Tag: Entertainment

Helping to search for extraterrestrial life in all the right places, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) systems engineer Bobak Ferdowsi is a crowd favorite when it comes to building robotic spacecraft and solving complex aerospace problems all while sporting a super cool mohawk haircut. Currently, Ferdowsi acts as the Fault Protection lead on the NISAR joint Earth observation mission with India and Europa Clipper’s Mission Planner at NASA’s JPL. Prior responsibilities have included Launch, Cruise, Approach Engineering Lead and Flight Director on Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity and Science Planner on the…

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Today is Towel Day, that officially recognized revelry of rags that breaks out each year on May 25 amid the quirky fandom of author Douglas Adams and his satirical 1979 sci-fi masterpiece, “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.” If you don’t understand all this fuss about towels, don’t panic! We’ve got you covered. This special occasion is meant to honor Adams’ life and the legacy of laughs he left behind in the wake of that most irreverent of all interstellar reference materials,  “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.” The 1979…

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Strap in for a heavy metal romp of interstellar proportions as Netflix’s big budget sci-fi spectacle, “Atlas,” stomps onto the streaming service starting today (May 24).  “Atlas” is directed by Brad Peyton (“San Andreas,” “Rampage”) and stars Jennifer Lopez, Sterling K. Brown, Simu Liu and Mark Strong. Centered around the hunt for a rogue android terrorist named Harlan (Liu) who flees Earth after a devastating attack on humanity, this $100 million action flick features an AI specialist named Atlas Shepherd (Lopez) who insists on joining the seek-and-destroy mission alongside gung-ho…

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Yippee! “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” blows out the candles on its 25th anniversary birthday cake today.  After taking in a screening during its short return to theaters for Star Wars Day week, we can honestly say that this polarizing film still has its problems but honestly elicits enough thrills to warrant a repeat viewing, if only to hear John Williams sweeping musical score and see Ray Park’s acrobatic Darth Maul twirl his double-bladed lightsaber while seething with palpable hatred toward the gallant Jedi Knights.  “Episode 1” landed on May…

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There’s a bum note at London’s Abbey Road Studios. The Beatles are recording their 1963 debut LP as planned, but their music is nothing to (twist and) shout about, and they can’t wait to finish the album and get back to Liverpool. It’s not the Fab Four’s fault, however. In “Doctor Who” episode “The Devil’s Chord”, the malevolent Maestro is sucking all the music out of the world, and even the Doctor may be powerless to stop them. (Need a guide on how to watch Doctor Who? Check out our…

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What do you do for an encore after you have virtually transported thousands of Houstonians to the International Space Station? If you are Felix & Paul Studios, you invite them back to fly to the moon. “Space Explorers: THE INFINITE,” which three years ago made its U.S. premiere in Houston, is now back in Space City for a limited second run. The interactive and immersive experience is again inviting the public to explore a virtual, life-size replica of the International Space Station (ISS), letting them almost feel what it is…

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Everybody loves an invigorating space-based yarn that employs speculative interpretations of historic events — especially if that alternative reality is set within the rough-and-tumble world of “Firefly,” joining Capt. Mal Reynolds and his charismatic crew aboard the spaceship Serenity. Presenting a very different outcome in which the Alliance was defeated and the rebellious Browncoats triumphed in The Unification War 500 years in the future, Boom! Studios and 20th Century Television will release “Firefly: ‘Verses #1” on July 24, 2024.  It’s a special one-shot launched from the iconic “Firefly” universe, written…

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Other than the national tragedy of the Apollo 1 command capsule fire that took the lives of astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chafee on Jan. 27, 1967 during a launch rehearsal at Cape Kennedy, NASA’s darkest hour up to that point occurred 19 years later when the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after launch on Jan. 28, 1986, causing the deaths of all seven astronaut aboard.  Then on Feb. 1, 2003 disaster struck once again after the space shuttle Columbia broke apart during its reentry flight over…

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If you are even a casual space history enthusiast, watching the new trailer for the upcoming movie “Fly Me to the Moon” might leave you thinking that it is an entire work of fiction. And for the most part, you would be correct. As the trailer reveals and Columbia Pictures and Apple Original Films’ synopsis reads, “Fly Me to the Moon” is a “comedy-drama set against the high-stakes backdrop of NASA’s historic Apollo 11 moon landing.” Scarlett Johansson plays the fictional Kelly Jones, a marketing maven who is brought in…

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One of the best ways to stay immersed in the world of “Star Wars” between offerings of feature films, TV series, novels and comics is to clear off the kitchen table and indulge in one of the many trading card games (TCGs) set in the “Star Wars” universe. Fantasy Flight Games has you covered with the recent release of its “Star Wars: Unlimited TCG Spark of Rebellion,” a swiftly-paced battle pack game easily learned and strategically deep. This table-top diversion features iconic heroes, villains, spaceships, vehicles and exotic planets from…

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