Space

Some 2.3 billion years ago, the Earth would have been unrecognizable to us. At that time, ancient microorganisms were the dominant life form; there were no animals, no plant life, and certainly no humans. But then, something changed. Oxygen-producing cyanobacteria triggered the Great Oxidation Event (GOE), which introduced atmospheric oxygen to our planet and allowed life as we know it to…

When you’re shooting subjects such as the night sky, the ability to resolve fine detail while also pushing camera settings to the limit is essential. This is why professional prime lenses can be the perfect options for astrophotographers, and the Viltrox AF 35mm f/1.2 LAB FE is a lens that full-frame Sony camera owners will appreciate. This lens is part of Viltrox’s flagship LAB series, which…

Rick Tumlinson founded SpaceFund, a venture capital firm investing in space startups, the Earthlight Foundation, and New Worlds. He also co-founded the Space Frontier Foundation, and is a founding board member of the X Prize Foundation. He contributed the following piece — an edited essay from his upcoming book “Why Space: The Purpose of People,” to be published in October 2025 —…

Coronagraph imagery of the partial solar eclipse on Sept. 21, 2025. (Image credit: NOAA, GOES-19 CCOR-1) On Sept. 21, while skywatchers on Earth were eagerly watching a partial solar eclipse unfold, NOAA’s space weather sentinel GOES-19 was also keeping watch from orbit. From its vantage point high above Earth, the satellite’s Compact Coronagraph-1 (CCOR-1) recorded something unusual…