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Hints of life renew interest in Venus, and a private mission could lead the way
The announcement Monday of the discovery of phosphine gas in the clouds of Venus -- an indicator of possible life -- has raised hopes among scientists for new robotic missions to renew exploration of Earth’s planetary neighbor. If Rocket Lab founder Peter Beck gets his way, a privately-funded mission could get the next crack at probing Venus's soupy atmosphere.
NASA challenges companies to mine lunar soil
NASA announced Thursday it plans to purchase lunar soil from a commercial company, an effort the agency's top official said is intended to set a precedent for the transfer of ownership of extraterrestrial material and stimulate a market harvesting resources from bodies throughout the solar system.
SLS booster test-fired in Utah
Northrop Grumman test-fired a five-segment solid-fueled booster for NASA's Space Launch System Wednesday at the company's test facility in Promontory, Utah.
Hurricane Laura observed from International Space Station
NASA commander Chris Cassidy shared views of Hurricane Laura captured Thursday as the International Space Station soared more than 250 miles over the dangerous storm while it churned across the Gulf of Mexico toward Louisiana.
Engineers troubleshooting small space station air leak
Engineers are troubleshooting a small air leak aboard the International Space Station that was discovered last September, NASA reported Thursday. While it poses no safety threat, the lab's three-man crew plans to seal themselves in the Russian segment of the station this weekend to help engineers pin down the leak's location.
Mars missions complete first course corrections on journey to Red Planet
Three robotic Mars missions launched from Earth last month have begun fine-tuning their trajectories through the solar system with the first in a series mid-course corrections to take aim on the Red Planet for arrival next February.
NASA sets Oct. 23 as target launch date for first operational Crew Dragon mission
The first operational flight of SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft with four astronauts aboard is set to launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida no earlier than Oct. 23, following a formal certification review to assess data from the Crew Dragon's two-man test flight that concluded earlier this month, NASA said Friday.
Penultimate piece of NASA’s first SLS rocket arrives at Kennedy Space Center
One of the final pieces for the first test flight of NASA's huge Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket recently arrived at the Kennedy Space Center, joining other elements already at the Florida spaceport awaiting shipment of the SLS core stage once it completes testing at a NASA facility in Mississippi.
VideoNASA asteroid explorer aces final rehearsal before sampling run
NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft moved within about 131 feet, or 40 meters, of asteroid Bennu this week in the $1 billion mission's final practice run before a touch-and-go landing on the asteroid in October to collect samples for return to Earth.
Back at Cape Canaveral, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule preps for next mission
Fresh off a 64-day test flight to the International Space Station with astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, SpaceX's first human-rated Crew Dragon spaceship is back at Cape Canaveral for inspections, refurbishment and upgrades before flying to the station again with a four-person crew next spring.