Space

How The First All-Female Spacewalk Could Be Foiled By A Spacesuit

5:07pm March 26, 2019

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The first all-female spacewalk was called off for want of the right-sized spacesuit. NASA has long been questioned about how its limited number of suit sizes disproportionately affects women.

Queue Listen Now

Maybe Next Time: NASA Cancels Spacewalk By All-Female Team

6:53am March 26, 2019

Astronauts Anne McClain and Christina Koch were all ready to make history. Except for one thing: Both astronauts need medium-sized space suits and there's only one on the international space station.

Queue Listen Now

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory is made up of two detectors, this one in Livingston, La., and one near Hanford, Wash. The detectors use giant arms in the shape of an "L" to measure tiny ripples in the fabric of the universe.

Science

Massive U.S. Machines That Hunt For Ripples In Space-Time Just Got An Upgrade

4:40pm March 19, 2019

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The twin sites in the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory are about to go back online. New hardware should make them able to sense more colliding black holes and other cosmic events.

Queue Listen Now

Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson, shown here at a 2017 hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, has said she plans to resign.

National

U.S. Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson Plans To Resign

4:04pm March 08, 2019

by Merrit Kennedy

Pentagon sources say that Trump's hopes for a space force produced tensions between Wilson and the White House, who saw her as delaying the process. She plans to go into academia.

The Crew Dragon landed safely in the Atlantic Ocean on Friday morning, with a splashdown at 8:45 a.m. ET, as scheduled. The uncrewed craft had been on a test flight in which it docked with the International Space Station.

National

Watch: SpaceX Crew Dragon Splashes Down In Atlantic Ocean

10:38am March 08, 2019

by Bill Chappell

The craft's splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean hit its expected landing time of 8:45 a.m. ET Friday after re-entering Earth's atmosphere.

SpaceX Capsule Successfully Arrives At International Space Station

7:34am March 04, 2019

The Crew Dragon capsule docked with the International Space Station on Sunday. NASA says it is the first American commercial space vehicle designed to carry humans to dock at the station.

Queue Listen Now

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon capsule lifts off from pad 39A on Saturday in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

'Hard Capture Is Complete': SpaceX Capsule Docks With International Space Station

6:21am March 03, 2019

by James Doubek

SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule successfully docked with the International Space Station Sunday. SpaceX is demonstrating the potential for a company to carry astronauts into orbit.

FarFarOut, Man

5:37am March 01, 2019

Scientists called the most distant object in the solar system FarOut. They recently discovered an object even farther away, naming it FarFarOut.

In this illustration, SpaceX's Crew Dragon approaches the International Space Station for docking. The capsule has room to carry seven astronauts.

Science

SpaceX Readies For Key Test Of Capsule Built To Carry Astronauts Into Space

5:56pm February 28, 2019

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

For years, NASA has had to rely on Russian vehicles to get astronauts to the International Space Station. That could soon change if the flight test of SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule succeeds.

Queue Listen Now

Author Bob Berman On 'Hazards To Life In Our Universe'

8:02am February 24, 2019

It's scary out there: violent supernovas, biological mayhem and nuclear meltdowns. Lulu Garcia-Navarro with author Bob Berman about hazards to life in the universe and his book, Earth-Shattering.