Tag: Missions

NASA Updates Coverage for Boeing’s Starliner Launch, Docking

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Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner crew ship approaches the International Space Station on the company’s Orbital Flight Test-2 mission before automatically docking to the Harmony module’s forward port. NASA will provide live coverage of prelaunch and launch activities for the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test, which will carry NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to and from the International Space Station. Launch of the ULA (United Launch Alliance) Atlas V rocket and Boeing Starliner spacecraft is targeted for 12:25 p.m. EDT Saturday, June 1, from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral…

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NASA to Provide Coverage of Progress 88 Launch, Space Station Docking

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The Progress 85 cargo craft is seen shortly after undocking from International Space Station on Feb. 12 as it was orbiting 260 miles above the Pacific Ocean. NASA will provide live launch and docking coverage of a Roscosmos cargo spacecraft carrying about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 71 crew aboard the International Space Station. The unpiloted Progress 88 spacecraft is scheduled to launch at 5:43 a.m. EDT (2:43 p.m. Baikonur time) Thursday, May 30, on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Live…

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Hubble Captures a Bright Spiral in the Queen’s Hair

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2 min read Hubble Captures a Bright Spiral in the Queen’s Hair This Hubble Space Telescope image showcases the bright spiral galaxy NGC 4689. ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Thilker, J. Lee, and the PHANGS-HST Team This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows the jewel-bright spiral galaxy NGC 4689, which lies 54 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Coma Berenices. This constellation has the distinction of being the only one of the 88 constellations officially recognized by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) as one named after the historical figure, Queen…

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Asteroid-bound Psyche spacecraft fires up ion thrusters, starts cruising through space

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NASA’s mission to the metal-rich asteroid 16 Psyche has fired up its ion engines and is now cruising across the solar system under the power of solar-electric propulsion. The launch of the spacecraft, which is also called Psyche, on October 13, 2023 gave it enough of an initial boost to take it across more than 190 million miles (300 million kilometers) of space, which is beyond the orbit of Mars.  Now, however, its onboard ion engines have taken over the job of acceleration. They work by converting sunlight into electricity…

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NASA, Mission Partners to Discuss Starliner Crew Flight Test Progress

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A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft aboard is seen as it is rolled out of the Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41. Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky As NASA, Boeing, and ULA (United Launch Alliance) continue to evaluate a path toward launching the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test, they will host a joint media teleconference at 11 a.m. EDT Friday, May 24. The agency is working toward a launch at 12:25 p.m., Saturday, June 1, for the first crewed flight…

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Euclid ‘dark universe’ telescope team will unveil new full-color images on May 23: How to watch live

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The European Space Agency (ESA) will release five new images from the Euclid space telescope on Thursday (May 23). And, well, if the previous set of pictures is anything to go by — space fans should be in for an absolute treat. “Five new portraits of our cosmos were captured during Euclid’s early observations phase, each revealing amazing new science,” ESA officials said in a statement. “Euclid’s ability to unravel the secrets of the cosmos is something you will not want to miss.” The new images will be revealed at…

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Welcome Back to Planet Earth, Expedition 70 Crew! 

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On May 16, 2024, a crowd of more than 500 people gathered at Space Center Houston’s IMAX theater for the Expedition 70 crew debrief and awards ceremony. Crew members from NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 and Soyuz MS-24 missions shared reflections from their voyage aboard the International Space Station and bestowed well-deserved recognition upon Johnson Space Center employees and partners whose dedication and support contributed to the expedition’s success.  A group photo of participants from the Expedition 70 crew debrief and awards ceremony on May 16, 2024, at Space Center Houston’s IMAX theater. Credit: NASA/David…

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Hubble Views Cosmic Dust Lanes

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2 min read Hubble Views Cosmic Dust Lanes This Hubble Space Telescope image showcases a nearly edge-on view of the lenticular galaxy NGC 4753. ESA/Hubble & NASA, L. Kelsey Featured in this new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is a nearly edge-on view of the lenticular galaxy NGC 4753. Lenticular galaxies have an elliptical shape and ill-defined spiral arms. This image is the object’s sharpest view to date, showcasing Hubble’s incredible resolving power and ability to reveal complex dust structures. NGC 4753 resides around 60 million light-years from…

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NASA Earns Best Place to Work in Government for 12 Straight Years

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2023 image capturing the Sun’s glint in between a cloudy stretch of the south Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Argentina. Credits: NASA NASA was named Thursday as the 2023 Best Place to Work in the Federal Government – large agency – for the 12th year in a row by the Partnership for Public Service. The title serves as a reflection of employee satisfaction with the workplace and functioning of the overall agency as NASA explores the unknown and discovers new knowledge for the benefit of humanity. “Once again, NASA…

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NASA, European Space Agency Unite to Land Europe’s Rover on Mars

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NASA’s Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate Nicky Fox and ESA’s Director of Human and Robotic Exploration Daniel Neuenschwander sign an agreement on the Rosalind Franklin mission at ESA’s headquarters in Paris, France on May 16, 2024. Credits: ESA/Damien Dos Santos NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) announced Thursday they signed an agreement to expand NASA’s work on the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover, an ESA-led mission launching in 2028 that will search for signs of ancient life on the Red Planet. With this memorandum of understanding, the NASA Launch…

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