Mike Wall
Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, "Out There," was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.
Latest articles by Mike Wall
Private Odysseus moon lander beams home 1st photos from space
By Mike Wall published
Intuitive Machines' Odysseus moon lander has beamed home its first photos from the final frontier, gorgeous selfies that show its home planet in the background.
India launches powerful new weather satellite INSAT-3DS into orbit on 'naughty boy' rocket (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
India successfully launched its powerful new INSAT-3DS weather and disaster-warning spacecraft to orbit on Saturday morning (Feb. 17).
Japan's new H3 rocket reaches orbit for 1st time (video)
By Mike Wall published
Japan's new H3 rocket reached orbit for the first time today (Feb. 16), bouncing back from a failure on its debut test flight nearly a year ago.
Russia's Progress 87 cargo ship arrives at International Space Station
By Mike Wall published
Russia's robotic Progress 87 cargo ship arrived at the International Space Station early Saturday morning (Feb. 17), delivering about 3 tons of supplies.
Watch Japan launch its H3 rocket on return-to-flight mission tonight
By Mike Wall published
Japan's new H3 rocket will attempt to bounce back from an explosive failure tonight (Feb. 16), and you can watch the action live.
Private Odysseus lunar lander heads for the moon after SpaceX launch
By Mike Wall published
Intuitive Machines' Odysseus moon lander is doing well on its own in deep space after its early-morning launch atop a SpaceX rocket on Thursday (Feb. 15).
SpaceX launches private 'Odysseus' lander on pioneering moon mission by Intuitive Machines (video)
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX launched Intuitive Machines' Odysseus spacecraft on Thursday morning (Feb. 15), kicking off the probe's quest to pull off an epic moon landing.
Russia launches a Valentine's Day Progress supply ship to the ISS
By Mike Wall last updated
Russia launched the robotic Progress 87 freighter tonight (Feb. 14), sending three tons of cargo toward the International Space Station.
SpaceX launches 22 Starlink satellites on 3rd leg of spaceflight tripleheader (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
SpaceX launched 22 Starlink internet satellites on Thursday (Feb. 15), the third mission in less than 24 hours for the company.
SpaceX launches classified USSF-124 satellites on secret Valentine's Day mission for US Space Force (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
SpaceX launched the classified USSF-124 missile defense mission for the U.S. Space Force today (Feb. 14), recovering the Falcon 9 booster for the company's 272nd landing of an orbital rocket.
SpaceX stacks giant Starship rocket ahead of 3rd test flight (video, photos)
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX recently stacked the two stages of its huge Starship rocket to prep for the vehicle's third-ever liftoff, which may be just a few weeks away.
SpaceX could launch Starship again 'in about 3 weeks,' Elon Musk says
By Mike Wall published
The third test flight of SpaceX's Starship megarocket will take place roughly three weeks from now, according to company founder and CEO Elon Musk.
SpaceX rolls giant Starship rocket to launch pad ahead of 3rd test flight (photos)
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX rolled the two stages of its latest Starship rocket to the launch pad over the weekend, then stacked them to prep for a coming test flight.
SpaceX launches 22 Starlink satellites into orbit from California (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
SpaceX launched 22 more of its Starlink internet satellites on Friday (Feb. 9) at 7:34 p.m. EST (0034 GMT on Feb. 10).
SpaceX Dragon carrying Ax-3 astronauts splashes down in Atlantic to end longest private spaceflight for Axiom Space
By Mike Wall last updated
A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying four astronauts splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean early Friday (Feb. 9), wrapping up a record-setting private trip to the International Space Station.
SpaceX's private Polaris Dawn orbital mission delayed to summer 2024
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission, which aims to pull off the first-ever private spacewalk, will now launch no earlier than this summer.
20 people in space! Humanity quietly tied a record last month
By Mike Wall published
For a few minutes on Jan. 26, 20 people were in space at the same time, tying a record set just last May.
Relive SpaceX Starship's epic 2nd test flight in newly released NASA footage (video)
By Mike Wall published
Newly released NASA footage shows the second test flight of SpaceX's giant Starship rocket in dramatic detail.
SpaceX launches NASA's PACE satellite to study Earth's oceans, air and climate (video)
By Mike Wall published
NASA's PACE ocean-monitoring satellite, which the Trump administration tried to cancel four times, launched to orbit today (Feb. 8) atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
Ax-3 astronauts depart ISS in SpaceX Dragon capsule for splashdown on Feb. 9 (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
The four astronauts of the private Ax-3 mission departed the International Space Station in their SpaceX Dragon capsule on Feb. 7, following days of weather delays.
Big, dead European satellite will crash back to Earth this month
By Mike Wall published
The European Space Agency's defunct ERS-2 spacecraft will fall into Earth's atmosphere in a week or so, in a death dive that its handlers will monitor carefully.
NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab laying off 8% of its workforce
By Mike Wall published
Budgetary issues have forced the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA's chief center for robotic planetary exploration, to reduce its workforce by about 8%.
SpaceX targeting Feb. 14 for launch of Intuitive Machines IM-1 private moon mission
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX is targeting Feb. 14 for the launch of Intuitive Machine's IM-1 mission, which aims to become the first private effort to soft-land on the moon.