NASA's Psyche mission moves closer to launch
As part of NASA's Discovery Program, the mission to explore a metal-rich asteroid is well on its way to an August 2022 launch.
With NASA's Psyche mission now less than a year from launch, anticipation is building. By next spring, the fully assembled spacecraft will ship from the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a launch period that opens Aug. 1, 2022.
In early 2026, the Psyche spacecraft will arrive at its target, an asteroid of the same name in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Watch: 14 hours of Enceladus geyser action
What a parting gift the Cassini mission gave us.
Below is a movie sequence of images, garnered from the final dedicated observation of the Enceladus' geysers by the imitable Cassini spacecraft.
Back in August of 2017, Cassini stared at Enceladus for 14 hours, looking at the moon's night side. The movie begins with a view of the part of the surface lit by reflected light from Saturn and transitions to completely unilluminated terrain. About halfway through the sequence, the exposure time of the images changes in order to make fainter features more visible as the light level drops.
"That's why stars appear towards the end—they're the small dots streaking by," said Paul Byrne, planetary scientist and associate professor at Washington University in St. Louis, who brought this animation to our attention on Twitter.
Space agencies support ISS extension as NASA warns of space race with China
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said he remains confident that Russia will remain a part of the International Space Station through the end of the decade but warned of an emerging space race with China.
Astroscale complete first test of satellite capture technology
Astroscale has completed the first major test of technology to capture and remove objects in orbit by releasing and then recapturing a small satellite.
More work needed on space stability and security
In the last year, the Defense Department has made progress in responding to the current era of strategic competition, John Hill, who is performing the duties of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy, said Aug. 24 at the 36th Space Symposium here.
Team captures data from unarmed Minuteman III test launch
A team from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) successfully collected data from the recent operational test of an Air Force Global Strike Command unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Majority of Intelsat debt holders approve plan to exit bankruptcy
Intelsat has amended its restructuring plan to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection later this year, securing the support of holders of nearly 75% of its debt.
Liquid oxygen shortage squeezes SpaceX launch plans
A widespread shortage of liquid oxygen linked to the latest wave of the pandemic could affect SpaceX’s launch schedule, a company executive said Aug. 24.
Space Station 360 – Columbus module (in French with English subtitles available)
Video:
00:02:32
ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet takes you on a tour of the International Space Station like no other. Filmed with a 360 camera, the Space Station 360 series lets you explore for yourself alongside Thomas’s explanation – starting with Europe’s science laboratory, Columbus.
Columbus is not the Station’s largest module, but it is one of the best equipped. It is the place where European astronauts conduct most of their work on board and has an external platform that allows experiments to be exposed to the vacuum of space. In addition to science racks, Columbus offers storage space and even
NASA Technologies slated for testing on Blue Origin's New Shepard
While there won't be humans on Blue Origin's 17th New Shepard mission, the fully reusable launch vehicle will carry technologies from NASA, industry, and academia aboard. The agency's Flight Opportunities program supports six payload flight tests, which are slated for lift off no earlier than Aug. 26 from the company's Launch Site One in West Texas.
For some innovations, this is just one o 
