Sand clouds form every morning but clear up by nightfall on WASP-94A b, a well-studied gas giant in a constellation located nearly 700 light years away from Earth. The research, which uses data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), is among the first to detect cloud cycles on a Hot Jupiter exoplanet. By isolating the […]
New evidence has been unearthed which show that massive stars can initiate star formation in nearby areas thus helping shape the evolution of star-forming regions. Stars are born inside vast clouds of gas and dust known as molecular clouds. While most stars in our Galaxy have masses similar to the Sun, a few are much […]
A team of international astrophysicists have uncovered new insights into the mystery behind the differences in the appearances of extragalactic jets emerging from the environments of supermassive blackholes. They showed that the plasma composition can affect the appearances of these jets. This may help to unravel the mystery of matter content of relativistic jets. At […]
Using MIRI (Mid Infrared Instrument) on board the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), a team of researchers led by former MPIA (Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany) PhD student Sebastian Zieba (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, USA) and Laura Kreidberg, MPIA Director and study PI (principal investigator), analysed the surface composition […]
A team of professional and amateur Japanese astronomers found evidence for a thin atmosphere around a small body in the outer Solar System. The object is so small that it should not have a sustainable atmosphere, raising questions about when and how the atmosphere formed. Future observations to better characterize the atmosphere will help solve […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover uncovered a diverse mix of organic molecules on Mars, including chemicals widely considered building blocks for the origin of life on Earth. The findings, which come from a chemical experiment performed for the first time on another world, reveal that the Martian surface can preserve the kinds of molecules that could […]
A new study led by Curtin University has harnessed a global-scale radio telescope network to capture detailed images revealing the extraordinary power of jets emitted by black holes, offering strong confirmation of long-standing theories about their role in shaping the Universe’s structure. Published in Nature Astronomy, the research found that the jets from Cygnus X-1—a […]
A recent study has examined whether some of the universe’s smallest galaxies—particularly dwarf spheroidal galaxies orbiting the Milky Way—could host black holes, offering fresh insight into how these cosmic objects form and evolve over time. While supermassive black holes are commonly found at the centres of large galaxies, detecting them in dwarf spheroidal galaxies remains […]
![Artemis II Mission Accomplished: Crew Re-Entry Updates, Splash down and Safe return home [Watch Videos]](https://indiainternationaltimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/splash-1.jpg "Artemis II Mission Accomplished: Crew Re-Entry Updates, Splash down and Safe return home [Watch Videos]")
Artemis II launched aboard NASA’s Space Launch System, carrying four astronauts in the Orion spacecraft on a deep-space mission beyond low Earth orbit. The crew conducted system checks and performed a historic lunar flyby, travelling thousands of kilometres beyond the Moon before beginning their return journey. After completing a roughly 10-day mission, Orion safely re-entered […]
At 2:53 p.m. EDT, the Orion spacecraft ignited its thrusters for 8 seconds, producing a change in velocity of 4.2 feet-per-second and pushing Artemis II toward Earth. NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen reviewed procedures and monitored the spacecraft’s configuration and navigation data. The crew continues to wrap up cabin configuration for re-entry and move into their entry checklist. Splashdown is targeted for 8:07 p.m. EDT (5:07 p.m. PDT) off the coast of San […]
The Artemis II crew — NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen — began the final phase of their journey home to the songs “Run to the Water” by Live, selected by the crew, and “Free” by Zac Brown Band, as they prepared for their third return trajectory correction burn and shifted into full […]
Thrusters Fire To Steer Orion Home: At 10:53 p.m. EDT, the Orion spacecraft executed a brief nine-second thruster burn, increasing its velocity by 5.3 feet per second and nudging the Artemis II crew further along their return path to Earth. With the maneuver complete, the crew has now crossed the halfway mark on their journey […]
Dan Florez is one of the NASA test directors for the Exploration Ground Systems Program. The test directors are a group of 20 engineers at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida who plan and execute integrated testing for Artemis missions. Their work includes developing timelines and procedures for launch countdown, propellant loading, emergency egress, […]
The acquisition of the radio frequency signal from the Artemis II crewed mission to the Moon by NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) is indicated by the peak in the data signal shown below on the computer screen. Soon after the mission’s launch on April 1, 2026, at 6:35 p.m. EDT, NASA’s Near Space Network led […]
Blanca Renteria, operations chief for the Artemis Deep Space Network (DSN), monitored incoming data from the Space Flight Operations Facility at Jet Propulsion Laboratory shortly after Artemis II lifted off on April 1, 2026. The launch took place at 6:35 p.m. EDT from Kennedy Space Center, with mission control teams quickly transitioning to deep space […]
A Ritual Before Liftoff A container of “lucky peanuts” was placed above workstations inside the Space Flight Operations Facility at Jet Propulsion Laboratory ahead of the Artemis II launch on April 1, 2026. The quirky ritual—eating peanuts before major mission events—has long been observed at JPL, seen by teams as a symbol of good fortune […]
Mission Control Comes Alive In California Inside the Space Flight Operations Facility at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Artemis II mission took center stage on April 1, 2026, moments before liftoff. The central display featured the mission patch, while adjacent screens mapped real-time activity across the agency’s Deep Space Network (DSN), with active antennas highlighted as […]
Final Day In Orbit On their final full day in space, the Artemis II crew began the morning with “Lonesome Drifter” by Charley Crockett as their spacecraft closed in on Earth from a distance of 147,337 miles. Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch of NASA, along with Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space […]
NASA’s Artemis II mission is drawing support from a pair of nearly identical control rooms in Alabama, each playing a distinct role in keeping astronauts safe and operations on track as the crew heads back to Earth, Friday, April 10. At the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, two facilities, […]
Artemis II moved into another critical phase of its return journey as the crew began Flight Day 8 with a focus on testing systems and preparing for reentry. Aboard the Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, the four astronauts woke to music and a message from the Canadian Space Agency. At the start of the day, they […]