Nasa astronauts to carry out first all-female spacewalk

Christina Koch and Anne McClain to make history at International Space Station on 29 March

The first all-female spacewalk is to take place later this month, 35 years after a woman first took part in one.

The US space agency Nasa said astronauts Christina Koch and Anne McClain will walk outside the International Space Station on 29 March on a mission to replace batteries installed last summer.

Continue reading...

SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft launches successfully

Launch brings US plans to resume sending people into space in own spacecraft closer

Astronauts could be flying again from US soil as early as this summer after the flawless launch of SpaceX’s privately built Crew Dragon capsule opened “a new era in American excellence”, according to the head of the space agency Nasa.

Related: Spacewatch: Nasa to launch new crewed craft in 2019

Continue reading...

‘FarFarOut’: Nasa astronomer finds potential furthest object in solar system

Mystery shrouds ‘very faint’ planetary body that appears to be 140 times further from the sun than Earth

A new object has been discovered in the distant reaches of our solar system and given the name FarFarOut, according to a prominent astronomer.

At 140 times further away from the sun than our own planet is, the newly identified body – if its discovery is confirmed – will become the furthest known object in our solar system.

Continue reading...

Nasa confirms Mars rover Opportunity is dead

Robot the size of a golf buggy has sent data to Earth for 15 years but fell silent eight months ago and Nasa says mission is complete

Nasa declared the 15-year mission of the veteran Mars rover Opportunity finally over on Wednesday, crediting the robot as having “transformed our understanding of our planet”.

The golf buggy-sized vehicle last made contact with Earth eight months ago, after being caught in a global dust storm.

Continue reading...

Cavity two-thirds the size of Manhattan discovered under Antarctic glacier

Disintegration of rapidly melting Thwaites ice mass could threaten coastal communities worldwide

Scientists have discovered a giant cavity at the bottom of a disintegrating glacier in Antarctica, sparking concerns that the ice sheet is melting more rapidly than expected.

Researchers working as part of a Nasa-led study found the cavern, which they said was 300 metres tall and two-thirds the size of Manhattan, at the bottom of the massive Thwaites glacier.

Continue reading...

Mystery mud on new volcanic island baffles Nasa scientists

Island sprang up near Tonga three years ago, giving researchers a glimpse of how flora and fauna colonise it

Nasa scientists have landed for the first time on one of the world’s newest islands, and discovered the three-year-old land mass is now covered in a sticky, mysterious mud, as well as vegetation and bird life.

The volcanic island sprang up in the ocean surrounding Tonga three years ago, one of only three new islands to emerge in the last 150 years that have survived more than a few months.

Continue reading...

First close-ups of Ultima Thule reveal it resembles dark red snowman

Images of rock on the edge of the solar system were taken on the most distant flyby in history

Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft has beamed home its first close-up images of Ultima Thule, a lump of rock the shape of an unfinished snowman that lies 4 billion miles away on the edge of the solar system.

Taken as the probe sped past the body in the early hours of New Year’s Day, the pictures reveal a dark reddish object about 21 miles long and 10 miles wide that spins on its axis once every 15 hours or so. The colour image of Ultima Thule, revealing its reddish tint, was taken at 05.01 GMT on New Year’s Day from a distance of about 18,000 miles, 30 minutes before the probe made its closest pass of the space rock.

Continue reading...

Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft ‘phones home’ after flyby of Ultima Thule

Scientists celebrate probe’s successful completion of most distant space flyby in history

Nasa scientists are celebrating after a spacecraft “phoned home” to confirm it had successfully performed the most distant space flyby in history in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

Thousands of photographs of the dark, icy space rock called Ultima Thule were snapped by the New Horizons probe as it barrelled past it on the outer edge of the solar system at 0533 GMT.

Continue reading...

Cannon: – First Man’ is a giant step for America and movies

It sounds like the opening to a joke: Donald Trump, Bill Kristol and Marco Rubio walk into a bar. The three Republican frenemies eye each other warily, until one breaks the ice by asking, "What did you guys think of the new movie about the moon landing?" "Total lunacy," says Rubio, a Florida senator who while running for president in 2016 questioned the size of Trump's manhood.

Should a Scientist Run NASA?

I got a little excited the first time I met then-Administrator Charlie Bolden in 2012! I did take a proper picture after, but this is just so good! With every President comes a new NASA administrator, and the current admin, Jim Bridenstine, has raised a number of eyebrows. The strongest reaction to Bridenstine's appointment comes from his lack of a science background, though more recent reports say he has changed his mind on climate change and does believe humans are responsible and can curb the effects we're having on the planet.

Former Space Shuttle Commander And DARPA Exec Joins SPA Board Of Directors

Systems Planning and Analysis, Inc., has announced the appointment of former NASA Space Shuttle Commander and retired USAF Colonel, Pamela A. Melroy, to the SPA Board of Directors. With a distinguished career of over 25 years as a professional jet and test pilot, nearly 1000 hours in space, and executive positions in industry and government, Colonel Melroy brings her unique and extensive experience in space, hypersonics, defense, and international markets to SPA.

Space experts worry US won’t make it to Mars by 2030s

President Donald Trump has touted a goal of sending Americans to the Moon again for the first time since the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s, building a lunar gateway to test the technology and spacecraft that will carry humans to Mars. At a hearing in Washington, Senator Bill Nelson said the White House decision to return to the Moon - a program former president Barack Obama halted in order to focus on reaching Mars - could drag down the whole process.

JPL employees criticize government for pursuing background checks

JPL employees Wednesday criticized federal authorities for seeking a U.S. Supreme Court review of an appeals court decision blocking the government from requiring mandatory background checks. The U.S. Solicitor General's Office wants the nation's highest court to review the ruling, arguing that it could affect the government's ability to conduct background checks of contract employees.