An artist’s impression of Curosity rover on the surface of Mars (image: NASA) In just over five days time NASA will attempt to land the Curiosity rover on the surface of Mars. Weighing in at nearly 900 kg, and with a size similar to a Mini cooper, Curiosity is significantly larger than either of the…
The currently accepted view of how our Moon formed is known as the giant impact hypothesis. The most recent formulation of this model developed by Robin Canup of the Southwest Research Institute, Colorado, is largely in agreement with previous studies. It suggests that the Moon formed from the debris disc created when a Mars-sized body…
Meteor over the skys of Reno Nevada April 22nd 2012 (image: Lisa Warren/NASA) On the evening of Saturday 3rd March, at about 21.40 GMT, there were widespread sightings of a bright fireball travelling from northern Scotland to southern England. Many people phoned the emergency services, but the possibility of an aircraft-related incident was soon ruled…
Jules Verne’s From the Earth to the Moon Science can sometimes be a bit of a lonely pursuit. Sitting at a machine analysing endless samples, producing heaps of numbers, which then have to be processed and evaluated. After that comes the paper-writing stage. Hour upon hour of word processing, bashing out a manuscript to send…
Meteorites: The Blog from the Final Frontier 