Space

Books

Sherr's Book Reveals Details Of Astronaut Sally Ride's Personal Life

2:35pm June 17, 2014

Linda Wertheimer talks to journalist Lynn Sherr about her friendship with the late Sally Ride. Sherr has written a book, Sally Ride: America's First Woman in Space.

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Science

The Scientist Who Makes Stars On Earth

9:34am June 04, 2014

by Joe Palca

An astrophysicist is using something called the Z machine at Sandia National Lab to recreate the conditions on a white dwarf star — only for a few nanoseconds, but still, enough to study.

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NASA's Comic Background Explorer (COBE) was launched in 1989. It showed the background wasn't entirely even.

Science

Big Bang's Ripples: Two Scientists Recall Their Big Discovery

10:20am May 21, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

Fifty years ago today, two astronomers in New Jersey accidentally discovered the Big Bang's afterglow. The roaring space static their hilltop antenna detected came from the birth of the universe.

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Mark Kelly (left) will stay on Earth while his brother, Scott Kelly, spends a year on the International Space Station. NASA will test how the environments affect them differently.

Astronaut Twins To Separate For The Sake Of Space Travel

6:23pm April 27, 2014

by NPR Staff

Before NASA can send a manned mission to Mars, it needs to know more about how extended time in space affects the human body. Mark and Scott Kelly are the perfect subjects for such an experiment.

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Science

For All You Need To Know About The Blood Moon, Ask Mr. Eclipse

6:42pm April 14, 2014

by NPR Staff

Audie Cornish speaks with Fred Espenak, scientist emeritus at NASA Goddard, also known as "Mr. Eclipse," about the lunar eclipse that will happen Monday night.

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This computer image from a NASA video shows the small asteroid 2012 DA14 on its path as it passes by Earth on Feb. 15.

Science

Close Shave: Asteroid To Buzz Earth Next Week

4:36pm March 20, 2014

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

At its closest approach, the office building-sized asteroid will be only about 17,200 miles above the surface of our planet. Some people think this near miss should serve as a wake-up call.

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The Vikings Have Landed: Photographer Ved Chirayath staged this photograph in Palo Alto Foothills Park in California last December.

No Tax Dollars Went To Make This Space Viking Photo

4:02pm March 18, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

An enterprising grad student staged a striking photograph of Viking re-enactors pillaging through a park. NASA officials joined them — which led to multiple government investigations.

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Science

Ripples In Space Could Point To The Universe's Beginnings

5:24am March 18, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

Physicists say they've discovered a faint signal from just moments after the universe began. If confirmed, it could revolutionize our understanding of the cosmos. But not everyone is convinced.

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Russian personnel are the first to meet space station crew members when they return to earth.

Despite Diplomatic Tensions, U.S.-Russia Space Ties Persist

7:40am March 11, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

NASA needs Russian rockets to reach the International Space Station, and Russia needs NASA's money to help finance operations.

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Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts a new TV series called Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey. It's an update of the influential 1980 PBS series Cosmos: A Personal Journey, hosted by Carl Sagan.

Science
Arts

Neil DeGrasse Tyson Explains Why The Cosmos Shouldn't Make You Feel Small

9:45am February 28, 2014

The astrophysicist says that participating in a "great unfolding of a cosmic story" should make us feel large, not small. This spring, Tyson hosts a TV series called Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey.

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