Study reveals the Phoenix galaxy cluster in the act of extreme cooling

Observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope help to explain the cluster’s mysterious starburst, usually only seen in younger galaxies.

Jennifer Chu | MIT News • mit
today ~8 min

Sofas that self-assemble when you heat them up? How 4D printing could transform manufacturing

This unsung research area involves 3D-printing smart materials that can change shape when they come into contact with stimuli like heat or light.

Mahdi Bodaghi, Associate Professor of Smart Materials & Manufacturing, Nottingham Trent University • conversation
yesterday ~8 min


MIT engineers develop a fully 3D-printed electrospray engine

Ideal for propelling tiny satellites, the lightweight devices could be produced on board a spacecraft and cost much less than traditional thrusters.

Adam Zewe | MIT News • mit
yesterday ~8 min

Why a physicist hates this 1 Star Trek scene

Watch a physicist explain how a 'Star Trek: Generations' scene violates the laws of physics.

James Devitt-NYU • futurity
Feb. 11, 2025 ~2 min

Lightning strikes link weather on Earth and weather in space

Lightning can be used to probe Earth’s dynamic Van Allen radiation belts, directly connecting terrestrial weather and space weather.

Lauren Blum, Assistant Professor of Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder • conversation
Feb. 5, 2025 ~8 min

Property and sovereignty in space − as countries and companies take to the stars, they could run into disputes

Space isn’t lawless, but the agreements governing it don’t cover everything nations will have to grapple with as they develop their space programs.

Wayne N White Jr, Adjunct Professor of Aviation and Space Law, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University • conversation
Jan. 31, 2025 ~10 min

Rare and mysterious cosmic explosion: Gamma-ray burst or jetted tidal disruption event?

Researchers characterize the peculiar Einstein Probe transient EP240408a.

MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research • mit
Jan. 29, 2025 ~3 min

Will the US get to Mars quicker if it drops or delays plans to visit the Moon?

There’s been speculation that Donald Trump may cancel the Space Launch System rocket, which Nasa intended to use to get from the Moon to Mars.

Ian Whittaker, Senior Lecturer in Physics, Nottingham Trent University • conversation
Jan. 29, 2025 ~8 min


Bennu asteroid reveals its contents to scientists − and clues to how the building blocks of life on Earth may have been seeded

New findings reveal that a NASA mission traveled to an asteroid that may have once been covered in salty lakes containing organic molecules.

Sara Russell, Professor of Planetary Sciences, Natural History Museum • conversation
Jan. 29, 2025 ~10 min

Astronauts Stay Busy on International Space Station Awaiting Flight Home

VOA Learning English • voa
Jan. 26, 2025 ~6 min

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