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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59:23
NASA's SpaceX Crew 9 Mission Overview News Conference
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesLeaders from NASA and SpaceX presented an overview of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission launch to the International Space Station during a mission overview briefing July 26. The Crew-9 mission will carry NASA astronauts Zena Cardman, Nick Hague, and Stephanie
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01:08
Hurricane Francine barrels towards Louisiana in time-lapse from space
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesFrancine intensified into a hurricane over the Gulf of Mexico on Sept. 11, 2024. See time-lapsed footage of the storm from NOAA's GOES-East satellite. Credit: Space.com | CIRA/NOAA | edited by [Steve Spaleta](https://x.com/stevespaleta) Music: Falling Clo
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09:26
Splashdown! SpaceX Polaris Dawn crew back on Earth after spacewalk mission
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesThe SpaceX Polaris Dawn crew Jared Isaacman, Scott "Kidd" Poteet, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon are back on Earth after splashing down off the coast of Florida on Sept. 15, 2024. Full Story: https://www.space.com/spacex-polaris-dawn-private-astronaut-missio
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01:07
China's Yutu-2 rover snaps new images of moon's surface
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesThe Chang'e-4 mission's Yutu-2 rover is still active on the lunar surface. It capture new imagery on Sept. 10, 2024. The Chang'e-4 mission landed ont he moon in 2019. Credit: Space.com | footage courtesy: China Central Television (CCTV) | edited by [Steve
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03:38
Largest black hole jet discovered stretches 23 million light years
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesThe jets dubbed Porphyrion stretch for 23 million light years, equal to 140 Milky Ways lined up side by side. They erupted from a black hole that existed when the universe was half its current age. Full Story: https://www.space.com/black-hole-jets-longest
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03:02
Space to Ground: Sunita in Charge: Sept. 20, 2024
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesNASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station. Got a question or comment? Use #AskNASA to talk to us.Learn more about the important research being operated on Station:https://www.nasa.gov/iss-scien
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02:13
RED ALERT! Major* Hurricane to hit the USA in 7 days! and then another one 7 days later?!?
Added 92 Views / 0 Likesit's a cliffhanger.God bless everyone,Thttps://www.paypal.me/THORnewshttps://venmo.com/TEric-Lewisonhttps://www.patreon.com/thornews
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05:05
RED ALERT! Hurricane to hit Florida in a week? BIG* X-Class Flare! BIG Strike! New October Comet?
Added 92 Views / 0 Likeswow.God bless everyoneStay cool.Thttps://www.paypal.me/THORnewshttps://venmo.com/TEric-Lewisonhttps://www.patreon.com/thornews
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Watch live! Blue Origin debuts 2nd human-rated New Shepard rocket
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesBlue Origin plans to debut its second human-rated spacecraft on Wednesday (Oct. 23) after a more than two-week delay. Jeff Bezos' aerospace company aims to launch its uncrewed NS-27 mission at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT) on Wednesday, sending a brand-new New S
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01:08
Coming soon: SpaceX Starship Flight 6! #catch #shorts
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesRelive the SpaceX Starship flight 5 launch and booster catch to prepare for flight 6, currently scheduled for no earlier than Nov. 18, 2024.
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01:01
See Saturn's rings tilt in amazing Hubble Space Telescope time-lapse
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesHubble Space Telescope imagery of Saturn, captured from 2018-2024, has been time-lapsed. Footage courtesy: NASA, ESA, Amy Simon (NASA-GSFC), Michael H. Wong (University of California) | edited by Space.com's Steve Spaleta (https://www.instagram.com/spalet
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03:16
Meet JAXA Astronaut Takuya Onishi, Crew-10 Mission Specialist
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesJAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi will serve as mission specialist for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission. With 113 days in space, Crew-10 will mark Onishi’s second trip to the International Space Station. After being selected a
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09:07
Blastoff! SpaceX launches 28 Starlink satellites from Florida, nails landing
Added 92 Views / 0 LikesA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 28 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on April 5, 2025 at 11:07 p.m. EDT (0307 GMT on Sunday, April 6).The rocket's first stage landed on the SpaceX drone ship "Just Read the Instructio
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00:30
Pan of UGC 8091
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesTo celebrate the holiday season, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured the galaxy known as UGC 8091, which resembles a sparkling festive snow globe. With a dazzling array of wavelengths of light captured by filters on Hubble's premier scientifi
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05:24
Sierra Space 'Ghost' to 'return objects' to Earth
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesSierra Space is developing a "low beta reentry vehicle" to "safely return objects from space – and through space – directly to precise locations on Earth." Credit: Sierra Space
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00:30
Pan: UGC 9684
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesThe celestial object showcased in this week's Hubble Picture of the Week is the spiral galaxy UGC 9684, which lies around 240 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Boötes. This image shows an impressive example of several classic galactic fe
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04:56
RED ALERT! Texas & Mexico Hurricane & Shark Attack Watch! & Erupting Volcanoes in MX & Italy!
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesHappy 4th of July, y'all.God bless everyone,Thttps://www.paypal.me/THORnewshttps://venmo.com/TEric-Lewison$THORnews on CashApphttps://www.patreon.com/thornews
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08:29
Alert! 6.7 Canadian Earthquake! 4 of 5 days of Severe Weather! Volcano Eruption Uptick! & Houston.
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesSay a prayer for everyone in Houston and around the World who might need a littleextra love, luck and patience right now.God bless everyone,T
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01:11
Progress cargo spacecraft docks with space station in amazing time-lapse
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesThe Russian Progress MS-28 freighter docked with the International Space Station on Aug. 17, 2024. It is carrying nearly three tons of food, scientific equipment and other supplies. Credit: Space.com | footage courtesy: NASA | edited by Steve Spaleta (htt
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08:57
SpaceX launches Arctic broadband satellites on booster's record-tying 22nd flight, nails landing
Added 91 Views / 0 LikesA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched the Arctic Satellite Broadband Mission (ASBM) from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base on Aug. 11, 2024 at 10:02 p.m. EDT (7:02 p.m. local California time; 0202 GMT on Aug. 12). This particular Falcon 9 first stage h