Space

The spacecraft experienced numerous leaks and technical glitches. NASA says it's using the extra time to evaluate whether it can return safely.

This summer, scientists have their eyes and telescopes trained on the small constellation system T Coronae Borealis. They think it will explode as part of a periodic nova — a once-in-a-lifetime event according to NASA scientists. And so, with the help of astrophysicist Sarafina El-Badry Nance, we continue our journey farther and deeper into spacetime with a look at the stars: How they're born and how they die. Sarafina has always been drawn to one particular star: Betelgeuse, a red supergiant in the shoulder of the constellation Orion that is nearing the end of its life. What stages of life did Betelgeuse — or any star — go through before it reached this moment?

This episode is part of our series Space Camp — all abut the weird, wonderful phenomena in our universe. Check it out here: https://npr.org/spacecamp

Curious about the night sky? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you!

The far side of the moon looks very different from the near side, and with the Chang'e 6 mission, scientists are hoping to learn why.

NASA and other federal agencies recently did a tabletop simulation of an Earth-threatening asteroid to see how they'd handle it

NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly talks with Jackie Faherty, an astronomer at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, about why summer solstice came so early this year and what it signifies.

Managers are still troubleshooting a number of thruster issues and helium leaks on the capsule's first crewed flight test.

Pluto hasn't been a planet for almost 20 years. In the early 2000s, scientists discovered several objects of a similar size to Pluto. So, during the summer of 2006, members of the International Astronomical Union convened in Prague to reconsider what counts as a planet in our solar system. IAU members decided that there were three criteria to be a planet — and Pluto did meet all of them.

But planetary scientist Wladymir Lyra says that even though it was downgraded to a dwarf planet, Pluto still has much to teach us about planet formation. This episode, he also lays out his case for Pluto — and many other objects in the solar system — to be considered a planet.

This episode is part of Short Wave's space camp series about all the weird, wonderful things happening in the universe. Check out the full series.

Questions about the state of our universe or smaller happenings here on planet Earth? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to consider it for a future episode!