Space

a diagram showing the brightest galaxies within 20 million light years of the Milky Way

Mar 11, 2014 11:41 AM EDT

Milky Way's Place Among 'Council of Giants' Mapped

Astronomers have mapped the Milky Way galaxy's place among the ring of surrounding local galaxies known as "The Council of Giants."

Mar 11, 2014 08:27 AM EDT

NASA Invites "Asteroid Hunters" to Develop Algorithm for Identifying Asteroids

NASA wants you to participate in the Asteroid Grand Challenge Contest series. The space agency is offering a total of $35,000 over the next six months for "Asteroid Hunters" who could develop algorithms for identifying asteroids.

Flight controllers in the Russian mission control center in Korolev

Mar 11, 2014 05:25 AM EDT

ISS Expedition 38 Crew Members Land Safely in Kazakhstan

Expedition 38 crew members Michael Hopkins of NASA, and Oleg Kotov and Sergey Ryazanskiy of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) returned to Earth Monday, NASA announced. Their Soyuz spacecraft landed in the snowy steppes of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, at about 11:24 p.m. EDT.

A nearby star stands out in red in this image from the Second Generation Digitized Sky Survey.

Mar 10, 2014 03:56 PM EDT

NASA's WISE Survey Reveals No 'Planet X' but does Find a Wealth of New Stars

For years, astronomers have suggested that a so-called "Planet X" exists in our solar system beyond the orbit of Pluto, but after an exhaustive search that involved hundreds of millions of celestial objects astronomers have found no evidence of of this theoretical planet. However, a wealth of previously undocumented stars were found in the search.

Mar 08, 2014 07:33 AM EST

Brief Exposure to Bright Light can Boost Antioxidant Production in Space Plants

Few pulses of bright light a day could help increase antioxidant production in space plants, a new study has found. Researchers say that the nutrient-rich plants could protect astronauts from eye damage during long space flights.

artist's concept of Beta Pictoris system

Mar 07, 2014 02:59 PM EST

Chaotic Comet Collisions around Star Suggest Presence of Unknown Planet

A puzzling build-up of carbon monoxide around the nearby star Beta Pictoris revealed to astronomers a stellar phenomenon: the splattered remains of comets colliding together around the star. The researchers believe they are observing this cosmic comet destruction in real-time at a rate of one comet per five minutes, and that it may be caused by an unknown planet in orbit around the star.

Mar 07, 2014 11:04 AM EST

Australia to Shoot Lasers at Space Debris to Protect Satellites

Australia researchers want to use lasers to track space debris and prevent Gravity- like situation.

Mar 07, 2014 10:43 AM EST

Mars Meteorites Originated from a Cosmic Impact 5 Million Years Ago

An asteroid or a comet hit Mars nearly 5 million years ago. The impact was so great that several rocks were hurled into space. Few of these rocks travelled millions of miles to land on Earth. A new study shows that 34-mile-wide Mojave crater on the Red Planet is the source of these Martian meteorites.

This image from 1971 suggests an idea of orbital supply depot design.

Mar 06, 2014 03:09 PM EST

MIT Team Proposes Plan for Realistic Space Refueling Depot

The idea of a spacecraft en route to a distant world docking at an orbital fueling station to refuel is an old idea long kept from becoming a reality because of the huge price tag and long-term investment required to complete such a project. But now, a team of scientists say they've come up with a way to make an outer space fueling depot an object of science fact rather than science fiction.