Category: Space Stations

Space stations in orbit or planned

Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 jet flew in front of the sun so NASA could take this incredible shock wave photo

NeRD

NASA and Boom Supersonic just released an incredible photo capturing a shockwave emanating from the dark silhouette of the supersonic XB-1 aircraft while it traveled in front of the sun during a Feb. 10 test flight during which it broke the sound barrier three times. “This image makes the invisible visible — the first American made civil supersonic jet breaking the sound barrier,” Blake Scholl, Boom Supersonic founder and CEO, said in a statement. The photo was no accident. It required ideal conditions and perfect timing. Chief test pilot Tristan…

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There’s a total lunar eclipse coming. How will these 2 solar-powered moon probes survive the darkness?

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When the moon falls into Earth’s shadow Thursday night into Friday (March 13-14), observers will be treated to views of a “blood moon” total lunar eclipse. But given that lunar spacecraft are solar-powered, how do they survive when they’re cut off from the sun? For NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which has been orbiting the moon since 2009, it will be time to batten down the hatches. “LRO’s science instruments and some components not needed by the spacecraft will be powered off during the total lunar eclipse,” Noah Petro, project…

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NASA cutting programs, workforce to comply with Trump order

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NASA will close several offices and reduce its workforce to comply with an executive order from President Donald Trump. NASA‘s Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy will be shuttered, as will the Office of the Chief Scientist, and the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) and Accessibility Branch of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the agency announced in an emailed statement today (March 10). “To optimize our workforce, and in compliance with an Executive Order, NASA is beginning its phased approach to a reduction in force, known as a RIF,”…

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Station Science Top News: March 7, 2025

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Challenges to measuring space-induced brain changes CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut David Saint-Jacques undergoes an MRI for Wayfinding. CSA Researchers found that an upward shift in the brain during spaceflight makes it hard to distinguish different types of tissue, causing errors in determining changes in brain volume. Previous studies have interpreted these changes as evidence of adaptation to space. This finding suggests that unique methods are needed to analyze astronaut brain structure. Wayfinding, a CSA (Canadian Space Agency) investigation, looked at how the brain adapts to space and readapts after…

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Scientists discover simpler way to achieve Einstein’s ‘spooky action at a distance’ thanks to AI breakthrough — bringing quantum internet closer to reality

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Scientists have used AI to discover an easier method to form quantum entanglement between subatomic particles, paving the way for simpler quantum technologies. When particles such as photons become entangled, they can share quantum properties — including information — regardless of the distance between them. This phenomenon is important in quantum physics and is one of the features that makes quantum computers so powerful. But the bonds of quantum entanglement have typically proven challenging for scientists to form. This is because it requires the preparation of two separate entangled pairs,…

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Property and sovereignty in space: Countries and companies face potential clashes as they take to the stars

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This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com’s Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Wayne N White Jr consults with One Space Technologies Inc. He is a member and former Director of The National Space Society and an Associate Fellow of AIAA. Private citizens and companies may one day begin to permanently settle outer space and celestial bodies. But if we don’t enact governing laws in the meantime, space settlers may face legal chaos. Many wars on Earth start over territorial disputes. In order…

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Is there life out there? The existence of other technological species is highly likely

NeRD

We live in a golden age for space exploration. Scientists are gathering massive amounts of new information and scientific evidence at a record pace. Yet the age-old question remains unanswered: are we alone? New telescope technologies, including space-based tools such as the James Webb Telescope, have enabled us to discover thousands of potentially habitable exoplanets that could support life similar to that on Earth. Gravitational wave detectors have opened a new avenue for space exploration by detecting space-time distortions caused by black holes and supernovae millions of light-years away. Commercial…

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Here’s the launch plan for NASA’s SPHEREx and PUNCH missions: ‘Liftoff is just the beginning’

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After more than a week of delays, two new NASA missions have been cleared for liftoff tonight (March 8). The space agency’s SPHEREx and PUNCH missions, which are sharing a ride aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, are scheduled to lift off no earlier than 10:09 p.m. EST (7:09 p.m. PST) tonight from Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The launch, postponed six times over the past week due to technical issues and bad weather, was given the greenlight after a successful launch readiness review on…

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This Week In Space podcast: Episode 151 — In Search of Alien Megastructures

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In Search of Alien Megastructures – With Former NASA Chief Scientist, Dr. Jim Green – YouTube Watch On On Episode 151 of This Week In Space, Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik talk with former NASA Chief Scientist Jim Green about how we can search for technosignatures that might indicate advanced civilizations in other star systems, new ideas on Mars sample return, and his fascinating experience consulting on the movie, “The Martian!” Also: this week’s robotic landings on the Moon — one successful, one partly so; what’s up with the USAF…

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New ‘Starman’ documentary shines light on NASA JPL legend Gentry Lee

NeRD

Gentry Lee, the certified Hall of Famer engineer from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and distinguished science fiction author, is getting his time in the spotlight in a new documentary on his life launching at the SXSW 2025 Film Festival in Austin this weekend. Written and directed by award-winning filmmaker Robert Stone, “Starman” is an 85-minute exploration of Lee’s experience working in the arena of interplanetary exploration as the Chief Engineer for the Solar System Exploration Directorate at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and we’ve got an exclusive clip…

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