HowStuffWorks Newsletter
Explore the vast reaches of space and mankind’s continuing efforts to conquer the stars, including theories such as the Big Bang, the International Space Station, plus what the future holds for space travel and exploration.
Topics to Explore:
The gegenschein, "faint light" in German, occurs under very specific astronomical conditions when the sun reaches the exact opposite of Earth from wherever you're stargazing.
NASA's DART mission will test a technology that someday could protect the Earth from a killer asteroid.
Soon, one out of every 15 points of light in the night sky will actually be a satellite, not a star.
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Camden County in South Georgia was once considered as a backup site for launching the Apollo missions. Now this quiet county could be the next big launching site to space.
By John Donovan
Is it possible that we are not alone in the universe, but are just like animals in a zoo to the aliens who are watching us?
By Robert Lamb
Using the Chandra X-ray Observatory, a team of scientists discovered what could very well be the first exoplanet outside the Milky Way. It's massive and might even orbit a black hole.
If our living space is to become outer space, we have a lot of challenges to address. And our first line of defense will be space architects.
By John Donovan
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Two mission scientists working with the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter give us the breakdown of the historic achievements the two Martian ships have made in the months on the Red Planet.
Early dark energy, a form of dark energy that may have existed a few hundred thousand years after the big bang, could help clarify the universe's rate of expansion. But its existence hasn't been proven.
The Mars solar conjunction occurs every two years and forces NASA to stop communicating with assets on the Red Planet. So what's the deal?
Before humans can go to Mars, NASA needs to know how to prepare for the challenges. So, they're looking for a few brave men and women to live in isolation for a year at the Johnson Space Center. Want to join them?
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Scientists have observed flashes of X-rays coming from behind a supermassive black hole, consistent with Albert Einstein's prediction that extremely large objects can bend light.
Today, Blue Origin flew its billionaire founder Jeff Bezos and three others into space, a week after Virgin Galactic flew its billionaire founder Richard Branson on the same mission. Will space tourism be more than a millionaire's hobby?
On July 20, 2021, Wally Funk will blast off. Her trip to space has been delayed since 1961, when the 'Mercury 13' Woman in Space Program was cancelled.
The Chinese space station Tiangong, now with its first crew of astronauts, is scheduled for completion in 2022. What does that mean for the future of the aging International Space Station and multinational space cooperation?
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Yep, two small-bodied Russian tortoises made it to the moon and back before man did.
By Mark Mancini
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his brother plan to blast into space next month. But even if you're not related to a billionaire, you can still experience the fun of space at a 'down-to-Earth' price.
NASA will be sending two new missions to Venus between 2028 and 2030, but why is this so exciting and what do they hope to accomplish?
Recently, there's been a spike in UFO sightings — officially UAP, or Unidentified Aerial Phenomena — all over the world and nobody seems to know why or what the objects we're seeing might be.
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What most people remember about Apollo 14 is Alan Shepard hitting golf balls on the moon. But on the same mission, command module pilot Stuart Roosa took seeds to space and back and now they're beautiful trees on Earth.
Since Dennis Tito first visited the International Space Station, eight more space tourists have paid between $20 and $30 million to fly through the Russian space program. Will human spaceflight ever get a little cheaper and more democratized?
In recent years, Saturn has overtaken Jupiter as the planet with the most moons in our solar system. How many does it have and could it have even more?
One of the three-man crew of Apollo 11, the mission that first set foot on the moon, Michael Collins was a true American hero.
By Mark Mancini
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You know Saturn and Venus and Mars and ... some others. Can you put the eight planets of the solar system in the correct order? There are several ways to do this.
Missions to Mars are increasing and the dream of landing a human on the red planet is no longer far-fetched — it might even happen in the next decade. So, how long does it take to get there?