Chicago's Independent Space News Outlet
On Friday, a new HERA crew began a 45-day simulated mission to Mars inside NASA’s ground-based habitat. The four-person crew is designated as Campaign 7, Mission 1, and will live together for their analog mission as part of the agency’s Human Research Program, HRP. NASA selected and trained the four-person crew to participate in the…
After nearly three years of flying around the surface of Mars, NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter mission has come to an end. According to NASA, Ingenuity suffered rotor damage during descent on its 72nd flight and is “no longer capable of flight”. On January 18th, the final flight of Ingenuity was going to be a simple vertical…
Every year, Chicago area museums offer several free admission days for Illinois residents or all guests. These dates are announced well in advance to give guests time to plan, and the free days for 2024 are now listed. Chicago has three museums with excellent space science-based exhibits or collections- the Museum of Science and Industry,…
Following his return to Earth, NASA Astronaut Frank Rubio sat down with media to discuss details about his mission to the Space Station. Almost by accident, NASA Astronaut Frank Rubio set the record for the longest mission to space for an American astronaut. Meant to carry out a six month long mission, Rubio and his…
NASA revealed the contents of the OSIRIS-REx sample return capsule today at the agency’s Johnson Space Center. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, JSC Director Vanessa Wyche, and scientists from the OSIRIS-REx team were on hand to share initial details about the asteroid material collected. The OSIRIS-REx mission launched to the asteroid Bennu in 2016, reached the…
UPDATE: Thursday’s launch attempt has been scrubbed. NASA and SpaceX are now targeting no earlier than Friday, October 13th at 9:19 am CDT. This piece reflects updated launch and broadcast times. NASA is launching a spacecraft through space to the metal-rich asteroid, Psyche to learn more about the origins of our Solar System. The spacecraft…
At 2:27 am CDT, Crew-7 launched to the International Space Station onboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. The four astronauts on board were a truly international crew representing four different space agencies and countries. This mission is the eighth crewed mission to the ISS for SpaceX and NASA.
UPDATE: Friday’s launch attempt scrubbed. SpaceX and NASA are now targeting no earlier than Saturday, August 26th for launch of Crew 7. SpaceX is ready to launch the next crew of astronauts to the International Space Station. Crew-7 will launch in Crew Dragon Endurance on a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on…
Northrop Grumman is ready to launch its 19th commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station for NASA from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The Antares rocket will launch a Cygnus spacecraft named the S.S. Laurel Clark to the orbiting lab, carrying over 8,000 pounds of crew supplies, equipment, and research materials. NASA will livestream…
SpaceX is ready to launch the second private astronaut crew to the International Space Station (ISS) for Axiom Space. The AX-2 crew is launching to space onboard the Crew Dragon spacecraft Freedom for a ten-day mission to carry out dozens of science research investigations. Ax-2 is scheduled for launch on Sunday afternoon, May 21st, at…