Nasa

SpaceX to launch Europe's Hera to study asteroid surface, structure

SpaceX to launch Europe's Hera asteroid probe that aims to understand the post-impact evaluation in Dimorphos

L&T eyes role in building NASA's successor to International Space Station

After powering ISRO's space missions for more than five decades, India's largest engineering firm Larsen and Toubro has now set its eyes on the international market, particularly the next International Space Station. L&T was earlier in talks with Jeff Bezo's Blue Origin for supplying orbital launch capabilities and space habitat solutions but the negotiations ran into some difficulties. "Some remnants of that discussion continue till today but now with NASA. So, we are also hopeful that when the US requires its next space station, Indian firms will have a role to play in the supply chain," Vikas Khita, Vice President, L&T Precision Engineering and Systems, told PTI. Khita, who was speaking on the sidelines of an industry meet organised by Geospatial World, said the firm was also interested in building space ports, space parks and manufacturing clusters, areas which are expected to get a boost considering the government's opening up of the space sector for private participation

Webb discovers carbon dioxide and hydrogen peroxide on Pluto's largest moon

Nasa's James Webb Space Telescope has discovered traces of carbon dioxide and hydrogen peroxide on Cheron's surface, sparking new interest in Pluto's largest moon

Stuck Nasa astronauts welcome SpaceX capsule that will bring them home

The two astronauts stuck at the International Space Station since June welcomed their new ride home with Sunday's arrival of a SpaceX capsule. SpaceX launched the rescue mission on Saturday with a downsized crew of two astronauts and two empty seats reserved for Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who will return next year. The Dragon capsule docked in darkness high over Botswana as the two craft soared 420 kilometres above Earth. NASA switched Wilmore and Williams to SpaceX following concerns over the safety of their Boeing Starliner capsule. It was the first Starliner test flight with a crew, and NASA decided the thruster failures and helium leaks that cropped up after liftoff were too serious and poorly understood to risk the test pilots' return. So Starliner returned to Earth empty earlier this month. The Dragon carrying NASA's Nick Hague and the Russian Space Agency's Alexander Gorbunov will remain at the space station until February, turning what should have been a weeklong trip

SpaceX launches rescue mission for 2 Nasa astronauts stuck in space

SpaceX launched a rescue mission for the two stuck astronauts at the International Space Station on Saturday, sending up a downsized crew to bring them home but not until next year. The capsule rocketed into orbit to fetch the test pilots whose Boeing spacecraft returned to Earth empty earlier this month because of safety concerns. The switch in rides left it to NASA's Nick Hague and Russia's Alexander Gorbunov to retrieve Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. Since NASA rotates space station crews approximately every six months, this newly launched flight with two empty seats reserved for Wilmore and Williams won't return until late February. Officials said there wasn't a way to bring them back earlier on SpaceX without interrupting other scheduled missions. By the time they return, the pair will have logged more than eight months in space. They expected to be gone just a week when they signed up for Boeing's first astronaut flight that launched in June. NASA ultimately decided that ..

NASA prepares to launch rescue mission for stuck Boeing astronauts

NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are slated to take off inside a SpaceX Crew Dragon

NASA, Boeing, Coast Guard representatives to testify about Titan implosion

Representatives for NASA, Boeing Co. and the US Coast Guard are slated to testify in front of investigators on Thursday about the experimental submersible that imploded en route to the wreckage of the Titanic. OceanGate co-founder Stockton Rush was among the five people who died when the submersible imploded in June 2023. The design of the company's Titan submersible has been the source of scrutiny since the disaster. The Coast Guard opened a public hearing earlier this month that is part of a high level investigation into the cause of the implosion. Some of the testimony has focused on the troubled nature of the company. Thursday's testimony is scheduled to include Justin Jackson of NASA; Mark Negley of Boeing Co.; John Winters of Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound; and Lieutenant Commander Jonathan Duffett of the Coast Guard Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance. Earlier in the hearing, former OceanGate operations director David Lochridge said he frequently clashed with Rush and fel

NASA, SpaceX to launch new crewed mission next week to ISS for 203 days

Nasa astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov plan to launch on the agency's SpaceX Crew-9 mission to ISS next week. Check details

'Spiders on Mars' fully awakened on Earth; scientists at Nasa excited

Bizarre spider-like features on Mars have been recreated on earth for the first time. This could help to unveil several mysteries surrounding the static Martian arachnids

Earth to get second temporary moon for two months? Check details here

Asteroid 2024 PT5 will follow a horseshoe-shaped path for a period of 53 days before returning to a sun-centred path. The event will take place from September 29 and will last till November 25

US charges employee of Chinese aerospace giant for hacking Nasa, military

Song allegedly tried to hack individuals working at major research universities in Georgia and five other states as well as private-sector aerospace companies, according to the statement

Asteroid 2024 ON not hitting earth but its speed concerning, says Nasa

A huge 720-foot asteroid '2024 ON' is expected to approach Earth today. The asteroid will safely pass at a distance of 997,793 km, but its speed is a matter of concern

Tech billionaire Isaacman returns to Earth after first private spacewalk

A billionaire spacewalker returned to Earth with his crew on Sunday, ending a five-day trip that lifted them higher than anyone has travelled since NASA's moonwalkers. SpaceX's capsule splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico near Florida's Dry Tortugas in the predawn darkness, carrying tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, two SpaceX engineers and a former Air Force Thunderbird pilot. They pulled off the first private spacewalk while orbiting nearly 460 miles (740 kilometres) above Earth, higher than the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope. Their spacecraft hit a peak altitude of 875 miles (1,408 kilometres) following Tuesday's liftoff. Isaacman became only the 264th person to perform a spacewalk since the former Soviet Union scored the first in 1965, and SpaceX's Sarah Gillis the 265th. Until now, all spacewalks were done by professional astronauts. During Thursday's commercial spacewalk, the Dragon capsule's hatch was open barely a half-hour. Isaacman emerged only up t

Nasa to establish Lunar Time Standard to set standard time system for Moon

The proposed lunar time standard is to be based on a weighted average of atomic clocks placed on the Moon. It aims to create a standardised time system for the moon

History in making: SpaceX mission crew complete first commercial spacewalk

The crew of four on board SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission soared to a record 1,400 km above Earth - the farthest humans have travelled since the Apollo programme over 50 years ago

Voyaging into eternity: Nasa switches thrusters of probe 24 billion km away

After travelling over 47 years in space, Nasa's Voyager 1 spacecraft thrusters have reportedly been clogged with silicon dioxide impairing its communication with earth

Tech billionaire Isaacman on first private spacewalk from SpaceX capsule

A billionaire kicked off the first private spacewalk Thursday, teaming up with SpaceX on the daring endeavour hundreds of miles above Earth. Tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman and his crew waited until their capsule was depressurised before popping open the hatch. Isaacman was to be the first one out, aiming to join a small elite group of spacewalkers who until now had represented countries. All four on board donned SpaceX's new spacewalking suits to protect themselves from the harsh vacuum. They launched on Tuesday from Florida, rocketing farther from Earth than anyone since NASA's moonwalkers. The orbit was reduced by half to 458 miles (737 kilometres) for the spacewalk. It was the main focus of the five-day flight financed by Isaacman and Elon Musk's company, and the culmination of years of development geared toward settling Mars and other planets. This first spacewalking test, expected to last about two hours, involved more stretching than walking. The plan called for Isaacman

NASA's solar sail spacecraft visible with naked eye. Here's how to spot it

NASA's experimental Advanced Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) can be spotted with the naked eye as it orbits Earth. Here's how you can track it with Nasa's application

Europa Clipper: New NASA mission to explore this icy world is a go

NASA's Europa Clipper mission passed a mission planning milestone, known as Key Decision Point E, on Monday, implying the mission is approved for launch around Thursday, Oct. 10

Is large asteroid Apophis a threat? Isro, Nasa gear up for 2029 encounter

Initially discovered in 2004, Apophis surpasses the size of India's largest aircraft carrier, the INS Vikramaditya, and the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the world's largest cricket stadium