Tag: NASA

NASA renames Washington HQ for ‘Hidden Figures’ trailblazer

WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — NASA said Wednesday that it will rename its Washington headquarters after its first black female engineer, Mary Jackson, whose story was told in the hit film “Hidden Figures.” “Mary W. Jackson was part of a group of very important women who helped NASA succeed in getting American astronauts into space,” NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a statement. “Mary never accepted the status quo, she helped break barriers and […]

Weather iffy for SpaceX astronaut launch

WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — Aside from a threat of bad weather, NASA and SpaceX confirmed Monday that everything is all-systems-go for their upcoming rocket launch with two American astronauts. Scheduled for Wednesday, the launch to the International Space Station will be the first US crewed space launch in nine years. “NASA and @SpaceX officials have given the ‘go’ for the launch on a mission that will return human spaceflight to the US,” NASA […]

NASA, SpaceX target historic spaceflight despite pandemic

by Ivan Couronne Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON DC, United States (AFP) NASA and SpaceX said Friday they were pressing ahead with plans to launch astronauts to space from US soil for the first time in nearly a decade later on this month, despite the coronavirus pandemic. Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, both veterans of the Space Shuttle program that was shuttered in 2011, will blast off from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on May […]

NASA suspends work on Moon rocket due to virus

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — NASA said it has suspended work on building and testing the rocket and capsule for its Artemis manned mission to the Moon due to the rising number of coronavirus cases in the community. The space agency is shutting down its Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, where the Space Launch System rocket is being built, and the nearby Stennis Space Center, administrator Jim Bridenstine said late Thursday. “The change at […]

Katherine Johnson, black NASA mathematician, dies at 101

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Katherine Johnson, a ground-breaking black NASA mathematician whose life was portrayed in the movie “Hidden Figures,” died on Monday aged 101, the space agency said. Johnson’s calculations helped put the first man on the Moon in 1969, but she was little known until the Oscar-nominated 2016 movie that told the stories of three black women who worked at NASA. “She was an American hero and her pioneering legacy will never […]

Trembling Mars gives up more seismic secrets

  PARIS, France (AFP) — Mars is a constantly tremoring “living” body, researchers said Monday as they unveiled measurements of seismic activity on the red planet showing similar tremble rates to Earth or the Moon. For 15 months NASA’s InSight robot craft scoured the surface of Earth’s neighbour, and measured hundreds of so-called “Marsquakes”. These included several tremors that contained the same frequency patterns as tremors caused by the movement of Earth’s own tectonic plates. […]

Space explorers wanted: NASA seeks next generation of astronauts

HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — Wanted: The next generation of astronauts to walk on the Moon and journey to Mars. You’ll need a relevant Master’s degree, be prepared to live and work 250 miles (400 kilometers) above Earth on the International Space Station, and be a US citizen. NASA announced Tuesday it was seeking to boost its astronaut corps, which currently stands at 48 active personnel, as part of plans to dramatically expand its crewed […]

US Pres. Trump announces creation of US Space Force for future space wars

  US President Donald Trump announced the creation of the sixth branch of the national armed forces, which is the US Space Force. Trump announced the establishment of the Space Force military branch as he signed a National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA). The announcement was made before the signing ceremony at the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, on Friday. “Today also marks another landmark achievement as we officially inaugurate the newest branch of our military. […]

NASA finds Indian Moon lander with help of amateur space enthusiast

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — India’s Vikram lunar lander, which crashed on its final approach to the Moon’s surface in September, has been found thanks in part to the sleuthing efforts of an amateur space enthusiast. NASA made the announcement on Monday, releasing an image taken by its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) that showed the site of the spacecraft’s impact (September 7 in India and September 6 in the US). A version of the […]

NASA wants international partners to go to Moon too

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — As it looks to return to the Moon, NASA is open to the idea of international participation, which could mean a non-American setting foot on Earth’s natural satellite for the first time in history, global space chiefs said Monday. “I think there’s lots of room on the Moon, and we need all our international partners to go with us to the Moon,” NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine told reporters at the […]

NASA and SpaceX hope for manned mission to ISS in early 2020

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — SpaceX could launch US astronauts to the International Space Station as early as next year if tests on the company’s long-delayed Crew Dragon capsule prove conclusive, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said Thursday. Bridenstine made the announcement as he toured the California headquarters of billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX, a major contractor for NASA. The visit came as Bridenstine and Musk have been engaged in a public spat over the much-delayed […]

What’s that sound? A “Marsquake” heard by NASA

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — NASA on Tuesday released two audio clips of seismic activity on Mars after an “exquisitely sensitive” detector was set down on the planet’s surface late last year. The quakes, far too quiet to be picked up by the human ear, were recorded by the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS) in May and July. Scientists hope that studying how seismic waves move through the planet’s interior will reveal the deep […]