Tag: Moon
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Could nuclear heaters keep astronauts warm on the moon? NASA is funding research to find out
This collage highlights some of the projects selected for funding through the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program, including a study looking at radioisotope heating systems for moonwalking astronauts, depicted at center left. (NASA Graphic) NASA says it’s funding a new batch of far-out research projects, including a study evaluating how radioactive heaters can keep astronauts…
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Mars Society and South Seattle College strike a deal to build a simulated space habitat
Two analog astronauts trudge toward the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station in Utah. (Mars Society Photo) The Mars Society is planning to build a Pacific Northwest research station suitable for simulating missions to the moon or Mars, in partnership with South Seattle College. The nonprofit space advocacy group announced today that its executive director,…
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Interlune extracts helium-3 from ordinary helium, demonstrating a process it plans to use on the moon
Mechanical engineer Sam Heyd, Chief Technology Officer Gary Lai and chemical engineer Brenden Pelkie operate the Cold Capture system in Interlune’s Cryogenic Lab at the company’s Seattle headquarters. (Interlune Photo) Seattle-based Interlune says it has managed to produce 99% pure helium-3 from a standard supply of industrial-grade helium, marking a milestone for a technology that…
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NASA Cancels $73M Draper CLPS Lunar Lander CP-12
NASA Cancels Draper’s $73M CLPS Mission — What Happened to CP-12? NASA has terminated a $73 million Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order with Draper after successive lander redesigns pushed the projected lunar landing to 2030 or 2031 — six years behind the original 2025 schedule. Of that $73 million, NASA confirmed it paid…
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NASA may send a backup, nuclear-powered Mars rover to the Moon
NASA officials said Tuesday that they are seriously considering sending the full-scale engineering model of the Perseverance rover, which is currently housed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, to the Moon to expedite their efforts to explore the south pole region. The car-sized rover nicknamed “Promise,” which serves as a testbed for Perseverance and…
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NASA considers sending a spare Mars rover to the moon to rev up preparations for lunar base
An engineering development version of the NASA rovers currently operating on Mars takes a spin at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. (NASA via YouTube) NASA is considering repurposing an engineering development version of the nuclear-powered Mars rovers for a different destination: the moon’s south polar region. The plan calls for turning the test rover,…
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NASA backs dozens of projects on the space frontier, including some with Northwest connections
An artist’s conception shows the Blue Moon Mark 2 lander on the lunar surface. (Blue Origin Illustration) NASA has selected proposals from 37 companies, including several with Seattle-area connections, to further its plans to establish a long-term presence on the moon and enable human exploration of Mars. The companies applied to partner with NASA under…
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Having sex in space would be tricky, but having kids in space is riskier
Researchers say the mechanics of having sex in space would be easier to manage than the biology of pregnancy and fetal development in a reduced-gravity environment. (Credit: ID 309694213 © Anna Ivanova | Dreamstime.com) Sex in space is the perfect subject for levity and double entendres, and the panelists at a Deep Tech Week session…
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Blue Origin’s rocket blowup could cause big problems for NASA — and a satellite slowdown for Amazon Leo
One day after Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploded on its launch pad during a static-fire test, United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 successfully sent 29 Amazon Leo satellites into low Earth orbit. (ULA via YouTube) Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space venture is still assessing the damage from this week’s catastrophic New Glenn rocket explosion on…
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Rovers and Drones laying the foundations for NASA Moon Base
NASA has outlined the initial missions under its Moon Base initiative, rebranding existing Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) flights, while also awarding contracts for the first crewed Lunar Terrain Vehicles (LTVs) intended to support surface operations as early as 2028. The agency confirmed that the first three Moon Base missions are adaptations of previously planned…