The Mount Wilson telescopes were ahead of their time — in one case, capturing signs of distant worlds that wouldn’t be recognized for a century.

New maps of Greenland’s seafloor and bedrock show that two to four times as many coastal glaciers are at risk of accelerated melting as previously thought.

It takes less than an eyeblink to light up a black hole’s jet.

Technology image of the week: The shard rising from this alien-like terrain presents a clear and present danger to space missions

Want to help humanity’s exploration of our Solar System? Do you have a medical degree and are not afraid of the dark or the cold? ESA is looking for someone to spend over six months in Antarctica running research to prepare for missions to…

Over the last 20 years, rover cameras have become smaller, less costly and more numerous.

A recent study estimates the global impact of atmospheric rivers on floods and droughts, as well as the number of people affected by these atmospheric phenomena.

No-one on International Space Station wanted to be an astronaut for Halloween

Arguably scarier than ghosts or goblins: a massive crack in the ice shelf close to the Halley VI research station in Antarctica

Scientists have been able to measure the distance that particles in black hole jets travel before they “turn on” and become bright sources of light.

Watch high-definition footage of the International Space Station passing over Italy, filmed by ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli.

It appears that something good can come from something bad. Although rising global temperatures are causing seasonal snow cover to melt earlier in the spring, this allows for the snow-free boreal forests to absorb more carbon dioxide from …

Space Science Image of the Week: This spooky sight, resembling fog swirling around a bottomless hole, was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope

The inner solar system’s only dwarf planet likely once hosted an entire ocean, now locked away in its crust.

After more than 15 productive years in orbit, the U.S./German GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) satellite mission has ended science operations.

Our week through the lens: 23-27 October 2017

Aliens are always the last resort. But once, we thought we might have found an alien probe.

Explore the US capital with Sentinel-2 in this week’s edition of the Earth from Space video programme

The World Series has launched a friendly competition between JPL support of their home team, the L.A. Dodgers, and NASA’s Johnson Space Center cheering for the Houston Astros.

Ceres’ crust as we see it today, with its mixture of ice, salts and hydrated materials, represents most of the dwarf planet’s ancient ocean, scientists say.

A small, recently discovered asteroid — or perhaps a comet — appears to have originated from outside the solar system, coming from somewhere else in our galaxy.

Operations image of the week: ESA’s Gaia star surveyor unexpectedly detected ‘proton snow’ during a solar storm in September

Astronaut Scott Kelly’s genes behaved differently while in space than those of his Earth-bound, identical twin brother.

A European clock accurate to a trillionth of a second is set to be used on satellites and missions to the Moon.

The ultra-precise time-keeper was conceived by a small company in Latvia, and ESA has recognised its potential for space.

“We…

Last year, a fountain of dust was spotted streaming from Rosetta’s comet, prompting the question: how was it powered? Scientists now suggest the outburst was driven from inside the comet, perhaps released from ancient gas vents or pockets …

Solar radiation packs a punch capable of creating and destroying asteroid families.

This year’s Atlantic hurricane season has been a harsh reminder of the grief and devastation brought by these vast storms. Imaging the top of hurricanes from space is nothing new, but the Sentinel-1 satellites can see right through these t…

If you’re looking for the perfect gift for a space enthusiast, our ESAshop is now open!

Human spaceflight and robotic exploration image of the week: ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli checking his hands-free aid

The life and times of the Cape Town Observatory.

NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity team is working to restore Curiosity’s sample-drilling capability using new techniques. The latest development is a preparatory test on Mars.

Two more Galileo satellites have reached Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, joining the first pair of navigation satellites and the Ariane 5 rocket due to haul the quartet to orbit this December.

Space Science Image of the Week: This colourful image captured during the summer’s total solar eclipse shows what the Sun is made of

Our week through the lens: 16-20 October 2017

A Sun-like star in our galaxy has likely eaten over a dozen of its rocky inner planets, earning it the nickname Kronos.

Several moons keep the A ring from falling apart.

Earth observation image of the week: Sentinel-1 radar vision during a period of severe flooding in Myanmar, also featured on the Earth from Space video programme

JPL and Google have collaborated on a free VR experience that lets people “walk” on Mars.

NASA has authorized a second extension of the Dawn mission at Ceres, the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Operations image of the week: Teams in Europe are driving a rover in Canada across a simulated Moonscape

Join us Friday, 20 October, at 10:00 CEST for the ‘Earth from Space’ video programme

NASA used images from the Hubble Space Telescope to create their own version of the Messier catalog.

A spacecraft destined to explore a unique asteroid will also test new communication hardware that uses lasers instead of radio waves.

A NASA team has mapped areas in northern California likely damaged by the recent wildfires, for use in the wildfire response.

Technology image of the week: Europe’s Galileo satnav system at work on smartphones

Titan experiences torrential downpours of methane rain, which help shape the surface of the alien world.

The first gravitational wave observed from a neutron star merger offers the potential for a whole raft of new discoveries. Among them is a more precise measurement of the Hubble constant, which captures how fast our universe is expanding.
Ever since th…

Delivering breast cancer screening results in a day instead of today’s standard two weeks is being proposed by an ESA incubator start-up company using paperless technology and online image transfers. Screening vans are already on the stree…

What better way to show your love of science than entering a hackathon? Organised by the Merck science and technology company, alongside ESA, the Space2Health hackathon recently attracted a set of talented individuals who crunched numbers …

Human spaceflight and robotic exploration image of the week: Underground excavation

Before “he went to Jared,” two neutron stars collided.
That’s what scientists learned from studying the debris fallout after a cosmic explosion called a kilonova — 1,000 times brighter than a standard nova — which appeared…

Firefighters are battling to keep the 30-acre blaze from reaching the observatory’s historic equipment.

Sentinel-3A took Ophelia’s temperature as the storm moved towards the British Isles

An unprecedented catalogue of more than 21 000 images taken by a webcam on ESA’s Mars Express is proving its worth as a science instrument, providing a global survey of unusual high-altitude cloud features on the Red Planet.

Europe’s first all-electric telecom satellite has reached its final working orbit above the Pacific Ocean. Eutelsat-172B, built for Eutelsat by Airbus, carries new technologies developed through ESA-led projects, including fully articulate…

New insights from the Saturn spacecraft’s exploration are being presented this week at the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Science meeting.

For the first time, NASA scientists have detected light tied to a gravitational-wave event.

ESA’s Integral satellite recently played a crucial role in discovering the flash of gamma rays linked to the gravitational waves released by the collision of two neutron stars.

When disaster strikes, a group of international space agencies pools its resources and expertise to support relief efforts on the ground. For the next six months, ESA will be leading the International Charter Space and Major Disasters as i…

Launched last week, Europe’s Sentinel-5P satellite – the first Copernicus mission dedicated to monitoring the air we breathe – is in excellent health.

For hundreds of millions of years, two city-sized stars in a galaxy not-so-far away circled each other in a fatal dance. Their dimensions were diminutive, but each outweighed our sun.
They were neutron stars — the collapsed cores left behind afte…

New LIGO discovery is an astronomer’s dream come true.

Space Science Image of the Week: A cloudy day over volcanic Mars, captured by the ExoMars orbiter

NASA is seeking information from U.S. parties interested in operating the Spitzer Space Telescope with non-NASA funding after March 2019, when NASA financial support ends.

Our week through the lens: 9-13 October 2017

From ESA’s technical heart in the Netherlands, watch the replay of the event to celebrate the launch of the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite, dedicated to monitoring our atmosphere

The first Copernicus mission dedicated to monitoring our atmosphere, Sentinel‑5P, has been launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia.

There’s no shortage of ideas. Here are a few of the scenarios explored.

Gravitational waves let us see the invisible universe in new ways.

Watch the replay of the Sentinel-5P launch from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia

The first full-scale model of the rocket motor that will propel Ariane 6 and Vega-C into orbit has been cast and filled with inert propellant for testing at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

Earth observation image of the week: Northeastern Russia and the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, from where the Sentinel-5P satellite is set for launch today

A new NASA study provides space-based evidence Earth’s tropical regions were the cause of the largest annual increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide in at least 2,000 years.

OCO-2 data are revealing subtle ways that carbon links everything on Earth, as demonstrated by a diverse special collection of research papers in the journal Science.

The Sentinel-3 satellite captured Hurricane Ophelia as it gains strength over the Atlantic Ocean

ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano has been on Earth since his mission to the International Space Station in 2013, but “Lucaparmitano” is now back in space thanks to an Italian astronomer.

The Kuiper Belt object Haumea has been hiding something from us.

Astronomers have nearly doubled the previous record for a distance measurement within our galaxy, paving the way for a full galactic map.

Operations image of the week: ESA’s antenna in Sweden will be the first to catch signals from Sentinel-5P in space tomorrow

Tackling future challenges. Watch the Global Space Economic Workshop in Paris 13 October, streaming live from 09:00 CEST

A study finds that giant exoplanets that orbit far from their stars are more likely to be found around young stars that have a disk of dust and debris than those without disks.

Shorter tease: Analysis of science data from the spacecraft’s final plunge is ongoing, but Cassini engineers already have a clear understanding of how the spacecraft behaved during its dive.

Sentinel-3 captured smoke from a recent outbreak of wildfires in the US state of California as they spread to the Pacific coast

These new stars aren’t new at all —but they still have a story to tell.

Live from ESA’s technical heart in the Netherlands, follow the event leading up to the launch of Sentinel-5P. Streaming begins at 08:30 GMT (10:30 CEST)

Follow the Sentinel-5P launch live from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia on 13 October. Streaming begins at 09:00 GMT (11:00 CEST), with liftoff scheduled at 09:27 GMT (11:27 CEST)

Technology image of the week: A young visitor explores ESA’s satellite test centre during Open Day

We are all aware that Antarctica’s ice shelves are thinning, but recently scientists have also discovered huge canyons cutting through the underbelly of these shelves, potentially making them even more fragile. Thanks to the CryoSat and Se…

NASA will hold a media teleconference at 11 a.m. PDT (2 p.m. EDT) Thursday, Oct. 12, to discuss new research to be published this week on changing global levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

A small space rock is being used by asteroid trackers around the world to test an international warning network.

The Concordia research station in Antarctica is a place of extremes: for nine months no supplies can be delivered, the nearest living beings are 600 km away at the Russian Vostok station, and the Sun does not rise above the horizon for fou…

The  Rêves de Gosse association, together with ESA and Novespace, helped to provide children with disabilities the opportunity to experience weightlessness and lunar gravity on aircraft flights.

Mission controllers completed a critical final rehearsal today, confirming that everything and everyone on ground are ready to take over control of Sentinel-5P in the harsh environment of space.

Small explosions called “nanoflares” may explain why parts of the Sun’s corona can reach tens of millions of degrees.

Human Spaceflight and robotic exploration image of the week: Spacewalking astronauts

With four days to liftoff, the next Sentinel satellite is now on the launch pad at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia.

Why do galaxies stop making stars?

Space Science Image of the Week: This colourful patchwork maps geological features on Mercury, destination for our upcoming BepiColombo mission

The discovery of evidence for ancient sea-floor hydrothermal deposits on Mars identifies an area on the planet that may offer clues about the origin of life on Earth.