Orion Heat Shield at KSC: Orion heat shield arrives at Kennedy Space Center The heat shield for the late 2018 test flight of NASA’s Orion crew exploration capsule is now at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center launch site for integration. The upcoming uncrewed test flight, Exploration Mission-1, will send Orion around the moon and back to Earth… [Continue Reading]
Tool Competition for ISS: Design a 3-D Printed Tool for Astronauts to Use Aboard the Space Station The ISS Design Challenge, sponsored by Mouser Electronics, offers an opportunity for college students to suggest tools for International Space Station astronauts. Top concepts could be manufactured with 3-D printing hardware aboard the six person orbiting science laboratory…. [Continue Reading]
NASA Authorization Bill: Senate panel authorizes money for Mars mission, shuttle replacement In a bid to stabilize the nation’s civil space endeavors across a transition in U.S. presidential administrations, the Senate Commerce Committee has passed a bipartisan measure that authorizes a $19.5 billion 2017 budget to continue work on a human Mars mission and efforts… [Continue Reading]
Clinton and Trump on Space: Clinton supports human Mars exploration Presidential contender Hillary Clinton pledged support for the human exploration of Mars in response to a questionnaire from ScienceDebate.org. Clinton did not elaborate on possible changes to current strategy that calls for a human presence in the Martian environs by the mid-2030s. Rival Donald Trump expressed… [Continue Reading]
Habitats for Deep Space Exploration: NASA announces aerospace partners for its deep space habitats NASA increases to six the number of U.S. companies the agency is partnering with to develop a habitat for astronauts assigned to months- to years-long missions to Mars. The habitat would fly in lunar orbit with astronauts during the 2020s to… [Continue Reading]
Boeing’s Starliner: Boeing starts assembly of 1st flightworthy Starliner crew taxi vehicle at Kennedy spaceport Coming together at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner could begin transporting astronauts to and from the International Space Station in early 2018. The program is part of NASA’s strategy to focus on… [Continue Reading]
Heat Shield Installation on Orion: Installation of heat-shielding tiles marks new phase for Orion spacecraft The NASA/Lockheed Martin Orion crew capsule designated for a late 2018 test flight, Exploration Mission-1, is undergoing heat shield installation at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The uncrewed capsule is to launch atop the first Space Launch System exploration… [Continue Reading]
Clinton Highlights SLS Rocket: NASA’s Space Launch System referenced by Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton spoke on Thursday (August 11) during a campaign event held at Futuramic, a small business manufacturing facility that works with the military, automotive and space industries. Futuramic is a NASA Space Launch System (SLS) supplier…. [Continue Reading]
Chinese Space Activity: Is China militarizing space? Experts say new junk collector could be used as anti-satellite weapon China celebrated the inaugural launch of its new Long March 7 workhorse launch vehicle last weekend. Among the multiple payloads was Aolong-1, or Roaming Dragon. Equipped with a robot arm, Roaming Dragon was designated to remove orbital space… [Continue Reading]
Dream Chaser: Sierra Nevada’s Dream Chaser to provide access to space for countries worldwide U nder a memorandum of understanding with the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, Sierra Nevada’s reusable Dream Chaser spacecraft will offer access to orbital space for member states that desire to conduct experiments. Sierra Nevada announced the agreement on… [Continue Reading]