Tag: NASA
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Lego deploys Hubble Space Telescope as detailed desktop model
For 35 years, the Hubble Space Telescope has looked out into the Universe. Now, Lego is inviting builders to look inward with its latest model of the orbiting observatory. The new Lego Icons Hubble Space Telescope (set no. 11382) was released on August 1 for $140 at the toy company’s stores and its online shop.…
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Intuitive Machines Closes Goonhilly and COMSAT Deals, Adding Ground Stations Ahead of IM-3 and Altus-1
The Company had previously integrated Goonhilly’s ground station capabilities into its IM-1 and IM-2 missions. It now intends to leverage the expanded network and the Goonhilly ground system for IM-3 and Altus-1. IM-3, part of NASA’s CLPS initiative, returns Intuitive Machines to the Moon for the third time, while Altus-1, executed under the Company’s Near…
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NASA Ships Shoebox-Sized Navigation Payload to Intuitive Machines for First Lunar Relay Satellite
Altus-1 is the first of a planned network of lunar relay satellites being developed under Intuitive Machines’ Near Space Network Services contract with NASA. The relays are designed to provide communications and navigation support for missions at the Moon, including the challenging lunar South Pole region where Artemis astronauts will land in 2028 and where…
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Here’s how engineers plan to save the satellite sent to save NASA’s Swift mission
One week ago, more than 200 miles above the Earth, a refrigerator-size satellite making its way toward an attempted rescue of NASA’s $500 million Swift gamma-ray observatory suddenly spun out of control. It didn’t look good. The spacecraft, named Link, was rotating on multiple axes, rendering it unable to maintain a reliable communications link with…
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Spent Falcon 9 Stage Set to Strike the Moon on August 5, Offering a Live Test for Impact Science
The stage is a leftover from the launch that carried Firefly’s Blue Ghost-1 lander to the moon on January 15, 2025. That same flight also carried the Hakuto-R Mission 2 lander, called Resilience, developed by the Japanese company ispace. An international team led by William Jo, a graduate research assistant at the University of Texas,…
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Actually, Starliner might fly into space this year
When we last checked in on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in February, NASA was announcing that it had formally classified the 2024 crewed flight of the Starliner spacecraft as a “Type A” mishap, an acknowledgement that the test flight was a serious failure. At the time, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the space agency was working with…
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Boeing Says Starliner Redesign Progressing, Cargo Flight Possible This Year
In February, NASA formally designated the 2024 crewed flight a “Type A” mishap, an acknowledgement of a serious failure. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the agency was working with Boeing to fully understand and remediate the risks associated with the spacecraft, and stated that Starliner would not fly its next mission, a cargo flight to…
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NASA Administrator Pushes Moon Base Urgency After 90-Day Hardware Sprint
The memo described a sprint launched earlier this year at Kennedy Space Center, where engineering teams were challenged to evaluate what Moon Base hardware could be produced on an accelerated schedule. The stated goal was to challenge legacy processes, clear obstacles, and rapidly deliver flight-ready lunar hardware. The exercise emphasized a production-first approach built around…
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Psyche Nails Mars Gravity Assist, Puts Instruments to the Test Ahead of 2029 Asteroid Arrival
The encounter served two purposes. The gravitational boost adjusted Psyche’s path and increased its speed, and the well-mapped planet acted as a practice target for the tools that will eventually investigate the asteroid. Data returned after the flyby showed the instruments performed as expected and matched established knowledge about Mars, while adding several observations from…
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Roman Space Telescope Set for August 30 Falcon Heavy Launch, Eight Months Ahead of Schedule
The mission aims to study dark energy, dark matter, and new cosmic phenomena by imaging millions of galaxies, billions of stars, and thousands of supernovae. The August 30 date is eight months ahead of schedule. The telescope is named for Nancy Grace Roman, NASA’s first chief astronomer, credited as the “mother” of the Hubble telescope,…