Strictly speaking, the atmosphere has no upper limit; it gradually thins out until, at an altitude of several thousand kilometers, even lightweight helium atoms can escape Earth's gravitational pull. Within the atmosphere, distinct layers can be identified, with the most common division based on temperature, which undergoes characteristic changes with increasing altitude. In the lowermost layer, extending from approximately 8 to 18 km in height, temperatures generally decrease as altitude increases. This relatively thin layer, known as the troposphere, is where weather phenomena occur. In the ..read more

The discovery of exoplanets has revolutionized our view of the universe. In recent years, astronomers have identified thousands of planets outside our solar system. These distant worlds, orbiting stars in other galaxies, provide insights into the diversity and complexity of the cosmos. In this article, we will explore some of the most fascinating exoplanets, delve into their unique features, and contemplate how they influence the foundations of our understanding of planets and life. Trappist-1e - In the Goldilocks Zone of an Ultracool Dwarf Star The Trappist-1e exoplanet resides in the habitab ..read more

Houston - According to the US space agency NASA, a sample of rubble from asteroid Bennu, which was dropped to Earth approximately three weeks ago, contains traces of water and carbon. Initial investigations of the sample revealed these findings, but further in-depth analyses are still required, NASA announced during a press conference on Wednesday, where they also unveiled photos and videos of the sample for the first time. This marks the first successfully brought to Earth sample from an asteroid in the history of the US space agency, and it is the largest such sample ever collected. Research ..read more

It was a brief, intense puff. Then, dust and rocks that had remained untouched for billions of years were sent into the air. The collection of the rock sample from the asteroid Bennu, far out in space, lasted just five seconds. Following that, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft spent more than two years returning to Earth. Seven years in space The journey, orbiting and studying the target asteroid, collecting samples, and the return journey - NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will have spent over seven years in space by Sunday. And there could be a few more years of space travel to come. But for now, it is ..read more

Germany has joined the international "Artemis" initiative, becoming the 29th country to do so, in order to play a more significant role in the current lunar and Martian exploration efforts, primarily led by the United States. The Director-General of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Walther Pelzer, signed the agreement at the German Embassy in Washington. Pelzer emphasized that Germany and the United States have been "successful partners in space exploration for a long time." German space industry companies are already making a "significant contribution to NASA's Artemis program" for lunar la ..read more

The NASA rover Perseverance has now successfully produced oxygen on Mars for the 16th and final time, surpassing the mission's expectations. This announcement comes from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the U.S. space agency. Since the activation of the Moxie instrument (Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment), 122 grams of oxygen have been produced. This is equivalent to what a small dog would breathe in over 10 hours, or approximately four hours of oxygen for an adult human. In total, Moxie generated 12 grams per hour, more than double the initially expected amount. The achieved ..read more

In Japan, on Thursday, the mini-probe Slim embarked on its journey toward the Moon. The launch took place at 8:42 a.m. local time (1:42 a.m. CEST) aboard a rocket from the Japanese Tanegashima Space Center in the southern part of the country, as shown in a live broadcast by the Japanese space agency. The launch, which had been postponed three times due to poor weather, was watched online by around 35,000 people. Four to six months after the launch, the probe is expected to land on the Moon. During the landing, it aims to touch down on the lunar surface within a maximum distance of one hundred ..read more

In India, for the first time in the history of the country's space exploration, a satellite for the study of the Sun was launched on Saturday, just under a week after the first Indian lander landed near the South Pole of the Moon. The spacecraft Aditya-L1 is the latest mission of India's space program, and it lifted off from the launch pad in Sriharikota, South India, aboard a rocket around noon (local time). Its mission is to observe the outer atmosphere of the Sun. Four months on the way to the L1 point The launch was successful, according to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). T ..read more

Four astronauts have launched from the NASA spaceport at Cape Canaveral towards the ISS (International Space Station). Propelled by a Falcon-9 rocket, the team consists of the US-American Jasmin Moghbeli, Danish ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Russian Konstantin Borisov aboard the SpaceX capsule named Dragon. After nearly 24 hours, it is expected to dock at the outpost of humanity around 400 kilometers above Earth. There, the capsule is supposed to return another four-member crew from the ISS to Earth a few days later. "Crew 6" comprises US-Americans S ..read more

The mission of the "Luna-25" probe was meant to be a prestige project for the Russian space program. Moscow anticipated collecting soil samples and gaining further insights about the Moon. However, complications arise even before landing, leading to a crash. Russia's first lunar mission in decades has failed. The "Luna-25" probe impacted the lunar surface due to an "anomalistic situation" and ceased to function, as stated by the Russian space agency Roscosmos in Moscow. The reasons for the probe's loss are being investigated, with a commission being set up for this purpose. The first spacecra ..read more