NASA has spent over $3 billion annually on SLS, but private rockets now cost 90% less. Key Takeaways  Boeing informed its workforce that NASA may cancel the SLS rocket program, leading to potential layoffs. Up to 400 employees could lose their jobs if contracts are not renewed. Originally set to launch in 2016, SLS debuted…

The first photo of Earth from space was taken in 1946—years before the first satellite! 5 Key Takeaways The first-ever space photo was captured on October 24, 1946, from a V-2 missile at 65 miles above Earth. This achievement marked the beginning of space photography, paving the way for modern satellite imaging. Before this, in…

A newly discovered asteroid has a higher impact probability than most tracked space rocks! Key Takeaways: Astronomers have identified asteroid 2024 YR4, which has a 1-in-83 chance of impacting Earth in December 2032. The 196-foot-wide asteroid is currently ranked high on risk assessment lists by both NASA and ESA. If it hits, the impact could…

On January 28, the Voyager 1 probe crossed a symbolic milestone, reaching a distance of 25 billion kilometers from Earth. This was confirmed by tracker data on NASA’s website, which monitors the spacecraft’s position and velocity. The Farthest Spacecraft in History Launched in 1977, Voyager 1 was designed to explore the Solar System’s giant planets….

Throughout February, the night sky will showcase a stunning alignment of the five brightest planets—Venus, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, and Saturn—alongside the more elusive Uranus and Neptune. As the month progresses, observers with an unobstructed horizon may witness all five bright planets stretching across the sky at once. A particularly noteworthy event occurs on Monday, February…

Venus’s surface is so extreme that the longest any lander has survived is just 127 minutes. Key Takeaways: The Soviet Venera missions in the 1970s and 1980s captured the only images ever taken from Venus’s surface. Venus’s intense heat (up to 900°F/482°C) and crushing pressure (over 75 times Earth’s) make survival nearly impossible. While NASA…

Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto in 1930—85 years later, his ashes finally reached it. Key Takeaways: A Cosmic Tribute – Clyde Tombaugh, Pluto’s discoverer, symbolically visited the dwarf planet as his ashes traveled aboard NASA’s New Horizons probe. A Journey Decades in the Making – The spacecraft took over nine years to reach Pluto, passing within…

“China’s ‘artificial sun’ ran for 1,066 seconds—2x longer than previous records!” Key Takeaways: The EAST fusion reactor maintained plasma stability for 1,066 seconds, smashing its previous 403-second record from 2023. This achievement represents a significant leap in realizing clean, limitless energy. Key upgrades, including doubling heating power, made this scientific feat possible. As part of…

James Webb Space Telescope orbit as seen from above the Sun’s north pole and as seen from Earth’s perspective. The James Webb Space Telescope will not be in orbit around the Earth, like the Hubble Space Telescope is – it will actually orbit the Sun, 1.5 million kilometers (1 million miles) away from the Earth…

At first glance, the question seems trivial: “What color is the sun?” Everyone “knows” the sun is yellow, right? You can see it in the sky (though, please, don’t stare directly at it). But the reality is more complex. The answer to this seemingly simple question depends on several factors, and there’s more than one…