The first space tourist left Earth 20 years ago aboard a Russian rocket. Now, private companies like Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin are offering trips to the stars for those who can pay.
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Articles on Space
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It has only been in the past century that weather prediction on Earth has advanced enough to work two weeks in advance. Predicting space weather, however, is only reliable an hour in advance.
Astronomers just measured the largest flare ever from Proxima Centauri, humanity’s closest neighboring star. These flares could be bad news for life trying to develop on a planet orbiting the star.
The first space tourist left Earth 20 years ago aboard a Russian rocket. Now, private companies are on the cusp of offering trips off Earth for those who can pay.
If humanity wants to travel between stars, people are going to need to travel faster than light. New research suggests that it might be possible to build warp drives and beat the galactic speed limit.
The Ingenuity is a drone-like helicopter that completed its first flight on Mars. This achievement reflects a new horizon for space exploration, as new places are discovered and studied.
Flying the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars is the equivalent of flying one at about 100,000 feet on Earth. Tricky, considering the highest helicopter flight ever recorded maxed out at 42,000 feet.
Earth orbit is filling up with satellites and space junk. Technological fixes can only go so far to deal with the problem.
A young reader asks: What is the sky?
Space mining might be closer than you think. But legal issues about the ownership of space resources must be urgently addressed to avoid space wars over natural resources.
As Australia’s efforts in space accelerate, we must avoid escalating a cycle of competition and conflict.
Publicly available data and collaborations between scientists have led to the discovery of a planet in a triple-star system.
The hunt for the space rock involved a few bits of sheep poo before the real meteorite was found.
Going to the bathroom is much more complicated in space without any gravity. To solve this problem of tricky orbital potty breaks, NASA builds special toilets that work without gravity.
A minuscule particle of asteroid dust has helped reveal how celestial rocks like Earth might have sprouted life.
Send us your questions – and join us live to hear about the solar system.
Science fiction has often had an inspirational and positive relationship with space endeavors. But the new US Space Force is struggling with a pop culture public relations problem.
Many of people may have dreamed of becoming an astronaut since childhood, but do you have what it takes?
Thanks to the discovery of five twinkling galaxies in a rare alignment, astronomers have been able to calculate — for the first time — the properties and geometry of an invisible gas cloud in space.
NASA’s Mars 2020 mission has arrived and landed the Perseverance Rover on the red planet. The rover’s goal is to collect rock and soil samples to be brought back to Earth in the future.
Top contributors
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Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences, The Open University
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University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy, University of Arizona
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Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland
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Associate Professor in Archaeology and Space Studies, Flinders University
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Professor of Strategy and Security Studies, Air University
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Emeritus Professor of International Law, Western Sydney University
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Associate Professor in Astronomy, Monash University
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Senior Lecturer in Physics, Nottingham Trent University
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Reader in Astrophysics, Keele University
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Sterrenkenner, History & Philosophy of Science, The University of Melbourne
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Lecturer in Astronomy, Nottingham Trent University
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Andrew Dempster is a Friend of The Conversation.
Director, Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research; Professor, School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications, UNSW Sydney
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Space Plasma Physicist, Imperial College London
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Associate Professor of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology
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Professor of Hypersonic Aerodynamics, The University of Queensland
