Within the constellation of Hercules, 230 million light years away, a fierce and drawn-out battle is finally coming to an end. A pair of colliding galaxies, pulled together by gravity, are at last laying down their arms and joining forces. A newly released image from the Hubble Space Telescope depicts the two star systems on

WASHINGTON — NASA’s fiscal year 2020 budget request is facing scrutiny from nearly all quarters for its proposals to cut science missions and education programs as well as defer work on an upgraded version of the Space Launch System. The proposal, released March 11, offers $21.02 billion for NASA in 2020, a decrease of about

Scientists just discovered evidence of a massive solar storm that happened some 2,679 years ago. Such blasts of plasma and electromagnetic radiation from the Sun have the potential to seriously impact life on Earth, so it’s important for us to understand them as much as we can. The evidence they dug up is in the

The Air Force is proposing a large funding increase for the missile warning satellites known as the next-generation Overhead Persistent Infrared. WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force is requesting $13.8 billion for space programs in its fiscal year 2020 budget. That is $2 billion, or 17 percent, more than the $11.8 billion that Congress enacted

HELSINKI — OneSpace has completed assembly and testing of its OS-M rocket in preparation for a launch at the end of March which, if successful, would make it the first Chinese private rocket firm to reach orbit. Comprehensive tests on the OS-M1 solid propellant rocket began last week in Xi’an, north China, and the team

When it comes to understanding the history of the Solar System, a whole lot of clues to its past lie in the geological records right here on Earth. New research stretches that link back some 200 million years using what scientists are calling a Geological Orrery. You’ve probably seen an orrery before – it’s one

The caucus will seek to promote the economic, national security and infrastructure benefits of GPS technology, and will drive attention to the risks and oversight challenges that face the GPS industry, Sen. Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Sen. Ernst (R-Iowa) said in a joint news release. WASHINGTON — The Global Positioning System constellation will have its own

In budget documents, the White House said the Space Force will “initially realign existing space forces and materiel from the military services and will scale up responsibly and deliberately over the next several years.” WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is proposing a $4.7 trillion federal budget for fiscal year 2020 that includes $750 billion for

WASHINGTON — The maiden flight of Vega C, Europe’s next-generation light-lift vehicle, has slipped to early 2020, a change the manufacturer linked to 2019’s busy launch schedule. Giuseppe Coccon, a spokesperson for Avio, which manufactures the Vega and upcoming Vega C launchers, said the company chose to prioritize its 2019 Vega launch manifest over the

Black holes might easily be the most compelling mysteries in the Universe. Thought to be the collapsed cores of dead stars, these strange objects are well known for one particular property – matter goes in; nothing comes out. As far as we know, black holes are so dense that nothing can escape their event horizon. But

WASHINGTON — Exos Aerospace flew its SARGE reusable sounding rocket for the second time March 2, but winds kept the rocket from achieving its planned altitude. The Texas-based company launched the Suborbital Autonomous Rocket with Guidance, or SARGE, rocket from Spaceport America in New Mexico at about 12:45 p.m. Eastern time March 2. The launch

SpaceX has a new all-star crew member, though it’s anything but human: It’s a $US20 plush-toy planet that astronauts call “Little Earth” or “Earthy”. Last Saturday, SpaceX launched its new Crew Dragon spaceship designed for NASA astronauts toward the International Space Station (ISS), where the vehicle docked on March 3. No humans flew on the historic commercial mission, called Demo-1 – only a crash-test

WASHINGTON — British fleet operator Inmarsat is in the middle of a “very competitive procurement process” for GX Flex, its next-generation satellite system, CEO Rupert Pearce said March 7. The satellite system, first discussed almost a year ago, will be markedly different from traditional communications satellite programs that often take three to four years to

In the course of looking for possible signs of Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (ETI), scientists have had to do some really outside-of-the-box thinking. Since it is a foregone conclusion that many ETIs would be older and more technologically advanced than humanity, those engaged in the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI) have to consider what a more advanced

Wilson: “It has been a privilege to serve alongside our Airmen over the past two years and I am proud of the progress that we have made restoring our nation’s defense.” WASHINGTON — Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson informed President Trump on Friday that she will be stepping down May 31 to become president of

The Universe is a wondrous place, full of vast numbers of planets to explore, unsolved mysteries, and even ‘superbubbles‘ blown by black holes. But there’s one thing that space really isn’t: loud. Without Earth’s air molecules to help you hear, out there in space you’d be listening to a whole lot of silence. Luckily, that

WASHINGTON — Hong Kong-based fleet operator AsiaSat reported a third year of increased revenue, but warned that the C-band spectrum it uses for television broadcasts is now under threat in several of its markets. AsiaSat tallied 1.44 billion Hong Kong dollars ($183.7 million at current exchange rates) in revenue, up 6.5 percent over 2017, which

SAN FRANCISCO – Less than a week before a Federal Communications Commission auction of radio frequency spectrum for 5G, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai clearly expressed impatience with the weather community’s ongoing concerns about interference and requests to modify the U.S. government’s position. In a March 8 letter to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and NASA Administrator

A few hours ago, the SpaceX Crew Dragon splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, about 200 miles off the coast of Florida. The splashdown is the last act in what has been a successful first flight for the Crew Dragon. The flight, called Demo-1, was launched on March 2nd and spent five days at the

WARSAW, Poland — ArianeGroup says this year will be decisive for the Ariane 6 rocket as the program is close to having all its propulsion qualified, including a full upper stage test this December. Despite this progress, France’s supreme audit institution Cour des comptes has released a report in which it says that the Ariane