News From NASA Agencies
Articles Index
NASA Names Supercomputer After Columbia Astronaut
NASA will dedicate a new supercomputer this week to honor the memory of astronaut Kalpana "KC" Chawla, one of the seven crew members aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia, lost Feb. 1, 2003. The dedication ceremony will be held May 12 at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. NASA Names Supercomputer After Columbia Astronaut - SGI Altix™ 3000 - Kalpana Chawla.
Near Earth Objects
A recent article on BBC.com says that a small meteoroid (approximately 16 feet wide) flew past the Earth recently. It was the fourth closest pass by an object since we have been monitoring near Earth objects. Are we overdue for such an impact? What plans are in place should such a large object be discovered? It’s time for a concentrated effort to protect our world.
Hubble Uncovers Dust Disk around a Massive Black Hole
Hubble Uncovers Dust Disk around a Massive Black Hole. Resembling a gigantic hubcap in space, a 3,700-light-year-wide dust disk encircles a 300-million- solar-mass black hole in the center of the elliptical galaxy NGC 7052.
International Space Station Marks Five Years In Orbit
International Space Station Marks Five Years In Orbit. The International Space Station reaches the historic five years in space milestone on November 20, 2003. The unique orbiting laboratory complex has grown from a lone, uninhabited module into a permanently staffed, house-sized research facility.
NASA's Deep Space Network: Calling Home Is About to Get Easier
NASA's Deep Space Network: Calling Home Is About to Get Easier. This winter an unprecedented number of spacecraft will need to call home. Playing a critical role in these planetary missions is NASA's Deep Space Network, which provides the primary means of communicating between distant spacecraft and Earth. With antennas in Spain, Australia and California's Mojave Desert, the network has the ability to provide radio communications with spacecraft at all times.
President Bush's New Space Initiative
President Bush announced a new vision for the Nation's space exploration program. President Bush committed the United States to a long-term human and robotic program to explore the solar system, starting with a return to the Moon that will ultimately enable future exploration of Mars and other destinations. President Bush's New Space Initiative - Renewed Spirit of Discovery.
NASA Plans to Put an Aura Around the Earth
On June 19, 2004, NASA will launch Aura, a next generation Earth- observing satellite. Aura will supply the best information yet about the health of Earth's atmosphere. Aura will help scientists understand how atmospheric composition affects and responds to Earth's changing climate. The satellite will help reveal the processes that connect local and global air quality. It will also track the extent to which Earth's protective ozone layer is recovering. NASA Plans to Put an Aura Around the Earth.
Two Architectures Chosen for Terrestrial Planet Finder
Included in the nation's vision for space in 2004 and beyond is a plan for NASA to "conduct advanced telescope searches for Earth-like planets and habitable environments around other stars." To meet this challenge, NASA has chosen to fly two separate missions with distinct and complementary architectures to achieve the goal of the Terrestrial Planet Finder. The purpose will be to take photographs of stars and their orbiting planets to see which might be habitable, or might even have life.
NASA Introduces The Next Generation Of Explorers
NASA's 2004 astronaut candidate class was introduced today during Space Day activities at the National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va. NASA Introduces The Next Generation Of Explorers - NASA's 2004 Astronaut Candidate Class.
The Veils of Titan
The veils of Saturn's most mysterious moon have begun to lift in Cassini's eagerly awaited first glimpse of the surface of Titan, a world where scientists believe organic matter rains from hazy skies and seas of liquid hydrocarbons dot a frigid surface. The Veils of Titan - Cassini-Huygens mission Image.
NASA Genesis Spacecraft on Final Lap Toward Home
NASA's Genesis spacecraft flew past Earth on Saturday in a loop that puts it on track for home - and a dramatic mid-air recovery Sept. 8. - Genesis Spacecraft on Final Lap Toward Home.
NASA Names New Astronaut Class On Space Day
NASA Names New Astronaut Class On Space Day. The next generation of explorers is here. NASA will announce a new class of astronaut candidates, including three educator astronauts, May 6.
Gravity Probe B Achieves Science Mission Orbit
Gravity Probe B Achieves Science Mission Orbit. In its first week on orbit, Gravity Probe B — a NASA experiment to test two predictions of Albert Einstein's Theory of General Relativity — has accomplished many steps along the way in a smooth transition into the science phase of the mission. The spacecraft has already achieved a science mission orbit, within the plane of its guide star. Launched April 20 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., Gravity Probe B is managed by the Marshall Center.
Saturn in Color
Cassini-Huygens Mission Image - Saturn in Color. Saturn and its rings completely fill the field of view of Cassini's narrow angle camera in this natural color image taken on March 27, 2004. This is the last single ‘eyeful’ of Saturn and its rings achievable with the narrow angle camera on approach to the planet. From now until orbit insertion, Saturn and its rings will be larger than the field of view of the narrow angle camera.
Space Shuttle Challenger Crew Memorialized on Mars
Space Shuttle Challenger Crew Memorialized on Mars. NASA announced plans to name the landing site of the Mars Opportunity rover in honor of the Space Shuttle Challenger's final crew. The area in the vast flatland called Meridiani Planum, where Opportunity landed this weekend, will be called the Challenger Memorial Station.
Return to Flight Reference Page
Return to Flight Reference Page. The Path To Flying The Space Shuttle Again. NASA's plan for returning the space shuttle fleet to operation.
Expedition 9 On The Way To International Space Station
Expedition 9 On The Way To International Space Station. 04/19/04 - Expedition 9, the new crew of the International Space Station, was successfully launched tonight at 11:18 p.m. EDT. The crew reached orbit at approximately 11:28 p.m. EDT.
Saturn Methane Image
Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn - Saturn Methane Image. The Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn narrow angle camera took this image of Saturn on Feb. 16, 2004, from a distance of 66.1 million kilometers (41.1 million miles) in a special filter which reveals clouds and haze high in the atmosphere. The image scale is 397 kilometers (247 miles) per pixel.
Spirit Lands On Mars And Sends Postcard
NASA Mars Exploration Rover Spirit successfully sent a radio signal after the spacecraft had bounced and rolled for several minutes following its initial impact at 11:35 p.m. EST - 8:35 p.m. Pacific Standard Time - on January 3. NASA Mars Rover, Spirit Lands On Mars And Sends Postcard.
New Crews Named For 2004 International Space Station Missions
NASA and its International Partners have assigned new
crews to fly to the International Space Station this year. As
Expedition 9, NASA astronaut Edward Michael "Mike" Fincke and
Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka will be the next crew to live
aboard the complex. NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao and Russian
cosmonaut Salizhan S. Sharipov will serve as Expedition 10. New Crews Named For 2004 International Space Station Missions
NASA KSC Image Analysis Facility Studying Sarasota Kidnapping Video
NASA KSC Image Analysis Facility Studying Sarasota Kidnapping Video. Working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Image Analysis facility at Kennedy Space Center is studying the Sarasota kidnapping video of Carlie Brucia to provide any new information possible to law enforcement officers. Kennedy Space Center is joining NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama in reviewing the tape.
NASA Technology Helps Investigators In Florida Abduction Case
Two NASA facilities, the Marshall Space Flight Center
(MSFC), Huntsville, Ala., and the Kennedy Space Center (KSC),
Fla., provided technological assistance for law enforcement
agencies investigating the abduction of an 11-year-old girl in
Sarasota, Fla. NASA Technology Helps Investigators In Florida Abduction Case.
Pete Conrad Astronomy Awards Act
In Congress, Mr. ROHRABACHER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science: To authorize the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to establish an awards program in honor of Charles `Pete' Conrad, astronaut and space scientist, for recognizing the discoveries made by amateur astronomers of asteroids with near-Earth orbit trajectories. Pete Conrad Astronomy Awards Act - HR 912 IH Introduced in House.
Very Long Baseline Array Reveals Formation Region of Giant Cosmic Jet Near a Bla
Very Long Baseline Array Reveals Formation Region of Giant Cosmic Jet Near a Black Hole. Space Telescope Science Institute astronomers and their co-investigators have gained their first glimpse of the mysterious region near a black hole at the heart of a distant galaxy, where a powerful stream of subatomic particles spewing outward at nearly the speed of light is formed into a beam, or jet, that then goes nearly straight for thousands of light-years.
Gravity Probe B Launch Postponed
Gravity Probe B Launch Postponed. After a review of test data, a decision has been made to reschedule the launch of Gravity Probe B (GP-B). The launch had been scheduled for Dec. 6 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.