We actually do have solar observatories on Earth! However, building and operating them is incredibly difficult and limited by our atmosphere. The air blurs images, scatters light, and blocks crucial wavelengths of the Sun's radiation, forcing scientists to use space telescopes for the clearest view.
The planet K2-18b is widely discussed as having a 99.7% likelihood of simple microbial life. Located roughly 124 light-years away in the constellation Leo, this "Hycean" super-Earth has an atmosphere containing molecules like dimethyl sulfide (DMS), which on Earth are primarily produced by living organisms.
Visible light and observation
The Sun's colour is white, with a CIE colour-space index near (0.3, 0.3), when viewed from space or when the Sun is high in the sky.
Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is NASA's next flagship mission after Webb. The Roman Space Telescope is an infrared space observatory that will answer key questions in cosmology and astrophysics, with a major component of the mission focused on exoplanets.
A year in space for astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) is essentially the same as a year on Earth, lasting 365 days. While "time dilation" from high speeds makes astronauts age about 0.007 seconds less over six months, the difference is negligible, and they return nearly the same age as people on Earth.
The most terrifying object in space is a rogue black hole. These are super-dense dead stars that have been kicked out of their galaxies and wander silently through the cosmos at speeds up to 45 km/s, capable of passing through our solar system and tearing planets to shreds entirely undetected.
Get ready for a rare and historic celestial event. On Monday, March 23, 2178, the dwarf planet Pluto will complete its first full orbit around the Sun since its discovery on February 18, 1930. This monumental occasion marks a significant milestone in the study of our solar system.
Yes, urinating in space is difficult. Because microgravity causes body fluids to shift upward, the kidneys work overtime, requiring astronauts to urinate more frequently. Without gravity, astronauts cannot simply point and go; they must use specialized vacuum systems and funnels to prevent waste from floating away.
Dark matter and black holes are generally considered the most mysterious phenomena in space because they are largely invisible and defy traditional physics. Dark matter forms a "skeleton" for the universe, holding galaxies together, while supermassive black holes at the dawn of time challenge our understanding of how cosmic structures grow.
China is effectively barred from the International Space Station (ISS). This exclusion is driven by U.S. federal law—specifically the Wolf Amendment enacted in 2011—which strictly prohibits NASA from using its funds for bilateral, cooperative projects with China or Chinese-owned companies.
Space is essentially completely silent. Because sound requires a physical medium (like air or water) to travel, the vacuum of space leaves sound waves with nothing to vibrate. Even the most violent cosmic explosions are completely inaudible to the human ear.
Venus is known as Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet. It earned this title because it is our closest planetary neighbor and is nearly identical in size, mass, and rocky composition.
Would the oxygen in your suit be enough for the blood to spill red, or will it be blue? Your blood is never blue. Oxygenated blood is bright red. Un-oxygenated blood is dark red.
Jupiter is the planet estimated to have around 600 moons.
A 12-year-old on Earth would be roughly 49.8 years old on Mercury.
In 300 years, Voyager 1 will reach the inner edge of the Oort Cloud, a distant, icy boundary of the Sun's gravitational influence. It will then spend approximately 30,000 years traveling completely through the cloud, long after its power systems go permanently silent in the 2030s.
Black holes
A black hole is a region of space so dense, nothing can escape its its gravitational pull: not even light or any other form of electromagnetic radiation. Cross its 'event horizon' and you'll disappear forever. And astronomers now think there's a supermassive black hole at the centre of most galaxies.
Uranus holds the title of the solar system's most unloved—or at least most overlooked—planet. Because it lacks the dramatic rings of Saturn, the massive storms of Jupiter, or the close proximity of Mars and Venus, it often gets bypassed by major exploratory missions.
HD 140283 (also known as the Methuselah star) is a metal-poor subgiant star about 200 light years away from the Earth in the constellation Libra, near the boundary with Ophiuchus in the Milky Way galaxy. Its apparent magnitude is 7.205, so it can be seen with binoculars. It is the oldest star currently known.
Getting your period in space provides some challenges. Most astronauts who menstruate choose to use hormonal methods to stop their periods altogether, however some choose pads or tampons. But now, researchers have completed key testing for another potential option for astronauts who menstruate: menstrual cups.
A healthy human body typically holds between 1 to 2 pounds of feces at any given time. Your digestive tract is a transit system rather than a long-term storage facility, and popular claims that you can carry 10, 20, or even 40 pounds of waste are largely unfounded.
Not only is it possible to get aroused in space, but sometimes the environment has a turboing effect, giving rise to a nickname for the experience: space Viagra. "I had an erection so intense it was painful," Mullane said in his book Riding Rockets. "I could have drilled through kryptonite."
No, the girl who named Pluto, Venetia Burney Phair, passed away on April 30, 2009, at the age of 90.
On March 18, 1962, France and the leaders of the Front de Liberation Nationale (FLN) sign a peace agreement to end the seven-year Algerian War, signaling the end of 130 years of colonial French rule in Algeria.
Pluto will complete its first full orbit around the Sun since its discovery on March 23, 2178. Because of its immense distance from the Sun, a single Plutonian year takes roughly 248 Earth years to complete.