NASA

We launched our Spitzer Space Telescope into orbit around the Sunday on Aug. 25, 2003. Since then, the observatory has been lifting the veil on the wonders of the cosmos, from our own solar system to faraway galaxies, using infrared light.Thanks to Spitzer, scientists were able to confirm the presence of seven rocky, Earth-size planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system. The telescope has also provided weather maps of hot, gaseous exoplanets and revealed a hidden ring around Saturn. It has illuminated hidden collections of dust in a wide variety of locations, including cosmic nebulas (clouds of gas and dust in space), where young stars form, and swirling galaxies. Spitzer has additionally investigated some of the universe’s oldest galaxies and stared at the black hole at the center of the Milky Way....

WASHINGTON — While preparations for the first launch of Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket are accelerating, the company acknowledges there is “lots to do” to get the vehicle ready to meet a narrow launch window next month. The company has highlighted several major milestones towards the inaugural launch of the vehicle from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, currently scheduled for no earlier than Oct. 13. That included the arrival Sept. 4 of Jacklyn, the European-built ship that will serve as the landing platform for New Glenn’s first stage, at Port Canaveral. A day earlier, the company rolled out the second stage of the rocket to the launch pad in preparations for a static-fire test. “We’re looking forward to firing up those two BE-3Us on New Glenn...

by Lance D. Davis Did you know our planet has two types of seasons? They are meteorological and astronomical. What’s the difference? “Meteorological seasons” follow the changing of the calendar, month to month, and are based on the annual temperature cycle – seasonal temperature variations modified by fluctuations in the amount of solar radiation received by Earth’s surface over the course of a year. For instance, the meteorological season of spring begins each year on March 1 and will end on May 31. However, “astronomical” seasons happen because of the tilt of Earth’s axis (with respect to the Sun-Earth plane), and our planet’s position during its orbit around the Sun. An illustration of the March (spring) and September (fall or autumn) equinoxes. During the equinoxes, both hemispheres...

Nearly 100 years ago, astronomer Bernard Lyot invented the coronagraph – a device that made it possible to recreate a total solar eclipse by blocking the Sun’s light. That helped scientists study the Sun’s corona, which is the outermost part of our star’s atmosphere that’s usually hidden by bright light from its surface.Our Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, now under construction, will test out a much more advanced version of the same thing. Roman’s Coronagraph Instrument will use special masks to block the glare from host stars but allow the light from dimmer, orbiting planets to filter through. It will also have self-flexing mirrors that will measure and subtract starlight automatically.This glare-blocking prowess is important because planets can be billions of times dimmer than their h...

BETHESDA, Md. — The U.S. government’s support for the commercial remote sensing satellite industry is at a critical juncture amid growing military demand for real-time intelligence, industry experts said Aug. 27.  The commercial remote sensing satellite industry is expanding, but it’s still not equipped to meet evolving U.S. military needs for tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), said David Gauthier, former head of commercial operations at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). Tactical ISR refers to the immediate collection and analysis of data to inform military operations on the battlefield. This intelligence is crucial for decision making during to dynamic situations.  Speaking at the AFCEA-INSA Intelligence and National Security S...