space station

Wang Yaping is one of three astronauts aboard the Shenzhou 13 spaceflight mission. She will be the first female astronaut to visit the latest Chinese space station, but she has the most space experience of the three.

World News

China has sent a female astronaut for a 6-month stay on its new space station

1:54pm October 15, 2021

by Scott Neuman

Wang Yaping, 41, will become China's first female spacewalker. She and two male colleagues successfully launched aboard Shenzhou 13 to spend six months aboard the Tiangong station.

An arist's depiction of SpaceX's Crew Dragon, which is set to take NASA astronauts to the International Space Station May 27.

Science

Coronavirus Fears Have NASA Urging Space Fans To Stay Away From Historic Launch

4:15pm May 01, 2020

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The space agency is urging people not to travel to go see astronauts embark on their historic launch from Florida, the first time they will do so in nearly a decade.

India launched a ballistic missile defense interceptor last week — and NASA says it created dangerous debris in orbit. "We have identified 400 pieces of orbital debris from that one event," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said.

Science

NASA: Debris From India's Anti-Satellite Test Raised Threat To Space Station

1:25pm April 02, 2019

by Bill Chappell

"That is a terrible, terrible thing to create an event that sends debris in an apogee that goes above the International Space Station," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said.

SpaceX says its Falcon Heavy rocket, shown here in an artist's rendering, will be used in the mission to the moon.

SpaceX Announces Plans To Send Two Customers To The Moon

7:51pm February 27, 2017

by Merrit Kennedy

It would be the first time humans have traveled beyond low Earth orbit since the days of Apollo. The mission would be manned and financed by two private, anonymous customers.

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough shows a pouch of turkey he will be preparing for his crew in celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, aboard the International Space Station.

Here's How The International Space Station Is Celebrating Thanksgiving

5:30pm November 22, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

Astronauts at the International Space Station are planning to spend Thanksgiving in quite a traditional fashion: There will be a turkey dinner with all the trimmings, good company, and football.

A model of the planned Dream Chaser mini-shuttle designed by Sierra Nevada Corp. is displayed in March 2014 for a news conference at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans.

The United Nations Is Launching A Space Mission

9:24pm September 30, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

The U.N. is planning to send its first spacecraft into orbit, packed with scientific experiments from countries that can't afford their own space programs.

World News

China's 'Heavenly Palace' Space Lab Will Crash Back To Earth

6:52pm September 21, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

Last week, China's space program announced that the Tiangong-1 will be falling through the atmosphere in late 2017. Observers have speculated for months that China had lost control of the lab.

Hurricanes Lester, Madeline and Gaston (from left to right) are seen from the International Space Station on Aug. 30.

WATCH: International Space Station Flies Over 3 Hurricanes

10:30am August 31, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

Two hurricanes in the Pacific — Lester and Madeline — are threatening Hawaii. Meanwhile, Gaston is crossing the open Atlantic. The space station got a good view of all three of them on Tuesday.

Astronaut Tim Peake of European Space Agency took this photograph on April 6, as the International Space Station flew over Madagascar.

100,000 Orbits Later, International Space Station Still Going Strong

5:34pm May 16, 2016

by Laura Wagner

"One-hundred-thousand orbits, the journey continues," NASA astronaut Jeffrey Williams said in a video from space.

Scott Kelly Reflects On His Year Off The Planet

6:40pm March 01, 2016

by Geoff Brumfiel

During his 340 days aboard the International Space Station, the astronaut documented his time there with hundreds of photos. Kelly says the perspective makes him feel like an environmentalist.

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