An out-of-this-world idea: placing data centres in space could pave the way for sustainable computing with unlimited solar energy and free cooling, says scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore). The researchers outline a practical path to building carbon-neutral data centres in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), a concept particularly relevant to land-scarce cities like Singapore, where limited land and high real estate costs make conventional data centres increasingly expensive. Published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Electronics, the study presents a framework for how satellites equipped with advanced processors could serve as orbital edge and cloud data centres. The new paper asserts that space offers two unparalleled environmental advantages, virtually unlimited solar energy and natural radiative cooling enabled by the extreme cold temperatures. In addition, virtual models show that solar-powered orbital data centres could offset their launch emissions within a few years of operation.

Kyoto, Japan -- Down here on Earth we don't usually notice, but the Sun is frequently ejecting huge masses of plasma into space. These are called coronal mass ejections (CMEs). They often occur together with sudden brightenings called flares, and sometimes extend far enough to disturb Earth's magnetosphere, generating space weather phenomena including auroras or geomagnetic storms, and even damaging power grids on occasion.

Scientists believe that when the Sun and the Earth were young, the Sun was so active that these CMEs may have even affected the emergence and evolution of life on the Earth. In fact, previous studies have revealed that young Sun-like stars, proxies of our Sun in its youth, frequently produce powerful flares that far exceed the largest solar flares in modern history.

Huge CMEs from the early Sun may have severely impacted the early environments of Earth, Mars, and Venus. However, to what extent explosions on these young stars exhibit solar-like CMEs remains unclear. In recent years, the cool plasma of CMEs has been detected by optical observations on the ground. However, the high velocity and expected frequent occurrence of strong CMEs in the past have remained elusive.

Discover how space computing is set to transform real-time data processing in orbit. From enhancing satellite communications to enabling intelligent remote sensing, this emerging technology holds the key to unlocking new possibilities in space exploration and beyond. Dive into the latest advancements and challenges in this exciting field.

An international team of researchers has just revealed the existence of three Earth-sized planets in the binary stellar system TOI-2267 located about 190 light-years away. This discovery, published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, is remarkable as it sheds new light on the formation and stability of planets in double-star environments, which have long been considered hostile to the development of complex planetary systems.

Researchers have achieved a breakthrough in solar physics by providing the first direct evidence of small-scale torsional Alfvén waves in the Sun's corona – elusive magnetic waves that scientists have been searching for since the 1940s.

The SETI Institute announced today that the California Academy of Sciences has awarded its highest honor, the Fellows Medal, to Dr. Jill Tarter, SETI Institute co-founder and Bernard M. Oliver Chair Emerita for SETI at the SETI Institute, recognizing her pioneering contributions to the scientific search for life beyond Earth. Medalists are nominated by Academy Fellows and confirmed by the Board of Trustees.

“The Cal Academy Fellows Medal is a great honor that I am now fortunate to share with a group of extraordinary previous Medalists,” said Tarter. “Over the years it has been extremely rewarding for the SETI Institute to work with a number of Academy teams to improve public understanding and engagement in the enterprise of science for all.”