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)
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SpaceX launches 48 Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base
Added 70 Views / 0 LikesA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 48 Starlink satellites from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base on July 7, 2023.The rocket's first stage landed on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship in the Pacific Ocean several minutes after separation. hCred
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Space Sparks Episode 11: Webb celebrates first year of science with close-up on the birth of sun-...
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ISS crew plays 'Space Dart' game with ping pong ball and hoops
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Watch live! SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launch of the Hughes JUPITER 3 mission
Added 70 Views / 0 LikesA Falcon Heavy carrying the huge Jupiter 3 communications satellite is scheduled to lift off during a 99-minute window that opens at 11:04 p.m. EDT (0304 GMT on July 28) from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on Florida's Space Coast.Broadcast courtesy: SpaceX
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Space to Ground: Deep Dive: Aug. 4, 2023
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Relive Curiosity's landing on Mars in this NASA mission control broadcast replay
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possible TROPICAL STORM WATCH! Los Angeles & Southern California & Nevada August 21st
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Red Alert! Major Category 4 Hurricane Hilary 48 hours away from Southern California landfall.
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Blastoff! India's Aditya-L1 sun probe launched atop PSLV rocket
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SpaceX Starship 25 stacked on Super Heavy booster 9 ahead of next flight
Added 70 Views / 0 LikesSpaceX's Starship 25 was stacked on the Super Heavy booster 9 at the company's Starbase facility in South Texas on Sept. 5, 2025. The rocket is being prepped for a test flight, the 2nd for Starship. Credit: SpaceX | edited by Space.com's [Steve Spaleta](h
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See Chinese astronauts clean the Tiangong Space Station
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Chinese astronauts enter Tiangong space station after docking
Added 70 Views / 0 LikesChina's Shenzhou 17 crew Tang Hongbo, Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin completed ingress into the Tiangong space station shortly after docking on Oct. 26, 2023. Launch wrap: https://www.space.com/china-launches-shenzhou-17-crew-tiangongCredit: Space.com | f
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Clash of the Titans
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Seeing Quintuple
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Arm wrestling in space & more great ISS moments in 2021
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