How the Ansari X Prize Altered the Trajectory of Human Spaceflight
Looking up into the bright Mojave sky in 2004, I strained to keep my eyes on the tiny spaceship 50,000 feet up. "Three, two, one... release, release, release!" came the call over the loudspeakers.
Predictions for the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics
Excitement is building — at least in science circles — for the upcoming announcements of the 2014 Nobel Prizes, along with the inevitable speculation about who might be among this year’s winners.
Asteroid Families Traced Back to the Collisions That Spawned Them
Space rocks tend to stick with their own kind
Astronauts May Moonwalk Faster Than Expected
Apollo astronauts hopped across the moon because of their stiff suits, not because of low lunar gravity
Two New Arrivals Send Back Pictures Of Mars
The skies of Mars just got a little more crowded. On September 21st, 2014 NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission (MAVEN) fired its engines for some 33 minutes in order to swing into a safe orbit.
India’s Mars Probe Sends Its First Images
The India Space Research Organization unveils its first pictures of the red planet
India Spacecraft Successfully Arrives at Mars
The Mangalyaan probe, the country's first mission to another world, has entered the Red Planet's orbit
Making Astronomy Accessible for the Visually Impaired
A couple of years ago, one of my thesis mentors sought visually impaired scientists working at a major space science agency in the United States.
Spacecraft Investigates What Happened to Mars’ Atmosphere
NASA’s MAVEN orbiter arrived at Mars to study how gas escapes from around the planet
MAVEN Maneuvers into Orbit Tonight
Last summer, I attended a new media professionals workshop at the Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) in Colorado to learn more about the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission which launched last November.
The Great Alien Debate: How Unlikely is Life?
This post is one in a series covering, and expanding on, topics in the book The Copernicus Complex (Scientific American/FSG). The conversation usually goes like this: Do you think we’re alone in the universe?
NASA's Next Mars Lander Will Peer Deep into Planet's History
The InSight Mission will measure the planet's rotation, weather at the landing site and magnetic disturbances to reveal more about Mars' inner workings and early development