»» Global Extinction: Gradual Doom as Bad as Abrupt

Saturday, February 4, 2012 - The deadliest mass extinction of all took a long time to kill 90 percent of Earth's marine life--and it killed in stages--according to a newly published report. It shows that mass extinctions need not be sudden events.

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»» Stephen Colbert Advocates NASA Space Station Research

Friday, February 3, 2012 - Stephen Colbert, host of the nightly 'The Colbert Report,' said in a new NASA public service announcement released today that he's always been a huge fan of space.

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»» European training for Russian cosmonauts

Friday, February 3, 2012 - In the spirit of the international nature of the International Space Station, ESA's Astronaut Training Division not only welcomes European astronauts: four Russian cosmonauts are also working hard at the European Astronaut Centre this month.

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»» Mars Express Reveals Wind-blown Deposits on Mars

Friday, February 3, 2012 - New images from ESA's Mars Express show the Syrtis Major region on Mars. Once thought to be a sea of water, the region is now known to be a volcanic province dating back billions of years.

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»» Sustainable Outer Space Discussed in Vienna

Friday, February 3, 2012 - Sustainable future use of outer space, possible dangers from asteroids, space debris mitigation and disaster management will be key agenda items at the 49th session of COPUOS.

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»» The Surface of Mars is an Unlikely Place for Life After a 600 Million Year Drought

Friday, February 3, 2012 - Mars may have been arid for more than 600 million years, making it too hostile for any life to survive on the planet's surface

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»» NASA Receives Second Highest Number of Astronaut Applications

Friday, February 3, 2012 - More than 6,300 individuals applied to become a NASA astronaut between Nov. 15, 2011 and Jan. 27, the second highest number of applications ever received by the agency.

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»» Classic Portrait of a Barred Spiral Galaxy: Hubble Observes NGC 1073

Friday, February 3, 2012 - The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has taken a picture of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1073, which is found in the constellation of Cetus (The Sea Monster).

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»» Photo: Night Time Panorama of the East Coast As Seen From Space

Friday, February 3, 2012 - This Jan. 29 panorama of much of the East Coast, photographed by one of the Expedition 30 crew members aboard the International Space Station, provides a look generally northeastward: Philadelphia-New York City-Boston corridor (bottom-center).

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»» Google Earth Ocean Terrain Receives Major Update

Friday, February 3, 2012 - Google updated ocean data in its Google Earth application this week, reflecting new bathymetry data assembled by Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, NOAA researchers and many other ocean mapping groups from around the world.

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»» Preserving the past: Antarctic Heritage Trust restores Scott's expedition hut at Cape Evans

Friday, February 3, 2012 - Al Fastier vividly recalls sloshing through nearly a foot of water as the first tourist of the season to enter what's become known as the Cape Evans Hut, a century-old wooden building that sits on a sloping black volcanic beach on Ross Island.

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»» NASA Seeks Proposals For Edison Small Satellite Demonstrations

Thursday, February 2, 2012 - NASA is seeking proposals for flight demonstrations of small satellite technologies with the goal of increasing the technical capabilities and range of uses for this emerging category of spacecraft.

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»» NASA Posts "We Explore Space" Concept Maps Online - Quietly

Thursday, February 2, 2012 - I am a fan of mind maps, so this is an interesting approach. The question that really begs an answer is who is the intended audience for this website? The media? Policy wonks? The public? How much this activity cost? Why is there no press release?

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»» NASA Internal Memo: Public release of 'We Explore Space' Concept Maps

Thursday, February 2, 2012 - We are pleased to notify you that the human space exploration project you graciously offered your time and expertise to support has been completed and is being released to the public at this very moment!

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»» Sun delivered curveball of powerful radiation at Earth

Thursday, February 2, 2012 - A potent follow-up solar flare, just days after the Sun launched the biggest coronal mass ejection (CME) seen in nearly a decade, delivered a powerful radiation punch to Earth's magnetic field despite the fact that it was aimed away from our planet.

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»» First plants caused ice ages

Thursday, February 2, 2012 - New research reveals how the arrival of the first plants 470 million years ago triggered a series of ice ages. Led by the Universities of Exeter and Oxford, the study is published today (1 February 2012) in Nature Geoscience.

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»» Scientists help define structure of exoplanets

Thursday, February 2, 2012 - Using models similar to those used in weapons research, scientists may soon know more about exoplanets, those objects beyond the realm of our solar system.

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   »» More top stories from January, other months.