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Astronomy Daily: Space News Updates

Astronomy Daily: Space News Updates

By: bitesz.com
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Join hosts Anna & Avery for daily Space & Astronomy news, insights, and discoveries.

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Episodes
  • One Sleep to Splashdown: Artemis II Heads Home + Lunar Science Bombshell

    One Sleep to Splashdown: Artemis II Heads Home + Lunar Science Bombshell
    Apr 9 2026
    The Artemis II crew — Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen — are on final approach to Earth after nine historic days in deep space. Splashdown is scheduled for Friday off San Diego. We have the full countdown, plus the story behind what NASA scientists called 'audible screams of delight' when the crew spotted micrometeorite impact flashes on the Moon during their lunar flyby. Also in today's episode: astronomers at ISTA in Austria have identified a brand new class of stellar remnant — two ultra-massive, X-ray emitting white dwarfs named Gandalf and Moon-Sized. Mars continues to disappoint on the habitability front. Four planets are lining up in April skies. And we close with the story of four astronauts, their iPhones, and the greatest selfies in human history. Sources & links: • Artemis II splashdown coverage: nasa.gov/artemis • Micrometeorite impacts & lunar science: space.com | sciencenews.org | spaceq.ca • Gandalf & Moon-Sized white dwarfs: ista.ac.at | universetoday.com • Mars surface habitability: universetoday.com • April planet alignment: starwalk.space • Artemis II iPhone photography: space.com | engadget.com

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    This episode includes AI-generated content.
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    16 mins
  • Artemis II: Homeward Bound and The Lost Mars Mission

    Artemis II: Homeward Bound and The Lost Mars Mission
    Apr 9 2026
    Today's Space News — Astronomy Daily S05E84 | April 8, 2026 In today's episode, Anna and Avery cover six incredible stories spanning the final days of humanity's return to deep space, a lost spacecraft mystery, and fresh science rewriting how we understand our own planet. TODAY'S STORIES: (00:00) Intro (01:30) Story 1 — Artemis II Day 7/8: science debrief done, trajectory burns fired, and the crew heads home for a historic splashdown Friday (08:00) Story 2 — Cygnus CRS-24 launch delayed to April 10 due to weather — now launching the same day Artemis II lands (13:00) Story 3 — Earth formed entirely from inner Solar System material: Jupiter blocked everything else, and water was already here (19:00) Story 4 — ESA Juice delivers stunning new data on interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS: 70 Olympic pools of water per second (24:00) Story 5 — Comet C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS is the new comet to watch this April — and it's looking good (29:00) Story 6 — FEATURE: Mars 96, the lost Mars mission that crashed back to Earth 30 years ago — and was never found Subscribe for daily space and astronomy news | astronomydaily.io | @AstroDailyPod

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    This episode includes AI-generated content.
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    27 mins
  • Humanity's Farthest Journey: Artemis II Flies the Moon

    Humanity's Farthest Journey: Artemis II Flies the Moon
    Apr 7 2026
    The Artemis II crew has completed the most significant human spaceflight milestone since 1972 — a historic lunar flyby that took four astronauts further from Earth than any humans in history. In today's episode, Anna and Avery cover every moment of Flight Days 6 and 7, including the far-side blackout, a solar eclipse observed from beyond the Moon, and what comes next on the journey home. Plus: NASA faces another proposed 47% science budget cut, a cargo ship heads to the space station, Europe and China are about to launch a groundbreaking solar shield explorer called SMILE, and Blue Origin reveals its ambitious plan to map the Moon's hidden water ice. Today's Stories 1. Artemis II Days 6 & 7: The Lunar Flyby • The crew of Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen completed a 7-hour lunar flyby on April 6 • Orion reached a maximum distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, surpassing the Apollo 13 record of 248,655 miles • Closest lunar approach: 4,067 miles above the surface at approximately 7 p.m. EDT • Christina Koch became the first woman to complete a lunar flyby • The crew witnessed an Earthset, Earthrise, and a solar eclipse from behind the far side of the Moon • Day 7 is a rest day; splashdown in the Pacific is targeted for April 10 2. NASA FY2027 Budget Proposal • White House proposes $18.8 billion for NASA — a 23% overall reduction • Science Mission Directorate would be cut by 47%, from $7.25B to $3.9B • More than 40 missions face termination; Mars Sample Return and SERVIR named explicitly • Exploration/Artemis funding would increase by ~10% • Congress rejected nearly identical cuts last year 3. Cygnus NG-24 ISS Resupply • Launch targeted April 8 from Cape Canaveral on SpaceX Falcon 9 • Named S.S. Steven R. Nagel after four-time shuttle veteran • Carrying 11,000+ lbs including Cold Atom Lab upgrade and stem cell research hardware • Also includes Africa's ClimCam AI-powered climate camera from Egypt, Kenya, and Uganda 4. SMILE Mission — Launch April 9 • Joint ESA / Chinese Academy of Sciences mission; first ever jointly designed, built, launched and operated by both agencies • Launches April 9 on Vega-C from French Guiana; 3-year science mission • Will give humanity its first complete, simultaneous view of Earth's magnetosphere reacting to the solar wind • Four instruments: soft X-ray imager, UV aurora camera, light ion analyser, magnetometer • Science orbit reaches 121,000 km above North Pole; up to 40 hours continuous observation per orbit • Critical for understanding and predicting space weather — protecting satellites, power grids and communications 5. Blue Origin Oasis-1: Lunar Water Ice Prospecting • Introduced at the 2026 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC) • Two-smallsat mission deployed from Blue Origin's uncrewed Mk1 lander; ultra-low 10x50 km polar orbit • Instruments: neutron spectrometer (water ice to 1m depth), magnetometer (metals), multispectral imager (Helium-3) • 90-day global mapping phase followed by 10-day controlled deorbit — science continues to impact • Partnership with Luxembourg Space Agency; data licensed commercially, non-commercial data released publicly via ESRIC • Phase 1 of a 3-phase Project Oasis roadmap: orbit survey, surface mobility, then extraction operations 6. April Skywatching • Comet C/2025 R3: closest approach April 27, magnitude ~8, binoculars needed • Lyrid meteor shower peaks April 21–22, look toward Lyra from 10pm • Mercury at best visibility of 2026 in the eastern pre-dawn sky Links & Resources • NASA Artemis II Flight Day 6 updates: nasa.gov • Planetary Society Artemis II guide: planetary.org • NASA FY2027 budget: spacenews.com • Cygnus NG-24 launch: nasaspaceflight.com • ESA SMILE mission: esa.int/smile • Blue Origin Oasis-1: blueorigin.com Connect With Us • Website: astronomydaily.io • Twitter/X: @AstroDailyPod • Instagram: @AstroDailyPod • TikTok: @AstroDailyPod • YouTube: Astronomy Daily • Tumblr: AstroDailyPodBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/astronomy-daily-space-news-updates--5648921/support.Sponsor Details:Ensure your online privacy by using NordVPN. To get our special listener deal and save a lot of money, visit www.bitesz.com/nordvpn. You'll be glad you did!Become a supporter of Astronomy Daily by joining our Supporters Club. Commercial free episodes daily are only a...
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    18 mins
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