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The James Webb Space Telescope has started unfurling its giant sunshield
By: Scott Neuman | Joe Palca | NPR
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPR) — The James Webb Space Telescope, on a long and winding journey to its job site a million miles from Earth, has begun the key task of unfurling a giant umbrella-like shield to protect its delicate instruments from the intense radiation of the sun. The deployment of the shade — one of… Read More
This new space telescope should show us what the universe looked like as a baby
By: Nell Greenfieldboyce | NPR
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPR) — Imagine knowing nothing about your childhood, nothing about where you came from, and spending years hunting for the answers. Then someone hands you a just-discovered trove of photographs of yourself as an infant. You’d finally be able to scrutinize every detail, searching for clues about yourself and how you came to… Read More
You’ll have the best view of the Geminid meteor shower overnight tonight
By: Joe Hernandez | NPR
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPR) — The Geminid meteor shower, which lights up our sky every December, will be at its most visible late Monday into early Tuesday morning. Although the moon will brighten up the sky and make it harder to see the Geminids this year, astronomers say from about 2:00 a.m. to sunrise will be… Read More
Leonard is the brightest comet all year. Here’s how to see it
By: Scott Neuman | NPR
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPR) — Less than a year ago, when Comet Leonard was first discovered, it was still an incredibly dim and obscure chunk of rock traveling out near the orbit of Jupiter. Now it’s reached our neighborhood of the solar system on its journey toward the sun and it’s being billed as the brightest… Read More
How you can see the nearly total lunar eclipse Friday morning
By: Joe Hernandez | NPR
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPR) — West Coast night owls and East Coast early risers will have the best view of the upcoming lunar eclipse this Friday. Overnight, the moon will pass into the shadow of Earth cast by the sun, illuminating the gray orb with a red hue. It will be the second and final eclipse… Read More
Mars Had Liquid Water On Its Surface. Here’s Why Scientists Think It Vanished
By: Scott Neuman I NPR
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ST. LOUIS (NPR) — All evidence points to the fact that Mars once had flowing water, but numerous flybys, orbiters, landers and rovers have confirmed one undeniable fact — any liquid water that was once on its surface is now long gone. A study out of Washington University in St. Louis might have found the… Read More
‘I’m Safe On Mars,’ NASA’S New Rover To Scour Ancient Lake Bed For Life Signs
By: Scott Neuman I NPR
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Perseverance landed safely on the red planet on Thursday, immediately getting to work with a first photo of the rover’s “forever home.”
If This NASA Spacecraft Can Avoid ‘Mount Doom,’ It Might Nab A Bit of Asteroid
By: Nell Greenfieldboyce | NPR
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NASA is getting ready to collect its first sample from an asteroid ever. The rocks and dust could help us understand potentially dangerous space rocks and the history of the solar system.
The Hubble Space Telescope Still Works Great — Except When It Doesn’t
By: Nell Greenfieldboyce | NPR
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None of us is perfect, and sometimes the Hubble Space Telescope just flat-out points to the wrong spot in the sky. This has been happening more than ever in the last couple of years.
Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks After Midnight. NASA Says It’s ‘One Of The Best’
By: Rachel Treisman | NPR
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The light of the moon will reduce the visibility of some fainter meteors, but NASA says it’s still worth staying up late — or rising very very early on Wednesday — to see “nature’s fireworks.”
Splashdown! SpaceX And NASA Astronauts Make History
By: Nell Greenfieldboyce | NPR
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NASA and SpaceX are welcoming home two astronauts who splashed down safely in the Gulf of Mexico after several months on the International Space Station.
Here’s How the Pandemic is Changing America’s Plans for its Newest Spaceship
By: Geoff Brumfiel | NPR
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Later this week, NASA and SpaceX will launch the first rocket carrying astronauts from U.S. soil since the end of the space shuttle era. But COVID-19 has forced some changes to their plans.
WATCH: NASA Reveals Name of Next Mars Rover
By: PBS Newshour
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NASA announced the name of its latest Mars rover, which could begin its mission as early as this summer. The agency opened up the name selection process to students around the country, whittling down 28,000 entries to nine finalists: Clarity, Courage, Endurance, Fortitude, Ingenuity, Promise, Perseverance, Tenacity and Vision. Watch the video to see which… Read More
WATCH: SpaceX and OneWeb Face Off in Quest for Internet Domination
By: PBS Newshour
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In what has already been a busy year in space, the London-based telecommunications company, OneWeb, on Friday launched a second round of satellites into orbit in a bid to expand global internet coverage. The launch followed the return of NASA astronaut Christina Koch, who broke a spaceflight record for female astronauts. The Verge science reporter… Read More
WATCH: With Record Space Mission, Astronaut Christina Koch Inspires Women Back on Earth
By: PBS Newshour
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After spending nearly 11 months in orbit aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Christina Koch returned to Earth Thursday, parachuting into Kazakhstan with two crewmates aboard a Soviet Soyuz capsule. Koch set a record for the single longest female stay in space and says the milestones she achieved are a tribute to the pioneering women… Read More
Where Trump’s 2019 State Of The Union Promises Stand
By: Barbara Sprunt | Domenico Montanaro | NPR
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The State of the Union this year may make for a seriously awkward moment. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will be seated over President Trump’s left shoulder Tuesday, less than two months after the Democratic-controlled House impeached him — and just as the Republican-controlled Senate will be deciding whether to keep or or remove him from… Read More
Secret Air Force Space Plane Lands After More Than 2 Years In Orbit
By: Scott Neuman | NPR
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The X-37B, launched in September 2017, has returned to Earth. It was the fifth acknowledged mission for the vehicle since 2010, but details of its mission are being kept under wraps.
The Nuclear-Powered Self-Driving Drone NASA Is Sending To A Moon Of Saturn
By: Geoff Brumfiel | NPR
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Almost everyone who learns about the project thinks it sounds “crazy,” admits one scientist. But the technology should work.
Amateurs Identify U.S. Spy Satellite Behind President Trump’s Tweet
By: Geoff Brumfiel | NPR
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The satellite is believed to be among America’s most advanced. Some believe it’s as large as the Hubble Space Telescope.
White House Hopes Revived Space Command Is One Giant Leap Toward Proposed Space Force
By: Colin Dwyer | NPR
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President Trump and Vice President Pence are expected to formally reestablish the U.S. Space Command on Thursday. It’s not the Space Force they want, but they intend it as a step in that direction.
How A 10-Year-Old-Boy Helped Apollo 11 Return To Earth
By: Josh Axelrod | Mia Warren | NPR
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Greg Force was just a boy when his father, the director of a NASA tracking station in Guam, called home with an important mission for him: to help the crew of Apollo 11 return safely to Earth.
NASA Renames WV Facility in Honor of Human ‘Computer’
By: Associated Press
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FAIRMONT, W.Va. (AP) – A NASA facility in West Virginia has been renamed in honor of a native of the state whose calculations helped put men on the moon 50 years ago. Katherine Johnson was portrayed in the film “Hidden Figures” and is now 100 years old. She did not attend Tuesday’s ceremony in Fairmont… Read More
This Week, NASA Is Pretending An Asteroid Is On Its Way To Smack The Earth
By: Nell Greenfieldboyce | NPR
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A fictitious asteroid is the focus of a realistic exercise, as experts at the Planetary Defense Conference run through how the Earth would respond to news of a looming asteroid strike.
A Black Hole Is Photographed For First Time By Massive Telescope Project
By: Bill Chappell | NPR
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“For the first time we have seen what we thought was unseeable,” said Event Horizon Telescope Director Shep Doeleman, as the first image of a black hole was released.
Massive U.S. Machines That Hunt For Ripples In Space-Time Just Got An Upgrade
By: Nell Greenfieldboyce | NPR
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The twin sites in the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory are about to go back online. New hardware should make them able to sense more colliding black holes and other cosmic events.