March 8th, 2017
Author: 
Between the close of the Cold War and the more recent retirement of the U.S. shuttle fleet, we’ve long since left the first space age behind. But now it seems there’s a new space race brewing—one that may take humans out of our planet’s orbit. At the height of the Cold War, the first space […]
Posted in 
A House Space Subcommittee held a hearing today on regulating space, airing issues that touch on innovation, liberty, and international obligations. America’s future in outer space — from asteroid mining, to private moon missions, to satellite servicing — there is great promise that American commercial space companies could enjoy profits and discover scientific benefits to […]
NASA’s Curiosity rover on Mars is busy at work performing Sol 1631 duties. Ryan Anderson, a planetary scientist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona, reports that exciting news from a weekend plan is that the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) dust cover closed as planned, “so we’re back in business with […]
Now in Sol 1629, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover continues its Bagnold Dunes Campaign. This week promises more stunning views of surrounding scenery, assessing dune ripples and changes in sand movement, as well as batches of bedrock imagery. Rover imagery just in shows new views from the robot…including a little “rock climbing.”
China is pushing forward on its plans to establish a space station in the 2020s. A first step is flying its cargo resupply spacecraft, the Tianzhou-1, set for liftoff next month. Meanwhile, China is readying a space station core module for flight in 2018, one of many segments that will comprise the orbiting complex due […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now performing Sol 1627 science duties. There is good news, explains Lauren Edgar, a research geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona. The Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) cover was successfully opened and the instrument is marked healthy again. “That means it’s time to close the […]
China space officials are underscoring the attributes of its Chang’e-5 lunar lander and return sample project. Chang’e-5 is slated to become the country’s first lunar probe to automatically collect samples, launch on the Moon, and engage in an auto-pilot docking in lunar orbit, according to Hu Hao, the chief designer of the third phase of […]
Amazon.com billionaire, Jeff Bezos, is detailing his plans to transform low Earth orbit and create an Amazon-like delivery system to support future human settlement of the Moon. Blue Origin’s New Shepard Team is the winner of Aviation Week’s 60th Annual Space Laureate. New Shepard is only the first step in fulfilling Blue Origin owner […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now completing tasks during Sol 1625 operations. Lauren Edgar, a research geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona reports: “We’re still at the second stop of the Bagnold Dune campaign,” with the robot running a few more Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) diagnostics and focusing on targeted […]
A multi-disciplinary team at the University of Michigan (U-M) is scoping out a space time capsule. Called the Michigan Bicentennial Archive (M-BARC) team, their CubeSat work is dedicated to designing, creating, and launching the first ever space time capsule. It would be an artifact that commemorates the bicentennial of the University of Michigan. The CubeSat […]
