man in space

The model of Venera-4 at the Cosmonautics Memorial Museum resembles a landing capsule re-entering the Earth's atmosphere. Photo: ESA

The Cosmos 482 spacecraft crashed in the Indian Ocean near Indonesia.

The spacecraft was designed to survive the dense atmosphere of Venus, so there was concern that it would burn up in the atmosphere and that if it had landed on land it could have caused severe damage. Fortunately, it landed in the sea.
The model of Venera-4 at the Cosmonautics Memorial Museum resembles a landing capsule re-entering the Earth's atmosphere. Photo: ESA

On Saturday (10/5/25), a 53-year-old Soviet spacecraft is expected to crash into Earth.

Entry is expected on May 10, 2025 at 08:16 UTC with an uncertainty of about 8.6 hours.
Illustration depicting NASA in its better days. Illustration: depositphotos.com

NASA shakeup. Three departments closed, chief scientist fired

In drastic changes as part of federal budget cuts, NASA is eliminating the Office of the Chief Scientist, the Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy, and the Diversity Branch, leading to the layoffs of about 20 employees and challenging the agency's scientific and strategic trajectory.
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore upon their arrival at the International Space Station. Photo: NASA

The two astronauts stranded on the space station have returned to Earth.

Sonny Williams and Barry Wilmore complete a mission that extended from an initial eight-day plan to nine months.
The moment of the malfunction that caused the Starship spacecraft to break apart during the eighth test, March 6, 2025. Screenshot, SpaceX

SpaceX Starship explodes again

SpaceX Starship explodes again
The European Space Agency's (ESA) groundbreaking Prova-3 mission has successfully begun its formation flight phase, with two satellites now maintaining a precise 150-metre separation in orbit. This precision will enable the creation of artificial solar eclipses, providing unprecedented views of the Sun's corona. Credit: ESA-P. Carril

The European Space Agency's Prova-3 probes have separated from each other to continue their historic mission

For the first time in history: Two probes will maintain a distance of 150 meters in orbit, creating artificial solar eclipses and enabling groundbreaking exploration of the solar corona
IRIS² logo. Credit: European Space Agency

Europe will launch a secure communication satellite system - IRIS²

The IRIS² constellation - an acronym for Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite - will include hundreds of satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) and more medium orbit satellites
The simulation of the Amos 4 satellite. Source: Israel Aerospace Industries

The explosion in the Intelsat satellite endangers Amos 4

The aerospace industry, which produced and operates the satellite, is performing maneuvers to keep away from fragments scattered from the Boeing satellite, which exploded about a week ago. The cause of the malfunction is still unclear. This is the second explosion of a Boeing-made satellite
This simulation shows the spacecraft of the advanced solar sail system traveling in space using the energy of the sun. Credit: NASA/Euro Animation/Ben Schweighart

NASA's Solar Sail is facing challenges right at the start of the operation

NASA mission operators continue to investigate the performance of the advanced composite sail system and test the performance of the sail masts. After the masts and sail are successfully deployed, the system is still slowly rotating in orbit because the control system
Iran's missile program. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Iran's ballistic missile program and the relationship to the space program - a review following the barrage of missiles fired at Israel

Iran claims that its missile industry is defensive in nature and designed to deter potential attackers, not to be used as an attack weapon. The Iranian space program is also a tool for the ballistic missile program
Night landing in the desert for the Boeing Starliner spacecraft, 7/9/2024

Starliner spacecraft lands safely unmanned after 3-month mission with multiple technical issues

The malfunctions experienced by the Starliner during the launch led to NASA choosing not to return the crew via Starliner, and instead the astronauts will be returned in February 2025 via SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft. In fact they will be used
Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, which flew NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams on a manned test flight to the International Space Station, is seen docked at the front dock of the Harmony Module. The image was taken from the window of SpaceX's Dragon Endeavor spacecraft docked in the port adjacent to the Starliner. Credit: NASA A

Is the Starliner spacecraft stuck in space? NASA answers frequently asked questions about the status of the astronauts' return

NASA is expected to make a decision by the end of August when and how to return the two astronauts stuck on the space station
Astronaut on Mars round trip will last more than three years A Hrefhttps Depositphotoscom Illustration Depositphotoscom A

Will expired drugs harm future missions to Mars?

"Those responsible for the health of spaceflight crews will have to find ways to extend the validity of drugs to complete a three-year mission to Mars, choose drugs with a longer shelf life or
An artist's rendering of the design of NASA's Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER). Its mission was to closely examine the location and concentration of ice and other resources at the lunar south pole Credit: NASA/Daniel Rutter

NASA has terminated the VIPER lunar rover project

NASA issued a call to private companies that want to continue the project without government funding. NASA will focus on future lunar missions utilizing technologies and tools from VIPER
Starliner mission commander Butch Williams and astronaut Sunita Williams on the International Space Station, July 10, 2024. Photo: NASA Television

The astronauts who arrived on the Starliner spacecraft may remain on the space station until August

Last week, the spacecraft commander performed a manual flight test to test the Starliner's performance, and it performed well without part of the thrusters. At the same time, Boeing is conducting experiments on identical propellers, to try to locate the
Technicians used a 30-ton crane to move the Orion spacecraft from the final assembly and systems testing chamber to the altitude chamber to undergo comprehensive leak testing and performance verification of the subsystems. Credit: NASA

The Orion spacecraft will undergo a test run in the vacuum of space without leaving Earth

The spacecraft will now undergo a series of suitability tests in an empty chamber. In the tests the spacecraft will be in a near vacuum environment by expelling air and creating a space where the pressure is very low. The result is the absence of an atmosphere, as it were
The Starliner spacecraft in a photo of the Boeing crew test flight docked to the forward port of the Harmony module as the International Space Station orbited 423 km above the Mediterranean Sea. Credit: NASA

Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is stuck on the space station

NASA and Boeing engineers continue to examine the helium leak from the spacecraft's engines and now the planned landing date of the Starliner is June 26. The extended crew has enough food, water and other supplies and there are no emergencies
A new thermal switch device allows lunar vehicles to effectively deal with the extreme temperature conditions on the moon. Credit: Shinichiro Kinoshita, Masahito Nishikawa

Revolutionary vehicle technology curbs the moon's extreme temperatures

This technology has implications beyond lunar vehicles, in broader applications of heat management in spacecraft
An astronaut exercises in space to keep fit and healthy. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Will astronauts' kidneys survive a round trip to Mars?

The results showed that both human and animal kidneys undergo "remodeling" by the conditions in space, with specific renal tubules responsible for calibrating calcium and salt balance showing signs of shrinkage after less than a month
The Starliner spacecraft separates from the Centaur launcher. Illustration: Boeing

The role of helium in the Starliner spacecraft

We will try to briefly describe the role of helium in the Starliner's propulsion system, where are the risks when there is such a leak and why, in my opinion, Boeing's engineers approved the flight even though they knew before the launch
The seven members of the Expedition 71 crew pose together with the two test flight crew members for a team photo at the space station. Front from left, Sonny Williams, Oleg Kononenko, and Butch Wilmore. Second row from left, Alexander Grabenkin, Tracy S. Dyson, and Mike Barratt. In the last row, Nikolai Chub, Janet Epps, and Matthew Dominick. Credit: NASA TV

Helium leaks and engine failures: the big drama of the Starliner docking at the space station

As the Starliner began its approach to the space station, five engines of the reaction control system failed during the flight. The mission teams performed a series of warm-up tests that restarted four of the engines while the crew navigated the
Launch of Boeing's manned spacecraft, June 5, 2024. Public relations photo

Boeing's Starliner manned spacecraft took off for the first time to the International Space Station

It is expected to arrive at the space station tomorrow, 6/6. On board the Starliner are veteran NASA astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sonny Williams. Both astronauts are former US Navy test pilots and together have
Imaging of the Changa 6 spacecraft landing on land on the far side of the moon (Image credit: CNSA)

China's Chang'e 6 mission launched the samples from the far side of the moon into lunar orbit. The next stop is Earth

China is the only country to successfully land on the hemisphere of the moon that faces away from Earth. * The container containing the samples collected by Changa 6 is expected to land on Earth on June 25
The personnel of the Chinese Space Agency watch a real-time simulation of the landing of the Changa 6 spacecraft. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese success: the Chang'e 6 spacecraft successfully landed on the far side of the moon for the mission of collecting material and bringing it to Earth

The landing is a critical step in the mission to bring scientific and unique soil samples to Earth, while exploring the strategic South Pole-Aiken Basin
SuperLimbs. Photography: Erik Ballesteros and Harry Asada

"Nahum Takum"-style robotic legs may help astronauts on the moon get up from falls

New MIT system called SuperLimbs may help astronauts conserve energy and extend missions on the moon
A collage of artist renderings highlighting the innovative approaches proposed by 2 NIAC Phase 2024 grantees for possible future missions. Credit: From left: Edward Balaban, Mary Knapp, Mahmooda Sultana, Brianna Clements, Ethan Schaler

Straight out of science fiction: NASA promotes six futuristic space technologies

Each completed the first phase of NASA's accelerator program, in which it showed that its future ideas — such as a lunar rail system and liquid-based telescopes — might provide perspectives
A simulation of space debris around Earth demonstrating the population of objects in the geosynchronous zone. Credit: NASA ODPO

NASA's innovative solutions for efficient space debris cleanup

New data analysis suggests NASA and its partners may have discovered more cost-effective ways to deal with the worsening problem of space debris than previously thought
Spacecraft satellites and space debris in orbit around the Earth. Illustration: depositphotos.com

New algorithms will make it possible to increase the warning before a dangerous collision in space and at sea

The space between the Earth and the Moon is going to become extremely crowded during the next 10 years. With NASA's planned missions in the Artemis program and other countries participating in the space race in this region, there is a lot of interest
The GRATTIS satellite orbits the Earth with two gravity measuring instruments. (credit Simon Barke/UF)

A satellite will demonstrate an experiment of gravitational reference technologies that will give a better picture of plate movements

GRATTIS will demonstrate the performance of advanced sensors that measure nanometer-scale gravitational changes from space to track movements on Earth's surface and interior
The cylindrical object that survived the burning in the atmosphere of a battery pad discarded in 2011 from the International Space Station hit a home in Florida three years later. Photo: NASA

Space Debris Hits Florida House * Wake Up Call  

Although the chance of space debris directly hitting humans or property on Earth is relatively low, the risk is increasing as more and more objects are thrown into orbit around the Earth. scientists
The late Capt. Denis Krokhmalov-Wexler. From the private archive

Students at the Technion will design the NOVA-SAT satellite in memory of the late Capt. Denis Krokhmalov-Wexler in collaboration with the TAA

The late Krukhamlov-Wexler, was supposed to start his studies this year at the Faculty of Aeronautics and Space Engineering and who was killed in battle in the Gaza Strip
The orbit of the battery compartment towards the crash on Earth. Courtesy of the European Space Agency

Tonight there is a chance to see a man-made meteor

Something interesting in the sky tonight. The probability that you will catch it is low, but if it happens - it can be quite impressive * This is a 2-ton battery installation that was detached from the International Space Station
ADRAS-J mission. PR photo, Astroscale

Astroscale has successfully launched the world's first spacecraft to monitor space debris * will meet with a faulty Japanese satellite

The ADRAS-J mission, which was launched into space to locate a piece of a defunct satellite 11 meters long and weighing 3 tons, will set new standards in the field of arrival and active removal of space debris, as well as in providing service to satellites
The SpaceIL team. Photo: Shlomi Amsalem, L.A.M. (1)

The SpaceIL association won the tender to manage the HORIZON community, the community of educators of the Israel Space Agency

This was announced this week, 31.1.24/XNUMX/XNUMX, at the Rona Ramon space education conference held as part of Israeli Space Week
An artist's impression of the Japanese SLIM spacecraft approaching the moon landing. Credit: JAXA

Japan makes history by landing on the moon

However, the mission's lifetime will probably be much shorter than planned due to problems with the solar power generation
A view of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft from the Tianhe Central Module of the Tiangong Space Station. Credit: China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).

The Chinese supply spacecraft Tianzhou-7 has arrived at the Chinese space station Tiangong

A view of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft from the Tianhe Central Module of the Tiangong Space Station. Credit: China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).
Refueling in space. Infographic courtesy of Astroscale

Astroscale signed a $25.5 million agreement with the US Space Force to design and supply a satellite for refueling military spaceships

Astroscale's solution will help overcome the limitations that result from the fact that satellites are currently launched into space with a limited supply of fuel. "Our APS-R satellite opens the door to rethinking how
Dr. Ido Entavi, head of the master's degree program in systems engineering at Afka, the Academic College of Engineering in Tel Aviv. Photo: David Perathi.

The Peregrine crash and the series of failures: Ido Entavi, former CEO of SPACEIL: a failure in the systemic planning

Entavi, currently head of the systems engineering program at Afka College, Entavi emphasizes the importance of systemic planning in complex projects. He also told about the meeting that made Berashit the prototype of the moon landings in the tenders of
This is what the Peregrine spacecraft looked like during its exit from the upper stage of the launcher. Photo: Astrobotic

Hot end for Peregrine lander: Burn up in atmosphere on Thursday, 19/1/24

The spacecraft failed to reach lunar orbit due to a fuel leak that was discovered immediately upon its ejection from the upper stage of the launcher. Now NASA is helping Astrobotics investigate the malfunction
The moon lander Peregrine, as it was supposed to look immediately after landing on the moon. PR photo: ASTROBOTIC

The Peregrine lunar lander will no longer reach its destination due to a malfunction

Yesterday, after it separated from the upper stage of the Vulcan launcher, it became clear that there is a fuel leak from the spacecraft's engines that change its balance and do not allow it to generate electricity from solar energy. The Astrobotics company says that they will try
Lunar lander Peregrine inside the upper stage of the Vulcan launcher. Simulation during the launch according to real data. NASA photo

The Peregrine lunar lander was launched - the first private lander and also the first American landing since Apollo

The Peregrine lander is carrying a variety of scientific instruments to study the radiation and soil composition on the moon, along with an unusual payload that includes a small rover, a bitcoin coin, and the ashes and DNA of several celebrities - including
Megan MacArthur, NASA's Mission 65 pilot to the International Space Station, works in the Zero Gravity Science Glove Box and exchanges samples for an experiment called Barrier Sealed Ampoule Coagulation, or SUBSA. The physics experiment investigates experimental methods for coagulating solutions in zero gravity and is expected to lead to reduced fluid movement in the solution, Which will allow for a better distribution of the components and the potential to improve the technology used to produce semiconductor crystals. Photo: NASA

NASA will increase chip manufacturing experiments in space

The space agency says that the industry alone will not be able to move forward and it is required to cooperate with the government and academia. This can help solve bottlenecks that slow down progress in the field
Explosive moment from the Sofer Habi launcher on 18.11.2023/XNUMX/XNUMX from the SPACEX broadcast

Another failure for SpaceX's Starship spaceship

During the launch, all 33 Raptor engines were successfully ignited, and the spaceship disconnected from the Super Aby launcher as planned, but then the launcher exploded, and SpaceX decided to blow up the spaceship itself as well
Paved surfaces around a lunar base. An artist's perception. Courtesy of the European Space Agency

How to pave roads on the moon

With the development of civilization comes roads, and this will be especially true on the moon. To do this, the dust must be kept away. In the Apollo era, dust blocked equipment and worn space suits.
The Pragyan spacecraft captured this image of the Vikram lander on August 30, before the lunar night enveloped it in its chilly darkness.

The lunar day rose, but the Indian lunar lander and rover failed to wake up

As the day dawned last Friday, ISRO started trying to communicate with the lander. There has been no answer so far, and it is possible that the lander and the vehicle will be buried up to about 600 km from the south pole of the moon