NASA

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Mars Rover's 'Pet Rock' Disappears After 439 Days

Perseverance had a traveling companion for more than half its mission

(Newser) - After being together for more than half of Perseverance's mission, the NASA Mars rover and its so-called "pet rock" have separated. A rock managed to lodge itself in the rover's front left wheel on Feb. 4, 2022, almost a year after Perseverance landed on the red planet...

NASA Flags Area Where Retired Spacecraft Came Down

The RHESSI's time in space is done

(Newser) - NASA's retired Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) spacecraft fell back to Earth slightly ahead of schedule and, ostensibly, without incident. NASA said Thursday that the Department of Defense confirmed the RHESSI reentered Earth’s atmosphere over the Sahara Desert at 8:21pm Wednesday. Gizmodo reports, by...

NASA Says Flash Over Kyiv Wasn't Falling Satellite

Ukraine's air force says it wasn't Russian attack, either

(Newser) - Since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022, the people of Kyiv have become all too familiar with things falling from the sky—but a flash that lit up the skies over the Ukrainian capital Wednesday night was unlike anything they had seen before. Officials initially believed it was a...

NASA's First Moon Crew in 50 Years Has 3 Big Firsts

Artemis team includes Black, female, Canadian astronauts

(Newser) - NASA on Monday named the four astronauts who will fly to the moon by the end of next year, including one woman and three men. The three Americans and one Canadian were introduced during a ceremony in Houston, home to the nation's astronauts as well as Mission Control, the...

First Full Spacesuit Redesign Since 1981 Unveiled

New suits will be worn on 2025 lunar mission

(Newser) - We don't yet know who the next people to walk on the moon will be—but we know what they're going to be wearing. Texas-based company Axiom Space unveiled its prototype spacesuit designs Wednesday, six months after it won the contract for the first full redesign of American...

Asteroid Has a Small Chance of Hitting Earth on Feb. 14, 2046

NASA says DB 2023 isn't 'particularly concerning'

(Newser) - There's a very small but real chance that a space rock could ruin a lot of romantic evenings 23 years from now, according to NASA's Planetary Defense Office. The newly discovered asteroid, DB 2023, has a 1 in 560 chance of hitting Earth on Valentine's Day 2046,...

NASA Is Ready to Go Back to the Moon

After successful Artemis 1, manned Artemis 2 mission on track to launch in late 2024

(Newser) - The report card for NASA's Artemis 1 mission is in, and it's a definite pass. The Orion spacecraft that orbited the moon as part of the unmanned 25-day, 1.4 million-mile mission last fall performed better than expected on its second test flight and its first into deep...

Russia Launches Rescue Mission to Space Station

Sends up empty Soyuz to bring home astronaut, 2 cosmonauts after their ride home was damaged

(Newser) - Russia launched a rescue ship on Friday for two cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut whose original ride home sprang a dangerous leak while parked at the International Space Station. As the AP reports, the new, empty Soyuz capsule should arrive at the orbiting lab on Sunday. The capsule leak in...

NASA Explains Giant Bear Face on Mars

Hey there, Pooh?

(Newser) - There's a giant bear on Mars—or rather a rock formation that looks remarkably like one. NASA shared the intriguing image, captured last month by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, in a Wednesday release . Taken from 156 miles above Mars' southern hemisphere, it shows two circular craters above a muzzle-shaped...

Don&#39;t Look Up: NASA Satellite Is Hurtling Toward Earth
NASA Satellite Falls
Harmlessly to Earth
UPDATED
Jan 9, 2023 11:58 AM CST

NASA Satellite Falls Harmlessly to Earth

NASA says Earth Radiation Budget Satellite reentered off the coast of Alaska

(Newser) - After almost 40 years circling Earth, a retired NASA science satellite plunged harmlessly through the atmosphere off the coast of Alaska, NASA reported Monday. The Defense Department confirmed that the 5,400-pound satellite—placed in orbit in 1984 by astronaut Sally Ride—reentered late Sunday night over the Bering Sea,...

There's a Space Race On, and China Could Win It

'We better watch out,' says NASA Administrator Bill Nelson

(Newser) - "It is a fact: We're in a space race," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson told Politico in a recent interview. And it's not just about politics and bragging rights—there are both national security and practical implications, according to many US officials. "We better watch out...

Mars Lander's Possible Final Image: 'Don't Worry About Me'

After 4 years, InSight is believed to have lost power—meaning we may not hear from it again

(Newser) - NASA's InSight might finally be dead. The Mars lander whose solar panels have been caked in dust for months failed to respond to communications on Sunday, NASA reported. The announcement came alongside what could be a final selfie from InSight, showing the lander in what looked like a very...

NASA's Orion Capsule Makes Crazy-Fast Return From Moon

Capsule hit atmosphere at 32 times the speed of sound

(Newser) - NASA's Orion capsule made a blisteringly fast return from the moon Sunday, parachuting into the Pacific off Mexico to conclude a 25-day test flight around the moon that should clear the way for astronauts on the next lunar flyby. The incoming capsule hit the atmosphere at Mach 32, or...

'Outstanding' Orion Still Faces One of Its Biggest Trials

Dec. 11 entry into Earth's atmosphere will test its heat shield

(Newser) - NASA's Orion spacecraft has reached its maximum distance from Earth, a record-setting 268,563 miles. The spacecraft that launched Nov. 16 reached the halfway point in its 26-day mission on Monday as it looped around the moon. It was 43,138 miles beyond the far side of the moon,...

NASA's Orion Capsule Breaks Record Set in 1970

Spacecraft designed to carry humans has now gone further than Apollo 13

(Newser) - Moonikin Campos, the mannequin in the commander's seat of NASA's Orion capsule, has now traveled further into space than any human. The uncrewed capsule broke a record around 8:40am EST Saturday when it reached 248,655 miles from Earth, the distance reached by the Apollo 13 command...

Artemis Program Nears Another Milestone

It's the first step toward developing a moon base

(Newser) - NASA's Artemis Program has already set at least one record with Artemis I, the most powerful space rocket in history, which was launched last Wednesday from Cape Canaveral. Per the Guardian , the Orion space capsule the rocket carried will soon set another record, traveling 1.3 million miles, more...

After Tense Wait, NASA Reports a Lunar Success
NASA Capsule
Reaches the Moon
Nov 21, 2022 8:31 AM CST

NASA Capsule Reaches the Moon

Unmanned craft on track for record-breaking lunar orbit

(Newser) - NASA’s Orion capsule reached the moon Monday, whipping around the back side and passing within 80 miles on its way to what should be a record-breaking lunar orbit, per the AP . The close approach occurred as the crew capsule and its three test dummies were on the far side...

At Last, 'What an Incredible Sight to See'

Artemis rocket holding unmanned Orion spacecraft is finally headed toward moon after series of delays

(Newser) - With a series of nixed attempts left in its wake, Artemis I is finally on its way to the moon. NASA reports that its powerful Space Launch System (SLS), holding the unmanned Orion spacecraft, blasted off for its flying debut from Florida's Kennedy Space Center at 1:47am Wednesday...

Beleaguered Moon Rocket Has a New Launch Date

New attempt is set for Wednesday; multiple other attempts in summer, early fall were scuttled

(Newser) - NASA's Artemis I moon rocket needs only minor repairs after enduring a hurricane at the pad and is on track for its first test flight next week, a top official said Friday. "Right now, there's nothing preventing us" from attempting a launch on Wednesday, said NASA's...

Search for WWII Plane Turns Up Chunk of Challenger Shuttle

20-foot remnant found by documentary crew off coast of Florida

(Newser) - It's been more than 35 years since the Challenger space shuttle exploded shortly after takeoff, killing all seven crew members—but a documentary team has just unearthed a big chunk of debris from the doomed spacecraft. In a Thursday release , NASA confirmed the discovery, made in the Atlantic Ocean...

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