Tag: Commercial Crew
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Kimbrough, Whitson gear up for spacewalk
For the second time in less than a week, astronauts will leave their quarters inside the International Space Station on Thursday to outfit a relocated docking adapter to eventually receive Boeing and SpaceX commercial crew capsules. Space station commander Shane Kimbrough and flight engineer Peggy Whitson will put on their pressurized spacesuits and switch them…
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Spacewalkers improvise after fabric shield floats away
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION Shane Kimbrough prepares equipment before exiting the airlock on Thursday’s spacewalk. Credit: Thomas Pesquet/ESA/NASA Shane Kimbrough and Peggy Whitson, setting a new record as the world’s most experienced female spacewalker, floated outside the International Space Station Thursday and continued work to set up a second docking port for…
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Trump signs NASA authorization act, Pence to chair National Space Council
President Trump signed the NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2017 on Tuesday, surrounded by members of Congress and astronauts. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls President Donald Trump signed a new NASA authorization bill Tuesday, the first such space policy framework since early in the Obama administration, that largely continues the space agency’s efforts to foster a commercial…
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Astronauts gear up for spacewalks, resupply launch delayed
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION Astronaut Shane Kimbrough is seen outside the International Space Station during a Jan. 6 spacewalk. Credit: NASA NASA is gearing up for an intense few weeks of work aboard the International Space Station, staging three spacewalks, moving a docking port from one module to another to support commercial…
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NASA buys up to five more seats on future Soyuz missions
A Soyuz spacecraft is pictured docked with the International Space Station in this Feb. 3 image. The Florida peninsula is seen in the background. Credit: NASA NASA has purchased two seats on Russian Soyuz capsules launching later this year and in early 2018 to expand the crew on the U.S. segment of the International Space…
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Auto-destruct system seen as a key to ramping up launch tempos
Credit: Walter Scriptunas II / Scriptunas Images The U.S. Air Force says the demonstration of an automated safety system on last week’s Falcon 9 rocket launch will slash and costs and hasten turnarounds between missions from military-operated ranges in Florida and California. The on-board safety system, relying on Global Positioning System satellite navigation data, replaces…
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Astronauts will ride on Starliner capsules in ‘Boeing Blue’ spacesuits
Boeing has unveiled a new lightweight spacesuit, fitted with zippers, breathable stitching and plenty of Velcro, to protect NASA astronauts on trips to the International Space Station aboard the company’s CST-100 Starliner capsule. The “Boeing Blue” garment will shield astronauts as they ride inside the CST-100 spacecraft during launch and landing. The environment inside the…
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SpaceX’s first crew launch moved back to 2018
Artist’s concept of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft. Credit: SpaceX Astronauts will not fly to the International Space Station on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spaceship until at least May 2018, NASA said this week, missing a previous target launch date at the end of next year. The delay was expected after Boeing, which is also developing a…
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NASA has no plans to buy more Soyuz seats, and it may be too late anyway
File photo of a Soyuz spacecraft docked at the International Space Station. Credit: NASA NASA is sure enough that Boeing and SpaceX can safely launch astronauts to the International Space Station by early 2019 to hold off paying Russia to keep flying U.S. crews to the research complex, and one official says a deadline to…
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Spacewalkers attach docking adapter to space station for commercial vehicles
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION The International Docking Adapter, delivered by a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship is now firmly attached to the space station. Astronaut Jeff Williams is pictured below the docking port. Image: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now. Two spacewalkers attached a new docking port to the International Space Station Friday, clearing the way…