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NASA’s Orion spacecraft was placed in lunar orbit Friday, officials said, as the much-delayed Moon mission proceeded successfully.

A little over a week after the spacecraft blasted off from Florida bound for the Moon, flight controllers “successfully performed a burn to insert Orion into a distant retrograde orbit,” the US space agency said on its website.

The spacecraft is to take astronauts to the Moon in the coming years — the first to set foot on its surface since the last Apollo mission in 1972.

This first test flight, without a crew on board, aims to ensure that the vehicle is safe.

“The orbit is distant in that Orion will fly about 40,000 miles above the Moon,” NASA said.

While in lunar orbit, flight controllers will monitor key systems and perform checkouts while in the environment of deep space, the agency said.

It will take Orion about a week to complete half an orbit around the Moon. It will then exit the orbit for the return journey home, according to NASA.

On Saturday, the ship is expected to go up to 40,000 miles beyond the Moon, a record for a habitable capsule. The current record is held by the Apollo 13 spacecraft at 248,655 miles (400,171 km) from Earth.

It will then begin the journey back to Earth, with a landing in the Pacific Ocean scheduled for December 11, after just over 25 days of flight.

The success of this mission will determine the future of the Artemis 2 mission, which will take astronauts around the Moon without landing, then Artemis 3, which will finally mark the return of humans to the lunar surface.

Those missions are scheduled to take place in 2024 and 2025, respectively.

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Astronomers Detect Methane in the Atmosphere of the Nearest T Dwarf Star to Earth

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April 12, 2025

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Astronomers Detect Methane in the Atmosphere of the Nearest T Dwarf Star to Earth

The scientists have found methane in the atmosphere of WISEA J181006.18 −101000.5, the T dwarf closest to Earth. The study was published in the online preprint journal arXiv on March 28, and the final, revised version was published on November 17. The WISE1810 is a metal-poor T dwarf planet, which is situated at a distance of 29 light years from the Earth. The effective temperature of the dwarf is reported to be within the range of 800–1,300 K.

Methane Signature Surprises Astronomers

According to a Phys.org report, the finding is made greatly possible by the present 10.4-m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC). The detection of methane in the atmosphere of the dwarf planet has further made its classification as T-type instead of L-type, which was earlier suggested in previous studies, the publication notes. The study further reveal that there are no traces of carbon monoxide and potassium in the atmosphere of the WISE1810. 

The study further highlights that the carbon abundance in the planet is estimated to be -1.5 dex, while the effective temperature could be around 1,000 K. The author of the paper further revealed that the low metallicity of the T dwarf planet could be due to the non-detection of atomic potassium. However, a lower temperature could also boost this effect, the report further highlights. The study also found that WISE1810 has a heliocentric velocity of -83 km/s. 

The 10.4-m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) supplies a significant contribution to finishing WISEA J181006.18−101000 observations. Interestingly, the previous observations of the dwarf platent suggested that the atmosphere of the dwarf planet was dominated by hydrogen and water vapour. Moreover, the study further reveals that findings indicates WISE1810 could more likely to be associated with the Milky Way’s thick disk, despite its very low metallicity.

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Scientists Finally Discover How Long a Day Lasts on Uranus

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April 12, 2025

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Scientists Finally Discover How Long a Day Lasts on Uranus

Scientists have finally found how about Uranus day length using the most recent analysis of a decade’s worth of Hubble Space Telescope data. As per the scientists, the Uranus holds 17 hours, 14 minutes, and 52 seconds to finish a complete rotation—that is, 28 seconds more than the estimation served by NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft. This estimation was made possible through the measurement of the magnetic fields and the radio waves coming from the auras of the planet. This understanding helps one derive surface mapping and alignment estimation in perplexing surroundings. Some of those maps may need to be reconsidered based on the most recent research.

Hubble Refines Uranus’ Spin and Orbit Time

According to reports, the Hubble Space Telescope study verified Uranus completed a revolution in 17 hours, 14 minutes, and 52 seconds. That is 28 seconds more than the NASA mission Voyager 2, from the 1980s.

The report further mentions that through examination of a ten-year record of aurora observations, a team headed by Laurent Lamy at the Paris Observatory in France revealed the magnetic poles of the planet. That long-term monitoring gave even more exact rotation periods—that is, nearly 84 Earth years for Uranus to orbit the sun.

Uranus’ Rotation Refined, Aiding Future Exploration

On Uranus, a day just lasts far longer. More precise rotational time observations of the gas giant should enable scientists to plan visits to investigate it. Unlike on Mars and Earth, savage windstorms make it far more difficult to identify the rotation times of the biggest solar system planets.

The first estimate of Uranus’s spin was shifted closer to the Voyager 2 probe, which made a close-range approach on January 24, 1986. The researchers during that time found out that the planet’s mangetic field was by 59 degrees from celestial north. Moreover, the researchers observed that its rotation axis was 98 degrees offset.

Uranus Spins Sideways with a 17-Hour Day, Scientists Confirm

The report further mentions that Uranus effectively revolves “lying down” compared to Earth; during this period, its magnetic poles find a giant circle as the planet rotates. These highest offsets mean With a safety margin of plus or minus 36 seconds, scientists at the time estimated that Uranus was completing a full revolution in every 17 hours, 14 minutes, and 24 seconds by measuring the magnetic field of the planet as well as radio emissions from aurora at its magnetic poles.

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Farallon Slab Beneath Midwest Pulls Crust Downward, Causing Widespread Thinning

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April 12, 2025

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Farallon Slab Beneath Midwest Pulls Crust Downward, Causing Widespread Thinning

An underground structure beneath central United States has been observed dragging surface materials deep into the Earth. This movement has been linked to an old piece of crust lodged far below the Midwest. Researchers have said this action is pulling rocks from across the continent towards a funnel-shaped region. It is believed this process is causing parts of the crust to thin as material is drawn downward. This phenomenon has been found to affect areas beyond the immediate region.

Underground slab tied to crust loss beneath Midwest

According to the study published in Nature Geoscience, the phenomenon has been tied to the remains of a long-subducted tectonic plate known as the Farallon slab. This slab, which sits around 660 kilometres below the surface, was identified as the driving force behind what scientists refer to as cratonic thinning. Cratons are known to be the stable core regions of continental crust and upper mantle that usually do not undergo change.

The seismic mapping project was led by Junlin Hua during his postdoctoral work at The University of Texas at Austin. He now serves as a professor at the University of Science and Technology of China. In a statement, Hua explained that a wide region is showing signs of thinning. He stated that the study has brought forward a new explanation behind this change.

New seismic method uncovers ‘dripping’ lithosphere

To observe the changes taking place beneath North America, researchers used a method known as full-waveform inversion. This seismic imaging approach allowed them to map the subsurface in high detail. According to Thorsten Becker, Geophysics Chair at UT Austin, this technique offered a better understanding of the link between deep mantle regions and the lithosphere above.

Computer simulations were used to confirm the effect. When the slab was included, the downward movement was visible. When removed, no such feature appeared.

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