Space
Learn about the latest astronomy news and discoveries around humanity’s endeavor beyond the final frontier.
Mice aboard the ISS show why astronauts get kidney stones
Humans are terrestrial creatures. We adapted and evolved to the environments of Earth, and, needless to say, things can get complicated for us when we venture beyond our atmosphere. In addition to the myriad other concerns astronauts have, they also have a high chance of developing kidney stones Read More...
UK building huge software mind for world’s largest radio telescope
Every day, we come closer to answering the essential questions that arise from looking up at the sky. How did we come to be? What’s holding all of this together? Are we alone? Astrophysicists and astronomers need data in great volume and detail to find the answers to these questions, and a new Read More...
Astronomers spot the beginnings of a “baby gas giant”
We can take up astronomy now, buy a good telescope, and go out on the right night to look up at the sky and marvel at the gaseous planets of our own solar system. These are of course Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. However, we average enthusiasts would need some different equipment, and Read More...
The strange sounds of Mars have been recorded for the first time
If you’ve ever wondered what Mars sounds like, then NASA’s Perseverance rover has answers for you! The robot landed on the Red Planet in early 2021 where it has been conducting experiments and collecting samples for scientists here on Earth to analyze. We’ve previously reported on its Read More...
Hubble Telescope spots farthest star ever recorded
We've set a new benchmark in the world of stars: the farthest individual star ever seen to date. This one has a predicted mass at least 50 times that of our Sun and is millions of times brighter, plus, was created within the first billion years of the Big Bang. This may seem like a long time after Read More...
Achieving quality along with quantity: an Optimist’s View on aging
“Aging is not lost youth but a new stage of opportunity and strength.” - Betty Friedan By Oliver Kammeyer I live on a bike path, and just a half-mile east of my place there’s a coffee shop that’s always packed. It seems every day the customers compete to see who can wake up earliest to Read More...
Turns out there are ice volcanoes on Pluto. Here's how they work
We learn more fascinating and otherworldly things about our universe the farther out into space we explore. Some of our discoveries bend our understanding of science, and some completely baffle us. This is the case now that scientists have confirmed that there are, in fact, ice volcanoes on Read More...
How many worlds exist outside our solar system?
Exoplanets are worlds just like our own that are revolving around a star. Here at The Optimist Daily, we’ve commonly reported on the discovery of new exoplanets, like the first time an exoplanet has been spotted outside our galaxy, or this peculiar planet with the shortest orbit around a star Read More...
Refueling on Mars: making biofuel from astronaut wastewater
As space exploration develops further, scientists and engineers are innovating more outlandish ways for humans to survive beyond our planet. What was once magic becomes science as experts think outside the box and brilliantly repurpose resources in closed environments, such as growing lettuce in Read More...
Space lettuce could save astronauts’ bones
Many of us wanted to be astronauts when we were kids. Some of us may even still daydream about it. While we lionize pioneers like Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, we now know that prolonged time in space comes with some serious health consequences. We are, after all, creatures whose anatomy evolved Read More...