• Even George Will is Excited about the JWST

    George Will, political commentator, wrote an article for his Washington Post column this week that praised the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). I am accustomed to his conservative politics and baseball trivia, but he was showing a whole new side in this piece. He was almost giddy in his praise of the telescope. I guess…

  • Space Quote: Getting Ready for Mars

    “The space domain is critical to modern commerce, scientific discovery, and national security. The ability to accomplish leap-ahead advances in space technology through the DRACO nuclear thermal rocket program will be essential for more efficiently and quickly transporting material to the Moon and eventually, people to Mars.” –Statement by Dr. Stefanie Tompkins, director of the…

  • Pic of the Week: Yogi Bear Spotted on Mars

    This week’s image comes from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. You don’t need to look too hard to see a bear in this photo. Here is a summary of what you are seeing from the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona, which operates HiRISE: There’s…

  • Space Stories: Europeans Not Joining Chinese Space Station, the Milky Way is Odd, and Lucy has a New Target

    Here are some recent stories of interest. —Royal Astronomical Society: “European Space Agency Says it has No Plans to Send Astronauts to China’s Tiangong Space Station“ A top official with the European Space Agency said it had no plans to send European astronauts to the newly completed Chinese space station, making it clear for the first time…

  • Fortified Rockets? Ask the Pentagon

    Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal published an article, “Space Launches Should Withstand Chinese Challenge, Pentagon Mandate Says,” regarding new rocket requirements being developed by the US Department of Defense (DOD). It appears the Pentagon is worried about both the Russians and Chinese interfering with the launches of spy satellites. It doesn’t help to…

  • Video: More on ChatGPT and Astronomy

    If you have questions about the future of AI and astronomy, I recommend you visit Cool World Lab’s latest video titled “ChatGPT Takes A College Level Astrophysics Exam.” The video addresses concerns that ChatGPT can be used by students to cheat on tests and homework, and highlights how the program is far from perfect (as…

  • Update on Artemis III

    The other week, NASA revealed an update on the Artemis III mission to the Moon in 2025. Now that Artemis I was a success and Artemis II is being readied, Artemis III is becoming much clearer on the horizon. The plan focuses on the first crew to land on the surface, noting that future missions…

  • Space Mission: Ongoing Problems with Lucy’s Sails

    NASA’s Lucy spacecraft continues to face some engineering issues as it travels away from Earth after the first of two flybys before it can reach the Trojan asteroids where it will begin its survey. While the earlier problems with deploying its solar array continue, the matter will most likely need to be resolved in 2024…

  • A Day in Astronomy: Birth of Astronaut Buzz Aldrin

    On this day in 1930, Edwin Eugene (Buzz) Aldrin Jr. came into the world. Since that day, he has been busy with adventures in the sky (US Air Force fighter pilot), in orbit (Gemini 12), and on the Moon (Apollo 11). He will always be remembered as part of the first pair of humans (Neil Armstrong…

  • Pic of the Week: Solar Plasma Jet

    This week’s image is from LiveScience’s “10 most jaw-dropping space images of 2022.” It is described as a “false-color composite image of a coronal mass ejection measuring around 1 million miles firing away from the sun.” The image, attributed to photographer Andrew McCarthy, was created from hundreds of thousands of individual shots taken over six…