Enlarge / Backdropped against clouds, the Russian Zarya module approaches Space Shuttle Endeavour and NASA’s Unity module in 1998. (credit: NASA) The sprawling International Space Station—so long a beacon of hope, unity, and technological achievement; so gleaming and bright it can be seen from a city’s downtown as it passes overhead—is nearer the end of […]
Enlarge / A view of NASA’s SLS rocket, nearly fully assembled, in September 2020. (credit: NASA) NASA has asked the US aerospace industry how it would go about “maximizing the long-term efficiency and sustainability” of the Space Launch System rocket and its associated ground systems. The request comes as NASA and its chief contractor for […]
Enlarge / The Orion spacecraft for NASA’s Artemis I mission is lifted above the Space Launch System rocket in the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center. (credit: NASA) Last week NASA and its myriad contractors for the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft reached a significant milestone—creating a full stack of the rocket and […]
Enlarge / Atlas V with the Lucy spacecraft aboard an SLC-41 on the morning of October 15 as media set their sound-activated remote cameras. (credit: Trevor Mahlmann) Less than five years have gone by since NASA selected the “Lucy” mission for development as part of its Discovery Mission program, and now the intriguing spacecraft is […]
Enlarge / The rocks of Kodiak Butte record a lot of the history of Jezero Crater. (credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS) Normally, it takes some time for NASA’s Mars rovers to return scientific data. The instruments need to be calibrated and commissioned, and the rover needs to move off from the landing site toward a bit of the […]
Experience the mission to repair the Advanced Mass Spectrometer (AMS) aboard the International Space Station in Among the Stars, an original documentary series now streaming on Disney+. It’s problematic enough when something goes wrong with a complicated, $2 billion physics experiment on Earth. Those challenges are considerably greater when said physics experiment is on the […]
Enlarge / So many airplanes are in line on the runway waiting for take off. These Air Force planes are part of Operation stop service to transport in Covid-19 situation. (credit: Naruecha Jenthaisong | Getty Images) Fastening the seat belt buckle and knowing your flight is on its way to its destination: Nice. Getting stuck […]
Enlarge / NASA’s Kathy Lueders celebrates Crew Dragon’s hatch opening on May 31. (credit: NASA) In a significant change with implications for future exploration missions, NASA will announce today that it is splitting the duties of its human spaceflight office into two segments. As part of the reorganization, the agency’s current leader of all human […]
Enlarge / The launch vehicle stage adapter for NASA’s Space Launch System rocket is integrated with the core stage in June. (credit: NASA) Publicly NASA is still holding onto the possibility of a 2021 launch date for the debut flight of its Space Launch System rocket. This week, an agency spokesperson told Ars that “NASA […]
Enlarge / Leaked ULA emails are highly critical of Steve Jurczyk, who was NASA acting administrator this spring. (credit: NASA) In what appear to be legitimate emails from April and May, a senior official of the US rocket company United Launch Alliance (ULA) characterizes the leadership of NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA) as “incompetent […]