Tag Archives: NASA

NASA Sets Date for Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft approaches the International Space Station on May 20, 2022.

NASA has set a tentative date of No Earlier Than (NET) Monday, April 22, 2024 for what is expected to be the final test flight of the Starliner capsule. Should this Crew Flight Test (CFT) go smoothly then the Starliner-1 mission with Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk onboard would launch NET early 2025.

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NASA Report Sparks Debate over Cost Effectiveness of Space-Based Solar Power

Space Based Solar Power concept

NASA has released a report on space-based solar power that acknowledges its viability, but questions its cost-effectiveness.  While NASA grants that the technology could be used as a renewable source of energy by 2050, they raised concerns as to its potential cost vis-a-vis terrestrial generation, which sparked responses focused on whether NASA’s cost assumptions were accurate or overly pessimistic. This page is for subscribers only. …

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Simple Error Could Have Resulted in Intuitive Machines Mission Failure

On Feb. 22, 2024, Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lunar lander captures a wide field of view image of Schomberger crater on the Moon approximately 125 miles (200 km) uprange from the intended landing site, at approximately 6 miles (10 km) altitude. Image credit: Intuitive Machines

At this stage of the Intuitive Machines IM-1 mission, there is good reason for the company and NASA to celebrate. The Odysseus descent and landing was mostly successful. The news that the spacecraft tipped over and possibly broke a “leg” though does take some shine off the exuberance. However, what was barely discussed at the almost hour and a half news conference Friday was the …

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Intuitive Machines Odysseus Lands on the Moon

Intuitive Machines mission control during the descent and landing of the Odysseus spacecraft

It was a nail bitting experience and it took some time to get confirmation, but Intuitive Machines has successfully landed its robotic spacecraft Odysseus on the Moon’s south pole. It is the first time in over 50 years that an American spacecraft has landed on the Moon and the first ever successful south pole landing as well as the first successful commercial landing.

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The Need to Resolve Safety Concerns and Other Issues Delays Artemis II and III Missions

Dec. 8, 2023 - The Artemis II crew trains for post landing emergency egress inside the Orion Mockup in Building 9 at NASA's Johnson Space Center. On the top left is Pilot Victor Glover of NASA and Commander Reid Wiseman of NASA. On the bottom right are Mission Specialist's Christina Koch of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of CSA (Canadian Space Agency).

NASA has announced delays in the upcoming Artemis missions to the Moon. In an announcement on Tuesday, they said that both the Artemis II and Artemis III missions will be delayed, though the Artemis IV mission will remain on schedule.  This page is for subscribers only. Already a subscriber? Log in. Fact-driven space news, columns, business, policy, technology and more. Support independent journalism. SUBSCRIBE TODAY

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Astrobotic Peregrine Propulsion System Anomaly Jeopardizes Mission

The Astrobotic Peregrine spacecraft Multi-Layer Insulation in the foreground appears damaged.

The launch of the United Launch Alliance new Vulcan rocket carrying the Astrobotic Peregrine spacecraft at 2:18 a.m. ET was flawless. And approximately two hours later Astrobotic issued a press release saying that they had “successfully contacted the lander and began receiving telemetry. ” Everything seemed fine, but the next update several hours brought to light an anomaly that appears to have put the landing in …

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