Tag: NASA
NASA to open up space station to private tourists from 2020
American space agency NASA has announced it is opening the International Space Station up to new commercial opportunities such as space tourism from 2020. Up to two short-duration private astronaut missions per year to the space station will be available through privately funded, dedicated commercial spaceflights, the agency said. Today starts a new day in…
Amazon boss Jeff Bezos to send spaceship to moon
Amazon boss Jeff Bezos has announced he is going to send a spaceship to the moon. Mr Bezos said his space company Blue Origin will land a robotic ship the size of a small house, capable of carrying four rovers and using a newly designed rocket engine. It would be followed by a version that…
NASA criticises India’s anti-satellite missile test for endangering ISS astronauts
NASA has criticised India’s satellite destruction test for endangering astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS). On March 27, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi announced that it had managed to shoot down one of its own low-orbit satellites, declaring that the country was now a “space power”. The risk of collision to the ISS…
Spacewalking astronauts replace International Space Station batteries
Spacewalking astronauts are conducting more battery work outside the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Christina Koch floated outside, a week after the first spacewalk to install new and stronger batteries for the station’s solar power grid. Ms Koch was supposed to go out with Anne McClain, but there weren't enough medium suits…
NASA moves a step closer to flying a helicopter on Mars in 2021
A helicopter that is set to fly on Mars in 2021 has completed its first test flight, American space agency NASA has revealed. Exploration on other planets has long been restricted to rovers on the ground, but engineers are making progress in their ambitious plans to launch a drone-like device into the skies above the…
Astronauts take spacewalk to swap International Space Station’s batteries
Two American astronauts are taking a spacewalk to replace ageing batteries on the International Space Station. NASA’s Anne McClain and Nick Hague are scheduled to work in space for several hours to swap three old nickel-hydrogen batteries with more powerful lithium-ion batteries. The duo overcame minor struggles in their first task, which involved attaching a…
NASA’s new rocket will not be ready for moon mission next year
NASA's massive new rocket will not be ready for a moon shot next year, the space agency’s top official has told the US Congress. Administrator Jim Bridenstine said he is considering switching to commercial rockets to keep the June 2020 launch date. Mr Bridenstine told a Senate committee that two private rockets would be needed,…
SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule ends test flight with ocean splashdown
The SpaceX crew capsule has returned to Earth, ending its first test flight with an old-fashioned splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean. The Dragon undocked from the International Space Station early on Friday. Six hours later, the capsule carrying a test dummy dropped into the Atlantic off the Florida coast. Good splashdown of Dragon confirmed! pic.twitter.com/WK1nsNnOF5…
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft blasts off into space
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft took off on Saturday morning, marking the first major step towards US ambitions to resume sending astronauts into space on its own spacecraft on American soil. The un-crewed spacecraft launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at 2.49am local time (7.49am UK time) as planned, on top of a Falcon…
Mars lander starts digging on red planet
NASA's newest Mars lander has started digging into the red planet, but hit a few snags, scientists said. The German drilling instrument on the InSight lander struck what appeared to be a couple of stones. It only managed to burrow between half a foot (18cm) and about 1.5ft (50cm), far short of the first dig’s…
