Top 10 space stories of 2016

    Even during a contentious election year (or maybe, especially during a contentious election year) space news grabbed our attention. Here are 10 of the year’s top stories:

10. High-powered telescopes search for life: The big guns are out in the search for life on other planets. A powerful Australian radio telescope will take part in Breakthrough Listen, the 10-year, $100 million astronomical search for intelligent life beyond Earth. 

9. Juno spacecraft in orbit around Jupiter: Just before midnight (Eastern time) on July 4, NASA confirmed that the robotic spacecraft Juno had successfully entered orbit around Jupiter. The spacecraft could produce information that will allow researchers to develop a more profound understanding of how the solar system developed.

8. Scientists confirm Einstein equation: In February, scientists announced that they had used high-tech laser observatories to detect gravitational waves that formed when two black holes collided -- confirming a prediction made by Albert Einstein.

7. Cassini prepped for grand finale: Scientists announced that they were readying the spacecraft Cassini for its final act. The spacecraft, which has delivered jaw-dropping images of Saturn, is scheduled to complete its mission by diving into the planet in September 2017.

6. Planet may have ocean: Scientists using high-tech space observatories have been able to discover numerous planets outside the solar system. But Proxima B truly sounds interesting.The planet orbits Proxima Centauri, a star only four light-years from our sun. Researchers speculate that the planet could have a body of water and a gassy atmosphere -- or it could be dry.

5.  Scientists find evidence of Planet 9: Beyond Pluto there may be a massive planet. Astronomers are calling it Planet Nine. In a research paper, they explained that scattered disks in the Kuiper Belt are exhibiting “an unexpected clustering.” The authors write that “such a clustering has only a probability of .007 percent to be due to chance.”  The orbital alignment, they wrote, “can be maintained by a distant eccentric planet.”

4.  Pluto may have ocean still in existence: In June, researchers examining data on Pluto said the dwarf planet could have a subsurface ocean still in existence.

3. Jupiter’s moon may have chemical balance for life: Scientists have predicted that they will be able to confirm the presence of life on other planets, and they may find it close to home. Researchers say that the ocean of Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, could have the balance of chemical energy necessary for life, even if the moon lacks volcanic hydrothermal activity. 

2. Astronauts return after a year in space: In a way, it was anti-climactic. American astronaut Scott Kelly and his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Kornienko, returned safely after spending a year at the International Space Station. But their yearlong stay was an important milestone in research on how long-term spaceflight will affect humans.

1. The death of John Glenn, astronaut and statesman: He wasn’t just another astronaut or even just another U.S. senator. A much-decorated pilot who had flown numerous missions during World War II and the Korean War, Glenn was among the first group of astronauts selected by NASA in 1959. Famously, he was first American astronaut to orbit Earth. But beyond his adventures in space, he was a statesman, a presidential candidate and an advocate for science education. He died Dec. 8 at 95.

     Follow StudyHall.Rocks on Twitter. 

    If you would like to comment, give us a shout, or like us on Facebook and tell us what you think.