 April. The images were taken by Juice monitoring camera 1 (JMC1), which is located on the front of the spacecraft and looks diagonally up into a field of view that will eventually see deployed antennas, Read More
Solar Eclipse Partner Locations for 2023 and 2024
For a few minutes on April 8, 2024, millions of skywatchers across the United States will have the opportunity to see a total solar eclipse. It will be the last time a total solar eclipse crosses the U.S. for more than 20 years. The following locations have been selected as primary partner locations for Read More
ESA’s Juice lifts off on quest to discover secrets of Jupiter’s icy moons
ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana at 14:14 CEST on 14 April. The successful launch marks the beginning of an ambitious voyage to uncover the secrets of the ocean worlds around giant planet Jupiter. Following launch and separation from the rocket, ESA’s Read More
Juice liftoff – with video
ESA’s latest interplanetary mission, Juice, lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, at 14:14 CEST on 14 April 2023 to begin its eight-year journey to Jupiter, where it will study in detail the gas giant planet’s three large ocean-bearing moons: Ganymede, Callisto and Europa. Juice – JUpiter ICy moons Explorer – is humankind’s next bold Read More
U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds F-16 Team Arrives at Patrick Space Force Base Florida April 13th 2023!
The United States Air Force Thunderbirds have arrived at Patrick Space Force Base Florida for this weekends Air Show at Cocoa Beach. The Thunderbirds perform for people all around the world to display the pride, precision and professionalism the U.S. Air Force represents. Through air shows and flyovers, they aim to excite and inspire. In Read More
Ariane 5 flight VA260, Juice: fully integrated and ready for rollout
Ariane 5 for flight VA260 carrying ESA's Juice mission is seen here fully integrated and ready for rollout for its planned 13 April 2023 launch from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. Juice – JUpiter ICy Moons Explorer – is humankind’s next bold mission to the outer Solar System. After an eight-year journey to Jupiter, it will make detailed Read More
Juice: running on solar power in the dark
Welcome to Jupiter space: to one side looms the vast cloudy face of the largest planet in our Solar System; in the other appears a shrunken Sun, like a spotlight in the sky, with just 3% of the illumination from Earth orbit arriving here. This basic fact presented a major challenge to those planning ESA’s Read More