Tag: International Space Station
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SpaceX readies rocket for tests at historic pad 39A
An aerial view of launch pad 39A from late 2015. Credit: NASA SpaceX engineers are preparing to mount a Falcon 9 rocket at Kennedy Space Center’s historic launch pad 39A for the first time this week as the company declares the modified facility ready to support a new era of commercial space missions. The two-stage…
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Blue lightning caught on video from space
An image captured from the International Space Station shows an electrical discharge known as a blue jet shooting up toward space from a cloud. (ESA / NASA Photo / Andreas Mogensen) For years, scientists have been piecing together evidence of peculiar phenomena known as red sprites, blue jets, pixies and elves – exotic types of electrical discharges…
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NASA gives its nod to NanoRacks for space station’s first commercial portal
In this artist’s conception, NanoRacks’ airlock module is the knobby-looking hardware attached to a port on the International Space Station’s Tranquility module. (NanoRacks Illustration) NASA has accepted a plan from a private venture called NanoRacks to provide the International Space Station with an air lock that would serve as its first commercial portal. The plan could…
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Japanese cargo ship ends mission after space debris experiment flounders
Artist’s concept of how the tether for Japan’s KITE experiment would have appeared when deployed from the HTV supply ship. Credit: JAXA Japan’s HTV supply ship fell to Earth on Sunday more than a week after leaving the International Space Station, burning up in the atmosphere after officials gave up on an experiment looking into…
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NASA okays commercial airlock for space station
Artist’s concept of the NanoRacks airlock attached to the space station’s Tranquility module. Credit: NanoRacks A commercial airlock built in partnership by NanoRacks and Boeing will be connected to the International Space Station in 2019, the companies announced Monday, after the proposed project won preliminary approval from NASA managers. NanoRacks plans to deploy small commercial…
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ULA’s navy delivers rocket that will launch supplies to the space station
A recent Mariner arrival at Port Canaveral for Atlas 5. Credit: Justin Ray/Spaceflight Now PORT CANAVERAL — The ocean-sailing ship that transports rocket stages from United Launch Alliance’s factory to U.S. launch sites completed its latest voyage overnight, pulling into port to deliver the Atlas 5 that will send a cargo freighter to the International…
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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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Station cargo flight leapfrogs commercial satellite launch on SpaceX manifest
A view of launch pad 39A, with SpaceX’s rocket erector vertical, taken on Jan. 26. Credit: Walter Scriptunas II / Scriptunas Images SpaceX said Sunday that the first Falcon 9 rocket launch from pad 39A, a former shuttle-era complex at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is scheduled to send a Dragon supply ship to…
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Japanese cargo craft departs space station
The HTV 6 supply ship leaves the International Space Station on Friday. Credit: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now Japan’s sixth HTV supply ship departed the International Space Station on Friday and headed for a destructive re-entry over the South Pacific with trash and disused batteries from the research lab, but engineers will first use the spacecraft for…
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Touchscreen gloves? Zippered helmets? Boeing reboots the spacesuit for Starliner
Boeing’s Chris Ferguson, a former astronaut, models the Starliner spacesuit. (Boeing via YouTube) The spacesuit designed for astronauts riding Boeing’s Starliner space taxi makes a fashion statement for the 21st century, from its touchscreen-sensitive gloves to its color-coordinated shoes. And all of it in Boeing blue. The spacesuit made its public debut today during a…