Space

NASA is targeting May 31 as the launch date for space shuttle Discovery's STS-124 mission. STS-124 is the 26th shuttle flight to the International Space Station and the second of three flights to deliver components of the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory.

Inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center: The external tank for STS-124 is lifted to vertical. (Photo: NASA/Jim Grossman)    » read more »

March 31, 2008 -- Could life exist beneath Enceladus? A recent flyby of Saturn's icy moon has bolstered this fascinating idea. Two years ago, images from the robotic Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn led astronomers to the undeniable conclusion that Saturn's moon Enceladus was spewing fountains of gas and ice crystals through cracks in its surface dubbed tiger stripes.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day: Close Up of Enceladus' Tiger Stripes

Last month, Cassini dove through some of these plumes and determined that they contained water vapor laced with small amounts of methane as well as simple and complex organic molecules.    » read more »

HAMPTON, Va.- NASA released Friday a photograph of the nearly 20,000-pound Orion space capsule mock-up being loaded into a C-17 cargo aircraft on Thursday, March 27, at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. The mock-up was fabricated at Langley.

NASA Orion crew module simulator is loaded on a C-17 airplane

The C-17 will transport the mock-up to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, Calif. In late 2008, the full-size structural model will be propelled off a simulated launch pad at the U.S. Army's White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico to test the spacecraft's astronaut escape system, which will ensure a safe, reliable method of escape for astronauts in case of an emergency.    » read more »

2008 March 20 -- Today, the Sun crosses the celestial equator heading north at 0548 UT.

Known as the equinox, the geocentric astronomical event marks the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere and autumn in the south.

Equinox means equal night and with the Sun on the celestial equator, Earth dwellers will experience nearly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. Of course, for those in the north, the days will grow longer with the Sun marching higher in the sky as summer approaches.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day: Sunset - Planet Earth

To celebrate the equinox, consider this colorful view of the setting Sun.    » read more »

CONTRACT RELEASE : C08-014

March 17, 2008 -- HOUSTON - NASA's Constellation Program has selected five space-related companies to receive contract awards for a 210-day study to independently evaluate NASA's in-house design concept for a lunar lander that will deliver four astronauts to the surface of the moon by 2020.

The awards total approximately $1.5 million, with a maximum individual award of $350,000. The study recommendations will be used to increase the technical maturity of the existing design in preparation for the development of vehicle requirements.    » read more »

CONTRACT RELEASE : C08-012

March 14, 2008 -- CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's Kennedy Space Center has awarded Rede-Critique of Metairie, La., the contract for Kennedy institutional support services.

The indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract has an estimated value of $45 million during a four-year, six-month performance period, which includes a six-month base period and four one-year option periods. The contract consolidates various current institutional support service contracts.    » read more »

March 14, 2008 -- WASHINGTON - NASA will hold a media teleconference at 2 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, March 19, to report on the first-ever detection of the organic molecule methane in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting a distant star.

Though the planet is too hot to support life as we know it, the finding demonstrates the ability to detect organic molecules spectroscopically around Earth-like planets in habitable zones around stars.

Briefing participants are:
- Dr. Mark Swain, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.    » read more »

March 13, 2008 -- HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- Each year around this time, John Tripp walks across a lunar surface, pondering the challenges ahead for explorers brave enough to take on its cratered terrain. For now, his "moon" is a winding ribbon of cement footpaths looped around Huntsville's famed U.S. Space and Rocket Center, where Tripp is a construction foreman.    » read more »

March 12, 2008 -- HAMPTON, Va. - NASA has completed production of hardware for use in the first flight test of the astronaut escape system for the Constellation Program's Orion crew capsule.

The hardware - a structure that simulates the Orion crew module - was designed and fabricated at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. The structure represents the size, outer shape and mass characteristics of the space capsule being designed to transport astronauts first to the International Space Station then on to the moon by 2020.    » read more »

March 3, 2008 -- Pasadena, Calif. -- A NASA spacecraft in orbit around Mars has taken the first ever image of active avalanches near the Red Planet's north pole. The image shows tan clouds billowing away from the foot of a towering slope, where ice and dust have just cascaded down.

The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter took the photograph Feb. 19. It is one of approximately 2,400 HiRISE images being released today.    » read more »

Feb. 29, 2008 -- WASHINGTON - NASA has signed a $47.5 million contract modification with Lockheed Martin, New Orleans, for space shuttle external fuel tanks. The modification aligns and extends all activities associated with the production contract to include final assembly of one tank, partial manufacture of a tank and the acquisition of the component parts for one additional tank to serve as spares.    » read more »

Feb 29, 2008 -- CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA senior managers completed a review Friday of space shuttle Endeavour's readiness for flight and selected March 11 as the official launch date for the STS-123 mission. Commander Dominic Gorie and his six crewmates are scheduled to lift off to the International Space Station at 2:28 a.m. EDT.

During the 16-day mission, the crew will deliver and install the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency's two-armed robotic system, Dextre. Five spacewalks will be conducted during the flight.    » read more »

Feb. 12, 2008 -- CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour is scheduled to roll out to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on Monday, Feb. 18, as preparations move forward for the STS-123 mission. Endeavour is targeted to lift off March 11 on a 16-day mission to the International Space Station.    » read more »

Feb. 11, 2008 -- WASHINGTON - NASA has assigned crews for the STS-127 space shuttle mission and the Expedition 19 International Space Station mission. The STS-127 mission will deliver the final components of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory to the station. Expedition 19 will double the size of the resident crew on the complex, expanding it to six people.    » read more »

Feb. 8, 2008 -- WASHINGTON - Researchers will test a NASA-funded robotic probe under ice here on Earth to demonstrate whether the probe's systems can operate in a similar environment on Jupiter's moon Europa. Testing will take place Feb. 12-15 in Lake Mendota on the campus of the University of Wisconsin, Madison.    » read more »