Astronomy news

• The 'Avengers Doomsday' trailer is cool, but it's missing something... where's all the space stuff?

  21-07-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  The first trailer for "Avengers: Doomsday" dropped yesterday, and while it’s jammed full of superheroes, surprises, and our first extended look at Dr. Doom, it is missing one big thing that has been a constant in the MCU ever since "Avengers" was released and the Infinity Stone saga kicked off: outer space.Believe it or not, the MCU has been very sci-fi heavy for the past decade as the universe expanded into space with "Guardians of the Galaxy", "Captain Marvel", and the entire throughline
  
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• Is the Perseid meteor shower going to get even more spectacular? Jupiter could send more 'shooting stars' towards Earth in 2028

  24-08-2026 17:00 via space.com
  
  The Perseid meteor shower dazzled stagazers with a spectacular natural light show around its peak on Aug. 12-13. But could we be in for even more impressive displays of shooting stars in the years to come? Canon EOS R7 camera(Image credit: Future/Kimberley Lane)The Canon EOS R7 is the best camera for beginners. Despite its crop sensor, the EOS R7 can rival most full-frame cameras. Read our full Canon EOS R7 review to find out more!Perseid shooting stars can be seen each year as Earth crashes thr
  
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• At 25% off, this beginner-friendly Celestron telescope will bring the lunar eclipse closer

  24-08-2026 16:50 via space.com
  
  A partial lunar eclipse takes place this Aug. 27-28 and this beginner-friendly Celestron PowerSeeker 80EQ telescope, nearly $50 off at Walmart, will let you zoom in on what promises to be a stunning sight. Save $49 on this Celestron PowerSeeker 80Q telescope at Walmart. Ideal for exploring our own solar system, the Celestron PowerSeeker 80EQ comes with 20mm and 4mm eyepieces, a 3x Barlow lens, a German equatorial mount, finderscope and Starry Night astronomy software. In short, it has everything
  
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• Satellite sees Greenland's most significant floating ice loss in over a decade | Space photo of the day for Aug. 24, 2026

  24-08-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  ESA's Sentinel-1 mission captured remarkable imagery showing significant ice loss and calving at the Petermann Glacier.(Image credit: ESA)The massive glaciers of Greenland are disappearing right before our very eyes in new satellite imagery. What is it? Petermann Glacier in northwest Greenland connects the Greenland ice sheet to the Arctic ocean. Petermann's "ice tongue" has previously measured 43 miles (70 kilometers) long and 9 miles (15 km) wide. But new satellite imagery has revealed the gla
  
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• On this day in space! Aug. 24, 2006: Pluto loses its planet status

  24-08-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  On Aug. 24, 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) decided that Pluto wasn't a planet anymore. Since that date, Pluto has been officially classified as a dwarf planet along with four other confirmed dwarf planets in the outskirts of the solar system. This decision sparked outrage around the world, and the controversy is still very much alive today. Astronomers in favor of Pluto's demotion argued that a planet by definition should have cleared its orbit around the sun. Pluto and the mor
  
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• The earliest galaxy 'swallowed' by the cannibal Milky Way left a scar at its heart

  24-08-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  The Milky Way has something of a torrid and violent history, given that our galaxy has fueled its own growth by cannibalistically devouring smaller galaxies. Now, astronomers have discovered evidence of our galaxy's earliest bout of cannibalism in the form of "scarring" at the heart of the Milky Way left behind by a galactic morsel it devoured around 12 billion years ago.Working as part of the ARMA (Cluster Ages to Reconstruct the Milky Way Assembly) project, the team behind this discovery used
  
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• Nancy Grace Roman Telescope live updates: NASA readies Roman for launch

  24-08-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is NASA's next great observatory poised to lead humanity's next generation of astronomical discoveries. The Roman Space Telescope will research the mysteries of dark energy, search for exoplanets andinvestigate the physics of distant stars.SpaceX will launch Roman on a Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Liftoff is scheduled for no earlier than 7:26 a.m. EDT (1126 GMT) on Sunday, Aug. 30. from Launch Complex-39A (LC-39A). F
  
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• What to expect from each stage of the partial lunar eclipse on Aug. 27-28

  24-08-2026 13:00 via space.com
  
  Here's what to expect during each stage of the Aug. 27-28 partial lunar eclipse, as our planet's colossal shadow swallows 96% of the moon's surface for billions on the night side of Earth.August's lunar eclipse is the closing act of a dramatic two-part show, the opening act of which began on Aug. 12 as the moon covered the face of the sun to trigger a spectacular total solar eclipse over parts of Greenland, Iceland and Spain. Eclipses always come in pairs, but the stages to be expected during a
  
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• It's been 20 years since Pluto lost planet status. Will it ever get its title back?

  24-08-2026 12:00 via space.com
  
  In August of 2006, astronomers at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) democratically voted to reclassify Pluto as a dwarf planet — but 20 years later, with our greater knowledge and understanding of planetary systems, is it time to revisit the controversial decision? Should Pluto be called a planet again?For several years before the IAU vote, there had been agitators among the astronomical community lobbying for our solar system's nine worlds to become eight, and for Pluto's planeta
  
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• New 'Star Trek' documentary featuring William Shatner hits theaters this fall, celebrating 60 years of Trek

  23-08-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  The "Star Trek" franchise's 60th anniversary is coming straight at us warp speed and will be arriving on Sept. 8, 2026. "Trek" faithful from around the globe are expected to pause and salute this space fantasy institution created by Gene Roddenberry in whichever way they deem appropriate.The celebration has already begun earlier this year at the 2026 Rose Parade and will accelerate past September and into the fall, where there’ll no doubt be 40th anniversary screenings of "Star Trek IV: Th
  
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• How a huge fleet of 17 spacecraft discovered something surprising about solar eruptions

  23-08-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  A misbehaving coronal mass ejection (CME) that blew out a hidden cloud of charged particles aimed at Earth has been tracked by a record 17 spacecraft spread throughout the solar system, revealing the CME to be surprisingly lopsided.CMEs are "burps" from the sun – huge clouds of magnetized plasma belched out from the sun's hot outer atmosphere, the corona, by the energy resulting from a solar flare. The magnetized CME cloud then expands out into the solar system, and the charged particles t
  
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• Bad weather delays launch of China's historic Chang'e 7 mission to moon's south pole

  23-08-2026 15:54 via space.com
  
  Poor weather has delayed the launch of China's latest moon mission. According to reports, the growth of Tropical Depression Narra in the Gulf of Tonkin has prompted China's space agency to delay the liftoff of Chang'e 7 significantly — possibly until 2027."China's Chang'e 7 lunar probe does not meet launch conditions, and its launch therefore cannot take place during the planned window this year," the state-run Xinhua news agency reported today (Aug. 23), citing the China Manned Space Agen
  
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• Launching 10,000 tiny 'femtosats' to Saturn? NASA funds 18 futuristic spaceflight ideas

  23-08-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  NASA is giving a financial boost to nearly 20 technology investigations to help fuel the incubation of tomorrow's spaceflight research capabilities. The NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program has selected 18 projects for this year's Phase I awards, which will each split a total of $3.2 million in development funding. NIAC is designed to bolster technology breakthroughs that NASA could use on future space missions.This year's awards include an array of mission concepts and research prop
  
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• How will NASA's astronaut training hub change with commercial space stations?

  22-08-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  HOUSTON — What does NASA's astronaut training hub look like these days, as the agency aims to bring more commercial space stations into the fold?It's an interesting mix of government and private companies, of space agency personnel and of contractors, all working together to keep U.S. and international astronauts flying through the end of the ISS — currently expected around 2030 — and the new breed of commercial space stations expected to take its place.Canadian reporters like
  
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• 'We Want to Believe' book explores the reality of UFOs: 'It's always going to be more likely that someone is wrong about what they saw' (interview)

  22-08-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  After all these years, we still want to believe.Whether you're a bona fide believer or a staunch skeptic, we can all agree that UFO legends and lore is a fascinating subject that continues to fuel endless debate. And with pop culture feeding our lizard brains lurid tales of flying saucers and alien invasions, it’s no wonder humanity is always up for a good story of inexplicable aerial sightings or various uncanny encounters of the third kind.In "We Want To Believe: How Aliens Went Mainstre
  
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• This Week In Space podcast: Episode 224 — The Science of Artemis

  22-08-2026 15:24 via space.com
  
  On Episode 224 of This Week In Space, Rod Pyle and guest co-host Rick Jenet are joined by Dr. David Kring to discuss the where, whys, and hows of the Artemis Program's lunar exploration plans.It has been said that the Moon is a harsh mistress, and nowhere is thismore apparent than at the lunar south pole. That is, however, where theArtemis program is headed, and we need to figure out how to best explorethe region. Kring of the Universities Space ResearchAssociation's Lunar and Planetary Institut
  
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• SpaceX sends 27 Starlink satellites to orbit on 100th Falcon rocket launch of the year (video, photos)

  22-08-2026 14:23 via space.com
  
  SpaceX launched another batch of its Starlink internet satellites this morning (Aug. 22) on a milestone mission for the company's Falcon rocket family.A Falcon 9 carrying 27 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California today at 3:25 a.m. EDT (0725 GMT; 12:25 a.m. local California time). It was the 99th Falcon 9 liftoff of the year, and the 100th Falcon mission of 2026 overall. The other flight was performed by a Falcon Heavy, which lofted the telecom satellite Vi
  
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• SpaceX sends 27 Starlink satellites to orbit on 100th Falcon rocket launch of the year (photos)

  22-08-2026 14:23 via space.com
  
  SpaceX launched another batch of its Starlink internet satellites this morning (Aug. 22) on a milestone mission for the company's Falcon rocket family.A Falcon 9 carrying 27 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California today at 3:25 a.m. EDT (0725 GMT; 12:25 a.m. local California time). It was the 99th Falcon 9 liftoff of the year, and the 100th Falcon mission of 2026 overall. The other flight was performed by a Falcon Heavy, which lofted the telecom satellite Vi
  
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• Partial lunar eclipse August 2026: Where will it be visible from?

  22-08-2026 12:00 via space.com
  
  Earth's shadow will swallow 96% of the lunar surface overnight on Aug. 27-28, potentially turning the moon a gorgeous shade of crimson as it bathes in light filtered and refracted by our planet's atmosphere. The partial lunar eclipse will occur as Earth passes between the sun and moon during the monthly full moon phase. Around this time, Earth's curved inner shadow will appear to creep across the lunar surface while leaving a thin crescent exposed to direct sunlight at the point of maximum eclip
  
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• What happens when a galaxy's supermassive black hole turns off? These dying radio galaxies could show us

  21-08-2026 23:00 via space.com
  
  Astronomers have discovered a hitherto unseen population of so-called "radio galaxies" with fading "radio lobes." The discovery reveals what happens when the supermassive black hole engines that power these vast, blooming outflows of plasma stall. This discovery increases our understanding of the life cycles of galaxies.The team behind this research studied 14 candidates for faded or remnant radio galaxies found in a region of the sky over Earth, studied intensely by the XMM-Newton X-ray spacecr
  
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• Trump signs new national space policy to enable 1,000 US rocket launches per year

  21-08-2026 22:00 via space.com
  
  The United States is updating its approach to managing spaceflights that lift off and land within its borders, and aims to expand the nation's capabilities to support more than 1,000 rocket launches per year by 2030.President Donald Trump just signed a new National Space Transportation Policy that lays out priorities for commercial, civil and national security missions to orbit. The memorandum, published Thursday (Aug. 20), introduces the first update to the policy since 2013, and comes as comme
  
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• 'Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' cast talks losing sleep, living up to their character's legacy, and learning to ride a horse for season 4 (interview)

  21-08-2026 22:00 via space.com
  
  Filming a high-profile episodic TV series like "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is often a Herculean task for any professional cast and crew, but toss in massive spaceship sets, a colorful constellation of costume changes, tone and stylistic shifts, hand-to-hand combat, horseback riding, and puppets, and you’ve got a mad sci-fi circus.We connected with Ethan Peck (Spock), Christina Chong (La’an Noonien-Singh) and Paul Wesley (James T. Kirk) for Paramount+’s "Star Trek: Strange N
  
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• Trump to award NASA's Artemis II astronauts the Congressional Space Medal of Honor

  21-08-2026 21:30 via space.com
  
  NASA's Artemis II moon astronauts will join a very exclusive club next week.President Donald Trump will award those spaceflyers the Congressional Space Medal of Honor next Friday (Aug. 28) at Johnson Space Center in Houston to recognize their historic journey around the moon this past April.The ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT) and will feature NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, President Trump and the Artemis II astronauts. You'll be able to watch it live when the time comes.Artemis
  
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• Japan unveils Mars moon sample-return spacecraft ahead of Oct. 19 launch (photos)

  21-08-2026 20:00 via space.com
  
  The world just got its first good looks at some hardware that will make spaceflight history.Last Thursday (Aug. 13), Japan unveiled the spacecraft that make up its Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, which aims to snag samples of the Mars moon Phobos and haul them to Earth — something that has never been done.The big reveal came at Tanegashima Space Center, the site from which MMX will launch toward the Red Planet atop an H3 rocket. And we just got some clarity about when that liftoff
  
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• SpaceX fires up Starship ahead of megarocket’s 1st orbital flight (video)

  21-08-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  SpaceX is picking up the pace of preparations for the next launch of its giant Starship rocket. On Wednesday night (Aug. 19), the company completed a single-engine static fire test with its Ship 41 vehicle, the upper stage that's in line to fly Starship's upcoming Flight 14 mission. As its name suggests, Flight 14 will be Starship's 14th test flight, but it will be the rocket's first launch into orbit, if all goes according to plan. The recent engine burn was designed to prepare for that jaunt.
  
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• 'Dark stars' could be the seeds of supermassive black holes, scientists say

  21-08-2026 17:37 via space.com
  
  A mysterious hum of gravitational waves that fills the cosmos may be the echo of "dark stars" that served as the seeds of the first supermassive black holes.These low-frequency gravitational waves were detected back in 2023 using an array of cosmic lighthouses, or pulsars, in a so-called "pulsar timing array." Pulsars are neutron stars that spin rapidly and regularly while blasting out collimated beams of radiation from their poles that can be used to detect tiny fluctuations in space and time.
  
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• SpaceX launches 29 Starlink satellites, lands rocket on ship at sea (video, photos)

  21-08-2026 17:28 via space.com
  
  SpaceX launched yet another Starlink mission today (Aug. 21), sending 29 more of the broadband satellites to orbit from Florida's Space Coast.The spacecraft flew aboard a Falcon 9 rocket, which lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station today at 11:14 a.m. EDT (1514 GMT). That was a day later than planned; SpaceX scrubbed a liftoff attempt on Thursday (Aug. 20) for reasons that were not immediately clear.The Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth as planned today, landing ab
  
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• SpaceX launches 29 Starlink satellites, lands rocket on ship at sea (photos)

  21-08-2026 17:28 via space.com
  
  SpaceX launched yet another Starlink mission today (Aug. 21), sending 29 more of the broadband satellites to orbit from Florida's Space Coast.The spacecraft flew aboard a Falcon 9 rocket, which lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station today at 11:14 a.m. EDT (1514 GMT). That was a day later than planned; SpaceX scrubbed a liftoff attempt on Thursday (Aug. 20) for reasons that were not immediately clear.The Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth as planned today, landing ab
  
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• Ancient stars dazzle in a celestial chandelier | Space photo of the day for Aug. 21, 2026

  21-08-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  The Chandelier Cluster, or globular cluster NGC 6723, as imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope.(Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Sarajedini, G. Piotto)Stars scattered across the cosmos sparkle in the appropriately named Chandelier Cluster. What is it? The Hubble Space Telescope captured this twinkling image of NGC 6723, or the Chandelier Cluster, a globular star cluster located 27,000 light-years away in our Milky Way galaxy. Every bright spot in this mesmerizing cosmic chandelier is an in
  
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• My favorite thing in the night sky appears on Aug. 28 — and it proves Earth is a sphere

  21-08-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  What's your favorite thing in the night sky? Maybe it's the Pleiades, that sparkling open cluster that dominates winter in the Northern Hemisphere. Perhaps it's a sight of the Milky Way arching across the summer sky. Or could it be Saturn, a close-up sight of which has many people reaching for their wallets to buy a bigger telescope.My favorite sight? It's us or, rather, our shadow. It's something that's only observable during a partial lunar eclipse — and there's one coming up very soon.
  
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