Tag: Space
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Long-time advocate of SLS rocket says it’s time to find an “off-ramp”
The lights may be starting to go out for NASA’s Space Launch System program. On Wednesday, one of the Republican space policy leaders most consistently opposed to commercial heavy lift rockets over the last decade—as an alternative to NASA’s large SLS rocket—has changed his mind. “We need an off-ramp for reliance on the SLS,” said…
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Amazon Web Services focuses on optimizing artificial intelligence in space
Amazon Web Services demonstrated data processing in orbit in 2022, using a payload on D-Orbit’s ION satellite carrier, shown in this artist’s conception. (D-Orbit Illustration) Artificial intelligence and machine learning are turning into requirements for space operations, and Amazon Web Services is optimizing its products to reflect that view, according to the former Air Force…
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Asteroid 2024 YR4 is going to miss Earth, but the story doesn’t end there
It was only a few days ago that a certain fear-mongering website named, ahem, Ars Technica published an article about the prospect of a killer asteroid striking the planet Earth in the year 2032. At the time, the odds of a small asteroid first discovered late last year—and designated 2024 YR4—hitting us were non-negligible. There…
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Mere weeks after Starship’s breakup, the vehicle may soon fly again
A little over a month after SpaceX’s large Starship launch ended in an explosion over several Caribbean islands, the company is preparing its next rocket for a test flight. According to a notice posted by the Federal Aviation Administration, the eighth test flight of the Starship vehicle could take place as early as February 26…
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Elon Musk recommends that the International Space Station be deorbited ASAP
In a remarkable statement Thursday, SpaceX founder Elon Musk said the International Space Station should be deorbited “as soon as possible.” This comment from Musk will surely set off a landmine in the global space community, with broad implications. And it appears to be no idle comment from Musk who, at times, indulges in deliberately…
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Kuiper Belt Exploration
The Kuiper Belt is a vast, disc-shaped region that lies beyond the orbit of Neptune, spanning distances from approximately 30 to 55 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun. This region serves as a repository of ancient materials, holding countless small icy objects, comets, and dwarf planets such as Pluto, Haumea, and Makemake. This remote and…
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The odds of a city-killer asteroid impact in 2032 keep rising. Should we be worried?
An asteroid discovered late last year is continuing to stir public interest as its odds of striking planet Earth less than eight years from now continue to increase. Two weeks ago, when Ars first wrote about the asteroid, designated 2024 YR4, NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies estimated a 1.9 percent chance of an…
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In a last-minute decision, White House decides not to terminate NASA employees
Unlike workers at many other federal agencies this week, probationary employees at NASA were not terminated on Tuesday. For much of the day employees at the space agency anticipated a directive from the White House Office of Personnel Management to fire these employees, but it never came. “We were on pins and needles throughout the…
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By the end of today, NASA’s workforce will be about 10 percent smaller
Spread across NASA’s headquarters and 10 field centers, which dot the United States from sea to sea, the space agency has had a workforce of nearly 18,000 civil servants. However, by the end of today, that number will have shrunk by about 10 percent since the beginning of the second Trump administration four weeks ago.…
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NASA nominee previews his vision for the agency: Mars, hard work, inspiration
The likely next leader of NASA, private astronaut and pilot Jared Isaacman, has kept a low profile since the announcement last year that he was President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the space agency. This is understandable, as Isaacman must still be confirmed by the US Senate. No date has yet been put forward for…