Weekly - Odysseus lands on the moon and more
Weekly Space News - Quick and Easy
Odysseus lands on the moon
Last week, Intuitive Machines became the first non-governmental organisation to land on the moon when its private lander Odysseus touched down on the lunar surface. This is also the first US mission to land on the moon in about 50 years since Apollo 17 in 1972. Though the mission and lander are private it also carries 5 NASA payloads. While this soft landing is historical, it did take a slight twist when mission control found that the lander had tipped over and landed sideways. The lander is still mostly functioning perfectly and landing has caused only minor inconveniances.
Webb spots young neutron star
Last week, the James Webb Space Telescope spotted a very young neutron star that had just formed from a supernova explosion. Once a star undergoes its supernova stage, it crushes protons and electrons together to form an incredibly dense object composed entirely of neutrons. While they are typically only 10-20 km wide their mass can be greater than the sun. This particular neutron star formed from an explosion named Supernova 1987A which was observed 40 years ago and located 170,000 light years away. This is the first time scientists are seeing a neutron star being formed. To learn more about neutron stars you can read our post on “Understanding stars and common terms related to stars” here →
