Electron launches second pair of NASA TROPICS cubesats
WASHINGTON — A Rocket Lab Electron rocket launched a second pair of NASA storm-tracking cubesats late May 25, six years and three dozen flights after the company’s first orbital launch attempt.
Space Development Agency to launch 13 satellites in late June
WASHINGTON — The Space Development Agency is preparing to launch at least 13 satellites in late June, the agency’s director Derek Tournear said May 26.
NASA and Boeing say preparations continue for July Starliner test flight
WASHINGTON — NASA and Boeing said May 26 they are still working towards a July launch of the CST-100 Starliner on a crewed test flight despite “emerging issues” and concerns raised by a safety panel.
Virgin Orbit extends deadline for bankruptcy auction bids
WASHINGTON — Virgin Orbit has extended the deadline for bids as part of its bankruptcy auction process that the company says has attracted interest from dozens of potential bidders.
First Intuitive Machine lunar lander mission slips to the third quarter
WASHINGTON — Intuitive Machines says its first lunar lander mission has slipped into the third quarter of this year as pursues a wider range of business opportunities.
Rock that punched hole in New Jersey house confirmed to be 4.6 billion-year-old meteorite
A metallic-looking rock that smashed through the roof of a residential home in New Jersey’s Hopewell Township earlier this week is indeed a meteorite — a rare one about 4.6 billion years old, scientists confirmed on Thursday (May 11).
ChatGPT on Mars: How AI can help scientists study the Red Planet
The world is abuzz, perhaps even befuddled, about the growing use of artificial intelligence. One of the most popular artificial intelligence (AI) tools available to the public today is ChatGPT, an AI-powered language model that has been “trained” and fed vast amounts of online information. After taking all that in, ChatGPT can regurgitate human-like text responses to a given prompt. It can respond to queries, discuss a lot of topics and crank out pieces of writing.
Photographers capture the exact moment a gargantuan storm blasts out of the sun during a total solar eclipse
A group of astrophotographers captured a breathtaking image of the recent “hybrid solar eclipse,” which was visible in the skies above Australia last month.
NASA selects Blue Origin to develop second Artemis lunar lander
WASHINGTON — NASA has selected Blue Origin to develop a lunar lander to transport astronauts on Artemis missions starting at the end of the decade.
Saturn’s rings are much younger than we thought
A team of researchers arrived at the new birth date estimate for Saturn’s rings by studying the build-up of dust around the gas giant planet. Tiny grains of rock stream through the solar system on a near-constant basis, resulting in thin layers of the material building up on planets, moons and asteroids and in icy ring systems like that of Saturn. To try and arrive at a new age estimate for Saturn’s ring system, researchers studied how rapidly this dust layer gathers, similar to determining how long a surface in your house has been left untouched by running a finger over it.
Space Development Agency issues draft solicitation for 100 satellites
WASHINGTON — The Space Development Agency is planning a new procurement of 100 satellites to continue to build out a military constellation in low Earth orbit.
NASA ends Lunar Flashlight mission because of thruster problems
WASHINGTON — NASA has ended the mission of a cubesat intended to go into orbit around the moon but which was unable to do so because of problems with its propulsion system.
Astroscale and Momentus offer concept for reboosting Hubble
WASHINGTON — Two companies have disclosed details about how they could raise the orbit of the Hubble Space Telescope as NASA evaluates that and other concepts offered to the agency.
JUICE deploys radar antenna
WASHINGTON — A radar antenna on a newly-launched European mission to Jupiter has finally deployed after weeks of effort to loosen a stuck pin.