Space Programs
NASA, Soviet and Russian space programs and the International Space Station
The Force Is With Them
What changes the speed of spacecraft flying by Earth?
September 2010 |
By Sam Kean
A.W.O.L.
You may have read about the X-37B, the U.S. Air Force's new unmanned orbital spaceplane, in our January issue. The secretive satellite with space-shuttlesque delta wings made its first launch on April 22 of this year atop an Atlas V rocket, and has been in orbit since, visible on the web via a numb...
August 26, 2010 |
By Mike Klesius
The Moon: Creating Capability in Space and Getting Value for our Money
Of all the possible destinations in space, the Moon offers the proximity, accessibility, and materials necessary to learn how to use what we find in space to create new capabilities. Harvesting the resources of the Moon will allow us to make what we need in space, rather than carrying it with us f...
August 24, 2010 |
By Paul D. Spudis
Remembering Belka and Strelka
By some definitions, you could say that spaceflight began 50 years ago today.On August 19, 1960, the Soviet Union launched the Sputnik 5 capsule containing 40 mice, two rats, a rabbit, some fruit flies, plants—and a pair of dogs, Belka ("Whitey") and Strelka ("Little Arrow.") They were the first li...
August 19, 2010 |
By Tony Reichhardt
He May Be a Smart Physicist, But...
Here's Stephen Hawking, commenting on humanity’s future:
...Our genetic code still carries the selfish and aggressive instincts that were of survival advantage in the past. It will be difficult enough to avoid disaster in the next hundred years, let alone the next thousand or million. Our only c...
August 11, 2010 |
By Tony Reichhardt
Nobody knows ….. how dry I am
The never-ending saga of water on the Moon continues apace. In the latest revelation, it is now claimed that the Moon is indeed “dry” after all and never had much water (this new finding is only in regard to endogenous lunar water contained inside the Moon, not to water that has been or is being ...
August 07, 2010 |
By Paul D. Spudis
A&S Interview: Story Musgrave
The veteran astronaut is the only person to fly on all five space shuttle orbiters.
August 2010 |
By Diane Tedeschi
The Air Force in 2030
Forecasting technology is a notoriously tricky business. In spite of all the predictions, we still don't have fusion power or flying cars, but in 2010 you can kick around a virtual soccer ball using a handheld camera phone, and who saw that coming?It's the job of the Air Force Chief Scientist and h...
July 30, 2010 |
By Tony Reichhardt
The Most Well-Traveled Nobel in the Universe
On May 14, 2010, when the Space Shuttle Atlantis left for the International Space Station (ISS) on its 32nd and final flight, it carried some typical items on board: the Russian mini-research module (which provided a new docking port and storage space for the ISS), and a cargo carrier filled with s...
July 27, 2010 |
By Rebecca Maksel
The Moon, Asteroids, and Space Resources
By abandoning the Moon, the administration’s proposed space policy has left the space community with a huge question mark over the important issue of learning how to harvest and use space resources. Clearly if we don’t go to the Moon with people or machines, there is no way to use the abundant wat...
July 23, 2010 |
By Paul D. Spudis
Live From the Moon!
The picture may have been grainy, but it was some of the most riveting TV of the 1960s.
July 19, 2010 |
By Mary McKillop
Technology Seeding
There's a philosophical war going on in space policy circles these days, between those who believe that grand, ambitious missions drive invention (Apollo), and those who believe it's the other way around (DARPA).Honestly, I think either approach can work, given wise management. But NASA's new direc...
July 15, 2010 |
By Tony Reichhardt
NASA’s New Mission and the Cult of Management
During a recent interview on Al Jazeera television, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden outlined NASA’s new priorities. His remarks became headlines as the previously ignored story about the redirection of the space agency toward international diplomatic outreach and global climate change research f...
July 10, 2010 |
By Paul D. Spudis
Scenes From Star City
With more NASA astronauts Twittering and YouTubing these days, you can get all kinds of insider views of the spacefarer's life if you're willing to rummage around the Web a bit.
Scott Kelly is training for a space station tour beginning in September, and over the last year has posted video scenes ...
July 08, 2010 |
By Tony Reichhardt
Roswell, "The Genesis Story of U.S. UFOs"
"It was 58 years ago today that the Roswell incident occurred," said Roger Launius, a National Air and Space Museum Space History curator who could also be considered NASM's chief skeptic. (An earlier talk of his concerned people who refuse to believe the Apollo program landed men on the moon.) Hi...
July 07, 2010 |
By Pat Trenner
Leroy Chiao on Working With the Chinese
Last week the Obama White House released its National Space Policy, a document put forward by every administration since Eisenhower's. The report gives each president a chance to articulate his vision for the nation's space activities.The new plan is notable in its call for international cooperatio...
July 06, 2010 |
By Mike Klesius
HAM the Astrochimp
Before humans could be sent into space, scientists needed to know if they could function in weightlessness. NASA had conducted tests with mice and a monkey, but then turned to chimpanzees, animals that could be trained to perform specific tasks.Enter HAM (an acronym derived from Holloman AeroMedica...
July 02, 2010 |
By Rebecca Maksel
Sightings: Cause for Reflection
Endeavour lights up the sky—and water—in Florida.
July 2010 |
By The Editors
Evolution of the Space Shuttle
How 30 years changed the world's most complex flying machine.
July 2010 |
By Michael Klesius
