NASA is mapping out plans for bigger, more capable Mars helicopters By Leonard David Given the highly successful and ongoing flights of NASA's Ingenuity helicopter on Mars, engineers are turning their attention to future aerial craft for the Red Planet.
Russia's new Nauka module readied for launch to International Space Station By Leonard David Russia's Nauka laboratory module is now slated to launch to the International Space Station (ISS) on July 21.
Up in the air! US government's UFO report stirs range of reactions By Leonard David The release of the U.S. government's highly anticipated UFO report has whipped up a blend of reactions, from UFO groups to individuals in military, academic and scientific circles.
Skies alive with UFOs? Government report on mysterious sightings due soon By Leonard David The U.S. government is set to release a UFO report soon, perhaps sometime this week. What will it say?
Petition to NASA: Name moon-orbiting space station after Apollo 11's Michael Collins By Leonard David More than 13,700 people have signed a petition to NASA to name the space agency’s planned Lunar Gateway after Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, who died last month at the age of 90.
Is war in space inevitable? By Leonard David What conditions could lead to clashes in space? Is such a situation a given, or can conflicts be short-circuited ahead of time? Space.com asked experts for their thoughts.
Space junk removal is not going smoothly By Leonard David Despite promising technology demonstrations, there is no one-size-fits-all solution for the growing problem of taking out the orbital trash
China's huge rocket booster falling from space highlights orbital debris problem By Leonard David The upcoming atmospheric re-entry of a Chinese Long March 5B rocket body is a reminder of a much larger problem, experts say.
China's new space station will need 10 more launches to complete By Leonard David The Wednesday (April 28) launch of the Tianhe core module will be followed by a series of cargo and crew liftoffs aimed at completing the construction of China's space station by the end of 2022.
Space-based solar power getting key test aboard US military's mysterious X-37B space plane By Leonard David The X-37B space plane is being used to flight-validate the best ways to gather the sun's energy for power beaming from Earth orbit.
Test pilot Brian Binnie recounts his historic flight on SpaceShipOne and the future of private space travel in new book By Leonard David Binnie retells it all in "The Magic and Menace of SpaceShipOne."
Spotting UFOs: Do-it-yourself sky surveillance comes online By Leonard David If you are perplexed by reports of unidentified aerial phenomena and possible visitations of alien spacecraft, you can take action with do-it-yourself sky-monitoring gear.
China's Tianwen-1 Mars mission adjusts orbit to prepare for a Red Planet landing By Leonard David China's Tianwen-1 spacecraft fired its engines Monday (Feb. 15) to place it in a polar orbit around the Red Planet.
E.T. signal from Proxima Centauri? A conversation with Breakthrough Initiatives' Pete Worden By Leonard David Space.com recently talked with Breakthrough Initiatives executive director Pete Worden about a signal coming from the vicinity of Proxima Centauri, and about the search for alien life more generally.
Defending Earth against dangerous asteroids: Q&A with NASA's Lindley Johnson By Leonard David Space.com caught up with NASA Planetary Defense Officer Lindley Johnson to discuss recent events and what's on the planetary-defense agenda in the coming year.
China's Chang'e 5 moon samples are headed to the lab By Leonard David The Chang'e 5 return capsule carrying lunar samples is headed for a Beijing laboratory for opening, with a research team eagerly awaiting their chance to start studying the fresh moon specimens.
China plants its flag on the moon with Chang'e 5 lunar lander (photo, video) By Leonard David It's a fabric first for China.
Moon pit diver: This tiny rover could explore the lunar underworld By Leonard David New technologies could allow exploration of skylights, lava tubes and caverns on the moon — underground environments that human explorers may be able to exploit in the not-too-distant future.
Memorial spaceflight: Cremated remains flying to the moon on private lander in 2021 By Leonard David Among the many payloads that will fly to the moon aboard Astrobotic's robotic Peregrine lander next year are capsules containing DNA samples and symbolic portions of cremated remains.
Scientists call for serious study of 'unidentified aerial phenomena' By Leonard David There's a rising call for "unidentified aerial phenomena" to be studied scientifically, perhaps even using satellites to be on the lookout for possible future events.
China selects 18 new astronauts in preparation for space station launch By Leonard David Chinese has selected a third group of astronauts for the nation's coming space station, the China Manned Space Agency announced.
Tiny moonbound spacecraft have very big goals By Leonard David Four small spacecraft are being readied for moonbound treks to help quench a thirst for new data about lunar water ice.
Tiny cubesat launching next year to blaze trail for NASA moon-orbiting space station By Leonard David A high-tech pioneer for NASA's moon-orbiting Gateway space station is being readied for liftoff early next year.
Is Earth-moon space the US military's new high ground? By Leonard David U.S. military officials have increasingly flagged a new role in guarding American assets and interests in Earth-moon space.
4 Indian astronauts are training in Russia for future spaceflights By Leonard David Four Indian astronauts continue to train at Russia's Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center near Moscow as prospective space travelers for India's crewed Gaganyaan project.
