Good News For Life

New research suggests as many as five Earth-like planets could exist in the habitable zone of a red dwarf star.

That's good news for life in the universe, as 70 percent of all stars are red dwarfs, which will shine for trillions of years.

Alien Network?

Two astronomers say they have detected light pulses from 234 sun-like stars in the galaxy that are consistent with predicted styles of alien signals.

The SETI establishment, and the two astronomers, all say much more work needs to be done.

Psyche

The metallic asteroid  Psyche may have water on its surface, according to new observations.

Astronomers think water would have gotten there via impacts.

Juno At Jupiter

NASA's Juno spacecraft is back in operation after putting itself in safe mode October 19.  Engineers are still investigating what happened.

Juno's next close flyby of Jupiter takes place on December 11.

Scanning Tabby's

SETI researchers at UC Berkeley are going to begin looking for alien signals emanating from the vicinity of Tabby's Star.

Tabby's Star has become famous because it may possibly host an alien megastructure.

Tilted Worlds

A new study argues the axial tilt of a world orbiting a M-dwarf star affects that world's habitability.

As we find more worlds orbiting other stars, suggesting life may be common, we are also discovering how complex the life matrix may be, suggesting life is rare.

Opening The High Frontier

A space tug would capture a satellite, take it to a fuel depot, fuel it, and allow it to go on to its intended geosynchronous orbit.  The depots would be fueled with hydrogen and oxygen-- both excellent rocket fuels-- taken from water mined from asteroids.

Such a system would reduce the cost of space operations.

Crash On Mars

The ExoMars lander crashed, the ESA says.   ESA lost contact with the lander one minute before scheduled touchdown, and some evidence suggests the lander exploded upon impact.

The orbital element of the mission is still operational.

Planet Nine

Astronomer Mike Brown of Caltech is predicting we will find the so far hypothetical Planet Nine within 16 months.

The huge world is thought to be at least ten times as massive as Earth, and a thousand times as fae from the Sun.

Problems At Jupiter

NASA's Juno probe is off to a rough start at Jupiter.  First, there was a rocket valve issue, and now the computer has put itself into safe mode.

The safe mode occurred just before the probe's first close approach to Jupiter.

Clouds Over Pluto

There may be clouds low in the atmosphere of Pluto, according to New Horizons data.

Pluto's atmosphere is proving far more complex than thought before the probe's flyby.

Galaxies Galore

A new study finds there are ten times as many galaxies in the universe as previously thought.

Observing all those galaxies, however, will have to wait for more advanced telescopes.

Blue Origin

Blue Origin plans to start flying commercial, suborbital flights for paying passengers as early as 2018.

BO is also already working on an orbital system.

ExoMars

ExoMars, the joint ESA-Russia mission, will land on Mars early next week.

The mission consists of an ESA lander and a Russian orbiter.

Perspective

JPMorgan Chase announced quarterly revenues of more than $25 billion today.

NASA's next yearly budget is set at about $19 billion.

New Dwarf Planet

Astronomers may have found a new dwarf planet far beyond Pluto.

The body, which is only 330 miles across, orbits the Sun once every 1,100 Earth years.

Obama On Space

President Obama, on  CNN, reiterated his goal of landing humans on Mars in the 2030s.

Of course, he will be out of office in a few weeks.  Neither Clinton nor Trump has really addressed space policy.

Project Blue

A private group is undertaking Project Blue, an effort to put a small telescope into space to search for Earth-like worlds in the Alpha Centauri system.

Estimated cost of the project is between $10 and $50 million.

Dust Storms

NASA thinks it has discovered a way to predict global dust storms on Mars.

A new study says the next global storm should develop shortly.

Experts On Musk

Many experts say Elon Musk's Mars colonization plan, as far as it goes, is feasible.

They say, however, the plan needs many more details in the areas of technology, science, and finance.

Electric Gauze

NASA is looking at an electric gauze that helps wounds heal faster for possible use by astronauts in space.

It will also help people on Earth.

SpaceShipOne

It's been a decade and more since SpaceShipOne reached space twice in two weeks.

That was to usher in a new era of private spaceflight.  In fact, Virgin Galactic hopes to begin commercial operations next year.

Tabby's Star

Tabby's Star, which may host an advanced civilization, is also dimming overall rapidly, a new study finds.  Astronomers don't know why.

Alien megastructure or not, the star is mysterious.

Sputnik

Today marks the 59th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik.

That modest beginning led to amazing scientific and technological advances that are continuing to this day.  Future historians could easily pair this period with the Renaissance.

Life On Mars

Scientists say early Mars was not hospitable to life, but if life did arise during a wet period, it could possibly have adapted and survived deep underground.

We may have to go 6 to 10 feet below the surface to find evidence of life.

North Korea

North Korea is developing a more powerful rocket engine that will be capable of putting larger satellites into Earth orbit.

Unfortunately, it will also be able to deliver a nuclear warhead to targets in Europe and America.