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Garbage pallet jettisoned from space station will stay in orbit two-to-four years
NASA ground controllers sent commands to the International Space Station on Thursday for release of a 2.9-ton cargo pallet loaded with old batteries, the most massive object ever jettisoned from the orbiting outpost. The garbage carrier is expected to remain in orbit for two-to-four years before re-entering the atmosphere.
Stacking complete for SLS boosters
The twin 177-foot-tall solid-fueled boosters for the first flight of NASA's Space Launch System have been stacked inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center to await arrival of the rocket's cryogenic core stage, which is set for a second engine test on a firing stand in Mississippi later this month.
NASA astronaut joins Russian Soyuz crew for April flight to space station
NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, veteran of a 168-day stay in space in 2017-18, will join two Russian cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz spacecraft April 9 for a flight back to the International Space Station in a deal brokered through Houston-based Axiom Space, NASA and the Russian space agency announced Tuesday.
Launch of asteroid deflection demonstrator slips to November
The launch of a NASA spacecraft designed to smash into an asteroid to try out a technique that could protect Earth from threatening space rocks has slipped from July until November, at the earliest, after development delays partially caused by coronavirus-related work slowdowns.
Perseverance rover aces first test drive on Mars
Two weeks into its mission of exploration on Mars, NASA's Perseverance rover is doing an "exceptional job" and has completed its first test drive, mission managers said Friday.
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter camera spots Perseverance rover after landing
A high-resolution camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has spotted the Perseverance rover after landing on the Red Planet last month, showing the nuclear-powered robot sitting on the Martian surface with its supersonic parachute and other landing system components scattered nearby.
Rubins and Noguchi assemble solar array support fixtures outside space station
NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Soichi Noguchi, a Japanese astronaut who last walked in space more than 15 years ago, ventured outside the International Space Station Friday and completed assembly of two solar array support fixtures, part of a $100 million power system upgrade.
Component fatigue caused early shutdown of Merlin engine on last SpaceX launch
SpaceX has concluded fatigue on an engine cover caused one of the nine Merlin 1D first stage engines on the company's most recent launch to shut down early during ascent, leading to the loss of the booster during an offshore landing attempt in the Atlantic Ocean, an official said Monday.
Parker Solar Probe pulls back the veil on Venus’s night side
An ultra-sensitive camera on NASA's Parker Solar Probe caught an ethereal glimpse of the night side of Venus during a flyby last year, revealing terrain seen through the thick haze of the planet's atmosphere.
Photos: Antares rocket blasts off from Eastern Shore of Virginia
A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket powered off its launch pad at Wallops Island, Virginia, on Feb. 20 with a Cygnus supply ship heading for the International Space Station.