Aerospace

ESA’s Miniature Pinhole Thruster Enters Production Phase

Credit: IENAI SpaceRocket propulsion has evolved significantly from ancient rocket-powered weapons to cutting-edge technologies propelling our space exploration. ATHENA, a palm-sized thruster system developed by a team led by Daniel Perez Grande, CEO and Co-Founder of IENAI Spain, represents a revolutionary leap in advancing tiny spacecraft across the vastness of space.In contrast to colossal...

SpaceX’s Starship Launch: A Mix of Success and Setback

The intended duration of Starship's second test flight was approximately 90 minutes, with the plan for it to conclude by splashing down in the Pacific Ocean near Hawai'i. Credit: SpaceX via XOn Saturday morning, SpaceX's Starship rocket embarked on its second test flight, soaring into the sky from Starbase in Texas. However, the triumph...

Critical Moment: Starship’s Second Test Launch Expected This Week

Starship poised on the launchpad, prepared for its second test. Credit: SpaceX.The success of NASA's Artemis program is paramount, with the current contract involving SpaceX's Starship to transport astronauts for the Artemis III and Artemis IV lunar missions. There is no alternative means for astronauts to reach the Moon, although NASA recently opened the...

Russia Confirms Rescue of Stranded Cosmonauts With a Replacement Mission

Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft carrying the crew of Russian cosmonauts launched September, 2022. (NataliaKolesnikova/ AFP)Russia stated Wednesday that it will send an empty spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) coming month to bring home 3 astronauts whose planned return vehicle was damaged by a strike from a small meteoroid.The Russian space company, Roscosmos, made the...

Russian Launches to Space From United States, First Time in 20 Years

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon capsule, with a multinational crew of four astronauts, lifts off from Launch Complex 39-A Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., beginning a five-month mission to the International Space Station. Credit: AP Photo/John Raoux)For the first time in two decades,...

Spacesuits for NASA’s Artemis III Mission to be Built by Axiom Space

NASA is preparing for its next Moon landing, and it is ordering new spacesuits for the journey. It has granted Axiom Space a $228.5 million contract to make a "moonwalking system" for the agency's return to the lunar surface.Axiom was among two firms in the running to make spacesuits for NASA's Artemis program, which...

NASA Uses “Holoportation” In Space For The First Time

Credit: Thomas Pesquet / ESANASA has "holoported" somebody to the International Space Station for the first time, demonstrating a new method for astronauts and people on Earth to interact with one another.Holoportation 101Holoportation is the creation of Microsoft research. While the name is one portmanteau of "hologram" and "teleportation," that does not quite explain...

Artemis I to Attempt Launch in Late September

NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B, Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2022, after being rolled out to the launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Credit: NASA/Joel KowskyAfter several setbacks, NASA is slowly scheduling its Artemis I mission's launch dates of September 23rd...

Engineers Solve Data Glitch on NASA’s Voyager 1

Voyager’s high-gain antenna, seen at the center of this illustration of the NASA spacecraft, is one component controlled by the attitude articulation and control system (AACS). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.Engineers have repaired a concern affecting information from NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft. Back this year, the probe's attitude articulation and control system (AACS), that keeps Voyager 1's antenna...