A solar-sailing mission is now marking three years of spaceflight, but is unlikely to celebrate a fourth anniversary. The Planetary Society's LightSail 2 is a crowdfunded solar sail that launched Ju… [+3161 chars]
A long-standing question in nuclear physics is whether chargeless nuclear systems can exist. Only neutron stars represent near-pure neutron systems, where neutrons are squeezed together by the gravit… [+6222 chars]
A professor of philosophy responds to David Isersons This, but Again. That were living in a computer simulationit sounds like a paranoid fantasy. But its a possibility that futurists, philosophers, … [+8113 chars]
Today’s Image of the Day from NASA Earth Observatory features the North Island of New Zealand. The photo was captured as the International Space Station (ISS) approached the southernmost extent of it… [+1376 chars]
Never-before-seen microbes living deep beneath the permafrost at one of the coldest and saltiest water springs on Earth could provide a blueprint for life on Mars. At Lost Hammer Spring, which lies … [+3859 chars]
Since 2012, NASA’s Curiosity rover has been exploring the Gale Crater for clues about Mars’ past and possible evidence that it once supported life. For the past year, this search has centered on the … [+4702 chars]
A massive comet -- nearly twice as large as the tallest mountain on the planet, Mount Everest -- is on its way towards Earth and the inner solar system, according to a report by BGR. Lev Savitskiy/P… [+1747 chars]
A recent study suggests a molecular similarity between the human brain and the octopus' neurological and cognitive complexity. The study demonstrates that the same "jumping genes" are active in the … [+4044 chars]
A venerable Red-Planet rover might be spotting signs of the Martian climate drying up in ancient times. The long-running NASA Curiosity mission, which will reach its 10th Earth-year anniversary on t… [+3102 chars]
Two opinion pieces (Slingo et al., and Hewitt et al.) and a supportive Nature Climate Change editorial were published this week, extolling the prospects for what they call “k-scale” climate modeling.… [+11183 chars]
When it comes to going out with style, nothing comes close to the end of a white dwarf. Their thermonuclear self-destruction ranks among the most powerful explosions in the cosmos, forcing the star t… [+4038 chars]
The largest radio telescope dish in the world has apparently detected odd radio signals coming from space, although the specifics of the reports are unclear. FAST, whose name translates to heavens e… [+1122 chars]
