Mission to Mars: Here Are All of the Red Planet Plans in the Works
President Barack Obama announced Tuesday (Oct. 11) that NASA will send astronauts to Mars before the end of the 2030s, reaffirming a directive he gave the space agency back in 2010. But there’s no guarantee that NASA will get there first; several other organizations also have the Red Planet in their sights , and on […]
Shotwell Says SpaceX 'Homing In' On Cause of Falcon 9 Pad Explosion
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said it’s unlikely a design issue with the Falcon 9 is at the root of a Sept. 1 pad explosion. WASHINGTON — SpaceX is getting closer to finding the cause of a September pad explosion that destroyed a Falcon 9, and the company’s president remains confident the vehicle will return to […]
Ancient Stars Spotted at Milky Way's Heart
An ancient kind of star was just discovered in the Milky Way’s heart, suggesting that the galaxy’s center was created after primordial star clusters merged with each other, a new study shows. Researchers in the new study found a dozen of the ancient stars, called RR Lyrae variable stars, using the European Southern Observatory’s infrared […]
NASA Interns Promote Journey To Mars With New Music Video
Recommended videos for you Lunar Impact! Moon Probe’s ‘Temporal’ Images… ExoMars’ Landing Demonstrator and Orbiter Exp… NASA Interns Promote Journey To Mars With New… Ancient ‘RR Lyrae’ and Other Variable Stars I… Space Habitats – Concept Imagery Revealed by… NASA T-38 Jets In Flight – Cockpit View Captu… Solar Electric Propulsion Upgrades Wanted For… ‘Spaceman’ […]
In the Deep Blue: Stargazer Captures Stunning Image of Iris Nebula
Astrophotographer Ron Brecher took this image of the Iris Nebula from Guelph, Ontario on September 10, 2016. Blue light seems to emerge from deep within the sky in this stunning image. Astrophotographer Ron Brecher took this image from Guelph, Ontario on September 10, 2016. The image is of reflection nebula NGC7023, also known as the Iris […]
Europe's Daring Mars Mission Prepares for Touchdown
Mars, we’ve got our eyes on you. Next week, a European spacecraft will make a challenging entry into the Martian atmosphere to deploy a lander on the surface. Called Schiaparelli, the little lander is expected to demonstrate future landing technologies while doing at least a few days of observations on Mars. This is the first […]
What to expect from Schiaparelli’s camera
As the ExoMars Schiaparelli module descends onto Mars on 19 October it will capture 15 images of the approaching surface. Scientists have simulated the view we can expect to see from the descent camera. To source
Orionid Meteor Shower 2016: When, Where & How to See It
Astrophotographer Jeff Berkes snapped this amazing photo of an Orionid meteor streaking above a lake in Elverson, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 22, 2011, during the peak of the annual Orionid meteor shower. One of the year’s best sky shows will peak between Oct. 20 and 22, when the Orionid meteor shower reaches its best viewing. The […]
Nighttime Launch of Private Cargo Ship Visible Along US East Coast on Monday
This map shows the regions of visibility for Orbital ATK’s Antares rocket nighttime launch scheduled for 8:03 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016 from Wallops Island, Virginia. The launch may be visible from a wide region of the U.S. East Coast. Color bands denote the time after launch (in seconds) the rocket’s plume may […]
Sloshing fluids
Human spaceflight and robotic exploration image of the week: Learning about fluids in weightlessness on the Space Station To source
US Will Send People to Mars by 2030s, Barack Obama Says
President Barack Obama delivers a speech about his vision for the future of space exploration at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on April 15, 2010. President Barack Obama wants NASA to send astronauts to Mars by the 2030s, he wrote in a CNN op-ed published today (Oct. 11). “We have set a clear […]
In Daylight on the Night Side
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft looks down at the rings of Saturn from above the planet’s nightside. To source