NASA’s Commercial Partners Deliver Cargo, Crew for Station Science

NASA partners with commercial companies to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation of cargo and crew members to and from the International Space Station. A platform for long-duration research in microgravity, the station has operated continuously for more than 23 years, its crew members conducting a broad range of technology demonstrations and thousands of experiments in many scientific fields. Human Transportation NASA’s Commercial Crew Program provides systems capable of carrying astronauts to low Earth orbit and the space station through industry partners who design, build, test, and operate these systems.…

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Work Underway on Large Cargo Landers for NASA’s Artemis Moon Missions

Early conceptual renderings of cargo variants of human lunar landing systems from NASA’s providers SpaceX, left, and Blue Origin, right. Both industry teams have been given authority to begin design work to provide large cargo landers capable of delivering up to 15 metric tons of cargo, such as a pressurized rover, to the Moon’s surface. SpaceX and Blue Origin Under NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency and its partners will send large pieces of equipment to the lunar surface to enable long-term scientific exploration of the Moon for the benefit of…

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NASA to Host a Pair of Briefings for Starliner Crew Flight

NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams prepare for their mission in the company’s Starliner spacecraft simulator at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Credits: NASA/Robert Markowitz NASA will host two media opportunities on Thursday, April 25, in preparation for the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test to the International Space Station. The mission is targeting launch at 10:34 p.m. EDT on Monday, May 6, from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will lift…

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NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara to Discuss Space Station Mission

NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara is pictured inside the cupola aboard the International Space Station. Credit: NASA After spending six-and-a-half-months aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara will participate in a news conference at 10:45 a.m. EDT Monday, April 15, at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. The news conference will air live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms including social media. Media interested in participating in person must contact the…

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Commercial Space Frequently Asked Questions

An orbital sunrise is pictured from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above Shenzhen, China. NASA NASA supports a robust commercial space economy that advances American industry and promotes technological discovery through in-space work and research. American companies will continue to play an essential role in establishing a sustainable presence in space. Answers to frequently asked questions about the low Earth orbit economy, private astronaut missions, and collaborating with NASA’s Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program are located on this page. Low Earth Orbit FAQs What is…

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NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara, Crewmates Return from Space Station

Expedition 70 NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara gives a thumbs up inside the Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft after she, Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy, and Belarus spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya, landed in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, Saturday, April 6, 2024. O’Hara is returning to Earth after logging 204 days in space as a member of Expeditions 69-70 aboard the International Space Station and Novitskiy and Vasilevskaya return after having spent the last 14 days in space. NASA/Bill Ingalls NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara returned to Earth after a six-month…

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NASA Leadership Spotlights Space Sustainability at Space Symposium

NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy gives keynote remarks during the 37th Space Symposium, Tuesday, April 5, 2022, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy and Associate Administrator Jim Free are scheduled to speak at the Space Foundation’s 39th Space Symposium from Tuesday, April 9 through Thursday, April 11 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. During her keynote, “Responsible Exploration: Preserving the Cosmos for Tomorrow,” Melroy will discuss NASA’s integrated approach to foster the long-term sustainability of the space environment at 12:30 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 9.…

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NASA Sets Coverage for Astronaut Loral O’Hara, Crewmates Return

NASA astronaut and Expedition 70 Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara uses a portable glovebag to replace components on a biological printer, the BioFabrication Facility (BFF), that is testing the printing of organ-like tissues in microgravity. NASA Three crew members are scheduled to begin their return to Earth on Friday, April 5, from the International Space Station. NASA will provide live coverage of their departure from the orbital complex and landing. NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara, Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy, and spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya of Belarus will depart from the station’s Rassvet…

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I Am Artemis: Mat Bevill

Mat Bevill, the associate chief engineer for NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) Program, stands in front of a four-segment solid rocket booster that powered the space shuttle at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.  NASA/Brandon Hancock Significant events in history keep finding Mat Bevill. As the associate chief engineer for NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) Program, Bevill assists the program chief engineer by interfacing with each of the element chief engineers and helping make critical decisions for the development and flight of the SLS mega rocket that will…

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NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara, Expedition 70 Science Highlights

4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara is returning home after six months aboard the International Space Station. During her time on the orbiting laboratory, O’Hara contributed to dozens of scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to prepare for future space exploration missions and generate innovations and benefits for humanity on Earth. Here is a look at some of the scientific activities O’Hara conducted during her mission: Biking for Better Health NASA NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara is among the first astronauts participating in…

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