Dark streaks on Martian slopes may have been carved by boiling water , new research suggests. This finding may be good news and bad news: good, because it suggests that Mars might still have liquid water, but bad, because the planet might have less liquid water than previously thought, the researchers said. Although Mars is […]
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On May 2, 2016, scientists announced the discovery of TRAPPIST-1, an alien solar system 40 light-years from Earth with a tiny, ultracool dwarf star and three small exoplanets that just might be habitable. See imaginary views of the TRAPPIST-1 system in this slideshow. HERE: An artist’s view of the TRAPPIST-1 star system as seen from […]
JAXA PCG (fourth session of the second series) begins Last Updated: May 2, 2016 The Protein Crystal Growth experiment (JAXA PCG, fourth session of the second series) has begun in the Japanese Experiment Module (“Kibo”) attached to the International Space Station (ISS). The experiment materials and samples were carried aboard the Progress resupply vehicle (63P) […]
This is the final issue of the JAXA Astronaut Activity Report that began in April 2004. Thank you for your interest and support regarding various articles over many years. The activities of JAXA astronauts will be introduced in part of the ISS/Kibo Monthly News series beginning next month. Astronaut Kimiya Yui’s mission reporting event in […]
NASA has picked 13 wild space technology ideas, including concepts for two-dimensional spacecraft and microbes that could turn Mars dirt into usable material, for Phase 1 funding under the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program. Credit: NASA/NIAC Get ready for two-dimensional spacecraft and microorganisms that can recycle Mars dirt into working electronics. While both may sound […]
Author Nathalia Holt signs her new book on early rocket history with advice to women who aspire to become space scientists:”Reach for the stars!” In partnership with Space.com, landmark Washington, D.C., bookseller Politics and Prose hosted Holt’s book lecture at the restaurant Busboys and Poets on April 20. At the event, Holt spared no superlatives […]
A 9-foot (3 meters) test article for an inflatable heat shield gets packed tightly by engineer Sean Hancock. Credit: NASA/David C. Bowman An inflatable-heat-shield prototype designed to protect spacecraft on other worlds has passed its first key step: making sure it fits into a rocket. In a recent test, the 9-foot-diameter (3 meters) test shield […]
The full-size mock orbiter “Inspiration” was rolled down the runway at the Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida on April 27, 2016. Credit: LVX System Almost five years after NASA’s last space shuttle landed in Florida, an orbiter returned to the runway at the Kennedy Space Center. The model orbiter “Inspiration” was rolled […]
ESA astronaut Tim Peake and his crewmates Yuri Malenchenko and Tim Kopra will return to Earth on 18 June, giving them almost two more weeks more in space than their original mission. Each International Space Station crew flies as a trio to the outpost and back to Earth in a Soyuz spacecraft. About every three […]
Inside the clean room at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, the golden James Webb Space Telescope is viewed from overhead with its secondary mirror booms stowed. In the next few months, engineers will install other key elements, and take additional measurements to ensure the telescope is ready for space. To source
The April 27 award of an $83 million U.S. Air Force contract to launch a GPS-3 satellite gives SpaceX and its Falcon 9 rocket (shown above rolling out for the January 2016 launch of Jason-3) an important foothold in the national security launch market. Credit: SpaceX WASHINGTON — SpaceX has won an $82.7 million contract […]
Artist’s illustration of Japan’s Hitomi X-ray astronomy satellite in orbit. Hitomi suffered an anomaly in late March 2016, and its handlers have given up on trying to save the spacecraft. Credit: JAXA/Akihiro Ikeshita WASHINGTON — The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced April 28 that it was giving up on efforts to restore control of […]