Intergalactic Space not so Spacey?

Listen 00:05:47

How is it that the Milky Way’s 11 most distant stars are 300,000 light years from Earth, well beyond the spiral arms of the Milky Way? Astronomers now have a better understanding of how streams of stars connect giant galaxies to nearby dwarf galaxies. Researchers at Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics have created computer models that suggest our Milky Way has pulled the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy apart as it has looped around our galaxy.

Six lunar explorers left after last week’s passing of Gene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon. Altogether 24 people have flown beyond Earth, 15 are still with us to tell their stories.

NASA rovers Spirit and Opportunity are 13 years old on Mars this week! Landed in January 2004, Opportunity is still chugging along, while Spirit has been silent since 2010 when it got trapped in a sand pit and unable to re-orient its solar panels. Spirit did 4.8 miles, Opportunity has covered 27.1 miles and despite some problems is still working well!

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