Live coverage: Mission control loses contact with Indian moon lander

Firing into orbit from a barrier island on India’s east coast, a 145-foot-tall Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle lifted off early Wednesday to deploy 20 satellites in a perch more than 300 miles above Earth.

NASA has announced the nine finalists for the name of the space agency’s next Mars rover — scheduled for launch in July — and invited the public to vote on the candidates before making a final selection in the coming months.

Holding up a photo taken by China’s new Mars lander, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson warned Congress Wednesday that his agency faces increasingly stiff competition on the high frontier and that sustained funding for a new moon lander, infrastructure upgrades and other critical programs is vital for America’s space program.