Under the ice

Dusty ice exposed at the surface of Mars could provide the conditions necessary for the presence of photosynthetic life, according to a new modelling study

The rise of cube-sats

The swift progress and substantial investments already made in CubeSat missions could help make humans a multiplanetary species. But that journey will be a long one – and depends on the next generation of scientists to develop this dream.

The race back to the Moon

The booming space industry is fixed on the Moon as a destination and major nations cannot afford to miss this boat as the space sector can boost whole economies.

Plenty of space for cubesats

New Curtin University research could change how space missions are conducted and lead to improvements in industries as diverse as environmental management, agriculture, disaster management and infrastructure inspection.

I’m not saying it’s aliens…

A team of astronomers have poured through recent astronomical survey data to identify seven candidates for alien megastructures, known as Dyson spheres, “deserving of further analysis”.

From Sydney to the stars

According to a recent survey, the Australian public lacks awareness of global space activities and domestic space endeavours, so, what is Australia is up to in space?

The search for extra-solar oceans

There may be oceans inside dwarf planets beyond the orbit of Pluto, just as there are inside several Jovian and Saturnian moons.

Voyage to Europa

If life has developed independently in the vast oceans of Jupiter’s moon Europa, it’s likely the whole universe is teeming with life, so the scientific search is intensifying and a space probe sent to collect dust around Jupiter might even find it.

Back to the Moon

Late last week, the American company Intuitive Machines, in collaboration with NASA, celebrated “America’s return to the Moon” with a successful landing of its Odysseus spacecraft.

Destination Mars

Scientists have been working on ways to colonise Mars for almost a century, and the prospect of human exploration has been increased by the growth of ambitious private space companies like SpaceX.

Moondance

Private, profit seeking companies are now offering consumers the chance to send human ashes and personal mementoes to the Moon, despite a maze of legal, practical and ethical conundrums.

Watch the skies in 2024

A range of exciting space missions are planned for 2024, exploring the sun, the moon and the wider solar system.