Trending

Spaceflight

Latest

NASA and the Canadian Space Agency have teamed up for the Deep Space Food Challenge, which aims to spur new ideas about how to feed astronauts on long voyages.

NASA's Deep Space Food Challenge awards $450,000 to first-round winners

By Elizabeth Howell

NASA and the Canadian Space Agency just announced 18 winners in Phase 1 of the Deep Space Food Challenge, which aims to spur the development of potentially game-changing food tech.

SpaceX's SN20 Starship prototype performs its first-ever static fire test on Oct. 21, 2021, in this still from a video captured by SPadre.com.

SpaceX's SN20 Starship prototype roars to life in 1st static fire tests (video)

By Mike Wall

SpaceX fired up its SN20 Starship prototype in earnest for the first time Thursday night (Oct. 21), notching a big milestone on the vehicle's planned path to orbit.

The uncrewed Russian cargo ship Progress 78 approaches the International Space Station on July 1, 2021 in this image taken by an astronaut on the station ahead of docking operations.

Russian cargo ship completes novel 28-hour docking port move at space station

By Elizabeth Howell

An uncrewed Russian cargo ship is swapping parking spots at the International Space Station.

The Orion crew capsule for NASA's Artemis 1 mission is stacked atop its Space Launch System rocket at Kennedy Space Center on Oct. 20, 2021.

NASA stacks Orion capsule atop SLS megarocket for Artemis 1 moon mission (video)

By Mike Wall

NASA stacked its Orion capsule atop a Space Launch System megarocket yesterday (Oct. 20), notching a major milestone for the agency and its Artemis program of crewed lunar exploration.

An artist's illustration of the Starlab private space station, a joint project of the companies Nanoracks, Lockheed Martin and Voyager Space. Starlab will be operational by 2027, if all goes according to plan.

Meet Starlab: Private space station planned to fly in 2027

By Mike Wall

Nanoracks, Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin announced today (Oct. 21) that they plan to get a free-flying private space station called Starlab up and running in low Earth orbit by 2027.

Astronaut Nicole Stott's "Back to Earth" chronicles her experience on the International Space Station and how the lessons there could help people on Earth.

In 'Back to Earth,' NASA astronaut brings the space station mindset home

By Meghan Bartels

Astronaut Nicole Stott's new book "Back to Earth" chronicles her experience on the International Space Station and how lessons there could help people on Earth.

Astronaut Nicole Stott's "Back to Earth" chronicles her experience on the International Space Station and how the lessons there could help people on Earth.

Book excerpt: 'Back to Earth' (Seal Press, 2021) by astronaut Nicole Stott

By Nicole Stott

How can going to space change the way we live on Earth? Sure, spaceflight leads to new technologies, but it also offers new philosophies.

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope in a cleanroom at Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, in October 2021. The observatory is scheduled to launch on Dec. 18.

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope looks squeaky clean at spaceport for December launch (photos)

By Mike Wall

These are some of the last good looks we'll get at NASA's huge James Webb Space Telescope before it leaves this world forever.

South Korea's new rocket, Nuri, made its first launch on Oct. 21, 2021, but did not deliver its mock payload to orbit.

South Korea's 1st Nuri rocket fails to put payload in orbit in debut space launch

By Meghan Bartels

South Korea's first launch of its new rocket, dubbed Nuri seemed to go smoothly — until engineers determined that the mock payload hadn't been delivered to the proper orbit for unknown reasons.

An artist's depiction of Lucy's solar arrays in the process of deploying.

NASA's Lucy asteroid probe settles into Earth-orbiting cruise as engineers tackle solar array glitch

By Meghan Bartels

Days after NASA's new mission to a mysterious group of asteroids launched, spacecraft personnel continue battling an issue with one of the vehicle's two massive solar arrays.

SpaceX Crew-3 astronauts (from left) Matthias Maurer, Thomas Marshburn, Raja Chari, and Kayla Barron. Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX, NASA target Halloween launch for Crew-3 astronaut flight to space station

By Elizabeth Howell

NASA's next space station launch is set for Halloween and will put four more astronauts into space on a SpaceX rocket.

A Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket launches from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in an undated image.

NASA to launch secretive US military payloads on 3 sounding rockets from Virginia tonight

By Rahul Rao

NASA will launch three sounding rockets from its Wallops Flight Facility in coastal Virginia on flights that local observers may be able to spot in the sky.

Artist's impression of NASA's New Horizons spacecraft.

New Horizons: Exploring Pluto and Beyond

By Elizabeth Howell

New Horizons was the first spacecraft to visit dwarf planet Pluto and Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth. The spacecraft is still actively exploring the solar system.

Rocket Lab recovered the first stage of its Electron booster for the first time during the “Return to Sender” mission, which launched on Nov. 19, 2020.

Rocket Lab to recover booster on launch next month

By Mike Wall

Rocket Lab plans to recover the first stage of an Electron launcher during its next mission, which is scheduled to lift off from New Zealand during a two-week window that opens on Nov. 11.

Workers on a cherry picker unveil the new sign naming NASA's Hangar 276 at Ellington Field in Houston as the "Capt. John Young Hangar" in honor of the late legendary astronaut.

Newly-named 'Capt. John Young Hangar' honors legendary NASA astronaut

By Robert Z. Pearlman

NASA's longest-serving astronaut now has his name on one of the agency's longest-serving structures. Johnson Space Center director Vanessa Wyche led a ceremony to name Hangar 276 for John Young.

Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft sits atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida ahead of the planned launch of its Orbital Flight Test 2 mission to the International Space Station. That launch was scheduled to occur on Aug. 3, 2021, but issues with valves in Starliner’s service module have pushed it into the first half of 2022.

Boeing, NASA zero in on fix for Starliner capsule's valve problem

By Mike Wall

The valve problem that has kept Boeing's Starliner astronaut taxi grounded for the past 10 weeks may soon be solved.

An artist's depiction of astronauts walking on the moon as part of NASA's Artemis program. U.S. Senate appropriators have directed NASA to choose a second company to build its lunar lander for Artemis.

Senate directs NASA to choose another company to build a lunar lander: report

By Chelsea Gohd

The United States Senate's largest committee wants NASA to choose a second company to build its new moon lander.

SpaceX fires up its SN20 Starship prototype in an apparent preburner test on Oct. 18, 2021.

SpaceX fires up SN20 Starship prototype for 1st time (video)

By Mike Wall

SpaceX conducted a brief engine test at its South Texas facilities last night (Oct. 18) with SN20, which the company is prepping to make the Starship program's first-ever orbital test flight.

AstroAccess ambassador Centra "Ce-Ce" Mazyck.

Disability ambassadors successfully complete Zero-G flight

By Chelsea Gohd

A crew of 12 "disability ambassadors" successfully completed a weightless flight Sunday (Oct. 17) in the pursuit to make space accessible for all.

William Shatner floats in front if his window, with the Earth visible in the background, during Blue Origin's New Shepard launch on Oct. 13, 2021 in this video still.

William Shatner oldest astronaut at 90 – Here's how space tourism could affect older people

By Nick Caplan, Christopher Newman

With commercial spaceflight companies now taking older people to space, it's timely to consider the potential physical impact space flight might have on them.