Space

Science

Venus and Earth used to look like 'twin' planets. What happened?

6:00am May 08, 2024

by Regina G. Barber

Earth, Mars and Venus all looked pretty similar when they first formed. Today, Mars is dry, cold, and dusty; Venus has a hot, crushing atmosphere. Why did these sibling planets turn out so different?

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Photographers capture the Boeing Starliner capsule atop an Atlas V rocket as it is rolled out to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

Launch for Boeing Starliner's first crewed ride into space has been scrubbed

9:29pm May 06, 2024

by Joe Hernandez

Boeing's Starliner program has been plagued with delays and design problems for several years.

National

Boeing launches its Starliner spacecraft with two astronauts on board tonight

5:07pm May 06, 2024

by Geoff Brumfiel

A spacecraft built by Boeing is set to carry two astronauts to the International Space Station. Just like Boeing's airplanes, the Starliner has been beset by technical problems and safety concerns.

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NASA Administrator Bill Nelson at the space agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.

NASA's chief is worried about China getting back to the moon first. Here's why

9:33am May 06, 2024

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson told NPR he sees the U.S. in an urgent race with China to find water on the moon, and that he trusts SpaceX, despite Elon Musk's increasingly controversial profile.

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Morning news brief

5:12am May 06, 2024

The Israeli military urges civilians to leave Rafah. China's president begins a five-day European tour. NASA and Boeing are set to launch astronauts to the International Space Station Monday night.

After some setbacks, Boeing prepares for Starliner's first crewed launch into space

5:12am May 06, 2024

Boeing is set to launch humans to space for the first time Monday night aboard its Starliner capsule. This mission is years behind schedule and over budget.

NASA's administrator on ambitions to return to the moon

6:14pm May 05, 2024

NPR's Scott Detrow speaks with NASA administrator Bill Nelson about the space agency's plans to return to the moon and travel later to Mars.

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Actor Mark Hamill, wearing a pair of aviator shades he said he got from President Biden, makes a surprise appearance in the White House daily press briefing on May 3.

Politics & Government

In time for May the Fourth, Mark Hamill of 'Star Wars' stopped by the White House

4:18pm May 03, 2024

by Franco Ordoñez

Mark Hamill is known for obsessively posting about President Biden (he's a fan) and also about former President Donald Trump (he's really not a fan.) On Friday, he met Biden in the Oval Office.

This week in science: biodegradable plastic, crops on Mars and deer vs. caribou

6:27pm May 02, 2024

NPR's Juana Summers talks with Regina Barber and Emily Kwong of Short Wave about biodegradable plastic, simulating growing crops on Mars, and how deer are disrupting caribou populations.

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The world's highest altitude space observatory is open for business

7:22am May 01, 2024

Located some 18,500 feet above sea level at the summit of Chile's Cerro Chajnanto mountain, Tokyo Atacama Observatory has instruments that can see celestial objects many light years away from Earth.

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