space missions

Starship Flight 7 mission patch, credit: SpaceX,

FAA investigates Starship's seventh test flight explosion following reports of property damage

A fuel leak caused the upper stage of a Starship to explode in mid-air, leaving debris over the Turks and Caicos Islands. The FAA and SpaceX are investigating the incident to improve launch safety.
Fire show resulting from the disintegration of the second stage of the Starship spacecraft. From social networks, Section 27A of the Copyright Law

Another failure for SPACEX's Starship spacecraft: The booster landed successfully, but the spacecraft exploded

A Starship probe launched from Texas broke apart minutes after liftoff, but the "Super Hubble" booster successfully landed on metal arms on the launch pad.
The European Space Agency's Hera spacecraft will perform an acceleration maneuver near Mars and also explore it. Figure: European Space Agency.

The engines of the spacecraft Hera were ignited on its journey towards the asteroid Didymus

Hera - the European Space Agency's asteroid exploration mission will once again reach the asteroid it visited and which was diverted by the DART spacecraft
NASA is addressing Voyager 1's latest communication problems, working to understand and fix the transmitter shutdown by the spacecraft's defense system. Credit: Caltech/NASA-JPL

24 billion km from Earth, NASA's Voyager 1 breaks its silence

On October 24, NASA was able to re-establish contact with the Voyager 1 spacecraft after a brief communication blackout. Recently, Voyager 1 turned off one of its two radio transmitters, and the NASA team is now working to identify the cause
Workers at NASA's Kennedy Space Center move the parts of the SLS rocket that will be used to launch the Artemis manned spacecraft to the moon. Photo: NASA

The Rocket Factory: A Look at NASA's Plans for the Moon and Beyond

NASA is upgrading Kennedy Space Center facilities to support the assembly of SLS rockets for the Artemis missions, which aim to land the next astronauts on the moon, using innovative technologies to improve the assembly process.
Sonny Williams smiles for the camera in the middle of maintenance work on the Kivu Laboratory Module of the International Space Station. Credit: NASA

Goodbye Starliner, Hello Soyuz: The International Space Station's busy week

Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams became full crew members on the International Space Station
An asteroid hits the Earth. Illustration: depositphotos.com

NASA faces a (theoretical) 72% chance of an asteroid impact

NASA's biennial exercises simulate an asteroid impact to prepare international response strategies. These scenarios use real data to test emergency preparedness and explore diversion techniques like the DART mission
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore upon their arrival at the International Space Station. Photo: NASA

Difficulty sleeping and the mismatch between Boeing's spacesuits and SpaceX's. The astronauts are still lost in space

NASA faces dilemmas over return of astronauts stranded in space following malfunctions in Boeing's Starliner mission
The Webb telescope, seen in the lower right corner of this figure, was used to verify the presence of mummified minerals on the surface of the asteroid Psyche. Credit: Southwest Research Institute

The Webb telescope reveals water compounds in asteroid Psyche

The observations will help analyze data from NASA's Psyche spacecraft on its way to this interesting asteroid that orbits the Sun in the main asteroid belt - between Mars and Jupiter
Simulation of the USDV spacecraft that SpaceX will develop for NASA for the purpose of deorbiting the International Space Station in 2030. PR photo, SPACEX

NASA awards SpaceX an $843 million contract to deorbit the International Space Station in 2030

"NASA will take ownership after development and operate it throughout its mission," according to the statement. "Along with the space station, it is expected to be dismantled as part of the re-entry process." SpaceX's International Space Station descent vehicle
A top view of one of the containers containing rocks and dust from the Beno asteroid, scaled in centimeters. Credit: NASA/Erika Blumenfeld and Joseph Aebersold

Surprise in the sample from the asteroid: its structure contains the "original ingredients" of the solar system

The OSIRIS-Rex sample analysis team found that the asteroid dust was rich in carbon, nitrogen, organic compounds and magnesium sodium phosphate, suggesting special historical conditions.
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
Astronaut Kate Robbins looks at a geological sample she collected during a simulated moonwalk. Credit: NASA/Josh Valcarcel

Michael Jackson in Arizona caves - NASA is rehearsing for moon walks

During NASA's Operation Artemis, astronauts will tour the moon. To prepare for this, the space agency is conducting a weeklong field experiment in the lunar-like landscape of the San Francisco Volcanic Field near Flagstaff, Arizona, to
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
EXPAND accelerator. Credit: Creation Space

A new accelerator will qualify Israeli startups to integrate into NASA's Artemis moon return program

The Israeli company Creation-Space is launching the 'EXPAND' accelerator which will give start-ups an opportunity to develop groundbreaking technologies in the field of space exploration and the settlement of the Moon and Mars • The winning start-up will receive a scientific-technological grant in the amount of 100 thousand
After reaching the Gediz Vallis basin, Curiosity captured this panoramic image using one of its black-and-white navigation cameras on February 3. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Mars rover Curiosity reveals its ancient water secrets

Curiosity has begun exploring a new region that could provide more information about when liquid water finally disappeared from the surface of the Red Planet.
Photograph of the landing site from the moon lander Odysseus. PR photo, from the Intuitive Machines website

The moon lander Odysseus will stop operating the day after tomorrow (Tuesday 5/3/2024) when darkness falls on its landing area on the side

Odysseus landed on its side instead of landing at a vertical angle, which disrupted communication with Earth. Some of the antennas were blocked by the inverted spacecraft, and those that remained exposed were too close to the ground, which
Odysseus the moon lander. Illustration: Intuitive Machines

For the first time a private spacecraft lands on the moon

A historic achievement for the United States, which returns to land on the moon for the first time since 1972, and the company Intuitive Machines, which seeks to prove its capabilities and serve as a supplier of equipment transfer to the moon as part of the Artemis program
Illustration of the crater created during the collision between the DART spacecraft and the Dimorphos asteroid. In the background: the European HERA spacecraft and its nanosatellites (CubeSats) in follow-up research. Credit: ESA Science Office

repel the asteroid

Technion researchers are partners in the HERA space mission: first attempt in history to divert an asteroid from its orbit
The actress Ariana de Bos in the movie ISS (from the promo released by the Bleecker Street company)

The International Space Station: how NASA plans to destroy it - and the dangers involved in the film and in reality

On 19/1/2024, a movie titled ISS was released in the US, which describes an international incident that takes place on the space station following an inter- bloc war. In reality, the astronauts and cosmonauts work together despite the conflict between Russia and the West, but a storm
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
Artemis II crew members (from left) CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, and NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Reid Weisman, exit the astronaut crew quarters in the Neil Armstrong Building to the Artemis crew transport facilities, before traveling to Launch Pad 39B As part of the Integrated Ground Systems Experiment at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Wednesday, September 20, to test the crew's schedule on launch day. Now they will have to wait another year for the actual flight. NASA photo

The moon will have to wait another year

NASA postpones the Artemis 2 and 3 missions by a year to 2025 and 2026 respectively. The reason: repeated failures. One of them occurred this week - the fuel leak from the lunar lander intended for Peregrine
Curiosity's rear Hazcam recorded the shadow of the rover's rear in a 12-hour view toward the Gale Basin floor. Several factors caused several artifacts in the image, including a black spot, the sun's distorted appearance, and rows of white pixels extending from the sun. NASA/JPL-Caltech

Viewing a full day on Mars, sunrise to sunset

Curiosity's rear Hazcam recorded the shadow of the rover's rear in a 12-hour continuous view from sunrise to sunset toward the Gale Basin floor
Figure prepared using artificial intelligence software Dali 3. Crowded on the moon.

Space: The year 2024 will be busy, especially on the moon

The new year is expected to be full of exciting space missions, from rocket launches and landings to the moon, manned flights around the moon, a new spacecraft to explore Jupiter and a demonstration flight of a new supply spacecraft to the space station
The Yabusa 2 spacecraft near asteroid Ryugu, courtesy of JAXA

Surprising discoveries about the carbon richness of asteroid Ryugu and the composition of matter in the early solar system

Japanese researchers who examined the soft materials that returned to Earth from the asteroid Ryugo in the Yabusa 2 spacecraft now estimate that the protoplanetary bodies from which the planets and asteroids were formed were richer in carbon than previously thought.
Analysis of Martian seismic data recorded by the InSight mission revealed that the liquid iron core of Mars is surrounded by a layer of molten silicate 150 km thick, resulting in a smaller and denser core than previously suggested. (Graphic: Thibaut Roger, NCCR Planet S / ETH Zurich)

News from inside Mars

The first seismological measurements of the Insight were made near the landing of the spacecraft in September 2021. Among the seismic records were also two tremors on the other side of Mars that originated from a meteorite impact
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
Artist illustration of asteroid 16 Psyche. Credit: Maxar/ASU/P.Rubin/NASA/JPL-Caltech

The Psyche spacecraft helps scientists understand what asteroids are made of and prepares the ground for commercial reactors

The composition of asteroid Psyche can tell scientists more about Earth's core because the two objects may have a similar structure. Both probably contain platinum, nickel, iron and maybe even gold - rich materials
Illustration showing the Psyche spacecraft as it flies towards the Psyche asteroid. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU

NASA's Psyche spacecraft has begun its journey to the asteroid hitting Psyche

On the way there, the spacecraft will receive a gravitational push from Mars. It is expected to reach the orbit around the asteroid in the first stage in June 2029
NASA's Parker Solar Probe recently passed through one of the most powerful coronal mass ejections (CMEs) ever recorded. Credit: NASA GSFC/CIL/Brian Monroe

Parker floated through a powerful coronal mass ejection that "sucked up" interplanetary dust

"These interactions between the Sun's coronal mass ejections and interplanetary dust were theorized twenty years ago, but were not observed until the Parker Solar Probe saw that the coronal ejection acts like a vacuum cleaner.
The sample return capsule from NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission is seen shortly after it landed in the desert, Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, at the Department of Defense Test and Training Range in Utah. (Image credit: NASA/Keegan Barber)

NASA's OSIRIS-REx capsule containing asteroid soil samples has landed safely in Utah and been moved to a clean room

The Osiris-Rex probe returns to Earth small samples of the asteroid Beno, a "real small world" for analysis
Elon Musk intervenes in the war in Ukraine. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Elon Musk disrupted a Ukrainian autonomous submarine attack on the Russian navy; It was feared that it would lead to a nuclear war

Musk found himself trying to please both Ukraine and Russia while trying to prevent escalation. His refusal to provide satellite coverage of a Ukrainian attack on Crimea exposed his dilemma. But the importance of Starlink
The Indian lander Vircam as photographed from the Paragain robotic vehicle. Photo by the Indian Space Agency ISRO

Surprising presence of sulfur in the soil of the South Pole of the Moon by the Indian robotic vehicle Paragain in the Chandrayaan-3 mission

The vehicle discovered a wide variety of heavy elements, but this is the first evidence of the presence of sulfur * The rover will tour the south pole of the moon for two weeks and look for signs of water ice
Model of the Luna 25 spacecraft. From Wikipedia

The Russian spacecraft Luna 25 crashed on the moon a day before the planned landing

The spacecraft, designed to test whether the moon could support a permanent base for humans, crashed after entering an unexpected orbit, the Russian space corporation Roscosmos reported
This artist's impression shows NASA's Voyager spacecraft against a field of stars in the darkness of space. The two Voyager spacecraft are moving farther and farther from Earth on their journey into interstellar space, eventually orbiting the center of the Milky Way galaxy. Credit : NASA/JPL-Caltech

Voyager 2 has lost contact with Earth. Only one radio dish in the world can help her "call home"

A human error in the commands sent to her caused her antenna to tilt at an angle of two degrees from the Earth. The radio antenna engineers of the deep space network in Australia will try to contact her
The 2017 eclipse as photographed by the Chasing the Eclipse I project. Credit: SwRI/NASA/Daniel B. Seaton

NASA's science in the shadows: five fascinating experiments for the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024

Using the high-altitude research plane WB-57, in one of the projects they will photograph the eclipse from a height of 15 km from the ground. The team hopes that taking the pictures above most of the atmosphere of the country will allow to see new details of
This artist's impression shows NASA's Voyager spacecraft against a field of stars in the darkness of space. The two Voyager spacecraft are moving farther and farther from Earth on their journey into interstellar space, eventually orbiting the center of the Milky Way galaxy. Credit : NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA engineers are making changes to the way the Voyager 2 spacecraft operates to extend the life of science instruments

NASA has decided to keep Voyager 2's scientific instruments on for a few more years, allowing for more discoveries from interstellar space.
© Airbus 2023; Airbus Defense and Space GmbH 2023

Airbus unveiled a concept for a space station with artificial gravity

Airbus offers a "multi-purpose route module" known as the Airbus LOOP. The station includes three decks - and for the first time in the journeys of the human race outside the atmosphere and gravity of the Earth - also a centrifuge that will create gravity for
Astronaut on the moon. Image: NASA

The astronauts are returning to the moon, but they will not repeat the Apollo missions

using the same main engines and solid rocket booster technology that powered the space shuttle. The space agency has made many improvements, and learned the hard-earned lessons from past disasters. SLS and Orion represent evolution
The moment the Starship spacecraft exploded during a test flight on 20/4/2023. From the live broadcast of Spice X on YouTube

SPACEX's Starship spacecraft exploded four minutes after launch on its first full test flight

Apparently the thrust of the first stage was not strong enough and the spacecraft was unable to separate from it. This is still an unmanned test flight and it seems that now the manned experiments will move away * This is the prototype
The crew of NASA's Artemis 2 mission (left to right): NASA astronauts Christina Hemock Cook, Reed Wiseman (seated), Victor Glover and Canadian space agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Credit: NASA

NASA has announced the four astronauts who will orbit the moon on the Artemis 2 mission, for the first time since Apollo

Among the four are Victor Glover who spent six months on the International Space Station, but at NASA for some reason they emphasize the color of his light, as well as Christina Hemock Cook - the first woman to fly to the lunar orbit
Jessica Meir takes a picture from the observation window of the International Space Station. Photo: Astronaut Andrew Morgan

A new exhibition at the Rupin Academic Center presents astronaut Jessica Meir's photographs from space

The exhibition: Jessica Meir, 'View from above' - an astronaut's impressions and reflections on our planet will be on display until May, admission is free
Image 1. Topography and SAR image of the research area on Venus. Color indicates altitudes, measured relative to the planet's mean radius from Magellan's reticulated altitude data. The X and Y axes represent geographic longitude and latitude of the planet. From the study.

A new analysis of data from the XNUMXs has proven that volcanoes are still erupting on Venus today

The article "Surface changes observed on a volcano on Venus during the Magellan mission" describes the analysis of the observations in which surface changes were discovered on the Sif Mons volcano during the Magellan spacecraft mission
The Artemis III space suit prototype, the AxEMU. Although this prototype is covered in a dark gray cover material, the final version will likely be completely white when worn by NASA astronauts on the lunar surface, to help keep the astronauts safe and cool as they work in the harsh environment of space. Credit: Axiom Space

NASA and Axiom unveiled the spacesuits that will be used by the astronauts who will land on the moon in Operation Artemis

The innovative design comes with special features to support the astronauts as they conduct scientific experiments on the surface of the moon as well as the women who will be one of the first crew to land. NASA hopes the updated suit will be
Moon colony. Illustration: depositphotos.com

There is a possibility of farming on the moon

The main challenge in farming on the moon is creating a habitable environment that can protect plants from the harsh conditions on the moon's surface. This can be achieved through the use of incubators or other controlled environments