Outer Space & Universe
Outer Space & Universe
Space, also known as outer space, is the near-vacuum between celestial bodies. It is where everything (all of the planets, stars, galaxies and other objects) is found.
On Earth, space begins at the Kármán line (100 km above sea level). This is where Earth's atmosphere is said to stop and outer space begins. This is not a firm boundary but is a convention used by scientists and diplomats.
Items in space are free to move back and forth; up and down; and left and right. These three dimensions are what make 3D space. Items also move forward through time, which is sometimes called the fourth dimension.
The majority of space contains very little matter and so most of it is a vacuum. Scientists do not know how big space is but we do know that space is extremely big, and is always expanding.
According to the big bang theory, all matter and energy in the Universe was compressed into a very small space. Then it exploded and started expanding. Space is still growing in size today; this means the distance from one galaxy to distant galaxies is getting longer.
Gravity is the force that keeps the Moon in orbit around the Earth and the planets in orbit around the Sun. Gravity can stretch and bend space similar to how a heavy ball placed on a stretched sheet of rubber will cause the rubber to stretch. The scientist who discovered that space can bend is named Albert Einstein. How gravity bends space is part of his theory of general relativity.
Astronauts, Cosmonauts, Taikonauts and Spationauts
An astronaut is any person who is trained by NASA to travel and perform tasks in space. Although the space traveler may not necessarily be a United States citizen, each astronaut does go through a rigorous training regiment by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Other space travelers go by other names then astronaut depending on their country of origin.
In the United States, astronaut is derived from the Greek words ástron (star) and nautis (sailor). While, in Russia, a space traveler goes by the name космонавт (English: cosmonaut), which is derived from the Greek words kosmos (universe) and nautis (sailor). Westerners call a space traveler from China a taikonaut, based on the 1998 writings of Chiew Lee Yik and Chen Lan where the term tàikōng (great emptiness), Chinese for “space”. In China, the term yuháng yuán (universe navigator) is used for space traveler.
Only the United States of America (United States), Russia (earlier, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics), and the People’s Republic of China (China) have sent manned spacecraft into space. Other countries have assisted these countries by sending their own space travelers on space missions. For instance, a French space traveler is called a spationaut (from the French word spationaute), which is derived from the Latin spatium (space) and Greek nautis (sailor). (plural in Greek nautes = sailors)
-
02:56
Find Mars, Gemini and the Winter Circle in February 2021 skywatching
Added 190 Views / 0 LikesThe moon leads the way to the Red Planet, the Winter Circle and the Gemini constellation in Feb. 2021. -- Best night sky events of February 2021 - stargazing maps: https://www.space.com/33974-best-night-sky-events.htmlCredit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
-
01:21
Space Station's 'power caution warning' alarm interrupts astronauts' interview
Added 182 Views / 0 LikesAn interview between the National Science Foundations and NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Victor Glover was interrupted by a power caution warning alarm aboard the International Space Station. The interview was quickly resumed after the astronauts responde
-
01:40
White House is 'not revisiting decision to establish Space Force'
Added 212 Views / 0 LikesPress secretary Jen Psaki talks about Space Force during the White House daily briefing on Feb. 3, 2021. - Full Story: https://www.space.com/space-force-future-biden-white-houseCredit: Whitehouse.gov
-
03:45
Blastoff! SpaceX's Starlink megaconstellation grows with new batch
Added 164 Views / 0 LikesSpaceX launched 60 Starlink satellites atop a Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. on Feb. 4, 2021. Credit: SpaceX
-
02:29
Touchdown! SpaceX lands booster after launching Starlink batch
Added 170 Views / 0 LikesSpaceX's Falcon 9 first stage landed on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 4, 2021 shortly after launching 60 Starlink satellites. Credit: SpaceX
-
01:34
SpaceX rocket stage spins for Starlink deploy with awesome Earth view
Added 174 Views / 0 LikesSpaceX deployed 60 Starlink satellites on Feb. 4, 2021. The spacecraft spins to deliver momentum for the satellites to separate out after deployment. -- Full Story: https://www.space.com/spacex-starlink-18-satellites-launch-rocket-landingCredit: SpaceX
-
55:16
NSF’s Joe Pesce talks Mars, astrophysics and more
Added 168 Views / 0 LikesNational Science Foundation program director Joe Pesce talks to Space.com's Chelsea Gohd in this exclusive interview. Join the Space.com Community: https://forums.space.com
-
00:52
Biden administration supports NASA's Artemis program, says Press Secretary Psaki
Added 181 Views / 0 LikesWhite House press secretary Jen Psaki announced on Feb. 4, 2021 that the Biden administration supports NASA's Artemis program to return humans to the surface of the moon. Credit: Whitehouse.gov
-
7:23:16
National Space Settlement 2021 - Virtual NSS Event | Watch Live!
Added 178 Views / 0 LikesNational Space Society's National Space Settlement 2021 virtual event starts at 12pm ET / 9am PT on Feb. 4. 2021. Full schedule here: https://spacesettlement2021.nss.org/home/schedule/
-
02:39
Talking Blazars With Astrophysicist Joe Pesce
Added 170 Views / 0 LikesWhat are Blazars and why is astrophysicist Joe Pesce so fond of them? Join the Space.com Community: https://forums.space.com
-
05:02
Starship soars (& crashes), Spacewalk and more this week! | VFS Weekly
Added 172 Views / 0 LikesVideos featured: bluShift Aerospace conducts its 1st rocket launch from Maine, Spacewalkers install new camera and more on Space Station, SpaceX launched and crash landed its Starship SN9 prototype, SpaceX also launched 60 Starlink satellites. -- Join the
-
01:02
China's Tianwen-1 probe snaps first pic of Mars
Added 190 Views / 0 LikesChina Tianwen-1 mission captured imagery of the Red Planet from a distance of 2.2 million kilometers (1.36 million miles) away. It's scheduled to arrive in orbit of Mars on Feb. 10, 2021. Full Story: https://www.space.com/china-tianwen-1-mission-first-mar
-
01:10
'This is your chance' to go to space with Jared Isaacman and SpaceX
Added 146 Views / 0 LikesShift4 Payments CEO Jared Isaacman will be heading to space aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon along with a pair of contest winners. Learn more about it: https://www.space.com/super-bowl-2021-spacex-inspiration4-commercialCredit: Space.com | produced & edited by
-
01:06
China launches new communications satellite - See it in real-time & slo-mo
Added 186 Views / 0 LikesChina's Long March-3B rocket launched a new communication technology experiment satellite from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center on Feb. 4, 2021.The satellites will be "used in communication, radio, television and data transmission, as well as technolog
-
09:56
Alice Wetterlund and Sara Tomko talk Syfy's 'Resident Alien'
Added 173 Views / 0 LikesActresses Alice Wetterlund "D’arcy Bloom" and Sara Tomko "Asta twelvetrees" talk with Space.com's Chelsea Gohd about the new Syfy series "Resident Alien." - 'Resident Alien' launches from comics to Syfy: https://www.space.com/resident-alien-alan-tudyk-syf
-
03:11
See Perseverance's Mars entry, sky crane and landing in stunning 4K animation
Added 208 Views / 0 LikesNASA's Perseverance rover is scheduled to land on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Watch its atmospheric entry, powered descent and sky crane in action in this highly detailed animation. Track NASA's 2020 Mars rover Perseverance: https://www.space.com/tra
-
23:08
Talking Inspiration4 with Jared Isaacman - 1st all-private orbital mission
Added 141 Views / 0 LikesShift4 Payment's CEO Jared Isaacman has charted a SpaceX Crew Dragon for the first all-private orbital mission. Isaacman talks to Space.com's Tariq Malik about it in this exclusive interview. Credit: Space.com
-
01:47
Apollo 14 astronauts' moonwalk to Cone Crater revisited with orbiter imagery
Added 187 Views / 0 LikesApollo 14 astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell hiked about a mile to the rim of Cone Crater. NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter imagery is used to show the path them moonwalked. Credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
-
01:15
Mars' moons projected into night sky over UAE, wows skywatchers
Added 147 Views / 0 LikesImagery of the Martian moons Phobos and Deimos were projected into the night sky over the United Arab Emirates to commemorate the arrival of the nation's Hope Orbiter at the Red Planet. Learn how they did it: https://www.space.com/uae-hope-mars-moons-proj
-
01:10
Watch Russia's Progress spacecraft depart space station in time-lapse
Added 187 Views / 0 LikesRussia's Progress MS-15 cargo spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station on Feb. 9, 2021. Credit: Roscosmos | mash mix by Space.com