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The Space Shuttle Discovery sparkles with pride as it's unveiled to reporters before its final launch, later today. More gorgeous photos of the ship preparing for its last flight into the unknown, below. More »
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China launched its first crewed space mission in 2003, but its dreams of people in space stretch back much farther. A recurring image of that interplanetary future: chubby-cheeked toddlers cruising through space with puppies and bunnies. More »
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If you're ever stuck flying an Apollo Program module, you'd better hope you're wearing this necktie, which is silk-screened with schematics from NASA's newly declassified Apollo Operations Handbook. It's just one entrant in NASA's new contest, in partnership with Etsy.com. More »
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A rusty old cart sits in front of the Soyuz TMA-01M spacecraft at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, just a few days before its launch to the International Space Station. (The Soyuz craft, not the cart.) [Carla Cioffi/NASA via Space.com] More »
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There's something almost unbearably sad and touching about this bright piece of art, depicting astronauts on the Moon. It's going to be included on the very last space shuttle flight, the end of the space program that gave us Apollo. More »
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Need to see a thousand meters in the dark? Want one eye that's perfect for reading and another for long distances? Some eye surgeons are already at work reshaping corneas not only to fix patients' vision, but fit their careers. More »
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First Virtuality, and now Defying Gravity, predict we'll someday watch the adventures of cloistered astronauts broadcast from space. But why wait? Some suggest the upcoming simulated Mars missions offer the perfect opportunity to introduce the space program to reality television. More »
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A recent US Government study has suggested that NASA's new moon mission may need an additional $30 billion-plus to succeed. We all want to return to the moon, but perhaps not that much. More »
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When NASA retires its three space shuttles in 2010, US astronauts will have to rely on the Russian space program to gain entry to space and the International Space Station. Until 2015, when the Constellation program is scheduled to begin launching the Orion spacecraft, the US plans to purchase seats on the Russian Soyuz craft. Now some NASA officials are warning that America's presence in space could be hindered further by US-Russian tensions and the emerging Chinese program. More »
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Forget shifting priorities or a de-emphasis on science education; this week, Buzz Aldrin told the Sci Fi Channel that the real culprit behind youth disinterest in space exploration is none other than science fiction. Et tu, Buzz? After the jump, find out why Aldrin is taking the genre to task. More »
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The documentary In The Shadow Of The Moon comes out on DVD in a month, and is well worth picking up. Today we take moon landings for granted, but it's been 35 years since Gene Cernan was the last man on the moon (note for you trivia nuts), and we haven't come close to going back. In the intervening years, we've forgotten just what it took for our country to land people safely on the moon, and bring them back home. More »
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The monkeys in the U.S. space program might seem like an odd subject for an animated film, especially since scientists killed a ton of them in the process. In fact, the first six monkeys, uninspiringly named Albert I through Albert VI, all died either in flight, on impact, or right after landing. Not exactly your Saturday matinee popcorn fare, but later this year we'll have both a Space Chimps movie in theaters, and a video game featuring this crazy family of monkey astronauts. More »
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Early this morning Iran launched its first rocket into space. It was part of a test of a satellite launcher that will soon send Iran's first satellite into space sometime next year. You can hear a countdown and see the rocket zooming up into the sky in this clip from local TV. In an odd homage to the U.S. space program of yore, the launcher is named Kavoshgar-1, which means Explorer-1, the name of the first U.S. satellite. Iranian authorities say the country's space program is for peaceful, scientific endeavors. Char, Se, Doe, Yek BLAST OFF [Knight Science Journalism News Tracker] More »
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