ESA – Physics and Nano

Mars’ Summer Solstice…

The hills in Mars’ Australe Scopuli region, located near the planet’s south pole, are covered in carbon dioxide ice. The darker areas are layers of dust. (Image credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin) Topics: Astrophysics, Environment, ESA, Mars, NASA, Planetary Science, Space Exploration Snow dots the Martian landscape in these images from ESA’s Mars Express orbiter and NASA’s MarsContinue reading “Mars’ Summer Solstice…”

Valentina Tereshkova…

Valentina Tereshkova. Credit: ESA Topics: Astronautics, ESA, History, NASA, Space Exploration, Spaceflight, Women in Science The first female cosmonaut flew years before NASA put a man on the Moon and decades before any other country would send a woman into orbit. On a drab Sunday in Moscow in November 1963, a dark-suited man stood besideContinue reading “Valentina Tereshkova…”

WASP-39b and CO2…

Topics: Astrophysics, Chemistry, ESA, Exoplanets, James Webb Space Telescope, NASA The James Webb Space Telescope — already famous for its mesmerizing images of the cosmos — has done it again. The telescope has captured the first unambiguous evidence of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of a planet outside the Solar System. The finding not only provides tantalizingContinue reading “WASP-39b and CO2…”

Sun Quake…

Topics: Astronomy, Astrophysics, ESA, Heliophysics, NASA For new Sun-watching spacecraft, the first solar eruption is always special. On February 12, 2021, a little more than a year from its launch, the European Space Agency and NASA’s Solar Orbiter caught sight of this coronal mass ejection, or CME. This view is from the mission’s SoloHI instrument —Continue reading “Sun Quake…”

SABRE…

Topics: Aerodynamics, ESA, NASA, Space Exploration, Spaceflight The pursuit, exploration and utilization of the space environment can be misinterpreted as a luxury. History portrays space as an exclusive domain for global powers looking to demonstrate their prowess through technological marvels, or the stage for far-off exploration and scientific endeavour with little impact on daily life. However,Continue reading “SABRE…”