Archive for July, 2015

From Japanese Space Whisky to Martian IPA’s, Its the Final Frontier for Booze

From Japanese Space Whisky to Martian IPA’s, Its the Final Frontier for Booze

In a story particularly fit for the start of the weekend, the Wall Street Journal reports that Japanese distiller Suntory in cooperation with the Japanese Space Agency JAXA, is planning to ship several samples of its world renown whisky to the International Space Station for study into how most alcoholic beverages mellow over time. It […]

Posted in: Mars, Space Stations
ULA Friendly Representatives Want to Know More About SpaceX Failure

ULA Friendly Representatives Want to Know More About SpaceX Failure

When the SpaceX Falcon 9 boosting the NASA CRS-7 payload exploded in the air over Cape Canaveral on June 28th, one of the first sympathetic tweets came from United Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno. It seemed sincere enough, and a refreshing moment of class in what has otherwise been a bitter battle between ULA and […]

At Ceres, NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Spirals Closer for a Summer Finale

At Ceres, NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Spirals Closer for a Summer Finale

Topographic map of Ceres. Purple is low, red is high.  Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA   As  July draws to a close and August begins, the cycle of the seasons can seem to be advancing quicker than ever. Even with some of the hottest weeks yet come, and Labor Day more than a full month away, the prevalence […]

Posted in: Asteroids, Outer Planets
NASA Announces Closest Earth Analogue Yet Discovered

NASA Announces Closest Earth Analogue Yet Discovered

Artist’s Concept of Kepler 452-B / Image Credit NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle NASA held a teleconference today to announce the discovery of the most Earth-like planet yet to be found in the habitable zone orbiting a star similar to our own Sun. The planet, which was discovered using data gathered by the Kepler Space Telescope in 2009, […]

Posted in: Exo Planets, NASA
Going Back to the Moon Within NASA’s Existing Budget

Going Back to the Moon Within NASA’s Existing Budget

The results of a new study indicate that a return to the Moon is clearly within NASA’s reach and existing budget, providing the agency is willing to follow the commercial model employed in the COTS and CRS programs to get there. The full title of the study, which was partially funded by a grant from […]

Posted in: Moon, NASA, SpaceX
Earth As Seen From Deep Space

Earth As Seen From Deep Space

From NASA.GOV A NASA camera on the Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite has returned its first view of the entire sunlit side of Earth from one million miles away. This color image of Earth was taken by NASA’s Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC), a four megapixel CCD camera and telescope. The image was generated by combining three […]

Posted in: NASA
It’s All About the Strut; Breaking Down the SpaceX Falcon Failure

It’s All About the Strut; Breaking Down the SpaceX Falcon Failure

Although the conclusions are still preliminary, SpaceX engineers believe they have tracked down the cause of last month’s spectacular failure of a Falcon 9 rocket in the skies over Cape Canaveral. The accident was apparently caused by the failure of a 2 foot long steel strut which was supporting a high pressure helium bottle. The bottle, which is located inside the […]

Posted in: SpaceX
New Horizons Sails Past Pluto

New Horizons Sails Past Pluto

Most Recent Image of Pluto Taken Before Flyby: Credit NASA/SWRI Fifty years to the day after NASA’s Mariner 4 took the first images of another planet from deep space as part of its flyby of Mars, the space agency’s New  Horizons probe has sailed past the point of its closest approach to the planet Pluto. […]

Posted in: NASA, Outer Planets
India’s PSLV Blazes Its Own Path to Space

India’s PSLV Blazes Its Own Path to Space

PSLV C-28 Lifts Off : Image Credit ISRO As many in the U.S. ponder the immediate future of commercial space launch industry in the aftermath of SpaceX’s surprising failure on the NASA CRS-7 mission to the International Space Station, rising space power India has taken another small but significant step in expanding its own commercial capabilities. On […]

Posted in: India Space, PSLV
NASA Announces First Astronaut Selections for Commercial Crew

NASA Announces First Astronaut Selections for Commercial Crew

Image Credit : NASA NASA has announced its selection of the first four astronauts which will fly under the Commercial Crew program. Given the last two weeks and the inclusive results regarding the CRS-7 mishap investgation relayed by Elon Musk earlier this week, the announcement comes as a refreshing bit of forward looking news. July […]

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