A Road Trip with Commander Chris

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Are There Aliens Broadcasting from Hycean World K2-18b? Astronomers Just Listened In February 24, 2026
If you’ve been following exoplanet research over the last couple of years, you’ve definitely heard of K2-18b. Located 124 light years away in the constellation Leo, it’s attracted a lot of attention as it sits squarely in its red dwarf host star’s habitable zone, and measurements of the James Webb Space Telescope show its atmosphere […]
A "Cosmic Positioning System" in the Outer Solar System February 24, 2026
There have been plenty of attempts to resolve the “Hubble Tension” in cosmology. This feature describes how one of the most important variables in cosmology, the expansion of the universe, takes on different values depending on how you measure it. A new NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase I report on the Cosmic Positioning […]
Super-Jupiters Challenge Planet Size Limits February 24, 2026
Our solar system is home to a wide diversity of planetary bodies, boasting eight planets, five officially recognized dwarf planets, and almost 1,000 confirmed moons. The eight planets consist of the four rocky (terrestrial) planets of the inner solar system and the four gas giant planets of the outer solar system. The largest planet in […]
NASA is Preparing to Roll Artemis II Rocket Back into the Hangar February 23, 2026
Grounded until at least April, NASA's giant moon rocket is headed back to the hangar this week for more repairs before astronauts climb aboard.
Supercomputer Simulations Crack a Long-Standing Mystery About Red Dwarfs February 23, 2026
Researchers at University of Victoria's Astronomy Research Centre (ARC) and the University of Minnesota study the changes in the chemical composition at the surface of red giant stars.