Saturn IB rocket no longer safe to keep standing at Alabama rest stop

A roadside rocket display that for more than 40 years has stood as a welcome sign for drivers entering the state of Alabama is no longer safe to be left standing and should now be replaced, according to NASA and the museum charged with its care. Officials at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center and the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville have decided that the Saturn IB rocket erected in 1979 (opens in new tab) at the Ardmore Welcome Center in Elkmont needs to be replaced. More than…

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Classified Chinese satellite releases small object in orbit

A classified Chinese technology verification satellite that launched earlier this month has apparently  released an object into orbit alongside it. China launched (opens in new tab) Shijian 23 on a Long March 7A rocket on Jan. 8, sending the satellite into an initial transfer orbit to reach its intended geostationary orbit (GEO), around 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth. Data released by the U.S. Space Force‘s 18th Space Defense Squadron (18 SDS), which focuses on space domain awareness, shows that Shijian 23 reached geosynchronous orbit around Jan. 15, drifting toward…

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SpaceX fuels up fully stacked Starship vehicle for 1st time ever (video)

SpaceX fueled up a fully stacked Starship for the first time ever on Monday (Jan. 23), notching a huge milestone on the path toward the vehicle’s debut orbital flight. Elon Musk‘s company conducted a “wet dress rehearsal” with the 395-foot-tall (120 meters) Starship Monday at its Starbase facility in South Texas, running through many of the procedures it will perform on launch day. The to-do list included loading liquid oxygen and liquid methane propellant into the vehicle’s Super Heavy first stage and Starship upper stage, which SpaceX stacked together on…

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Save $80 on the Ultimate Collector Series Lego Millennium Falcon set

If you’ve ever wanted or been tempted by the Lego Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series Millennium Falcon, now is the time to get it as it’s currently $80 off on Amazon.  That’s right, you can now make the jump to hyperspace with an $80 discount (opens in new tab) and bag yourself one of, if not the ultimate Lego set for any Star Wars fan or collector. The sheer number of pieces alone make it one of the best Lego Star Wars sets on the market and you can take…

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Google celebrates Lunar New Year 2023 with Year of the Rabbit doodle

A new lunar new year is hopping off to a great start and Google is marking the occasion with a series of Google doodles.  The Lunar New Year 2023 began today (Jan. 22) marking the start of the Year of the Rabbit on the lunar calendar, with Google celebrating with an ornate stylized logo with the company’s name inside a hopping rabbit.  “After the first new moon of the Lunar calendar each year, communities around the world set up decorations, make festive food and gather with loved ones to usher…

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