China’s Shenzhou 18 astronauts return to Earth today after 6 months in space

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China’s Shenzhou 18 crew are ready to return home after more than six months in space. Astronauts Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu have been living aboard the Tiangong space station since April 25 this year, but are set to return to Earth on Sunday (Nov. 3) after completing their mission. The trio greeted the incoming Shenzhou 19 crew aboard Tiangong on Oct. 30, meaning China briefly has six astronauts in space. Commander Ye officially handed over the control of the orbital outpost to Shenzhou 19 commander Cai Xuzhe…

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Watch SpaceX Crew-9 astronauts move Crew Dragon spacecraft to new ISS parking spot on Nov. 3

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Four astronauts will relocate a SpaceX spacecraft at the space station on Sunday (Nov. 3), and you can watch the event live. The SpaceX Crew-9 astronauts, including two crew members formerly aboard Boeing Starliner, will move their Crew Dragon at the International Space Station. ISS procedures dictate that all astronauts assigned to a spacecraft climb on board for relocations, on the tiny chance something arises that would force the group to come early back to Earth. Live coverage begins at 6:15 a.m. EST (1315 GMT) courtesy of NASA+, and possibly…

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Space isn’t all about the ‘race’ – rival superpowers must work together for a better future

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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. Art Cotterell is Research Associate at the School of Regulation and Global Governance, Australian National University. In recent years, a new “space race” has intensified between the United States and China. At a campaign rally last weekend, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump invoked this rivalry when declaring the US will “lead the world in space,” echoing Democratic counterpart Vice President Kamala Harris. Meanwhile, the president of China, Xi Jinping, has…

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Black holes that form in ‘reverse Big Bang replays’ could account for dark energy

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Scientists have strengthened the potential connection between dark energy and black holes. New research suggests that as more black holes were born in “little Big Bang reverse replays” in the 14.6 billion-year-old cosmos, the strength of dark energy grew to dominance and continues to change to this day. Dark energy is the placeholder name given to the mysterious force driving the acceleration of the universe’s expansion in its current epoch. It is troubling because scientists have no idea what dark energy is, yet it dominates our universe, accounting for around…

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‘Boo Deng’ steals the show at NASA JPL’s annual pumpkin carving contest (photos)

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Who says NASA scientists and engineers don’t know how to have fun?! Every year the fiendishly clever folks at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California hold their annual pumpkin carving contest where brilliant brains concoct all manner of strange and interesting artworks using a fresh supply of seasonal orange squash to deliver some truly fantastic fabrications. The special judged event is meant to not only celebrate the Halloween holiday, but also the anniversary of the founding of the Jet Propulsion Lab, which was first opened on Oct. 31, 1936…

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China’s Shenzhou 19 astronauts take the reins of Tiangong space station (video)

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China’s Shenzhou 18 crew have passed the keys to the Tiangong space station to its new occupants. The Shenzhou 19 mission launched on a Long March 2F rocket from Jiuquan spaceport in northwest China on Oct. 29 and arrived at the Tiangong space station 6.5 hours later.  Shortly thereafter, at 12:51 a.m. EDT (0451 GMT) on Oct. 30, the hatch between the Shenzhou 19 spacecraft and Tiangong was opened, allowing the three Shenzhou 18 mission astronauts to greet the trio of new arrivals aboard. The formal handover of the station…

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NASA Awards Contract for Refuse and Recycling Services

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Credit: NASA NASA has awarded the Custodial and Refuse/Recycle Services contract to Ahtna Integrated Services LLC  of Anchorage, Alaska, to provide trash, waste, and recycling services at the agency’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. This is a hybrid contract that includes a firm-fixed-price and an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity portion. The period of performance begins Friday, Nov. 1, with a 60-day phase-in period, followed by a one-year base period, and options to extend performance through November 2029. This contract has a maximum potential value of approximately $24 million. Under this contract, the…

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NASA’s New Edition of Graphic Novel Features Europa Clipper

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A new edition of Issue #4 of Astrobiology: The Story of our Search for Life in the Universe has been released to include the NASA Europa Clipper mission. NASA Astrobiology/Aaron Gronstal To celebrate the successful launch of NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, the agency’s Astrobiology program has released a new edition of Issue #4 – Missions to the Outer Solar System – of its graphic history series Astrobiology: The Story of our Search for Life in the Universe. Issue #4 tells the story of the outer solar system, from beyond the…

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From Mars Rovers to Factory Assembly Lines

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) European company apetito uses Neurala’s vision inspection software to ensure the quality of its prepared meals, such as green bean portions pictured here. The software evolved from code Neurala was developing more than a decade ago, with NASA funding, for a rover that could independently learn to traverse Martian terrain. Credit: Neurala Inc. Artificial intelligence software initially designed to learn and analyze Martian terrain is now at the heart of a system to monitor assembly lines on Earth.  The…

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30 Years On, NASA’s Wind Is a Windfall for Studying our Neighborhood in Space

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5 min read 30 Years On, NASA’s Wind Is a Windfall for Studying our Neighborhood in Space An artist’s concept of NASA’s Wind spacecraft outside of Earth’s magnetosphere. NASA Picture it: 1994. The first World Wide Web conference took place in Geneva, the first Chunnel train traveled under the English Channel, and just three years after the end of the Cold War, the first Russian instrument on a U.S. spacecraft launched into deep space from Cape Canaveral. The mission to study the solar wind, aptly named Wind, held promise for…

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