Space and astronomy news
Most readers of Universe Today are familiar with the International Space Station or “ISS” as it’s often referred to. But just in case you are visiting our site for the first time, the ISS is a huge space station orbiting Earth that serves as an orbital laboratory, factory, testing ground and home; crew members conduct [...]
{ 11 comments }
Chinese space prowess took another major leap forward today (Nov. 14) when the unmanned Shenzhou-8 capsule successfully re-docked with China’s Tiangong-1 space lab while speeding through space and orbiting some 343 km above Earth. Today’s events pave the way for China to rapidly ramp up their human space program and loft up to two manned [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
The Columbus Laboratory Module is a science laboratory attached to the International Space Station. It was contributed by the European Space Agency(ESA). The module was launched as part of the payload aboard the space shuttle Atlantis during mission STS-122 on February 7, 2008. The module is cylindrical and has two end cones. It is 4.4 [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
On the morning of September 21, 2011, the International Space Station made a beautiful pass over San Antonio, Texas through the constellation of Cassiopeia. The pass was caught by Adrian New using his Nikon D200 camera and 18-70mm lens. The camera was set at ISO 200 and 30 second exposure. Want to get your astrophoto [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Video caption: Liftoff of unmanned Russian Progress craft atop Soyuz booster on Oct. 30, 2011 from Baikonur Cosmodrome. Credit: NASA TV/Roscosmos. Photos and rocket rollout video below The very future of the International Space Station was on the line this morning as the Russian Progress 45 cargo ship successfully launched this morning from the Baikonur [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
The Unity connecting module, also known as Node 1, was the first part of the International space station built by the United States. The cylindrical node has six berthing locations(forward, aft, port, starboard, zenith, and nadir). It is 4.57 m in diameter and 5.47 m long. The module was launched aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Zarya, also known as the Functional Cargo Block or FGB of the International Space Station(ISS), was the first module of the ISS to be launched. The FGB initially provided electrical power, storage, propulsion, and guidance to the ISS, but after the assembly of other modules with more specialized functionality, Zarya is now primarily used for [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Space Shuttle Atlantis closed out NASA’s Space Shuttle Era with a safe touchdown on July 21, 2011 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at the conclusion of the STS-135 mission, the 135th and final shuttle mission. I was extremely fortunate to be an eyewitness to history and one of the lucky few journalists permitted [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
In the weeks leading up to the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis, I had the distinct honor to speak on several occasions with Chris Ferguson, the Space Shuttle Commander of the STS-135 mission that will soon close out NASA’s Space Shuttle Era. Chris talked to me about his childhood experiences that led him to “love [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Videographers David Gonzales, Kurt Johnson and Mike Deep filmed the final launch of the Space Shuttle from the Kennedy Space Center Press Site. The team used multiple cameras along with a high definition stereo audio recording device to capture the sights and sounds as Atlantis thundered into orbit. The goal was to provide the closest [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – The “Final Four” shuttle astronauts who will ever voyage to Earth orbit aboard a NASA Space Shuttle Orbiter jetted into the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) this week for their final simulated countdown training at the seaside Florida Launch Pad. The all veteran crew for the STS-135 mission arrived at Kennedy’s Shuttle [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
The Johannes Kepler ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle) has undocked from the International Space station and will re- enter Earth’s atmosphere on June 21st ending its mission in fiery destruction.
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
NASA has at last today (June 7) released the spectacular portrait photos of Endeavour docked at the International Space Station (ISS). These are are the first ever images taken of a space shuttle while still attached to the orbiting lab complex from the perspective of a crewed Russian Soyuz spacecraft. The breathtaking digital images were [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Check out this out-of-this-world surprise delivered by the rock band U2 to their concert audience at Quest Field, Seattle U2 on the night of June 4; A video message from STS-134 Shuttle Commander Mark E. Kelly – From the Official U2 YouTube Website According to the website, “Bono dedicated ‘Beautiful Day’ to Gabby Giffords, before [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – The last shuttle that will ever blast to space has journeyed from the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building out to the launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida in anticipation of liftoff on July 8 at 11:38 a.m. It was a proud and bittersweet moment for all the shuttle [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – Space Shuttle Endeavour and her six man crew landed safely today at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 2:35 a.m. EDT following a 16 day journey of more than sixteen million miles. The STS-134 mission marked the end of Endeavour’s space exploration career. It was the 25th and last space [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – For the last time in history, Atlantis and the shuttle program have literally gone vertical. Following the rollover of Atlantis into the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), the orbiter was attached to a massive crane and then hoisted and mated to the External Tank and twin Solid Rocket boosters that will power [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Absolutely remarkable exterior panoramic photos of the ISS and tributes by Shuttle Astronauts marked two major milestones in spaceflight history today, May 27; the last spacewalk ever by Space Shuttle Astronauts and the formal completion of the US segment of the International Space Station after 12 years of construction. Today’s spacewalk by shuttle Endeavour Astronauts [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
As the shuttle era frenetically draws to a close, the launch views of the thunderous climb to orbit captured by NASA just get ever more stunning and vividly illustrate what it’s like to liftoff to space. Check out this awesome collection of high definition videos of Endeavour’s final blast off as recorded by cameras mounted [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – Unprecedented and spectacular photos showing a US Space Shuttle Orbiter docked to the International Space Station (ISS) were snapped just hours ago and transmitted live back to ground stations and viewers on Earth as a Soyuz capsule with three space flyers departed from the station at 5:35 p.m EDT on the [...]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
