Astronomy news

• 5 days beneath the waves: What it's like to live in an underwater 'space station'

  28-10-2026 22:00 via Latest from Space.com
  
  Living underwater was surprisingly peaceful. It was in many ways exactly what I imagine living on Mars would be like one day. There were no humans around us, except for my three SEA STAR crewmembers and me. Apart from the human noises we made, we couldn't hear anything other than the life support systems keeping us alive submerged 22 feet (7 meters) below the surface. We were living in these extreme conditions to study the challenges astronauts may face on long-duration space missions. Since per
  
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• ISS astronaut will conduct Canada's 1st spacewalk in 7 years on Oct. 29: Watch it live

  28-10-2026 21:00 via Latest from Space.com
  
  The next International Space Station (ISS) spacewalk will have more maple-leaf flavor than usual, as a Canadian astronaut will become the first to go outside the orbiting complex in seven years.Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Joshua Kutryk, who's also a colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force, will help the ISS boost its power supply during his first-ever spacewalk on Thursday (Oct. 29). Kutryk will be joined by NASA astronaut Anil Menon, who has done three spacewalks already and also serv
  
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• Meet Apeiron, Virgin Galactic's 1st 'Delta-class' space plane

  28-10-2026 20:28 via Latest from Space.com
  
  Virgin Galactic has officially unveiled the first space plane in its next-gen "Delta" line, and announced the results of the worldwide vote to choose its name.Spaceship Apeiron will be the first Delta-class vehicle, Virgin Galactic revealed on Wednesday (Oct. 28). Apeiron (pronounced "A'-per-on," according to the announcement) takes its name from the ancient Greek word meaning "boundless," and was selected through a public poll that drew votes from thousands of people across 83 countries and six
  
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• China's secretive space plane caught on camera in incredible new photo released by US military

  28-10-2026 16:50 via Latest from Space.com
  
  A photograph of China's reusable Shenlong space plane docked to another spacecraft, taken by Vantor's WorldView 3 satellite from a distance of 56 miles (90 kilometers). (Image credit: Satellite image ©2026 Vantor)A U.S. military intelligence agency has released an incredible new photograph of China's secretive space plane, showing it docked to another spacecraft in orbit.The photograph was taken in 2024 by Vantor's WorldView 3 satellite, from a distance of 56 miles (90 kilometers). Ground-based
  
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• The final ‘Dune: Part Three’ trailer reignites war on Arrakis and leaves us with more questions than answers

  28-10-2026 16:00 via Latest from Space.com
  
  Dune: Part Three's marketing campaign has been a long and generous one, but Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures knew an extra push was needed in order to compete with Avengers: Doomsday, as both sci-fi blockbusters will be releasing next to each other at Christmas. In its final trailer, Denis Villeneuve's threequel goes all out.This isn't the first time a Dune: Part Three trailer has left us with more questions than answers, but the in-depth look at the character dynamics and plot beats that awa
  
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• Satellites watch an escaping Antarctic iceberg | Space photo of the day for Oct. 28, 2026

  28-10-2026 15:00 via Latest from Space.com
  
  Iceberg A-81 escaping the Weddell Sea and drifting near the edge of South Georgia's underwater shelf. The image was captured on Oct. 20, 2026.(Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory/Michala Garrison)An iceberg has quickly escaped from the Weddell Sea in Antarctica, on its way to an icy new destination. What is it?As captured by a satellite in orbit, the Antarctic iceberg A-81 has quite quickly (for an iceberg) parted ways from its icy home, breaking off to drift toward a shallow underwater shelf i
  
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• Astronomers found a mysterious object beyond Neptune, and it could be a new dwarf planet

  28-10-2026 13:58 via Latest from Space.com
  
  The powerful Vera Rubin Observatory has spotted what seems to be a dwarf planet circling the sun in the frigid depths beyond Neptune.The icy object, known as 2026 ED138, is likely between 600 and 1500 kilometers (373 to 972 miles) wide, scientists say. It's therefore probably big enough to be sculpted into a sphere by its own gravity — a key characteristic that separates dwarf planets from asteroids and other small space rocks.And if 2026 ED138 is indeed a dwarf planet, that's a pretty big dea
  
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• Virgin Galactic is finally revealing its new Delta-class spaceship this week

  28-10-2026 13:00 via Latest from Space.com
  
  Space tourists and citizen astronauts rejoice! A new suborbital spacecraft is about to be introduced that will fly ticketholders on brief, suborbital journeys just above Earth.Virgin Galactic plans to unveil its first Delta-class spaceship on Wednesday (Oct. 28), before transporting the spacecraft from Mesa, Arizona, to Spaceport America in New Mexico. Alongside that reveal, the company will also announce the spacecraft's name, selected through a public vote held across more than 80 countries.Fo
  
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• Black holes can split in two — but only if they spin at extreme speeds

  28-10-2026 11:00 via Latest from Space.com
  
  Scientists have long known that when two black holes collide, they merge to create a more massive black hole. These events are so violent that they set the very fabric of space ringing with ripples called gravitational waves.Now, new research suggests that the opposite may happen, too: single black holes may be able to split in two. But this can only happen if that progenitor black hole is spinning at maximum possible speed. That speed prevents the black holes from immediately falling back on ea
  
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