Space Science

NASA probe finds signs of water on asteroid Bennu

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has discovered ingredients for water on a relatively nearby skyscraper-sized asteroid, a rocky acorn-shaped object that may hold clues to the origins of life on Earth, scientists say.
Nasa spacecraft lands on Mars

Nasa's InSight spacecraft, the first robotic lander designed to study the deep interior of a distant world, touches down safely on the surface of Mars with instruments to detect planetary seismic rumblings never measured anywhere but Earth.
Bangladesh takes full control of Bangabandhu-1

Thales Alenia Space which developed Bangladesh's first geostationary communications satellite, Bangabandhu-1, yesterday handed over its transmission and operation management to Bangladesh.
Neil Armstrong's huge souvenir collection to be auctioned

Thousands of things that Neil Armstrong saved over the course of a career that saw him become the first man to walk on the moon will be auctioned off this week.
Japan space robots start asteroid survey

A pair of robot rovers have landed on an asteroid and begun a survey, Japan's space agency says, as it conducts a mission aiming to shed light on the origins of the solar system.
2 sportscar-sized satellites in orbit to measure Earth's water

A SpaceX rocket blasts off a duo of sports car-sized satellites built by the US and Germany to reveal changes in sea level rise, ice melt and drought on Earth.
SpaceX launches Bangabandhu-1 with most powerful Falcon 9 rocket

SpaceX blasts off its newest and most powerful Falcon 9 rocket, known as the Block 5, to launch the first communications satellite for Bangladesh called Bangabandhu Satellite-1, marking a leap forward in re-usability for the California-based aerospace company.
NASA plans to send mini-helicopter to Mars

The US space agency says Friday it plans to launch the first-ever helicopter to Mars in 2020, a miniature, unmanned drone-like chopper that could boost our understanding of the Red Planet.
Bangabandhu-1 on its way to orbit

The nation's dream satellite, Bangabandhu-1, is now on its way to orbit after its perfect and successful launching, making Bangladesh's debut in the global space society.
Bangabandhu-1 launch process postponed, to resume tomorrow

Satellite launching company SpaceX has postponed its process to launch Bangabandhu-1 to the orbit due to a standard ground system auto abort. It will resume the process tomorrow at 4:14pm US local time, SpaceX told in a tweet.
US invites visitors for Bangabandhu-1 launch

Kennedy Space Centre has invited visitors to witness the launching of Bangabandhu-1, Bangladesh’s first commercial satellite, at its visitor complex tomorrow.
SpaceX blasts off NASA's new planet-hunter, TESS

NASA blasts off its newest planet-hunting spacecraft, TESS, a $337 million satellite that aims to scan 85 percent of the skies for cosmic bodies where life may exist.
NASA's new planet-hunter to seek closer, Earth-like worlds

NASA is poised to launch a $337 million washing machine-sized spacecraft that aims to vastly expand mankind's search for planets beyond our solar system, particularly closer, Earth-sized ones that might harbor life.
India successfully puts navigation satellite into orbit

India puts into orbit navigation satellite IRNSS-1I, a part of its satellite navigation system NavIC in copy-book style.
Chinese space station burns up over South Pacific

China’s Tiangong-1 space station re-enters the earth’s atmosphere and burns up over the middle of the South Pacific, the Chinese space authority says.
Astronomers find the 'impossible': A galaxy without dark matter

Stupefied astronomers unveil the first and only known galaxy without dark matter, the invisible and poorly-understood substance thought to make up a quarter of the Universe.
Alien life in our Solar System? Study hints at Saturn's moon

Humanity may need look no further than our own Solar System in the search for alien life, researchers probing one of Saturn's moons say.
NASA turns selfies by Mars rover into stunning self-portrait

NASA has transformed selfies taken by its Mars rover Curiosity into a stunning self-portrait.
‘Super blue blood moon’ in Bangladesh sky

If you miss it tonight, you will have to wait for another 35 years to get the chance to see it. On Bangladesh sky, the entire lunar event – also named “super blue blood moon” -- started at 4:49pm and will end at 10:09pm (local time).
Pentagon’s secret UFO hunters

At last the Pentagon has acknowledged funding a secret multi-million-dollar programme to investigate sightings of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO).
Fly me to the Moon: For some, lunar village takes shape

By 2040, a hundred people will live on the Moon, melting ice for water, 3D-printing homes and tools, eating plants grown in lunar soil, and competing in low-gravity, "flying" sports.
Satellite to test space garbage collection methods

A satellite designed to test various technologies that may help tackle the growing problem of space junk undergoes final pre-flight testing.
Space station crew to get 3 shots at solar eclipse Aug 21

Crew at the International Space Station will enjoy views of the August 21 solar eclipse during three successive orbits, reports CBS News.
Other planets may never be as hospitable as Earth: study

Scientists deal a blow to the quest for organisms inhabiting worlds besides Earth, saying our planet was unusual in its ability to host liquid water -- the key ingredient for life.
Journey of Brac Onnesha begins

Bangladesh’s first nano-satellite, made by students of privately-run Brac University, has begun orbiting the Earth. It will pick high quality photographs of land to analyse vegetation, urbanisation, flood, water resources, forestry and other natural resources from overhead for research purposes.
510mm rainfall in southeast Bangladesh June 12-14: Nasa

Nasa has recorded 510mm (20 inches) rainfall in southeastern Bangladesh between June 12 and 14 when landslides triggered by heavy downpour killed at least 150 people in five hilly districts so far.
US spacewalkers overcome glitch on 200th station outing

Two US astronauts overcome an early equipment glitch to complete an abbreviated spacewalk outside the International Space Station, accomplishing all the major tasks initially planned for a longer excursion in four hours, NASA says.
US spacecraft shares first view from inside Saturn's rings

NASA's Cassini spacecraft sends the closest-ever images of Saturn after surviving its first plunge inside the planet's rings, the US space agency says.
Chinese scientists breed world's first 'space mangoes'

The embryonic cells of the mango brought back by manned spacecraft Shenzhou XI last November after the 33-day space mission have now grown new tissues at a lab in South China's Hainan province.
NASA finds India's lost lunar rover after 8 years

India's first lunar probe - Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft - which was considered lost is still orbiting the moon, NASA scientists have discovered. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) lost communication with Chandrayaan-1 on August 29, 2009, almost a year after it was launched on October 22, 2008.