Science

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe will make a close approach to Venus on Wednesday, marking the spacecraft’s seventh and final flyby of the planet. This manoeuvre will set the probe on a course for its historic plunge toward the sun, bringing it within 3.8 million miles of our star’s surface — closer than any human-made object

Astronomers are watching two unusual black holes, each presenting phenomena that challenge current understanding of these cosmic giants. One, a “serial killer” black hole, is about to devour its second star within five years, while the other, part of the newly discovered triple system V404 Cygni, has disrupted long-held theories of black hole formation. The

A team of astronomers, using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Chandra X-ray Observatory, has identified a black hole consuming matter at a record-breaking rate in a young galaxy. Named LID-568, this black hole is found in a galaxy thought to have formed only 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang.

India has delayed its inaugural astronaut mission under the Gaganyaan programme to 2026, pushing the timeline a year beyond the original schedule. The decision, announced by S. Somanath, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), reflects a commitment to safety in light of recent aerospace industry setbacks. According to Somanath, India’s first manned mission

Scientists at the University of Tokyo have made a major discovery by creating animal cells that can draw energy from sunlight. This achievement was made possible by embedding chloroplasts, photosynthetic structures found in algae, into animal cells, a process previously thought impossible. The researchers believe this new method could open doors to innovative solutions in

The Hang Son Doong cave in Vietnam, located in Quang Binh Province within Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park currently holds the title as the largest known cave in the world. With dimensions exceeding three miles (5 km) in length and 660 feet (200 m) in height, this natural wonder could house 15 Great Pyramids of

The technical setbacks with Boeing’s Starliner mission highlight ongoing challenges for the aerospace company, particularly in regaining trust and stability. Boeing’s Starliner was launched with astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams. It was the spacecraft’s first human-crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The engine malfunctions and a helium leak were detected soon after

Earth recently captured a small asteroid known as 2024 PT5, temporarily transforming it into a second moon. This rare event was confirmed by astronomers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Complutense University of Madrid, offering a glimpse into these elusive “mini-moons” that Earth occasionally holds within its orbit. However, Earth’s newly acquired companion is

ESA’s Proba-3 mission, designed to create solar eclipses in space to study the Sun’s corona, has officially left European soil and is en route to its launch site in India. This dual-spacecraft mission departed from Redwire Space’s facility in Kruibeke, Belgium, to travel to the Satish Dhawan Space Centre near Chennai, where the final launch

An unprecedented nine-day tsunami following a significant rockslide in Greenland’s Dickson Fjord was recently recorded by the international Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite, a collaborative mission by NASA and France’s Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES). The event, which took place in September 2023, saw a unique pattern of seismic waves resonate around the

South Korea’s space agency announced plans on Friday to launch a solar coronagraph to the International Space Station (ISS) in a collaborative mission with NASA. Developed as part of the Coronal Diagnostic Experiment (CODEX), this instrument is set to observe and gather data on the Sun’s corona and the solar wind as well as the

NASA’s Perseverance rover which is positioned in the Jezero Crater on Mars, recently observed a remarkable celestial event as the moon Phobos drifted across the Sun. Captured on September 30, this moment offered a rare glimpse into Mars’ sky, where the unique “googly eye” effect of the eclipse unfolded for the rover’s Mastcam-Z camera. The

In an unprecedented find for Hong Kong, scientists have uncovered the city’s first-ever dinosaur fossils on Port Island. Preliminary analysis suggests that the bones likely belonged to a large Cretaceous-era dinosaur, an era dating back 145 to 66 million years. Officials have stated that further studies are necessary to determine the specific species, marking an

The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center—Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC—James) recently conducted a survey revealing a worrying knowledge gap about pancreatic cancer in adults under 50. Although pancreatic cancer is increasingly diagnosed in younger people, the survey found that over half of respondents did not recognise its

A study from the University of North Carolina reveals a potential link between early-life sleep disruptions and autism risk. The research shows that when young children miss out on sleep, it could affect their brain development, which might increase the likelihood of neurodevelopmental issues. For infants and young children, sleep is critical. It’s during sleep