NASA

Read the latest NASA news today on Newser.com

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Shake 'N Bake: Unclogged Phoenix Ovens Ready

Scientists hope cooking Martian soil will yield clues to its nature

(Newser) - Scientists were cheering yesterday after a tricky operation succeeded in shaking Martian dirt into the Phoenix lander's oven, the Los Angeles Times. The spacecraft will now spend the next few weeks heating up soil samples and analyzing gases. Scientists hope the tests and photos being sent back today will help...

Google's Brin Books Flight to Space Station

Company co-founder puts $5M deposit on 2011 launch

(Newser) - Google co-founder Sergey Brin is turning space tourist, plunking down a $5 million deposit with Space Adventures for passage to the International Space Station aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket in 2011, reports the New York Times. Space Adventures is planning to buy two of the three seats aboard the mission,...

Shuttle Prepares to Head Home
 Shuttle Prepares to Head Home 
Jun 10, 2008 9:07 PM CDT

Shuttle Prepares to Head Home

Discovery and space station crews shut the hatches between their vessels

(Newser) - Shuttle astronauts bid farewell to the crew of the International Space Station today and closed the hatch between their spacecrafts, Space.com reports. Discovery plans to undock from the station tomorrow morning after a busy weeklong mission and begin a 4-day trip home. The shuttle crew delivered and installed a...

Clumpy Soil on Mars Tests Scientists' Skill

Researchers try "dribbling" dirt into lander's tiny ovens

(Newser) - The soil on Mars turns out to be too clumpy to be analyzed by the Phoenix lander, but scientists are confident they've found away around the problem by "dribbling" it small amounts on sifters. They won't know for sure whether the new technique works for a day or two,...

Astronaut Waves Robot Arm
 Astronaut Waves Robot Arm 

 
Jun 9, 2008 3:25 PM CDT

Astronaut Waves Robot Arm

Japanese-built device will service equipment from Kibo laboratory

(Newser) - A Japanese astronaut on board the International Space Station successfully unfolded a massive robotic arm from the newly installed Kibo laboratory today, Reuters reports. The arm moved slightly on Saturday, but today’s extension of the 33-foot device was the first full test, Space.com reports. The Japanese-built robot had...

'Incredible' Final Walk for Shuttle Astronauts

Mundane tasks, spectacular views

(Newser) - Two shuttle astronauts completed their third and final spacewalk yesterday outside the International Space Station, racking up more than 20 hours floating in space. The pair completed maintenance on the station's cooling system and Japanese lab, taking time out to admire spectacular views, reports Space.com.

Mars Through a Microscope
 Mars Through a Microscope 
Jun 6, 2008 7:34 AM CDT

Mars Through a Microscope

Phoenix takes unprecedented Mars shots

(Newser) - The Phoenix Mars Lander has taken the first high-resolution images of another planet's dirt and sand in its continued quest for signs of life in the planet's polar region. The microscopic particles were kicked up when the lander touched down and collected  on a slide, Reuters reports. Scientists note that...

Stowaway Molecules Could Taint Mars Results

Microscopic hitchhikers might provide false evidence in search for life

(Newser) - Missions searching for signs of life on Mars could be fooled by organic molecules that hitched a ride from Earth, a new study suggests. University of Florida researchers using simulated Martian conditions found that ATP, an energy-storing molecule fundamental to terrestrial life, could survive the trip and hang around for...

Now They Can Boldly Go
 Now They Can Boldly Go 
Jun 5, 2008 3:47 AM CDT

Now They Can Boldly Go

Astronauts finally fix space station toilet

(Newser) - A Russian astronaut worked like a space janitor for two hours to finally fix a toilet aboard the International Space Station yesterday, the BBC reports. The space shuttle Discovery delivered a new pump for the broken toilet, which has dominated NASA press conferences. "It's something perhaps everyday people can...

Astronauts Installing New Lab
 Astronauts Installing New Lab 
Jun 3, 2008 5:04 PM CDT

Astronauts Installing New Lab

Robot arm, Discovery crew members team up to lay groundwork

(Newser) - Two spacewalking astronauts are preparing the enormous Japanese-made Kibo lab for eventual installation on the International Space Station, the Houston Chronicle reports. After getting a late start this morning because of a communications malfunction, Mike Fossum and Ron Garan sped through their checklists and got back ahead of schedule. The...

NASA Was Muzzled on Climate Change
NASA Was Muzzled on Climate Change
Jun 3, 2008 8:19 AM CDT

NASA Was Muzzled on Climate Change

Bush appointees in press office withheld information, probe finds

(Newser) - Political appointees at NASA withheld scientific results on global warming, NASA's inspector general has determined after an internal probe. Investigators found that the public affairs office, run by Bush appointees, suffered from political spinning that was "inconsistent" with the agency's responsibility to pass full information on to the public,...

Shuttle Blastoff Smashed Launch Pad

Force of liftoff scattered tons of concrete debris

(Newser) - The Discovery shuttle caused severe damage to the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center when it blasted off Saturday, the Houston Chronicle reports. The force of the blast shattered a large section of one the trenches designed to direct shuttle exhaust away from the pad, scattering tons of concrete debris...

Shuttle Anchors at Space Station

NASA shuttle brings $1B Japanese module, toilet supplies

(Newser) - NASA's Discovery shuttle hooked up to the international space station today after a 2-day voyage, Space.com reports. Commander Mark Kelly docked at about 2 pm EDT and told the station crew, "We're really looking forward to seeing you guys." "You have no idea how much we're...

Phoenix Samples Martian Dirt
 Phoenix Samples Martian Dirt 
Jun 2, 2008 5:41 AM CDT

Phoenix Samples Martian Dirt

Robotic arm tested prior to search for life

(Newser) - The Phoenix Mars Lander grabbed a small sample of the fine soil of the planet's polar region yesterday. It was only a test "dig and dump"—using the spacecraft's 8-foot-long robotic arm—but paves the way for retrieving and analyzing samples of Martian soil later this week, reports...

Discovery's New Fuel Tank Passes With Flying Colors

First test of redesign after 2003 disaster

(Newser) - The Discovery shuttle launch Saturday marked the first use of a new fuel tank designed after flaws led to the 2003 Columbia disaster, Space.com reports, and tests yesterday showed the new design to be successful. The external tank, designed to minimize the release of falling debris  during launch, shed...

On Mars, 'Something That Looks Like Ice'

Phoenix probe sends home photos from arctic region

(Newser) - The Phoenix probe sent home photos today of what looks like ice just under Mars' rocky surface, Space.com reports. "The thrusters have excavated two to six inches and, sure enough, we see something that looks like ice,” one mission scientist said. NASA picked the landing spot, in...

Discovery Launches, With Kibo Aboard

Shuttle also bears a new toilet for space station crew

(Newser) - The space shuttle Discovery blasted into a clear blue sky today, carrying Kibo, a huge Japanese laboratory for the International Space Station. The $1 billion lab will be the station’s biggest room. “This is a real milestone,” said one NASA administrator. The Discovery is also bringing a...

NASA Deploys Mars Probe's Robotic Arm

Radio glitch delays plan by 1 day

(Newser) - NASA’s Phoenix Mars lander extended its robotic arm for the first time late last night, the AP reports, a day late because of a temporary radio blackout. The arm, which will unfurl over a 2-day period, will eventually be used to take samples of ice below the surface in...

Houston, We Have a (Potty) Problem

The space station's toilet is broken

(Newser) - The three-member crew aboard the International Space Station has a delicate problem—the toilet's on the fritz. The station's liquid-waste collector—a tricky system involving fans and the lack of gravity—is kaput, the New York Times reports. (The solid-waste collector still works.) Astronauts are working on a backup...

Martian Arctic Says Cheese
 Martian Arctic Says Cheese 
May 26, 2008 1:39 PM CDT

Martian Arctic Says Cheese

NASA sees what it expected to see

(Newser) - The Mars Phoenix Lander is sending NASA the first photos of the red planet's northern polar region, CNN reports. On its 3-month mission, the lander will “taste and sniff the northern polar site’s soil and ice,” the agency said. The photos show brown polygons checkering the landscape...

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