New Russian missile failure sparks UFO frenzy

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Dec 10, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (12) | 26

Russia's new nuclear-capable missile suffered another failed test launch, the defence ministry said Thursday, solving the mystery of a spectacular plume of white light that appeared over Norway.

STAR TRAK for December: Geminid meteors flash in December skies

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Dec 03, 2009 | 4 / 5 (1) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- The annual Geminid meteor shower, which will reach its maximum on the night of Dec. 13-14, usually offers the best show of the year, outperforming even the Perseid shower of August. This year ...

After mastodons and mammoths, a transformed landscape

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

Nov 19, 2009 | 4.6 / 5 (12) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Roughly 15,000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age, North America's vast assemblage of large animals -- including such iconic creatures as mammoths, mastodons, camels, horses, ground ...

Astronomers capture spectacular meteor footage and images (w/ Video)

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Oct 07, 2009 | 4.3 / 5 (12) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Astronomers from The University of Western Ontario in London, Canada have released footage of a meteor that was approximately 100 times brighter than a full moon. The meteor lit up the skies ...

Expanding Spot on Venus Puzzles Astronomers

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Aug 04, 2009 | 4.2 / 5 (30) | 7

(PhysOrg.com) -- The expanding spot discovered on Venus last month may not have garnered as much attention as the meteor impact with Jupiter, but its cause is certainly more puzzling. ...

The Meandering Channels of Mars

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Dec 10, 2009 | 4.2 / 5 (6) | 5

Sinuous channels on the Martian surface may be evidence of relatively recent rainfall. Researchers plan to test this hypothesis by studying sinuous streams on Earth.

Scientists see water ice in fresh meteorite craters on Mars

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Sep 24, 2009 | 4.8 / 5 (16) | 3

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists are seeing sub-surface water ice that may be 99 percent pure halfway between the north pole and the equator on Mars, thanks to quick-turnaround observations from orbit of fresh ...

Best (Meteor) Shower of 2009 - No Towel Required

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Dec 10, 2009 | not rated yet | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Bundle up and get ready to watch a fiery lightshow stirred up by dead comets in Earth's upper atmosphere during the cold of winter in the dead of night. The annual Geminid meteor shower is ...

The 2009 Geminid Meteor Shower (w/ Video)

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Dec 08, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (6) | 0

Make hot cocoa. Bundle up. Tell your friends. The best meteor shower of 2009 is about to fall over North America on a long, cold December night.

Meteorite from Sept. 25 fireball event recovered and presented

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Oct 16, 2009 | 4.7 / 5 (10) | 2

When Tony Garchinski heard a loud crash just after 9 p.m. on Friday, September 25 he didn't think much of it. That is, until he awoke the next morning to find the windshield of his mom's Nissan Pathfinder ...

NASA Goes Inside a Volcano, Monitors Activity

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

Aug 07, 2009 | 5 / 5 (3) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have placed high-tech "spiders" inside and around the mouth of Mount St. Helens, one of the most active volcanoes in the United States. Networks such as these could one day be used ...

The 2009 Leonid Meteor Shower

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Nov 10, 2009 | 4.8 / 5 (4) | 0

This year's Leonid meteor shower peaks on Tuesday, Nov. 17th. If forecasters are correct, the shower should produce a mild but pretty sprinkling of meteors over North America followed by a more intense outburst ...

Dinosaurs declined before mass extinction

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

Apr 30, 2009 | 4.1 / 5 (14) | 5

Dinosaurs were dying out much earlier than the mass extinction event 65 million years ago, Natural History Museum scientists report in the Proceedings of the Royal Society journal today.

Team Finds Riches in Meteorite Treasure Hunt

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Mar 31, 2009 | 4.9 / 5 (9) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Just before dawn on Oct. 7, 2008, an SUV-sized asteroid entered Earth's atmosphere and exploded harmlessly over the Nubian Desert of northern Sudan. Scientists expected the asteroid, called ...

Asteroid Impact Helps Trace Meteorite Origins

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

Mar 25, 2009 | 4.6 / 5 (7) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- The car-sized asteroid that exploded above the Nubian Desert last October was small compared to the dinosaur-killing, civilization-ending objects that still orbit the sun. But that didn't ...