Michael Reddell • Oct 15, 2017 •
I’ve been a little unclear what to make of the Rocket Lab story. Don’t get me wrong, I liked the idea that our regulatory systems can, on occasion, be sufficiently adaptive to cope with new and innovative industries – even if it is far from generally true. And I wish all the best to any New Zealander with innovations … Read More
Ken Perrott • Sep 15, 2017 •
After two decades in space, NASA’s Cassini spacecraft is nearing the end of its remarkable journey of exploration. Having expended almost every bit of the rocket propellant it carried to Saturn, operators are deliberately plunging Cassini into the planet to ensure Saturn’s moons will remain pristine for future exploration. Watch live coverage of Cassini’s end of mission on … Read More
Peter Griffin • Aug 01, 2017 •
In December I was invited to a meeting at Carter Observatory of The Martian Trust, a charitable organisation set up in New Zealand to “build a self-sustaining research base on Mars”. I’m passionate about space and science, so I was intrigued to hear how the trust, founded by former Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer Dr Charles Polk, planned to … Read More
Guest Author • Jul 27, 2017 •
Ian Crawford, UCL The search for life elsewhere in the universe is one of the most compelling aspects of modern science. Given its scientific importance, significant resources are devoted to this young science of astrobiology, ranging from rovers on Mars to telescopic observations of planets orbiting other stars. The holy grail of all this activity would be … Read More
Guest Author • Jun 01, 2017 •
By Candice Majewski, University of Sheffield The rocket that blasted into space from New Zealand on May 25 was special. Not only was it the first to launch from a private site, it was also the first to be powered by an engine made almost entirely using 3D printing. This might not make it the “first … Read More
Guest Author • Apr 25, 2017 •
By Nathan Case, Lancaster University A collaboration between aurora-hunting citizen scientists and a team of professional researchers has resulted in the discovery of a completely new type of aurora. The finding was made possible thanks to photos taken by aurora enthusiasts from across the globe which scientists could then compare with data from satellites. The aurora, more … Read More
Guest Author • Feb 15, 2017 •
By Alister Graham, Swinburne University of Technology Our love of black holes continues to grow as our knowledge of these celestial bodies expands. The latest news is the discovery of a rare “middleweight” black hole, a relative newcomer to the black hole family. We already knew that some black holes are just a few times the mass … Read More
Guest Author • Oct 28, 2016 •
Natasha Hurley-Walker, Curtin University To the naked eye, the universe we can see on a clear night is dotted with thousands of stars, but what would it look like if human eyes could see radio waves? Deep in the Western Australian outback a radio telescope is demonstrating just that by painting a picture of the cosmos in all … Read More
John Kerr • Aug 29, 2016 •
New Zealand is about join the space race with a new rocket programme, but Kiwis will need to have a think about how this is going to impact our surrounding waters. The government has just opened public consultation on new rules about how material jettisoned into the ocean from rocket launches will be dealt with under environmental legislation. NZ … Read More
John Kerr • Aug 25, 2016 •
The astronomy world is abuzz following the discovery of a planet in a neighboring star system, sitting in just the right position to – theoretically – host liquid water. It is still over four light years away, but the planet Proxima b in the Alpha Centauri system is the closest Earth-like planet we’ve found. The discovery is published today in the journal Nature. Read More