Tag: Space

Every Ship That Has Carried Humans Into Space, In One Chart

This is pretty cool.  A Reddit user put together a chart showing all the human occupied spacecraft that have been used so far.  Click through to see the full sized version. via Every Ship That Has Carried Humans Into Space, In One Chart. One thing that stands out for me is how huge the Saturn V was, … Continue reading Every Ship That Has Carried Humans Into Space, In One Chart →

Complex life in the universe may be much rarer than previously thought

At least, according to a couple of astrophysicists: Complex life may be possible in only 10% of all galaxies | Science/AAAS | News. The universe may be a lonelier place than previously thought. Of the estimated 100 billion galaxies in the observable universe, only one in 10 can support complex life like that on Earth, a … Continue reading Complex life in the universe may be much rarer than previously thought →

Eavesdropping on E.T. and the possibility of interstellar travel

Gabriel Popkin as an article at Inside Science about a study that looks at the possibility of intercepting communications between other alien civilizations.  The idea is that communicating across interstellar distances is best done with lasers. So far, the optical search for extraterrestrial intelligence has focused mainly on the hope of receiving—and recognizing—an intentional, laser-encoded … Continue reading Eavesdropping on E.T. and the possibility of interstellar travel →

How should we communicate with aliens? Should we communicate?

Seth Shostak has a post up at HuffPost asking what we should say if we ever find ourselves in conversation with aliens.  Apparently this was the topic of a recent conference at the SETI institute. Before commenting on Shostak's main thesis, I think he makes an assertion that deserves scrutiny. A decade of research by … Continue reading How should we communicate with aliens? Should we communicate? →

Dark matter might cause neutron stars to collapse into black holes

ratamacue0 called my attention to this interesting article on the possibility of dark matter "eating" neutron stars: Dark matter: Devourer of stars | Ars Technica. Neutron stars are collapsed stars that have used up all of their fusion fuel.  Typically what happens at that point in a star's life is that they collapse, but the extent of … Continue reading Dark matter might cause neutron stars to collapse into black holes →

The movie ‘Interstellar’ and wormholes

The other day, I did a post on interstellar exploration which linked to one by Sten Odenwald on the problems with interstellar travel.  Well, he posted some follow-up remarks, expressing some surprise at the response, doubling down on the aspects of the limitations of interstellar travel he identified, and urging people to be optimistically realistic.  (I predict he'll get … Continue reading The movie ‘Interstellar’ and wormholes →

Half the stars in the universe may exist outside of galaxies

Every so often you get a reminder of how little we know about the universe: Rogue stars outside galaxies may be everywhere | Science/AAAS | News. You’ve heard of rogue planets, floating through the universe untethered to any solar system. Now meet rogue stars, which drift through space with no galaxy to call home. A new … Continue reading Half the stars in the universe may exist outside of galaxies →

Reaching the stars will require serious out-of-the-box thinking

Sten Odenwald, an astronomer with the National Institute of Aerospace, has an article up at HuffPost that many will find disheartening: The Dismal Future of Interstellar Travel | Dr. Sten Odenwald. I have been an avid science fiction reader all my life, but as an astronomer for over half my life, the essential paradox of my fantasy world can … Continue reading Reaching the stars will require serious out-of-the-box thinking →