Space Stories: Layoffs at NASA’s JPL, Rocky Giants in our Solar System, and New Findings from Apollo 17

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Here are some recent space-related stories of interest.

—NBC News: “NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory Lays Off 550 Workers“

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced Monday that it will cut around 550 jobs — around 10% of its staff. In a statement posted online, the lab’s director, Dave Gallagher, said the layoffs are part of a broad “realignment of its workforce” and not a result of the government shutdown. The cuts will affect positions across the NASA center’s technical, business and support areas, he said.

—Space.com: “Uranus and Neptune May Not Be ‘Ice Giants’ After All, New Research Suggests“

Astronomers have long called Uranus and Neptune the “ice giants” because models suggested that these outer planets’ interiors are largely made of mixtures of water, ammonia and other ices — compounds that freeze easily in deep space. But new research reveals that we actually know very little about what’s going on inside these planets, causing researchers to propose that Uranus and Neptune be called “rocky giants” instead.

—Brown University: “With New Analysis, Apollo Samples Brought to Earth in 1972 Reveal Exotic Sulfur Hidden in Moon’s Mantle“

In a study published in JGR: Planets, researchers report a sulfuric surprise in rock samples taken from the Moon’s Taurus Littrow region during Apollo 17. The analysis shows that volcanic material in the sample contains sulfur compounds that are highly depleted of sulfur-33 (or 33S), one of four radioactively stable sulfur isotopes. The depleted 33S samples contrast sharply with sulfur isotope ratios found on Earth, the researchers say.

Space Stories: Questionable Move of Space Shuttle Discovery, the Problem with Red Dwarf Exoplanets, and a Rare Sight from Mars

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Space shuttle Discovery landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. (NASA)

Here are some recent space-related stories of interest.

—Chron: “Historic Space Shuttle Could Be Compromised for Trip to Texas“

Within the next 18 months, the space shuttle Discovery may be disassembled in Washington D.C., transported more than 1,000 miles to Houston and reassembled. But not if grassroots group Keep The Shuttle has anything to say about it. The plan to move a shuttle, notably an unnamed shuttle, was part of President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” passed this summer. The Smithsonian and others have dug in against the move, saying the research institute actually owns the Discovery in a trust for the American people, nothing that it’s unclear if Congress even has the authority to order the Smithsonian transfer an artifact.

—Universe Today “New Research Suggests Red Dwarf Systems are Unlikely to Have Advanced Civilizations“

Thanks to the huge spate of exoplanet discoveries, multiple rocky planets have been found orbiting within the habitable zones (HZs) of red dwarf stars. For decades, there has been an ongoing debate as to whether these systems could be our best bet for finding evidence of life beyond Earth. In a recent study, Professor David Kipping addresses two key facts that could mean humanity is an outlier. Based on the age of the Universe and the relatively rare nature of our Sun, he concludes that astrobiologists examining red dwarf planets may be looking in the wrong place.

—CBS News: “Interstellar Comet Passing by Mars Seen in Rare Images“

A rare interstellar comet — only the third ever confirmed to enter our solar system — was photographed last week, closely approaching Mars, the European Space Agency said Tuesday. The images taken on Friday by two Mars orbiters show a bright, fuzzy white dot of the comet, also known as 3I/ATLAS, appearing to move against a backdrop of distant stars as it was about 18,641,135 miles away from Mars. The comet poses no threat to Earth, NASA has previously said.

Space Stories: Dragonfly Issues, NASA Under a Government Shutdown, and Threats from Venus

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Artist’s rendering of the Dragonfly on Titan. (NASA/Johns Hopkins APL)

Here are some recent space-related stories of interest.

—Physics World: “NASA Criticized Over its Management of $3.3bn Dragonfly Mission to Titan“

An internal audit has slammed NASA over its handling of the Dragonfly mission to Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. The drone-like rotorcraft, which is designed to land on and gather samples from Titan, has been hit by a two-year delay, with costs surging by $1bn to $3.3bn. NASA now envisions a launch date of July 2028 with Dragonfly arriving at Titan in 2034.

—USAToday: “Do Rockets Still Launch During a Government Shutdown? How NASA Could Feel the Effects“

NASA is far from immune to the effects of a looming government shutdown if congressional leaders fail to reach an agreement before midnight Oct. 1 to prevent one. At stake for the U.S. space agency if the federal government grinds to a halt? The progress of many of its science missions and access to its public outreach arm. NASA’s contingency plan for a shutdown, outlined in a guide from 2018, emphasizes that only “activities which are necessary to prevent harm to life or property” would be exempt from ceasing operations during a shutdown.

—Earth Sky: “‘Invisible’ Asteroids Near Venus: A New Danger to Earth?“

Astronomers across the globe are dedicated to identifying the near-Earth asteroids that could one day impact our planet. But there might be a group of potentially dangerous nearby asteroids that have remained invisible to astronomers so far. On September 24, 2025, an international team of researchers at the São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Brazil said that a group of asteroids sharing Venus’ orbit could have remained undetected so far due to their location in the sky. And they could pose a threat to Earth within a few thousand years.

Space Stories: Artemis II to Launch February 2026, 10 New Astronauts Selected, and Plans to Destroy an Incoming Asteroid

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Image (Credit): Artemis II mission map. (NASA)

Here are some recent space-related stories of interest.

—BBC News: “Nasa Plans First Crewed Moon Mission in 50 years for February 2026“

Nasa has said it hopes to send astronauts on a ten-day trip around the Moon as soon as February. The US space agency had previously committed to launching no later than the end of April but said it aims to bring the mission forward…Artemis Launch Director, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson explained that the powerful rocket system built to take the astronauts to the Moon, the Space Launch System (SLS) was “pretty much stacked and ready to go”. All that remained was to complete the crew capsule, called Orion, connected to SLS and to complete ground tests.

—CNN: “NASA Selects 10 New Astronauts as it Chases Bold Plans for the Moon and Mars“

NASA on Monday introduced the 10 people — selected from a pool of 8,000 applicants — who will join the agency’s astronaut corps as it races to return to the moon before attempting an unprecedented crewed mission to Mars. The group includes six women and four men, whom acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy called “America’s best and brightest.”…This astronaut class marks the first in which there are more women than men, according to NASA.

—IFLScience: “Forget Saving Earth, NASA Wants Us To Save The Moon From Asteroid 2024 YR4“

A large asteroid strike on the Moon could have negative consequences for the artificial satellites we now depend on. That being the case, a NASA-led team has looked into the options for preventing Asteroid 2024 YR4 from making such an impact in 2032. Contrary to the usual conclusions that asteroids should be diverted, not destroyed, they think this is a time for a Hollywood-approved demolition event.

Space Stories: Black Hole Stars, Globe-Trotting Student Astronomers, and Verifying Hawking’s Theorem

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Image by Johnson Martin from Pixabay.

Here are some recent space-related stories of interest.

—HotHardware: “Astronomers Baffled, Universe Weirder Than Ever Imagined On Strange Red Dot Discovery“

A team of Pennsylvania State University researchers has a unique take on mysterious red dots first observed by the James Webb Space Telescope. Initially thought to be tiny, crimson galaxies, the red dots are now proposed to be a new and exotic class of celestial object: a hybrid of a black hole and a star, which researchers have dubbed “black hole stars.”

—University of Virginia: “Astronomy Students Travel the World to Peer Deep into Space“

The University of Virginia Occultation Group, astronomy undergraduates who observe and track asteroids and small planets, make most of their observations locally. But they also travel around the country and the world to catch glimpses of heavenly objects, from high-priority asteroid/minor planets and the dwarf planet Pluto to the distant Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth. They observe stellar occultations, which occur when asteroids and minor planets pass in front of distant stars, via telescope. The Group studies some asteroids that later will be studied by close spacecraft fly-bys, and seek out asteroids that may pose a threat to the planet.

—Cornell University: “On 10th Anniversary, LIGO Verifies Hawking’s Theorem“

Since September 14, 2015, when the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) made the first-ever direct detection of gravitational waves, the observatory has been making history. Cornell astrophysicists Saul Teukolsky and Larry Kidder earned a share in the 2016 Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics – a $3 million award – for their contributions to the project. Now, on the 10th anniversary of LIGO’s first discovery, the LIGO-VIRGO-KAGRA team has announced a black hole merger similar to its first detection. However, thanks to a decade’s worth of technological advances improving the detector sensitivity, the signal is dramatically clearer, allowing unprecedented tests of General Relativity to be performed.