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The second Sentinel-1 satellite, Sentinel-1B, is set for launch on 22 April. Discover more about the constellation and ‘radar vision’ for Copernicus

New observations of Reticulum II show that heavy elements are likely left over from rare collisions between two neutron stars.

Astronomers have captured the earliest minutes of two exploding stars and for the first time have seen a shockwave generated by a star’s collapsing core.

A new map of Mars’ gravity made with three NASA spacecraft is the most detailed to date, providing a revealing glimpse into the hidden interior of the Red Planet.

The planet-hunting telescope Kepler has set its eyes on a new target: exploding stars.

This remarkable sand-based art show from artist Didi Rodan took place at a recent conference on ESA’s Asteroid Impact Mission, sponsored by GMV in Madrid

Space science image of the week: Superheated iron atoms show what human eyes cannot see in the Sun’s atmosphere

The map will be helpful for future Mars exploration because better knowledge of the planet’s gravity anomalies helps mission controllers insert spacecraft more precisely into orbit about Mars.

Two comets that will safely fly past Earth later this month may have more in common than their intriguingly similar orbits. They may be twins of a sort.

Two comets that will safely fly past Earth later this month may have more in common than their intriguingly similar orbits.

Stunning ultra high-definition video of ESA astronaut Tim Peake’s Principia mission

Our week through the lens: 14-18 March 2016

By year’s end, we should know what NASA’s proposed mission to Neptune and/or Uranus could look like.

The Cold Atom Laboratory will forge “fluffy molecules” and probe the wonders of quantum physics when it launches to the International Space Station next year.

A new class of behemoth spiral galaxies has been uncovered using NASA archival data.

Operations image of the week: Asteroid hunters in three countries spotted ExoMars en route to the Red Planet

Explore the Space Station’s second module on your mobile phone or virtual reality headset

Join us Friday, 18 March, at 10:00 CET for the ‘Earth from Space’ video programme. This week features a Sentinel-2A image of Yuma in the US

Astronomers have traced the source of the most energetic cosmic radiation to the center of the Milky Way.

Jason-3, a new U.S.-European satellite with NASA participation, has produced its first complete science map of global sea surface height, capturing the current El Niño.

Technology image of the week; ESA’s first 3D-printed dual-reflector antenna undergoes radio-frequency testing

Observations suggest that the material of the spots is volatile and evaporates in the warm glow of sunlight.

Engineers building parts of a new type of power plant for generating green energy with nuclear fusion are using their expertise from building rockets like Europe’s Ariane 5 to create the super-strong structures to cope with conditions similar to those inside the Sun.

A black hole called V404 Cygni underwent dramatic brightening for about two weeks as it devoured material that it had stripped off an orbiting companion star.

ESRIN’s Open Days 2016 gave 2000 schoolchildren an opportunity to learn more about ESA’s Centre for Earth Observation

Human spaceflight and robotic operations image of the week: ESA’s new docking ring

The spacecraft has begun a seven-month journey to Mars, where it will address unsolved mysteries of the planet’s atmosphere.

Relive key moments as ExoMars 2016 separates from the Breeze upper stage and sends its first signals back to Earth

The first of two joint ESA-Roscosmos missions to Mars has begun a seven-month journey to the Red Planet, where it will address unsolved mysteries of the planet’s atmosphere that could indicate present-day geological – or even biological – activity.

NASA’s Game Changing Development (GCD) program has selected four proposals to develop solar array technologies that will aid spacecraft in exploring destinations well beyond low-Earth orbit, including Mars.

Proving their robots have what it takes to storm a castle, an alliance of three high schools won the Los Angeles regional FIRST Robotics Competition on March 12.

A new study explores the relationship between climate cycles and sea level variations, and could lead to better predictions of sea level changes.

The Dawn project team has earned two prestigious awards, honoring its mission to Vesta and Ceres.

Two NASA radios aboard the European Space Agency’s Mars mission that launched today are engineered to provide communication relay service for rovers and landers on Mars.

Space Science Image of the Week: ESA’s Giotto made its historic flyby of Comet Halley 30 years ago

Watch ExoMars 2016 lift off into space, with launch build-up and commentary from mission experts

Scientists have discovered a giant “bite mark” on Pluto’s surface that may have been caused by a process known as sublimation.

Watch ExoMars 2016 liftoff from Baikonur, Kazakhstan on a Proton rocket

ESA’s mission control conducted the dress rehearsal for the ExoMars launch today, an important final step in preparing the ground teams and systems for the 14 March departure to the Red Planet.

NASA has selected 28 researchers as participating scientists for the Curiosity Mars rover mission, including six newcomers to the rover’s science team.

Video showing the rocket carrying the ExoMars 2016 spacecraft being rolled out to the launch pad

Our week through the lens: 7-11 March 2016

A recent observational campaign allowed a team of astronomers to measure accurately the rotational rate of one of the most massive black holes in the universe.

These cosmic giants are not merely novelties of size or girth, rather they represent pathways to understanding how our entire universe evolved in the past and where it may be heading in the future.

Thirty years ago, Giotto met Comet Halley, inspiring an art competition for children

Follow updates as we count down to the launch of ExoMars on Monday

Earth observation image of the week: a Sentinel-2A image of Cyprus, also featured on the Earth from Space video programme

Updates from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for the launch of ExoMars 2016 today.

NASA has selected two new Earth science investigations, including one from JPL, that will put instruments in orbit to track harmful air pollutants and study tropical cyclones.

Explore the Space Station’s first module with your mobile phone or virtual-reality headset

Space science and engineering education gets a new boost

Operations image of the week: In its first operational usage, ESA’s new tracking antenna in Australia followed Ariane’s launch yesterday, providing perfect contact

Join us Friday, 11 March, at 10:00 CET for the ‘Earth from Space’ video programme. This week features a Sentinel-2A image of Cyprus

Scientists think the encounter blew away part of Mars’ upper atmosphere, much like a strong solar storm would.

Watch live launch coverage on 14 March from 08:30 GMT. Launch is scheduled for 09:31 GMT and acquisition of signal is expected at 21:29 GMT

Just weeks before the historic encounter of comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) with Mars in October 2014, NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft entered orbit around the Red Planet.

True to its purpose, the big NASA spacecraft that began orbiting Mars a decade ago this week has delivered huge advances in knowledge about the Red Planet.

How engineers devised a clever solution to give NASA’s Kepler spacecraft a new mission.

NASA’s InSight mission to study the deep interior of Mars is targeting a new launch window that begins May 5, 2018.

Human spaceflight and robotic exploration image of the week: Lightning captured by ESA astronaut Tim Peake

The mission’s primary goal is to help us understand how rocky planets — including Earth — formed and evolved.

The Very Large Telescope Interferometer found disks around aging stars are similar to those around young ones.

Technology image of the week: Tenerife, as imaged by ESA’s Proba-V minisatellite, is set to host the Big Data from Space conference

An Ariane 5 lifted off this morning to deliver telecom satellite Eutelsat-65 West A into its planned transfer orbit. Liftoff of flight VA229 occurred at 05:20 GMT (02:20 local time, 06:20 CET) from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

The three instruments on the Sentinel-3A satellite are now offering a tantalising glimpse of what’s in store for Europe’s Copernicus environmental monitoring effort. The latest images, which feature Europe and Antarctica, come from the sensor that records Earth’s radiant energy.

With just days to go before the departure of ExoMars, mission teams are in the final stages of their months-long training that ensures everyone knows their job the moment the mission comes alive.

Astronomy Senior Editor Richard Talcott shares his journey across Indonesia with Astronomy magazine readers ahead of the March 9 total solar eclipse.

A future observatory in space, sensitive to gravitational waves with longer wavelengths than those detected on the ground, would be an essential tool to exploit gravitational astronomy.

Following a long series of tests, ESA’s LISA Pathfinder has started its science mission to prove key technologies and techniques needed to observe gravitational waves from space.

ESA business incubation has passed the milestone of 400 new companies. The initiative to profit from space technology and expertise to create new businesses and jobs in Europe also boosts local economies and Europe’s competitiveness.  

ESA and UK satellite operator Inmarsat are forging ahead with the development of air–ground communications via satellite as part of Europe’s plan to keep our skies safe as air traffic increases.

NASA’s Dawn mission commemorates the spacecraft’s first year at Ceres with new images of a mysterious mountain.

ESA’s Josef Aschbacher joins the Earth from Space video programme to discuss the past, present and future of the Copernicus programme and the Sentinel satellites

Researchers have discovered about 80 young galaxies that existed in the early universe about 1.2 billion years after the Big Bang.

Among Ceres’ most enigmatic features is a tall mountain the Dawn team named Ahuna Mons.

Space science image of the week: Intricate swirls of gas show us a glimpse of the Sun’s future

Our week through the lens: 29 February – 4 March 2016

Following the first impressive images from Sentinel-3A, this latest Copernicus satellite is now showing us how another of its instruments, an altimeter, will track sea-level change.

Cassini images show bright features that change over time.

Earth observation image of the week: a Sentinel-2A image of Utah in the US, also featured on the Earth from Space video programme