Most space travellers are men despite slow rise in female astronauts

Early space travellers were younger men, but the average age has risen since the 1960s. More women are also now going to space, but they only make up 64 of the 566 to have left Earth

55m

Life in the toxic clouds of Venus

Read a preview of Launchpad, our free weekly newsletter in which resident space expert Leah Crane fills you in on all the very latest news on our exploration of our solar system – and beyond.

3h

It’s time to for us to revisit Venus to uncover its many mysteries

The discovery of a possible sign of life on Venus highlights our ignorance of what is going on within its swirling clouds and on its furnace-like surface. It’s time to go there and find some answers, writes Peter Gao

5h

Lighting fires in space is helping us make greener energy on Earth

Flames reveal their secret workings when freed from the effects of gravity, so burning things in space may help us get more energy from less fuel back on Earth

5h

How to spot a Starlink satellite in the night sky

There are hundreds of SpaceX satellites in the sky. A successful sighting just requires a bit of luck, writes Abigail Beall

1d

BepiColombo may be able to search for signs of life as it passes Venus

The BepiColombo spacecraft is about to pass Venus on its way to Mercury, and there is a plans to use it to look for phosphine, a gas that may indicate life in Venus’s atmosphere

1d

NASA to film an Estée Lauder ad in space as the ISS opens for business

NASA is trying to turn the ageing International Space Station into a hub for commerce and has partnered with the likes of Estée Lauder and Adidas

2d

Life on Venus? Everything you need to know about the big discovery

Space and physics reporter Leah Crane answers New Scientist readers’ questions on the recent finding of potential signs of life in Venus’s atmosphere

3d

Have we spotted alien life floating in the clouds of Venus?

Strange gas in the clouds of Venus cannot be explained by any known non-biological formation mechanism, so it may be a sign that there are living organisms there

4d

Space Dogs review: A dog's-eye view of how Laika could have lived

Space Dogs follows the story of Laika, the first living being to orbit Earth, and imagines what her life could have been like had she survived reentry

6d