HOUSTON — Two astronauts completed battery replacements and honored the legacy of the late Martin Luther King, Jr. while working outside of the International Space Station on what marked the third all-woman spacewalk today (Jan. 20). NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch performed their third extravehicular activity (EVA, or spacewalk) as a pair, completing upgrades […]
Read MoreCategory: Space
The first all-woman Mars analog crew just ‘returned to Earth’ in Hawaii
KONA, Hawaii — A history-making all-female crew of analog astronauts have “returned to Earth,” completing a two-week mission in a mock Mars habitat on the big island of Hawaii. Six scientists entered the HI-SEAS habitat (the name is short for Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation) — an analog Mars base for human researchers that […]
Read More
A brain transplant for one of Australia’s top telescopes
The 22-metre radio dishes of the ATCA telescope are 30 years old but still work just fine. Credit: John Masterson, CC BY-SA One of Australia’s top telescopes will receive an A$2.6 million upgrade to help extend its three-decade record of improving our understanding of the universe. The Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA), near Narrabri in […]
Read MoreAlien life is out there. But our theories are steering us away from it.
If we discovered evidence of alien life, would we even realize it? Life on other planets could be so different from what we’re used to that we might not recognize any biological signatures that it produces. Recent years have seen changes to our theories about what counts as a biosignature and which planets might be […]
Read MoreAre the aliens us? UFOs may be piloted by time-traveling humans, book argues
Unidentified flying objects (UFOs) have captured the public’s attention over the decades. As exoplanet detection is on the rise, why not consider that star-hopping visitors from afar might be buzzing through our friendly skies by taking an interstellar off-ramp to Earth? On the other hand, could those piloting UFOs be us — our future progeny […]
Read MoreSpacewalking astronauts are upgrading the space station today. Here’s how to watch it live.
[embedded content] NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch are taking their third spacewalk outside the International Space Station today (Jan. 20) to replace the orbiting laboratories aging batteries and you can catch the epic action live online. The spacewalk began at 6:35 a.m. EST (1335 GMT) today, marking the third time an all-woman team […]
Read More
Elon Musk: SpaceX will send NASA astronauts to space in Q2
Elon Musk said last night that SpaceX plans to send NASA astronauts to space between April and June. The mission, dubbed as Demo-2, will see the crew rocket up to the International Space Station for several days. SpaceX just completed a successful uncrewed test of its Crew Dragon capsule’s in-flight launch escape capabilities last night. […]
Read More
SpaceX aims to launch astronauts this spring after Crew Dragon escape test success
The first piloted flight of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon astronaut taxi is likely just a few months away, now that a critical safety test is in the rearview mirror. SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule aced an in-flight abort test Sunday morning (Jan. 19), successfully jetting away from its Falcon 9 rocket less than 90 seconds after liftoff […]
Read MoreSee the moon, Mars and Antares form a triangle in Monday’s predawn sky
See the crescent moon form a triangle with Mars and Antares in the predawn sky on Jan. 20, 2020. (Image credit: SkySafari App) The waning crescent moon will form a triangle with the Red Planet and the bright star Antares in the morning sky on Monday (Jan. 20), and you can catch the trio in […]
Read MoreSpace Launch Calendar 2020: Sky Events, Missions & More
LAST UPDATED Jan. 19: These dates are subject to change, and will be updated throughout the year as firmer dates arise. Please DO NOT schedule travel based on a date you see here. Launch dates collected from NASA, ESA, Roscosmos, Spaceflight Now and others. Watch NASA webcasts and other live launch coverage on our “Watch Live” page, and see our night sky webcasts […]
Read MoreSpaceX’s Crew Dragon in-flight abort test in photos
Image 1 of 25 (Image credit: NASA/SpaceX) SpaceX successfully conducted an in-flight abort test of its Crew Dragon crew capsule on Sunday (Jan. 19) to test the emergency escape system, which would safely return astronauts to Earth in the event of a problem during launch. See photos of the test here! Full Story: SpaceX aces […]
Read MoreSpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft aces critical launch escape test
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX just took a giant leap forward in its quest to launch astronauts. The private spaceflight company intentionally destroyed one of its rockets on Sunday (Jan. 19) as part of a crucial test of its new Crew Dragon capsule’s launch escape system. The uncrewed test, known as an in-flight abort (IFA) […]
Read MoreHow SpaceX’s Crew Dragon launch abort test today works in 10 not-so-easy steps
SpaceX will fly a major test flight of its Crew Dragon space taxi today (Jan. 19) to prove the spacecraft’s launch escape system can carry astronauts to safety in the event of a rocket emergency. The launch, set for 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT) is unlike anything SpaceX has done before. Called an in-flight abort, […]
Read More
The Spitzer Space Telescope will shuts down Jan. 30. NASA celebrates its legacy this week.
A 16-year NASA mission that painted the universe in infrared light will come to an end this month, as the Spitzer Space Telescope takes its final observations on Jan. 29. Spitzer launched in August 2003 as one of NASA’s four Great Observatories, following in the footsteps of the Hubble Space Telescope and the Chandra X-ray […]
Read MoreSpaceX delays Crew Dragon abort test launch to Sunday due to bad weather
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX postponed a critical launch escape test of its Crew Dragon astronaut taxi today (Jan. 18) due to bad weather at the mission’s launch site. The next attempt will be on Sunday, the company said. The California-based spaceflight company was scheduled to launch its unpiloted Crew Dragon spacecraft on a used […]
Read MoreMeet Mal Reynolds’ mom in ‘Firefly: The Outlaw Ma Reynolds’ (preview)
Serenity captain Mal Reynolds visits his mom in the one-shot comic book “The Outlaw Ma Reynolds” from Boom! Studios. (Image credit: Boom! Studios) Fans of Captain Malcolm Reynolds in the science fiction TV show “Firefly” now have a glimpse of his family history — in comic form. Boom! Studios and 20th Century Fox co-released “Firefly: […]
Read More
On This Day in Space: Jan. 18, 2002: Gemini South Observatory opens in Chile
On Jan. 18, 2002, the National Science Foundation formally opened the Gemini South telescope in Chile. This became the second telescope to make up the Gemini Observatory. Its twin telescope, Gemini North, is located in Hawaii. Together, these telescopes provide complete coverage of the entire sky all around the Earth. The Gemini South telescope saw […]
Read More‘Firefly: The Unification War Vol. 2′ reveals Mal Reynolds’ military past
The rebel past of Malcom Reynolds catches up with him in “Firefly: Unification War Vol. 2” from Boom! Studios. (Image credit: Boom! Studios) Browncoats, it’s finally here — the next chapter of the Unification War of the “Firefly” sci-fi franchise in a new comic from creator Joss Whedon and others. “Firefly: The Unification War Vol. […]
Read More‘Star Trek: Picard’ world premiere draws huge crowds and sci-fi stars
Patrick Stewart arrives at the premiere of “Star Trek: Picard” at the ArcLight Cinerama Dome in Hollywood, California, on Jan. 13, 2020. (Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images) HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Stars from the world of sci-fi gathered together in Hollywood, California on Monday (Jan. 13) to celebrate the world premiere of the latest spin-off series […]
Read MoreElon Musk is still thinking big with SpaceX’s Starship Mars-colonizing rocket. Really big.
Surprise, surprise: Elon Musk is thinking big. SpaceX’s billionaire founder and CEO outlined some ambitious goals for the company’s Starship Mars-colonization system during a flurry of Twitter posts on Thursday (Jan. 16). The Starship architecture consists of a big spaceship called Starship, which Musk has said will be capable of carrying up to 100 people, […]
Read MoreHow to watch SpaceX’s Crew Dragon abort test live online this Sunday
Editor’s note: SpaceX has delayed the launch of its Crew Dragon in-flight abort test flight to Sunday, Jan. 19, at 8 a.m. EST (1300 GMT). Read our full story. SpaceX will launch its Crew Dragon spacecraft on a critical abort test Sunday morning (Jan. 19), and you can watch it live online. The private spaceflight […]
Read MoreWatch live Sunday! SpaceX launching big Crew Dragon test flight @ 8 am ET (1300 GMT)
[embedded content] SpaceX has delayed the launch of its Crew Dragon in-flight abort test flight to Sunday, Jan. 19, at 8 a.m. EST (1300 GMT). Read our full story on the delay here. You can watch the launch live in the window above, courtesy of NASA TV. Liftoff is set for 8 a.m. EST (1300 […]
Read MoreThe top space stories of the week!
The U.S. Navy confirms the existence of “top secret” files about a 2004 UFO sighting, government studies conclude that 2019 was the second hottest year on record, and scientists find the oldest material on Earth — ancient stardust. These are just some of the top stories this week on Space.com. Last year was the […]
Read More