Space explained
September 2026 Celestial Events: Venus, Galaxies, Harvest Moon
A few days later, on September 26, the Harvest Moon will illuminate the eastern sky, flanked by Saturn, also visible without instruments.
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Space explained
These guides explain the concepts that keep coming back in the news: orbits, launches, instruments, distances and units. They start from the common questions and add complexity only where it earns its place.
You can read them on their own, or keep one open as a reference while you follow a mission or a discovery in the other sections.
All articles
Space explained
Space exploration How NASA combines observation, testing and funding
Space exploration appears as the common thread that connects these activities. L'osservazione e la pratica tecnica procedono insieme nell'esplorazione spaziale.
Space explained
Space exploration: How NASA links observation, tests and policy
L'observation and technical practice proceed together in space exploration.
Space explained
Space Exploration's Future: Innovation, Courage, Industrial Support
It is characterized by a close intersection of technological ingenuity, human courage, and robust industrial support.
Space explained
Artificial intelligence reduces space risks 12-hour solar warnings
Artificial intelligence works alongside fault management systems incorporated into spacecraft design and small satellite telescopes, known as SmallSats…
Space explained
The Human Footprint on the Moon: Debris, Microbes, and Survival
Today, the issue of the human footprint on the Moon inevitably emerges with clarity, manifesting both through the physical marks left by our debris…
Space explained
NASA aircraft fleet: Boeing 737 for lunar tests, 777 as global lab
The updated fleet of NASA aircraft is filling two distinct but connected roles: reduced-gravity testing for astronauts and data collection to understand Earth.
Space explained
Perseids and the 2026 eclipse: how to tell a meteor from a plane
A rare overlap of the Perseid peak and a total solar eclipse gave exceptional dark skies, and one very convincing meteor that turned out to be a contrail.
Space explained
ESA Open Day at ESRIN: satellite data and labs for schools
ESA Open Day at ESRIN turns satellite data into hands-on labs and guided tours: about 2,000 visitors per edition, and a Multimedia Centre open all year.
Space explained
Total solar eclipse 2026: a golden corona from the Arctic to Spain
The 12 August 2026 eclipse crossed the Arctic to Spain, showing a rare golden corona at sunset and giving NASA jets and balloons a window on the Sun.
Space explained
Why is space dark if the Sun is shining?
In orbit the Sun is blinding and the sky stays black. Darkness is not the absence of light: it is the absence of anything to send it back towards your eyes.
Space explained
Space innovation: satellites, self-healing materials and autonomy
Copernicus imagery becomes irrigation and coastal decisions, self-healing composites extend hardware life, and autonomous platforms turn alerts into action.
Space explained
Why doesn't the Moon fall to Earth?
It is falling, right now. It never arrives because it also moves sideways: an orbit is a fall that keeps missing its target.
Space explained
Why don't we feel the Earth spinning?
At the equator we travel at 1,670 km/h without feeling anything. Our bodies sense changes in speed, not speed itself.
Official sources
Portals and services worth bookmarking when you want to check a figure, follow a mission or keep reading at the source.
- Spot the Station NASA
The first experiment worth doing: seeing the Space Station with the naked eye, knowing when to look up.
- ESA Kids ESA
Built for schools but useful to anyone starting from zero: the basics of space, from the European agency.