NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter can be seen here taking off, hovering and then landing on the Martian surface on April 19, 2021. The Mastcam-Z imager aboard NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover shot video of the helicopter’s flight.
Russia is ready to start building its own space station with the aim of launching it into orbit by 2030 if President Vladimir Putin gives the go-ahead, the head of its Roscosmos space agency said on Wednesday. The project would mark a new chapter for Russian space exploration and an end to more than two…
NASA and SpaceX Reschedule Launch for Friday. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting 5:49 a.m. EDT Friday, April 23, for the launch of the agency’s Crew-2 mission to the International Space Station due to unfavorable weather conditions along the flight path on Thursday. Although conditions around the launch site were expected to be favorable for…
NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has emerged from its first night on the surface of Mars. Evening temperatures at Jezero Crater can plunge as low as minus 130 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 90 degrees Celsius), which can freeze and crack unprotected electrical components and damage the onboard batteries required for flight. Surviving that first night after being…
NASA is targeting to fly the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, currently attached to the Perseverance rover’s belly, on Mars on April 8, the first such attempt on another planet. However, before the 4-pound rotorcraft can attempt its first flight, both the mini-helicopter and its team must meet a series of daunting milestones. “The first flight is…
A piece of the Wright brothers’ first airplane is on Mars. NASA’s experimental Martian helicopter holds a small swatch of fabric from the 1903 Wright Flyer, the space agency revealed Tuesday. The helicopter, named Ingenuity, hitched a ride to the red planet with the Perseverance rover, arriving last month. Ingenuity will attempt the first powered,…
NASA’s newest rover recorded audio of itself crunching over the surface of the Red Planet, adding a whole new dimension to Mars exploration. As the Perseverance rover began to make tracks on the surface of Mars, a sensitive microphone it carries scored a first: the bangs, pings, and rattles of the robot’s six wheels as…
Chinese space probe Tianwen-1 has successfully reached Mars and entered a stable orbit around the Red Planet. The spacecraft is expected to deploy a rover to study the planet’s surface in around three months. The probe’s half-year journey to Mars successfully concluded on Wednesday, according to China’s National Space Administration. The Tianwen-1 – ‘Quest for…
SpaceX apparently launched the rocket without FAA approval. “Prior to the Starship SN8 test launch in December 2020, SpaceX sought a waiver to exceed the maximum public risk allowed by federal safety regulations,” an FAA spokesperson said Tuesday. “After the FAA denied the request, SpaceX proceeded with the flight.” The FAA is responsible for licensing…
On Jan. 11, the SpaceX cargo Dragon spacecraft carrying out the company’s 21st commercial resupply services (CRS-21) mission for NASA undocks from the International Space Station, heading for splashdown off the coast of Florida about 12 hours later. This upgraded Dragon transports significantly more science back to Earth than possible in previous Dragon capsules and…
UK Space Companies Occupy Scotland’s Space Sector Description: When it comes to investing in a space company, many developers have their eyes on the Scottish market. With huge economic growth in Scottish space development, there are hopes that the country will use space technology to develop its environmental aims. Despite being a relatively small country,…
The company said, during the test flight, the rocket motor “did not fire due to the ignition sequence not completing”. Following this event, the pilots conducted a safe landing and return to Spaceport America, New Mexico as planned. Virgin Galactic is now conducting post-flight analysis and can so far report that the onboard computer which…