Space and astronomy news
A proposed Golden Spike lunar lander on the Moon. Credit: Golden Spike Company A group of space experts, media figures and even politicians announced today a new commercial company to bring paying passengers to the Moon. The Golden Spike Company is looking to “implement and operate a human space transportation system at commercially successful price …
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For two days, from October 12 to 13, the shuttle Endeavour will be transported along 12 miles of road on the final leg of its journey to the California Science Center. During that time the orbiter will be the most publicly exposed as it’s ever been, a national treasure on the streets of LA. While …
An impact on Jupiter captured about 6:35 am on Sept. 10, 2012 from Dallas, Texas USA. Credit: George Hall. A bright flash was spotted on Jupiter early on the morning of September 10, 2012, and astronomers were hoping to later see an impact “scar” which would provide more information about the object that slammed into …
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Caption: Artist’s Concept, Space Exploration Vehicle Use Comparison. Credit: NASA Conspiracy theories abound that the Apollo landings all took place on a film set in California, but today NASA’s Desert RATS team begins a mission to asteroid Itokawa. They will land, rove and even undertake spacewalks, without ever stepping foot out of their home base …
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This is a sight that will probably never be seen again: two space shuttles nose-to-nose in the same location. NASA’s space shuttles Endeavour and Atlantis switched locations today at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and met each other for the last time in front of Orbiter Processing Facility 3. Endeavour was moved from OPF 2 …
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After completing 193 days in space as a member of the Expedition 30 and 31 crews, astronaut Don Pettit returned to Earth on July 1, 2012. Don is not your average, ordinary, fighter-pilot astronaut: he’s got a penchant for science, with a unique way of looking at things. He spent his expedition performing crazy zero-gravity …
Caption: Richard Branson at the Farnborough International Airshow showing a model of LauncherOne. Credit: Virgin Galactic. Virgin Galactic’s latest venture is launching small satellites with a new, more affordable launching system called LauncherOne. “The pieces are all in place to transform the business of satellite launch, which will open up space to everyone,” said the …
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Humans haven’t set foot on the Moon — or any other world outside of our own, for that matter — since Cernan and Schmitt departed the lunar surface on December 14, 1972. That will make 40 years on that date this coming December. And despite dreams of moon bases and lunar colonies, there hasn’t even …
Two of the drivers of the Mars Exploration Rovers, Ashley Stroupe and Scott Maxwell, were fortunate to host a very special visitor to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory a couple of years ago. Science fiction author Ray Bradbury came, and even though he was wheel-chair-bound, he received the grand tour, and the two rover drivers showed …
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[/caption] While SpaceX stole the headlines with their Dragon spacecraft making the first private cargo run to the International Space Station, they weren’t the only commercial space company to make great strides for the future. “This has been an incredible couple of weeks for the companies in the commercial spaceflight industry,” said former astronaut Michael …