The night sky of 2023 yielded many astonishing sights, from bright, fiery comets to extraordinary aurorae, unexpected meteor impacts on the moon, newly discovered supernovae – and even an astronaut’s lost tool bag floating through space. Here are some of Space.com’s most memorable skywatching attractions from this year. New year, new comet A long exposure … Read more
A legacy of European-built and operated space modules that started in Earth orbit and is now headed to the moon began 40 years ago this week. From the first launch of Spacelab, a pressurized laboratory that rode in the cargo bay of a NASA space shuttle, on November 28, 1983, to Columbus, one of the … Read more
“In 1976, Janet and I signed up for an ‘astronomy cruise’ to Bermuda. One evening we were on deck where Fred Hess, a planetarium expert, pointed out the star patterns visible to the naked eye. Janet used her binoculars to look at the stars the objects described, and the highlight came when we saw the … Read more
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas – SpaceX’s giant starship has met another explosive end. SpaceX’s next-generation megarocket — the largest ever built — launched today (Nov. 18) on its second-ever test flight, a long-awaited journey that took the giant vehicle to space for the first time, but it didn’t last long. Shortly after the stages separated, … Read more
SpaceX launched its Starship megarocket, the most powerful rocket on Earth, on its second test flight this weekend, and while the vehicle may have met an explosive end, its flight is absolutely astonishing to watch. Stunning photos and videos from SpaceX, Space.com, news reports and the public show the sheer spectacle of Starship’s second test … Read more