How NASA's new space telescope could help solve mysteries of dark energy and dark matter



© Reuters
Since it was stripped of planetary status, Pluto’s defenders have been fighting the decision – and they’re only getting more passionate
Twenty years ago, Pluto got demoted. After a vote by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in August 2006, Pluto was relegated from major planet to dwarf planet status. Our solar system dropped from nine planets to eight. At the time, many scientists were unhappy with the decision. Two decades on, the debate is, if anything, even more polarised.
“The definition of a planet they created, you can’t use it at all,” says Philip Metzger, the director of the Stephen W Hawking Centre for Microgravity Research and Education at the University of Central Florida. “It makes the definition of a planet completely non-useful in science.”
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© Photograph: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

© Photograph: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

© Photograph: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images
Searching for exoplanets and clues on planet formation, the Roman telescope begins million-mile journey from Florida launchpad
A $4.3bn space telescope that Donald Trump tried to kill has lifted off from Florida as Nasa embarks on the next stage of its quest to unlock the secrets of the universe.
The Nancy Grace Roman space telescope survived two rounds of proposed White House budget cuts, and began a million-mile journey into deep space from a launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center on Sunday morning. .
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© Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters

© Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters

© Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters
Searching for exoplanets and clues on planet formation, the Roman telescope begins million-mile journey from Florida launchpad
A $4.3bn space telescope that Donald Trump tried to kill has lifted off from Florida as Nasa embarks on the next stage of its quest to unlock the secrets of the universe.
The Nancy Grace Roman space telescope survived two rounds of proposed White House budget cuts, and began a million-mile journey into deep space from a launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center on Sunday morning. .
Continue reading...
© Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters

© Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters

© Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters


© Chriss Gunn/NASA

© Noel Celis/Reuters
