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Biden to nominate former Sen. Bill Nelson as NASA administrator
Former Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, a longtime space advocate whose district included the Kennedy Space Center and who flew aboard the shuttle Columbia in 1986 as a congressional observer, is President Biden's choice to serve as NASA's next administrator, the White House announced Friday.
NASA’s moon rocket scores an ‘A+‘ on critical engine test
The core piece of NASA's first huge Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket designed to carry astronauts back to the moon fired its main engines more than eight minutes Thursday in southern Mississippi, acing a crucial test before the it ships to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to prepare for liftoff.
VideoLive coverage: NASA completes eight-minute Space Launch System hot fire test
NASA fired up four hydrogen-fueled main engines on the core stage of the first Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket Thursday in on a test stand in Mississippi, a redo of a crucial hot fire test that was cut short in January by technical issues. The engines burned more than eight minutes in an apparently successful test.
NASA’s moon rocket set for second test-firing Thursday
Two months after a first test-firing ended prematurely, NASA plans to ignite the core stage of the first Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket again Thursday for an eight-minute burn to confirm it is ready for shipment to the Kennedy Space Center for launch preparations.
Russia looks to China as new space exploration partner
Russia's decision to partner with China on a planned lunar research station, and not join the U.S.-led Artemis moon program, was disappointing after more than two decades of cooperation on the International Space Station, says NASA's top human spaceflight official.
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.
Launch companies, range teams reassessing Cape Canaveral weather rules
Launch companies and U.S. Space Force range officials at Cape Canaveral are reassessing long-standing weather rules, looking at beefing up rocket defenses against lightning, and considering strategies to prepare for two different launch windows on a given day to guard against weather delays, something SpaceX may demonstrate with a Falcon 9 launch early Thursday.
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.
Stuck propulsion valve delays second SLS test-firing
A troublesome liquid oxygen valve on the Space Launch System's first flight-rated core stage will keep NASA from performing a second test-firing of the rocket's four main engines this week.
Biden backs Artemis moon program; watchdog says it’ll cost $86 billion
The Biden administration supports continuing NASA’s Artemis program to return astronauts back to the moon, the White House said last week, without stating whether it will back away from the program’s already-in-doubt schedule for a lunar landing by the end of 2024.