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Leah Crane is the physics and space reporter at 51��

Leah Crane

Physics and space reporter

Bio

Leah Crane is a Senior Reporter at 51��, covering topics ranging from private space flight and cosmology to quantum mechanics. She is based in Chicago. Before joining 51�� in 2016, her work was published at SpaceNews, Eos, Smithsonian and Symmetry Magazine. She writes 51��'s space newsletter, Launchpad.

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More from Leah Crane

Explore the latest news, articles and features

Starship

Space

SpaceX, Blue Origin and ULA plan to launch huge new rockets in 2023

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LARGE REGIONS OF ROCK AND METAL: PSYCHE ASTEROID ILLUSTRATION This illustration depicts the 140-mile-wide (226-kilometer-wide) asteroid Psyche, which lies in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Psyche is the focal point of NASA?s mission of the same name. The Psyche spacecraft is set to launch in August 2022 and arrive at the asteroid in 2026, where it will orbit for 21 months and investigate its composition. Based on data obtained from Earth, scientists believe Psyche is a mixture of metal and rock. The rock and metal may be in large provinces, or areas, on the asteroid, as illustrated in this rendering. Observing and measuring how the metal and rock are mixed will help scientists determine how Psyche formed. Exploring the asteroid could also give valuable insight into how our own planet and others formed. The Psyche team will use a magnetometer to measure the asteroid?s magnetic field. A multispectral imager will capture images of the surface, as well as data about Psyche?s composition and topography. Spectrometers will analyze the neutrons and gamma rays coming from the surface to reveal the elements that make up the asteroid itself. The illustration was created by Peter Rubin. View or download the full resolution versions from NASA?s Photojournal Date Added: 03-29-2021 Credit: Peter Rubin

Space

Spacecraft are heading to a metal asteroid and Jupiter's moons in 2023

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Black hole

Space

We saw the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy in 2022

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Insight on Mars

Space

NASA’s InSight lander has been declared dead after four years on Mars

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Physics

It may be possible to traverse a wormhole and then send a signal home

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Kepler-138 d (front), Kepler-138 c (left) and Kepler 138 b passing in front of its parent star

Space

Twin planets orbiting a distant star may be half water

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ASI?s LICIACube satellite acquired this image just before its closest approach to the Dimorphos asteroid, after the Double Asteroid Redirect Test, or DART mission, purposefully made impact on Sep. 26, 2022. Didymos, Dimorphos, and the plume coming off of Dimorphos after DART impact are clearly visible. Credits: ASI/NASA

Space

NASA's asteroid redirection spacecraft was a smashing success in 2022

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https://webbtelescope.org/contents/media/images/2022/053/01GFRYSFM89AFADVAA0W625BSB NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope?s mid-infrared view of the Pillars of Creation strikes a chilling tone. Thousands of stars that exist in this region disappear ? and seemingly endless layers of gas and dust become the centerpiece. The detection of dust by Webb?s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) is extremely important ? dust is a major ingredient for star formation. Many stars are actively forming in these dense blue-gray pillars. When knots of gas and dust with sufficient mass form in these regions, they begin to collapse under their own gravitational attraction, slowly heat up ? and eventually form new stars. Although the stars appear missing, they aren?t. Stars typically do not emit much mid-infrared light. Instead, they are easiest to detect in ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared light. In this MIRI view, two types of stars can be identified. The stars at the end of the thick, dusty pillars have recently eroded the material surrounding them. They show up in red because their atmospheres are still enshrouded in cloaks of dust. In contrast, blue tones indicate stars that are older and have shed most of their gas and dust.

Space

JWST captured the most thrilling and inspiring space images of 2022

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NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover took this selfie near rock nicknamed “Rochette,” found on Jezero Crater’s floor, on Sept. 10, 2021, the 198th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

Space

NASA's Perseverance rover recorded the sound of a dust devil on Mars

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Splashdown of Orion

Space

NASA’s Artemis I mission has ended as Orion splashed down on Earth

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Image description: An illustration of the James Webb Space Telescope deployed in space. The telescope has a large mirror made of hexagons that are being illuminated by the galaxy being observed. Otherwise the top side of the telescope is in the dark. The underside is being lit by the sun. The telescope is set against a starry background.

Space

JWST has broken the record for most distant galaxy ever confirmed

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Space

LIGO may be able to detect alien warp drives using gravitational waves

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