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Space News & Blog Articles
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NASA’s PACE mission aims to vastly increase understanding of the oceans, atmosphere
NASA’s PACE spacecraft inside a clean room at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, FL. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now
From the oceans to the atmosphere, there’s still quite a bit we don’t understand about our planet. NASA’s latest Earth-observing spacecraft hopes to greatly expand our knowledge of the globe in just a few years.
Hubble Reveals Possible Water-Vapor World
New Hubble Space Telescope observations reveal the warm sub-Neptune GJ 9827d might have a steamy atmosphere.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 2 – 11
Under Orion is the Hare, which you may know, and under the Hare is the Dove, which you may not. February the best month for both.
Sierra Space unveils fully integrated Dream Chaser spaceplane amid testing campaign
For the first time, Sierra Space mated its Dream Chaser spaceplane to the Shooting Star module amid shake table testing at NASA’s Armstrong Test Facility in Ohio. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now
An orbital-class spaceplane is one step closer to returning to the International Space Station. As part of an on-going test campaign, Sierra Space mated its Dream Chaser spaceplane to its Shooting Star module for the first time at NASA’s Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio.
Collins Aerospace completes key spacesuit testing milestone
Collins Aerospace tested its next generation spacesuit during a recent parabolic flight. This was part of its Crew Capability Assessment. Image: Collins Aerospace
Astronauts who work onboard the U.S. side of the International Space Station are one step closer to getting new spacesuits.
Rocket Lab launches first recovery Electron mission of 2024
A Rocket Lab Electron rocket lifts off from New Zealand on the company’s first flight of 2024. Image: Rocket Lab
Rocket Lab was back in action on Wednesday, kicking off its launch year with a recovery Electron mission from New Zealand. This was its second return to flight mission following a mishap late last year.
Polaris Dawn astronauts discuss training for historic commercial spacewalk
Polaris Dawn Commander Jared Isaacman (left) and Pilot Scott “Kidd” Poteet alongside a SpaceX render of the spacewalk that will be performed during their mission. Photoillustration: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now
Amid a flurry of astronaut missions scheduled for 2024, a commercial flight is aiming to mark a historic first: a non-governmental spacewalk.
'Starfield' spacesuit contest: ESA and Xbox will build the winner their own custom design (video)
Design your own spacesuit and enter for a chance to win a real-life replica of it in this new fan contest from Microsoft and the European Space Agency.
Live coverage: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch Cygnus cargo ship to space station
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to launch a Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft for the first time on the NG-20 mission. Image: Michael Cain/Spaceflight Now
SpaceX is gearing up for its second launch bound for the International Space Station this month. But unlike all previous missions targeting the orbiting outpost, this flight doesn’t feature a Dragon spacecraft.
The Seeming Impossibility of Life
The number of near misses, false starts, and legitimate disasters that have befallen our species since the day we took our first upright steps all those generations ago is too large to count and could honestly take up this entire book. I’ll give us humans this much, though: we’re survivors, through and through.
Water Vapor Found in the Atmosphere of a Small Exoplanet
A recent study published in The Astrophysucal Journal Letters discusses the detection of water within the atmosphere of GJ 9827 d, which is a Neptune-like exoplanet located approximately 97 light-years from Earth, using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope (HST), and is the smallest exoplanet to date where water has been detected in its atmosphere. This study was conducted by an international team of researchers and holds the potential to identify exoplanets throughout the Milky Way Galaxy which possess water within their atmospheres, along with highlighting the most accurate methods to identify the water, as well.
NASA Ends Mars Ingenuity Helicopter Mission
NASA’s ground-breaking Ingenuity helicopter, part of the Perseverance mission, comes to a rest on the Red Planet.
Webb reveals structure in 19 spiral galaxies
A new treasure trove of images from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope showcases near- and mid-infrared portraits of 19 face-on spiral galaxies. This new set of exquisite images show stars, gas, and dust on the smallest scales ever observed beyond our own galaxy.
Second Falcon 9 of the night carries Starlink satellites from West Coast
A Falcon 9 liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California carrying 22 Starlink satellites. Image: SpaceX.
SpaceX launched its second Falcon 9 launch of the night with the Starlink 7-12 mission soaring skyward from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) on Sunday, Jan. 28, at 9:57 p.m. PST (12:57 a.m. EST, 0557 UTC).
SpaceX launches first of planned back-to-back Falcon 9 Starlink missions
A Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Kennedy Space Center carrying 23 Starlink satellites into space. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now.
Update 8:40 p.m.: The first Falcon 9 of the night lifted off at 8:10 p.m. EST from Kennedy Space Center.
Asteroid 2024 BX1: From a Dot of Light to Fireball to Rocks on the Ground
The asteroid 2024 BX1 went from a moving dot of light to rocks on the ground in mere hours — and amateur astronomers were critical to both discovery and recovery.
Despite engine malfunction, powered-down Japanese moon lander achieves major goals
A camera aboard a small micro rover deployed from Japan’s SLIM lunar lander captured an image of the probe resting on one side a few feet away after an engine malfunction during the final stages of descent Jan. 19. Image: JAXA.
One of two engines powering a Japanese moon lander during its descent to the surface Jan. 19 suffered a malfunction of some sort just 160 feet above the lunar surface that sharply reduced its power, the Japanese space agency said Thursday.
U.S. Government awards NOAA millions for wildfire response research
Millions of dollars invested in NOAA's Fire Weather research efforts will support wildfire preparedness and response across the United States.
What Could the Extremely Large Telescope See at Proxima Centauri's Planet?
Proxima Centauri B is the closest exoplanet to Earth. It is an Earth-mass world right in the habitable zone of a red dwarf star just 4 light-years from Earth. It receives about 65% of the energy Earth gets from the Sun, and depending on its evolutionary history could have oceans of water and an atmosphere rich with oxygen. Our closest neighbor could harbor life, or it could be a dry rock, but is an excellent target in the search for alien life. There’s just one catch. Our usual methods for detecting biosignatures won’t work with Proxima Centauri B.
Virgin Galactic may launch 6th commercial spaceflight this week
Virgin Galactic's sixth commercial spaceflight may be just around the corner. The launch window for the Galactic 06 mission opens on Friday (Jan. 26).
