Deep Space Habitat

Image: NASANASA’s Artemis 1 mission is in full swing, with the agency’s SLS megarocket blasting off earlier this morning from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The freshly launched Orion spacecraft is heading to the Moon, but it captured a sweet view of Earth before saying goodbye. Orion will travel for 25 days, logging 40,000 miles (64,000 kilometers) beyond the Moon before returning to Earth. During the first few hours of its trip, Orion captured gorgeous views of our home planet glimmering in a soft shade of blue…

Photo: NASA/Keegan BarberThe most anticipated launch of the year has finally happened, so it gives us great pleasure to show you some of the more memorable moments from this historic event. NASA’s most powerful rocket ever, Space Launch System, has passed its biggest test yet. After two scrubs, two hurricanes, and an extra launch rehearsal, NASA’s SLS finally blasted off, delivering the Orion crew capsule to space and kickstarting the Artemis lunar program. Photos of the launch were—as expected—nothing short of…

Animated image showing CAPSTONE’s highly elliptical NRHO around the Moon. Gif: Advanced SpaceNASA’s Artemis program took an important step forward thisweekend, with CAPSTONE finally reaching its destination—a near-rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO) around the Moon. The 55-pound cubesat will now test this promising orbit in preparation for the Gateway lunar space station.CAPSTONE, short for Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment, reached NRHO on Sunday, November 13, according to…

Artist’s depiction of an Artemis astronaut stepping onto the lunar surface. Illustration: NASAArtemis 4 may not happen for another five years, but this mission promises to be a good one. In addition to launching a modified SLS rocket and delivering two space station components to lunar orbit, NASA will also attempt to land a crew on the Moon for the second time this decade—a feat the space agency had previously said was not practicable.Mark Kirasich, deputy associate administrator for Artemis Campaign Development at NASA,…

SLS on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Photo: NASAGround teams at Kennedy Space Center in Florida have detected an issue with one of four Space Launch System main engines and are currently working to resolve the issue before today’s two-hour launch window closes. The launch window opens at 8:33 a.m. ET.We will update this article as new information becomes available. A live stream of the action is available here:NASA Live: Official Stream of NASA TVThe unplanned hold began at 7:10 a.m. ET. Launch…

Artist’s conception of an SLS launch. Image: NASANASA’s most powerful rocket is nearly ready to send an uncrewed Orion capsule on a 42-day journey to the Moon and back, but this deceptively straightforward plan involves a ton of moving parts—including a harrowing 5,000-degree reentry through Earth’s atmosphere. Here’s what you can expect from this historic mission, called Artemis 1, as NASA officially ushers in the Artemis era.When will NASA’s SLS launch?NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) departed the Vehicle Assembly…