Historic ‘Ingenuity’ flight on Mars could change planetary exploration
This week, NASA’s Mars helicopter ‘Ingenuity’ performed the first ever flight on another world. Could this historic demonstration mark the start of a whole new mode of planetary travel? Is there a prouder moment than seeing your child break out of their bicycle stabilisers and roam free? Many an employee...
Current in Science
Archaeologists unearth ‘lost golden city’ in Egypt
The second most important discovery since the tomb of Tutankhamun almost a century ago, the 3,400-year-old royal city contains stunningly preserved remains. Egyptian archaeologists have unearthed what is believed to be the largest city of the Egyptian empire and one of the most important finds in decades. The settlement, dubbed a...
NASA readying the launch of $10 billion ‘ultimate time machine’
NASA’s James Webb Telescope will peer further back into the universe’s mysterious history than ever before. Scientists are lauding the upcoming project as the ‘ultimate time machine’. Decades of careful planning and development is set to finally come to fruition in October with the launch of the world’s most powerful...
How gene editing could shape the future of food
Food production will change in a big way over the next century, as populations increase and demand grows. Here’s how gene editing could help evolve the agricultural industry. Ever edited a Word document by cutting and pasting different sections, moving things around, and reworking bits and bobs until it’s exactly...
This magnified satellite could be the key to clearing space junk
Japanese space solutions mogul Astroscale has launched the first commercial mission to remove debris from our atmosphere. Spoiler: it involves a giant magnet. It appears we’ve finally found a feasible solution to make a dent in the storm of space junk currently orbiting the Earth – though it may sound...
Global psychedelics market projected to reach $10.75bn by 2027
Australia will soon be trialling psychedelic drugs as a treatment for mental illness, while California is looking to decriminalise them altogether. The marketplace is expected to grow – fast. At present, society is experiencing an acute mental health crisis, exacerbated tenfold by a pandemic that’s dramatically intensified feelings of loneliness, uncertainty,...
Orbital Assembly’s commercial ‘space hotel’ to open by 2027
Orbital Assembly, an ambitious manufacturing firm centred on space colonisation, has unveiled new details for its celestial ‘space hotel’ planned for a momentous opening in 2027. Thanks to the pandemic, the prospect of going abroad anytime soon to soak up sea, sun, and unwind seems an unrealistic one. Fret not though, Orbital Assembly is plotting a getaway resort that is quite literally out of this world. Orbital Assembly has emerged this...
What to expect from NASA’s ‘Perseverance’ Mars landing
Perseverance, NASA’s most sophisticated rover ever, is due to land on the surface of Mars on Thursday. This is your pre-event guide on what to expect and how to follow the mission throughout the year. NASA’s Perseverance rover is just 48 hours from making its descent onto the surface of Mars on the 18th February 2021. $2.7bn metric tonnes of steel are currently hurtling toward the red planet at 12,000...
High school astronomers have discovered four new ‘exoplanets’
A teenage duo from a Massachusetts high school have discovered four new exoplanets and co-authored a paper in the Astronomical Journal. It’s high time we officially axed the term ‘pie in the sky’. Two Massachusetts high schoolers have blossomed from keen physics students into renowned astronomers seemingly overnight. Thanks to a mentorship program at the Center for Astrophysics; Harvard and Smithsonian, both will go down in history for uncovering the existence...
The UN announces bold new framework for space sustainability
With concerns growing over space debris and satellite traffic, the UN and UK government has signed a one-of a-kind agreement to ensure the sustainability of space missions going forward. If you keep up to date with our stories, you’ll know that space junk – though it may sound like a storage locker owned by eponymous hero Rick Sanchez – actually represents a very real issue. As it stands today there are...
