Space & Spaceflight

These Are the Reactions of an ISS Astronaut to SpaceX’s Dragon

On Friday, history was made as SpaceX’s Dragon docked with the International Space Station, marking the start of a future of privatized space exploration. Now, one of the astronauts aboard the ISS has shared his reactions to Dragon and posted them on his blog. https://gizmodo.com/watch-space-x-dragon-make-its-historic-iss-dock-live-u-5913298 André Kuipers, a Dutch physician and astronaut with the European…

Space & Spaceflight Jamie Condliffe

Read Exactly What Was Carried Inside SpaceX’s History-Making Journey

We made a lot of hoopla over the recent SpaceX launch—and for good reason. A private company has done for the first time what previously took the efforts of enormous governments. It put cargo in space! But what exactly? Tested.com says a total of 1,455 pounds of stuff was hauled up to the International Space…

Space & Spaceflight Sam Biddle

NASA Tells Future Moon Explorers to Stay Away From Its Old Space Junk

With company after company going after Google’s Lunar X Prize, NASA appears to be a little hot and bothered by the prospect of people messing with all its crap it left behind during prior missions. So it essentially claimed dominion over the moon and passive-aggressively designated a bunch of areas to be off-limits. According to…

Space & Spaceflight Adrian Covert

Watch Space X Dragon Make Its Historic ISS Dock Live (Updating)

Space X and NASA are moments away from making history. The Dragon capsule is making its final approach toward docking with the International Space Station, marking a new chapter both for NASA and privatized space exploration. It’s currently projected to dock at 10:02am EDT. You can watch it all right here: For those tuning in…

Space & Spaceflight Brent Rose

How Curiosity Will Scoop Its Way Around the Red Planet

Once NASA’s Curiosity rover safely touches down inside the Gale crater in August (*crosses fingers*), the real challenge begins. The 2,000-pound, 10-foot long rover will begin searching for traces of a wet Martian past. But first, researchers at the JPL needed to make sure its sampling arm was up to snuff—here’s how they did it.…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola

NASA’s Environment Simulation Lab Recreates Space on Earth

During the Apollo years, NASA basically made up spaceflight as it went along. Nobody was really sure what would happen to spacecraft and astronauts in the cold embrace of space. So, before exposing these multi-million dollar investments into real space, NASA subjected them to the same harsh climates—except, in Houston. NASA completed construction of the…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola

Our Sun Like You Have Never Seen It Before

NASA just sent me this beautiful video of the Sun. “There’s no science behind it,” says Scott Wiessinger, Helio and Astrophysics Video Producer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, “but it’s very pretty.” You got it, Scott. It’s also very trippy. This video takes SDO images and applies additional processing to enhance the structures visible.…

Space & Spaceflight Jesus Diaz

How We Measure the Universe Without Intergalactic Rulers

Scientists tell us that our universe is trillions of miles wide, but how exactly do they come to that measurement without an equally long tape measure? As this beautifully animated video explains, by using similar techniques for measuring distant objects here on Earth. When staring out the window of a moving car you’ve probably noticed…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Liszewski

SpaceX Finally Takes Off

First it was on, then it was off. Then on, then off. Then it had a little wobble. Now, SpaceX has finally launched, making its NASA’s first successful involvement with the world of private space flight. This is a momentous day for science, engineering and space travel. https://gizmodo.com/spacex-will-launch-its-dragon-capsule-to-the-space-stat-5904792 After launching at 3:44:38 ET, the Falcon…

Space & Spaceflight Jamie Condliffe

This Mind Blowing Image of the Eclipse Can’t Possibly Be Real (Updated)

I refuse to believe this image of the eclipse is real, as much as I wish it were. Not that it couldn’t be real. It can. I’ve seen plenty of photos of eclipses taken from space, but this one is just too awesome to be real. https://gizmodo.com/the-best-and-strangest-views-of-solar-eclipses-from-spa-5583278 Update: Indeed, it wasn’t real, but it isn’t…

Space & Spaceflight Jesus Diaz

Watch Tonight’s Ring of Fire Solar Eclipse Right Here

Tonight, China and the Western United States will be able to see an annular eclipse, the first of its kind since 1994. An annular eclipse is when the moon lines up between Earth and the Sun to create what looks like a ring of fire. It looks awesome. Of course, not all of us live…

Space & Spaceflight Casey Chan

Watch the SpaceX Falcon 9 Undergo Performance Anxiety With the Whole World Watching

They say the first time never lasts as long as you’d want. Yesterday’s failed SpaceX Falcon 9 launch is no exception. Watch the rocket tremble with anticipation and light its load, only to have its performance cut short at the last second. It’s okay, Falcon, we’ve all been there. [AP YouTube via The Atlantic] https://gizmodo.com/engine-problems-delay-falcon-9s-historic-launch-5911662

Space & Spaceflight Michael Zhao

Here’s the Achingly Beautiful Eclipse You Missed Last Night

Last night, for the first time in nearly 20 years, an annular eclipse was visible from the western United States. If you don’t live there, or do but somehow missed it, here’s the view. It’s stunning. https://gizmodo.com/everything-you-need-to-know-to-catch-sundays-rare-ring-5910156 This particular shot of the “ring of fire” eclipse was taken outside of Tokyo, where it was observed…

Space & Spaceflight Brian Barrett

Engine Problems Delay Falcon 9’s Historic Launch

Before it could slip the surly bonds of earth and dance the skies on laughter-silvered wings, SpaceX’s Falcon 9’s early morning launch was unfortunately scrapped by Nasa today due to higher than normal pressure readings in its number five engine. A SpaceX Falcon 9 aborted its launch May 19 moments after its engines ignited when…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Liszewski

SpaceX Falcon 9: The Future of Commercial Space Flight Blasts Off Tomorrow

Until just a few years ago, manned spaceflight was the exclusive sandbox of not just nations, but of the world’s select superpowers—the countries with enough disposable income to say, “F-ck it. Let’s go to the Moon.” Those days are over, sadly, slowly smothered by shrinking budgets and realigning priorities. But this isn’t the end of…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola

Nasa Wants To Snatch Asteroids With a Spiderman-Inspired Spiny Claw

Marvel’s web-slinger is able to scale tall buildings thanks to a set of spiny hairs on his fingers. And NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory thinks the same approach could make it easy for spacecraft to latch onto asteroids, comets, and other irregularly-shaped rocks. The lab has developed a microspine anchor which grips a surface using a…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Liszewski

Please Buy This Space Shuttle Food Truck and Name It the Crepe Canaveral

Seriously, you purchase this converted DC-3 from eBay for $150,000, slap on some new lettering, maybe put a speaker on the roof that makes shuttle sounds when you leave a red light, and sell deliciously-filled thin pancakes out of the back. People will be fighting to give you their money. As the truck’s product page…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola

NASA Shot the MESSENGER—Into Orbit, Around the Iron Planet

And you thought hitting a thermal exhaust port was tough? Try shooting a 1,000-pound satellite 4.9 billion miles across the solar system into orbit around a planet less than half the size of Earth, and just 28.5 million miles from the Sun. The probe launched in August 2004, but it took six-and-a-half years, six planetary…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola

What’s the Mailing Address of the International Space Station?

One day, when the price is low enough, we would be able to send actual letters and packages to space. But what would a mail address look like? Example: what’s the street and zip code of the Internation Space Station? Expedition 31 Flight Engineer Don Pettit asked himself that very same question during his stay…

Space & Spaceflight Jesus Diaz

NASA Astronauts Are Training for Missions to Asteroids

The Moon? Boring. Mars? Meh. The next giant leap for mankind won’t come in the form of an interplanetary trip, but rather a quest to the pile of rocks which weren’t quite good enough to become planets. Yup, asteroids. And NASA’s already started training for the trip. The idea behind visiting an asteroid is that…

Space & Spaceflight Adrian Covert

These Are the Reactions of an ISS Astronaut to SpaceX’s Dragon

Read Exactly What Was Carried Inside SpaceX’s History-Making Journey

NASA Tells Future Moon Explorers to Stay Away From Its Old Space Junk

Watch Space X Dragon Make Its Historic ISS Dock Live (Updating)

How Curiosity Will Scoop Its Way Around the Red Planet

NASA’s Environment Simulation Lab Recreates Space on Earth

Our Sun Like You Have Never Seen It Before

How We Measure the Universe Without Intergalactic Rulers

SpaceX Finally Takes Off

This Mind Blowing Image of the Eclipse Can’t Possibly Be Real (Updated)

Watch Tonight’s Ring of Fire Solar Eclipse Right Here

Watch the SpaceX Falcon 9 Undergo Performance Anxiety With the Whole World Watching

Here’s the Achingly Beautiful Eclipse You Missed Last Night

Engine Problems Delay Falcon 9’s Historic Launch

SpaceX Falcon 9: The Future of Commercial Space Flight Blasts Off Tomorrow

Nasa Wants To Snatch Asteroids With a Spiderman-Inspired Spiny Claw

Please Buy This Space Shuttle Food Truck and Name It the Crepe Canaveral

NASA Shot the MESSENGER—Into Orbit, Around the Iron Planet

What’s the Mailing Address of the International Space Station?

NASA Astronauts Are Training for Missions to Asteroids

‘Butt Birth’-ing Rhinoceros from Ace Ventura Sequel Sold at Auction for a Whopping $60,000

The Ryan Gosling Sci-Fi Streak Will Continue Until Morale Improves

Study Challenges Popular Theory on Why Primordial Bugs Were So Darn Huge

Ewan McGregor and Anne Hathaway’s Mystery’s Sci-Fi Film Has Its First Trailer

Scientists Just Found the Salt Limit That Pushes Your Heart to the Breaking Point

White House Social Media Just Had Its Covfefe Moment

Roborock F25 Ultra Steam Wet Dry Vacuum Is Now at Its Lowest Price, but Only During the Spring Sale Window

This $450 Semi-Dumb Phone Is Barely Even a Phone

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets

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