Tag: NASA
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NASA could go back to the future and revive moon base plans from a decade ago
An artist’s conception from 2007 shows astronauts walking up to an early lunar habitat. (NASA Illustration) In the wake of the National Space Council’s first meeting, NASA says it has been told to draw up plans to send humans to the moon “for long-term exploration and utilization,” followed by trips to Mars and other interplanetary…
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2018 turns into 2019 for Webb Space Telescope (and maybe Boeing’s space taxi)
NASA says it’s moving the launch date for its $8.8 billion James Webb Space Telescope from October 2018 to the spring of 2019, citing a longer-than-expected process of integrating elements of the house-sized spacecraft. The latest delay for the oft-postponed launch was announced on Thursday after a routine schedule assessment. Launch is now set for…
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Sizing up billionaire Elon Musk’s big bet on SpaceX’s Big Frickin’ Rocket of the future
An artist’s conception shows SpaceX’s BFR super-rocket docked to the International Space Station. (SpaceX Illustration) SpaceX founder Elon Musk’s rocket roadmap just got much bigger than Mars. Now the question is, who else will follow the map? The first answers to that question may well start emerging next week, when government officials and space industry…
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Lockheed Martin adds a lander to its picture for NASA’s future journeys to Mars
An artist’s conception shows Lockheed Martin’s lander on Mars. (Lockheed Martin Illustration) Lockheed Martin has fleshed out its picture for sending astronauts to the Red Planet by adding a refuelable lander and a water-based fuel supply chain to its “Mars Base Camp” mission architecture. The system, updated today at the International Astronautical Congress in Australia,…
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Russia gets on board with NASA to look into Deep Space Gateway in lunar orbit
An artist’s conception from Boeing shows its Deep Space Gateway. (Boeing Illustration) The space station band is getting back together again: Russia and NASA today signed a joint statement voicing support for a Deep Space Gateway in lunar orbit that’s designed to serve as a jumping-off point for beyond-Earth exploration. To be fair, that’s what…
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NASA shows off a drive-by snapshot of Earth from OSIRIS-REx asteroid probe
This color composite image of Earth was taken by the MapCam camera on NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft on Sept. 22, just hours after the spacecraft completed its Earth gravity assist maneuver at a range of about 106,000 miles. (NASA GSFC / Univ. of Arizona Photo) During last week’s flyby, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft captured a stunning portrait…
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OSIRIS-REx probe buzzes Earth on its way to an asteroid – and earthlings wave back
Artwork shows NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft passing by Earth. (NASA GSFC / Univ. of Arizona Illustration) NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft took pictures — and had its picture taken — as it zoomed past Earth today on its way to the asteroid Bennu. The close encounter served as much more than a photo op: OSIRIS-REx’s gravity-assist maneuver was…
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Aerojet Rocketdyne’s Orion engineers win a Silver Snoopy and other NASA accolades
Aerojet Rocketdyne engineer Erica Raine shows off her Silver Snoopy pin. (GeekWire Photo / Alan Boyle) REDMOND, Wash. — One of NASA’s most celebrated awards was handed out today, but it didn’t go to an astronaut. Instead, it was an astronaut who was doing the handing out. The Silver Snoopy Award winner was the one holding…
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SpaceX’s Dragon cargo capsule splashes down with a crew of mouse-tronauts
SpaceX’s robotic Dragon cargo capsule backs away from the International Space Station after its release by the station’s robotic arm. (NASA TV) SpaceX’s robotic Dragon capsule was set loose from the International Space Station today and returned to Earth with more than 3,800 pounds of cargo and experiments, including a set of live mice that…
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Fighting for science to the last: Cassini mission ends with smash-up at Saturn
Cassini project manager Earl Maize hugs Julie Webster, spacecraft operations team manager, at Mission Control at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory just after the mission’s end. Program scientist Linda Spilker is at left, and Jim Green, the head of NASA’s Planetary Science Division, is at right. (NASA Photo / Joel Kowsky) Before its destruction, the bus-sized…