NASA Selects Two Teams to Advance Life Sciences Research in Space 

3 min read NASA Selects Two Teams to Advance Life Sciences Research in Space  NASA announced two awards Thursday to establish scientific consortia – multi-institutional coalitions to conduct ground-based studies that help address the agency’s goals of maintaining a sustained human presence in space. These consortia will focus on biological systems research in the areas of animal and human models, plants, and microbiology. When fully implemented, the awards for these consortia will total about $5 million.  Space biology efforts at NASA use the unique environment of space to conduct experiments…

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The best 90s sci-fi movies

The 1990s was a time of firsts in the sci-fi genre – the beginnings of much-loved franchises, an exploration of new technologies, and a chance for directors to create new worlds like never before. It was a decade of risk-taking and trendsetting that still to this day continues to inspire the movie landscape from reboots to remakes, to sequels and prequels. Whether they’ve been successful or not, there’s no doubt that the 1990s most certainly thrived.  Big A-List stars were invested in the genre, much like the best 80s sci-fi…

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Imagining the Future

An unidentified illustration of NASA’s space shuttle. The space shuttle fleet flew 135 missions and helped construct the International Space Station between the first launch on April 12, 1981 and the final landing on July 21, 2011. There were five orbiters: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour.

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Iowa Students to Connect with NASA Astronaut Aboard Space Station

NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Nick Hague in the space station cupola. (Credit: NASA) Students from Iowa will have the opportunity to hear NASA astronaut Nick Hague answer their prerecorded questions while he’s serving an expedition aboard the International Space Station on Monday, Oct. 21. Watch the 20-minute space-to-Earth call at 11:40 a.m. EDT on NASA+. Students from Iowa State University in Ames, First Robotics Clubs, World Food Prize Global Youth Institute, and Plant the Moon teams will focus on food production in space. Learn how to watch…

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NASA Pilots Add Perspective to Research

4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA pilots Nils Larson and Wayne Ringelberg head for a mission debrief after flying a NASA F/A-18 at Mach 1.38 to create sonic booms as part of the Sonic Booms in Atmospheric Turbulence flight series at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California, to study sonic boom signatures with and without the element of atmospheric turbulence. NASA/Lauren Hughes NASA research pilots are experts on how to achieve the right flight-test conditions for experiments and the tools needed for successful…

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Navigating Space and Sound: Jesse Bazley Supports Station Integration and Colleagues With Disabilities

A salute is widely recognized as a display of respect, but did you know it also means ‘hello’ in American Sign Language? It is one of the signs that Jesse Bazley, International Space Station/Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program integration team lead, subtly incorporates into his daily interactions with colleagues at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. In May 2021, Jesse Bazley worked his final shift as an Environmental and Thermal Operating Systems flight controller in the Mission Control Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Image courtesy of…

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A 21st-century moon suit: Axiom Space’s lunar spacesuit sports 4G comms, Prada looks and Oakley visors for Artemis astronauts

MILAN — If you’re going to team up with Prada for a 21st-century moon suit, it only makes sense to unveil it in one of the fashion capitals of the world. Axiom Space and Prada revealed the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) spacesuit in a press conference held at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) here today (Oct. 16). AxEMU will be used for NASA’s Artemis 3 mission, which is currently scheduled to launch in late 2026. It has been specially designed for the lunar south pole, which will be a…

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The View from Space Keeps Getting Better  

2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Farms in California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta face strict reporting requirements for water usage because the delta supplies most of the state’s freshwater. This Landsat image uses infrared wavelengths to depict vegetation. Credit: U.S. Geological Survey The 30-acre pear orchard in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta has been in Brett Baker’s family since the end of the Gold Rush. After six generations, though, California’s most precious resource is no longer gold – it’s water. And most of the state’s…

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When will Boeing’s Starliner fly astronauts again? NASA still doesn’t know

NASA is still unsure when it will next put astronauts on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, which experienced issues during its first crewed test flight this summer. Starliner‘s next “potential” crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2025 “will be determined once a better understanding of Boeing’s path to system certification is established,” NASA officials wrote in a statement on Tuesday (Oct. 15). NASA and Boeing are still reviewing the requirements for Starliner’s certification, after propulsion problems arose on the first test flight with astronauts, which launched on June 5,…

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US and China will need to discuss moon mission plans, NASA chief predicts

MILAN — NASA and China will need to discuss exchanges of data and mission plans as the two sides move to build sustainable presences on the moon, according to the NASA administrator.  NASA chief Bill Nelson met with the press at the 75th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) here on Tuesday (Oct. 15), addressing questions related to the agency’s Artemis program. Both NASA, with Artemis, and China, with its International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), are working to get astronauts to the moon and to build lunar infrastructure to support repeated and…

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