Latest National Aeronautics and Space Administration News

SpaceX launches billionaire to conduct the first private spacewalk

Sep. 10, 2024 05:47 AM EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A daredevil billionaire rocketed back into orbit Tuesday, aiming to perform the first private spacewalk and venture farther than anyone since NASA's Apollo moonshots. Unlike his previous chartered flight, tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman shared the cost...

NASA spacecraft to study Jupiter moon's underground ocean cleared for October launch

Sep. 09, 2024 18:21 PM EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA on Monday approved next month’s launch to Jupiter’s moon Europa after reviewing the spacecraft’s ability to withstand the intense radiation there. Questions about the reliability of the transistors on the Europa Clipper spacecraft arose...

Two astronauts are left behind in space as Boeing's troubled capsule returns to Earth empty

Sep. 07, 2024 13:08 PM EDT

Boeing’s first astronaut mission ended Friday night with an empty capsule landing and two test pilots still in space, left behind until next year because NASA judged their return too risky. Six hours after departing the International Space Station, Starliner parachuted into New...

Two NASA astronauts stuck in space have flown long missions before

Sep. 07, 2024 00:29 AM EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The two NASA astronauts left behind at the International Space Station following the return of Boeing's troubled capsule are Navy test pilots who have ridden out long missions before. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are now full-time station...

Boeing will fly its empty capsule back to Earth soon. Two NASA astronauts will stay behind

Sep. 04, 2024 18:08 PM EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Boeing will attempt to return its problem-plagued capsule from the International Space Station later this week — with empty seats. NASA said Wednesday that everything is on track for the Starliner capsule to undock from the space station Friday...

Christa McAuliffe, still pioneering, is first woman with a statue on New Hampshire capitol grounds

Sep. 02, 2024 19:09 PM EDT

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Decades after she was picked to be America's first teacher in space, Christa McAuliffe is still a pioneer — this time as the first woman to be memorialized on the grounds of New Hampshire's Statehouse, in the city where she taught high school. McAuliffe was...

NASA cuts 2 from next SpaceX flight to make room for astronauts stuck at space station

Aug. 30, 2024 12:31 PM EDT

NASA on Friday cut two astronauts from the next crew to make room on the return trip for the two stuck at the International Space Station. NASA's Nick Hague and Russian Aleksandr Gorbunov will launch in September aboard a SpaceX rocket for the orbiting laboratory. The duo will return...

NASA record holder can relate to astronauts stuck in space. He was, too

Aug. 29, 2024 17:56 PM EDT

NASA’s record-holding astronaut is urging his two stuck-in-space colleagues to stay positive and “keep up the good work.” Frank Rubio knows firsthand about unexpectedly long spaceflights. His own visit to the International Space Station lasted just over a year, twice as long...

FAA grounds SpaceX after rocket falls over in flames at landing

Aug. 28, 2024 17:13 PM EDT

SpaceX launches are on hold after a booster rocket toppled over in flames while landing Wednesday. The Federal Aviation Administration grounded the company's Falcon 9 rockets and ordered an investigation following the predawn accident off the Florida coast. No injuries or public...

NASA decides to keep 2 astronauts in space until February, nixes return on troubled Boeing capsule

Aug. 25, 2024 07:24 AM EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA decided Saturday it’s too risky to bring two astronauts back to Earth in Boeing’s troubled new capsule, and they'll have to wait until next year for a ride home with SpaceX. What should have been a weeklong test flight for the pair will now last more than...