Cometary Science with the James Webb Space Telescope

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), as the largest space-based astronomical observatory with near- and mid-infrared instrumentation, will elucidate many mysterious aspects of comets.

Mars mission expert believes space travel will be affordable one day

Dr Amitabha Ghosh, who has worked in multiple Mars missions of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) since the US launched the Mars Pathfinder spacecraft in 1996, believes that one day space travel will become "affordable".

NASA funds five space missions for possible launch in 2020 | The Verge

Five possible space missions have been selected by NASA to receive preliminary funding, ahead of a possible launch as early as 2020. Each of the projects, chosen as part of NASA

The future of space

In the new book Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier, Neil deGrasse Tyson says America is at a critical moment for future space exploration, as he

Space elevator by 2050 planned, to include space solar power

Obayashi Corp., headquartered in Tokyo, has unveiled a project to build a space elevator by the year 2050 that would transport passengers to a station 36,000

Space weather center to add world's first 'ensemble forecasting' capability

Leaner, greener flying machines for the year 2025 are on the drawing boards of three industry teams under contract to the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate

NASA's new ion engine ready for missions in space

(PhysOrg.com) -- A small robotic surveyor arrives to explore a near-Earth asteroid. Another robotic spacecraft is returning to Earth with a pristine comet surface sample. Meanwhile, a robotic explorer is approaching Uranus, carrying scientific instruments that will allow us to learn more about our solar system. What do all these mission concepts have in common?

Beam me up: could lasers launch rockets? After initial costs, beamed energy propulsion would be a cheaper, safer and more efficient way to launch payloads into space

Discovery News digs deep into our world's mysteries. Join us to explore current events and uncover the science behind the headlines. We Dig. You Discover.

A star is torn

A University of Sydney researcher was part of an international team of astronomers that has observed an incredibly rare event that occurs once every 10,000 years per galaxy.

Ninety-six star clusters discovered hidden behind dust of Milky Way

  • 4 Aug 2011

Astronomers have discovered 96 new open star clusters hidden by the dust in the Milky Way. These tiny and faint objects were invisible to previous surveys, but they could not escape the sensitive infrared detectors of the world

First opal-like crystals discovered in meteorite

Scientists have found opal-like crystals in the Tagish Lake meteorite, which fell to Earth in Canada in 2000. This is the first extraterrestrial discovery of these unusual crystals, which may have formed in the primordial cloud of dust that produced the sun and planets of our solar system 4.6 billion years ago.