Paris, France (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
The latest image from ESA's Mars Express offers a stunning glimpse of Mars' south pole, resembling a winter wonderland with its icy hilltops and snow-like layers. However, this scenic view belies the reality of summer on Mars, where the Sun's heat drives the retreat of seasonal ice formations. A closer examination of the left side of the image reveals dark areas where the carbon dioxide ic

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
Venus Aerospace, a prominent innovator in hypersonic technology, has successfully ignited its VDR2 engine, achieving a critical milestone in its development of advanced high-speed propulsion. The VDR2 engine offers a unified solution for speeds ranging from Mach 0 to Mach 6 and represents the first successful test of a Rocket-Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) engine. The VDR2 engine, revealed in

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
NASA and Axiom Space have adjusted the assembly sequence for Axiom's commercial space station, aiming to expedite its readiness as a free-flying platform and reduce reliance on the International Space Station (ISS) during its assembly. Under a contract awarded in January 2020, Axiom Space began developing a habitable commercial module to attach to the ISS, with the eventual goal of establi

Washington DC (UPI) Dec 19, 2024
NASA has named a space agency veteran as deputy manager of its Gateway program, the administration announced Thursday. That program is central to the Artemis mission to return to the moon and for charting a path for the first human missions to Mars. Carlos Garcia-Galan, 50, brings 27 years of human spaceflight experience to the job, the agency said Thursday. A native of Malaga, Spain, h

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
NASA is expanding its lunar exploration efforts by awarding Firefly Aerospace a $179 million contract to deliver six scientific experiments to the Moon. This marks Firefly's fourth task order under NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, targeting a landing at the Gruithuisen Domes on the Moon's near side in 2028. Part of the Artemis program, this mission will focus on

Washington DC (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
Have you ever wanted to find all your favorite NASA technology in one place? NASA stakeholders did, too! We listened to your feedback, brainstormed user-focused features, and created the most robust technology system to date. NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate is excited to announce the release of TechPort version 4.0 - your gateway into our technology community. NASA tuned into f

Houston TX (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
As NASA plans missions to the Moon and Mars, one challenge is figuring out how to provide crew members with enough healthy food. Bringing along a supply for months or even years in space is impractical, and stored food can lose taste and nutritional value. Growing plants in space is one way to help solve this problem. Tending space gardens also has positive psychological effects for crew members

Paris, France (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
The assembly of Europe's second Ariane 6 rocket, designated VA263, is underway at Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana following the arrival of its primary components. The core and upper stages were shipped from France and Germany aboard the innovative vessel Canopee, marking a significant milestone in the launch campaign. The Canopee ship, specially designed to use wind-powered sails, redu

Paris, France (SPX) Dec 20, 2024
ESA has signed a series of contracts with Avio to enhance the operational capacity of the Vega-C rocket and push forward the development of its successor, Vega-E. These agreements aim to increase the annual launch frequency and advance next-generation rocket technologies. The contracts cover three key areas: upgrading Vega-C ground systems to support a higher launch cadence, advancing the

Washington DC (UPI) Dec 19, 2024
Two Russian cosmonauts will perform a spacewalk outside the International Space Station to install an experiment package on one of the modules on Thursday morning. Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner will leave the confines of the ISS to attach the package designed to monitor celestial X-ray sources and new electrical connector patch panels on the station's Poisk module. Cosmonaut Al