Orbital Spacecraft
Satellites, shuttles and space stations
What’s Real, and What’s Not?
At the National Air and Space Museum, some artifacts are more genuine than others.
June 2013 |
By Rebecca Maksel
Driving the Space Shuttle
How a team of experts navigated a spaceship through the streets of L.A.
May 21, 2013 |
By Heather Goss
Kepler’s New Planets: Is Anybody Home?
SETI researchers have already listened in for alien transmissions.
April 19, 2013 |
By Tony Reichhardt
A Brief Tour of Time (and Navigation)
A new exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum tells us where we are, and how to get where we're going next.
April 11, 2013 |
By Heather Goss
The Galileo Project
Why Europe wants its own satellite navigation program.
April 2013 |
By Craig Mellow
A Tale of Two Satellites
An artifact returns to service after being on display for eight years.
February 2013 |
By Rebecca Maksel
Can the Pentagon Unbundle Its Behemoth Space Systems?
Support for "disaggregation" of military satellites is getting louder.
January 31, 2013 |
By Heather Goss
Fear Factor
Panic attacks in an airliner? Try a smaller airplane, with a friend as your pilot.
January 2013 |
By Jeremy Davis
Splat!
The Ranger series of space probes finally succeeded — on the seventh try.
January 2013 |
By George C. Larson
Portrait of a Breakup
First-time views from inside a re-entering spacecraft.
September 28, 2012 |
By Tony Reichhardt
Kounotori’s End
A Japanese camera will try to catch first-time pictures of a satellite's breakup.
September 10, 2012 |
By Tony Reichhardt
Single Room, Earth View
America's first woman in space describes the beauty of Earth from orbit.
July 2012 |
By Sally Ride
Telstar Turns 50
The world's first transatlantic TV broadcast included a quip from President Kennedy and folk dancing in Quebec.
July 10, 2012 |
By Rebecca Maksel
Summer at the Smithsonian
Planning a visit to the Museum? We provide some helpful hints.
July 2012 |
By Rebecca Maksel
Hurry-Up Satellites
These Pentagon mavericks want to launch spacecraft within a week of taking the order. Wish them luck.
July 2012 |
By Todd Neff
DARPA and Boeing to Dream Up New Airborne Launcher
Wanted: an airborne system than can launch 100-pound satellites for under $1 million.
June 04, 2012 |
By Heather Goss
