Europa | The Daily Space

JAXA Triggers Flight Termination of Launch

Oct 20, 2022 | Asteroids, Daily Space, DART, Europa, JAXA, Lucy, Mars, Rockets, Space China, SpaceX, Stars, Supernovae

Space is hard, and some days, getting rockets to work doesn’t go as well as expected. An Epsilon rocket launched by JAXA and carrying eight payloads including RAISE 3 was lost when mission control triggered the flight termination system due to an attitude issue. Plus, stars blowing dust rings, stars exploding, asteroids getting hit with spacecraft, and Europa’s geysers may not come from the subsurface ocean.

Observed: It’s a Star-Eat-Star Universe

Oct 7, 2022 | Crewed Space, Daily Space, Europa, Galaxies, Review, Rockets, Spacecraft, SpaceX, Starlink, Stars, White Dwarfs

While astronomers have observed white dwarfs consuming companion stars on numerous occasions, for the first time, they have now observed the consumption of the companion’s helium and not just hydrogen. Plus, galactic alignment, rocket launches including Crew 5, a new Europa image, and a review of the video game “Tinykin”.

Firefly Makes Orbit on Second Try

Oct 5, 2022 | Asteroids, Conferences, Daily Space, DART, Earth, Europa, Galaxies, Guest Interview, ISRO, Jupiter, Rockets, Spacecraft

Early Saturday morning, another company entered the exclusive club of successful orbital launchers, Firefly Aerospace, when their second attempt to reach orbit, named To The Black, lifted off on October 1. Plus, a crater in Spain, a new DART image, Juno flies by Europa, and an interview with Jochen Grandell regarding the Meteosat program.

Quasar’s Light Echoes After 6.73 Years

Sep 24, 2022 | Asteroids, Daily Space, DART, Europa, Fast Radio Bursts, JAXA, Jupiter, Mars, Quasar, Random Space Fact, Space History

Astronomers using the 1.2-meter Whipple Observatory to follow the brightness of a lensed galaxy for 14.5 years have calculated that the time delay between light arriving along the shortest and farthest paths is 6.73 years. Plus, DART, Hayabusa2, Juno, fast radio bursts, and This Week in Space History, we look back at NASA’s 1990s attempts to reach Mars.

Looking for Life in All the Strange Places

Jul 1, 2022 | Astrobiology, Daily Space, Earth, Europa, Mars, Quasar, Sky Watching, Spacecraft, SpaceX, Stars, Supermassive Black Holes

A trio of stories examines the possibilities for finding life in strange, new places, including deep underground here on Earth, in the subsurface oceans of Europa, and fossilized within sedimentary rocks on Mars. Plus, a SpaceX launch, gamma-ray bursts, and this week’s What’s Up.

Jupiter’s Atmosphere Contains Metals From Planetesimals

Jun 27, 2022 | Climate Change, Daily Space, Earth, ESA, Europa, Globular Cluster, Jupiter, Mercury, Spacecraft, Voyager I & II

A recent paper examined data from NASA’s Juno mission and found that Jupiter’s atmosphere not only contains metals but also is not a homogenous mix. The likely culprits are the remains of planetesimals from the early solar system. Plus, a Voyager update, a new Mercury image, sulfur residue on Europa, and a review of “For All Mankind”.