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Space & Planetary

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 24-Oct-2026 18:17 ET (24-Oct-2026 22:17 GMT/UTC)

SwRI developing payload electronics and flight software for NASA’s Landsat 10 spacecraft

Southwest Research Institute
Business Announcement

SAN ANTONIO —June 17, 2026— SwRI is developing electronics and flight software for the NASA/U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Landsat 10 satellite that is set to launch in 2031 to collect new and improved Earth observation data. The mission is a continuation of NASA’s and USGS’ partnership on the ongoing Landsat program, which has launched nine satellites since 1972 and provided over 10 million images of the Earth’s surface.

New scenario for cosmic neutrino events

National Institutes of Natural Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), with help from a ‘natural telescope’ formed by gravity, have identified the source of a neutrino burst. The team expected a supermassive black hole to be the engine driving the remarkably bright galaxy. Instead, the team found that the galaxy was driven by vigorous star formation. This result provides important observational evidence to help explain the mysterious origin of cosmic neutrinos.

Journal: Nature Astronomy
Funder: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, TI-FRIS

Dark matter in the center of the Milky Way not ruled out

University of Vienna
Peer-Reviewed Publication

An international research collaboration between the University of Vienna and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the United States has used machine learning to re-examine one of the most hotly debated signals in astrophysics. The so-called Galactic Center Excess (GCE), a faint, roughly spherical glow of gamma rays at the center of the Milky Way, has fascinated physicists for more than a decade. The new results suggest that an explanation in terms of dark matter cannot currently be ruled out. The results have now been published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Journal: Physical Review Letters

Revolutionizing protein science: AI as an observatory of physical organization in protein space

AI for Science
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A research team led by Qian-Yuan Tang from Hong Kong Baptist University and Weitong Ren from Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, has reviewed how artificial intelligence is shifting protein science from task-driven prediction toward principle-oriented discovery. They introduced a new concept of AI functioning as an observatory to explore the complex organization of proteins. Moving beyond mere prediction, this perspective leverages AI-derived signals to uncover underlying physical constraints, evolutionary patterns, and functional principles that shape protein structures and dynamics. By viewing AI models as tools for systematic observation, researchers can decode the organizational principles of proteins-paving the way for more informed bioengineering and therapeutic strategies.

Journal: AI for Science

Radionuclides trapped in a deep-sea sample point to an ancient cosmic event

Australian National University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Rare radioactive isotopes have been provided in a deep-sea manganese crust, providing new insights into the formation of the heaviest elements in the universe.

Journal: Nature Astronomy
Funder: Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf

Oddball exoplanet challenges what it means to be a hot Jupiter

Caltech IPAC
Reports and Proceedings

New research led by a scientist at IPAC—a science and data center for astrophysics and planetary science at Caltech—studying the hot Jupiter CoRoT-2 b has settled on one of the three leading hypotheses explaining why its atmosphere has a hot spot in the opposite direction than is seen on all other exoplanets of this type. This work was presented during a press conference at the 248th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Pasadena, California on June 16, 2026.

Journal: The Astronomical Journal
Meeting: 248th meeting of the American Astronomical Society

SwRI, collaborators sign MOU to develop a lunar research initiative

Southwest Research Institute
Grant and Award Announcement

SAN ANTONIO — June 15, 2026 — Southwest Research Institute (SwRI®), Astroport Space Technologies Inc. and the WEX Foundation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the proposed establishment of an independent National Lunar Research Center (NLRC) initiative. The focus of the collaboration is to accelerate the research and development efforts needed to advance lunar surface infrastructure technologies, demonstrate assisted and autonomous lunar construction capabilities and prepare a specialized workforce to fulfill NASA’s Ignition and Moon-to-Mars objectives.

You just ate that planet, didn't you?

University of Michigan
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A team of astronomers, led by Brooke Kotten of the University of Michigan, has shown that TOI-5882—a sun-like star located some 1,300 light-years away—has likely eaten one of its planets.

Journal: The Astrophysical Journal
Funder: NASA Headquarters

SwRI team uncovers clues about what future astronauts may find on the Moon

Southwest Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

SAN ANTONIO — June 15, 2026 — Scientists from the Center for Lunar Origin and Evolution (CLOE), Southwest Research Institute’s team in NASA’s Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute, have helped uncover new details about the formation of the Moon’s oldest and largest impact crater, providing fresh insight into what future Artemis astronauts could encounter near the lunar south pole. The findings are outlined in two new companion studies.

Journal: Science Advances

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