The Space Shuttle is no more. Atlantis returned safely to Earth yesterday, ending the final mission of NASA's 30-year program. The Shuttle was, as Christopher Mims aptly put it on Technology Review, "one of the most complicated pieces ...READ»
In the latest installment of the Butterfly Effect, we look at what will happen to space travel after today's final shuttle launch. As NASA struggles to keep a foothold in the space industry, it will help private companies launch more ...READ»
As NASA settles for a tried and trusted solution, Britain's plans for a next-gen Space Shuttle inch forward with the Skylon: A black, future-tech spaceplane that absolutely looks the part.READ»
Fifty years ago this month, a young Russian military pilot, standing just 5'2'' tall and wearing a comically over-sized helmet that would later become an icon, was strapped into a capsule atop the Vostok-1 rocket and fired into space. ...READ»
Unless the new Congress approves an appropriations bill sending hundreds of millions of dollars to NASA, the space agency will launch its final space-shuttle mission on February 27, at 3:35 p.m., give or take 10 minutes. As the $115 billion reusable-orbital program retires, we look back at six notable missions from its 30-year history.READ»
When Discovery lifts off from the launch pad soon, it'll mark a
significant milestone in the Space Shuttle program--the beginning of its
end, since Discovery will be retired soon after she lands back on
Earth.READ»
NASA has this week submitted its first proposal for the heavy-lift rocket it'll build to succeed the Space Shuttle. Among the science and political constraints, it sounds extremely sensible, with one hitch: NASA says it can't afford it.READ»
In the absence of NASA's Space Shuttle Program, private companies are left to fill the black hole of space exploration. Now, 50 years after John Glenn orbited the Earth, some very different kinds of explorers are leading the way.READ»
SpaceX, a space transport startup bankrolled by Tesla founder Elon Musk, just became the first commercial company to receive a license to re-enter a spacecraft from orbit into Earth's atmosphere.READ»
If, like me, you're a fan of all things space-related, then this year's grounding of the Space Shuttle fleet is a tricky thing--sensible, and yet a poignant tragedy. Now the biggest voice yet has joined the pro-Shuttle debate: John ...READ»
Meet Justin, the space robot. He's clever, agile, wired to a human for control (of the robot, not the human) and he's a possible solution for fixing orbiting satellites in the post-Shuttle era. If they're dead, he can even fire them ...READ»
The fuss about NASA's future and the end of the Space Shuttle overshadowed one fact: NASA's not the biggest space agency in the U.S. The military is test-launching its own tiny space plane today, in fact, and it's damn creepy.The ...READ»
Just a few hours ago NASA's Space Shuttle Discovery sprang from its launch pad on legs of fire, bound for space--for the very final time at night. It's a mark of the end of an era in space discovery...and it'll sadly go unnoticed by ...READ»
Dutch AR developer Layar announced a 3D API today--but this AR headset dwarfs their Android app. The Wearable Augmented Reality (or WEAR) headset was developed for astronauts to view schematics and specifications while ...READ»
NASA's ambitious design to return humans to the lunar surface has been controversial right from the get-go. It calls for ditching the Space Shuttle entirely and abandoning nearly all of its technology except for the solid rocket ...READ»
