William Harwood – Page 58 – Spaceflight Now

Astronauts return to US side of space station after leak scare

January 14, 2015 William Harwood

Concern about a possible ammonia coolant leak Wednesday prompted astronauts on the International Space Station to evacuate the U.S. segment of the complex and shelter in the Russian portion of the outpost while flight controllers scrambled to untangle initially confusing telemetry.

SpaceX launch scrubbed by steering system problem

January 6, 2015 William Harwood

Launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Dragon cargo ship loaded with more than 5,100 pounds of equipment and supplies bound for the International Space Station was called off Tuesday less than two minutes before liftoff because of apparent problems with the second stage engine steering system.

Kelly, Kornienko eager for launch on one-year mission

December 19, 2014 William Harwood

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko are gearing up for launch March 27 to kick off a record one-year stay aboard the International Space Station, an orbital marathon both men say is crucial for planning future flights beyond Earth orbit and, eventually, to Mars.

Mars rover detects methane spike, organic molecules

December 16, 2014 William Harwood

Carefully analyzing data collected by NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover, scientists discovered a sudden, unexpected spike in methane levels in the martian atmosphere over a two-month period one year ago.

Orion capsule completes epic space journey

December 5, 2014 William Harwood

Boosted to an altitude of 3,604 miles by a Delta 4 rocket, NASA’s Orion deep space exploration vehicle fell back to Earth Friday in the program’s maiden voyage, slamming into the atmosphere at nearly 20,000 mph, enduring a hellish 4,000-degree re-entry and settling to a Pacific Ocean splashdown to wrap up a critical unmanned test flight.

Preview: Orion spacecraft poised for critical test flight

December 3, 2014 William Harwood

NASA is gearing up for a milestone unmanned test flight Thursday, the first launch of the agency’s Orion deep space exploration spacecraft intended to one day carry astronauts on missions beyond low-Earth orbit to the vicinity of the moon, one or more nearby asteroids and, eventually, Mars.

Three-person crew docks with space station

November 23, 2014 William Harwood

Five hours and 48 minutes after a sky-lighting launch from Kazakhstan, a Russian Soyuz ferry craft carrying a crew of three representing Russia, the United States and Italy glided to a smooth docking at the International Space Station.

International crew set for launch to space station Sunday

November 22, 2014 William Harwood

Soyuz TMA-15M commander Anton Shkaplerov, flanked on the left by flight engineer Samantha Cristoforetti and on the right by NASA astronaut Terry Virts, are scheduled for liftoff from complex 31 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Sunday.

Loss of contact with Philae

November 15, 2014 William Harwood

A few moments after the pirouette, battery voltage suddenly plummeted and engineers said the end was near. Trapped between a rock and a dark place beyond its ability to survive, Philae dutifully sent back stored data and even made fresh measurements until finally, just after 7:30 p.m. (EST-5), contact was finally lost.

Comet lander’s batteries near exhaustion

November 14, 2014 William Harwood

Trapped in rough, forbidding terrain with its solar panels draped in shadow, the Philae comet lander raced the clock Friday to carry out high-priority science operations, including an attempt to drill into the surface of the nucleus, before exhausting its on-board batteries and effectively losing consciousness.