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Peregrine moon lander and its cargo will likely burn up in Earth’s atmosphere
In the latest update from Astrobotic, the company said the Peregrine lander seems to be heading back toward Earth and will likely burn up in the atmosphere. As of Saturday, Peregrine had made it 242,000 miles from Earth but has been leaking propellant for days.
Cheyenne MacDonald01.15.2024NASA finally got the stuck lid off its asteroid Bennu sample container
NASA says it's finally removed two fasteners that were keeping it from getting to the asteroid Bennu sample. The sample is housed in a Touch-and-Go-Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM), which itself is being protected in a glovebox.
Cheyenne MacDonald01.14.2024NASA's new X-59 plane could hit supersonic speeds with minimal sonic boom
NASA’s X-59 Quesst supersonic commercial jet will have its flight test livestreamed on January 12.
Malak Saleh01.13.2024The EPA scraps plan that would have had it ban mammal testing in favor of computer models
The Environmental Protection Agency has scrapped a plan to phase out mammal testing for studying chemical toxicity.
Malak Saleh01.13.2024Peregrine Mission 1 heralds the beginning of the moon’s commercialization
Astrobotic's Peregrine lunar lander is scheduled to launch on January 8 atop United Launch Alliance's new Vulcan Centaur rocket. The mission is the first of those contracted under NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.
Cheyenne MacDonald01.07.2024Now’s the last chance to send your name to one of Jupiter’s moons on NASA’s Europa Clipper
NASA's Europa Clipper mission is set to launch in October 2024 to study whether the icy Jupiter moon could support life. In a campaign called Message in a Bottle, NASA has invited the public to have their names added to the spacecraft alongside a poem by US Poet Laureate Ada Limón.
Cheyenne MacDonald12.31.2023Swedish Researchers develop ‘electronic soil’ that speeds up plant growth
Researchers from Linköping University in Sweden developed a ‘bioelectronic soil’ that can speed up the growth of plants in controlled agricultural farming environments.
Malak Saleh12.28.2023NASA beamed a video of a cat named Taters from deep space to Earth
On December 11, NASA successfully beamed an ultra-high definition video from the Psyche spacecraft to Earth. At the time, Psyche was about 19 million miles away. The video signal was received 101 seconds after it was sent.
Cheyenne MacDonald12.25.2023SpaceX dominated private spaceflight in 2023, but its competitors (mostly) aren't quitting
In 2023, there were at least 200 successful orbital launches, and nearly half of them were conducted by SpaceX. Private space companies have been ramping up their activities as they compete to serve as launch providers and facilitate space tourism. But it wasn't a milestone year for all.
Cheyenne MacDonald12.21.2023These tomatoes were lost on the International Space Station for almost a year
NASA shared a photo of two tomatoes that turned up on the International Space Station after eight months lost. They were harvested by astronaut Frank Rubio, who returned to Earth in September. The tomatoes held up well in space, appearing only dehydrated but otherwise intact.
Cheyenne MacDonald12.21.2023Watch Blue Origin's first launch in 15 months here at 11:37AM ET
Blue Origin's first New Shepard launch in over a year is set to take place on Tuesday. You can watch the livestream here.
Kris Holt12.20.2023Webb telescope’s new Uranus image looks like a portal to another dimension
The James Webb Space Telescope has a treat to celebrate the upcoming second anniversary of its launch. NASA and the ESA, which operate the craft alongside the CSA, shared a dazzling new image of the icy planet Uranus.
Will Shanklin12.19.2023Agility's Digit warehouse robot understands natural language commands thanks to AI smarts
Agility Robotics shared a demo video Wednesday of one of its Digit robots upgraded with AI smarts. Although that may conjure images in your mind of sentient sci-fi machines taking over the world, the demo video reveals much more plodding, if not boring, work.
Will Shanklin12.15.2023Researchers made VR goggles for mice to study how their brains respond to swooping predators
Researchers from Northwestern University developed mouse-sized VR goggles to create a more immersive environment for studying their response to overhead threats. The goggles surround the mouse's face while it runs on a treadmill.
Cheyenne MacDonald12.11.2023Looking back at 25 years of the ISS
Wednesday marks the 25th anniversary of the International Space Station’s (ISS) physical assembly in orbit. On December 6, 1998, the crew aboard the space shuttle Endeavor attached the US-built Unity node to the Russian-built Zarya module, kicking off the modular construction of the ISS.
Will Shanklin12.07.2023Black hole behavior suggests Dr. Who's 'bigger on the inside' Tardis trick is theoretically possible
Do black holes, like dying old soldiers, simply fade away? Do they pop like universe-spawning balloons?
Andrew Tarantola11.26.2023SpaceX loses another Starship and Super Heavy rocket in double explosion during test
SpaceX launched the second flight of Starship from its Boca Chica spaceport on Saturday morning. A few minutes into launch, the Super Heavy booster exploded, followed by Starship itself.
Cheyenne MacDonald11.18.2023SpaceX prepares for Starship's second test flight after securing FAA clearance
The FAA has cleared Starship for a second test flight after an explosive first launch. SpaceX is now aiming for a November 17 launch date.
Mariella Moon11.16.2023A commercial spaceplane capable of orbital flight is ready for NASA testing
NASA will soon start testing what's dubbed as the world’s first commercial spaceplane capable of orbital flight. All going well, Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser will make it first supply run to the International Space Station in April.
Kris Holt11.03.2023NASA is launching a rocket on Sunday to study a 20,000-year-old supernova
NASA plans to launch the INFUSE mission at 11:35 PM ET on Sunday October 29 from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. It will observe the Cygnus Loop, or Veil Nebula, supernova remnant
Cheyenne MacDonald10.29.2023