Photo of the Day The dark-floored, 95 kilometer wide crater Plato and sunlit peaks of the lunar Alps (Montes Alpes) are highlighted in this this sharp telescopic snapshot of the Moon's surface. While the Alps of planet Earth were uplifted over millions of years as continental plates slowly collided, the lunar Alps were likely [...]
Photo of the Day September's total lunar eclipse is tracked across night skies from both the northern and southern hemispheres of planet Earth in these two dramatic timelapse series. In the northern hemisphere sequence (top panel) the Moon’s trail arcs from the upper left to the lower right. It passes below bright planet Saturn, [...]
NASA astronaut Doug “Wheels” Wheelock and Axiom Space astronaut Peggy Whitson were fully suited while conducting mission-like maneuvers in the full-scale build of the Starship human landing system’s airlock which will be located inside Starship under the crew cabin. Image Credit: SpaceX
NASA astronaut Doug "Wheels" Wheelock and Axiom Space astronaut Peggy Whitson were able to test the agility of the spacesuits by conducting movements and tasks similar to those necessary during lunar surface exploration on Artemis missions, such as operating the full-scale mockup of Starship’s elevator gate. Image Credit: SpaceX [...]
NASA astronaut Doug “Wheels” Wheelock and Axiom Space astronaut Peggy Whitson prepare for a test of full-scale mockups of spacesuits developed by Axiom Space and SpaceX’s Starship human landing system developed for NASA’s Artemis missions to the Moon. Image Credit: SpaceX
Photo of the Day Why is the Moon so dusty? On Earth, rocks are weathered by wind and water, creating soil and sand. On the Moon, eons of constant micrometeorite bombardment have blasted away at the rocky surface creating a layer of powdery lunar soil or regolith. For the Apollo astronauts and their equipment, [...]
Preparing to orbit and do science on the Moon, investigating how solar wind interacts with Mars, and demonstrating quiet supersonic flight are just a FEW of the milestones we have planned for 2025. To learn more about the missions mentioned in this highlight video, take a deep dive into these links: [0:09] Artemis II Mission: [...]
While orbiting approximately 250 miles above Earth, external cameras aboard the International Space Station captured the sixth test flight of SpaceX’s Starship after liftoff at 4 pm CST on Tuesday, November 19. For Artemis III, the first crewed return to the Moon in over 50 years, NASA is working with SpaceX to develop Starship as [...]
iss072e220043 (Nov. 19, 2024) --- The plume from the first stage of the SpaceX Starship 6 rocket as it descends into the Gulf of Mexico is pictured from the International Space Station. The launch plume can also be seen after Starship 6 lifted off from the company's Starbase site in Boca Chica, Texas. Credit: Nick [...]
This artist’s concept portrays SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System (HLS) with two Raptor engines lit, performing a braking burn prior to its Moon landing. The burn will occur after Starship HLS departs low lunar orbit to reduce the lander’s velocity prior to final descent to the lunar surface. NASA is working with SpaceX to develop [...]
