Every time a rocket is launched, tons of valuable materials are lost, and huge amounts of greenhouse gases and ozone-depleting chemicals are released into the atmosphere. Publishing December 1 in the Cell Press journal Chem Circularity, sustainability and space scientists discuss how the principles of reducing, reusing, and recycling could be applied to satellites and spacecraft—from design and manufacturing to in-orbit repair and end-of-life repurposing.

SAN ANTONIO — December 1, 2025 — Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has created a new space science laboratory to enhance our understanding of the origins of planetary systems. SwRI’s Nebular Origins of the Universe Research (NOUR) Laboratory is led by SwRI Senior Research Scientist Dr. Danna Qasim.

Scientists propose a new “prebiotic gel-first” framework that suggests life on Earth may have begun in sticky, surface-bound gels. These primitive gels could have concentrated and protected molecules, enabling complex chemical reactions long before cells formed. This insight may even help guide the search for life beyond Earth.

An international team, including astronomers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the National Centre of Competence in Research PlanetS, has observed giant clouds of helium escaping from the exoplanet WASP-107b. Obtained with the James Webb Space Telescope, these observations were modeled using tools developed at UNIGE. Their analysis, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, provides valuable clues for understanding this atmospheric escape phenomenon, which influences the evolution of exoplanets and shapes some of their characteristics.

Maynooth University has joined an international space science mission with the successful launch of Mauve, a small ultraviolet telescope developed by UK-based company Blue Skies Space.