Lawmakers Set 2026 Deadline for Secret UFO Footage Release

Deadline issued for UFO videos as Congress warns of 'very real threat' to US

• READ MORE: NASA scientist backs evidence of non-human intelligence in Earth's skies

By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

Lawmakers have set a strict deadline for federal agencies to hand over secret UFO videos as officials warn the unidentified objects could threaten US forces.

Republican Rep Anna Paulina Luna penned a letter to the US Secretary of War requesting 46 specific Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) videos, telling Pete Hegseth to deliver them no later than April 14, 2026.

The requested footage includes dozens of military-recorded encounters showing spherical, cigar-shaped and Tic Tac-like objects spotted over war zones, oceans and sensitive airspace around the world.

Some clips reportedly captured UAP formations near Iran and Syria, incidents near US bases and airports and even a 2023 shootdown over Lake Huron.

Lawmakers said the footage could reveal patterns of activity near sensitive military sites and help determine whether the objects pose a national security risk.

'The lack of disclosure regarding the very real threat posed by UAPs in and around US restricted airspace is concerning,' Luna said in a statement.

'The Task Force has found responses from AARO, when questioned about UAP sightings and provided data, [to be] less than adequate.

'The presence of UAPs in and around the sensitive airspaces of US military installations poses a threat to the security of the armed forces and their readiness.'

One of the videos requested was 'Spherical UAP over AFG in and out of clouds' captured in 2020. The footage was leaked by Investigative journalists Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp last year 

She chairs a House Federal Secrets Task Force focused on investigating UAPs, declassifying federal records and protecting whistleblowers.

The threats extend beyond mysterious sightings, pointing to the danger unidentified objects pose when they appear near restricted airspace, military bases and active training zones.

Officials fear the craft could be conducting surveillance, testing US defenses or interfering with aircraft operations, raising concerns about both pilot safety and national security readiness.

Luna released the letter on Wednesday, saying: 'The continued lack of transparency surrounding these anomalies and the potential national security threat they pose is troubling.'

She added that the Task Force held a hearing on September 9, 2025, to discuss those concerns.

'Whistleblowers informed the Task Force that AARO possesses additional video records of potential UAP sightings,' she wrote.

'To continue its investigation, the Task Force requests certain video files related to UAP sightings.'

Anna Paulina Luna chairs a House Federal Secrets Task Force focused on investigating UAP, declassifying federal records and protecting whistleblowers

Some clips reportedly captured UAP formations near Iran and Syria, incidents near US bases and airports and even a 2023 shootdown over Lake Huron (stock)

The requested footage reportedly shows spherical objects weaving through clouds, hovering over open water and repeatedly appearing near US warships and submarines.

Several clips were captured by fighter jets, surveillance aircraft and drones operating in regions such as the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and the East China Sea.

In multiple cases, more than one object was tracked moving at high speeds at the same time, raising concerns about possible coordinated activity near sensitive military operations.

One of the requests: 'Spherical UAP over AFG in and out of clouds, 11/23/20,' is a video reportedly showing a massive disc weaving in and out of cloud cover.

Investigative journalists Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp, who leaked parts of the clip, said the footage was recorded by government personnel over the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in November 2020.

The object was spotted during a reconnaissance mission by a high-altitude Air Force platform.

Luna's deadline comes after President Donald Trump ordered the release of government files relating to UAPs and extraterrestrials on February 19. 

Speaking at an event for the Department of War’s 'Arsenal of Freedom' tour in February, Hegseth said he intends to find out if aliens really exist, and the American people will learn the truth at the same time.

Although he admitted he never envisioned being the person put in charge of potentially revealing alien life to the world, Hegseth declared that the Department of War would fully comply with the president's orders.

'I did not have that on my bingo card at all,' Hegseth said.

'We've got our people working on it right now. I don't want to oversell how much time it will take, right? We're digging in. We're going to be in full compliance with that executive order, eager to provide that for the president.'

Hegseth didn't have an estimate of how long it would take for the Pentagon and US intelligence agencies to release every piece of information on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), which have been widely reported throughout the US since the 1940s.

Asked if he believes aliens exist, Hegseth replied: 'We'll see. I get to do the review and find out along with all of you.'

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

02-04-2026 om 22:04 geschreven door peter  

NASA’s chief has revealed a shocking new outlook on extraterrestrial life, saying Mars could hold proof that we are not alone.

Jared Isaacman sat down with conservative political commentator Benny Johnson, where he said: 'If we can get to Mars and bring samples back, I put it at a better 90 percent chance that we could prove there was some microbial life on Mars.'

Isaacman, NASA’s newly appointed administrator, argued that with roughly two trillion galaxies in the universe, each packed with countless stars and planets, it seems unlikely that Earth is the only world to host life.

'I would say there could be life everywhere. It doesn't mean it looks like us. It doesn't mean it has the tentacles you have in movies,' he added. 

The admission came ahead of the historic Artemis II launch scheduled for today, which will mark NASA's return to the moon in more than 50 years.

NASA reports an 80 percent chance of favorable weather, as the crew prepares for the mission that will see them launch inside the Orion capsule atop the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

'8.8 million pounds of thrust are gonna send four astronauts farther into space than we’ve ever sent humans before, faster than humans have ever traveled around the moon, back safely to Earth, and set up for subsequent missions to follow,' Isaacman said. 'We are going back to the moon.'

The mission will see NASA's Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen conduct a 10-day lunar flyby.

Jared Isaacman sat down with conservative political commentator Benny Johnson , where he said there is a 90 percent chance there was life on Mars

Isaacman explained that the mission will begin in low Earth orbit before moving into a higher orbit, where engineers will spend the first 24 hours confirming the spacecraft is operating correctly. 

Astronauts will remain close enough to return quickly during this phase. 

Once the vehicle performs a translunar injection burn, it will head past the moon, use its gravity to swing back toward Earth, and splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the US West Coast about 10 days later. 

'Hopefully, we have learned enough about that vehicle to set us up for Artemis III in 2027,' said Isaacman.

'Again, that’s where we are going to test the Orion spacecraft with the landers into Earth orbit. And then in 2028, before President Trump’s term, Artemis IV is going to put American boots back on the surface of the moon.'

While Isaacman believes life could exist outside of Earth, he has continually stated that he has not seen any classified files or historic documentation to support that aliens have visited our planet. 

In response to Trump's order to release all government files relating to UFOs and extraterrestrial life on February 19, NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens said: 'We continue to make all NASA data publicly available and welcome public participation using our data.

'As the NASA Administrator has said, there are certainly things he's come across in the job that he can't explain… but they relate more to unnecessarily costly programs than they do to extraterrestrial life.'

Isaacman, however, noted that the previous life on Mars would likely be microbial life

In 2025, acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy announced the discovery of microbial life on the Martian surface.

Read More

• Further than ANY human has ever gone before: Explore how Nasa will 'slingshot' first African-American to the moon tonight in immersive Deep Dive 

He said a sample collected by the Perseverance rover has been declared the 'clearest sign of life' on the Red Planet. 

NASA's Associate Administrator Nicky Fox said: 'This is the kind of signature that we would see that was made by something biological.'

Specifically, researchers have been looking at unusual spots and seed-like shapes in ancient Martian rocks that might point to the existence of tiny life forms in the distant past.

These features, nicknamed 'poppy seeds' and 'leopard spots,' were spotted in mud-like rocks in Neretva Vallis, part of the Jezero crater, where a river existed billions of years ago.

Scientist Joel Hurowitz revealed how these tiny signatures found in the crater pointed to the existence of life on Mars long before most organisms emerged on Earth.

Although the findings have been discussed for months, Hurowitz noted that scientists needed to gather more data from Neretva Vallis and confirm the results with other researchers before releasing the conclusion that this could be Martian life.

'We are here to say this is exciting, and we want to share that news. This could be very real,' Duffy continued.

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

02-04-2026 om 21:47 geschreven door peter  

This is the moment the BBC's science editor was left in tears during NASA's Artemis II lift-off. 

The spacecraft, which will take four astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years, took off from the Kennedy Space Centre yesterday evening. 

Its mammoth 285,000-mile (1.1 million km) round trip will transport crew to the dark side of the moon before slingshotting back to Earth.

The BBC's Science Editor, Rebecca Morelle joined hundreds of other spectators in Florida to witness the historic launch. 

As Artemis II's booster ignitions activated, sending large plumes of smoke billowing across the launch pad, the excitable reporter can be heard saying 'oh my goodness' and repeatedly clapping.

The rocket then blasts off into the sky to thunderous cheers from crowds gathered at the Kennedy Space Centre.

'Oh my goodness that is spectacular,' a visibly emotional Ms Morelle said. 

'It's not just want you see and you hear as the rocket lifts off. You can feel the force of it through your body. This is the most powerful rocket that NASA has ever built.' 

The BBC's Science Editor, Rebecca Morelle (pictured) joined hundreds of other spectators in Florida to witness the historic launch

Artemis II officially launched yesterday evening on its mammoth round trip to the dark side of the moon before returning to Earth 

The roaring engines of the massive spacecraft then interrupt Ms Morelle as it commences its journey towards the stars.

She struggles to be heard over the thunderous noise as she looks over her shoulder at the rocket in wonder. 

Artemis II will take American astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen farther into space than any human has ever gone before.

They will break the previous record set by Apollo 13 in 1970. 

Four minutes into the historic journey, Artemis II crossed the boundary into space with no issues and a clear view of their target destination. 

Mr Wiseman, the mission commander, said: 'We have a beautiful moonrise. We're headed right at it!'

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman reported that Artemis II suffered a temporary communications problem after launch and was dealing with a 'controller issue' with the toilet on board the Orion capsule. 

However, these have now been fixed and the space agency has declared the spacecraft ready for its trip to the moon. 

From left to right: Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch

Just after 6pm in the US, Mr Wiseman declared 'Full send,' as he and his crewmates sat atop NASA’s towering rocket, confirming they were ready for launch.

Orion crew capsule: Key specs

• Unlike the Space Shuttle or ISS, Orion is designed to go far beyond Earth's orbit
• It can support four astronauts for up to 21 days
• It has a built¿in escape rocket that can pull the crew away from danger during launch
• It has the largest heat shield ever built for a human spacecraft
• The astronauts will live in about 330 cubic feet of space ¿ roughly the size of two minivans
• To get some shut¿eye, crew members will strap sleeping bags to the wall
• It has a mini gym onboard, equipped with a compact flywheel exercise device
• It will take astronauts father from Earth than any humans have travelled since the Apollo missions

From mission control, launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson delivered an emotional message to the crew, telling them they carried 'the heart of this Artemis team, the daring spirit of the American people and our partners across the globe, and the hopes and dreams of this generation.'

'Good luck. Godspeed, Artemis II. Let’s go,' she said, following the final launch checks. 

The crew will spend the first one to two days conducting extensive systems checks.

These include testing Orion's life-support, propulsion, navigation and communications systems to ensure the spacecraft is ​ready to head into deep space.

Once checkouts are complete, Orion’s propulsion system will perform ​a critical engine burn known as translunar injection, sending the spacecraft out of Earth orbit and onto a trajectory ‌toward ⁠the moon.

It will take three to four days for the Artemis II crew to reach the moon, with the Orion spacecraft projected to enter what NASA calls the moon’s sphere of influence on day five.

This is the point at which lunar gravity overtakes Earth’s pull and begins guiding the spacecraft toward its destination.

Day six is likely to be historic for NASA and the rest of humanity, as Artemis II conducts its lunar flyby and travels to the dark side of the moon.

The spacecraft will not only reach a point farther from Earth than any previous crewed mission, but NASA confirmed that the astronauts will be able to see a lunar eclipse - when the moon blocks out the sun. 

After looping around the moon, the Orion craft will begin its return journey, leaving the moon’s gravitational influence and heading back toward Earth.

It will take another four days to return, which the astronauts will fill by conducting key safety demonstrations, including testing procedures designed to shield the crew from dangerous solar radiation from solar flares. The crew will also practice manually steering the spacecraft.

Read More

• NASA fans are shocked to see an astronaut typing his PIN into his tablet on the Artemis II moon launch live stream - as one jokes 'command module getting open-sourced!' 

As Orion approaches Earth, it will separate key components before plunging into the ⁠atmosphere ​at speeds of about 25,000 miles per hour (40,233 kph). Testing ​the capsule’s heat shield during high-energy re-entry is one of the mission’s primary objectives.

The spacecraft is expected to splash down ​in the Pacific Ocean, where recovery teams will retrieve the crew.

Parachutes will deploy to slow the spacecraft before it splashes down, bringing the landmark mission to an end. 

Artemis III, NASA's next space mission, is set to launch in 2027 and will see two astronauts land on the surface of the moon and stay there for about a week.  This will be the first time man has set foot on the moon since Apollo 17 in December 1972. 

Artemis II: Key facts 

Launch date: NASA initially identified three possible launch windows for Artemis II: From February 6 to February 11, from March 6 to March 11, and from April 1 to April 6. The space agency is now targeting the April window. 

Mission objective: To complete a lunar flyby, passing the 'dark side' of the moon and test systems for a future lunar landing.

Total distance to travel: 685,000 miles (1.1 million km)

Mission duration: 10 days 

Estimated total cost: $44billion (£32.5billion)

• NASA Space Launch System rocket: $23.8billion (£17.6billion)
• Orion deep¿space spacecraft: $20.4billion (£15billion)

Crew: 

• Commander Reid Wiseman
• Pilot Victor Glover
• Mission Specialist Christina Koch
• Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen

Mission Stages:

1. Launch from Kennedy Space Centre Launch Pad 39B
2. Manoeuvre in orbit to raise the perigee using the Cryogenic Propulsion Stage
3. Burn to raise apogee using the Cryogenic Propulsion Stage
4. Detach from Cryogenic Propulsion Stage and perform translunar injection
5. Fly to the moon over four days
6. Complete lunar flyby at a maximum altitude of 5,523 miles (8,889 km) above the moon's surface
7. Return to Earth over four days
8. Separate the crew module from the European Service Module and the crew module adapter

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

02-04-2026 om 21:29 geschreven door peter  

Chilling two final words of Challenger pilot before disaster killed all astronauts on board

When the pilot confirmed his insturction to mission control with the words, “go throttle up”. It sounded like another routine mission was unfolding -until it didn't.

BY Edward Easton

The failed launch was one of the biggest disasters of its kind in history

 (Image: The LIFE Images Collection via Getty Images)

On the morning of January 28, 1986, millions of people across the globe sat glued to their TVs, excited to watch the Space Shuttle Challenger prepared for lift-off.

At first, everything went according to plan. Challenger shot into the sky, with Commander Francis Scobee calmly confirming his instructions from mission control with the words, “go throttle up”. It sounded like another routine mission was unfolding. Until it didn't. Just three seconds later, came the final transmission from inside the cockpit.

Pilot Michael Smith uttered only two words, but they showed him to be a man who realised something was very, very wrong. - “uh oh”. Moments later, the shuttle was engulfed in fire and tore apart in the sky just 73 seconds after launch, killing all seven astronauts on board.

The launch looked pretty ordinary at first, but things quickly turned south.

(Image: MPI/Getty Images)

From the ground, it looked like an enormous explosion, a violent fireball that appeared to instantly destroy the spacecraft. For decades, that was the version many people believed: that the crew were killed immediately.

But years later, deeply unsettling details emerged that painted a far more disturbing picture.

Challenger did not explode in the traditional sense. A failure in a booster designed to seal fuel leaks caused scorching gases to escape, weakening the external fuel tank. As the shuttle climbed, the structure failed, triggering a massive fireball that ripped the vehicle apart.

Crucially, the crew compartment did not disintegrate straight away.

None of the craft's crew survived

(Image: AFP)

Instead, it is believed to have broken free pretty much intact, continuing to rise for around 25 seconds before beginning its long fall into the Atlantic Ocean.

Investigators later revealed that several of the astronauts’ personal air packs had been switched on, a process that could only be done manually.

That discovery raised the horrifying possibility that at least some of the crew were alive and conscious after the initial breakup, fully aware that they were falling helplessly back to Earth.

NASA maintained that a sudden loss of cabin pressure may have caused the astronauts to lose consciousness quickly. But experts noted that the physical evidence inside the crew module did not fully support that explanation, leaving the exact final moments unclear.

What is certain is that the impact with the ocean was unsurvivable.

The crew compartment slammed into the sea at immense speed, bringing the nightmare to a brutal end.

The remains of the astronauts were later recovered from the ocean floor, though details of their final moments were never publicly disclosed.

{ https://www.mirror.co.uk/  }

02-04-2026 om 20:50 geschreven door peter  

High nickel concentrations in Martian bedrock point to potential biosignatures

by Krystal Kasal, Phys.org

In 2024, NASA's Perseverance rover found surprising levels of Nickel in the Martian bedrock of an ancient river channel, called Neretva Vallis, which flowed into the Jezero crater. A new study, published in Nature Communications, has taken a closer look at the data collected from the region and researchers are seeing what could be remnants of ancient Martian life.

Nickel as a biosignature

Although nickel is not typically thought of as a major component of human life, it is important in many microbial metabolism functions. For example, nickel is a requirement for the Wood-Ljungdahl (W-L) pathway—an ancient, energy-efficient anaerobic process utilized by bacteria and archaea to fix carbon dioxide. The reverse of this process also requires nickel and has been observed in some species of sulfate-reducing bacteria, for the decomposition of organic matter.

"In particular, Ni is an essential component of enzymes used by methanogenic archaea and many bacterial species. Ni is vital to the metabolism of methanogenic organisms, such that a decrease in the Ni content of Earth's oceans in the Archean is hypothesized to have caused a collapse in atmospheric methane preceding the Great Oxidation Event," explain the study authors.

Furthermore, most of a planet's nickel is expected to be in its core. So, higher concentrations on or near the surface are typically unexpected, unless deposited there through other means. Researchers can use information from surrounding rocks to determine more about the origin, such as whether the nickel likely came from volcanic, meteoritic, or other sources.

Unexpected nickel concentrations in Neretva Vallis

Samples picked up by Perseverance showed nickel concentrations of up to 1.1 wt.% in Neretva Vallis, representing the highest-ever nickel concentrations detected in Martian bedrock. Nickel was detected at 0.12 wt.% or higher in 32 out of the 126 distinct rock targets analyzed by Perseverance's remote Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) technique. The team notes that many of these samples were near iron-rich rocks, which they say indicates the presence of nickel in an iron-bearing phase. Scans also identified nickel rich regions in veins of magnesium sulfate.

"There are few processes capable of enriching Ni to the extreme levels seen in Neretva Vallis and any such explanation must also be consistent with the bulk geochemistry and geologic context of Neretva Vallis sedimentary rocks. In particular, the observation that Ni is found concentrated in dispersed Fe-sulfides and diagenetic sulfates within Mg poor mudstones must be considered," the study authors write.

Although the team is still uncertain of the exact origins of these nickel-rich regions, they say that the geochemistry and textures resemble ancient Earth rocks where life first emerged. They say that sedimentary Fe-sulfides on Earth, similar to those found in certain regions of Neretva Vallis, are believed to form by microbial sulfate reduction in the presence of Fe-bearing minerals.

The researchers say that the thermochemical reduction of sulfate at high temperatures is another possible explanation, but there is no evidence for the metamorphism or burial to the depths required for thermochemical sulfate reduction, and that the hydrated sulfate minerals and clays there indicate low-temperature processes. The authors note that previous findings of organic matter and iron-sulfides spurred the designation of a "potential biosignature" for the same reason.

They explain, "The results of our investigation of sedimentary rocks derived from Noachian (~4.1-3.7 Gya) materials in the Jezero watershed invite comparisons with an early Earth environment and a terrestrial biosphere that developed around the same time as these rocks. While the observations presented in this work do not necessarily imply that the distribution of Ni is related to a biological process, the presence of strong enrichments suggests it was bioavailable.

"As an element essential to the earliest known forms of life on Earth, and a particularly scarce trace metal, the elevated concentrations of Ni in the Beaver Falls workspace—co-located with organic matter—offers an intriguing hint of past organic driven redox processes on Mars."

Non-biological possibilities

The instruments available on Perseverance cannot perform the detailed isotopic or trace metal analyses needed to confirm origins or biological links, so the origins of nickel in Neretva Vallis remain uncertain. However, the study authors do present some non-biological possibilities as well.

The team says that the nickel may have been delivered by a meteorite, then dissolved and redistributed by water flowing through the region at the time. They say another possibility is that nickel accumulated from intense chemical weathering of an ultramafic protolith—a type of igneous or sedimentary rock, primarily composed of iron and magnesium-rich minerals, but also nickel.

The researchers plan on further analysis when the collected rock samples are brought back to Earth. They say this could clarify the source and significance of nickel enrichment, potentially revealing more about Mars' history and its potential for ancient life.

Publication details

• H. T. Manelski et al, Strong nickel enrichment co-located with redox-organic interactions in Neretva Vallis, Mars, Nature Communications (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-70081-3

• Journal information: Nature Communications 

{ https://phys.org/space-news/ }

02-04-2026 om 20:14 geschreven door peter  

Artemis II launches Nasa astronauts to the moon for first time in 53 years

 Josh Milton

And we have liftoff. Humanity is about to be reunited with the moon for the first time in 53 years as Artemis II finally took flight yesterday.

Crowds cheered as a spacecraft named Integrity and a minivan-sized capsule soared into the clear skies above Florida at 6.35pm local time.

The mission will bring Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen from Launch Pad 39 at Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center to another celestial body.

‘Full-send,’ said Wiseman, clearing the way for the launch.

Launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson replied: ‘You take with you the heart of this Artemis team, the daring spirit of the American people and our partners across the globe, and the hopes and dreams of this generation.

‘Good luck. Godspeed, Artemis II. Let’s go.’

This is the first time anyone will travel this far from Earth since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The goal of the 620,000-mile-long round-trip is to test life-support and other systems – the toilet included – inside the Orion.

If all goes to plan, the next mission in the 21st-century equivalent of the Apollo programme could send humans to the lunar south pole by 2028.

Artemis II just launched – what now?

Artemis II was slated for earlier this year but was delayed due to hiccups during dress rehearsals.

Yet these were a good thing, Libby Jackson, who worked in Mission Control for a module on the International Space Station, tells Metro.

‘Until you have got all the way down to zero, it might not happen,’ she says of the 10-second countdown to launch.

‘You don’t believe it until you get into those final seconds.’

The head of space at the Science Museum in London adds that, as nail-biting as the countdown was, it’s just the start of the 10-day mission.

‘It’s 10 minutes up into space. That all has to go to plan, right? You want the crew to be safe. You want the rocket to work well.’

One of the things that has gone right so far is the unfolding of Orion’s solar arrays. Jackson says: ‘If you don’t deploy the solar panels, you have no mission, because you need the power.’

Don’t get too attached to the 2,600,000kg orange rocket, though. The core stage, crammed with engines, is already somewhere in the Atlantic.

At nearly 1,381 miles above the surface, the upper stage of the rocket fired to shove the Orion into an elliptical orbit around Earth so it won’t fall back.

This will set the record for the farthest that people have travelled from Earth while still swinging around the planet.

But that record will only last about 13 hours, when the second stage will fire once again on the rocket’s second lap around the planet tomorrow.

This will push the crew into what Nasa calls ‘high-Earth orbit’, or about 43,730 miles above your head, before the second stage is discarded.

From then on, it’ll just be four people floating inside the Orion.

On April 6, the spacecraft will swoop around the moon’s far side, also called the dark side, so astronauts can observe parts of the lunar surface never seen by humans before.

Just a day later, the team will return to Earth by using the moon’s gravity to fling itself, a process called ‘free return’, which will take four days.

The Orion will smash into the Earth’s rough atmosphere at about 25,000mph, withstanding temperatures of 2,760°C, and splash down just off the coast of San Diego on April 10.

The crew’s destination is our nearest celestial neighbour

(Picture: AP)

‘If everyone has done their homework, they will go into space, go to the moon and just come back,’ Jackson says.

‘But everything has been well prepared and well checked out and well tested. No one launches a mission expecting it to fail.’

Why are we bothering to go to the moon?

Compared to discussions about migrating to Mars or discovering life on faraway worlds, visiting our closest neighbour might sound mundane.

But there’s a great deal we don’t know about this big grey rock – including how it even formed, which could help us understand how we came to be.

Dr Megan Argo, a reader in astrophysics at the University of Lancashire, tells Metro: ‘The moon has fascinated humans for thousands of years, appearing constant yet ever-changing in our skies and helping track time and seasons.

‘Every culture has developed its own stories and traditions around it.’

Unlike the Earth, where ocean currents and earthquakes can sweep away our history, the moon is a history book.

‘This means its rocks and potential water deposits act as an archive, offering insights into planetary formation that we simply can’t access on Earth,’ Dr Argo says.

By getting up close to the moon, space officials can think of ways to get people even further into the cosmos.

Not only for months-long stays on the moon in bases powered by nuclear energy, but also for journeying to Mars.

‘One of the points of the Artemis programme is to learn how to live and work on another planet through your body,’ Jackson says.

MORE: 

• What did Neil Armstrong ‘steal’ from the moon?

MORE: 

• Historic Artemis II launch upstaged by ‘legendary’ kid swearing live on TV

MORE: 

• The Full Mora reveals uncomfortable truths — your star sign’s tarot horoscope

RELATED

Artemis 2 BLASTS OFF into space taking astronauts to the Moon for the first lunar voyage in 53 years

{ https://metro.co.uk/ }

02-04-2026 om 19:42 geschreven door peter  

Scientists Investigating Whether Object NASA Is Approaching Is Core of Destroyed Planet

NASA / Futurism

Scientists have long been intrigued by an enormous potato-shaped asteroid, dubbed 16 Psyche, that they suspect to be teeming with metal — and therefore potentially worth a ludicrous amount of money to future asteroid mining operations.

The 173-mile object, which orbits the Sun in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, features two enormous crater-like depressions, which researchers say could be closely related to its still largely unknown origin story.

In a new paper published in the journal JGR Planets, an international team of researchers tried to get to the bottom of one of the key questions regarding 16 Psyche that remains unanswered. Is it a core of a planetesimal, a billions-of-years-old building block of a planet, in which case it would have a “large metallic core buried under rocks,” or is it a “homogeneous mixture of iron and rock?”

Put differently, could 16 Psyche be the ancient exposed remains of a planetary core whose crust and mantle were blown off, or is it a separate primordial lump of far less dense and potentially riddled-with-holes rock that either started out metal-rich or became blended with metal after colliding with other asteroids?

While the latest paper doesn’t necessarily exclude any of these possibilities — its simulations support both hypotheses — the goal was to know what to look out for once NASA’s mission to the space rock, which launched in October 2023, arrives roughly three and a half years from now.

Once there, the spacecraft could finally allow us to solve the mystery surrounding 16 Psyche’s history once and for all. As Universe Today points out, 16 Psyche’s size makes it far more approachable than the thousands of miles we’d have to drill into the Earth. (So far, we’ve only made it around 0.2 percent of the way to our own planet’s center.)

For their paper, the researchers took into consideration 16 Psyche’s unusual dented shape, previous findings that concluded it may be teeming with metal material, and its porosity.

“Large impact basins or craters excavate deep into the asteroid, which gives clues about what its interior is made of,” said first author and University of Arizona doctoral candidate Namya Baijal in a statement. “By simulating the formation of one of its largest craters, we were able to make testable predictions for Psyche’s overall composition when the spacecraft arrives.”

“One of our main findings was that the porosity — the amount of empty space inside the asteroid — plays a significant role in how these craters form,” she added. “Porosity is often ignored because it’s difficult to include in models, but our simulations show it can strongly affect the impact process and shape of craters left behind.”

“When the spacecraft arrives at Psyche in a few years, the geochemists, geologists and modelers on the team will all be looking at the same object and trying to interpret what we see,” said Asphaug.

“This work gives us a head start,” he added.

More on Psyche: 

• NASA Spacecraft Runs Into Thruster Trouble En Route to Zillion-Dollar Asteroid

RELATED VIDEOS

{ https://futurism.com/category/space }

01-04-2026 om 23:30 geschreven door peter  

The 1975 Lumberton UFO Wave: Police Across North Carolina Report a Silent V-Shaped Craft

More than 30 law enforcement officers reported a silent, V-shaped craft during a multi-day wave of sightings across southeastern North Carolina.

 Alejandro Rojas

In the early morning hours of April 3, 1975, shortly after a violent thunderstorm swept through southeastern North Carolina, police officers in the town of Lumberton began reporting something unusual in the sky.

At first, it appeared to be a strange light near a local water tower. But within minutes, multiple officers on patrol began describing the same object—seen from different locations across the town.

What followed over the next several days would become one of the most unusual law-enforcement UFO cases in the region. According to reports later compiled by investigators with the Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS), more than thirty law enforcement officers across a seven-county area reported observing a large, silent craft between April 3 and April 9, 1975.

Despite being miles apart, witnesses consistently described the same object: a V-shaped craft lined with red and red-green lights, sometimes accompanied by bright white spotlights, maneuvering silently across the night sky.

The First Police Sightings

The first reports came shortly after 1:45 a.m. on April 3, when three Lumberton patrolmen—Phil Stanton, P.H. Atkinson, and Neil McCormick—noticed a strange light near a water tower behind Lumberton High School while patrolling near Highways 211 and 101.

Officer Atkinson initially assumed the object might be a helicopter. But as the officers watched, the light moved across the sky in a wide arc. When they drove toward Fayetteville Road to get a closer look, the object abruptly vanished from view.

Atkinson later described the light moving across the sky before suddenly disappearing. As he recalled in later interviews, “It just went out.”

Within minutes, other officers began calling in similar sightings from different parts of the area.

As reports began pouring into the Robeson County Sheriff’s Department, dispatchers noticed something striking: witnesses who were miles apart described the same configuration of lights and the same unusual flight behavior.

The object was typically described as V-shaped or triangular, with rows of colored lights along its edges and one or more bright white beams that resembled spotlights.

Even more puzzling to observers was what they did not hear.

Despite appearing to fly at relatively low altitude and, in some cases, directly overhead, the craft was consistently described as completely silent. One officer reportedly remarked that the object passed overhead “without a sound.”

A Multi-County Wave

Over the next several nights, reports spread beyond Lumberton itself.

Officers and residents across seven counties in southeastern North Carolina reported seeing the same unusual craft moving across the region. In many cases, officers who responded to civilian reports observed the object themselves.

Investigators later noted that witnesses consistently described similar characteristics, including a large V-shaped craft, rows of red and red-green lights, bright white spotlights directed toward the ground, sudden turns and hovering movements, and the absence of any audible engine or rotor noise.

These similarities appeared in reports from witnesses who often had no contact with each other at the time of observation.

Key Events During the Sightings Wave

• April 3, ~1:45 a.m. – Three Lumberton police officers observe a strange light moving near a water tower behind Lumberton High School.
• Soon after, additional officers across the area began reporting a similarly described object moving through the sky.
• Following nights (April 3–9) – Sightings are reported across multiple counties in southeastern North Carolina. Officers sometimes respond to civilian calls and then observe the object themselves.
• Early April – A United Press International (UPI) story about the sightings circulates nationally, drawing attention from journalists and UFO investigators.
• Shortly afterward, reporter and investigator Lee Speigel travels to the region to interview witnesses and examine the case firsthand.

Speigel’s Investigation — and His Own Sighting

When journalist and UFO investigator Lee Speigel first learned of the Lumberton sightings through a UPI news release, he initially assumed the case might have a conventional explanation.

Accompanied by a reporter from the National Star, Speigel traveled to North Carolina to investigate the reports personally. Flying into Fayetteville, about forty miles north of Lumberton, he looked down at the landscape where the sightings had been occurring.

From the air, he could see miles of swamps, rivers, farmland, and forests stretching toward the Atlantic coast—a remote, sparsely populated region.

He approached the case with the expectation that a logical explanation would likely emerge once he spoke with witnesses and examined the circumstances. But during his visit, Speigel himself reported witnessing the object.

While observing the sky with local officers during the investigation, he saw what appeared to be the same unusual craft reported throughout the region. The object moved silently across the sky, displaying multiple lights and a shape that appeared structured rather than star-like.

According to his account, the craft maneuvered in ways that seemed inconsistent with ordinary aircraft. Watching the object move through the sky, Spiegel later wrote, made it far more difficult to dismiss the officers’ reports as simple misidentifications.

What had begun as a journalistic investigation had unexpectedly placed him among the witnesses.

Watch Speigel discuss his encounter at this link.

An Unresolved Case

The sightings eventually drew the attention of Dr. J. Allen Hynek, the astronomer who had served as scientific consultant to the U.S. Air Force’s Project Blue Book and who later founded the Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS).

Researchers working with CUFOS, including investigator Jennie Zeidman, compiled witness interviews, timelines, maps, and news coverage into what became known as The Lumberton Report.

Despite the large number of witnesses and the consistency of their descriptions, no definitive explanation was identified.

Possible explanations, including helicopters, aircraft, or astronomical objects, were considered, but none appeared to fully account for the reported characteristics, particularly the silent operation and abrupt maneuverability described by observers.

Nearly fifty years later, the Lumberton sightings remain a relatively little-known but notable case in UFO research—one involving dozens of trained law enforcement witnesses reporting the same unusual craft across multiple counties over several nights.

As with many UFO cases from the era before widespread video recording and satellite tracking, the evidence ultimately rests on eyewitness testimony. Yet the consistency of those accounts and the involvement of so many police officers continue to make the 1975 Lumberton UFO wave one of the more intriguing law-enforcement UFO cases in the historical record.

• Special thanks to David Marler of the National UFO Historical Records Center for providing the Lumberton Report, news clippings, and other documents, and to Lee Spiegel for providing his report and information about his personal encounter.

{ https://openminds.tv/category/articles/ufo-sighting-reports/ }

01-04-2026 om 22:31 geschreven door peter  

Jesus's final journey through Jerusalem before the crucifixion revealed

• READ MORE: New Bible analysis uncovers thousands of clues suggesting scripture was written by God

By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

The final journey Jesus took to the cross remains one of the most studied and sacred paths in history.

Now, a researcher has reconstructed what he believes were Christ's last movements through Jerusalem in the days leading up to his crucifixion.

The map, based on Bible scripture and archaeological evidence, traces key locations tied to the final week of Jesus' life, now known as Holy Week.

The journey begins at the Temple Mount, where Jesus is said to have taught daily and, according to the Book of Matthew 21:12–17, 'cleansed the temple' of merchants and money changers seven days before his death.

According to the Bible, this happened when Jesus entered Jerusalem for the last time before his crucifixion, signifying a symbolic cleansing of the 'house of God' right before his own sacrifice.

Jesus then partakes in the Last Supper in the Upper Room, located in the southern part of the Old City of Jerusalem on Mount Zion, followed by his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane and a trial appearance in front of the ancient Roman government north of Bethlehem.

His passage through Jerusalem ends with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, claimed to be the site of Jesus' crucifixion, and the Garden Tomb where his body was said to have been placed.

Scholars have proposed that the journey began late Thursday evening and finished with Jesus' death on Friday.

Jesus' journey begins at the the Temple Mount located in the Old City of Jerusalem. The Bible says he was there a week before his death

The map was created by theologian and author John Walsh, who highlighted the first spot as the Temple Mount located in the Old City of Jerusalem.

This site is considered one of the holiest sites in Judaism and Islam, and is central to the Christian Gospels.

It currently features a 35-acre platform built by King Herod, who was the Roman-appointed king of Judaea and ruled from 37 to 4BC.

The Temple Mount is now a walled compound with the Dome of the Rock to the north and the Al-Aqsa Mosque to the south.

The Dome of the Rock is believed to be the location where Abraham was prepared to sacrifice his son, Ismail.

And for Muslims, the Prophet Muhammad was transported from the Sacred Mosque in Mecca to Al-Aqsa during the Night Journey, and then on to heaven.

The map, however, places a temple there that Jesus taught at every day.

The Bible says Jesus entered the structure, seeing people betting, making loans and selling goods. He then flipped tables and drove them out of the temple.

The Last Supper - Jesus' final meal with his apostles before being crucified - is believed to have taken one to three days before the crucifixion

The Cenacle stands in the Old City of Jerusalem on Mount Zion, which is located above the southern gate 

Within that same week, it was believed the Last Supper was held in the Upper Room in the southern part of the Old City of Jerusalem on Mount Zion.

Jesus and his disciples traveled about one mile from the temple to the Upper Room, which would have taken between 20 and 30 minutes.

The Last Supper - Jesus' final meal with his apostles before being crucified - is believed to have taken place one to three days before the crucifixion.

The Upper Room, also known as the Cenacle, was originally a prayer room that could house more than 120 people.

The room is briefly described in the Book of Luke 22:11-13 when Jesus requested a large, furnished upper room where he and his disciples could eat their Passover meal.

The Cenacle stands in the Old City of Jerusalem on Mount Zion, which is located above the southern gate and was constructed with large, branching columns that supported a vaulted ceiling and a sloping red roof that is still there today.

The next stop was likely the Garden of Gethsemane, which researchers estimate is roughly half a mile from the location of the Upper Room.

Archaeologists uncovered the remains of a ritual bath , dating back to the time of Jesus, at Gethsemane in 2020. The garden is said to have been where Jesus was arrest before being sentenced to death 

The Garden of Gethsemane sits outside the city walls. Luke 22:39 states that Jesus and his disciples walked the path following the Last Supper.

Experts speculated that if the group was looking to avoid guards in the city, 'they would have skirted the southern wall which overlooks the valley of Hinnom, the garbage dump of the city where the fires were constantly burning the refuse from the populace of the urban area.'

Archaeologists uncovered the remains of a ritual bath, dating back to the time of Jesus, at Gethsemane in 2020.

They suggested the bath may have been used to cleanse workers before they operated an oil press in the garden, and by those climbing the hill to pray.

The Bible states that it was in the garden where Jesus was betrayed by Judas and arrested.

According to the map, Roman soldiers took Jesus to the House of Caiaphas, which experts have estimated would have been a 40-minute walk from the garden.

There is a debate within Christianity as to where Jesus was buried. Some believe it was the Garden Tomb, while others suggest it was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (pictured)

Depending on the exact route and pace, the path would have involved ascending from the Kidron Valley up to Mount Zion.

The House of Caiaphas is a biblical site in Jerusalem that is believed to be the location where Jesus was accused of blasphemy against God.

From there, Jesus was brought to Herod's Palace, which once stood against the western city wall.

The journey would likely take about a 30-minute walk due to the hilly terrain of Jerusalem.

Herod's Palace was also the site of the praetorium, where Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, sentenced Jesus to death.

According to the Bible, Jesus was forced to carry a massive, wooden cross through the city to Golgotha, or Calvary, about 2,650 feet away.

Scholars have proposed that the journey began late Thursday evening and finished with Jesus' death on Friday

The Bible does not specify how long Jesus carried the cross, but theologians have estimated it took him at least three hours to make the journey.

According to the Bible, Jesus was crucified at a location called Golgotha, or Calvary.

The site is now known as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which Christians believe stands on the site of Jesus' crucifixion. The church was built in 326AD.

Following the crucifixion, Jesus is said to have been laid to rest in a rock tomb about 300 feet away from Calvary.

While many believe the Church of the Holy Sepulchre sits upon his grave, others suggest he was laid to rest inside the Garden Tomb, which is outside the Old City walls, near the Damascus Gate.

Christian tradition says Jesus' body was laid on a slab cut from a limestone cave after his crucifixion by the Romans more than two thousand years ago.

The burial slab was enclosed in a structure known as the Edicule – a word derived from the Latin term aedicule, meaning 'little house.'

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

01-04-2026 om 21:57 geschreven door peter  

The possibility of a second sphinx in Egypt has sparked renewed debate after new footage revealed dozens of deep shafts surrounding a mysterious mound at Giza.

The video documented more than 100 shafts clustered around the site in the northwest corner of the plateau, near the western cemetery of Giza, a region historically filled with burial shafts and ancient tomb complexes.

The renewed interest follows claims by researcher Filippo Biondi last week that scans detected a large anomaly deep beneath the mound, which he believes may be a long-lost sphinx.

The footage, released by independent researcher Trevor Grassi of the Archaeological Rescue Foundation, captured dozens of square shafts carved into bedrock, many reportedly extending deep underground but filled primarily with sand.

Grassi, who has spent nearly two decades researching Giza, said the video shows him physically walking along the perimeter of the mound, passing shaft after shaft cut directly into the limestone, some only about three feet across, while others measure roughly eight feet wide.

He said the unusually dense concentration of shafts surrounding the mound raises new questions about what may lie beneath the surface.

The footage is among the first to document the full perimeter of the site, offering what supporters of a second sphinx described as critical context for the ongoing debate.

While no definitive proof of a second sphinx has been discovered, researchers say the location warrants further investigation, given the number of openings and the underground anomaly previously detected at the site.

The video documented more than 100 shafts clustered around the site, which supporters believe could conceal underground structures

The video documented more than 100 shafts clustered around the site, which supporters believe could conceal underground structures

In the video, the camera follows a walking path along the northern edge of the mound, revealing what Grassi described as 'endless shafts all over the place going straight down, all blocked with sand.'

Grassi emphasized that many of the shafts seen in the footage appear to extend more than 100 feet underground, noting that he had personally lowered equipment into several openings to measure their depth.

Biondi took the world by storm last week during his appearance on the Matt Beall Limitless podcast, where he claimed to have scanned a mound of solidified sand on the surface, which he believes sits above the proposed second sphinx.

Using satellite radar technology capable of detecting subtle ground vibrations, Biondi said the data points to a massive structure concealed beneath a 180-foot-high mound of hardened sand, which he described as composed of solidified sand rather than natural bedrock.

Preliminary scans show vertical shafts and passageways strikingly similar to those already found beneath the original Sphinx, with dense vertical lines believed to represent the solid walls of underground shafts rather than empty voids.

'We are very confident to announce this… we have a confidence of about 80 percent,' said Biondi.

However, Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s former minister of antiquities, has dismissed similar claims in the past, saying the areas around the pyramids and the Sphinx have been extensively studied and excavated over decades without uncovering evidence of a second monument. 

Grassi spent 12 years studying under independent researcher John Anthony West, who helped popularize the controversial theory that erosion patterns on the Great Sphinx were caused by ancient rainfall, suggesting the monument could be thousands of years older than traditionally believed.

Biondi took the world by storm last week during his appearance on the Matt Beall Limitless podcast, where he claimed to have scanned a mound of solidified sand on the surface, which he believes is above the second sphinx

Grassi emphasized that many of the shafts (bottom right) seen in the footage appear to extend more than 100 feet underground, noting that he had personally lowered equipment into several openings to measure their depth

Grassi was able to look past the gated opens in some of the shafts

He first traveled to Egypt in 2018, joining geologist Robert Schoch, who worked alongside West on the erosion theory, and he is now investigating Biondi's claims.

'You've got a hundred of them within 100 meters [328 feet] right there,' Grassi said in the footage, arguing that such a concentration makes it unlikely they are isolated burial chambers. 

Zahi Hawass, Egypt's former minister of antiquities, has dismissed similar claims, saying the areas around the pyramids and the Sphinx have been extensively studied for decades without revealing evidence of a second monument. 

The theory of a second Sphinx at Giza is not new, as Egyptologist Bassam El Shammaa first proposed the idea in 2007, based on ancient pyramid texts, including the Dream Stele that Biondi also used to state his case.

The Dream Stele, positioned between the paws of the Great Sphinx, appears to depict two sphinx figures.

'If you look at all the temples, if you look at all the architecture and the way that everything in Egypt is set up, there are always two obelisks,' said Grassi in a YouTube video.

'There are always two statues. There are always two sphinxes. There's always a perfect balance. 

Biondi claimed that the red line labeled 'A' leads to a possible second sphinx

Archival photographs from the 1900s appeared to show the area without the sand pile, indicating that it may have formed as a spoil heap, sand removed from nearby excavations and deposited in a central location

'There are always the two brain hemispheres, the two rising sun and setting sun. Everything is balanced in Egypt, and this is central as a tenet of the Egyptian religion.' 

The mound itself is positioned along what researchers describe as a mirrored alignment across the plateau, extending from the known Sphinx through a central axis between the two largest pyramids. 

The footage focuses heavily on the large number of shafts surrounding the mound. 

Many of the openings appear only a few feet across, while others are significantly wider and cut deep into the limestone bedrock. 

According to Grassi, many of the shafts are currently filled with sand deposited during earlier excavations. 

He argued that the sheer number of shafts packed tightly together suggests they may function as ventilation or access points for a larger underground network rather than isolated tombs.

Biondi is part of the team that claimed to have uncovered enormous shafts below the Great Sphinx 

'When you have this many shafts concentrated like this, it's really got to be light and ventilation shafts for a massive tunnel system,' he said.

Historical images referenced in the footage suggested the mound itself may not have existed before the early 20th century. 

Archival photographs from the 1900s appeared to show the area without the sand pile, indicating that it may have formed as a spoil heap, sand removed from nearby excavations and deposited in a central location.

Grassi argued that this detail strengthens the possibility that buried features could exist beneath the mound, since spoil piles sometimes accumulate above previously excavated areas. 

'All we have to do is pull some sand out of there, and we'll know if they connect straight into this,' he said, adding that clearing sand from existing shafts would be non-invasive and would not require drilling into the site. 

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

01-04-2026 om 21:20 geschreven door peter  

The shocking things 10 days in space does to the human body: As NASA's Artemis II astronauts prepare to blast off to the moon, experts reveal how they'll be ravaged by the void

• READ MORE: Interactive Artemis II Deep Dive reveals NASA's mission to moon

By XANTHA LEATHAM, EXECUTIVE SCIENCE EDITOR

Four astronauts are about to embark on a 10–day voyage to the moon and back – but what will spending 240 hours in space do to their bodies?

An expert has revealed the shocking health hazards they will face on their 685,000–mile (1.1 million km) journey, from motion sickness to 'chicken legs'.

While Artemis II is considered a short–term mission, astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen and Christina Koch can still expect to contend with a series of issues.

Dr Irene Di Giulio, from the Centre for Human and Applied Physiological Sciences at King's College London, said the duration of the mission means the long–term health risks are 'significantly reduced' compared to those who spend months on the International Space Station (ISS).

However, these astronauts will still be exposed to high levels of radiation that can trigger nausea.

'Space motion sickness could also be experienced as the body needs a few days to adapt. Meanwhile acute fluid shift from the lower part of the body to the head may cause discomfort and swelling,' she said. 

'Sleep disturbances due to a sudden change in the light–darkness cycle and the use of artificial lighting may be experienced.

'And mental stress and isolation, especially given the mission demands and living in an enclosed environment, may affect performance.'

Astronauts who spend significant amounts of time in space can expect to experience a raft of health issues

Last year, shocking before–and–after images showed the damage that nine gruelling months in space had on astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams.

Both experienced weight loss and muscle atrophy and appeared significantly older when they finally returned to Earth.

However, it's unlikely the Artemis II astronauts will experience such a major decline in their muscle and bone health.

'The impact on muscles and bones seen in longer missions may be less apparent, because they typically require a longer exposure to altered gravity,' Dr Di Giulio explained.

'However, bone loss and muscle deconditioning can begin within just a few days, as demonstrated during NASA Space Shuttle missions, which were often seven to 14 days in duration.

'These effects therefore remain relevant for Artemis II and highlight the importance of performing in–flight exercise to counter the loss in bone and muscle.'

She said activities the astronauts perform before, during and after the mission can help mitigate the effects.

While space motion sickness can be reduced through training and the use of medication, muscle deconditioning can be counteracted with on–board exercise and sleep disturbances can be reduced by maintaining a structured schedule and controlled lighting.

After nine gruelling months in space, Suni Williams (pictured) and Butch Wilmore finally returned to Earth. But shocking before–and–after images show the damage that their unintended stay in space has caused 

Although low–gravity, stress and lack of sleep lead to cognitive decline while astronauts are in space, research has shown that these symptoms abate back on Earth 

What 10 days in space could do to the human body

Radiation: Could cause nausea and sickness.

Microgravity: May trigger motion sickness for the first few days, as well as muscle deterioration.

Fluid shifts: Could cause 'chicken legs' and 'baby feet' as fluid moves upwards to the head. This can also lead to swelling and headaches.

Sleep disturbances: Bright lights could mean sleep quality declines, leading to slower cognitive processing.

Mental stress: Triggered by isolation and the nature of the mission.

During the mission, the crew will test every system on the Orion spacecraft and collect biological data to understand the health effects of deep–space travel on the body.

This will help inform future missions, including long–distance travel to Mars.

'The Artemis II mission is the first step towards moon landing and then establishing a long–term presence on the moon,' Dr Di Giulio said.

'There are a number of challenges that need to be addressed to minimise and mitigate the effect of the space environment on the human body.

'While Artemis II is short, it provides critical data that feeds directly into planning for longer–duration cis–lunar missions and sustained lunar presence.'

NASA has previously identified five main hazards for human spaceflight – space radiation, isolation and confinement, distance from Earth, gravity and closed or hostile environments.

In addition, the Apollo missions highlighted additional issues on the moon – dust and locomotion stability.

If humans are ever successful in setting up a base on the lunar surface, inhabitants would face levels of radiation exposure that would increase the risk of cancer, organ damage and nervous system impairment.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (left), Victor Glover (second left), Christina Koch (second right) and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen (right)

Gravity on the moon is just one–sixth of that on Earth, which could trigger extensive muscle deconditioning, bone loss and changes in cardiovascular function that affects the brain and the eye.

Read More

•  Is NASA's Artemis II mission safe? Scientists raise concerns about the Orion capsule's heat shield - and warn 'there's no chance of escape' for the astronauts if anything goes wrong 

Meanwhile lunar dust is sharp, fine and abrasive, which could potentially cause breathing difficulties as well as skin and eye irritation.

'To establish a long–term presence on the moon, medical autonomy will be crucial,' Dr Di Giulio said.

'Habitats must include diagnostic tools, medical supplies and crew training to treat injuries or illnesses independently.'

As part of their training for the Artemis II mission, the astronauts will have prepared for medical emergencies in space and learned first aid, CPR, wound care and how to use medical kits.

They will have trained to perform these procedures in simulated microgravity environments, such as underwater.

Artemis II: Key facts 

Launch date: NASA initially identified three possible launch windows for Artemis II: From February 6 to February 11, from March 6 to March 11, and from April 1 to April 6. The space agency is now targeting the April window. 

Mission objective: To complete a lunar flyby, passing the 'dark side' of the moon and test systems for a future lunar landing.

Total distance to travel: 685,000 miles (1.1 million km)

Mission duration: 10 days 

Estimated total cost: $44billion (£32.5billion)

NASA Space Launch System rocket: $23.8billion (£17.6billion)

Orion deep–space spacecraft: $20.4billion (£15billion)

Crew: 

* Commander Reid Wiseman

* Pilot Victor Glover

* Mission Specialist Christina Koch

* Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen

Mission Stages:

1. Launch from Kennedy Space Centre Launch Pad 39B

 . Manoeuvre in orbit to raise the perigee using the Cryogenic Propulsion Stage

3. Burn to raise apogee using the Cryogenic Propulsion Stage

4. Detach from Cryogenic Propulsion Stage and perform translunar injection

5. Fly to the moon over four days

6. Complete lunar flyby at a maximum altitude of 5,523 miles (8,889 km) above the moon's surface

7. Return to Earth over four days

8. Separate the crew module from the European Service Module and the crew module adapter

9. Splashdown in the Pacific Ocean  

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

01-04-2026 om 20:46 geschreven door peter  

Tracking the footsteps of West Africa's prehistoric metalworkers

by University of Geneva

01-04-2026 om 20:11 geschreven door peter  

Overview

On May 23, 2024, researcher Rhawn Gabriel Joseph, Ph.D., released a video titled “UFO‑UAP Plasmas in the Thermosphere: A Fourth Domain of Life.” In the presentation Joseph argues that a subset of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) observed by NASA’s space‑shuttle missions are not conventional debris or experimental hardware but living plasma‑based entities that occupy the Earth’s thermosphere. He frames these objects as a “fourth domain of life,” analogous to extremophiles that thrive in deep‑sea vents, but powered by electromagnetic energy rather than chemical metabolism.

Central Claims

Joseph’s thesis rests on three main observations. First, he describes intelligent‑like behavior—coordinated flight patterns, rapid acceleration, and what he interprets as predatory or mating displays. Second, he asserts that the objects are drawn to high‑energy events such as hurricanes and electromagnetic storms, allegedly feeding on the released energy. Third, he points to physical anomalies—trajectory changes, near‑light‑speed bursts, and abrupt decelerations near storms—that, in his view, cannot be explained by known space debris, ice crystals, or conventional aerodynamics. Joseph summarizes his position: “What we are seeing are self‑illuminating organisms that have evolved to exist where the atmosphere becomes a plasma sea.”

Evidence Cited

The video relies heavily on archival footage from several shuttle missions, most notably STS‑48, STS‑75 (the tether experiment), STS‑80, STS‑96, STS‑106, and STS‑115. Joseph highlights moments where bright, pulsating objects appear to interact with the shuttle or its tether, interpreting the behavior as “swarming” to harvest electrical currents. He references two articles he authored in the Journal of Modern Physics—“Extraterrestrial Life in the Thermosphere” and “Extraterrestrial Life: Plasmas”—and notes that flight‑path analysis was performed by Cary Martynuik. The presentation also classifies the observed shapes into three categories (sperm‑shaped “hunters,” donut‑shaped, and cone‑shaped) and speculates that they are non‑carbon‑based plasma structures lacking DNA.

NASA Transparency Allegations

Joseph alleges that NASA deliberately obscures these phenomena by inserting visual “noise” or “snow” into night‑time recordings and by shutting down camera feeds when objects approach the shuttle. He claims the agency’s actions are intended to hide evidence of a previously unknown biological ecosystem. NASA has not responded to these specific accusations, and no official documentation corroborates the existence of systematic footage manipulation. The agency’s public statements on UAPs emphasize ongoing data collection and analysis rather than concealment.

Scientific and Policy Context

While the video has generated discussion in fringe scientific circles, mainstream experts caution that the claims lack independent verification and have not undergone peer‑review beyond Joseph’s own publications. Astrobiologists note that plasma, by definition, consists of ionized gas rather than organized cellular structures, making the notion of a plasma‑based life form highly speculative. The U.S. Department of Defense’s recent UAP report and the establishment of the All‑Domain Anomaly Resolution Office underscore a broader governmental effort to assess aerial anomalies, but they stop short of endorsing biological interpretations. As one atmospheric physicist remarked, “Extraordinary observations require extraordinary evidence; without reproducible data, the plasma‑organism hypothesis remains an intriguing hypothesis, not a confirmed discovery.”

The discussion highlights a growing intersection between UAP investigations and astrobiology, prompting calls for rigorous, transparent research protocols that can separate genuine anomalous phenomena from misinterpretations of sensor artifacts

{ https://usubjects.com/  }

01-04-2026 om 00:43 geschreven door peter  

Avi Loeb reacts to JD Vance’s belief aliens are ‘demons’

Patrick Djordjevic

Avi Loeb reacts to JD Vance’s belief aliens are ‘demons’

(NewsNation) — Avi Loeb, a theoretical physicist and the Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science at Harvard University, says he has “no issue” with Vice President JD Vance’s perspective on who aliens are.

In a recent interview with Benny Johnson, Vance was asked about the possibility of releasing more government files on UFOs and aliens.

The vice president, who is Catholic, said he does not believe they are beings from another planet; instead, he says, they are demons.

Vance noted many world religions have long acknowledged the existence of what he described as “weird things out there” that are difficult to explain.

Loeb told “Jesse Weber Live” Vance’s theory is not new based upon scientific findings and Judeo-Christian beliefs.

Loeb told “Jesse Weber Live” Vance’s theory is not new based upon scientific findings and Judeo-Christian beliefs.

“I don’t see necessarily a conflict between religious beliefs and science as long as everyone agrees that we should attend to the evidence that should guide us,” Loeb said.

“If the U.S. government cannot figure out what these objects are, then of course, people have their own speculations or theories, or they connect them to some past traditional thoughts.”

• Gen. McCasland disappearance may be ‘foul play’: Ross Coulthart

Vance’s comments came as the Trump administration has signaled interest in releasing more information on UFOs and unidentified aerial phenomena.

Loeb suggested that labeling aliens as evil entities may be too far for his taste.

“All I’m saying is we should be open-minded to the possibility that we’re not at the top of the food chain within the Milky Way galaxy,” he said.

{ https://www.yahoo.com/news/ }

01-04-2026 om 00:31 geschreven door peter  

Ahead of the launch of the Artemis-2 mission, experts have once again raised concerns about issues with the Orion spacecraft’s heat shield. It is designed to protect the astronauts as they re-enter Earth’s atmosphere upon returning from their journey around the Moon. 

Problems with the heat shield in past missions

The Artemis-2 mission covers a distance of a quarter of a million miles, but the last five minutes of it are likely to cause the greatest concern regarding the astronauts’ safety. 

During the uncrewed test of the Orion spacecraft in 2022, problems with the heat shield were identified for the first time. This is the part of Orion that bears the brunt of the intense heat the capsule is exposed to as it enters Earth’s atmosphere. 

When engineers inspected the Orion heat shield from the 2022 Artemis-1 mission, they discovered that large pieces of material had fallen off. The concern was that if this were to happen again during the Artemis-2 crewed mission, it could expose the interior of the capsule to dangerously high temperatures. From the very beginning of manned spaceflight, engineers have protected capsules from extreme heat during atmospheric reentry using so-called “abrasive” heat shields made of a material that burns away uniformly as the capsule penetrates the atmosphere. 

To meet the requirements for a reusable spacecraft, NASA developed an incredible heat shield system made from ultra-light tiles of glass-coated silica fibers. Although this heat shield possessed exceptional thermal properties, it was also very fragile and required careful maintenance after every flight. Damage to this fragile and unprotected heat shield was the cause of the tragic loss of the space shuttle Columbia in 2003. For the Artemis program, NASA has returned to the concept of an abrasive heat shield.

New heat shield design for the Orion spacecraft

The Orion capsule’s heat shield is made of a material called Avcoat, which is based on a material originally developed for the Apollo program. Although NASA considered other, newer materials for the Orion heat shield, the material ultimately chosen was one that had already proven its reliability during the Apollo missions. 

However, the structure of the Orion heat shield differs from those used during the Apollo program. The Apollo heat shield consisted of a single honeycomb-structured matrix containing approximately 320,000 individually filled hexagonal segments. To make the Orion heat shield more effective and easier to reproduce in production, NASA chose a configuration consisting of approximately 180 individual segments.

This heat shield was first tested in 2014, when the Orion uncrewed capsule was launched by a Delta IV rocket to an apogee of 3,600 miles. On reentry, the capsule passed through the atmosphere at a temperature of about 2,200 °C (4,000 °F), but the heat shield proved capable of withstanding such extreme heat.

The next test for the Orion capsule was the Artemis-1 mission in 2022. This was the first flight of the powerful Space Launch System rocket and an uncrewed demonstration of the mission planned for Artemis II. As it flew through Earth’s atmosphere at a much greater distance than during the first test, the spacecraft reached a temperature of about 2,800 °C (5,000 °F). The first concerns regarding the Avcoat heat shield arose at this point.

Instead of burning away evenly across the entire surface, sections of the Artemis-1 heat shield unexpectedly fell off in irregular pieces. Such uneven ablation makes it difficult to predict thermal loads during atmospheric reentry and increases the probability that the Orion capsule could heat up to dangerous levels. 

Causes of uneven burning of heat shields

The investigation determined that the cause of the uneven ablation was the irregular release of gases trapped within the heat shield material, which was exacerbated by the “skip re-entry” profile adopted for this mission. 

Following the “skip” profile, Orion first lightly touches the edge of the atmosphere to slow down. It then uses the capsule’s aerodynamic lift to skip back out of the atmosphere, before re-entering it for its final descent to Earth. The “skip” profile got its name because it somewhat resembles a stone skipping across the surface of a pond.

NASA researchers found that as the heating rate decreased between atmospheric re-entries, thermal energy accumulated within the Avcoat material. This led to the accumulation of gases and, in turn, to an increase in internal pressure, which resulted in the formation of cracks and uneven delamination of the material.

Necessary improvements

Based on the experience gained during the Artemis-1 mission, NASA has taken a number of measures to protect the Artemis-2 crew. For the first crewed flight under the program, NASA retained the Avcoat heat shield material but updated the tile design to facilitate gas venting during atmospheric reentry. 

In addition, NASA has now chosen a more direct re-entry profile for the Orion capsule instead of the “skip” profile. This reduces uncertainty in the heating profile and means that the trapped gases will be exposed to peak temperatures for a shorter period of time, thereby reducing the risk of damage to the heat shield; however, it also means that the crew will experience greater deceleration upon re-entry.

Safety first

At the most dramatic moment in the film Apollo 13, Mission Control Director Gene Kranz says his famous line to the Mission Control team: “Failure is not an option.” Although this phrase was actually coined by the film’s screenwriters, it has become not only the second most popular quote from the movie, but also a kind of motto for NASA.

Nowhere is this truer than in the case of the Artemis-2 heat shield. In the final phase of the Artemis-2 mission, there is no backup plan, no contingency plan, and no chance of escape. The four astronauts on board will rely on a few centimeters of resin-coated silica to protect themselves from temperatures approaching half that of the Sun’s surface. 

Human spaceflight has always involved calculated risks, but at the same time it has given us a unique human perspective on our place in the Universe. The Artemis-2 mission will make its crew the first people in over half a century to see the blue globe of Earth in all its glory with their own eyes.

The crew will carry the hopes and aspirations of an entire new generation of explorers. Their safe return will depend on the meticulous work of thousands of scientists and engineers, and they will bring back with them a new human perspective not only on the Moon, but also on the planet we call home.

• According to phys.org

• Posted in News, Science

RELATED VIDEOS

{https://universemagazine.com/en/articles-en/ }

01-04-2026 om 00:18 geschreven door peter  

We Could Be Hit By Five Building-sized Asteroids By The End Of The Century - So What Are We Going To Do About It?

By Andy Tomaswick 

{ https://www.universetoday.com/ }

31-03-2026 om 23:48 geschreven door peter  

{ https://www.universetoday.com/ }

31-03-2026 om 23:29 geschreven door peter  

Could the so-called tic-tac UFOs be the result of a long-standing, mutually beneficial exchange agreement between the “Tall White” aliens and human military forces, along with private aerospace companies, an arrangement that may date back to at least the 1950s? 

In this scenario, the propulsion systems would be supplied by the Tall Whites, while the structural design and hulls are developed by human engineers, alongside the exchange of other advanced technologies. 

While this idea may sound far-fetched, author Charles Hall, a former weather observer, has claimed that he lived and worked in close proximity to a group of Tall Whites during the 1960s in the Nevada desert. These beings, often associated with the so-called Nordic or Pleiadian archetype, are typically described as human-like in appearance, standing between 5 and 9 feet tall, with pale skin and white hair. Hall further alleged that such entities operated for decades near military installations like Nellis Air Force Base and Edwards Air Force Base. 

The video in question is of poor quality, making it difficult to determine whether it captures a genuine tic-tac UFO or a fabricated one. However, the real issue may not be the authenticity of the footage itself, but rather the broader question it raises: to what extent, if any, are claims of collaborative agreements between extraterrestrial beings and human institutions grounded in reality? 

Adding another layer to this speculation are statements made by Donald Trump, who has repeatedly suggested that the United States possesses highly advanced military and artificial intelligence technologies, capabilities that, to some, seem almost unbelievable.

This raises an intriguing question: could such remarks be indirectly referencing technologies similar to the tic-tac UFOs? And if so, might they hint knowingly or unknowingly at a deeper level of cooperation between human organizations and non-human entities?

{ http://ufosightingshotspot.blogspot.com/ }

31-03-2026 om 23:21 geschreven door peter  

UFO shoots out of sky, Nashville, Tennessee, USA March 30, 2026 UAP Paranormal Alien breaking news.

Date of sighting: March 30, 2026 9pm

Location of sighting: Nashville, Tennessee, USA

Source: Email report scwaring @yahoo.com

 

This report just in. An eyewitness was driving home and recorded this UFO coming down from the sky. The UFO actually hesitated in the sky for a split second and then continued on its way, be it began to curve and fly away from the eyewitness car. Meteors don't change direction, but this object did. There is no doubt about this object. It's 100% alien technology.

Scott C. Waring - UFO Sightings Daily 

 

Eyewitness states: 

I was driving home from work and saw this strange thing I thought was a crashing plane. I got it on car cam so maybe someone can make heads or tails of this. 

 

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

31-03-2026 om 23:18 geschreven door peter  

Shroud of Turin mystery deepens: Scientists discover DNA from 'multiple people' on the material said to be wrapped around Jesus' body

• READ MORE: The Shroud of Turin was not laid on Jesus' body, scientists reveal

By SHIVALI BEST, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR 

The Shroud of Turin mystery has deepened yet again, as a new analysis has uncovered DNA from 'multiple sources' on the material.  

For centuries, Catholics have flocked to the Italian city of Turin to be in the presence of its famous shroud. 

The venerated piece of linen bears a faint image of the front and back of a man – interpreted by many as Jesus Christ. 

Believers say it was used to wrap the body of Christ after his crucifixion, leaving his bloody imprint, like a photographic snapshot. 

In their new study, researchers from the University of Padova found DNA from several sources on the cloth.

This includes multiple humans, as well as animals, plants, and fungi. 

'This research provides original insights into the diversity of DNA extracted from samples collected in 1978 from the Turin Shroud, revealing its biological complexity through rigorous DNA and metagenomic analyses,' the researchers explained.

'Our findings highlight its preservation conditions and environmental interactions, offering valuable perspectives into the identified genetic variants, which originated from multiple biological sources.'

The Shroud of Turin mystery has deepened yet again, as a new analysis has uncovered DNA from 'multiple sources' on the material 

In their new study, researchers from the University of Padova found DNA from several sources on the cloth. This includes multiple humans, as well as animals, plants, and fungi

Currently stored at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin, the Shroud of Turin is a 14ft–long linen cloth with a faint image of a man.

The image on the shroud is believed to reflect the story of Jesus' crucifixion, giving rise to the belief that the cloth is the burial shroud of Jesus himself.

However, the authenticity of the shroud has been frequently brought into question over the years. 

Writing in their study, published as a preprint in bioRxiv, the researchers, led by Gianni Barcaccia, said: 'The true nature of the Shroud has been highly debated among historians, theologians, and scientists.

'Several hypotheses regarding its origin have been proposed, but as of today, no one has yet been able to establish to any degree of certainty when and where this textile originated from.'

To get to the bottom of it, the researchers analysed DNA extracted from 12 samples collected from the shroud in 1978.  

Given how many people have handled the shroud, the researchers were unsurprised to discover 'clear signatures' of modern DNA contamination. 

However, what was more surprising was the amount of older human DNA on the shroud. 

Currently stored at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin, the Shroud of Turin is a 14ft–long linen cloth with a faint image of a man

The image on the shroud is believed to reflect the story of Jesus' crucifixion, giving rise to the belief that the cloth is the burial shroud of Jesus himself 

'Our analyses revealed several human mtDNA lineages, including one common in Western Eurasia and another prevalent in the Near East,' the researchers explained. 

Unfortunately, this suggests we may never be able to find out if the shroud really was used to wrap Jesus' body, according to the experts. 

'The occurrence of an unusually high number of human heteroplasmies and the coexistence of different mtDNA variants confirm that the Shroud came into contact with multiple individuals, thereby challenging the possibility of identifying the original DNA of the Shroud,' the team added. 

As well as human DNA, the researchers found traces from multiple animals, including cats, dogs, chickens and cows. 

While this might not sound like much, it could help to unravel the mystery of where the shroud came from.  

'Concerning the Shroud’s journey, the presence of red coral, livestock (e.g. chickens, cows, pigs, goats, sheep, rabbits, horses), and domestic cats and dogs suggest Mediterranean origins or transit through Mediterranean regions,' the team explained. 

What's more, the cloth was found to contain DNA traces of carrots and cereals – crops that aren't usually associated with the Middle East. 

'The prevalence of Mediterranean crops and the absence of typical Middle Eastern flora raise questions about the agricultural landscape when the Shroud was created or used as a burial cloth,' the researchers added. 

'Comparative analyses with other ancient textiles and artifacts could further illuminate cultural and historical interactions with plants and animals.'

READ MORE

• Scientist finds earliest evidence the Shroud of Turin was NOT wrapped around Jesus' crucified body

Overall, the findings suggest that the Turin Shroud has a 'complex history'. 

'The overall DNA results – derived from rigorous methodological handling in clean rooms and metagenomic analyses supported by robust bioinformatics – suggest a diverse mosaic of genetic traces,' the team concluded. 

The Daily Mail has contacted the researchers for further comment on the implications of the findings.  

RELATED VIDEOS

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

31-03-2026 om 21:34 geschreven door peter