Tag: Nasa

Washington: NASA’s New Horizons probe has discovered a stunning mountain range on Pluto with peaks jutting as high as 11,000 feet above the surface. The data suggests that the Pluto’s surface was formed no more than 100 million years ago – a mere youngster in a 4.56-billion-year-old solar system. It also means that the close-up […]

Washington: After completing the historic fly-by of Pluto, NASA’s New Horizons probe has successfully beamed a pre-programmed “phone call” — a 15-minute series of status messages -to mission scientists on Earth. US President Barack Obama congratulated the NASA team for this historic feat on Twitter. “Pluto just had its first visitor! Thanks @NASA – it’s […]

Madrid: Rocks rich in silica similar to those in the oldest part of Earth’s continental crust are scattered throughout the area where NASA’s Curiosity probe is exploring on Mars, according to a study published on Monday in Nature Geo-science. The discovery comes amid growing evidence that, in the past, Mars may have been much more […]

New York: As NASA’s New Horizons probe moves closer to Pluto, Google has created a doodle to honour the historic moment that will reveal the mysterious world of the dwarf planet for the first time. Google Doodle shows a small illustration of the probe spinning around the dwarf planet to honour its ground-breaking journey. According […]

Washington: NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has provided images of sunspots from the other side of the Sun that is turned away from Earth. While investigating bedrock types on Mars’ Mount Sharp and preparing for a drill test, Curiosity tracked large sunspots from the opposite side of the Sun. “Tracking the sunspot activity on the far […]

Washington: Just two days away from the historic flyby of the mysterious Pluto system, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has taken the finest image of four dark spots on Pluto that continue to captivate millions on the Earth. The spots appear on the side of Pluto that always faces its largest moon Charon – the face […]

Los Angeles: A heart-shaped feature was viewed on Pluto’s surface in the most detailed photo yet returned by NASA’s New Horizons probe, which has now begun its final run of its historic flyby of the planet In the early morning hours on Wednesday, mission scientists received the clearest image of the reddish-brownish dwarf planet by […]

Washington: A software glitch that triggered communication loss with NASA’s New Horizon spacecraft has been rectified and the probe is on way for a Pluto fly-by on July 14, the US space agency has said. The investigation into the anomaly that caused New Horizons to enter “safe mode” last weekend has concluded that no hardware […]

Washington: NASA’s New Horizon probe, set for a Pluto flyby on July 14 has confirmed that there is frozen methane on Pluto’s surface. The Earth-based astronomers first observed Methane on Pluto in 1976. “We already knew there was methane on Pluto but these are our first detections,” said Will Grundy, team leader with the Lowell […]

Washington: Three Expedition 43 crew members are all set to return to Earth on today after their 199-day stay on the International Space Station (ISS). Commander Terry Virts and flight engineers Anton Shkaplerov and Samantha Cristoforetti will board the Soyuz TMA-15M spacecraft for landing in Kazakhstan at 7.13 p.m. (India time). Virts had ceremoniously handed […]

Washington: After a series of weather-related delays, NASA has successfully tested its revolutionary “flying saucer” that will help land heavier payloads on the surface of long-distance planets, including Mars. NASA’s Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) project completed its second flight test when the saucer-shaped craft splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of […]

Washington: Using a step-wise approach, NASA could land astronauts on the Red Planet by the end of the 2030s in an efficient and cost-effective way, new research says. Before astronauts attempt to land on the dusty Martian surface, they must first be prepared to touch down on one of Mars’ two tiny moons-Phobos or Deimos […]

Washington: Expect to see some stunning images of Hyperion, Saturn’s odd, tumbling moon – soon as NASA’s Cassini spacecraft made its final fly-by of the spongy moon on Sunday. According to the US space agency, the Cassini spacecraft was positioned at a distance of about 34,000 km from Hyperion. Mission scientists hope to see different […]

Washington: NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, on way to meet Pluto, has taken fresh images of the mysterious planet that reveal more detail about its complex and high contrast surface. The images were taken from just under 77 million km away, using the Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on New Horizons. “As New Horizons closes in on […]

Washington: The US space agency has selected nine science instruments for a mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa. The aim is to investigate whether the mysterious icy moon could harbour conditions suitable for life. Europa has tantalised scientists with its enigmatic icy surface and evidence of a vast ocean. “We have gathered amazing data from 11 […]