Free Republic

"A robotic spacecraft built in nine months by Arizona-based startup Katalyst Space Technologies is set to launch no earlier than Tuesday, June 30, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands on a first-of-its-kind mission to grab NASA's sinking Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory and push it back to a safe orbit — the first time any commercial vehicle has attempted to capture an operational government satellite that was never designed to be serviced. "

Artist’s impression of GRB 211211A. Scientists have linked this unusual gamma-ray burst from a nearby galaxy to a neutron star merger. Credit: Soheb Mandhai @TheAstroPhoenix An unusually powerful gamma-ray burst (GRB 211211A), detected from a nearby galaxy, has been linked to a neutron star merger by an international team of scientists. This burst, notable for its excess of infrared light, was shown to originate from a kilonova, an event thought to occur when neutron stars collide. Scientists have linked a highly unusual blast of high-energy light from a nearby galaxy to a neutron star merger. The event, detected in December...