Things Are Looking Up for Asteroid Mining
Asteroids are rich with the metals used in clean energy technologies. As demand soars, advocates argue that mining them in space might be better than mining them on Earth......»»
NASA says goodbye to our planetary protector, the asteroid-spotting NEOWISE mission
Fifteen years after a launch that was intended to begin just a seven month mission, NASA's NEOWISE spacecraft has finally shut down......»»
Gaia spots possible moons around hundreds of asteroids
ESA's star-surveying Gaia mission has again proven to be a formidable asteroid explorer, spotting potential moons around more than 350 asteroids not known to have a companion......»»
NASA Retires Asteroid-Hunting Telescope
NASA’s NEOWISE telescope has searched for asteroids, brown dwarfs and luminous galaxies. The spacecraft will soon burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.....»»
Deep sea mining opponents suffer major setback
Opponents of deep sea mining suffered a serious setback Friday when they failed to take a first step toward an international moratorium on the controversial practice......»»
Mass extinction 66 million years ago triggered rapid evolution of bird genomes, study finds
Shortly after an asteroid slammed into Earth 66 million years ago, life for non-avian dinosaurs ended, but the evolutionary story for the early ancestors of birds began......»»
NASA smacked a spacecraft into an asteroid—and learned details about its 12-million-year history
NASA's DART mission—Double Asteroid Redirection Test—was humanity's first real-world planetary defense mission......»»
DART mission sheds new light on target binary asteroid system
In studying data collected from NASA's DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) mission, which in 2022 sent a spacecraft to intentionally collide with the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos, the mission's science team has discovered new information on the ori.....»»
Plants" hidden allies: Root microbiota fight back against leaf-mining flies
Plants encounter various biotic stresses, with insect herbivory being particularly destructive. Traditional chemical insecticides used to combat these pests pose environmental and health risks......»»
Armada to Apophis—scientists recycle old ideas for rare asteroid encounter
Armada to Apophis—scientists recycle old ideas for rare asteroid encounter.....»»
Introducing Ramses, ESA"s 2029 mission to asteroid Apophis
Thirty years ago, on 16 July 1994, astronomers watched in awe as the first of many pieces of the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet slammed into Jupiter with incredible force. The event sparked intense interest in the field of planetary defense as people asked:.....»»
Results from Juukan Gorge show 47,000 years of Aboriginal heritage was destroyed in mining blast
In May 2020, as part of a legally permitted expansion of an iron ore mine, Rio Tinto destroyed an ancient rockshelter at Juukan Gorge in Puutu Kunti Kurrama Country in the Pilbara region of Western Australia......»»
Satellite to follow Empire State Building-sized asteroid as it zips by Earth
There’s a huge asteroid coming our way in 2029 and the European Space Agency (ESA) wants to track it every step of the way. Don’t worry, you can look up with confidence, as the 1,230-feet-long (about 375 meters) Apophis asteroid is not on a colli.....»»
Bennu asteroid samples unveiled
In a discreet vacuumed-packed container inside a FedEx box lies a piece of ancient history; extremely ancient history......»»
Foreign direct investments may fuel tropical deforestation
Foreign direct investments (FDI) in tropical countries in extractive industries like mining, logging and fossil fuels have a long, environmentally destructive track record in tropical countries. Are FDI in food systems another extractive industry?.....»»
NASA imagines a catastrophic asteroid impact to study how to prevent it
The Netflix movie "Don't Look Up" received plenty of accolades for its scarily realistic portrayal of a professor from Michigan State University attempting to warn the world about a civilization-ending asteroid impact......»»
Swarms of orbiting sensors could map an asteroid"s surface
It seems like every month a new story appears announcing the discovery of thousands of new asteroids. Tracking these small body objects from ground and even space-based telescopes helps follow their overall trajectory. But understanding what they're.....»»
Satellite images show deforestation toll of Indonesia mines
More than 700,000 hectares of forest in Indonesia have been cleared for mining since 2001, including large tracts of primary forest, a new analysis using satellite data has found......»»
Study reveals human degradation of tropical forests is greater than previously estimated
Tropical forests are essential to sustain high biodiversity and mitigate climate change. They suffer from deforestation, the cutting and converting of forests for agriculture, mining, or infrastructure purposes. However, significant human impacts on.....»»
NASA"s planetary radar tracks two large asteroid close approaches
The Deep Space Network's Goldstone planetary radar had a busy few days observing asteroids 2024 MK and 2011 UL21 as they safely passed Earth......»»
Virtual flying lessons for Hera asteroid mission
As ESA's Hera spacecraft for planetary defense goes through pre-flight testing, the system that will steer it around its target binary asteroid system is also undergoing its final checks for space......»»