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☆ NASA and DARPA plan to test a nuclear-powered rocket that could take humans to Mars in record time
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

NASA aims to test a nuclear-powered rocket within five years, the agency said Tuesday. The space agency aims to put humans on Mars for the first time by the late 2030s. The agency is teaming up with the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to make a rocket that could reach Mars in record time. The agency aims to put humans on Mars, for the first time, by the late 2030s or early 2040s. Transit to Mars using a nuclear-powered rocket could take four months, a lot shorter than the usual nine months for older rocket models, Reuters reported.

☆ Boeing's role in building NASA's new rocket
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

The mobile launcher with NASA's SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft rolls out of the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3 to Launch Complex 39B on Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “I worked over 50 Space Shuttle launches,” Boeing SLS program manager John Shannon told CNN by phone. Though more than 1,000 companies were involved with designing and building SLS, Boeing’s work involved the largest and most expensive portion of the rocket. The SLS rocket ended up flying its first launch more than six years later than originally intended. All of the “major components” for a third SLS rocket are also completed, Shannon added.

☆ Capella Space raises $60 million from fund run by billionaire entertainment exec Thomas Tull
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Michael Sheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

San Francisco-based satellite imagery specialist Capella Space raised $60 million in fresh capital, the company announced on Tuesday. Capella raised the equity from the U.S. Innovative Technology Fund, a recently established private investment vehicle of billionaire Thomas Tull. Capella is the fund's first space investment, Tull told CNBC. The latest raise brings Capella to about $250 million in total equity and debt financing since its founding in 2016.

☆ Twitter keeps confusing rockets for intimate content because of the platform's reliance on machine learning tools, an ex-employee says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter flagged rocket videos from some news accounts as "intimate" and suspended their accounts. The confusion resulted in several Twitter accounts posting about rocket launches getting suspended from the platform. A Twitter account can be suspended when the tools are 95% certain that the post has broken the platform's rules, the former Twitter content moderator added. Similarly, Starbase Watcher said its account was suspended because Twitter claimed that one of its tweets contained intimate content. Previously, an astronomer was locked out of her Twitter account for months after a video of a meteor she posted was flagged as "intimate content," per the BBC.

☆ Pictures of the month: December
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Dave Lucas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

NASA's Orion Capsule is drawn to the well deck of the U.S.S. Portland after it splashed down following a successful uncrewed Artemis I Moon Mission as seen from aboard the U.S.S. Portland in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California, Mexico,...moreNASA's Orion Capsule is drawn to the well deck of the U.S.S. Portland after it splashed down following a successful uncrewed Artemis I Moon Mission as seen from aboard the U.S.S. Portland in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California, Mexico, December 11.

The first full-color image released from the next-generation James Webb Space Telescope is the sharpest infrared image of the distant universe ever produced, according to NASA. Space Telescope Science Institut / NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERONASA released the first batch of images from the tennis court-sized observatory to much fanfare in July. The exoplanet HIP 65426 b in different bands of infrared light, as seen from the James Webb Space Telescope. Back to the moonFifty years after the final Apollo moon mission, NASA took key steps toward returning astronauts to the lunar surface. Chinese officials have also said they intend to use the space station for space tourism and commercial space initiatives.

After a 26-day mission that took it on a historic journey around the moon, NASA’s next-generation Orion capsule has returned to Earth. NASA has touted the Artemis I test flight as laying the foundation for returning U.S. astronauts to the moon. Artemis I was designed to test the Orion capsule and the huge Space Launch System rocket that carries it into orbit. NASA plans two more Artemis test flights before it launches regular missions to the moon to establish a lunar base camp. Artemis II will launch four astronauts in the Orion spacecraft on an expedition around the moon.

☆ NASA’s Artemis I Moon Mission Concludes With Orion Splashdown in the Pacific
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Micah Maidenberg | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Orion spacecraft returned to Earth after a nearly monthlong voyage that took it to orbit the moon, concluding a test flight that the agency deemed a success and helping to reinvigorate its ambitions for deep-space exploration. After facing intense heat when it hurtled through the atmosphere, the Orion crew module—a gumdrop-shaped vehicle that astronauts are expected to travel in during future missions—landed in the Pacific Ocean under parachutes at 12:40 p.m. ET on Sunday, the agency said. The splashdown was west of Baja California in Mexico.

[1/4] NASA's next-generation moon rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion crew capsule, lifts off from launch complex 39-B on the unmanned Artemis 1 mission to the moon, seen from Sebastian, Florida, U.S. November 16, 2022. REUTERS/Joe Rimkus Jr.Dec 11 (Reuters) - NASA's uncrewed Orion capsule hurtled through space on Sunday on the final return leg of its voyage around the moon and back, winding up the inaugural mission of the Artemis lunar program 50 years to the day after Apollo's final moon landing. The gumdrop-shaped Orion capsule, carrying a simulated crew of three mannequins wired with sensors, was due to parachute into the Pacific at 9:39 a.m. PST (1739 GMT) near Guadalupe Island, off Mexico's Baja California peninsula. They were the last of 12 NASA astronauts to walk on the moon during a total of six Apollo missions starting in 1969. "It is our priority-one objective," NASA's Artemis I mission manager Mike Sarafin said at a briefing last week.

☆ NASA's Artemis moon mission ends with splashdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The Artemis I mission — a 25½-day uncrewed test flight around the moon meant to pave the way for future astronaut missions — came to a momentous end as NASA’s Orion spacecraft made a successful ocean splashdown Sunday. That process, much like the rest of the mission, aims to ensure the Orion spacecraft is ready to fly astronauts. Lockheed is NASA’s primary contractor for the Orion spacecraft. The space agency’s plans are to parlay the Artemis moon missions into a program that will send astronauts to Mars, a journey that will have a much faster and more daring reentry process. Artemis II will aim to send astronauts on a similar trajectory as Artemis I, flying around the moon but not landing on its surface.

The Rashid Rover was built by Dubai’s Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and is being delivered by the HAKUTO-R lander, engineered by Japanese lunar exploration company ispace. The Rashid Rover, named after the late Sheikh Rashid Al Saeed, the former ruler of Dubai, will analyze the plasma on the lunar surface and conduct experiments to understand more about lunar dust. The Rashid Rover was built at Dubai's Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre. Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC)The rover will be entirely solar-powered and equipped with four cameras, including a microscopic and thermal one. Al Marzooqi hopes that the lunar surface mission will be a stepping stone to Mars.

☆ NASA's Artemis mission concludes with Orion splashdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The Artemis I mission — a 25½-day uncrewed test flight around the moon meant to pave the way for future astronaut missions — is coming to an end as NASA’s Orion spacecraft is expected to make an ocean splashdown Sunday. Lockheed is NASA’s primary contractor for the Orion spacecraft. The space agency’s plans are to parlay the Artemis moon missions into a program that will send astronauts to Mars, a journey that will have a much faster and more daring reentry process. The Orion capsule captures a view of the lunar surface, with Earth in the background lit in the shape of a crescent by the sun. Artemis II will aim to send astronauts on a similar trajectory as Artemis I, flying around the moon but not landing on its surface.

☆ NASA Prepares for Orion Spacecraft Splashdown to Conclude Artemis I Mission
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Micah Maidenberg | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

NASA’s Artemis moon mission is set to conclude this weekend when the agency attempts to return part of the Orion spacecraft to Earth, a maneuver that will expose the vehicle to intense heat after a nearly monthlong journey. The crew module on the agency’s Orion spacecraft is expected to land under parachutes in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California in Mexico around 12:40 p.m. ET on Sunday, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

☆ It's been 50 years since the last moonwalk. NASA astronauts explain why it took so long.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | Hilary Brueck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The 50th anniversary of the last Apollo astronaut moonwalk is Wednesday. NASA astronauts say it's taking so long to return to the moon because of politics and money. But NASA built Orion to send astronauts back into lunar orbit and, as early as 2025, link up with SpaceX's Starship to land astronauts on the moon. NASA astronaut Victor Glover visits the Space Launch System rocket inside Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building, on July 15, 2021. NASA/Kim ShiflettAs early as 2004, former President George Bush was setting goals to return astronauts to the moon.

☆ Fact Check-Stars not routinely visible in photographs taken from spacecraft due to light exposure on Earth and Moon
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Social media users have claimed that because stars are not routinely visible in photographs taken from spacecraft, space itself is a hoax. One clip that circulated online showed images taken from the Artemis I Orion shuttle with no stars visible. However, the daytime sky on Earth is only blue due to “scattering of light in the Earth’s atmosphere,” Smethurst said. In the case of the Artemis I mission, the settings would be adjusted to focus on the Earth, Moon and the spacecraft itself. This can be tested at home, McCarthy told Reuters, by trying to take a photo of a full moon and stars at the same time.

☆ Full ‘cold moon’ shines bright and eclipses Mars in a rare event
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Taylor Nicioli | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —December’s full moon, also known as the “cold moon,” will shine bright in the night sky this Wednesday, peaking at 11:08 p.m. December 7 also marks the 50th anniversary of NASA’s Apollo 17 mission launch — the last time humans set foot on the moon. Moon observingThe full moon will make its way across the sky starting at sunset. It was the final mission of NASA’s Apollo program and brought the number of humans who have walked on the moon to a grand total of 12. Apollo 17 was the final lunar landing mission in NASA's Apollo program.

☆ Fact Check-Lengthier Artemis I trajectory toward Moon compared to Apollo 11 is not proof that space travel is a hoax
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The Artemis I mission took a different, less direct route toward the Moon compared to the 1969 Apollo 11 mission. The Artemis I lengthier trajectory is not proof of inferior technology, nor is it proof that space travel is a hoax, despite claims made online. Social media users shared a meme claiming to show the number of days it took for the Apollo 11 spacecraft to reach the Moon compared to the November 2022 Artemis I mission. A graphic released by NASA showing the Apollo 11 flight trajectory can be viewed (here), with the Artemis I trajectory viewable (here). “The Apollo 11 mission had a very direct path to a low lunar orbit to deliver the crew to the lunar surface.

☆ NASA’s Orion capsule makes farewell flyby of the moon
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Orion, as NASA’s new space capsule is called, made another pass by the surface of the moon Monday morning, capturing views of notable lunar sites, including a couple Apollo landing sites. The spacecraft then passed just 80 miles (128.7 kilometers) above the lunar surface, its second close flyby of the moon. Orion separated from the rocket after reaching space and has since been on a journey circumnavigating the moon. The NASA Orion capsule captures a view of the "Earth rise" as it emerges from the far side of the moon. All told, the Orion capsule will have traveled more than 1.3 million miles in space.

☆ See photos from the Apollo era like never before
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Since then, Saunders has applied his technique to 400 images from the Apollo program. His book of images, “Apollo Remastered,” was published in September. During his 10,000 hours of working on Apollo images, Saunders set himself another task: solving the case of the missing lunar golf ball. Defying gravityAstronaut Alan Shepard served as the commander of NASA's Apollo 14 lunar landing mission. The late NASA astronaut, known for his zest for life, smuggled a custom 6-iron clubhead and some golf balls to the moon during Apollo 14.

☆ The incredible true story of the time an astronaut played golf on the moon
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

The resulting creation, a Wilson Staff Dyna-Power 6-iron head, was tucked away in Shepard’s space suit for launch, with a few balls hidden in a sock. “Miles and miles and miles,” the jubilant astronaut remarked as the ball sailed out of his view, swallowed by the infinite blackness of space. What does any of that have to do with an astronaut playing golf on the moon? Saunders believed Shepard’s “miles and miles” remark to have been made tongue-in-cheek, an almost instinctive reflex of his hyper-competitive, “fighter-jock” nature. “We always talk about getting to the moon, landing on the moon, returning back to Earth – that’s how we think of the moon,” Odom said.

☆ NASA's Orion capsule heads home on Artemis I moon mission
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The NASA Orion spacecraft, the core of the Artemis I mission, is making a farewell pass by the moon on its historic journey before heading home to Earth. The Orion spacecraft is now expected to take another lap around the moon. That will mark the end of the historic Artemis I mission, which kicked off when the Orion spacecraft launched atop NASA’s new Space Launch System, or SLS, rocket on November 16. If the Artemis I mission is successful, NASA will then look to choose a crew to fly on the Artemis II mission, which could take off as soon as 2024. Read more: The big numbers that make the Artemis I moon mission a monumental feat‘Outstanding’ performanceThe spacecraft’s performance during this mission has been “outstanding,” Howard Hu, the Orion program manager, told reporters Monday evening.

☆ Investing in Space: Moon rising
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Michael Sheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The view of the moon and the Earth from the Orion capsule on Nov. 28, 2022..CNBC's Investing in Space newsletter offers a view into the business of space exploration and privatization, delivered straight to your inbox. Even one of the more difficult stories of this year – the bankruptcy of Masten – was largely about the moon. With NASA's Orion beaming back stunning images of our planet as it whipped by the moon, I spoke to Airbus Ventures partner Lewis Pinault. The next couple years should see a variety of spacecraft and robots sent to the moon. However the future shakes out, it's clear a lunar economy is no longer fiction.

☆ Fact Check-Artemis I capsule entering low-Earth orbit before heading to Moon is not proof of flat Earth
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Artemis I Orion capsule entered low-Earth orbit prior to making a maneuver toward the Moon. Users pointed to the curved trajectory, seemingly moving away from the Moon, as proof that the capsule went off course. Per ESA, a low Earth orbit was done to allow mission control to perform final checks before departing toward the Moon (here). A photo showing the Artemis I Orion capsule flying past the moon in its trajectory is not proof the earth is flat, as online posts say. The spacecraft performed a low Earth orbit before completing a translunar injection toward the Moon.

☆ NASA's Orion spacecraft reaches record-breaking distance from Earth
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The Orion spacecraft, which is at the core of NASA’s historic Artemis I mission, reached its farthest distance from Earth Monday afternoon, shattering the record for the maximum distance a spacecraft designed to carry humans has ever traveled. The space agency confirmed Monday evening that the Orion capsule had reached the midpoint of its uncrewed mission around the moon — about 270,000 miles (434,523 kilometers) from Earth. The Orion capsule is on track to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on December 11. In this image provided by NASA, the Earth and its moon are seen from NASA's Orion spacecraft on Monday. After landing, a NASA recovery ship will be waiting nearby to haul the Orion capsule to safety.

☆ NASA's Artemis I Orion spaceship enters lunar orbit — a critical step toward sending astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

NASA's new Orion spaceship entered orbit around the moon for the first time Friday. If Artemis I succeeds, NASA plans to land astronauts on the moon for the first time since 1972. The new Orion spaceship is on its first lunar flight, a mission called Artemis I, to prove that it can carry astronauts on its next journey around the moon. Aiming for 2025, this new moon landing is just the beginning of NASA's plans to build a permanent base on the moon and set up a new space station in lunar orbit. NASA began building its Orion spaceship in 2005.

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