An asteroid the size of an SUV passed 1,830 miles (2,950 kilometres) above Earth, the closest asteroid ever observed passing by our planet, NASA said Tuesday.
Tag: NASA
NASA names first woman to head human spaceflight
The NASA official who managed the inaugural private crewed flight into space last month has been promoted to become the first female head of human spaceflight, the agency said Friday, as it prepares to return people to the Moon in…
Musk, Bezos win NASA contracts for Moon lander
NASA on Thursday awarded almost $1 billion in contracts to three space companies including those owned by Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos to develop lunar landers as the United States seeks to return human beings to the Moon.
NASA , SpaceX to launch first crewed mission to space
NASA announced on Friday to launch its first SpaceX crewed flight to the International Space Station (ISS) on May 27. NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley will fly on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, which will lift off on a…
NASA unveils new spacesuits for human lunar landing
The U.S. space agency NASA unveiled on Tuesday the next-generation spacesuits to be used in its Artemis program that will send the first woman and next man to the Lunar South Pole by 2024.
NASA sets 1st all-female spacewalk after suit flap in spring
The first all-female spacewalk is back on, six months after a suit-sizing flap led to an embarrassing cancellation.
NASA investigating first crime committed in space
US space agency NASA is investigating what may be the first crime committed in outer space, The New York Times reported today. Astronaut Anne McClain is accused of identity theft and improperly accessing her estranged wife’s private financial records while…
NASA descends on Icelandic lava field to prepare for Mars
To prepare for the next mission to Mars in 2020, NASA has taken to the lava fields of Iceland to get its new robotic space explorer ready for the job. With its black basalt sand, wind-swept dunes and craggy peaks,…
NASA pioneer Sue Finley still reaching for stars
Sue Finley began work at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory as the US prepared to launch its first satellite into orbit in 1958, racing to match the Soviet Union, which had accomplished the feat months earlier. Now 82, she is one…
NASA tests launch-abort system for moon-mission
NASA carried out a successful test today of a launch abort system for a capsule designed to take US astronauts to the moon. The test was carried out at Cape Canaveral in Florida and carried live on NASA TV. The…
NASA to open International Space Station to tourists from 2020
NASA said Friday it will open up the International Space Station for tourism and other business ventures as of next year, as it seeks to financially disengage from the orbiting research lab. “NASA is opening the International Space Station to…
NASA greenlights SpaceX crew capsule test to ISS
NASA gave SpaceX the green light to test a new crew capsule . By first sending an unmanned craft with a life-sized mannequin to the International Space Station yesterday. “We’re go for launch, we’re go for docking,” said William Gerstenmaier,…
NASA to make final attempt to contact Mars Opportunity Rover
US space agency NASA will make one final attempt to contact its Opportunity Rover on Mars late Tuesday, eight months after it last made contact. The agency also said it would hold a briefing Wednesday, during which it will likely…
Nasa spacecraft reveals Ultima Thule’s shape
The small, icy world known as Ultima Thule has finally been revealed. A new picture returned from Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft shows it to be two objects joined together – to give a look like a “snowman”. The US probe’s…
NASA speeds toward historic flyby of faraway world
NASA counted down to a historic flyby of the farthest, and quite possibly the oldest, cosmic body ever explored by humankind on Monday.
NASA spacecraft hurtles toward historic New Year’s flyby
A NASA spacecraft is hurtling toward a historic New Year’s Day flyby of the most distant planetary object ever studied, a frozen relic of the early solar system called Ultima Thule.
NASA spacecraft arrives at ancient asteroid, its 1st visitor
After a two-year chase, a NASA spacecraft arrived Monday at the ancient asteroid Bennu, its first visitor in billions of years.
NASA astronaut describes close call following failed launch
The NASA astronaut who survived last week’s failed launch and emergency landing knew he needed to stay calm.
‘Dream Chaser’ to take crew, cargo to space
Cape Canaveral: It is the return of the shuttle – albeit in a somewhat smaller form. NASA has revealed a new ‘mini shuttle’ built by Sierra Nevada’s Corporation is about to begin its final testing, and will soon be delivering…
Pence apologises for ignoring Nasa ‘do not touch’ sign
US Vice-President Mike Pence has made a tongue-in-cheek apology to Nasa after a photo of him touching a piece of space flight equipment went viral. Mr Pence was visiting the Kennedy Space Center in Florida when he placed his hand…