With a few notable exceptions, such as the recent Astra Space test flight that launched from Kodiak, Alaska, human spaceflight has been limited to a handful of launch sites around the world. These sites, which range from Cape Canaveral in … Continue reading
If you’re lucky when you look up in the sky at night, you might see a shooting star. As you’re making your wish, what you’re actually seeing is a small piece of rock or space junk burning up in the … Continue reading
Who is NASA going to hire to create a vital component for an upcoming Mars mission? None other than the bright minds of our future – college and university students. That’s right! NASA’s Game Changing Development Program gave college students … Continue reading
Elon Musk has a net worth of $11.9 billion while Richard Branson has a net worth of $4.8 billion. If they stacked their respective fortunes in $1 bills atop each other, the tower would reach six million miles, almost 25 times the distance between the earth and the moon. And that is, in a metaphorical way, exactly what the two plan to do. Continue reading
The private spaceflight company SpaceX has signed its first launch customer for its new mega-rocket, the Falcon Heavy, even as the firm’s first commercial spaceship prepares to return home from the International Space Station. Continue reading
A massive alien planet that may have been ripped into Earth-size chunks by its dying parent star is offering a unique glimpse into the evolution of other worlds and their stars, scientists say. The planet’s two remaining pieces, were possibly created when their parent body spiraled inward too close to the bloated red giant star KIC 05807616. Continue reading
A newly unveiled company with some high-profile backers — including filmmaker James Cameron and Google co-founder Larry Page — is set to announce plans to mine near-Earth asteroids for resources such as precious metals and water. Continue reading
Several million stars are vying for attention in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image of a raucous stellar breeding ground in 30 Doradus, located in the heart of the Tarantula nebula. 30 Doradus is the brightest star-forming region in our galactic neighbourhood and home to the most massive stars ever seen. Continue reading
The clearest view yet of the famous Apollo 11 landing site on the moon was captured by a NASA spacecraft in orbit around our planet’s natural satellite. The agency’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter zeroed in on Mare Tranquillitatis, or the Sea of Tranquility — the place where humans first touched down on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969. Continue reading
With President Barack Obama proposing a relatively flat budget for NASA in 2013, a group professional astronomers is urging the White House and Congress to find a better balance between the space agency’s planetary science and exploration needs. Continue reading