freelance science journalist and author
From The Saturday Paper, 19 April 2026: When it comes to space, Australia has long been seen – and seen itself – as a support act who, with telescopes and technology, makes the bigger nations and space agencies look good as they undertake headline-grabbing missions to the moon, Mars and beyond. Australia has done very … Continue reading Australia’s space program stuck in low orbit
From The Saturday Paper, 17 December 2022: “I’ve always thought astronaut would be the coolest job in the world.” Dr Meganne Christian looks pretty relaxed for someone who has just achieved that childhood dream. But speaking via Zoom from Paris, barely 48 hours after she was announced as one of the European Space Agency’s new … Continue reading The woman who could represent Australia in space
From Nature, 4 October 2018: A third rover has touched down on the surface of asteroid Ryugu, marking a hat-trick of successful landings for the Japanese Hayabusa2 space mission. Earlier today, the shoe-box-sized Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout (MASCOT) separated from the Hayabusa2 probe, which had moved temporarily to 51 metres from the asteroid’s surface. The … Continue reading Japanese rover lands on ancient asteroid for 16 hour-mission
From BBC Future, 4 October 2016: Science fiction writers and moviemakers have shown us countless visions of humanity spread out across the Universe, so you might be forgiven for thinking that we’ve already got this in the bag. Unfortunately, we still have more than a few technical limitations to overcome – like the laws of … Continue reading The myths and reality of interstellar travel
Bianca Nogrady 