NASA’s Opportunity Rover is stuck in a giant dust storm that won’t end for months
A massive dust storm the size of North America has shrouded Mars and covered Opportunity for the last several weeks. Much of the planet is in the dark — and so too is Earth about Opportunity's whereabouts and status. Will Opportunity weather the weather?
Samsung’s moon-hopping VR experience in NYC is like space camp for adults
In New York City? For the next year, Samsung will let you simulate walking on the moon, thanks to the Gear VR, Galaxy S9 Plus, and a complicated harness system that was developed in partnership with NASA. It's all to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing in 2019.
NASA wants help coming up with ways to get rid of astronauts’ space trash
You may not know it, but NASA may be searching for a person just like you… to help take out its trash. Or, to be more accurate, the space agency is looking for outside organizations to help it come up with new ways to dispose of astronauts' garbage for future long space missions.
Airbus to build Mars rover to get first soil samples back to Earth
Getting soil samples from Mars back to Earth would give scientists a big chance to learn a lot more about the red planet. NASA and its European counterpart, ESA, recently announced the intention to embark on such a project, and this week asked Airbus to build a "fetch" rover to help retrieve the samples.
A huge meteorite just splashed into the ocean, and scientists want to find it
A two-ton rock from the depths of space just plunged into the Pacific Ocean, and researchers want to find it. Fortunately, an oceanic research vessel is nearby, and it’s ready to deploy its high-tech to aid in the search. The Nautilus contains sophisticated sensors and two remote-controlled submarines that can scour the seafloor for fragments.
NASA (again) delays launch of the world’s most powerful telescope
NASA has once again delayed the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope -- the largest and most expensive space telescope in history. The new target launch is March 2021, and the cost of the project has ballooned to $9.6 billion.
Avoiding armageddon: U.S. reveals plans to counter killer asteroids
Although the possibility of such an event is very small, a new report outlines some of the steps that government agencies can take to prepare for the possibility of an apocalyptic collision with an asteroid or comet. The possibilities range from crashing spacecraft into approaching objects to detonating bombs.
Astronomers make huge exoplanet discovery haul in record time
In a paper published online this week in The Astronomical Journal, an international group of scientists reported that dozens of planetary candidates have been identified by measuring light fluctuations using K2, the mission that followed up NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope.
Astronauts install hi-def docking cameras for Crew Dragon, Starliner capsules
In preparation for the commercial crewed modules that will arrive at the International Space Station soon, astronauts took a lengthy spacewalk to install some crucial equipment to the docking module. The extra-vehicular activity moved commander Drew Feustel to third on the list of all-time spacewalkers.
Mars rover Curiosity finds the building blocks of life on the red planet
It's been six years since the Mars rover Curiosity landed on the Red Planet, and now the space vehicle has some news to share. NASA researchers published two papers on Thursday, June 7 in the journal Science detailing how Curiosity found compounds that are the building blocks of life on the Red Planet.
These astronauts will whiz around Earth 34 times before reaching space station
Three astronauts will whiz around Earth a total of 34 times before reaching the space station on Friday. It usually requires far fewer orbits, but various positioning requirements mean it's going to take a little longer this time. The astronauts will join three crew members for a stay of six months.
Take a VR journey to an exoplanet with NASA’s new ‘Travel Bureau’
Humans won't visit alien planets beyond our solar system for many decades, but NASA has provided the next best thing -- an interactive VR visualization of what you might see if you were standing on the surface of a faraway exoplanet, complete with some retro travel posters.
SpaceX nails another launch, but fails to catch the fairing
Less than two weeks have passed since SpaceX's last rocket launch, but today the company will attempt to break free from the shackles of gravity and reach orbit once again, launching yet another Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
NASA’s planet-hunting satellite sends back its first image — and it’s amazing
A routine calibration camera test on NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite mission has produced a stunning image, capturing more than 200,000 stars in the southern sky. Future images will provide even more details as we search for signs of alien life.
Watch a NASA astronaut get stumped over how to use a GoPro
Earlier in May when a NASA astronaut on the International Space Station went outside to check the spacecraft, he couldn't use the GoPro he brought along to capture video. When he asked Mission Control about the camera, he revealed a surprising lack of understanding of how the popular video camera works.
NASA will send a tiny drone helicopter to fly through the Martian skies
NASA has revealed that the Mars 2020 mission will include a remote-control "marscopter" along with the rover. The small chopper will deploy on the surface of the red planet for several test flights. If the tests of the tiny dual-rotor helicopter are successful, it will be the first atmospheric flight on another planet.
‘Mars, here I come!’ NASA’s InSight launches on a six-month journey
NASA's InSight mission, developed to probe deep beneath the surface of Mars, began its 300-million mile journey to the red planet aboard an Atlas V rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The pre-dawn launch was a rare spectacle for West Coast residents and a first for NASA.
NASA abruptly shuts down its planned 2022 moon rover mission
NASA canceled a moon rover lunar exploration mission with no warning. Scientists working on the mission and outside advisors were thrown by the sudden shift on a project well on the way to a moon launch in 2022. A budget line change from applied to pure science could be the reason for the confusing cancellation.
NASA and ESA will team up to bring Martian soil samples back to Earth
In a quest that could finally settle the question of whether there was ever life on Mars, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are pooling their resources for a bold three-part mission to retrieve soils samples from the surface of the red planet, launch them into orbit, and return them to laboratories on Earth.
It’s so realistic, ‘Surviving Mars’ is turning rocket scientists into gamers
A number of scientist streamers have taken to narrating playthroughs of Surviving Mars on YouTube, bringing real science to the game’s particularly precise fiction. We spoke to some to find out more about the successes and failures of simulating space.
This camera eliminates the ocean waves so scientists can study coral
Scientists could study coral without the deep sea dive -- if they could see through the ocean waves. Fluid Cam is a camera that eliminates the waves so scientists can through the water to study coral. With the team now building an A.I., Fluid Cam could help offer a quick assessment of coral reef health.
NASA reveals its plans to have astronauts orbiting the moon by 2025
At the Space Symposium conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado, NASA outlined their plans for the Lunar Orbital Platform Gateway, a stepping stone for future missions to Mars. Test flights of the first components are planned for next year.
The InstantCool vest uses NASA technology to cool you in the summer
Staying cool this summer may require putting on an extra layer – provided that it's the InstantCool vest. The latest product to come out of Shenzhen-based company Volcanoes-Electronics, the InstantCool leverages technology developed by NASA that involves a network of microtubes containing chilled water.
Robot bees on Mars — NASA funding a swarm of drones to explore the Red Planet
The Curiosity Rover has done its share of exploring Mars by land, but now, NASA is looking to take to the skies above the Red Planet. The agency is funding a team of Japanese and American engineers that's hoping to send a team of drones inspired by bees, aptly named "Marsbees."
Musk’s SpaceX helps NASA get busy testing human and bull sperm in space
Swimming sperm will be under the microscope at the ISS this month. No one knows how spaceflight affects human reproduction, but NASA wants to find out. The agency is setting up a test with sperm from two mammals to learn if there's any difference in the way sperm swim in space versus on Earth.
NASA’s virtual tour of the moon in 4K will blow your mind
NASA has just released an all-new 4K-resolution video showing the surface of the moon in incredible detail. Created using data gathered over the last nine years, the five-minute presentation shows our nearest neighbor like you've never seen it before.
NASA crash-test dummies take a beating to make aviation safer
Part of NASA's work includes subjecting sensor-laden dummies to all kinds of crash scenarios for research aimed at helping to make aviation safer.
Counting down the 10 most important robots in history
From research labs to our own homes, robots are everywhere these days. Check out our list of the 10 most important ones ever built.
‘Just go outside!’ You can help NASA scientists by taking pictures of clouds
Satellites can't see everything, and so NASA is asking people around the world to take pictures of clouds in the sky and submit them to help verify orbital observations.
NASA plans to use nukes to save the Earth from a killer asteroid
Government scientists have designed a spacecraft that could deflect an incoming asteroid that could strike the Earth, by using nuclear weapons if necessary.
NASA’s upcoming Parker Solar Probe might as well be walkin’ on the sun
NASA is sending a probe to study the sun this summer, and your name could go along for the ride. Sign up to have your name added as a virtual passenger aboard the Parker Solar Probe.
The Opportunity rover just celebrated 5,000 ‘sols’ on the Martian surface
A mission that was supposed to last three months has turned into a 14-year trek across the surface of the red planet. The Opportunity rover just watched the sun rise for the 5,000th time from the surface of Mars.
Watch NASA test fire a giant rocket engine for its mighty Space Launch System
The ground at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi trembled this week as NASA conducted the latest booster-engine test for its Space Launch System.
Photo FOMO: Cheap 8K cameras, shooting at 3B miles, and a 15-hour action cam
In case you missed it, Foxconn could be developing cheaper 8K cameras, NASA broke new photo records and this new action camera can shoot for 15 hours.