Stories by John Matson

Tool kit dropped from space station is orbital junk no more

A tool bag lost by a spacewalking astronaut in November appears to have met its end after more than eight months in orbit. The chief scientist at NASA's Orbital Debris Program Office says the tool kit should have reentered the atmosphere this morning...

Cloaking Made Simpler

Invisibility without sophisticated metamaterials

Space shuttle Endeavour touches down in Florida

Comet Formation Theory May Not Be Set in Stone (or Ice)

A new model for comet production revises the theory of their origins

Los Angeles claims a victory in reducing water usage

Space Aged: 10 Spacecraft from Decades Past That Are Still Ticking [Slide Show]

Whether peering into deep space or checking on human activity, spacecraft and satellites from days gone by are still on the job

New NASA chief keen on humans going to Mars and beyond

Amateur Astronomer Spies a Fresh Impact Scar on Jupiter

Follow-up observations on large telescopes confirm that something hit the gas giant

Trickle-Down Theory: Simplified Model Gives a New Explanation for How Raindrops Form

A new study concludes that raindrops reach their final state thanks to atmospheric drag that shatters the drops

Apollo 11: How to follow along, 40 years later

In a little more than an hour, the Eagle will have landed. And at 10:56 P.M. (Eastern Daylight Time), Neil Armstrong will set foot on the moon. Both of these events took place 40 years ago, of course, but they will unfold again across the Web today, to the delight of those nostalgic for the first manned moon landing in 1969 and those too young to remember...

Space shuttle Endeavour docks with space station

The biggest space party in history just got under way, as space shuttle Endeavour linked up with the International Space Station at 1:47 P.M. (Eastern Daylight Time), placing 13 people in orbit together—the most ever in one spot...

Apollo and the Moon: The Astronauts' View [Slide Show]

On the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11, NASA produces a book of photographs curated by Apollo veterans

NASA says damage to space shuttle Endeavour appears minor

The damage to space shuttle Endeavour 's heat shield during its ascent yesterday does not appear to be dangerous, NASA officials said today in a press briefing.

New NASA leaders Bolden and Garver confirmed by Senate

Charles Bolden and Lori Garver, President Barack Obama's selections to lead NASA, were confirmed as administrator and deputy administrator for the space agency, respectively, by the Senate yesterday...

On sixth try, space shuttle Endeavour blasts off for space station

After many false starts, one of the final remaining space shuttle missions got under way this evening with the liftoff of the Endeavour orbiter from Kennedy nasSpace Center in Florida...

Why Does NASA Launch Space Shuttles from Such a Weather-Beaten Place?

With Endeavour enduring multiple scrubbed launches because of storms, why does the U.S. choose to launch from Florida?

News Scan Briefs: Do Rain Forests Make Rain?

Also: ants: "I'm not dead yet," a lower high-water mark, working on the railroad, and temptation zone

International Space Station, still under construction, may be debris by 2016

The International Space Station has been a colossal undertaking among five space agencies whose final price tag will likely be in the vicinity of $100 billion dollars.

After two weather-scrubbed weekend attempts, NASA tries again for shuttle launch

Archival Telescope Data May Show Most Distant Supernovae Yet

Massive stars collapsing 11 billion years ago could shed light on the early universe