‘Lunik Heist:’ A real-life CIA rocket kidnapping goes to Hollywood

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Now in the works is a retro look back in time at a bizarre Cold War caper by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) thanks to a forthcoming, star-studded comedy/drama movie called “Lunik Heist.” Earlier this month, Searchlight Pictures, a Disney-owned division, announced that actors Jared Leto, Lupita Nyong’o, and John Mulaney have signed on to star in “Lunik Heist,” described as a “a wild, roller-coaster ride, filled with subterfuge and unlikely heroes.” The film is based on a real-life incident that saw CIA operatives plot to disassemble and inspect one…

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Last supermoon of 2024 wows skywatchers around the world with Full Beaver Moon (photos)

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The final supermoon of 2024, the Beaver Moon of November, thrilled skywatchers around the world as it ushered in the weekend with a stunning night sky sight. November’s full moon rose on Friday (Nov. 15) while the moon was slightly closer to Earth in its orbit, making it what’s known as a supermoon. These full moons can appear slightly larger in the night sky due to the moon’s proximity to Earth during the full phase. November’s Beaver Moon was the last of four consecutive supermoons this year, a series that…

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USC students set world record with high-flying rocket launch (video)

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The University of Southern California’s student rocketeers have done it again. The USC Rocket Propulsion Lab (USCRPL) — which in 2019 became the first student organization ever to launch a rocket to space — sent its Aftershock II vehicle 470,400 feet (89.09 miles, or 143.38 kilometers) above Earth last month. That smashed the amateur altitude record of 380,000 feet (71.97 miles, or 115.82 km), which was set in 2004 by the Civilian Space Exploration Team. “This achievement represents several engineering firsts,” Ryan Kraemer, the executive engineer of USCRPL and an…

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SpaceX stacks Flight 6 Starship megarocket ahead of Nov. 19 launch (photos)

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SpaceX’s Starship megarocket has come together ahead of its sixth-ever test flight next week. SpaceX has stacked Starship‘s two elements — the Super Heavy booster and Ship upper-stage spacecraft — on the orbital launch mount at its Starbase site in South Texas. The company confirmed the milestone in a Friday night X post, which featured four photos of the stacking process and its aftermath. A fully stacked Starship stands nearly 400 feet (122 meters) tall. (Image credit: SpaceX via X) That post also announced a date change for the flight:…

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What time is SpaceX’s Starship Flight 6 launch test on Nov. 19?

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SpaceX is gearing up to launch its next Starship test flight, a mission that will attempt a second catch of the world’s largest rocket on Tuesday (Nov. 19). But if you’re hoping to watch the launch live online, you’ll need to know when to tune in. Currently, SpaceX’s Starship Flight 6 test flight is scheduled to launch no earlier than Tuesday, Nov. 19, at 5 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) from the company’s Starbase site in South Texas, near Boca Chica Beach. This will be SpaceX’s sixth test flight of a…

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NASA Receives 14th Consecutive ‘Clean’ Financial Audit Opinion

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Credit: NASA For the 14th consecutive year, NASA received an unmodified, or “clean,” opinion from an external auditor on its fiscal year 2024 financial statements. The rating is the best possible audit opinion, certifying that NASA’s financial statements conform with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for federal agencies and accurately present the agency’s financial position. The audit opinion reaffirms the agency’s commitment to transparency in the use of American taxpayers’ dollars. “For the 14th year in a row, NASA has delivered a reliable, accurate, and transparent report of our fiscal operations…

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NASA Goddard Lidar Team Receives Center Innovation Award for Advancements

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NASA researchers Guan Yang, Jeff Chen, and their team received the 2024 Innovator of The Year Award at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for their exemplary work on a lidar system enhanced with artificial intelligence and other technologies. Engineer Jeffrey Chen tests a lidar prototype on the roof of Building 33 at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Chen and his team earned the center’s 2024 Innovator of the Year award for their work on CASALS, a lidar system enhanced with artificial intelligence and…

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Six Ways Supercomputing Advances Our Understanding of the Universe

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At NASA, high-end computing is essential for many agency missions. This technology helps us advance our understanding of the universe – from our planet to the farthest reaches of the cosmos. Supercomputers enable projects across diverse research, such as making discoveries about the Sun’s activity that affects technologies in space and life on Earth, building artificial intelligence-based models for innovative weather and climate science, and helping redesign the launch pad that will send astronauts to space with Artemis II.  These projects are just a sample of the many on display in…

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Terms of Service NASA’s…

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Terms of Service NASA’s “MISSION: All Systems GO!” Participant Terms and Conditions NASA’s MISSION: All Systems GO! is a set of images, videos, certificates and related materials (the “Materials”) intended for use by healthcare providers to assist in reducing the anxieties of children and other patients facing difficult treatment protocols for cancer and other maladies by comparing their challenges with those of NASA astronauts about to embark on a mission to space. BY UTILIZING NASA’S MISSION: ALL SYSTEMS GO! MATERIALS, THE PARTICIPANT (YOU) AGREES TO THE FOLLOWING TERMS AND CONDITIONS:…

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Two Years Ago: Artemis I Launch

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NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launched on the Artemis I flight test, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, from Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s Artemis I mission was the first integrated flight test of the agency’s deep space exploration systems.

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