Spacewalks are busy for astronauts making repairs outside the International Space Station, but there's usually time for a quick selfie.
What's happening: European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano snapped this photo of himself while making repairs to an instrument designed to detect cosmic rays during a spacewalk on Jan. 25.
A new mission expected to launch to space from Florida on Sunday will give scientists an unprecedented view of the Sun.
Why it matters: Despite decades of studying our closest star, scientists still can't accurately predict our Sun's behavior — when it will eject solar flares, sprout sunspots or how the solar wind works.
Axiom Space wants to build a space station for a new age of exploration, and last week, the Houston-based company started moving ahead with its plans in earnest.
Driving the news: NASA announced that the company has been chosen to add its first module to the International Space Station, opening up the orbiting laboratory to more commercial activities in the future.
Thousands of pieces of space junk are speeding around Earth, but current tracking tools aren't yet able to pinpoint where most of the junk is at any given time, putting other satellites in danger — and fueling a growing industry to track debris and satellites.
Why it matters: Trackers warn collisions can knock out communications, cause millions of dollars in damage, and add to the price of insurance and therefore operation.
Why it matters: The second reported death outside of mainland China came as over 2,400 Hong Kong medical workers went on strike to demand authorities fully close the border with mainland China to stop the spread of the virus, per the South China Morning Post.
Medical teams and supplies were arriving Monday at the newly built Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital, a 1,000-bed center for the treatment of patients of the novel coronavirus, per Chinese government officials and state media.
Why it matters: Wuhan is the epicenter of the virus that's killed 361 people in China and one person in the Philippines. It has infected more than 17,000 people in mainland China and around 200 in 26 other countries and regions. The hospital was built in 10 days.
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