Science

Despite huge advances in cyber security, one weakness continues to overshadow all others: human error. Research has consistently shown human error is responsible for an overwhelming majority of successful cyber attacks. A recent report puts the figure at 68%. No matter how advanced our technological defences become, the human element is likely to remain the

“There is every reason to believe China’s BeiDou global navigation satellite system has the ability to imitate American GPS signals and those of Europe’s Galileo,” said Professor Todd Humphreys of the University of Texas Radionavigation Lab. Humphreys was speaking at The Department of Transportation’s annual Civil GPS Service Interface Committee meeting, held for the public

For most of our evolutionary history, human activity has been linked to daylight. Technology has liberated us from these ancient sleep-wake cycles, but there is evidence sunlight has left and continues to leave its mark. Not only do we still tend to be awake in the daytime and sleep at night, we can thank light

A large communications satellite has broken up in orbit, affecting users in Europe, Central Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Australia, and adding to the growing swarm of space junk clouding our planet’s neighbourhood. The Intelsat 33e satellite provided broadband communication from a point some 35,000 km above the Indian Ocean, in a geostationary orbit

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Given its dominance in the launch market and Starlink’s explosive growth in satellite communications, what impact will SpaceX have on the optical terminal business? At the Satellite Innovation conference here, panelists discussed SpaceX’s plans, announced in March, to sell its optical or laser communications terminals to satellite manufacturers. Optical terminal suppliers

In the middle of the night, the world can sometimes feel like a dark place. Under the cover of darkness, negative thoughts have a way of drifting through your mind, and as you lie awake, staring at the ceiling, you might start craving guilty pleasures, like a cigarette or a carb-heavy meal. Plenty of evidence

Ships passing in the night used Morse code sent with lanterns and shutters to communicate. That same basic principle has allowed NASA to communicate with Psyche, its mission to a metal-rich asteroid in the main belt. However, the ‘light’ was a version of heat, and instead of being able to see each other, Psyche is

Recording-breaking carbon emissions in 2023 could be a sign that nature’s carbon removal systems are failing, a study awaiting peer-review warns. With last year’s atmospheric CO2 growth going hand-in-hand with record heat, an international team of researchers found high temperatures are likely to have “had a strong negative impact” on the ability of land-based ecosystems

TAMPA, Fla. — Luxembourg’s government has backed a major chunk of OQ Technology’s ongoing 30 million euro ($32 million) Series B funding round, according to the Luxembourg-based operator of small narrowband satellites.  OQ Technology announced an investment Oct. 21 from the Luxembourg Space Sector Development (LSSD), which the government co-runs with SES, a multi-orbit satellite fleet

Fall for me as a teenager meant football games, homecoming dresses – and haunted houses. My friends organized group trips to the local fairground, where barn sheds were turned into halls of horror, and masked men nipped at our ankles with (chainless) chain saws as we waited in line, anticipating deeper frights to come once

One of the great mysteries of the Universe is where all the metal actually comes from. We know it’s forged in cosmic fire – but which fires in particular, and in which proportions, is a little bit more difficult to pin down. A rare kind of supernova devoid of hydrogen and helium is a known

TAMPA, Fla. — SpaceX launched 20 spare OneWeb satellites Oct. 20 to strengthen the resiliency of French operator Eutelsat’s rival low Earth orbit (LEO) broadband network. Eutelsat said it had successfully contacted each satellite following lift-off on a Falcon 9 rocket at 1:13 a.m. Eastern from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. Eutelsat spokesperson Katie Dowd

Kindergarten-age kids excel at lots of things, but focusing efficiently on a task is not typically one of their strong suits. Research suggests many children at this age find it hard to concentrate on details most relevant to an assignment, often spending time and energy collecting information that won’t help them. According to a new

It’s not every day that humans get to walk on the Moon. In fact, it’s been more than 50 years since humans last set foot on the lunar surface, during NASA’s Apollo 17 mission in 1972. Such a momentous occasion as a return to Earth’s dusty gunpowder satellite requires nothing short of the fanciest of

TAMPA, Fla. — Intelsat 33e has lost power in geostationary orbit and the satellite is no longer providing communications for customers across Europe, Africa and parts of Asia Pacific, its operator announced Oct. 19. Intelsat said it is working with satellite maker Boeing to address the anomaly, but “believe it is unlikely that the satellite will

Lightning storms are some of the most spectacular, wild, and dramatic events our world has to offer – but the effects are not just directed towards Earth’s surface. According to new research, lightning storms can rip high-energy “killer” electrons out of the planet’s radiation belt and fling them in all directions. It’s a new link

Bottlenose dolphins in Sarasota Bay in Florida and Barataria Bay in Louisiana are exhaling microplastic fibers, according to our new research published in the journal PLOS One. Tiny plastic pieces have spread all over the planet – on land, in the air, and even in clouds. An estimated 170 trillion bits of microplastic are estimated

MILAN — Refurbishment of ground systems like a mobile launch platform could become another factor in the schedule for the Artemis 2 mission that NASA says is still planned for launch next September. A report by the Government Accountability Office Oct. 17 found that work on the Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) program, which includes the

Cats have a reputation for aloofness (and flooffiness), but if you and your feline friend aren’t bonding, maybe you’re just not speaking their language. Never fear – research from 2020 has shown that it’s not so difficult. You just need to smile at them more. Not the human way, by baring your teeth, but the

In 1995, Caltech researchers at the Institute’s Palomar Observatory first observed what appeared to be a brown dwarf orbiting Gliese 229 – a red dwarf star located about 19 light-years from Earth. Since then, this brown dwarf (Gliese 229 B) has mystified astronomers because it appeared too dim for its mass. With 70 times the

Our research group has bred corals able to better survive marine heatwaves. Our work, now published in Nature Communications, shows that it is possible to improve coral heat tolerance even within a single generation. We did this using selective breeding: a technique used by humans for thousands of years to produce animals and plants with

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Commerce announced long-awaited changes to export control rules for space technologies, a move aimed at bolstering American competitiveness in the global space industry. The new regulations will make it easier for U.S. companies to sell satellites, launch vehicles, and other space-related technologies to close allies, including the United Kingdom,

One of the most famous facades in all the world has been concealing a deep secret. Underneath the iconic and intricately carved Treasury building at the center of the renowned archaeological site Petra, excavators have stumbled upon a long-lost crypt holding 12 skeletons. One of the buried individuals was found clutching the top of a

Until now, only a small fraction of meteorites that land on Earth had been firmly linked back to their parent body out in space – but a set of new studies has just given us compelling origin stories for more than 90 percent of meteorites today. Past analyses of meteorites striking our planet today suggest

WASHINGTON – Airbus’ defense and space division announced plans to cut up to 2,500 positions by mid-2026, citing a “continued complex business environment, especially in the space systems segment,” the company said Oct. 16. The workforce reduction comes as Europe’s aerospace giant faces mounting financial challenges in its space programs, with executives emphasizing the need

Millions of scientific papers are published globally every year. These papers in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine present discoveries that range from the mundane to the profound. Since 1900, the number of published scientific articles has doubled about every 10 to 15 years; since 1980, about 8 percent to 9 percent annually. This acceleration

The X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) has been shrouded in mystery since its maiden flight in 2011. Designed by Boeing and operated by the US Space Force (USSF), this remotely operated, reusable space plane is designed to operate in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO), 240 to 800 kilometers (150 to 500 miles) above the Earth, and test

From soaring coastal redwoods to dinosaur-era Wollemi pines and firs that make the perfect Christmas trees, even our most revered woody plants are in an awful lot of trouble. But it turns out that losing some species won’t just endanger local forests; it will threaten entire ecosystems, research shows. In 2021, a global assessment titled

Google on Monday signed a deal to get electricity from small nuclear reactors to help power artificial intelligence. The agreement to buy energy from reactors built by Kairos Power came just weeks after word that Three Mile Island, the site of America’s worst nuclear accident, will restart operations to provide energy to Microsoft. “We believe

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army has wrapped up a one-year pilot project exploring outsourcing satellite communications services to private companies, but the long-term future of such arrangements remains unclear. Under the pilot, the Army selected satellite operators Intelsat and SES to provide “satcom as a managed service,” a model where the provider handles all satellite