Space is a term that comes from the Latin spatium and that has many meanings according to the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE). The first one has to do with the extension that the existing matter contains.
In a similar sense, space is the part that a sensible object occupies and the capacity of land or place. For example: "Sorry, there is no more space in the living room" , "We will have to change the bed as it takes up too much space" , "There you have a free space to park" .
The notion of space can also refer to outer space (the region of the universe that is beyond the Earth's atmosphere): “When I was a child, I dreamed of going to space” , “Last night my grandson asked me if many people live in space. Martians " , " NASA could never verify the existence of extraterrestrial spacecraft in space . "
Another use of the term is linked to the passage of time between two events: "The police were checking every corner of the room for four hours" , "I have a free space between the meeting at two in the afternoon and the event at seven ” .
In the environment of television and radio, the space is a program or a part of the programming: "This channel needs more sports spaces to attract a larger audience" , "When the informational space ends, the film will begin . "
The separation between the lines of a text, or between its words or letters, is also called a space: "I don't quite understand what it says: please enlarge the letter, leave double space and print again . "
Important discoveries from outer space
First, there is the discovery of water on the Moon, which took place in October 2009, as a result of the LCROSS probe colliding with the lunar crater called Cabeus. The impact generated a cloud of a matter that, a month later, was identified as water, which is found in large quantities on the Earth's satellite.
No less shocking was the discovery of a planet with characteristics very similar to those of Earth, which they named Corot-7b. Although its diameter is double and its mass is five times greater, it is the first solid celestial body that really resembles our home. However, it should be noted that its average temperature revolves around a thousand degrees Celsius, since it is located a short distance from its star, which makes it difficult to imagine that it hosts life forms like the ones we know.
The astronomical community fulfilled a long-awaited dream when it was able to know the true aspect of Mercury, after many years of waiting. After three very complicated flights over its surface, the Messenger probe provided us with images of some of its most hidden corners. This is the mission that gave scientists a practically complete view of Mercury, from which discoveries were made about its composition, such as that it contains large amounts of titanium and iron, among other heavy metals.
Finally, one of the most attractive subjects of outer space, even for those who do not have specific knowledge: black holes. A few years ago, one with a mass 6.4 billion times that of the Sun was discovered in the center of the elliptical galaxy M87 (also called Virgo A ).