NASA tests advanced new Mars rover prototype in the California desert (video)

NeRD

A new rover prototype is teaching NASA scientists how to design robots that can think for themselves and navigate terrain that would leave old rovers stuck in the lunar or Martian dust. The Exploration Rover for Navigating Extreme Sloped Terrain (ERNEST), developed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, recently completed a 16-mile (26 kilometers) trek through the desert in Southern California. The journey took more than 37 hours of driving time over the course of seven days, and ERNEST completed it almost entirely autonomously, “with minimal intervention” from engineers monitoring the…

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He-Man and beyond: 20 sci-fi cartoons (some iconic, some weird) that transported ’80s and ’90s kids to strange new worlds

NeRD

Kids who grew up in the ’80s and ’90s couldn’t enjoy the massive selection of live-action sci-fi TV available right now. With the biggest out-of-this-world adventures likely to be found in theaters, many of the most memorable — and undoubtedly the weirdest — concepts tended to be found in Saturday morning cartoons. This is a realm of exposition-heavy opening credits, relentlessly earwormy theme tunes, and heroes who, for no obvious reason, choose to hang out with cute/annoying [delete as appropriate] comedy sidekicks like Orko and Snarf. The massive success of…

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10 best Spanish cities to see the total solar eclipse 2026

NeRD

For the Aug. 12, 2026, total solar eclipse, Spain’s great cities will be pulling in eclipse-chasers from across Europe, but not every famous destination is equally well placed. In Barcelona and Madrid, the eclipse is a near miss — dramatic on paper, yet ultimately disappointing. Madrid gets a 99.96% partial eclipse, which means no totality, so no corona, no twilight sky and no plunge in temperature. Cue a mass exodus from Spain’s two biggest cities in search of totality. To experience a total solar eclipse, you need to be inside…

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This Week In Space podcast: Episode 217 — America in Space

NeRD

America in Space – 250 Years of Bold Firsts & Our Favorite Missions! – YouTube Watch On On Episode 217 of This Week In Space, Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik discuss the progression of American space efforts. Since 1958, the United States has been part of the spaceflight adventure, and since the mid-1960s has led in just about any category that counts. In this episode, we review which flights launched or landed on July 4, and relive some of our very favorite US space missions of all time! Download or…

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Human flight was still 7 years away in 1776. Now, we’re headed back to the moon

NeRD

Humanity has likely dreamed of flight since the very beginning, marveling at birds soaring overhead and trying to puzzle out their seemingly magical secret. We made some halting steps over the centuries — getting kites aloft in ancient China, for example, and drawing up ambitious but unrealized flying machines during the Renaissance — but our boots were still firmly rooted on the ground when the United States of America was born on July 4, 1776. Things changed just a few years later, however. In November 1783, a hot-air balloon designed…

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NASA’s Hubble Spies Stellar Sparkler for July 4th

NeRD

Explore Hubble Hubble Home Overview About Hubble The History of Hubble Hubble Timeline Why Have a Telescope in Space? Hubble by the Numbers At the Museum FAQs Impact & Benefits Hubble’s Impact & Benefits Science Impacts Cultural Impact Technology Benefits Impact on Human Spaceflight Astro Community Impacts Science Hubble Science Science Themes Science Highlights Science Behind Discoveries Universe Uncovered Hubble’s Partners in Science Hubble & Citizen Science AI & Hubble Science Explore the Night Sky Observatory Hubble Observatory Hubble Design Mission Operations Science Operations Astronaut Missions to Hubble Hubble vs…

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How to find Uranus this week, the hardest planet I’ve ever tried to see

NeRD

I used to think Uranus was the sort of planet you graduated into. Saturn and its rings first, obviously. Jupiter and its cloud bands soon after that. Venus, if it’s shrinking to a crescent (which it soon will be), and, of course, Mars and its ice caps. But Uranus? The seventh planet feels like something reserved for people with huge telescopes, expensive eyepieces and incredibly lucky atmospheric seeing. It may be considered an ice giant planet, but it’s almost four times farther from the sun than Jupiter and twice as…

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As ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ turns 35, it’s time to accept the truth: Terminator shouldn’t be back

NeRD

For a franchise where the main hook is time travel, “Terminator” probably wishes it could take us back in time… or just borrow the neuralyzer from “Men in Black” to wipe everybody’s mind after everything post-1991. Now, as “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” turns 35 this month, we think it’s time to call it: Terminator shouldn’t be back. The decline of the “Terminator” franchise might be one of the greatest falls from grace ever seen in cinema. The first two movies established themselves as genre classics, combining heart-stopping action with futuristic…

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Could humans someday explore Saturn’s moon Titan, or will humanoid robots do it for us?

NeRD

BOULDER, Colorado – Humans have been exploring outer space since April 1961 with the pioneering flight of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. Today, several nations are making new plans to launch human beings back to the moon, then onward to Mars and perhaps beyond. But will that pursuit be short-circuited by the fast-paced merger of artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced humanoid robots? That proposition was broached during a Humans to Titan Summit, held here June 11-12, a first-time event attended by specialists seeking to send astronauts to Titan, Saturn’s largest moon.…

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NASA’s Hubble Captures Crimson Cloud Sparkling with White, Blue Stars

NeRD

Explore Hubble Hubble Home Overview About Hubble The History of Hubble Hubble Timeline Why Have a Telescope in Space? Hubble by the Numbers At the Museum FAQs Impact & Benefits Hubble’s Impact & Benefits Science Impacts Cultural Impact Technology Benefits Impact on Human Spaceflight Astro Community Impacts Science Hubble Science Science Themes Science Highlights Science Behind Discoveries Universe Uncovered Hubble’s Partners in Science Hubble & Citizen Science AI & Hubble Science Explore the Night Sky Observatory Hubble Observatory Hubble Design Mission Operations Science Operations Astronaut Missions to Hubble Hubble vs…

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