Experience the Launch of NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test Mission  

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From left, NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) pilot and commander, respectively, exit the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a crew validation test on Oct. 18, 2022. The astronauts, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. NASA/Kim Shiflett Digital content creators are invited to register to…

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Studying Arctic Ice

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NASA/Kathryn Hansen In this image from July 12, 2011, crew from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy retrieve a supply canister dropped by parachute during the Impacts of Climate on Ecosystems and Chemistry of the Arctic Pacific Environment, or ICESCAPE, mission. ICESCAPE was a multi-year project sponsored by NASA to determine the impact of climate change upon the health of the Arctic Ocean. The bulk of the research took place in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas in summer 2010 and 2011. See more photos from this mission. Image Credit: NASA/Kathryn…

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Scientists create 5 new isotopes to learn how neutron star collisions forge gold

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Researchers have synthesized five new isotopes that could help bring the stars down to Earth — and coax scientists a step closer to understanding how collisions between ultra-dense, dead stars could create heavy elements like gold and silver.  The isotopes are Thulium-182, thulium-183, ytterbium-186, ytterbium-187 and lutetium-190; this is the first time they’ve been ever been synthesized on Earth. Their creation took place at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) at Michigan State University (MSU) and represents a step towards building atoms on Earth that are typically only created…

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Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander is aiming for a crater near the moon’s south pole. Here’s why

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Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus mission is targeting touch down near the moon’s south pole this week for a historic lunar landing.  The Nova-C lunar lander, named Odysseus, was built by the Houston-based company Intuitive Machines and launched to the moon atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Feb. 15 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission, known as IM-1, is scheduled to touchdown on the moon on Thursday (Feb. 22), at 5:49 p.m. EST (2249 GMT) in a region near the lunar south pole. If all goes according to…

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Stellar Beads on a String

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Galaxy cluster SDSS J1531+3414 X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/O. Omoruyi et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI/G. Tremblay et al.; Radio: ASTRON/LOFAR; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk Astronomers have discovered one of the most powerful eruptions from a black hole ever recorded in the system known as SDSS J1531+3414 (SDSS J1531 for short). As explained in our press release, this mega-explosion billions of years ago may help explain the formation of a striking pattern of star clusters around two massive galaxies, resembling “beads on a string.” SDSS J1531 is a massive galaxy cluster containing hundreds of individual galaxies and huge reservoirs of hot gas and dark…

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NASA Sets Coverage of First US Uncrewed Commercial Moon Landing

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Intuitive Machines is targeting Thursday, Feb. 22, for the landing of their Odysseus lunar lander on the surface of the Moon as part of NASA’s CLPS initiative and Artemis campaign. Intuitive Machines As part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign, Intuitive Machines is targeting no earlier than 5:49 p.m. EST Thursday, Feb. 22, to land their Odysseus lunar lander near Malapert A in the South Pole region of the Moon. Live landing coverage will air on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s…

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NASA Tech Tuesday: Seeing is Communicating

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5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) When a physical condition limits mobility, getting around is easier with EyeGaze Edge. The eye-tracking technology integrates with the Ability Drive application used with motorized mobility devices, enabling hands-free control of a wheelchair’s motion. Credit: EyeGaze Inc. Communicating when a traumatic brain injury, stroke, or disease has made speech impossible can be daunting. Specialized eye-tracking technology uses eye movement to enable people living with disabilities to connect one-on-one, over the phone, or via the internet. Eye-tracking systems for computers…

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Annual Highlights of Results 2023: Introduction and Analyses

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After 25 years of international collaboration operating the largest and most technologically advanced laboratory in low Earth orbit, the current decade of research results has seen thousands of researchers around the world completing their investigations, analyzing their data, and publishing their findings. Through close examination of station client feedback obtained since 2002, station program managers, administration personnel, and technical staff have improved their processes and software tools to enhance communication with research teams for better in-flight data collection and sample return. These refinements affect experiment results and the conclusions researchers…

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2023 Annual Highlights of Results from the International Space Station

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The 2023 Annual Highlights of Results from the International Space Station is now available. This new edition contains bibliometric analyses, a list of all the publications documented in fiscal year 2023, and synopses of the most recent and recognized scientific findings from investigations conducted on the space station. These investigations are sponsored by NASA and all international partners – CSA (Canadian Space Agency), ESA (European Space Agency), JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and the State Space Corporation Roscosmos (Roscosmos) – for the advancement of science, technology, and education. These new…

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Everything we know about ‘3 Body Problem’

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2024 looks like a great year for science fiction. Adding to the geeky thrills this year is “3 Body Problem,” an 8-episode, prestige-level adaptation for the debut book of the “Remembrance of Earth’s Past” novel series, a New York Times bestselling sci-fi trilogy from Chinese author Cixin Liu and arriving on Netflix beginning Mar. 21, 2024.  This acclaimed series is an epic examination of Earth’s inhabitants as they incite, anticipate, prepare for, and endure an extraterrestrial invasion. Netflix’s big-budget sci-fi project from the creators of HBO’s medieval fantasy sensation “Game…

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