Live coverage: NASA confirms successful first flight of Mars helicopter

New maps produced from data gathered during the New Horizons spacecraft’s flyby of Pluto last year show surprisingly widespread water ice shaping mountains capped by methane snow and forming an underlying bedrock blanketing the distant world.

After making landfall in South Florida, Hurricane Irma moved north over the state before losing strength and being downgraded to a tropical storm. NASA safety officials report the Kennedy Space Center lost electricity and water pressure during the storm, but a team of emergency personnel at the spaceport is safe.

Astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken say SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket was a “very pure flying machine” as it sped their Crew Dragon spaceship into orbit, but they said they were surprised by the rougher-than-expected ride on the Falcon 9’s powerful upper stage.