NASA Pushes New Wing Design to Find Structural Limits

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3 Min Read NASA Pushes New Wing Design to Find Structural Limits The 15-foot Structural Wing Experiment Evaluating Truss-bracing test article is fully installed in the Flight Loads Laboratory at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Wednesday, May 20, 2026. The model is part of NASA’s research to develop technologies for future ultra-efficient aircraft. Credits: NASA/Carla Escamilla NASA researchers recently put a new wing design, appearing long and thin with a lightweight structural design, through a series of grueling tests to find its structural limits. What they…

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The Growing Crescent of Mars as NASA’s Psyche Mission Approaches

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1 Min Read The Growing Crescent of Mars as NASA’s Psyche Mission Approaches PIA26586 Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU Photojournal Navigation Science Photojournal The Growing Crescent of Mars… Photojournal Home Photojournal Search Latest Content Galleries Feedback RSS About   Downloads The Growing Crescent of Mars as NASA’s Psyche Mission Approaches PNG (3.48 MB) Description This composite of images taken by NASA’s Psyche mission shows the crescent of Mars grow as the spacecraft approached the planet for a gravity assist from May 2 to May 15, 2026. The series begins with the smallest crescent at the…

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Remembering ‘Ulysses 31’, the ’80s cartoon that transported ‘The Odyssey’ to outer space

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It’s not known whether “Ulysses 31” was on Christopher Nolan’s radar in his teenage years, but it’s intriguing to think it could have influenced the director’s decision to take on Homer’s “The Odyssey”. This animated space opera, a French/Japanese co-production, delivered a crash course in Greek mythology to a generation of kids who grew up in the ’80s. And, although it looks more like “Star Wars” than Homer’s original tale, it had a decent stab at transferring the Classics to the 31st century (the clue really was in the title),…

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Establishing a VTE Risk Score for Astronauts Algorithm

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Spontaneous echo contrast (SEC) grade 3 with peripheral echogenicity. NASA/Pavela NASA/SP-20260005258/REV1 – NASA Risk of Venous Thromboembolism in Spaceflight – Outcomes of Working Group Meeting – April 2026 In April 2026, NASA’s Office of the Chief Health and Medical Officer (OCHMO) initiated a working group to review updated VTE case information, additional data gathered revealing altered blood flow status within a cohort of astronauts, and discuss progress of research and clinical activities intended to mitigate the risk of VTE during spaceflight with new evidence-based clinical practice recommendations. Recommendations The following…

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These ‘metallic’ dunes on Mars look like sci-fi. What are they really?

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If you still picture Mars as a monotonous red desert, it may be time for an update. The European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter has been capturing some of the Red Planet’s most surreal landscapes, and its latest images reveal a sprawling field that looks like molten metal frozen across the floor of an ancient Mars crater. The shimmering “waves” aren’t metal at all, however. They are dark sand dunes dusted with seasonal frost, much of it carbon dioxide, or “dry ice,” that settles on the surface during Martian winters,…

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The Perseid meteor shower starts this week. Here’s why you should look up now

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People keep asking me about the total solar eclipse on August 12. That’s understandable. For anyone in the Northern Hemisphere, it is shaping up to be a joyous day of astronomy. Totality will cross eastern Greenland, western Iceland and northern Spain, but much of Europe will see a very deep partial eclipse, and even parts of North America will see a small bite taken from the sun. Then, just hours later, the Perseid meteor shower will peak beneath perfectly moonless skies. What a double-act! The problem with promoting days and…

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NASA Invites Media to Roman Space Telescope, Crew-13 Launches

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Credit: NASA Media accreditation now is open for the launch of NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope and the agency’s SpaceX Crew-13 missions, both targeting launch in the coming months. The Roman telescope is slated to launch no earlier than 7:20 a.m. EDT Sunday, Aug. 30, aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The observatory, named after NASA’s first chief astronomer, will have a deep, panoramic view of the cosmos, generating never-before-seen pictures that will revolutionize our understanding of the…

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NASA Welcomes Serbia as Newest Artemis Accords Signatory 

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Serbia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Marko Đurić, right, shakes hands with NASA Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson, left, after signing the Artemis Accords Thursday, July 16, at NASA Headquarters in Washington. NASA/Keegan Barber The Republic of Serbia signed the Artemis Accords Thursday during a ceremony hosted by NASA at the agency’s Headquarters in Washington, becoming the 69th nation to join a large community of like-minded nations committed to the peaceful, transparent, and responsible exploration of space. “Serbia’s connection to NASA reaches back to the Apollo program, when the work of Serbian…

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