April 21st, 2014
Author: 
A new story from me posted at SPACE.com: US Air Force’s Secretive X-37B Space Plane Nears Day 500 in OrbitBy Leonard David, Space.com’s Space Insider Columnist April 21, 2014 01:21pm ET http://www.space.com/25573-secretive-x37b-military-space-plane-500days.html
Posted in 
China’s “Yutu” moon rover remains in critical condition, according to a recent report in South China Morning Post. According to the news outlet, there are “last-ditch efforts” to rescue the ailing lunar rover. Chinese engineers now say a blockage in the rover’s power circuitry is at fault for issues encountered and specialists are looking to […]
The hunt for the impact site of NASA’s LADEE mooncraft will be fortified by the high-powered camera system onboard the space agency’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. There is a speculated locale for the spacecraft’s smashing finale – crater Sundman V. The good news – if indeed LADEE’s final resting spot is in that area – pre-impact […]
A new NEO story from me – posted today on SPACE.com. Red Tape Hinders Study of Asteroid Impacts on EarthBy Leonard David, Space.com’s Space Insider ColumnistApril 20, 2014 08:00am ET http://www.space.com/25559-asteroid-monitoring-nasa-military-red-tape.html
NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) moon orbiter may have indeed struck the rim of the far side crater, Sundmam V. That’s the preliminary word from NASA Ames Research Center scientists that developed and operated LADEE. However, the final resting spot for LADEE remains speculative. Specialists in orbit determination are now busy sifting […]
The American public expects that the coming half-century will be a period of weighty scientific change, as inventions that were once confined to the realm of science fiction come into common usage. The survey was conducted by the Pew Research Center in partnership with Smithsonian magazine, asking Americans about a wide range of potential scientific […]
A new story from me up today on SPACE.com: NASA Moon Probe Will Bite the Lunar Dust Soon: What It Taught UsBy Leonard David, SPACE.com’s Space Insider ColumnistApril 17, 2014 07:00am ET http://www.space.com/25529-nasa-moon-dust-probe-death-science.html
Vegetables for a Red Planet? That is the prognosis of a study by plant ecologist Wieger Wamelink of Wageningen UR – a university and research center in The Netherlands that focuses specifically on the theme “healthy food and living environment.” The soil on Mars may be suitable for cultivating food crops, Wamelink reports, and he […]
China’s Tiangong-1 “target spacecraft” used for the country’s human spaceflight program is now in an extended application phase – including use for Earth remote sensing. Tiangong-1 is churning out “hyperspectral” imaging products, collecting information from across the electromagnetic spectrum. Launched on September 29, 2011, Tiangong-1 — meaning “Heavenly Palace 1″ — is China’s first space […]
If larger and larger payloads – including human habitats – are to set down safely on Mars, new atmospheric reentry technologies to brake in the thin air of the Red Planet are required. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is deep into cutting-edge and crosscutting demonstration flights of hardware to land hefty payloads on the Red […]
