Earlier last week, NASA put out a release alerting journalists to "an exciting announcement about the agency’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) mission." Given the controversial history of the project -- the current administration has formally proposed cancelling it for several years and the astronomy community (and Congress) have been keep it going -- …
Great Nations Need Great Observatories
The Hubble Space Telescope, arguably the jewel in the crown of NASA's science missions, was launched 29 years ago. It has been providing scientists and the public with a steady stream of previously unimagined insights about the cosmos -- plus those jaw-dropping, very high-resolution images like the one above -- pretty much ever since. It …
A Reprieve for Space Science?
A quick update on a recent column about whether our "golden age" of space science and discovery was in peril because of cost overruns and Trump administration budget priorities that emphasized human space travel over science. The 2018 omnibus spending bill that was passed Wednesday night by the House of Representatives and Thursday night …
A Reprieve for Space Science?
A quick update on a recent column about whether our "golden age" of space science and discovery was in peril because of cost overruns and Trump administration budget priorities that emphasized human space travel over science. The 2018 omnibus spending bill that was passed Wednesday night by the House of Representatives and Thursday night by …
How Will We Know What Exoplanets Look Like, and When?
An earlier version of this article was accidently published last week before it was completed. This is the finished version, with information from this week's AAS annual conference. Let's face it: the field of exoplanets has a significant deficit when it comes to producing drop-dead beautiful pictures. We all know why. Exoplanets are just too …
Continue reading "How Will We Know What Exoplanets Look Like, and When?"
How Will We Know What Exoplanets Look Like, and When?
An earlier version of this article was accidently published last week before it was completed. This is the finished version, with information from this week's AAS annual conference. Let's face it: the field of exoplanets has a significant deficit when it comes to producing drop-dead beautiful pictures. We all know why. Exoplanets are just too …
Continue reading "How Will We Know What Exoplanets Look Like, and When?"
Many Worlds 